Suleiman’s Sun is a pilgrimage of colour and sound, inspired by the mystic travellers of Malaya and Java who found home and expression for the beloved in Cape Town’s soil.

Locating the work in Imraan Christian’s long-running ‘Ma se kinders’ (‘Mother’s children’) framework, forming a decolonial praxis, the exhibition serves as a site of reflection about how mystic traditions of old influence our contemporary world.

Christian’s second solo exhibition with Everard Read is an homage to the artist’s love of painting. The medium, split between acrylic, ink and oil on canvas, serves as the vehicle for the journey of Suleiman’s Sun.

Beginning with the oceanic mythology that has become a recurring theme in the ‘Ma Se Kinders’ universe, this body of work takes an unexpected turn toward a solar return.

About The Artist

b.1992 Cape Town, South Africa

Imraan Christian is a visual artist and activist whose practice draws on indigenous knowledge systems, mysticism and South African socio-political history. His work engages themes of lineage, migration and ancestral memory. Christian gained international visibility through his documentation of the 2015/2016 South African student protests, and he later served as a Brand Ambassador for South Africa, representing freedom of expression. He lives and works in Cape Town.

Text and images courtesy of Everard Read and Imraan Christian