The imagery in Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum’s work reflects the diverse genealogies of her experience living in different parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, and the U.S. as well as ongoing research in ethnography, ecology, and quantum physics.
2023 Biennial Year Find out more
Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum’s multidisciplinary practice encompasses drawing, painting, installation and animation. Her work alludes to mythology, geology and theories on the nature of the universe. Sunstrum’s works make reference to literature, film, theatre, and other forms of storytelling to build an ever-expanding narrative. These ongoing sagas unfold within terrains that appear simultaneously futuristic and ancient: a patchwork of remembered landscapes from her upbringing in places such as Botswana, Canada, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Panama, and others. The characters in her work stand as a collective: a nebulous cast of bodies in constant flux amidst ever-slipping and insufficient notions of self-hood and belonging.
Key exhibitions and performances include: I have withheld much more than I have written, Galerie Lelong, New York, USA (2022) Greater Toronto Art 2021 (GTA21), MOCA Toronto, Canada (2021); Born in Flames: Feminist Futures, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York City (2021); WITNESS: Afro Perspectives from the Jorge M. Pérez Collection, El Espacio 23, Miami, Florida (2021); Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum: All my seven faces, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, Ohio (2019); Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa (2019); The Wiels, Brussels, Belgium (2019); Kunsthaus Zürich (2019); The Nest, The Hague (2019); Michaelis School for the Arts at the University of Cape Town (2018); Artpace, San Antonio, Texas (2018); The Phillips Museum of Arts, Lancaster (2018); Interlochen Centre for the Arts, Interlochen (2016); NMMU Bird Street Art Gallery, Port Elizabeth (2016); Tiwani Contemporary, London (2016); VANSA, Johannesburg (2015); Brundyn Gallery, Cape Town (2014); FRAC Pays de Loire, France (2013); the Havana Biennial (2012); and MoCADA, New York City (2011).
In 2023, the artist will show a newly commissioned solo project at Bloomberg Space in London, participate in the 15th Sharjah Art Biennale (SB15), participate in the Liverpool Biennal and have a solo exhibition at Goodman Gallery Johannesburg, South Africa.
Liverpool Biennial 2023
'Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee' (2022)
Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum’s work alludes to mythology, geology and theories on the nature of the universe. Her works make reference to literature, film, theatre, and other forms of storytelling to build an ever-expanding narrative. This narrative unfolds within terrains that appear simultaneously futuristic and ancient: a patchwork of remembered landscapes from her upbringing in places such as Botswana, Canada, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Panama, and others.
In ‘The Committee’, a silhouetted audience of white men and women in Victorian dress look disapprovingly across the room towards a red projector. As visitors, we are invited to join them by sitting on wooden benches facing the same way. The bespoke benches and projection screen, designed in collaboration with Remco Osório Lobato, were made
Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum’s work alludes to mythology, geology and theories on the nature of the universe. Her works make reference to literature, film, theatre, and other forms of storytelling to build an ever-expanding narrative. This narrative unfolds within terrains that appear simultaneously futuristic and ancient: a patchwork of remembered landscapes from her upbringing in places such as Botswana, Canada, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Panama, and others. In ‘The Committee’, a silhouetted audience of white men and women in Victorian dress look disapprovingly across the room towards a red projector. As visitors, we are invited to join them by sitting on wooden benches facing the same way. The bespoke benches and projection screen, designed in collaboration with Remco Osório Lobato, were made to mimic Victorian architectural and spatial design. Within the silent and repeating animation ‘Mumbo Jumbo’ Sunstrum plays seven characters. These ‘Seven Sisters’, who have appeared frequently in previous works, stand as a collective: a nebulous cast of bodies in constant flux amidst ever-slipping and insufficient notions of self-hood and belonging. ‘Mumbo jumbo’, from which the piece takes its name, originates from the Mandinka word ‘Maamajomboo’, which refers to a masked male dancer from religious ceremonies. This was introduced into English language by a British colonist, evolving into a term that describes confusing or meaningless language. Used here, the artist lays claim to a term used as a sweeping dismissal of the complexities of Black cultural histories. When seen as a whole, ‘Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee’ speak collectively to systems that try to constrain Blackness within colonialist or capitalist arenas of spectacle, valuation, and appraisal. Showing at Tate Liverpool + RIBA North
'Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee' (2022)
Showing at Tate Liverpool + RIBA North
Monday to Sunday 10.00am-5:50pm-
Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, ‘Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee’, 2022. Installation view at Tate Liverpool. Courtesy of Liverpool Biennial. Photography by Stuart Whipps
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Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, ‘Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee’, 2022. Installation view at Tate Liverpool. Courtesy of Liverpool Biennial. Photography by Stuart Whipps
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Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, ‘Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee’, 2022. Installation view at Tate Liverpool. Courtesy of Liverpool Biennial. Photography by Stuart Whipps
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Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, ‘Mumbo Jumbo and The Committee’, 2022. Installation view at Tate Liverpool. Courtesy of Liverpool Biennial. Photography by Mark McNulty
