Lubaina Himid has been selected to represent Great Britain at the Venice Biennale, taking over the British Pavilion. The announcement came just before Christmas 2024, shortly before the opening of her first solo exhibition in China at the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, which features major works including 'Naming the Money' (2004). Himid, who was born in Zanzibar and raised in London, is a Turner Prize-winning artist known for centering Black narratives and marginalized histories through theatrical, life-size cut-out figures.
This appointment is significant because Himid has been a key figure in British art and cultural activism for decades, yet she had never before participated in the Venice Biennale in any capacity. She joins a lineage of Black British artists representing the UK at Venice, including Sonia Boyce (2022) and John Akomfrah (2024). Her selection underscores a long-overdue institutional recognition of artists who have historically been overlooked, and it marks a major moment for British creativity on the global stage.