John Akomfrah to debut new film at Prospect New Orleans

1 June 2017

For Prospect New Orleans, artist and filmmaker John Akomfrah has created a new multi-channel video installation, which will be on view at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. The film works with the themes of risk, hybridity and the unfathomable to explore the city of New Orleans through the remarkable life and times of Buddy Bolden, the first known musician to explore the sonic tonalities of the music we now call jazz. Buddy Bolden was the most popular musician in New Orleans from 1900 to 1907, known for his loud cornet and innovative improvisational style. Known as "King Bolden", he was an instrumental part of the music scene of Louisiana until he was committed to the state's insane asylum with schizophrenia. A mystical figure, there are no known recordings of his music, and only a few photographs—yet his impact is felt throughout the jazz world.

Prospect.4: The Lotus in Spite of the Swamp is the fourth iteration of the international contemporary art triennial, taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana. Led by Artistic Director Trevor Schoonmaker, Chief Curator of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Prospect.4 brings together 72 artists from around the world. It opens to the public on Saturday 18 November 2017 and runs through 25 February 2018.

For more information, visit Prospect New Orleans's website.

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