DOMINIQUE WHITE (UK, 1993)
Residency period: May – July 2021
During my wonderful time at La Becque, I spent my time continuing my research on Black Subjectivity, further defining it as Blackness existing outside or beyond the current entrapments of the Human (through its active rejection of this categorisation), as a fungible object (or unstable subject) that appraises an identity akin to the Black Cyborg (James, J & Costa Vargas, J. 2012). This body of research also posits this definition of Black Subjectivity as the determiner of its own fate though insurrection and protest; a fate which favours a subaquatic Black Future which is influenced by myths of the Black Diaspora in addition to the destructive, omniscient nature of the sea. In particular, I drew upon existing references from my research ranging from the Drexciyan myth (after the techno duo, Drexciya) which depicts an aquatic Black nation under the waves of the Atlantic to the Kalunga myth (which describes the Atlantic Ocean as the threshold between the spirit and living realms), as well as the destructive nature of hurricanes in the Caribbean (specifically the speculation that hurricanes follow the same route as slave ships) and the sea as a Stateless entity beyond linear time.
This manifested itself in many forms such as drawings (which have since been transformed into sculptures), small experiments, writings, live lectures (with Cassandra Press) and footage taken underwater in Lake Geneva. I spent a fair amount of time exploring these activities between the library, the studio provided, and whatever glimmers of sunshine that were afforded to me.
During this period, I also spent time cross-border producing for a newly commissioned exhibition in Oslo due to insecurities about border restrictions and a limited time frame to install it (due to covid). I produced 39 fragments of three sculptures that debuted at UKS in Oslo on 13 August 2021. In addition to these fragments and with the aid of Manon and Pyloo, the main component of one of these sculptures, a steam-bent mahogany pole, was also produced on site and shipped to Oslo in time for installation.
Dominique White (born 1993) weaves together theories of black subjectivity, Afro-pessimism and hydrarchy with the nautical myths of black diaspora into a term she defines as the “Shipwreck(ed)”, a reflexive verb and state of being. Her sculptures demonstrate how Black life could extend beyond its own subjective limits and act as beacons or vessels of an ignored civilisation defined as stateless, a realm in which the past, present and future have converged into a black future. Her visual vocabulary extends from nautical motifs such as destroyed sails, damaged nets, mutilated anchors and soluble buoys to the decaying or volatile materials such as palm fronds, raffia and kaolin clay.