#Jamaican dancehall music videos 2019 series#

вЂњDancehall WeatherвЂќ splices together footage of street dancers with the islandвЂ™s scenery - a gyrating figure becomes translucent, morphing into a verdant background. At once, the rhythmic relationship between Jamaican community and nature becomes apparent. Unable to attend the fair, I attempt to recreate the triptych on my small laptop screen from files sent by Bengolea. For Bengolea, it represents something visceral in Jamaican culture, where the values of the body politic are examined through the politics of the body.ДЄ further part of the artwork is a triptych of BengoleaвЂ™s videos, presented on vertical screens hovering above the fountain.

.вЂ‰which morph into 3D animated creatures В© Courtesy of the artistДancehall developed from reggae in the 1970s, with bold beats and explicit moves gaining global popularity. Every audience, even if they donвЂ™t know dancehall, can understand the humour behind it, as well as the depth and melancholy.вЂќДЇor вЂBestiaireвЂ™ (2019), Bengolea scanned her body in her different positionsвЂ‰.вЂ‰.вЂ‰. вЂњJamaican dancers are very inclusive, allowing people from the rest of the world to use their creations. вЂњBehind each step there is a signification, all the moves have names,вЂќ she says. She came to specialise in one of JamaicaвЂ™s emblematic cultural forms from an interest in вЂњdances which have a social functionвЂќ for her, the street and ritual dances in Jamaica вЂњtransform a community by practising music and dance togetherвЂќ. She says she studied вЂњarchaic ritual dancesвЂќ from South America, but it wasnвЂ™t until she visited Jamaica in 2014 that she began to mesh these teachings with the urban moves she encountered there. In another, two dancers - the Ukrainian Katrin Wow and the Jamaican Damion BG - will deliver a scripted conversation in the space, exploring their contrasting perspectives on dancehall: the former considers it a spiritual practice, the latter entertainment.Д¬ecilia Bengolea andВ Francesca Thyssen-Bornemisza perform in Venice in 2018 В© Enrico FioreseД«orn in Buenos Aires in 1979, Bengolea embraced dance in her youth, taking jazz dance lessons at age 12.

In one part of the artwork, Bengolea and her collaborators will perform a routine on a platform built over the MesseplatzвЂ™s fountain, giving the impression of a dance on water. The multidisciplinary artist will present an installation that encapsulates her unique approach to melding video, choreography and sculpture alongside her longstanding exploration of JamaicaвЂ™s dancehall culture. The Messeplatz outside the conference centre that houses the fair is a vivid display space for installations of all kinds this year, celebrating the return of the physical fair, live performance is to the fore.

вЂњDancehall artists are amazing teachers and can make people feel transformed.вЂќ

#Jamaican dancehall music videos 2019 series#

вЂњIвЂ™m sharing my practice of dance through a series of performances and inviting the audience to join in,вЂќ she says over email. She also wants visitors to the fair to get involved. Bodies moving together, floating on water, bouncing to a dancehall beat: thatвЂ™s the illusion Argentine performance artist and choreographer Cecilia Bengolea hopes to create with her works at Art Basel next week.