Group Exhibitions

Contemporary Female Identities in the Global South is still on view at Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation in Johannesburg, South Africa until January 30, 2021

Contemporary Female Identities in the Global South is an exhibition that explores multiple constructions of female identities by five women artists. This exhibition proposes a realm in which the artists explore worlds of their own choosing, in which they might be mother, martyr, warrior or hybrid. The exhibition is divided into three worlds connected by metaphorical bridges. The first is configured around the Fall, which evokes the biblical story of the Garden of Eden, a realm where the natural and human worlds meet. The animal-human hybrid figures represent the second world of the exhibition. Hybridity refers to the mingling of species, races or cultures, a crossing of one thing with another. In the third world of the exhibition, the viewer is reminded that the body is real and embedded in race, religion and identity.

Liminality in Infinite Space is still on view at the African Artists’ Foundation in Lagos, Nigeria until January 28, 2021

Black portraiture has often tended towards fanciful depictions that have little semblance to the real lived experiences of Black and Brown bodies, from the African continent and beyond. Liminality in Infinite Space elevates the everyday experiences of Black and Brown peoples, and challenges hyper-visibility of survivalist existence that dominates mainstream media. This physical meeting of these artistic creations generates a space for the everyday slices of life that occur between the extremes of living a black body, in a world that does not always respect that body. This exhibition intentionally moves away from exaggerated depictions of blackness towards sharing moments of vulnerability and unostentatious joy.

1 Million Roses for Angela Davis is still on view at Kunsthalle im Lipsiusbau in Dresden, Germany until January 24, 2021

This exhibition traces Davis’ immense influence and legacy as activist and scholar on contemporary artists today, while simultaneously teasing out the contradictions her presence and agenda posed to the GDR’s interpretation and application of Marxism. Few East Germans over the age of fifty fail to remember the state-organized solidarity campaign calling for the release of the US philosopher, communist and Black Power activist Angela Davis. “A million roses for Angela” was the motto of a postcard campaign in 1970-72 in support of Davis, who at the time was being held under terrorism charges. The large-scale campaign firmly anchored the activist within the cultural memory of the GDR, which – in this critical phase of the Cold War – sought to position itself by asserting its commitment to the comrade. In the GDR, the media spun Davis as the “heroine of the other America” and after her acquittal, she was welcomed as a state guest.

Solo Exhibitions

Cassi Namoda: To Live Long is To See Much is still on view at Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa until January 16, 2021

The exhibition marks Namoda’s debut with Goodman Gallery as well as her first time exhibiting on the continent beside her native country, Mozambique. Made during lockdown this past summer at Namoda’s home studio in East Hampton, Long Island, this body of work offers a prescient reflection on life experience, thresholds, and the passage of time in Africa. The exhibition presents a series of tableaus and various forms that weave narratives of magic realism into the verdant Mozambican landscape. Namoda’s practice is rooted in cultural observation gained from a childhood spent growing up between Mozambique, Haiti and the United States. The result is a work, which incorporates Namoda’s various cultural and artistic references, often drawing on images from archival photographs, memories and imagination.

Milford Graves: A Mind-Body Deal is still on view at the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, United States until January 24, 2021

This exhibition, presented by Ars Nova Workshop, gathers the many-layered and multi-faceted work of Milford Graves, exploring the practices and predilections of this extraordinary “jazz mind.” Mention Milford’s name to anyone who follows progressive jazz and they know him from landmark recordings such as Albert Ayler’s Love Cry, Sonny Sharrock’s Black Woman, his groundbreaking work as a leader, including the Milford Graves Percussion Ensemble, and his performances with the likes of Lou Reed, Min Tanaka, and John Zorn. He has been a revelatory force in music since the mid-1960s, liberating the role of the drummer from “timekeeper” to instrumental improviser and giving rise to the Free Jazz movement. However, even his musical practice cannot contain the energies of his creativity and intellect.