Brooklyn Museum to Launch 'Off the Wall' with Wangechi Mutu's FANTASTIC JOURNEY, 2/20

On February 20, the Brooklyn Museum will launch Off the Wall, a Thursday evening series featuring site-specific performances inspired by exhibitions on view. The first Off the Wall will explore Wangechi Mutu's futuristc vision through an original performance by musician and performer Daví; art-making with artist Saya Woolfalk; an Octavia Butler-inspired reading with Kiini Ibura Salaam; and a curator-led tour with Saisha Grayson of the exhibition Wangechi Mutu: A Fantastic Journey, on view until March 9.

Tickets are $12, and include museum admission. Tickets can be purchased at www.museumtix.com or at the visitor's services desk. Brooklyn Museum Members receive free admission, which can be reserved via the membership hotline at (718) 501-6326. A cash bar will be available from 8- 9:30 p.m.

OFF THE WALL: "Fantastic Journey"

February 20, 2014

6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.

Tour: A Fantastic Journey

Curator Saisha Grayson will lead a tour of Wangechi Mutu: A Fantastic Journey.

Talk: Fantastic Visions: Black Women Writers Talk Octavia Butler

Octavia Butler's Afrofuturistic novels have taken millions of readers on mind-bending fantastic journeys, but what about the writer herself? Using audio and video clips, four Afrofuturists--novelist N.K. Jemisin, poet and professor Mendi D. Lewis, artist and writer Kiini Ibura Salaam, and writer and storyteller Ibi Zoboi--will engage in conversation with Butler's fantastic ideas, visions, and brilliance.

Performance: Daví's The Beginning of Everything eating

Daví's The Beginning of Everything eating is a live musical, video, dance and theater piece hearkening many of the concepts in Wangechi Mutu's animated video, The End of eating Everything. In a series of six scenes, Daví will take the audience on a afrofuturistic journey, bumping into notables such as Sun Ra, Parliament/Funkadelic and Grace Jones along the way. The End of eating Everything animated video will be used during the show compliments of Wangechi Mutu Studio. Daví says, "Wangechi Mutu is one of my favorite multimedia artists because of her layered, meticulous, historical, and beautifully frank approach. I'm excited and challenged to bring a sense of collage to my performance; the scissors and glue just happen to be called live music and dance."

Interactive Performance: Saya Woolfalk - "ChimaTEK"

In ChimaTEK­­, the Empathics, Saya Woolfalk's fictional hybrid human-plant creatures, demonstrate the workings of their synthesizing machine. Drawing on museological and ethnographic vocabularies and blending high and low aesthetics, Woolfalk provides a light-hearted look at the possible future.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Admission: Contribution $12; students with valid I.D. and seniors $8. Free to members and children under 12 accompanied by an adult. Group tours or visits must be arranged in advance by calling extension 234.

Directions: Subway: Seventh Avenue express (2 or 3) to Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum stop; Lexington Avenue express (4 or 5) to Nevins Street, cross platform and transfer to the 2 or 3. Bus: B41, B69, B48. On-site parking available.

Museum Hours: Wednesday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; first Saturday of each month, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.