The Odyssey
Group Exhibition
OpenArtExchange is proud to present its newest group exhibition: The Odyssey, featuring works by four contemporary African artists. We warmly invite you to the opening on Saturday, May 2 at 15h30 at OpenArtExchange, Hoogstraat 85, Schiedam.
The Odyssey brings together newly arrived works at the gallery, including a new series by Patrick Musombwa. We are also delighted to introduce works by Princesse Keirath and Richard Laté Lawson-Body, two artists who joined the gallery earlier this March and whose work is now on view in the Netherlands for the first time. The exhibition also features a work by emerging Beninese artist Simon Tokouete, giving a glimpse into a new generation of artistic voices.
The exhibition will be on view until Saturday, June 13th, 2026.
The Odyssey
The Odyssey explores humanity's journey through existence: the search for meaning, the navigation of adversity, and the creation of personal and collective spaces in a vast, mysterious universe. Inspired by Paulo Coehlo's novel, The Alchemist, the exhibition reflects on how we interpret the signs of the world, cultivate resilience, and seek belonging admist uncertainty.
“We are travellers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity” wrote Paulo Coehlo in The Alchemist. His novel tells the story of individuals navigating life's challenges, following their personal destinies and listening to the subtle signs of the universe. This vision of life as a spiritual and existential quest forms the foundation of the exhibition. It invites visitors to reflect on enduring questions: Are there larger forces at play? What is destiny, and how does one find its place in the universe?
Through distinct visual languages, ranging from abstraction to symbolic and figurative compositions, each artist engages with a different dimension of this shared journey, their own Odyssey. Princesse Keirath and Patrick Musombwa explore deeply personal paths of meaning-making, shaped by resilience, migration, identity and the search for belonging, whether through inner strength or collective and spiritural roots. In contrast, Simon Tokouete and Richard Laté turn toward the infinite, approaching it as both a space for reflection and a realm of mystery, shaped by unknown, imperceptible forces and beings.
Participating Artists
Richard Laté Lawson-Body
1986, Togo
Richard Laté Lawson-Body's abstract paintings blend calligraphic precision with organic, layered textures. Often using found materials as canvas, he creates immersive compositions that invite contemplation on the universe and our place within it. Each piece invites the viewer to discover hidden patterns, searching for meaning beyond the visible. As figurative elements appear and disappear, his works allow for reflection on the larger hidden forces that shape our existence.
Patrick Musombwa
1988, DRC/France
Patrick Musombwa creates colorful, expressionist paintings and collages that explore the human condition through deconstructed bodies and faces. Merging abstract elements, vibrant colours and layered textures, his work conveys emotion and movement with intensity. His newest series Resilience, echoes his personal experience of exile and uprootedness, portraying resilience both as a space of comfort and a means of survival. The works reflect humanity’s quest to create a sense of place and navigate the challenges of life.
Princess Kéïrath Zato
1995, Benin
Princesse Keirath is an emerging multidisciplinary artist from Benin, whose practice blends ink, acrylic, pigments, and diverse media to create visually striking, conceptually layered works. In her recent series, The Gaani Codex, she explores one of Benin’s most significant cultural ceremonies, weaving it together with her own personal mythology and symbolic language. Emerging from her familial ties to the Gaani Horsemen, her work offers a reflection on belonging, heritage, and the individual's search for place within the universe.
Simon Tokouete
Benin
Simon Tokouete is an emerging visual artist from Benin whose intricate compositions explore biodiversity and the infinitely small. Through a combination of organic forms, geometric symbols symbols, and detailed structures, he invites the viewer to reflect on the invisible dimensions of life, the fragile balances and forces that shape our universe. His work demonstrates a fascination for the beauty of these hidden worlds, while subtly reflecting on humanity's impact on the environment.