AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange, the innovative series about contemporary Black life, art and culture currently airing on public television stations across the country, continues with AFROPUNK presents The Triptych. The film, produced by Matthew Morgan and Jocelyn Cooper of AFROPUNK, will air as the fourth episode of the series, which this year is hosted by actress Yaya DaCosta. The program premieres on WORLD Channel on Monday, February 9, at 8 pm ET/10pm PT. AfroPoP is executive-produced by National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) and distributed by American Public Television (APT).
AFROPUNK started in 2003 as a documentary about Black youth involved in the punk music scene but has grown into a major force to be reckoned with in youth culture. From its not-to-be-missed alternative music festival in Brooklyn, to its popular website www.afropunk.com, to marketing and launching recording artist D’Angelo’s long-anticipated album Black Messiah, AFROPUNK brings together creative, expressive people seeking cutting-edge culture.
The film immerses the edgy AFROPUNK in the world of fine art. A triptych is a series of three connected works of an artistic, literary or musical nature, and the film is itself an artful portrayal of a trio of today’s most celebrated visual artists: contemporaries Sanford Biggers, Wangechi Mutu and Barron Claiborne. Biggers, an interdisciplinary artist, is known for his dramatic works fusing film, video, installation, sculpture, drawing, original music and performance, offering new perspectives on established cultural symbols. Wangechi Mutu, an international multimedia artist and sculptor, is perhaps best known for her fantastical collages melding the female form with machine, animal and unexpected parts. Claiborne is a renowned photographer whose works explore the historical, mythological and imaginary; they have been published in outlets such as Newsweek, New York Times Magazine, Rolling Stone and Interview, among others. AFROPUNK presents The Triptych is directed by Terence Nance and Barron Claiborne.
“AfroPoP strives to showcase Black artists from around the world and with AFROPUNK presents The Triptych we are fortunate to have not one but three artists we can help expose to new audiences,” said NBPC Executive Director Leslie Fields-Cruz. “Together they demonstrate the wonderful diversity of people of African descent internationally.”
“Sanford, Wangechi and Barron are among our most important contemporary artists, each fully embodying the rebellious spirit of AFROPUNK,” said Nance. “As such, they are perfect subjects for what we hope will be the first of many Triptych films celebrating our visual artists and engaging young people in this wonderful art form.”
The Sanford Biggers and Wangechi Mutu segments will air on public television as a one-hour episode. The third segment, highlighting Barron Claiborne, will be available online for thirty days starting February 10 at WORLDChannel.org, local public station websites and blackpublicmedia.org.
Additional films in the series include The Carrier by Maggie Betts (which premiered on January 19), Hélène Harder’s Ladies’ Turn (January 26), Keren Shayo’s Sound of Torture (February 2) and Micah Fink’s The Abominable Crime (February 16). The Carrier is a heartening exploration of the lengths to which a woman and a community in Zambia will go to stop HIV from infecting the next generation. Ladies’ Turn follows a team of girls and young women fighting against misogynistic and religious sentiment for a chance at playing soccer. Sound of Torture is a harrowing tale of Eritrean refugees who escape an oppressive regime at home only to land in Bedouin camps where they are tortured, raped and otherwise abused. The Abominable Crime puts the spotlight on homophobia in Jamaica through the stories of a lesbian single mother seeking asylum after a homophobic shooting and a Jamaican human rights activist forced to flee the country after being outed and receiving death threats.For information on when and where to watch, including additional air dates for each of the episodes, check your local listings or go to www.APTonline.org or www.worldchannel.org.
