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 “Orlando at Piano in Seattle" Video Credit: Stevie Calandra

Pinder is currently in Washington, D.C. for the next couple of months to finish a video piece he’s developing for Smithsonian Artist Residency Fellowship.

Utilizing the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s collection of mid-20th century home videos of Black American families, the piece explores expressive joy found within the archived footage.

The Smithsonian has awarded fellowships to 14 accomplished visual artists from an international pool of candidates as part of the 2021 Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship Program. Over the course of a one- to two-month residency, each fellow will conduct research at Smithsonian museums and research centers to inform the development of innovative, cross-disciplinary work.

Artists are nominated by art curators, scholars and former fellows, and then selected by a panel of art experts. Over 100 artists from around the world have received Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship Awards since the program began in 2007.

Jefferson Pinder (Based in the U.S.): Black Nostalgia, Black Joy

Pinder will delve into archival films and materials documenting the everyday lives of Black Americans at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Pinder’s research will support a video artwork celebrating Black joy.