Inheriting the Future is a major group exhibition at October Gallery bringing together new works by Zana Masombuka, Eddy Kamuanga Ilunga, Alexis Peskine, and Djibril Dramé.
Through painting, sculpture and photography, the exhibition explores how artists negotiate identity through heritage—drawing on cultural traditions, ancestral memory and spiritual legacies while responding to the pressures and transformations of a globalised world.
South African artist Zana Masombuka presents powerful new works from her series Akhulumile Amabhudango: Scenes from Dreams – Journeys with the Kosabo. Working across photography, sculptural beaded frames and symbolic objects drawn from Ndebele culture, Masombuka creates visually rich compositions that explore ancestry, spiritual guidance and lineage. Inspired in part by the legacy of her late grandfather, Bishop Makhuwana Piet Mahlangu, the works move between everyday family memory and sacred symbolism. Selected pieces from her series Ubonani: What Do You See? are also included, exploring themes of childhood curiosity and openness against the dramatic landscapes of KwaNdebele.
New paintings by Eddy Kamuanga Ilunga, from Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, reflect on the enduring impact of colonial exploitation. His large-scale figures, set against stark grey backgrounds, reference the brutal extraction of rubber and other resources during the period of Belgian rule. Dressed in imported fabrics and holding botanical specimens, the figures embody the complex histories of trade, colonial science and labour. The integrated circuits patterning their skin allude to modern mineral extraction in the Congo—particularly the mining of materials used in mobile phones—suggesting that cycles of exploitation continue into the present.
Alexis Peskine presents striking sculptural portraits created by hammering thousands of nails into stained wood panels. The works begin as photographic portraits before being transformed into tactile sculptural surfaces. Inspired by the spiritually charged Minkisi power figures of the Congo Basin, Peskine’s works explore memory, migration and the layered histories of the African diaspora. Recent pieces incorporate herbal stains such as rosemary, basil and mint, connecting the works to traditions of healing and ancestral knowledge.
Photographer Djibril Dramé, born in Dakar, Senegal, contributes images from his long-running photographic project Ndewendeul. Beginning in 2010, the series explores the Baye Fall Sufi brotherhood—an influential spiritual community within Senegal. Using a portable studio set-up, Dramé captures intimate portraits that celebrate the expressive dress, rituals and communal life of the Baye Fall. The images combine documentary realism with a strong aesthetic sensibility, highlighting spirituality, devotion and community resilience.
Working across diverse media and cultural perspectives, the four artists in Inheriting the Future examine how heritage is shaped, reinterpreted and carried forward. The exhibition offers a powerful reflection on cultural continuity and transformation in a rapidly changing global landscape.
Artists in the Exhibition
Zana Masombuka
Eddy Kamuanga Ilunga
Alexis Peskine
Djibril Dramé
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