Mule, 2006
8mm digitally transferred and edited

Pinder’s portrayal of the black body at work, under distress, and moving through pain and exhaustion constitutes an act of resistance and social commentary. As Pinder states, “I portray the black body both frenetically and through drudgery in order to convey relevant cultural experiences.”

Mule is about resistance. Pulling a three hundred pound log encrusted with pressed tin becomes a metaphor for struggle. In this performance piece, forward progress on an inner city street proves near impossible. The object that Pinder moves has been weathered by time and dissected from deteriorating Baltimore homes. The artist literally pulls the wreckage of past generations. In a struggle to move forward, every ounce of energy is utilized to create momentum. Like a mule, Pinder acts as a beast-of-burden, not focusing on the end, rather pushing forward with blinders, his labor amounting to a pure meditation of what has come before and what lies ahead.

Above: Kasiem Walters performing Zulu Sign Language at Virginia Tech’s Moss Arts Center

February marked the opportunity to travel to Blacksburg, VA with my collaborator Kasiem Walters in order to work through a new piece at Virginia Tech’s Moss Arts Center.

A project I’ve been developing over the past 6 years, Zulu Sign Language, considers the complex hybrid of politics and movement within sign language.The work originates from Thamsanqa Jantjie, the ‘fake’ sign language interpreter who performed at the Nelson Mandela Memorial service and unintentionally shed light on corruption in South Africa and the disenfranchisement of the deaf community.

The jibberish signing was loosely titled Zulu Sign Language by the former president, Jacob Zuma. When confronted with his administration’s handling of the hiring of Jantjie, President Zuma took the insult a step further and then coined the fake signs as ‘Zulu-Sign Language’. Since then, I've been on a journey to understand what Black nationalism looks like in the body, through the tradition of sign. Kasiem, a truly gifted performer, is helping realize the work with power and integrity.

Video documentation of a studio performance of the piece is forthcoming.

Pinder, Walters and audio engineer Josh Spelman-Hall workshopping the performance backstage

Above: Jefferson Pinder performing Monumental @ Untitled Art Fair Miami on December 1, 2021

Over the past few months, I’ve found myself jumping headfirst into my first sabbatical year, excited to take advantage of the time dedicated to my practice. Kicking it off in December 2021, I presented my performance, Monumental, at Untitled Art Fair Miami. This performative disruption of the commercial art space forced spectators to deal with the struggles of the body over the commodification of art (or not).

In January, video documentation of my 2020 performance piece Prowl was included in “Stolen Goods”, a group exhibition at Marketview Arts at York College of Pennsylvania. The catalogue is forthcoming; you can follow the exhibition link for more information on how to order a copy.

September 9th, 2016
7 - 9 PM
Lafayette College, Easton, PA
Ahart Arts Plaza

After a two-year run, the Dark Matter performance is finally coming to an end.  We’ve performed in York, PA, Washington, DC, Miami, Baltimore and this week we will be wrapping up in Lafayette College in Easton Pennsylvania.

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Marvin Tate, performer for Thoroughbred

FADO Toronto: Sunday, February 7, 2016

Theatre Centre
1115 Queen Street West, Toronto
@ Stage 5: Belly of the Whale
4 PM with reception to follow

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MONOMYTHS invites a diverse collection of artists, scholars, and activists to revise Joseph Campbell’s conception of the hero’s journey through performance art, lectures, workshops, and other offerings. This new assemblage of non-linear un-narratives proposes a cultural, political and social feminist re-visioning of the world. The MONOMYTHS perception of the universal journey dispels the notion of the lone patriarchal figure on a conquest to vanquish his demons–both inner and outer–in consideration of community, collectivity, and collaboration. 

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