Curated by Topher Campbell, artist, filmmaker and co-founder of rukus! federation, this special event will take over Somerset House with an evening to celebrate Making a rukus!
This new exhibition explores Black, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans creativity, activism, community and pride through archive materials, contemporary artworks and new commissions, championing the work of Black LGBTQ+ pioneers and artists since the 1970s.
The evening will include access to the exhibition and features a programme of live music, performances and DJs across both the courtyard and an intimate club area in The Deadhouse.
18.00 - 20.00 | Black Obsidian Sound System | Installation & Sound Performance
Black Obsidian Sound System (B.O.S.S.) was established in 2018 to bring together a community of Queer, Trans and non-binary Black people and people of colour involved in art, sound and radical activism. Following the legacies of sound system culture, they wanted to learn, build and sustain a resource for collective struggles.
20.30 - 22.00 | Black Obsidian Sound System (B.O.S.S) with Special Guest Nadia Rose
Nadia Rose is a British rapper, singer and songwriter known both for her style and energetic performances.
Nadia's debut single Skwod became an instant hit in 2016, with a unique blend of Grime, Hip Hop and Dancehall earning her widespread recognition as one of the UK's most promising young artists.
20.00 - 20.30 | Live performance by Joshua Woolford and Sippin’ T
Joshua is a transdisciplinary artist working between performance, painting, sculpture, sound, video and installation, to “confront experiences of violence, aggression and misalignment through abstract forms and sounds, verbal language and my body.” Their work is rooted in cultural research, drawing from literature, music and art, as well as their own personal experiences of being a member of the Queer Black Afro-Caribbean diaspora living in England.
Sippin’ T is a DJ and Space Maker based in Kingston, Jamaica but born in south London.
Consistently returning to the question of 'becoming someone new or returning to myself', their practice is inherently political, highlighting inter-generational trauma, colonial legacies, ancestral traditions and gender through gathering, sound and visuals as a call to finding home, while understanding collaboration under capitalism.
As a DJ, they seek to reclaim the texture and multiple faces of electronic music from a Global Majority perspective, with a sonic journey fusing nature with technology, ambient with club sounds, the past with the present, on a mission towards freedom and joy.
Food by Joy's Caribbean Fusion
Serving award-winning vegan Caribbean dishes.
KERB
The street food legends are back with a special rukus! Live pop-up bar.
18.00, 19.45 and 21.15 | Cheza Lucina DJ sets
DJ Cheza Lucina is a multi-dimensional artivist, curating sets that weave big bass grooves together and expose underground sounds from all around.
19.15 and 20.45 | Live pole performances curated by Kamari Romeo, An0maly Arts, with performers Kaiden Ford, Jay Thee Stallion and Bambi
Kamari Romeo
An0maly is a Creative Producer and pole artist from London. Inspired by theatre, alternative drag and performance art practices, he spins around the intersections of race, gender, pleasure and difference. He offers a refreshing connection for audiences who want to engage with bold, engaging and experimental conversations around reclaiming your body, from the perspective of someone who has experienced multiple ways of being.
Kaiden Ford
Kaiden’s work combines elements of spoken word, movement and sound to document the struggles of growing up non-binary and Black in a hostile world, laying bare their experiences and documenting their journey towards self-acceptance and authenticity.
Bambi Jordan Phillips
Bambi is a producer, movement artist and model, interested in driving forward artistic work for social change. A cornerstone of the London Ballroom Scene, she is an advocate, mentor and authority for the community, and Mother of the Kiki House of Laveaux. From organising at a grassroots level to internationally acclaimed venues, Bambi believes in Voguing as a form of abolition - a direct connection to Trans-embodied ancestry. She creates work that explores identity and the deconstruction of learned ideas of gender, sexuality, desire and race.
Jay They Stallion
Jay is a circus and dance performer, somatic healer, writer and movement coach. They are also the founder of Stretch and Release, a platform that creates workshops focusing on somatic healing and finding intimacy and embodiment after violence. Stretch and Release has partnered with UK Black Pride, Camp Trans, Black Lives Matter Festival and many other incredible organisations to create healing spaces within their community. Jay's work as a performer spans multiple aerial disciplines, hula hoop, story telling and erotic performances.
Making a rukus!
Black Queer Histories Through Love and Resistance
This new exhibition, curated by artist, filmmaker and co-founder of rukus! federation Topher Campbell, explores Black, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans creativity, activism, community and pride through archive materials, contemporary artworks and new commissions, celebrating the work of Black LGBTQ+ pioneers and artists since the 1970s.
