By: Jonah Lazar, Staff Writer
Throughout February, the Vancouver Art Gallery, in partnership with the VIFF and the Black Arts Centre, is hosting Celebrating Black Futures 2026. It looks to spotlight Black and African artists, while sparking meaningful discourse and critical reflection among its guests. This public programme began on February 7 with Haitian Canadian poet Junie Désil leading a generative writing workshop, with a BC premiere of the film Black is Beautiful: the Kwame Brathwaite Story four days later. Then, former members of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee led a panel discussion on photography and social justice on February 14. The programme concludes on February 28 with a BC premiere of Michèle Stephenson’s True North and a concert by the composer of the documentary’s score, Canadian jazz pianist Andy Milne. I spoke with the curator and organizer of Celebrating Black Futures 2026, Kika Memeh via email, to learn more about the programme and its ambitions:
What drew you to the events you selected for Celebrating Black Futures 2026?
It’s necessary to create multiple, accessible entry points for people to engage with art. With most of the events being interdisciplinary, writing and film, it’s an avenue to get guests to actively participate in personal interpretation, draw connections between our exhibitions and the world around us, and discover new artists that are outside one’s field of vision.
A few of these events aim to start conversations on the intersections between Black experiences and the experiences of other marginalized groups. What role do you see art as having in these conversations?
Art plays an essential role in thoughtfully provoking these conversations. Either through offering space for a multiplicity of interpretations, which often reveals intersections in thoughts and experiences, or through the subject matter of the work being universally relatable across different groups.
What do you want audiences to take away from these events?
The foremost goal is for the audience to become acquainted with artists beyond their purview. Another goal is for audiences to leave with an expanded understanding of the works on view at the gallery. The writing workshop, for instance, invites guests to reflect deeply on the works of Indigenous artists featured in the gallery’s exhibition We who have known tides: Indigenous Art from the Collection, but through the words and musings of writers such as Dionne Brand, Toni Morrison, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, and the thoughtful guiding of Vancouver-based poet, Junie Désil. The last but not the least takeaway should be a whetted appetite for engagement in global conversations beyond Canadian contexts. This is paramount for sustaining a well-rounded, conscientious cultural sector.
“A thriving metropolis like Vancouver requires consistent participation in cultural dialogues, especially those concerning Black and African experiences.” — Kika Memeh, curator of Celebrating Black Futures 2026
Because Canada — and specifically Vancouver and BC — has longstanding historical ties to the African diaspora and the African continent.
Lastly, do you have any final words for potential attendees?
Continue to nurture an honest curiosity for a world beyond what you’re accustomed to. Your curiosity and interest in art and artists beyond your field of vision is necessary in continuing these conversations at the gallery and expanding our art landscape into one of fully global relevance.
Check out the concluding act of Celebrating Black Futures 2026 with jazz pianist Andy Milne’s concert, followed by the BC premiere of True North, on February 28.
