Le Temps de la parole with Michael Armitage

Born in 1984 in Nairobi (Kenya) and trained in London, Michael Armitage infuses his paintings with references to current events, popular narratives, and dreams. His body of work addresses major contemporary issues such as socio-political tensions, violence, and migration crises. 

Exhibited internationally—most notably at the Palazzo Grassi in Venice—Michael Armitage extends his artistic practice through a strong cultural commitment. In 2020, he founded the Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI), a non-profit institution dedicated to promoting artists and highlighting modern East African painting. The space houses a collection, exhibitions, research residencies, a library, and archives.

Chris Dercon is an art historian, curator, and museum director, born in Lier, Belgium, in 1958. After leading PS1 (New York), the Witte de With and the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen (Rotterdam), the Haus der Kunst (Munich), Tate Modern (London), the Volksbühne (Berlin), and the Grand Palais (Paris), he became Managing Director of the Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain in June 2023.

From 1993 to 2011, he served on the board of the International Institute of Visual Arts in London, where he met many artists from other continents and their diasporas. He initiated Tate Modern’s African Acquisitions Committee and created numerous other exhibitions and initiatives featuring artists from the African continent and its diasporas.