Seychelles

Two artists will represent the Seychelles for the 56th Venice Biennale: George Camille and Leon Radegonde, working together on the exhibition A Clockwork Sunset.

This is the first time that Seychelles has been represented at the Biennale. Seychelles is a small and fairly remote group of islands in the Indian Ocean, only three of which are inhabited to any significant extent, Mahé, Praslin, and La Digue (where both Radegonde and Camille were born).

Contemporary art in Seychelles reflects the mix and variety of the population. A young nation, first developed in the 17th century, Seychellois ancestry is a fantastic melange, taking in the major diasporas from China and India as well as the infusion of European DNA subsequent to long periods of colonisation. Many Creole Seychellois descend from slaves. Today Seychelles is a thriving democracy with little evidence of the racial disharmony and intolerance that blights so many other, larger and more established countries. In human terms Seychelles history is brief, yet complex, and provides ample inspiration for any artist hoping to present contemporary statements through an understanding of the country’s past.