Lovegreg (@lovegreg) • Hey

Publications

The Impossible attracts me, because everything possible has been done and the world didn't change.” ― **Sun Ra**
WRITE ABOUT THE FUTURE...so you're right about the future https://zora.co/collect/zora:0x5b99e6e7295acc5f041339acef7b823dbe38aa01/1?referrer=0x7d57dF5B6D9D22D7a7305C6EA78A1f86B8696374
Venetian Slow Jam Created in Generate by @lens/refraction
Magic carpet ride... The concept of digital emulating physical, like this tapestry evocative piece, is always captivating to me. https://zora.co/collect/zora:0xf94dd9657abc9150f4752b349ef720d331567913/21?referrer=0x7d57dF5B6D9D22D7a7305C6EA78A1f86B8696374
"I don't know what this is." Another boundary bursting AI film release from @lens/artbyjah https://zora.co/collect/zora:0x2dc04718feda251ba15f26451ed3996c5720ada1/3?referrer=0x7d57dF5B6D9D22D7a7305C6EA78A1f86B8696374
@lens/bonsai or Naut (By me + @lens/titlesxyz) https://titles.xyz/collect/base/0xe0b4f6d38f45ab35f855e4f7b2b96f1f81aa5dd9
"...I posit that mathematics could be an unexpected pathway by which African-Americans could develop cultural aesthetics for communication design. Specifically, I argue for the use of African fractals (Eglash 1999) as a resource for the visual semantics of the communication designer’s canvas—a printed or digital composition that diverse users access for information and/or an aesthetic or cultural experience." - **Audrey Bennett**, Professor, Stamps School of Art & Design Many are unaware of the **Golden Ratio**'s African origins. Understanding this can amplify Black practitioners impact on modern design by integrating their cultural legacy. <https://posterhouse.org/blog/follow-the-golden-ratio-from-africa-to-the-bauhaus-for-a-cross-cultural-aesthetic-for-images/>
“Afrofuturism is an emerging philosophy of the diaspora & Africa. It's a framework for how African people locate themselves in time and space with agency, with the understanding that the control of time is tied to the control of space.” Reynaldo Anderson editorial for @lens/refraction 📸 by me https://www.refractionfestival.com/editorial/afrofuturism-and-democracy-the-age-of-disorder
Handsome south Burg.
"This body of work epitomizes the importance of research-based art in a world that is becoming violently anti-intellectual; in a world increasingly invested in the disinformation & the manipulation of information."** - Brittnay Proctor on ‘Tomashi Jackson Across the Universe'** Art illuminating and critiquing our ‘Disinformation Age’ https://cultbytes.com/tomashi-jackson-across-the-universe/
"My Old Friend" This mint elicits so many storylines for me. I can hear the voices. https://zora.co/collect/zora:0x2fd40c3242a191b273c529d01b035443493d09e9/1?referrer=0x7d57dF5B6D9D22D7a7305C6EA78A1f86B8696374
"*Afrofuturism*, a cultural & artistic movement, merges elements of African diaspora culture w/ futuristic visions often incorporating sound as a central theme. Sound serves not just as a medium for music but as a technology for storytelling & cultural transmission." - **Julian Chambliss** Music is cultural storytelling, world building and change making. (My image prompt, though as a longtime DJ it takes a lot of finessing to get the gear even close to accurately represented. In this case, I'm interested in what this future gear might be." https://www.afrofantastic.com/blog/afrofuturism-is
Big bang in my brain after using artist trained AI from @lens/titlesxyz. Going to be creating a lot more this way and hopefully have my own model soon. Would love to be able to mint directly from a link on Lens too! https://titles.xyz/collect/base/0x7a05c2b751940442611237fc944d663d3ce4d67b
"Integrating the principles of Afrofuturism into AI design holds promise for creating AI systems that are more cognisant of their biases, responsive to diverse perspectives, and geared towards positive societal impact." - **Kojo Apeagyei**, AI & data ethics Afrofuturism is a powerful design framework. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/medialse/2024/04/30/what-afrofuturism-can-teach-us-about-designing-ai-systems-better/
"**The Ancestor’s Future: An Afrofuturist’s Journey Through Time**, artist and historian **Cheyney McKnight**’s first solo exhibition featuring her performance pieces, photographs, and clothing designs that are transformed into modern textiles while highlighting the Black experience in America with 18th and 19th-century silhouettes." Incredibly excited to see this, hopefully for a live performance in Manhattan. To me, the rich narrative of slavery-era clothing through today and into the future is a profound provocation. https://dyckmanfarmhouse.org/the-ancestors-future-an-afrofuturists-journey-through-time/
"While Afrofuturism is often seen as centered on the experiences of African Americans, Black people around the world have adopted many of the concepts presented by Afrofuturism and are making connections to their specific lived experiences in the diaspora" Exploring the **Afrofuturism** stacks at The Met's **Watson Library** https://www.metmuseum.org/perspectives/articles/2022/6/library-afrofuturism
Wait for the...truth. Moment from the short **AUGURE** by **Baloji** expressing **Audre Lorde ** via Hypebeast Africa
Mind blending!
"What happened that night was like molecules being rearranged throughout my brain and body; just music I'd never heard before, at a speed I wasn't used to. It was like watching someone playing sounds from the future." DJ Wawa on **DJ Rashad** Future then, future now. via @lens/melknee https://ra.co/features/4043
**Code (of) the Streets** (AI x I)
“Hip hop isn’t just beats and rhymes…it’s a movement that fought to redefine the times.” This dream collab b/t **Dr. Walter Greason & Tim Fielder** is at the top of my 📖 list. For me, hip hop's singular ability to fundamentally shift global culture is pure Afrofuturism. https://www.theworkprint.com/graphic-history-of-hip-hop-walter-greason-tim-fielder-interview/123
“The first art curation dedicated to Sudanese humanitarian causes within the web3 space” #art4sudan Sudanese architectural designer, magic realist & futurist **Rayan Elnayal** inspirationally using digital art to raise awareness + funds for those impacted by the war in Sudan. A few great pieces still available: https://tinyurl.com/3h9zfzv4
“As cultural leaders, we have built institutions not in the physical structures, but in intellectual, emotional, and dare I say spiritual structures for years. It’s a historic moment. But it’s also about future-making. It’s about creating and sustaining institutions that will continue to be a part of Harlem as Harlem changes and evolves.” **- Thelma Golden, Director/Chief Curator, The Studio Museum** Harlem culture leads to the future https://www.thecut.com/_pages/clu7crty700000iamj5jpgdsz.html
"I want to take you all on the journey as I launch **RABA**. The first collection includes kente cloth from Ghana, mud cloth (bologan) from Burkina Faso, and kuba cloth from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I'm traveling a lot & meeting amazing people who maintain their traditions & create textiles that are breathtakingly beautiful–despite many challenges, including the legacy of colonialism" My friend Tyi's shoe brand utilizes African diaspora hand woven textiles. This is e/afro building in action, connecting the past to the present in an innovative, constructive fashion. https://www.raba.world/
Afrofuturism = Worldbuilding
It’s digital from scans It says I’m not eligible to join maybe I’m looking at the wrong one lol
🌍✈️🔜
The **Mandombe** script, a writing system created in the Kongo in the '70s for African languages, was just introduced to me by a colleague. This feels like a powerful example of effective Afrofuturism in action – collaboration that centers African knowledge and builds towards the future. There is also a beautiful aesthetic expression to the forms. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/puzzles-mandombe-congo-language
Powerful, provocative **Whitney Biennial** works by **Torkwase Dyson**, **Kiyan Williams**, **Nikita Gale**, **Isaac Julien**, & **Demian DinéYazhi'** that took a hold and never let go.
Standard time(lapse)
Crypto use cases are skyrocketing in Africa. Nigeria is the 2nd fastest adopter in the world. Blaring signal that web3 attention economy projects (think memecoins) focused on, and benefiting, the diaspora are destined to ignite. https://techsafari.beehiiv.com/p/africa-crypto-meets-real-world
"Resonant with Surrealism’s fascination with the subconscious and its dreaming states, and replete with Afro-Futurism’s boundless capacity to reimagine the world, Barbour’s recombinant portraiture builds further on the sensation of fragmentation that characterizes not only the dissonance of life as a Black person in America, but also the spliced and diced quality of modern visual culture." Shana Nys Dambrot on Afro-Surrealist photocollagist **Chelle Barbour**
"I don’t view the past and future as binaries or opposites or linear. In addition, I think the act of remembering is a much messier endeavor than we would like to admit." Afrofuturist sound sculpting poet, **Alison C. Rollins** Afrofuturism inherently wades into the fluidity of time.
Let's get building!
Jumped into mesmerizing **Still Water Requiem** by @lens/nygilia. https://zora.co/collect/zora:0x0877774d274725bce565c343dda9240e4d4f9bef/2?referrer=0x7d57dF5B6D9D22D7a7305C6EA78A1f86B8696374
#afrofuturism recruitment mantra
"What makes Afrofuturism different from other futuristic takes is that it has a nonlinear perspective of time. So the future, past and present can very much be one." **Ytasha Womack**, author & Afrofuturist thought leader *Cultural quantum perspective* is the main key to temporal agency. https://nyti.ms/4auFWNW
*In 1994, **Amiri Baraka** and **Askia Toure** spoke about the legacy of the **Black Arts Movement** and the ways that movement was misunderstood by history. In some ways, this conversation highlighted how the contemporary **Afrofuturist** movement is changing society by advocating for how arts and culture reshape belief, creating the tools for action. -* Julian Chambliss https://youtu.be/HUmDcHnh6J8?si=Svv31sc2t9YDAcgl
UNESCO Cultural Heritage list recognizes historic contribution of "techno culture in Berlin" with no mention of DETROIT?!? To create the (Afro)future, we need to actively battle cultural erasure and tone deaf misappropriation. Read Tajh Morris Opinion feature on Resident Advisor https://ra.co/features/4193
Just launched $UHURU, the first Afrofuturist culturecoin and creator ecosystem. Building in public, interested in both deep thoughts and hot takes. Limited time commemorative NFT + link to official site: https://forage.xyz/p/01HSHSNW1ZWZF7YSPJNY3Y8WSZ
New Metroidvania-style game, "**Tales of Kenzera: Zau**," dives into grief through **Afrofuturism** & **Bantu** traditions using vibrant colors to express complex emotions in contrast to the West. Interesting to explore death & loss in gameplay through a cultural lens.
*Thus all art is propaganda and ever must be, despite the wailing of the purists. I stand in utter shamelessness and say that whatever art I have for writing has been used always for propaganda for gaining the right of black folk to love and enjoy.* *I do not care a damn for any art that is not used for propaganda. But I do care when propaganda is confined to one side while the other is stripped and silent.* **W.E.B. Du Bois**, "Criteria of Negro Art"
Domino sunset remixed with Generate by @lens/refraction
"Welcome to a special edition of 16x9, celebrating African and Diaspora acts. In the digital age, we create a space that goes beyond pixels and screens, resonating with rich narratives and creativity." Ancurated Interviews, artwork showcases, and exclusive digital releases from Africa, a platform for cultural exchange and community engagement. https://objkt.com/tokens/KT1WpBxaQQe4biTXDGkCvgq548WUqqhsf2nN/3?ref=tz1SiTZKXZDxJzRwbqDmS3iHPWBKXAFhNNKR
“I would describe [my art] as Y2K aesthetic meets gaming and culture. I enjoy creating worlds and immersive character art that is inspired by my roots.” Refraction x Lens Fellowship artist and soaring space-age world-builder, @lens/nygilia, featured in @lens/nftnow Next Up. 👀 https://nftnow.com/next-up/next-up-nygilia-crafts-posthuman-visions-in-pixelated-dreams/
**Aṣẹ: Afro Frequencies**, “the current zeitgeist, the mystical realms of African culture that have profoundly influenced the global popular culture, and a vision of a hopeful future” Afrofuturism & Afrosurrealism force multiply in ARTECHOUSE's new immersive experience. Excited for **Vince Fraser**'s powerful digital art set to **ursula rucker**'s evocative poetry. Opens March 22nd. https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/afro-surrealism-and-afrofuturism-are-explored-in-this-new-immersive-exhibit-030524
*As a Black architect, my passion in design revolves around the righteous unraveling and seeing beyond to make room for a self-envisioned future. I seek to make the invisible visible.* **June A. Grant** Discovering how much architecture embodies the effective Afrofuturism ethos of purposeful re-imagination. Image: Black Cultural Zone by blinkLab
“Ancestral and daily are synonyms,” Baldwin once wrote. Indeed, as this film attests, the past is never really past; it constantly spills into the present and forges the scaffold on which the future is compelled to unfold in the model outlined by its forebears. Inheritance, therefore, is everything. - Kelli Weston of The Nation on "What James Baldwin Saw" doc So much to learn from Baldwin's prophetic vision. https://rb.gy/j4j83w
**Design** creates culture. Culture shapes values. Values determine **the future**. - Robert L. Peters **Afrofuturism** is a (design) space.