Qatar Museums (QM) has appointed celebrated Nigerian curator Azu Nwagbogu as the artistic director of Tasweer 2027, the fourth edition of QM’s photography biennial and the first to be presented under QM’s future Art Mill Museum.
Known for his work organising exhibitions and publishing texts that focus on decolonisation, restitution, and repatriation, the internationally recognised Nwagbogu is a founder of the LagosPhoto Biennale and the founder and director of the African Artists’ Foundation (AAF), a non-profit art space in Lagos that promotes contemporary African art, social justice, and cultural dialogue.
Catherine Grenier, director of Concept of Art Mill Museum, said: “We welcome Azu Nwagbogu as artistic director of the fourth edition of Tasweer, Qatar Museums’ photography biennial, opening in April 2027. Following three editions conceived by Charlotte Cotton in 2021 and 2023 and Meriem Berrada in 2025, we look forward to this new important collaboration. Azu Nwagbogu’s remarkable international experience, network and vision will undoubtedly shape a fascinating and engaging fourth edition.”
Khalifa al-Obaidly, director of Tasweer 2027, said: “It is a great pleasure to welcome Azu Nwagbogu as the artistic director of Tasweer 2027, the biennial’s fourth edition. His unique perspective on photography, which is rooted in his deep connections in the Global South, and notably in Africa, on an international scale, make him uniquely well suited to organise an event that celebrates photographers and visual storytellers from across the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. We look forward to seeing his vision.”
Nwagbogu said: “I am honoured to take on the role of artistic director of Tasweer 2027, and am deeply grateful for the vision, care, and contributions of the previous artistic directors, whose work has established such a strong foundation for the biennial. Images have always shaped our perception of the world; what is new is the speed and scale of their circulation, and the new ways they ask us to look, remember, and interpret. Tasweer creates an important space to engage and host that changing visual language with ethical and intellectual courage.”
Nwagbogu’s curatorial work has been presented internationally, including at the Centre for Fine Arts (BOZAR) in Brussels, Rencontres d’Arles, PhotoEspaña in Madrid and at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, where he curated the inaugural Benin Pavilion in 2024. As a Curator al Large for Zeitz MOCAA in Cape Town, Nwagbogu created Dig Where You Stand, a travelling contemporary art exhibition engaging migration, cultural heritage, restitution, and collective memory.
In 2026, he was honoured with an Art Basel Award recognising his role as among the most forward-thinking cultural workers shaping art and cultural production today. In 2021, he was named Curator of the Year by the Royal Photographic Society.
Tasweer, which the future Art Mill Museum oversees, is a leading platform for photography and visual culture in Qatar and the wider region, connecting photographers, artists, curators, and audiences from the Middle East and beyond.
Since its launch in 2021, the festival has brought established and emerging practitioners together to present their work, exchange ideas, and engage with how photography continues to evolve.
The fourth edition will build on this to expand Tasweer’s connections across the region and internationally.
Further details about Tasweer 2027, including its artistic programme and participating artists, will be announced in the lead-up to the fourth edition, which will open in April 2027 and run until June 2027.
