Upcoming events.

Jan
20

Sound Installation inspired by the life of martin L. King

Crystal Bi and Dzidzor, Department of Public Imagination will be installing a sound a public interactive installation at the Isabella Stewart Gardner.

Join us in the Education Room and the Courtyard for an experience in celebration of the lessons, creativity, and imagination of Dr. Martin L. King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. In the Courtyard and Education Room, explore a captivating sound installation designed by Dzidzor called Riot: A Sermon of Anger, Dreams, and Love. The Education Room will feature archives, multi-media visuals, a Dream Portal installation by Crystal Bi, and a hands-on art-making experience which you may take home or add to a display of visitor creations. 


Inspired by the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., this installation weaves sound, spirit, and storytelling to transport you into the echoes of his dream and radical hope. Through layers of sonic textures and spoken word, the space invites reflection on justice, liberation, and the enduring power of collective hope.

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the 5th annual bell hooks symposium
Feb
7

the 5th annual bell hooks symposium

The Africana Studies Program at Northeastern University invites you to the fifth annual bell hooks symposium, "Black Feminism, Black Art." This year’s event will take place on Friday, February 7, 2025, and will bring together artists, academics, and activists whose work is deeply informed by Black feminist thought.

Since its inception in 2022, this symposium has served as a space for collective mourning, reflection, and celebration of the trailblazing work of bell hooks. Each year, we honor her legacy and that of other Black feminist ancestors, while exploring how their teachings continue to shape our present and inspire our futures. Past events have featured key figures such as Salamishah Tillet, Kevin Quashie, Angela Davis, and Gina Dent, among others.

This year's theme, Black Feminism, Black Art, will explore the intersections of Black feminist praxis and art creation, critiquing, and interpretation. We are inspired by the legacy of iconic artists like Faith Ringgold, contemporary creators like Simone Leigh, and local talents such as L'Merchie Frazier and Fern Cunningham. Our discussions will engage with how Black feminism informs not only the making of art but also how we view and engage with it in today's world.

Join us for a day of powerful conversation, artistic expression, and the continued celebration of Black feminist worldmaking through art and media.

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Steph Davis & Friends
Oct
11

Steph Davis & Friends

Steph Davis & Friends

Featuring a Live Performance by Dzidzor

4:00-5:00 PM – Steph Davis (marimba) with Jenny Oliver (choreographer/dancer)

Through a mesmerizing combination of marimba and dance, Steph Davis and Jenny Oliver showcase multidisciplinary storytelling that honors their combined African American, Cape Verdean, and Native American heritage. 

5:00-6:00 PM – Steph Davis (marimba) with DeShaun Gordon King (flutes) and Nicholas Johnson (cello)

The performers merge classical, jazz, and traditional music in a dynamic and colorful combination of flute, cello, and marimba. 

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Furious Flower IV: Celebrating the Worlds of Black Poetry Conference
Sep
20

Furious Flower IV: Celebrating the Worlds of Black Poetry Conference

Furious Flower Conference

Live Performance

September 20th, 8:15-9:05am

The first Furious Flower Poetry Conference was a historic gathering. Convened by Dr. Joanne Gabbin in September 1994 to celebrate the eminent poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the conference brought together Black poets, as well as scholars and lovers of Black poetry. The groundbreaking gathering was among the largest of its kind, drawing more than 30 acclaimed Black poets in conversation and audiences of up to 1,300 people. Attendees packed auditoriums on the campus of James Madison University to hear from Black poets and learn more about Black poetry.  

Through open mics, interviews, roundtable scholarly discussions, and, of course, readings by the most renowned names in poetry, the Furious Flower Poetry Conference continues to stage contemporary trends in Black literature, culture, and thought from a range of creative outlooks, as well as provide a platform for new scholarship, critical approaches, and performance strategies. 

Intergenerational, international, and intentional in its focus on the expansiveness of the Black poetic tradition, the 2024 Furious Flower Conference celebrates The Worlds of Black Poetry and is jointly dedicated to the inestimable Elizabeth Alexander and Kwame Dawes. Furious Flower IV will be held at its traditional home at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia on September 18-21, 2024. 

Dzidzor’s performance details:

Date: September 20th

Time: 8:15-9:05am

Location: Festival Drum

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Every Tongue Confess : A Ritual on Remembering Sound Installation and Live Performance
Sep
6
to Sep 8

Every Tongue Confess : A Ritual on Remembering Sound Installation and Live Performance

Installation & Performance
Goethe-Institut Boston

Dzidzor Azaglo & Steph Davis

September 6th
6:00-9:30 PM Installation Viewing (Soft Opening)

September 7th
Installation is open, exact times TBA
7:00-8:00 PM Performance
8:00-8:30 PM Q+A
8:30-9:00 PM Light Reception

September 8th
10:00-11:00 AM Meditation
11:00-2:30 PM Installation Viewing
2:30-3:30 PM Panel Discussion

An invitation to listen closely “‘Every Tongue Confes, is an evening-length performance inspired by Zora Neal Hurtson folktales. Layering poetry, marimba music, proverbs, and prayers, physical space becomes a container for memory and healing, and reflection about “how it feels to be here on earth or leaving, or about the sweet pain of hanging on between the coming and going.” (Hurston, 2001).

Dzidzor’s ability to collage live poems and soundscapes from speakers, sermons, and nature, combined with Steph Davis’ ability to stir, evoke, and shape the complexity of humanity through the marimba, is a merge of artistic innovation and profound storytelling — a glitch, a disruptive tapestry of memory and confession. The audience is invited to participate as witnesses through the practice of listening closely (Hurston, 2001), call and response, and embodiment.

The performance will weave themes of freedom, spirituality, healing, and pain through visuals, sound, and movement inspired by traditional African/African-American practices. The performance forges a space to manipulate time and disrupt the sonic environment of colonialism. We invite the audience to sit with the discomfort and wonder of the dead, the living, and beyond —as we honor traditions of possibility, resilience, collective care, liberation, and truth-telling.

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Going to Ground: Opening Celebration & Picnic
Aug
24

Going to Ground: Opening Celebration & Picnic

Join The Greenway for an opening reception and community picnic to celebrate the opening of artist LaRissa Rogers’ public sculpture, Going to Ground. Hosted and produced by SIDE Events,

The picnic will take place at the site of the sculpture on the corner of Hanover Street and Surface Road (across from the Boston Public Market), and will include remarks by the artist (@larissa_rogers) and performances by Dzidzor (@dzidzorazaglo), ToriTori (@toritorimusic), and Jenny Oliver. Refreshments will be provided by Chef Noire (@noire.chef.boston) and Dray Drinks (@draydrinks). A floral and sound bath experience will be provided by The People’s Living Room (@emeraldcityplantshop @heidishappytreats @thediahannproject). Event Design is by the Social Butterflies (@tsb.events).

For more information on this event and to register for a free meal and drink ticket, RSVP Here. 

RAIN DATE: Sunday, August 25, 2024 from 4pm-7pm

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“Every Tongue Confess: A Ritual on Remembering” Soundscape Exhibit
Aug
1
to Oct 10

“Every Tongue Confess: A Ritual on Remembering” Soundscape Exhibit

Constellations Part 2 : Figures in Webs and Ripples of SpaceCo

Curated by Nuna Adisenu - Doe, Tracy Naa Koshie Thompson, and Katherine Finerty

Artists participating in this group show include those collaborating with the gallery for the first time; Clifford Bright Abu, Abdul-Salam Alhassan, Akosua Odeibea Amoah-Yeboah, Dela Anyah, Dzidzor Azaglo, Elolo Bosoka, Jasper Dafeamekpor, Rosemary Esinam Damalie, Victor Ehikhamenor, Samuel Baah Kortey, Rebekka Macht, Afrane Makof, Putin Ofori, Frederick Ebenezer Okai, Na Chainkua Reindorf, Ghizlane Sahli and Nyahan Tachie-Menson, as well as long-term collaborator Jonathan Okoronkwo and artists who participated in Constellations Part 1Lois Selasie Arde-Acquah, Phoebe Boswell, Adelaide Damoah, Denyse Gawu-Mensah, Henry Hussey, Sarah Meyohas and Lisa C Soto.

Constellations Part 1: Figures on Earth & Beyond sought to challenge the framing of our epoch as the “Anthropocene” by asking: how can we re-examine art historical, spiritual, and science fictional representations of figures in a landscape through a lens of empathy and interconnection? By activating enduring global narratives of creation mythology, animism, terrestrial paradise, heaven and earth, space colonisation, and more, participants were welcomed to pose future solutions for a regenerative world in the age of the “Chthulucene” (Greek for khthôn / kainos, respectively of the earth / now).

This reconceived epoch conceived by ecofeminist scholar Donna Haraway is “made up of ongoing multispecies stories and practices of becoming-with in times that remain at stake, in precarious times, in which the world is not finished, and the sky has not fallen – yet.”

Constellations Part 2: Figures in Webs and Ripples of Space continues this research pursuit by inquiring about the notion of our interconnectedness, and our place in trying to decentre ourselvesAs American ecologist and philosopher Timothy Morton poses in his 2009 book Ecology without Nature, how can we rethink our sense of place and not get too comfortable with ‘nature’ in all its passive, normative, and hierarchical structures imposed by humans?

 Figures in Webs and Ripples of Space continues the research-based vision of Constellations as a platform for experimentation and knowledge-sharing to collectively imagine new futures. Part 2 distinctly re-examines the way we understand the place of humans in the world, to challenge us into re-thinking ecology without essentialist narratives of ‘nature’. This interconnected portal focuses on immersive site-specific installations through a West African mythological lens to extend our enduring, interconnected earth story whereby radically reimagining human and nonhuman inhabitation is nothing short of vital.

- Text by Nuna Adisenu-Doe, Tracy Naa Koshie Thompson, and Katherine Finerty.

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Rest Activation @ Isabella Stewart Gardner
Jun
19

Rest Activation @ Isabella Stewart Gardner

As we enter the month of June, a time in celebration of Juneteenth, we invite you to gather in a space of contemplation and wonder.

In the stillness of this moment, let us honor the profound beauty and resilience of the Black voices, whose poems, stories, and art echo with a charge to be in both rage and hope, to dream of new ways to engage with liberation. Dzidzor will develop a soundscape, weaving a tapestry of poetry, music, and sound, each thread a testament to the power and creation of liberation within storytelling and collective healing.

It is a sacred space—a sanctuary where the whispers of African ancestors guide us towards a future where liberation is not just a dream, but a reality waiting to be woven into the fabric of our existence.

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Opening for Soul Rebels
May
16

Opening for Soul Rebels

Doors open at 7:00PM; the show will start at 8:00PM. Performing artist & poet Dzidzor will open!

Don’t miss your chance to witness The Soul Rebels as they continue to chart new territory and celebrate peace, love, and soul through their top-notch musicianship. Join us at Arts at the Armory on May 16th for a night of unforgettable performances and infectious energy that will leave you wanting more.

Click Here For Tickets

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