150 LIES MYTHS AND TRUTHS

 

Performance-to-camera on Camcorder video.

A to Z of 150 labels onto expectant tummy

Film duration: 18:00 mins, loop

Edition of 3 + 1 AP

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The transformational early work 150 Lies Myths and Truths finds James, heavily pregnant, contemplating what it means to bring a Black woman into the world. Across her naked belly are projected labels waiting to be affixed to her, from racial slurs to gendered pejoratives to terms of affection. Unspoken is the 151st myth – Michele Wallace’s ‘myth of superwoman’ – the expectation that a Black mother be supernaturally strong and capable. Instead, James creates a space to express fears for her unborn child -- Hettie Judah, Art critic and curator for Unit London. 

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A film made in response to a pregnancy scan confirming I was having another girl and thinking about the multitude of terms that exist in the world—both historical and contemporary, for black girls and women.

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