I first experienced Kiwanga’s dazzling installations at the previous Venice Biennale curated by Cecilia Alemani. There, I encountered Kiwanga’s arresting Terrarium (2022), a series of large-scale, translucent paintings and glass sculptures filled with sand. As a counterpoint to the piece’s stunning arrangement, the work is a solemn harbinger for what our world will soon become: a barren desert. This year, Kiwanga will represent Canada, and will be the first Black woman to do so in the history of the pavilion, and only the second Black person to represent the country…