Funded by the French Embassy in Oman, the French Institute of Research in Africa, and the National Center for the Arts (France) – a new travelling exhibit ‘Waliorejea‘ premiering in Oman – aims to interweave an intimate dialectic between memory and forgetting, speech and silence, presence, and absence.

Zanzibar and Oman’s intertwined histories span centuries. Moving through the seas, Omanis settled in the Zanzibar archipelago, raising families, and engaging vividly with the construction of culture and society.

When faced with political and economic changes in the middle of the 20th century, Zanzibaris looked for a new life and sailed off to different destinations.

Many of those from Omani backgrounds settled on a journey back to their ancestries’ territory hence the title of the exhibition – ‘returnees to Oman’. This exclusive exhibition explores the work of documentary photographer and videographer Ania Gruca.

The show by Ania Gruca, Waliorejea: A Documentary Photography & Videography Exhibition, opened on February 28 at the Bait Muzna Gallery under the patronage of HE Mohammed bin Nasser, Undersecretary for Administrative & Financial Affairs, Foreign Ministry Sultanate of Oman.

“I am pleased to initiate, through this exhibition, a cooperation with Bait Muzna Gallery, the jewel in the crown of modern art galleries in Oman, founded by Sayyida Susan Al Said,” said Her Excellency Véronique Aulagnon, the Ambassador of France to Oman.

“The French photographer Ania Gruca has been working in Zanzibar for years. I met her in Muscat in 2022, where she had come, as part of an artist-in-residence program supported by the French government, to meet Omanis from Zanzibar.

“The French Embassy consequently decided to support her to complete her project WALIOREJEA and present it in Oman. It highlights the depth of the human links between the Sultanate of Oman and Zanzibar.”

The photographer in this exhibition uses diverse techniques to reveal more than can be conveyed in modern storytelling. She encourages the viewer to study a body of work, to consider examining identity and belonging, and – if inspired or provoked – to engage in discussions sharing emotions and intrigue.

The exhibition seeks to create a cross-cultural dialogue about the medium of documentary photography and videography and its potential as a tool for the photographer’s keen interest in underreported communities and individuals.

Waliorejea will be on view through 21 March 2023; admission is free.