Rose Art Museum To Present YINKA SHONIBARE: SANCTUARY

The Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University will present YINKA SHONIBARE: SANCTUARY, opening February 11, 2026, and on view through January 3, 2027. The exhibition centers on the U.S. debut of Sanctuary City (2024), a large-scale installation by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare, first shown in Suspended States at Serpentine South in London.

Organized by Rose Art Museum Director and Chief Curator Dr. Gannit Ankori, the exhibition invites audiences to consider the meaning and political urgency of sanctuary amid ongoing global displacement and humanitarian crises. Sanctuary City is composed of 18 scaled architectural models representing historical and contemporary sites that have served as places of refuge, including ancient temples, medieval cathedrals, and modern shelters. Together, the structures trace a long history of protection and underscore the continued necessity of safeguarding the right to refuge.

Installed in a darkened gallery, each black-painted model is illuminated from within, with light passing through interiors lined in Shonibare’s signature Dutch wax textiles. The glowing structures transform the surrounding space, linking intimate sites of shelter to broader histories of migration, colonial trade, and cultural exchange. As Shonibare notes, “Shelter is one of the most pressing political concerns right now. Sanctuary is not just a structure—it's a promise, and far too many people are denied it.”

Ankori said the installation addresses sanctuary as both a physical condition and a moral imperative. “This installation speaks to the heart of what sanctuary means, physically, morally, and politically,” she said. “Yinka Shonibare's work challenges us to confront our responsibilities to one another, and to recognize the basic human need for refuge and a safe haven.”

Shonibare added, “Sanctuary is not a privilege; it is a human right. Sanctuary City is a reminder that across history—and still today—people seek shelter not out of choice, but necessity.”

Shonibare’s multidisciplinary practice spans sculpture, installation, photography, film, painting, and textile-based work, often drawing on European art history and literary narratives to examine race, class, and postcolonial power structures. His work has been presented in major international exhibitions, including Suspended States at Serpentine South in London and the Nigerian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, as well as retrospectives at institutions such as the Museum der Moderne in Salzburg and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney. His work is held in collections including Tate, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and the National Museum of African Art at the Smithsonian Institution. He lives and works in London.