Lafayette Anticipation associate curator Anna Colin talks to artist Tyler Coburn about Ergonomic Futures, a speculative project engaged with art, design, science, anthropology and writing. In this interview, Coburn discusses the research, production process and network of collaborators of a multilayered project ultimately concerned with the futures of humankind. Anna Colin: When one comes across your museum seats Ergonomic Futures (2016—) in contemporary art exhibitions—and soon in natural history, fine art, and anthropology museums—they look… [read more »]
Global .Wav | A One-Sided Argument for Angola
Angola, 2008
Ok, this is a kuduro video. There are a shitload of blog entries and articles about this genre hailing from Angola and the Angolan diaspora. Read up. I’m only discussing the video here, which is “Mama Kudi” by DJ Nays and Costuleta. The video begins with a BMW SUV pulling up on a dirt road, then all hell breaks loose. We see the requisite dancing girls, but more importantly, Costuleta—the one-legged co-producer of this track—is dancing with and without his crutches in a way that two-legged men could only dream of doing. In a variety of locations and outfits (this video is a collage of several others), Costuleta owns his disabled prowess, even adding a one-legged dancing boy (in basketball attire, no less) to make it all the more palatable. From his rippling and ripped, stone-washed jeans, we see a man possessed by life and the inescapably sick rhythm of kuduro. There’s a hilarious scene where he pretends to use his other shoe as a phone, while sliding up the floor. He repeats this gesture in a few other videos, making it his “thing.”
I can’t even begin to delve into his catalogue of outfits; they’re all fake, third world sporty genius—my favorite kind of sportswear. The video ends with Costuleta riding a bicycle and quickly cuts to him rollerblading through a mall!
Speechless? Join the club.
