Art Gallery

A visitor to Ilha de Mozambique will be confronted with a culture that at large still is authentic which makes this city a rare case amongst other world cultural heritage sites. We feel that being involved in tourism therefore is a dilemma as the transformation of this former trading post into a destination for people to come and visit will challenge this rare authenticity.

Art is a vehicle to make things visible that might be difficult to see without help. At the side of being a space where art can be shown to the public, we decided to create a space that can also be the setting to create art and in the process involve the local community. It is our intention to use the gallery for workshops where existing local knowledge of craft will be transmitted to the young population of Ilha and where resident artists will work on projects commenting the contemporary situation of a society in the process of transformation. Conflicts and friction will be an integrated part of this large process and it is our hope that the gallery can play a role in creating dialogue that might help to overcome the differences inherent in this transformation.

The gallery’s localization is a key in this effort as it finds itself on the border between Stone-town and Macuti-town. Maybe bridges can be created between the two different parts of Ilha and also between the past, the present and the future. “In Culture we trust”.