The exhibition Shapes of Shelter explores the concept of the “Safe Space.”

Originating in the feminist and queer movements of 1960s America, the term describes places where people excluded from mainstream society can find safety and belonging. From underground clubs to entire neighbourhoods, these spaces transform at night into places of community for the queer family. Today, the concept also encompasses spaces of solidarity for BIPoC communities and anti-racist movements worldwide

Over several weeks, multimedia artists Maria Mbereshu (Namibia) and Janina Totzauer (Germany) create their own safe space at The Project Room in Windhoek. Their dialogue explores their shared colonial history and their experiences as women from different global hemispheres, translating these reflections into textile patterns created on site.

Rituals of protection and talismans take shape in a large carpet, while Totzauer’s Isles of Exile adorn the walls: small, multifunctional tent-like structures offering visitors secret places of escapism. Between them, Mbereshu’s abstract textile patterns reflect her experiences as a woman, celebrating womanhood in all its beauty.

On 6 December, visitors gathered on the Intimate Carpet to hear three inspiring speakers, Hermien Elago, Adriano Visagie and Natache Iilonga, present their current passion projects in 20-minute talks. As pioneers of the LGBTQIA+ movement and advocates for equal rights, they shared their work in an informal, non-hierarchical setting that left room for questions, drinks and snacks. The evening concluded with the Namibian premiere of Naomi Beukes’s short film Scarlet Ribbons.

The project was generously supported by the DAAD, the Steiner Foundation and the Goethe-Institut Namibia.