On 9 November, the Italian Cultural Institute in Dakar announced the opening of its new headquarters in Plateau with the exhibition “Souvenir d’Italie”, presented on the occasion of the 15th edition of the Dakar Art Biennale – section OFF and the 13th edition of Partcours. The exhibition, which will remain open to the public at the Institute’s new premises until 8 February, is part of the initiatives aimed at strengthening cultural ties between Italy and Senegal, offering a platform for artists and communities to meet.
The exhibition is curated by Eugenio Viola, Artistic Director of MAMBO – Museum of Modern Art in Bogotá and one of Italy’s most influential curators internationally, and reflects the theme chosen by the Dakar Biennale: “The Wake”.
The title “Souvenir d’Italie” is borrowed from Antonio Pietrangeli’s 1957 film, a tourist comedy that played on popular stereotypes to promote Italy. The exhibition seeks to subvert this simplified vision to propose a critical reflection on what Italy represents today, and how Italian culture is influenced and enriched by stories and visions coming from Africa and its diasporas.
The exhibition brings together works by Binta Diaw, Adji Dieye and Délio Jasse, three Italian or Italian-resident artists of African origin who explore themes related to memory, identity, migration and diaspora, highlighting the complexities of a world that is increasingly connected and multicultural, but also marked by new forms of intolerance.
The exhibition promotes a message of openness to dialogue and coexistence between cultures, highlighting the role of art as a tool for building bridges rather than barriers.
“Souvenir d’Italie – explained curator Eugenio Viola – invites us to recognise and celebrate the complexity of migratory and identity-related experiences, past and present. It invites us to rethink Italian-ness in a global context, offering a space for reconciliation and dialogue between diversities, stimulating a critical reflection on the concepts of identity and belonging, now more fluid and renegotiable than ever.”
