2026 Biennial

Sammy Baloji: When Extraction Becomes Form It Speaks in Borrowed Tongues

Wexner Center for the Arts
September 18, 2026–January 31, 2027
Curated by Julieta González, Head of Visual Arts

When Extraction Becomes Form It Speaks in Borrowed Tongues marks the first solo museum exhibition of Sammy Baloji’s work in the United States. A Congolese artist based in Brussels, Belgium, his work highlights his ongoing research into the material, formal, and symbolic traces of colonialism and extractive economies in Western architecture and the decorative arts of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Exploring the historical connections between Europe, Central Africa, and the Atlantic world, this series presents architecture as a field shaped not only by design, but also by imperial histories, global trade, and systems of representation.

Through a dynamic selection of works and collaborations, this exhibition brings these often-overlooked histories into focus, inviting audiences to see architecture in new ways and to consider how its histories continue to shape the present. By making visible the colonial conditions embedded within these structures and objects, the exhibition opens space for critical reflection, dialogue, and new ways of thinking about architecture’s past, present, and future.

Solo Biennial 2026

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Fall 2026 Exhibitions Opening Celebration

September 18, 2026
4:00pm – 8:00pm

Opening Reception

Explore exhibitions including Wex-commissioned works, drawings, paintings, sculpture, and immersive installations by Sammy Baloji (When Extraction Becomes Form, It Speaks in Borrowed Tongues), Temitayo Ogunbiyi, Léonard Pongo, and sweat variant (the collective practice of Okwui Okpokwasili and Peter Born). The opening reception begins at 4pm with a happy hour featuring a cash bar and light hors d’oeuvres. The galleries remain open until 8pm.

Additional Information: RSVP required. Register here. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation to participate in this event, please email accessibility@wexarts.org or call (614) 688-3890. Visit our accessibility page to learn more.

Lambert Family Lecture: Cécile Fromont

October 1, 2026
6:00pm – 8:00pm

Talk

In this free talk, art historian Cécile Fromont offers powerful perspectives on how research shapes contemporary art and how exhibitions such as When Extraction Becomes Form It Speaks in Borrowed Tongues can tell complex, cross-cultural stories.

Additional Information: RSVP required. Registration link can be found on the Wex’s event page. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation to participate in this event, please email accessibility@wexarts.org or call (614) 688-3890. Visit our accessibility page to learn more.

Columbus Spotlight Weekend

October 23, 2026
–

Talk Tour Spotlight Weekend

Spotlight Weekends highlight FotoFocus Biennial Venues within specific geographic locations where artists and curators will be on site for talks, tours, special events, and featured programming. This is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the vibrant energy of the FotoFocus Biennial, exploring art within the communities that create and present it.

Friday, 10/23

Saturday, 10/24

Sunday, 10/25

Columbus Spotlight Weekend

October 24, 2026
–

Talk Tour Spotlight Weekend

Spotlight Weekends highlight FotoFocus Biennial Venues within specific geographic locations where artists and curators will be on site for talks, tours, special events, and featured programming. This is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the vibrant energy of the FotoFocus Biennial, exploring art within the communities that create and present it.

Friday, 10/23

Saturday, 10/24

Sunday, 10/25

Columbus Bus Tour

October 24, 2026
9:00am – 7:00pm

Talk Biennial Program Tour Spotlight Weekend Biennial Pass Only

Spotlight Weekends highlight FotoFocus Biennial Venues within specific geographic locations where artists and curators will be on site for talks, tours, special events, and featured programming. This is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the vibrant energy of the FotoFocus Biennial, exploring art within the communities that create and present it.

To RSVP, please email pass@fotofocus.org. Seating is limited. Biennial Pass required.

9:00am Meet at FotoFocus Center / Ziegler Garage

11:30am Wexner Center for the Arts

Sammy Baloji: When Extraction Becomes Form It Speaks In Borrowed Tongues. Uncovers how colonial extraction shaped the flow of people, materials, forms, and culture across Africa, Europe, and the Atlantic world through photography, film, and sculpture.

Gallery tour led by Sarah Robison, Curator of Teaching, Learning, and Interpretation, and Rebecca Lowery, Curator of Exhibitions. Interim Executive Director & Head of Advancement hope to join as well.

12:30pm Lunch in the Performance Space / Black Box

1:30pm Columbus Museum of Art

Queer Constellations: Photographs from the Aronowitz Family Collection. Traces artistic lineage and identity through photographs by and about queer artists, illustrating how photographers across generations shape histories and create visibility.

Gallery tour led by Kaitlin Booher, Associate Curator of Photography.

2:30pm Columbus College of Art & Design: Beeler Gallery

Haunting. Examines time as a haunting force, reaching across burial grounds, pandemics, atomic history, gun violence, and ecological loss to reveal what the visible image cannot hold.

Gallery tour led by new Executive Director Kyle Herrington and Registrar Melissa Vogley.

3:15pm Shot Tower Gallery

One Shot. Alumni exhibition highlighting the impact of the Photography Career Program at Fort Hayes, an incubator for emerging image-makers to explore photography as a form of artistic expression and storytelling.

Gallery tour led by Stephen Takacs, Career-Technical Education (CTE) Photography Instructor.

4:00pm ROY G BIV Gallery

Franklinton Across Time: The Floodplain Imagination. A living archive examining the history of one of Columbus’ oldest neighborhoods through contemporary lens-based work, archival materials, interviews, and site-responsive installations, reflecting on collective memory and urban change.

Gallery tour with Executive Gallery Director, Bethani Blake.

Reception & light bites.

5:00pm Depart ROY G BIV Gallery

7:00pm Arrive back in Cincinnati

Access to the entire FotoFocus Biennial Program is only one benefit of being a FotoFocus 2022 Biennial Passport holder. GET THE PASSPORT for free entry and exclusive events!

Columbus Spotlight Weekend

October 25, 2026
–

Talk Tour Spotlight Weekend

Spotlight Weekends highlight FotoFocus Biennial Venues within specific geographic locations where artists and curators will be on site for talks, tours, special events, and featured programming. This is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the vibrant energy of the FotoFocus Biennial, exploring art within the communities that create and present it.

Friday, 10/23

Saturday, 10/24

Sunday, 10/25

  • Wexner Baloji 1 baloji aequare the future that never was film still1

    Sammy Baloji, Aequare. The Future that never was (film still), 2023. Video (color, sound), 21:04 min. Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Imane Farès, Paris

    • Venue Details

    Wexner Center for the Arts
    1871 N High St
    Columbus, OH 43210
    (614) 292-3535

    Tue & Wed 9am–6pm, Thur 9am–9pm, Fri & Sat 10am–6pm

    Exhibition: Free to the Public. Film: One screening free for Pass Holders. General admission: $12 adults; $8 venue members; $9 seniors; $6 students

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