DIGITAL: Sorry I Missed Your Show: LaJuné McMillian

After careful consideration of the news regarding Coronavirus (COVID-19), Gibney has decided to make this event digital via Zoom. You must RSVP to receive the link.

The Black Movement Project

In the past few years, access to motion capture data, 3D base models, and software to “make an animation of yourself” has skyrocketed. From MakeHuman to Mixamo to CMU’s motion capture database, the ability to make and finish polished projects has become easier for many. While these resources are extremely helpful to create a range of projects, they lack the tools to create diverse characters and movements unexplored by systems that center assumptions of neutrality. The Black Movement Project (BMP) is an online database of Black motion capture data and Black character base models. BMP is a tool for activists, performers & artists to create diverse XR projects, a space to research how and why we move, and an archive of Black existence. The Black Movement Project seeks to not only catalog movement, but to create community through the use of performances, workshops, conversations and tool making. McMillian will share video clips and samples from The Black Movement Project and work through some questions. What does it mean to ethically digitize Black movement? How do we protect data that is collected, and how can it better serve and celebrate the community? How can we effectively challenge digital tools that don’t share these values, and gain control and ownership of our collective future?

A screening and discussion series, Sorry I Missed Your Show highlights dance works from the recent past to explore their relationship to the dance canon and contemporary practice. All events are free and open to the public.

ABOUT LaJunÉ McMillian

LaJuné is a New Media Artist, and Creative Technologist creating art that integrates Performance, Virtual Reality, and Physical Computing to question our current forms of communication. LaJuné has had the opportunity to show and speak about their work at Pioneer Works, National Sawdust, Leaders in Software and Art, Creative Tech Week, and Art && Code’s Weird Reality. LaJuné was previously the Director of Skating at Figure Skating in Harlem, where they integrated STEAM and Figure Skating to teach girls of color about movement and technology. They will continue their research on Blackness, Movement, and Technology during residencies at Eyebeam, Barbarian Group, and Barnard College.

Photo courtesy of the artist.

ACCESSIBILITY

We welcome the opportunity to make this event more accessible. Please request ASL interpreting, audio description, or open captioning 30 days before the event or submit other requests by completing our Access Requests and Inquiries Form or calling 646.837.6809 (Voice only).