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Booth #105
https://apertoarts.com/#witnesses
https://www.biancaturner.xyz/
At the invitation of Google France, BGN, and YouTube, the series recently was recently presented in a collaborative project with the French-Cameroonian artist Fred Ebami for Black History Month in Paris. Bianca created the artwork for the theatrical production 'Black Brecht: What if Brecht was Black? by Coletivo Legítima Defesa (Legitimate Defense Collective), a Black Theatre group originally from São Paulo, Brazil. The play premiered in São Paulo in 2019.
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"Witnesses" serves as a palimpsest, intricately weaving layers of research and a fusion of historical and contemporary imagery. It effortlessly invokes a narrative that portrays both the past and present, shedding light on the enduring impact of colonial violence in Brazil – a nation forged through an often overlooked tumultuous history.
The series of visual collages by Bianca Turner frames characters' testimonials within the theatrical production "Black Brecht: What if Brecht was Black?". The narrative revolves around Luculus Brasilis, a Colonizer General who, appearing dead at the Supreme Court of the Kingdom of Shadows, must justify his existence on Earth to determine his eligibility to enter the Kingdom of the Blessed. Presided over by the judge of the Dead, the trial involves five jurors: a teacher, a fishmonger, a gravedigger, a wet nurse, and an unborn child. The witnesses providing testimonials include a Blind King, Yayá (a black woman wearing a white wig), The Cook, The Soldier, The Priest, The Girl, and The Mother (Mãe Peixeira). These characters represent archetypes of individuals once transported from Africa to Brazil as enslaved people.
"Black Brecht: What if Brecht was Black?" is loosely inspired by Bertolt Brecht's "The Judgment of Lucullus." Rewritten by Brazilian dramaturg Dione Carlos, it was performed and created by Coletivo Legítima Defesa (Legitimate Defense Collective), a Black Theatre group originally from São Paulo, Brazil. The play premiered in April 2019 in São Paulo with Bianca Turner's visual collages.
In November 2023, invited by Google France, BGN, and YouTube, Bianca presented the series in the context of Black History Month in collaboration with the French-Cameroonian artist Fred Ebami in Paris.
https://apertoarts.com/#witnesses
https://www.biancaturner.xyz/
