Dar es Salaam. Four Tanzanian artists have made history by showcasing their work at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, marking the country's second participation in one of the world's most prestigious contemporary art events.
The artists—Turakella Editha Gyindo, Amani Abeid, Lazaro Samuel and Valerie Asiimwe Amani—are representing Tanzania through the national pavilion exhibition, Minor Frequencies: The Inner Life of a Nation.
Promoted by the Ministry of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports and realised in collaboration with Rangi Gallery and the Gervasuti Foundation, the exhibition explores themes of identity, memory, resilience and social change through four interconnected artistic perspectives: the Body, the Gesture, the Archive and the Mind.
The pavilion was officially opened by Mbarouk Nassor Mbarouk, Tanzania's Ambassador to Italy, while Commissioner Leah Elias Kihimbi led the national delegation. The exhibition was co-curated by Lorna Benedict Mashiba and Martina Cavallarin.
Gyindo's installation, Testimonials from the Body, uses loofah cultivated by women in Morogoro and treated with soil-based pigments to examine memory, cleansing and resistance through a decolonial lens.
Amani's participatory installation focuses on lost and abandoned dreams, inviting visitors to contribute unrealised aspirations that become part of a collective archive, accompanied by an evolving soundscape.
Samuel's works explore movement, survival and resilience through expressive canvases characterised by splashes, drips and layered pigments, reflecting experiences shaped by hardship and life on the streets of Dar es Salaam.
Abeid's paintings draw on Maasai cultural references to examine the tensions between tradition and global influence, highlighting the ways identity is continually negotiated and reshaped.
The exhibition underscores the growing international profile of Tanzania's contemporary art scene and reflects increasing global interest in African artistic voices.
Running at the Gervasuti Foundation at Supernova in Venice from May 9 to November 22, 2026, the showcase forms part of a broader effort to position Tanzanian art on the global cultural stage.
