Grande Hotel, Beira, Mozambique 2008

Curator: Guy Tillim's "Grande Hotel, Beira, Mozambique" captures this vast, decaying space. It immediately feels monumental, yet desolate. Editor: The scale is undeniably imposing, but I read this as a commentary on post-colonial architecture and its implications for Mozambican identity. What does this abandoned grandeur signify in the present? Curator: Absolutely, the hotel's history as a symbol of colonial ambition, later occupied by refugees during Mozambique's civil war, speaks to layers of social and political complexities. The architecture itself becomes a stage for human experience, reflecting resilience amidst displacement. Editor: And that's precisely the intersectionality I'm drawn to: the collapse of utopian ideals, the human cost of political upheaval, and the sheer physical impact on marginalized communities. Curator: It's a potent visual testament to how structures, both physical and social, shape and are shaped by history. Editor: Indeed, leaving us to consider the narratives etched into its very walls.