Mbuya, muripi? Mbuya, muripi!

^{_{Image courtesy Marcia Harvey Isaksson}}

Mbuya, muripi? Mbuya, muripi!

(Grandmother, where are you? Grandmother, the atoner!)

A durational performance by Marcia Harvey Isaksson

Friday 11 October 2024, 12.00 – 16.30

In 2022, British media reported that two UK museums were willing to return the remains of Zimbabwean heroes executed for rising against British colonial rule in the late 19^th century. Among them was Nehanda Charwe Nyakasikana also known as Mbuya Nehanda (c. 1840–1898), a Shona spiritual leader.

A direct descendant of Mbuya Nehanda, or Charwe, Zimbabwean artist Marcia Harvey Isaksson, whose work is part of transfeminisms Chapter IV: Care and Kinship, will perform remembrance invocations at Mimosa House, and across sites known to have kept colonial trophies: the British Museum, Natural History Museum, and Science Museum.

Harvey Isaksson will weave her ancestor’s name into fabric to the sound of the mbira – a traditional Zimbabwean instrument known for its ability to evoke spirits.

This durational weaving performance will begin at Mimosa House at 12.00 and continue at the British Museum (14.15), Science Museum (15.40) and Natural History Museum (16.00).

About the artist

Marcia Harvey Isaksson (b. 1975)

Originally from Zimbabwe, Marcia Harvey Isaksson is based in Stockholm and graduated from Beckmans College of Design in 2008. Since then, she has worked as an exhibition designer and interior architect. In her artistic practice she uses weaving and other textile methods to investigate cultural and personal heritage, the transfer of knowledge over generations, and how narratives of the past affect the present and the future. She is interested in site-specific narratives, often working with a mix of media, from sculpture to performance.

Harvey Isaksson is also the founder of Southnord, a platform which purpose is to make space for Black and Afro-Nordic artists. She previously ran Fiberspace (2015-2023), an arena for textile art, handicrafts, and design.

Friday 11 October , 12.00 – 16.30

Starting at Mimosa House
47 Theobalds Road
London WC1X 8SP

Free event, open to all. Book you place here.