The best news yet! @leonardpongo - recipient of our Thalia Transformation Fund grant - is presenting his powerful work, Primordial Earth, at the 2026 Venice Biennale!
“Primordial Earth” is a mesmerizing and innovative mixed-media installation that forges a dialogue between the Congolese land, its traditions, the artist and the viewers. It’s ever-evolving thus each exhibition offers a new experience and interpretation of the work. Don’t miss this opportunity to see it at such a prestigious event!
Cheers to @leonardpongo ✨ we could not be more thrilled with your ongoing success!
#venicebiennale #grant
In Léonard Pongo’s work, the landscape is neither a backdrop nor a subject. It gives way to the raw force of Congolese soil, its rocks and vegetal arabesques. Moving beyond representation, the image becomes sensation, vibration, abstraction. Through altered photography, evolving installations and textures drawn from the velvet of Kasai, each gesture carries traces of an ancient memory.
Read the full portfolio on our website.
What better way to conclude Léonard 𝘗𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰’s solo exhibition, 𝘈𝘱𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘢, then by sharing his beautiful interview featured in Zero.Nine Magazine (@zero.nine.magazine ) and written by Holly Wilch?
“I had the realisation that photographs do not hold any truth… I’m more interested in how I can bring my process closer to how a painter, a sculptor, can craft something ex nihilo.” - Léonard 𝘗𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰 (@leonardpongo )
Head over to Zero.Nine Magazine to read the full interview.
Last chance to view Léonard Pongo’s “Primordial Earth” at @project__loop in London! “Primordial Earth” explores Congolese traditions and landscapes, merging Pongo’s subjective journey with the Congolese experience to create an uncanny realm. Each installation is unique, allowing you to immerse yourself in an ephemeral moment of the work.
A recipient of our TTF grant, this work is near and dear to us! If you’re in London, don’t miss out!
#primordialearth #congo #artgallery
FINAL DAY
Léonard 𝘗𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰
𝘈𝘱𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘢
Until 22 November 2025
Pongo approaches landscape not as a static view but as a dynamic, sentient entity. Using modified cameras capable of capturing light beyond the visible spectrum, he constructs visual worlds that straddle the threshold between the real and the imagined. Through reflective and translucent materials, his works generate shifting perspectives that unfold as viewers move through space, creating a sense of elusive, composite reality.
Installation view: @noah.dacosta
Wednesday to Saturday
12 – 6 PM
Or by appointment
16 Orsman Road
London N1 5QJ
