Black Ancient Futures

Black Ancient Futures brings together a group of African artists and members of the African diaspora to Lisbon for an exhibition that reimagines the past, present,

and future of the black artistic experience on a transcontinental scale. Participating artists were invited to speculate on utopian dreams of abundance and well-being, challenging geographical hierarchies.

The participating artists include Jota Mombaça (she/her), Jeannette Ehlers (she/her), Evan Ifekoya (they/them), Nolan Oswald Dennis (they/them), Sandra Mujinga (she/her), April Bey (she/her), Gabriel Massan (they/them), Tabita Rezaire (she/her), Kiluanji Kia Henda (he/him), Lungiswa Gqunta (she/her), and Baloji (he/him). These artists represent diverse communities from around the world, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, South Africa, Zambia, Nigeria, Brazil, Trinidad, The Bahamas, and more.

Black Ancient Futures seeks to challenge the dominant aesthetic representations of “Africa”, by re-imagining a past, present, and future for the black artistic experience, in a transcontinental reality. It explores the creative possibilities that emerge from the intersection of different African cultures with others, revealing personal histories of exile and settlement forced by the system of slavery or of migration, whether voluntary or involuntarily by economic and climatic conditions.

MAAT

Av. Brasília, Belém

Lisbon, Portugal

Visiting hours: Wednesday to Monday, from 10am to 7pm

www.maat.pt