Lecture #2 Afrofuturism: A Discussion

"I am not supposed to be here." This opening phrase is rather indicative of the overall sentiment of the visiting artist. This underlying theme is pervasive throughout his work functioning not as a statement attesting to the simple overcoming of adversity, but rather a guiding philosophical fixation. Active in social reform, the artist stated the importance of the individual in a collective. Essentially it is the individual’s responsibility to the collective to help bring about social change and reform. However, he states it is important then in a culture so distanced from controversial topics to have such topics made personal and relatable. I believe this is the main area of operation pursued by his work that acts both as tools for creating personable relations to important issues as well as addressing larger aesthetic discussion within the art world. As result, the work made by the artist also takes on a larger role concerning participatory artistic authorship and socially conscious practices.

          A central element of inspiration for the artist was stated to be X-Men comics from his childhood. This influence is evident in his less socially collective artistic pieces which include illustrations and even comic-shorts. The conceptual draw to X-Men comics was attributed to the main character (during that particular issues circulation) being Storm, a black female. He found encouragement in this as well as creative direction for later projects.

          Later career exploits moved toward the aforementioned socially conscious and collective pieces such as “Intelligent Mischief.” It is evident in these projects the attempt to communicate to younger generations and expand his visual language to facilitate community outreach. The artist also utilizes sarcasm and humor in many of these later projects including his work on a ‘Survival Guide for Blacks.’ Commentary on very serious issues is also a common theme in his work. In an attempt to make these issues more personable to everyday people the artist employs impersonal tactics such as sarcasm and humor as well as group activities such as ‘protest bootcamps’ to deconstruct the dominant historical vernacular guiding social involvement. These longstanding structures the artist feels are no longer effective in a new and evolving sociopolitical landscape and he believes it is possible to modify and reintroduce these structures to encourage individual participation.