Two people dance in an industrial space lit red

Diasporas Now

Bakani Pick-Up Company performing at Diasporas Now, Humber Street Gallery, 2024. Image: Abbie Jennings.

As an artist and curator of Jamaican heritage who lives on the Yorkshire East coast, it was an absolute delight and a buzz to see the Diasporas Now programme detonating here in Hull at Humber Street Gallery. Born out of lockdown, Diasporas Now was founded in 2021 by Rieko Whitfield (Japan/USA), Paola Estrella (Mexico) and Lulu Wang (China) whilst they were all at the Royal College of Art. Their original focus was on live-streamed performances, but they have now expanded to live events – this three city tour presenting a programme at the intersection of performance art, visual art, music, dance and fashion. As they say themselves, Diasporas Now ‘utilises collectivity as a positive strategy for cultural change, prototyping new ways expanded performance can help people of colour take up space, bridge industry silos and drive forward the discourse on inclusivity beyond theory to practise.’

I decided to spend the time leading up to the evening’s programme in the space and was greeted by the warmth and smiles of Humber Street Gallery’s staff and the platform’s three founders, who had all travelled up from the capital. All three not only drive this platform but are practicing artists themselves, and are passionate for Diasporas Now to allow artists to liberate themselves from the one-dimensional performances of pain that are often incentivised by a white institutional gaze. There is such a beautiful collective energy from Rieko, Paola, Lulu and all the artists, who express feeling blessed to be in Hull for the first time, and so when the doors open at 6pm and the audience flood into its main top-floor gallery space, there is that instant wonderful feeling that something mutually enlightening is about to be embarked upon.

Three people in black clothing pose in an industrial space lit fuschia
Diasporas Now co-founders (left to right: Lulu Wang, Paola Estrella, Rieko Whitfield). Image: Abbie Jennings.

The gallery space is split into two fluid performance areas with Rieko as the evening’s MC, guiding and introducing each performance, with interludes courtesy of the Collectif Echoes DJs, who will also end the night. The enigmatic figure of Vietnamese, Germany-born interdisciplinary artist Sattva slips through the audience in a black puffer jacket, which they then slip off whilst Rieko beckons the audience. Then in silence Sattva begins their movement performance ‘Eye of a Storm’ (2024). The audience are mesmerised by their seductive movements as they tantalisingly stroke the circumference of the gallery wall, punctuated with their deliberate stilettoed floor clicks with each precise step. We are hooked as the artist moves through the audience and suddenly begins mini conversational exchanges, making us swivel to continue watching this movement magician cast their spell upon us. Hauntingly beautiful.

Next up is James Jordan Johnson, an artist of Afro-Caribbean heritage working within performance, sculpture and research. Continuing in the space where Sattva cast their spell, James is methodically placing family photographs, coins and a wooden bowl of sugar water for his performance of ‘Something is Trying to Disappear Me’ (2021). This explores the Jamaican word ‘yard’ – referring to the yard of soil and flora, and also to the living quarters of the home. You could hear a pin drop as James calmly scopes out the area and then raises the wooden bowl to slowly fill his mouth without swallowing. We are intrigued as it seems as though he’s about to do press-ups, his whole body horizontal and his face flat against the gallery floor. In an anti-clockwise rotation, keeping his feet fixed to a single point, James slowly pivots his whole body’s length to demarcate a large circle (the yard) using the sugar water from his mouth. A profoundly claustrophobic and unsettling performance which cut deep into my Jamaican heritage, with its recollections of family, ancestry, returns, gatherings, soil fertilisation, ruination, Black nautical histories, slavery and that ‘yard’ creation. An inspired, unsettling and provocative performance.

Pivot 180 degrees and we see red light, two bodies in black with a beautifully optimistic jazz track in flow as Yorkshire-based Bakani Pick-Up begin their thirteen-minute performance piece, ‘93 Interlude: Pilgrimage to an Alternate Dimension’ (2023). Two Black bodies moving freely as flowing water with such dignity and grace is a sheer, hopeful delight. The Black bodies cease moving, the soundtrack floats pensively and a stream of profound spoken words are unleashed, ending with the word ‘freedom’ – a subconscious connection made with Hull’s William Wilberforce and the abolition of slavery. A truly defiant choreography of Black movement, with sound by Elias Brown and improvisational spoken word.

A person kneels, microphone in hand, manipulating audio equipment in an industrial space lit fuschia
Gisou Golshani performing at Diasporas Now, Humber Street Gallery, 2024. Image: Abbie Jennings.

More cries of freedom come from the fabulous London-based, multidisciplinary artist Gisou Golshani with a hefty, magenta lit, ritualistic sound performance, combining mirrors and chants whilst paying homage to one of Iran’s greatest classical singers, the activist Marzieh. A nod needs to be given to Humber Street Gallery technicians as the audience is truly immersed in Gisou’s industrial doom and drone sonics. Superb.

Back to red lighting and the audience gather as Rieko introduces the award-winning poet-songwriter and visual artist Nadeem Din-Gabisi. Nadeem is dressed all in white with hoodie, topped with a crown and hand on heart. His majestic wry smile triggers off wonky, stuttering beats and wobbly basslines that kick us into his performance ‘Flag’ (2024). It’s an absolute pleasure to feel his remixing live of a smorgasbord of sounds ranging from choral renditions of the hymn Jerusalem juxtaposed with samples from various Sierra Leone groups and beats from his own forthcoming album, Offshore. Nadeem takes pleasure in caressing the mic with his provocative words. Off comes the crown and on with a white balaclava to crank up the experience. An exhilarating performance.

Three people stand behind decks and mixing desk in an industrial space lit red
Collectif Echoes performing at Diasporas Now, Humber Street Gallery, 2024. Image: Abbie Jennings.

The programme now steps into clubland territory, with a receptive audience feeling the vibe and poised to dance, beginning with DJ Winggold – a bass-heavy live DJ set of tribal ritualistic and intense music with live rapping in the mix. The final performance for the night is from Collectif Echoes, who have been threading Black diasporic electronic music throughout the evening and now take centre stage with an inspired immersive mix of Black dance with projected visuals. The Ghanaian concept of ‘Sankofa’ springs to mind, as Collectif Echoes reclaim and honour the Black roots of electronic music while showcasing their influence in later emerging genres. This audio-visual DJ set is infectious as the whole gallery erupts into dance and smiles as they celebrate the Black electronic music archive. Immensely beautiful.

The British art world can no longer ignore or marginalise Black artists, or artists of other diasporic backgrounds. Indeed, the gates opened up so wide that the full breadth and depth of British culture was seen, and there’s no way you can zip that up again. It can’t and won’t go back to where it was as a new standard has been set which artists have been pushing for, for so long. The lack of recognition or credit can’t return. Without doubt Diasporas Now is a proud element of this zeitgeist.

Diasporas Now at Humber Street Gallery, 27th January 2024, was part of a UK tour which also had stops at NN Contemporary Art, Northampton, and the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.

Michael Barnes-Wynters is an Instigator, Mentorist, and Critical Friend based in Bridlington.

This review is supported by Diasporas Now.

Published 09.04.2024 by Benjamin Barra in Reviews

1,226 words