The public programme accompanying Himoya: Matrilineal Energies, Oracular Kin brings together artist talks, curatorial tours, discussions. Featuring artists, curators, and researchers from Central Asia and beyond, the programme opens up conversations around memory, matrilineal heritage, ritual, cultural transmission, and diverse forms of knowledge.

10 October, Saturday

14:00–16:00  -  Artist Talk with Aziza Kadyri

Aziza Kadyri is an Uzbek multidisciplinary artist based in London, working across textiles, sculpture, performance, installation, and digital technologies. Her practice moves between craft and emerging technologies to explore migration, memory, decolonisation, and women’s identities. Her current commission Sender Unknown is on view at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. Aziza Kadyri

In this artist talk, Kadyri will share her practice and speak about how personal memory, cultural heritage, technology, and questions of identity come together in her work.

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15 October, Thursday

14:00–15:00  -  Artist talk with Pramodha Weerasekera and Natasha Ginwala

Natasha Ginwala is a curator and writer, Artistic Director of Colomboscope, and curator of international exhibitions and biennials. Her work engages with contemporary art, visual culture, and questions of social justice.

Pramodha Weerasekera is a Sri Lankan art writer, curator, and public programmes specialist whose practice brings together gender studies, affect, feminist approaches, and contemporary South Asian art.

16:00–17:00  -  Curatorial tour with Natasha Ginwala

Join exhibition curator Natasha Ginwala for a tour exploring the ideas, artistic practices, and key themes that shape Himoya: Matrilineal Energies, Oracular Kin.

17:30–18:30  -  Artist talk with Almagul Menlibayeva

Almagul Menlibayeva is a Kazakh contemporary artist whose multimedia practice explores Central Asian histories, memory, gender, ecology, and Eurasian mythologies through photography, video, and installation.

In Russian. 

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16 October, Friday

14:00–15:30  -  Artist talk and workshop with Citra Sasmita

“Women Who Carry the Mountain: Balinese Rituals, Cosmology, and the Art of Devotion”

Citra Sasmita is a self-taught Balinese artist whose practice reinterprets traditional Balinese myths and imagery through painting, sculpture, and installation. Her work addresses gender, patriarchy, and the position of women in society.

In this talk, Sasmita will discuss Balinese rituals, cosmology, and artistic practices rooted in devotion and spirituality. The artist talk will be followed by a practical session, where participants will have the opportunity to try the traditional Sigar Mangsi drawing technique on Kamasan canvas, rooted in a philosophy that moves from the unseen to the seen and reflects a connection to the spiritual realm.

16:00–17:00  -  Curatorial tour with Natasha Ginwala

Join exhibition curator Natasha Ginwala for a tour exploring the ideas, artistic practices, and key themes that shape Himoya: Matrilineal Energies, Oracular Kin.

17:30–19:00 - Artist talk with Rajni Perera: other/Myth

Rajni Perera is a Sri Lankan-born, Toronto-based artist whose multimedia practice spans painting, sculpture, installation, photography, textiles, and drawing. Her work brings together fantasy, science fiction, folklore, and spiritual traditions to explore hybridity, futurity, migration, ancestry, and marginalized identities. In 2026, Perera is participating in the 61st Venice Biennale, where her collaborative installation with Marigold Santos is presented at the Arsenale.

In Mother/Myth, Rajni Perera opens a lens onto her new series Birth is a Bloodsport and its many extensions - the questions, perspectives, and felt stories that emerge from it. Through the talk, she will share her practice and reflect on the worlds, figures, and narratives that shape this new body of work.

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17 October, Saturday

13:30–15:30  -  Artist Talk: “(Un)center: Institutional and Personal Experiences.” AMA Foundation and artist Nara Beibit.

At the event, Malika Urazgalieva, director and development strategist at the AMA Foundation, and Atyrau-based artist Nara Beibit will share their experiences working in the cultural sector. They will discuss how artists from the region can build their professional careers and find opportunities for growth.

In Russian.

16:00–17:00  -  Curatorial tour with Natasha Ginwala

Join exhibition curator Natasha Ginwala for a tour exploring the ideas, artistic practices, and key themes that shape Himoya: Matrilineal Energies, Oracular Kin.

17:30–19:00 - Ahmed Umar in conversation with Natasha Ginwala (18+)

Ahmed Umar is a Sudanese-Norwegian artist whose practice brings together Sudanese cultural heritage and Western artistic traditions. His work engages with identity, religion, memory, and personal experience.

In this conversation with curator Natasha Ginwala, Umar will reflect on his artistic practice and discuss how questions of identity, faith, memory, cultural inheritance, and lived experience come together in his work.

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18 October, Sunday

12:00 - 14:00  -  Open discussion “Documenting Perspectives / Cultural Documentary” with Zilola Saidova and Umida Akhmedova 

Zilola Saidova is an Uzbek photographer whose documentary practice explores cultural identity, everyday life, and disappearing traditions, with particular attention to women and marginalised communities.

Umida Akhmedova is an Uzbek photographer and documentary filmmaker whose longstanding practice focuses on everyday life, cultural traditions, and the social realities of Central Asia.

The conversation will consider how cultural and social perspectives are documented, and the role of photography and documentary film in preserving memory.

In Russian.

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Curatorial Tours with Natasha Ginwala (in English)

The curatorial tours with Natasha Ginwala explore the ideas, artistic practices, and key themes at the heart of Himoya: Matrilineal Energies, Oracular Kin. On different days, Natasha will be joined by artists participating in the exhibition, who will contribute their own perspectives and speak about their practices and the works on view.

15 October, Thursday, 16:00–17:00
Natasha Ginwala with Almagul Menlibayeva and Citra Sasmita.

16 October, Friday, 16:00–17:00
Natasha Ginwala with Rajni Perera and Tania Petersen.

17 October, Saturday, 16:00–17:00
Natasha Ginwala with Ahmed Umar.

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Practical Information

Curatorial tours take place on the first floor of Tselinny and begin in ORTA 1. Tours are free of charge; an exhibition ticket is required for entry.

Public programme events take place in the Atelier on the second floor of Tselinny. All public programme events are free and do not require an exhibition ticket.

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