'Sir John Akomfrah: Listening All Night To The Rain' at National Museum Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom

1 May 2025

From 24 May – 7 September 2025 National Museum Cardiff will be exhibiting Sir John Akomfrah’s Listening All Night To The Rain, a multimedia installation which was commissioned by the British Council for the British Pavillion at the 60th Venice Biennale in 2024. Amgueddfa Cymru is the first venue to host the exhibition as it tours across the UK. This work was originally presented in Venice as a series of eight overlapping works, known as Cantos. Amgueddfa Cymru will present Cantos IV, V and VI at National Museum Cardiff, with the tour supported by the British Council and Art Fund.

Akomfrah, who lives and works in London, is renowned for his influence on experimental film and the study of colonial history and racialised identity. In the work, beautiful imagery is contrasted with painful truths as the pieces weave together narratives of migration, rebellion, activism, discrimination and environmental impact. It pays homage to marginalised voices including the Windrush generation and reflects on pivotal moments in colonial and post-colonial history.

Each multi-layered piece incorporates newly filmed material alongside archival video footage and still images, weaved together with rhythmic sounds, audio clips and text. The immersive audio-visual piece is a journey of sights and sounds that draw out specific moments in time, events in our collective histories that have shaped individuals and societies. By listening, watching and engaging with the piece we are encouraged to listen as a form of activism against historic and enduring injustices.

Find our more via National Museum Cardiff.

Image: John Akomfrah, Listening All Night To The Rain (Canto VI), 2024, 8 channel HD video installation with surround sound, © Smoking Dogs Films, © British Council, Courtesy Smoking Dogs Films and Lisson Gallery.