New Ways of Moving Forward: A Conversation with Brendan Fernandes

In this first of a two-part interview with Brendan Fernandes, a Canadian artist of Kenyan and Indian descent, we discuss his practice as well as the impact of the present conditions of social isolation and increasing digital programming on his work. Fernandes is a multidisciplinary artist working with installation, video, sculpture and dance. His performances are equally inspired by elements of classical ballet, queer dance halls and nightclubs as well as protest movements. His work often address issues of race, labour, migration and queer identities. Fernandes is currently artist-in-residency and assistant professor at Northwestern University in Chicago.

Given that a large part of his practice is rooted in choreographing multiple bodies and performing for live audiences, Fernandes talks about the challenges that have arisen in the recent past as live, in-person viewing has become almost impossible with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite the initial challenges, he emphasises that adaptation and finding new modes of expression have always inspired his work. He also talks about his experiments with performing through digital media. We discuss one such digital performance, The Left Space, developed and choreographed by him for the webcam in the last year. Here, the artist investigated the possibilities of gathering, protesting and performing collectively on Zoom. The project included custom backdrops by graphic designer Jerome Harris, made using historically significant patterns to tell stories of power, camouflage and resistance.

In the second part of this interview, we talk about the recently concluded exhibition Diasporic Rhizome, which was juried by Fernandes and organised by the South Asia Institute, Chicago.

^{(Featured Image: Still from The Left Space. Brendan Fernandes. 2020. Virtual Performance. Image courtesy of the artist.)}

Interview taken on 13 July 2021