Moridja Kitenge Banza
Once Upon a Time, Malaika

Through an immersive installation combining monumental sculpture, video, and imaginary artifacts, Moridja Kitenge Banza offers kids ages 6 to 12 an artistic reflection on public monuments, museums, and collective memory, while questioning dominant narratives and how they are passed on. The exhibition is accompanied by ready-to-use educational activities developed in connection with the themes explored by the artist.

Young visitors experience the exhibition through the eyes of Malaika Premiere, a princess and heroine who travels through time to meet her ancestors and learn more about the history of her people. Following in her footsteps, children journey through places marked by the legacy of colonization in Africa and the Caribbean, the transatlantic slave trade, and the exploitation of natural resources. A monument erected in her honor celebrates her adventure, while objects that once belonged to her rest beneath the glass of an imaginary museum—raising questions about how Western institutions preserve and display artifacts taken through colonial plunder. Moving between reality and fiction, present-day statues and witnesses of the past, Moridja Kitenge Banza invites young audiences to actively reflect on how history is told and passed on to them.

This exhibition benefits from a visibility agreement with MOMENTA, as part of the satellite program of its 19^th edition.