Lubaina Himid will represent Great Britain at the 61st Venice Biennale in 2026. She plans to exhibit a new installation of large, multi-panel paintings and works on found objects, accompanied by a sound piece by Magda Stawarska, all inspired by her lifelong exploration of belonging. The work aims to navigate melancholy and deep remembering, inviting visitors to bring their own experiences into the pavilion.
Himid's selection and her commentary highlight the ongoing significance of the Biennale as a global forum for artistic exchange and questioning. Her responses critically engage with the role of national pavilions amidst rising nationalism, framing them as spaces for challenge and free communication. As a Turner Prize-winning artist born in Zanzibar, her perspective complicates and enriches the concept of national representation, emphasizing Britain's international character and the vital contributions of those from 'somewhere else'.