Sequel to their initial research residency to G.A.S. Lagos in the spring of 2023, we are thrilled to welcome US-based multidisciplinary artist, Raymond Pinto, to Nigeria on their second G.A.S. residency, a testament to the profound impact of their initial trip. Pinto's initial trip to Nigeria was an intensive two-week span packed with networking, studio visits, research trips, and tours of important Yoruba cultural sites such as a walking tour of Lagos Island, a day trip to sites related to the trans-Atlantic slave trade in Badagry, and the Osun-Oshogbo sacred grove. During his inaugural G.A.S. Residency, Pinto also hosted Carry My Not Knowing, an exhibition, interactive workshop, performance, `and screening at G.A.S. Lagos.
Raymond Pinto leading his March 2023 workshop, Carry My Not Knowing. Photo © G.A.S. Foundation.
Returning in January 2024, Raymond is gearing up for the Lagos Biennial, preparing a performance that promises to captivate and resonate. The residency, spanning from January 3rd to February 8th, 2024, serves as an incubator for their creative endeavours. During this time, they will further deepen their knowledge of Yoruba cultural traditions and practices. The itinerary is as diverse as their artistic palette – from gathering organic sculptural materials at the G.A.S. Farm House in Ikise to casting sculptures in bronze in Benin City - it will also include a new iteration of his creative movement workshop, and a public program at G.A.S. Foundation, contributing to the cultural life and infrastructure of the local artistic community.
They also plan to connect with local dance communities, various cultural players, centres, and institutes across the city, including the Institute of African and Diaspora Studies at the University of Lagos. The aim is to create a nexus of support and collaboration that transcends borders. Raymond will present work at the 2024 edition of the Lagos Biennial, taking place from the third to the tenth of February, 2024, alongside contemporary visual artists, Nolan Oswald Dennis, and Evan Ifekoya, who also participated in residencies at G.A.S. Lagos in the leadup to the fourth edition of the Biennial.
How will you be participating in the Lagos Biennial? Can you tell us about what visitors could expect to see from you?
I will be participating in the Lagos Biennial this year as part of the Traces of Ecstasy pavilion. My work is multidisciplinary and centered in performance. This work to be presented is titled Diffractions. It brings together ensembles from Lagos and The United States. It was important to me to situate the diaspora as a method to express the dynamic expression of African spirituality and culture.
Bella at the Beach. Super 8 Film CPR. Raymond Pinto. Photograph by Elyse Mertz.
Are there any Biennial events that you will be participating in?
Visitors can expect to see my work in a performance on February 4th, 2024 at 4 pm. The performance will feature a movement and sound collage by SAROSAYÉ, Xavier Hadley, and myself. In addition to the eclectic fashion designs of Adeju Thompson founder of the Lagos Space Programme.
Fare Transfer (crop), Print on Canvas with Neon CPR . Photograph by Elyse Mertz.
Is there anything else that you hope to do on your return to Lagos? Is there anything in particular that you're looking forward to?
The next phase of my residency at G.A.S. is set to be an exciting expansion of my previous research. I have plans to explore new facets of my practice that will help me realize aspects of my presentation at the Lagos Biennial. Between visiting the yet to fully discovered Sungbo’s Eredo and connecting with Wildlife conversationists in Lagos, I hope to discover new ways my art practice can hold space for a true sense of regard for the environment. Aside from the research and work ahead of me, I’m also very excited to enjoy the cultural immersion that is sure to bring joy.
The Zebra Goes Wild Where the Sidewalk Ends (performance). Photograph by Elyse Mertz.
RESIDENCY ARCHIVE
EVENT: Carry My Not Knowing
Event Date: 14th March 2023
To conclude their residency, Lagos Biennial artist Raymond Pinto hosted Carry My Not Knowing, an exhibition, interactive workshop, performance, `and screening at G.A.S. Lagos. The series began with an interactive movement workshop attended by various members of Lagos' cultural and creative community. During the session, guests had the opportunity to explore the interplay between tension, movement, and space with the artist acting as a guide. It was followed by Atunbi (Rebirth), a new performance developed by the artist during his residency. The following day, visitors were invited into the space yet again for screenings of two new films; The Pour and Carry My Not Knowing. Carry My Not Knowing is the artist's first solo exhibition, Pinto described the experience and opportunity to share his practice for the first time on the continent as "monumental" and "deeply meaningful". The residency was also an opportunity for him to complete crucial site-specific research ahead of his participation in the Lagos Biennial in 2024.
Raymond Pinto leading his March 2023 workshop, Carry My Not Knowing. Photo © G.A.S. Foundation.
EVENT: Bridging Wildlife Conservation and Creative Expression
Event Date: 1st February 2024
To mark their return to G.A.S. Lagos, Raymond Pinto hosted Bridging Wildlife Conservation and Creative Expression, a panel discussion with Chidi Mogbo, the founder of the Green Fingers Foundation. The evening leveraged Pinto's practice to provoke conversations on iconography, ecology, sustainability, wildlife conservation, and preservation, providing a lens through which the audience could explore the intersectionality between the embodied emotions inherent in a wildlife-centric ecological practice and a movement-based arts practice drawing inspiration from African material culture.
Raymond Pinto in conversation with Chinedu Mogbo at Bridging Wildlife Conservation and Creative Expression.
EVENT: Traces of Ecstasy (Lagos Biennial 2024)
Event Date: 3rd - 10th February 2024
On February 4th, at the Traces of Ecstasy pavilion, artist and choreographer Raymond Pinto shared his roving performance at the Traces of Ecstasy pavilion. Joined by sound artists, Ayomide Kalejaiye (SAROSAYÉ) and Xavier Emmanuel, the performance responds to the pavilion's architecture through a score that combines bodily movement and experimental music. Pinto's piece takes the gestures of the Gelede masquerade as a starting exploratory point - a masquerade ritually performed by men in honour of female deities and ancestors. Further inspired by the masquerade's adornments, Pinto performed in garments specially designed by Adeju Thompson. Through layered arrangements of clothing, music and dance, the performance reframes indigenous spirituality and Black diasporic archives of sound and movement to illuminate decolonial registers of queer embodiment.
Raymond Pinto performing Diffractions. Photography by Olanrewaju Ali. Photo © G.A.S. Foundation.
ABOUT RAYMOND PINTO
RAYMOND PINTO is a multidisciplinary performance artist whose work is centred on the African diaspora and sourced through queer and black archives. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Pinto studied dance and graduated from the Juilliard School in 2013, and holds a master's degree with a focus in Performance Studies from New York University.He has worked with internationally touring dance companies, notable choreographers, and artists such as Les Grands Ballet Canadiens de Montreal, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Gauthier Dance, The Royal Ballet of Flanders, Jaamil Olawale Kosoko, Bill T. Jones, Darrell Grand Moultrie, Shikeith, Kevin Beasley, and Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion.
As an artist himself, Raymond has presented his own work at festivals, theaters, galleries, workshops, and conferences both locally and globally, including the Judson Memorial Church, MoMA PS1, the Amsterdam Fringe Festival, La Mama Experimental Theater, Participant, Inc., CUE Art Foundation, the Architecture Centrum in Vienna, the Queer Arts Festival in Skopje, Macedonia, and the Venice Biennale. He has also been an artist in residence at Movement Research in NYC and Dance Fellow Art Omi.
Raymond Pinto's second residency was supported by Lagos Biennial and G.A.S. Foundation.
