Aljana Moons
Films by Genre
3MIN
Availability ended 15/11/2020 BST
(now-15 Nov worldwide) Developed out of a photography exhibition of the same name, Aljana Moons is Paris-based artist Alexis Peskine’s visually stunning short film that explores themes of Black masculinity, youth and fatherhood in contemporary Senegal. Placed somewhere between sci-fi and documentary, the film’s esoteric opening, which features children dressed in astronaut suits made from old tomato cans and discarded rice bags, is blended with documentary footage of young Senegalese men going through a rite of passage ritual. The result is a mesmerizing take on the journey from childhood to adulthood.
Included with
microINDIGENOUS
ALEXIS PESKINE — FIRE FIGURES
2 October - 14 November 2020
October Gallery, 24 Old Gloucester Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1N 3AL Tel: + 44 (0)20 7242 7367
Visit October Gallery's exhibition of new works by Alexis Peskine. This follows the success of his debut solo show Power Figures at October Gallery in 2017.
Alexis Peskine’s signature works are large-scale mixed media ‘portraits’ of the African diaspora, which are rendered by hammering nails of different gauge, with pin-point accuracy, into wood stained with natural materials such as coffee, mud and hibiscus. By applying gold leaf to the nails, he creates breath-taking composite images. He depicts figures that portray strength and perseverance, with energy reminiscent of the spiritually charged Minkisi ‘power figures’ of the Congo Basin. The nails Peskine uses speak about the Black Experience, transcendence and pain.
Fire Figures is a continuation and expansion of the key concepts in the series Power Figures. The striking new works explore the frustration of the African Diaspora which continues to face systems of violence, racism and displacement. Peskine has ‘always felt the fire of injustice’ throughout his life, a fire which fuels his works. For him, fire also represents an opportunity for change, a change his subjects are striving for but which has yet to come.
Credits
Directed by Alexis Peskine
