Emerson Collection Catalogue April 2025
April 14, 2025
Art · Stone Town · June 2022
A permanent home for Zanzibar’s visual artists, inside the Emerson on Hurumzi Hotel.
Opened 17 June 2022 · Free entry · Tuesday to Sunday, 10am–6pm
The exhibition
The official VIP opening was held on 17 June 2022 at The Emerson Gallery — a spacious, newly created gallery housed within one of Stone Town’s finest boutique hotels, The Emerson on Hurumzi.
The exhibition, and every painting within it, forms part of the Emerson Zanzibar Foundation’s award for visual arts.
The theme
This year’s theme for the Foundation’s visual arts award is ‘Maisha ya Zanzibar’. Every participating local artist presents their own interpretation of Zanzibar’s diverse life and its heritage.
Opening night
On the evening of 17 June 2022 the Foundation thanked all the artists, the Emerson Zanzibar team and the judges — and welcomed the Guest of Honour, Minister of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports Hon. Tabia Maulid Mwita, and Deputy Principal Secretary Mr. Khamis Abdallah Said, who both spoke at the event.
The gallery and café sit behind an entrance next to the Emerson on Hurumzi Hotel in Stone Town, and all the artwork on display is available to purchase.
Music
On several nights across the ‘Maisha ya Zanzibar’ exhibition, live music is performed in the Secret Garden at Emerson Spice and on the Tea House rooftop at Emerson on Hurumzi. Zanzibari musicians perform everything from traditional Taarab to original fusion — see our social channels for dates.
The artists
During the Covid pandemic, the Emerson Zanzibar hotels began holding exhibitions differently: curated shows built around a live interview with the artist. Everyone was welcomed in Emerson Zanzibar style — from curious visitors and residents to invited guests — with fresh hibiscus juice, ginger tea and local snacks made by the hotel’s chef.
A group of artists then approached Emerson Zanzibar, asking for an exhibition that would bring established and young, upcoming artists together — giving established artists the chance to share their experience, and younger artists the chance to show their work publicly. The idea grew from visual art into music, a dinner celebrating local gastronomy, and the Foundation’s regular award for Zanzibari film-makers.
The Emerson Art Gallery & Café is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm, next to the Emerson on Hurumzi Hotel in Stone Town. Entry is free for everyone.