100 X Viva Cabral
5 July 2024 - 7 July 2024
‘Viva Cabral’ in one hundred paintings and drawings: the Rotterdam platform for Cabo Verdean culture Nosagenda brings the touring group exhibition 100 X Viva Cabral to the Nieuwe Instituut for a few days. To mark the centenary of the birth of independence fighter Amílcar Cabral, various painters and illustrators from Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Angola and Portugal have been inspired by his life and work. The exhibition will be unveiled during the Nosagenda Dance of Freedom event on 5 July.
Amílcar Cabral
Agriculturalist, poet and revolutionary, Amílcar Cabral played a key role in the anti-colonial struggle for independence in the former Portuguese colonies of Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde, and had an undeniable influence on the independence of Angola and the Carnation Revolution that ended the Estado Novo dictatorship in Portugal itself. Cabral is often mentioned in the same breath as Frantz Fanon and Che Guevara for his influential revolutionary theory and tactics. Cabral’s anti-imperialist and socialist ideas were not confined to the African continent: he also expressed solidarity with freedom fighters in countries such as Vietnam and Palestine. His call for ‘mental decolonisation’ inspired other thinkers such as the Brazilian educator Paulo Freire.
Since imperialist domination goes hand in hand with cultural oppression, the use of the arts in the struggle against colonialism is inevitable, according to Amílcar Cabral. A shared history, identity and vision of a possible future – the things that allow peoples or communities to express their individuality and self-determination as a nation – are often the first things that oppression deprives them of: “This makes national liberation a cultural act in itself.”
100 X Viva Cabral
The project was initiated by the Tutu Sousa Art Gallery (Cabo Verde) and the artists collective Projeto Borderlovers (Portugal). It was subsequently extended by Sidney Cerqueira (Guinea-Bissau). The exhibition was first shown in Cabo Verde in April 2024. After Rotterdam, the exhibition will travel to Lisbon and Guinea-Bissau. The Rotterdam edition of the exhibition was made possible by Nosagenda and the efforts of the artists involved.
Dance of Freedom
The exhibition opens during the Dance of Freedom, an event organised by Nosagenda to celebrate the independence of Cape Verde on 5 July 1975.
“In 2024, Nosagenda (‘our agenda’) will once again organise a Dance of Freedom. The Rotterdam platform for Cabo Verdean culture will celebrate the archipelago’s 49th Independence Day with stories, music and typical dishes from Cabo Verde. Experience this unique and warm atmosphere on 5 July at the Nieuwe Instituut.”
Tickets for the event are available on the Nosagenda ticket platform.
