Wend, 2022. 19:19 minutes, two channel video projection, color; 20:19 minutes experimental, ambient city soundscape; and gaffer tape stage spikes/sigils. Featuring choreographer Celia Benvenutti, dance artist Nahimana Aponi, my grandfather, father, aunt, and my mother. Installation view at Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit. Photos by Clare Gatto.
Wend is a constellation of multimedia collaborations spanning over 7 years and anchored by autoethnographic field note recordings in Detroit. These dance video projections witness daily ritual, vernacular gesture, and improvisational movement of Black folk. The videos are nestled against the backdrop of the city and investigate connections between performance and urban ecologies, with particular interest in interiority.
Collaborators and co-conspirators include: Hanniyah Cross, Raven Whitney Joel, Givhan, Germaine Pentsil, Dave Gulley, Berris “PriSm” Flemmings, Celia Benvenutti, Devin Drake, Black Hand Side, Paul Darnell, and Ryan Myers Johnson.
This work was created with the support of artist residency programs at Red Bull Art Gallery, The Studios of Key West, Surf Point Foundation, McColl Center for Art and Innovation, Play House, and Talking Dolls Studio, as well as funding from Culture Source, Warhol Foundation, Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Kresge Arts in Detroit, and Tashif Turner. Special thanks to Leto, Jova, M, and Isabelle at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit.
See also: Aunt Dot, Black Dance Film Studies
Collaborative performance screening of Wend (single channel) at Play House in Hamtramck, MI with the Black Hand Side jazz band, featuring members: Dave Gulley, Apropos, Stephen Grady Jr, James Russell, Ashton Woods, Allen Dennard, Brian Castillo, and Devin Hammond. Funded by a 2022 Flourish Grant from Culture Source and the Warhol Foundation. Photos by Valor Miller.