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Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver)
March 16–Aug 21, 2023
MoMA PS1
MoMA PS1 will present the first solo museum exhibition by filmmaker and artist Onyeka Igwe (b. 1986, London). A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) brings together three films that highlight the artist’s ongoing interest in the relation between dance and protest movements, especially those enacted by women. Igwe engages choreography on and off the screen, creating an immersive, expanded cinematic environment—evoking the performance space of the black box theater—through which audiences move to watch three short films played sequentially. The principal subject of the film cycle is the 1929 Aba Women’s War, which Igwe first learned about from family lore since few historical records on the conflict exist. Led primarily by Igbo women, the Aba Women’s War is considered one of the first anti-colonial uprisings in Nigeria. By conceptually recovering the repressed history of this collective act of resistance, Igwe finds, even in the tragedies of the past, new means for understanding the present.
Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) is organized by Kari Rittenbach, Assistant Curator, MoMA PS1.
Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) is supported by the Mertz Gilmore Foundation.
Learn more about the exhibition on our website.
Press Kit
Images
Installation view of Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) on view at MoMA PS1 from March 16 to August 21, 2023. Image courtesy MoMA PS1. Photo: Marissa Alper
Installation view of Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) on view at MoMA PS1 from March 16 to August 21, 2023. Image courtesy MoMA PS1. Photo: Steven Paneccasio
Installation view of Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) on view at MoMA PS1 from March 16 to August 21, 2023. Image courtesy MoMA PS1. Photo: Steven Paneccasio
Installation view of Onyeka Igwe: A Repertoire of Protest (No Dance, No Palaver) on view at MoMA PS1 from March 16 to August 21, 2023. Image courtesy MoMA PS1. Photo: Steven Paneccasio
Onyeka Igwe. Sitting on a Man (video still). 2018. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). 3-channel HD Video. Duration: 6’41”. Courtesy the artist.
Onyeka Igwe. Sitting on a Man (video still). 2018. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). 3-channel HD Video. Duration: 6’41”. Courtesy the artist.
Onyeka Igwe. Sitting on a Man (video still). 2018. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). 3-channel HD Video. Duration: 6’41”. Courtesy the artist.
Onyeka Igwe. Sitting on a Man (video still). 2018. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). 3-channel HD Video. Duration: 6’41”. Courtesy the artist.
Onyeka Igwe. Specialised Technique (video still). 2018. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). HD Video. Duration: 6’36”. Courtesy the artist and BFI National Archive.
Onyeka Igwe. Her Name in My Mouth (video still). 2017. From A Repertoire for Protest (No Dance, No Palaver). HD Video. Duration: 5’52”. Courtesy the artist.