I was selected to participate in an incubator program organized by Afrotectopia, focused on the launch of their book, Black Metal. 

It started with a direct message: 

After watching the Black Metal film and participating in a discussion on the themes explored in the book, I worked with a talented group of artists, writers, creative directors, designers, and architects in a week-long intensive to create a body of work for a pop-up exhibition in Brooklyn, New York.

The assignment: what do you want to leave behind for those who will travel to the Black Metal Starship after you? 

On my left, you'll find my initial concept or ideas. Themes expressed within our discussion regarding the ‘Black Metal Starship’ were: 

• Ancestral Technologies
• Nature Intelligence 
• Identity/ Culture 
• Time Travel 
  
• Equipment/ Tools 
  

Water became a key element in representing what I wanted to leave behind for future Black Metal Starship travelers. Thematically, water symbolized travel, flow, strength, and portals.

For the Black Metal Starship travelers after me, I decided to leave behind a hug because, on this journey, sometimes all we need is a hug to keep going, especially during uncertain times. I then asked myself: what does it feel like to hug water? This led me to explore how a portal or method of transportation could work in an interactive experience for the Black Metal Starship.

Drawing inspiration from The Deep by Rivers Solomon and Island Futures by Mimi Sheller, I delved into the science behind ancestral technology and natural intelligence to develop a transportation method.

I looked into fields like neurology, physics, marine biology, the hydrologic cycle, and my fascination with childbirth. In The Deep, Rivers Solomon described the womb as an “electrical force,” which made me reflect on the relationship between water's behaviors and childbirth. During this project, devastating hurricanes were impacting the Caribbean and southern U.S., and I came across research that found exposure to a hurricane during pregnancy increased the likelihood of abnormal conditions in newborns (Currie, J Health Econ, 2014).

To conclude my activation experience, I used HTML to visualize this data. On the right side, you’ll see how I extracted and analyzed key information through a scientific lens to create the journey experience for Black Metal Starship travelers. I needed to determine the right moment to share this embrace or hug, reminding them to keep going.

The event concluded with a live presentation following a Q&A. 

Looking back, I am now more motivated than ever to continue my work using sociological research to find present-day solutions within the natural sciences through technology. The ability to merge ideas and share experiences as a form of technology creates an opportunity to reshape our future by drawing insights from our current realities.

At the moment, I am conducting research focused on the symbolism within the cultural archive of data centers. I am exploring how data centers function as a cultural archive and how this is connected to the impacts of climate change. By examining data infrastructure, I am developing a hypothesis to reimagine data as an archive.

I want to sincerely thank Ari, Nneka, Kiara, Katarina, and Ant. To the Afrotectopia imagination and beyond.