Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum transforms The Curve gallery at the Barbican, taking inspiration from crime fiction novels and mid-century genres such as film noir, Sunstrum challenges the femme fatale archetype which uses reductive and often misogynistic tropes to represent women across literature, art and cinema. Drawing from her experience living in different parts of Africa, South Asia and North America to examine the notions of home, hybrid identities and wholeness.

The large-scale installation – created in collaboration with Remco Osório Lobato – fills the length of the gallery with expansive film scenery, inviting the visitor to piece together the narrative that unfolds within the artworks, blurring the boundaries between spectatorship and participation. 

A fold out gallery guide leads the visitor through the exhibition, collected into a wall of titles as you enter the room. A study for a film poster by Phatsimo Sunstrum sits on the reverse with lettering highlighted in a metallic gold Pantone, a colour that nods towards the metallic framework of the exhibition hall.

The graphics play upon film noir posters and movie titles, utilising three disparate type styles to draw attention to different parts of the title – a decorative script lettering, a painterly serif and a bold geometric Art Deco set of capitals.

The entrance is sign painted in white onto a large-scale, dark charcoal painted wall outside the gallery. Theatre spotlighting creates a moment of drama, highlighting the monumental title and pointing visitors towards the installation.

A nostalgic feeling of old cinema is further emphasised through a frosted glass finish on the entrance and exit windows, warm lighting, and the raw wood that forms the film set structure.