A site-specific window drawing layers a landscape drawing and historical map of the southern hemisphere’s constellations, drawn on both sides of the window. It distills the complex dimensionality of Earth by reducing cosmological events to a system of flat geometric shapes.

Sunstrum views the mapping of the stars as one of the earliest attempts to understand the universe, and her work can be considered a literal attempt to project drawing into space.

Polyhedron shapes point to Plato’s theory that triangles are the building blocks of the universe. According to Plato, triangles make up five three-dimensional objects – five polyhedra – that signify the four elements, with the fifth element being heaven. Sunstrum’s ‘Polyhedra’ represents a direct bridge between Earth’s geometry and the wider cosmos.

Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum’s work alludes to mythology, geology and theories of the nature of the universe, and reflects the diverse genealogies of her experience living in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the US, as well as her ongoing research in ethnography, ecology, and quantum physics.

Sunstrum’s boundary-crossing practice centres Black female identity in the discourse of postcolonialism and neocolonialism, highlighting the contributions of overlooked historical figures while emphasising modes of knowledge and communication beyond the status quo.

Her work has been exhibited at KM21 Den Haag, London’s Barbican Centre, Johannesburg’s Goodman Gallery, London Mithraeum | Bloomberg SPACE, and Cincinnati’s Contemporary Art Center.