Lamba-Lamba explores the relationship between two visual traditions connected by a shared name: Lamba textiles from Madagascar and the Lamba cultural heritage of the Katanga region in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. The project emerged from Senga’s interest in the ways African geometric forms have been studied, classified and interpreted, while seeking to highlight the cultural connections, movements and exchanges that exist beyond these classifications.

As part of his research, Senga studied the British Museum’s collection of finely woven Malagasy textiles, particularly those from Arivonimamo, Madagascar. These textiles, with their intricate geometric structures, multicoloured vertical stripes and solid bands, became a starting point for the artist’s exploration of pattern, form and visual language.

Senga brings this archival research into conversation with his own documentation of Kushiripa, an ephemeral mural painting tradition practised by Lamba women in Makwacha village in his native Katanga province. Created using natural pigments collected from riverbanks and marshlands, these wall paintings disappear with each rainy season, embodying a continuous cycle of creation, memory and renewal.