MICHA SERRAF

“If we do not dream, we cannot rest” precedes Serraf’s solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in September 2025. It also follows his inclusion in the group show “Marvellous Realism”—the first and largest exhibition of African photography in Asia—at Fotografiska Shanghai and his 2023 residency at Gasworks in London.

The tapestries stem from Serraf’s sculptures and drawings. His clay sculptures are produced in the absence of light created with the use of blackout curtains, guided by intention and an ancestral or spiritual form. Darkness is central to his practice as it calls on his experiences growing up in Zimbabwe and moving to South Africa, both countries with power supply issues. For him, working in the dark symbolises adapting to difficult circumstances and challenging environments. Serraf builds his sculptures from the base up, with his eyes slowly adjusting to the limited light as he works. This results in a base that is more crude, rough and indistinguishable that transitions into a more refined, discernable representation of a figure towards the shoulders and head. These sculptures are sketched and transformed into Serraf’s tapestry works, placed within landscapes inspired by memory, nostalgia and imagination. They are depicted navigating or contemplating