LUBAINA HIMID
b. 1954, TanzaniaLubaina Himid CBE RA (b. 1954, Zanzibar) is a pioneering British artist, curator, and cultural activist, celebrated as a leading figure in the British Black Arts Movement and a major voice in contemporary painting and installation. She is an Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Art at the University of Central Lancashire and is internationally recognised for work that addresses race, history, feminism, cultural memory, and the legacies of colonialism. In 2017, she became the first Black woman and the oldest artist to win the Turner Prize, and she has been selected to represent the United Kingdom at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia in 2026, where she will present a major solo exhibition of new work at the British Pavilion.
Early Life and Education
Born in Zanzibar, Tanzania, in 1954, Himid moved to the United Kingdom as an infant with her mother, a textile designer, after the death of her father. She grew up in London, surrounded by fabric, pattern, and colour, influences that would later become central to her visual language. Himid studied Theatre Design at Wimbledon College of Art, graduating with a BA before going on to earn an MA in Cultural History from the Royal College of Art in London in 1984. These formative years laid the groundwork for a practice that combines visual storytelling, stage-like installation, and critical historical research to challenge dominant narratives and foreground Black experiences.
Artistic Practice and Themes
Working across painting, installation, found and painted cut-outs, sound, and curatorial projects, Himid’s work is characterised by bold colour, intricate pattern, text, and carefully staged environments that foreground marginalised histories and overlooked protagonists, particularly Black women and diasporic communities. Drawing on archival research, oral histories, and everyday objects, she explores maritime trade, labour, migration, architecture, and the afterlives of empire, often using humour and theatricality to expose structures of power and invite viewers into complex conversations.
British Black Arts Movement and Early Work
In the 1980s, Himid emerged as one of the first artists in the UK’s Black Art movement, helping to build platforms for Black artists at a time when institutions offered little visibility. Her landmark installation A Fashionable Marriage (1984–86) reimagines William Hogarth’s Marriage A-la-Mode, using life-size cut-outs, collage, and satire to critique racism, sexism, and patronage within the British art world and wider society. During this period, she also organised groundbreaking exhibitions including The Thin Black Line at the ICA, London (1985) and related shows that brought together Black women artists, establishing an alternative art history that has since become canonical.
Key Works: Naming the Money, Plan B and Beyond
Himid’s acclaimed installation Naming the Money (2004) comprises 100 life-size painted cut-out figures representing enslaved and displaced Africans employed in European courts and households, each accompanied by a text that contrasts their imposed role with their real identity. The work powerfully rehumanises people historically anonymised by slavery and empire and has been widely exhibited as a cornerstone of her practice.
Her ongoing Plan B works use architectural forms, ships, coastlines, and imagined shelters to reflect on migration, climate, and the fragility of home, often depicting coastal towns, ports, and temporary structures that question who is protected and who is left exposed. Across recent series and exhibitions, she continues to experiment with multi-panel paintings, sound, and narrative scores, inviting audiences to consider how histories are constructed and how they might be retold.
Public and Collaborative Projects
Himid has produced numerous site-responsive and public-facing projects, often emphasising collective authorship, performance, and community histories. She has worked with theatres, museums, and grassroots organisations to create stage environments, murals, and architectural interventions that extend her interest in how stories occupy space and how audiences move through them.
Major Exhibitions
Himid’s work has been widely exhibited in the UK and internationally. Important solo exhibitions include:
- Navigation Charts, Spike Island, Bristol (2017), which brought together paintings and installations exploring seafaring, mapping, and the movements of people and good.
- Work from Underneath, New Museum, New York (2019), an exhibition addressing labour, safety, and the architectures of care and control through large-scale, colour-rich works on wood and canvas.
- A major retrospective at Tate Modern, London (2021–2022), titled Lubaina Himid, which surveyed four decades of practice through immersive rooms combining painting, sound, and scripted prompts for visitors.
- A solo exhibition at The Contemporary Austin, Texas (2024) and a subsequent presentation in New York, organised as part of the Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize.
Himid has also participated in landmark group exhibitions, including the 57th Venice Biennale (2017), Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power at Tate Modern (2017), and numerous shows focused on Black British art, feminist practices, and contemporary painting.
Venice Biennale 2026
In February 2025, the British Council announced that Lubaina Himid CBE RA will represent the UK at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia in 2026, presenting a major solo exhibition of new work at the British Pavilion. The pavilion exhibition, titled Predicting History: Testing Translation, will comprise large, multi-panel paintings in vivid colour, narrative texts, performances, and a soundscape created in collaboration with artist Magda Stawarska. This new body of work will explore belonging, the idea of home, and the experience of living between places, further extending the themes of history, memory, and movement that run through her practice.
Honours, Awards, and Institutional Roles
Himid’s contributions have been recognised with numerous honours: she was appointed MBE in 2010 for services to Black women’s art, promoted to CBE in 2018 for services to art, and elected a Royal Academician (RA) in 2018. She won the Turner Prize in 2017, a watershed moment that cemented her status as a key figure in contemporary art. In 2023, she received the Maria Lassnig Prize, including an exhibition at UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, and in 2024 she was awarded the Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize, leading to solo exhibitions in Austin and New York. She lives and works in Preston, UK, where she is Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Art at the University of Central Lancashire.
Lubaina Himid FAQs
Who is Lubaina Himid and why is she important?
Lubaina Himid CBE RA (b. 1954, Zanzibar) is a British artist, curator, and cultural activist known as a pioneer of the British Black Arts Movement and a major voice in contemporary painting and installation. She is celebrated for bringing Black histories, women’s experiences, and the legacies of colonialism to the centre of British art and has influenced generations of artists through both her practice and her teaching as Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Art at the University of Central Lancashire. In 2026, Himid will represent the United Kingdom at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, presenting a major solo exhibition of new work in the British Pavilion.
What themes does Lubaina Himid explore in her artwork?
Lubaina Himid’s work focuses on race, history, feminism, cultural memory, and the afterlives of empire, often highlighting the lives of Black women and diasporic communities who have been overlooked in mainstream narratives. She frequently addresses maritime trade, labour, migration, architecture, and ideas of home and belonging, using bold colour, pattern, text, and theatrical staging to invite viewers into complex conversations about power, visibility, and representation.
What are Lubaina Himid’s most famous works?
Some of Lubaina Himid’s best-known works include A Fashionable Marriage (1984–86), a satirical reworking of Hogarth’s Marriage A-la-Mode that critiques racism, sexism, and patronage in the art world, and Naming the Money (2004), an installation of 100 life-size painted cut-out figures representing enslaved and displaced Africans employed in European courts and households. Her ongoing Plan B series—featuring ships, coastlines, architectural structures, and imagined shelters—continues her exploration of migration, climate, and the fragility of home.
What major awards and honours has Lubaina Himid received?
In 2017, Lubaina Himid became the first Black woman and the oldest artist to win the Turner Prize, a landmark moment in contemporary art. She was appointed MBE in 2010 for services to Black women’s art, promoted to CBE in 2018 for services to art, and elected a Royal Academician (RA) in 2018. More recently, she received the Maria Lassnig Prize (2023), which included an exhibition at UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, and the Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize (2024), leading to solo shows in Austin and New York. In 2026, Himid will represent the United Kingdom at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, presenting a major solo exhibition of new work in the British Pavilion
What is Lubaina Himid doing for the Venice Biennale 2026?
In 2026, Himid will represent the United Kingdom at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, presenting a major solo exhibition of new work in the British Pavilion titled “Predicting History: Testing Translation.” The project will feature large, multi-panel paintings in vivid colour, narrative texts, performances, and a soundscape created with artist Magda Stawarska. It will explore belonging, home, and the experience of living between places, extending the concerns with history, memory, and movement that run throughout her practice.
Ocula | 2026
Lubaina Himid in Ocula Magazine
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