‘Mem’, ‘Ora’ and ‘Bilia’ is centred around Black diasporic memory and the modes in which we can encounter collective histories through inhabitation. Taking shape in this domain, J. Paris’ field of thought, there are 12 wooden fixtures serving as building blocks. Some standing at a maximum 7ft in height, as others may sprawl in length. The purple paint coated on the furniture activates a renewal of life whilst highlighting past histories.
Resting on and laying around the furniture are a series of prints and objects of ephemera sourced from Henrique’s family archives, mapping critical experiences of space, time and shared exchanges. Furthermore accompanying the installation are audio works, collected by the artist himself, of multiple voices that correspond directly to the Portuguese colonial war (1961-74) in Angola. As these testimonies are broadcasted across the room at different decibels, their temporality arouses questions of ‘How one dances, blushes, screws, and feels’ as being regenerative mechanisms in mapping heritage
Text & Co-curation by Daré Dada
Resting on and laying around the furniture are a series of prints and objects of ephemera sourced from Henrique’s family archives, mapping critical experiences of space, time and shared exchanges. Furthermore accompanying the installation are audio works, collected by the artist himself, of multiple voices that correspond directly to the Portuguese colonial war (1961-74) in Angola. As these testimonies are broadcasted across the room at different decibels, their temporality arouses questions of ‘How one dances, blushes, screws, and feels’ as being regenerative mechanisms in mapping heritage
Text & Co-curation by Daré Dada