Wura-Natasha Ogunji Performance

As part of rīvus, 23rd Biennale of Sydney, Nigerian-American artist Wura-Natasha Ogunji is staging her public endurance performance Will I still carry water when I am a dead woman? 

First performed in Lagos, Nigeria in 2011, the piece explores the relationship between physical labour, presence, poetry and social change. As with much of her performance art, Ogunji is particularly interested in engaging questions of public space, power and politics. With this performance Ogunji asks: What is the significance of enacting physical labour as a philosophy of transformation, rather than a demonstration of struggle? What is the place of poetry, presence and beauty within this dialogue?

Join the performers as they trace a route from the National Art School to the Art Gallery of NSW, starting at 3pm outside the National Art School Gallery on Friday 10 June.

History, memory, separation and loss: Wura-Natasha Ogunji in conversation with Talia Linz

“The watery expanse between Africa and the Americas forever defines my aesthetic landscape. It is one of history, memory, separation and loss.”

Wura-Natasha Ogunji is a visual and performance artist based in Lagos, Nigeria. Her visual art practice includes creating works on paper using hand stitched lines in thread, graphite and ink, as well as videos and public performances. Water, and particularly the Atlantic Ocean with its history as a passage for slave trading between Africa and the Americas, influence her works in both concept and composition: ‘I often think about what’s happening below the water, the depth, what’s under and what’s carried and balance – what’s happening on either side of the sea.’ Join us for this unique opportunity to hear Wura-Natasha Ogunji in conversation with Talia Linz, curator at Artspace and curatorium member for the 23rd Biennale of Sydney.

Thursday 9th June 6.30pm
NAS GALLERY
National Art School
156 Forbes Street, Darlinghurst
Register here