Ayana V. Jackson, Freedoms Frail Stranger, 2025. Courtesy of the artist and Mariane Ibrahim.
The PHotoESPAÑA 2025 kicks off in Madrid with Ayana V. Jackson's first institutional exhibition in Europe
Ayana V. Jackson shares with El Periódico de España an overview of her current exhibition, Nosce te ipsum: Membrum Fantasma, on view at Madrid’s National Museum of Anthropology through August 31, 2025. The show marks her first solo exhibition in Spain and Europe and is part of PHotoESPAÑA 2025. It explores themes of identity, colonial legacy, and Black representation through photography.
Divided into three sections, the exhibition revisits Afro-Mexican traditions, highlights erased Black female figures from the Mexican Revolution, and reinterprets colonial “casta paintings” to challenge imposed racial and social identities. Jackson, who works between the U.S., South Africa, and Mexico, uses her art as a tool of resistance and historical reimagining.
Before visitors leave, Jackson emphasizes a key message: "We must acknowledge the past to act in the present and build a better future." While her work has been acclaimed abroad, she is eager to see how the Spanish audience will respond.
