Thinkers In Residence: Barby Asante, 2003/2004

As Thinker in Residence Barby Asante is focusing on questions of the possibilities of Live Art for artists from culturally diverse backgrounds and in particular, how the Live Art Development Agency can creatively develop its approach to working with artists from culturally diverse backgrounds.

Live Art has proved to be a particularly potent arena for artists from culturally diverse backgrounds who may have been marginalised within dominant cultural traditions in Britain. Live Art offers new languages to play with the cultural and social influences that inform us, to articulate new forms of identity and representation and to create new cultural landscapes. For artists engaged with issues of identity and cultural difference, Live Art is an articulate platform to challenge post colonial narratives.

However, we are increasingly concerned that artists from culturally diverse backgrounds are not engaging with Live Art practices in the ways that many practitioners did in the mid to late 1990s.  Although there are a range of exciting younger practitioners from culturally diverse backgrounds currently engaging  with Live Art we do not get the sense of a large number of new artists waiting in the wings. Why is this? Why are more artists from culturally diverse backgrounds not embracing Live Art and what can the Live Art sector do, or do better, to address this? What are the different strategies and approaches that can be explored to engage artists from culturally diverse backgrounds.

Barby Asante uses engagement and participatory strategies to explore her interest in performativity, particularly in relation to her cultural identity.  Many of her ideas consider that we are all complicit in the creation and construction of our identities and the identities of those around us. She is interested in how we perform our identities and wants to create works that do not assign the problem of identity to particular groups in society, but rather consider identity as something that effects us all.  She has exhibited widely in the UK and abroad.  Projects include I Accept Your, Image I am You, 198 Gallery, Journey Into The East, The Showroom Gallery and Futurology: Black Country 2024, New Art Gallery, Walsall.  She was Lead Artist for the Bow Festival Roman Road Revel (2004) and is currently working on You Should See Kaba Styles for Africa Remix, at the Hayward Gallery in London. Barby also has extensive experience in running workshops and she talks regularly to artists about practice. 

Banner image credit:

Barby Asante, image courtesy of the artist

We are looking for a better quality image for this page or to replace it if it's missing.

Also

Study Room Residencies

Opportunities for artists, researchers, critics, academics and other curious folk to spend time in the Study Room through self-led research residencies.

Read more

Study Room Residencies for Black Scholars and Artists (now closed)

Two 6 month Study Room residencies for Black scholars and artists

Read more

The Study Room

A free, open access research facility used by artists, students, curators, academics and other arts professionals

Read more

Thinkers In Residence: Maxx Shurley, 2004/2005

exploring identity and multiculturalism in relation to curatorial practices.

Read more

Call for Proposals: Privilege and the Displaced, Artist Residency

Undertake a residency exploring Live Art in relation to the experiences of the displaced

Read more

Thinkers In Residence: Mary Paterson, 2009/2010

exploring the relationship between Live Art and online spaces.

Read more

Thinker in Residence: Hester Chillingworth

Hester Chillingworth is LADA’s new Thinker in Residence, focusing on Young People, Gender & Live Art.

Read more