Małgorzata Mirga-Tas (*1978) was the first ever Roma artist to represent a country at the Venice Biennale. In 2022, on the Polish pavilion, she told the story of the Roma by means of large textile images representing their legends, heroic and mystical figures, as well as their suppression and marginalisation.

Along with women from her community, the artist sews together pieces of tablecloth, curtain, bed linen and clothing to create visually strong narratives. Mirga-Tas collects the textiles from among her circle of family and friends, using them to report, from a feminist viewpoint, on the everyday life of the Roma and their racist depiction in European art history. The artist avails herself of historical models, which she interweaves with scenes from contemporary everyday life. Mirga-Tas’ larger-than-life portraits depict protagonists who have so far been overlooked by official written history. In this way she adds to the diversity of voices. Her textile pictures, some of which are spacefilling, animated or loosely arranged, deconstruct stereotypical representations. The artist thus underscores the cultural wealth of the Roma community.