“A Thousand Tales”

The project “A thousand tales”, developed by visual artist Mónica de Miranda in collaboration with curator Cindy Sissokho and sound artist Xexa records was part of the Lagos Biennale 2024, themed REFUGE. “A Thousand Tales” is a multimedia installation project , which uses visual and sonare interventions to open up a conversation about belonging and diaspora; through the notions of identity, memory in relation to space, displacements and history.

Themed REFUGE, Lagos Biennial 2024 addressed the concept of the nation-state and critically reflects on the site of the exhibition, Tafawa Balewa Square, the venue of Nigerian independence celebrations in 1960, and also a key venue of the Festival of Black Arts and Culture FESTAC ’77, notably hosting a concert of the great musician an activist Miriam Makeba. The important legacy of FESTAC is seen in its ambition to create a planetary-scale project that celebrates and promotes African cultures of the continent and its diasporas. Also important as a point of reference is the 6th Pan African Congress in 1974 in Dar es Salaam, the first of the series to take place on the African continent.

Artistic Directors: Kathryn Weir and Folakunle Oshun