Steffani Jemison

Lonique, Vaugn, and Wyane Sing Larry Neal's Black Fire
2008
28 framed photographs, unlimited edition of audio CDs
Installation dimensions variable

Inspired by “Baldessari Sings Lewitt,” I invited three teenaged performers to interpret fourteen lines from Larry Neal’s “And Shine Swam On,” a Black Arts Movement manifesto originally published in the 1968 volume Black Fire. Neal's essay thematizes music, art, and the limitations of "Black literature." The installation presents an annotated musical score transcribing the improvised performance; the audio file is also available.