Together with 1014 – Space for Ideas in New York City, Contemporary And (C&) had planned an evening of powerful discussions, exclusive video art installations and a performance.  The idea was to bring together creative black voices from a Global Diaspora celebrating the strength and endless connections in order to empower what we all do/create/enable. While a physical get-together had to be postponed until further notice we still wanted to stick to the original plan to think around ideas of the Global Diaspora.

Nothing seemed more fitting than the radio piece to cite: diaspora by Janine Jembere. In Summer 2019 the work was first presented in Detroit within the framework of the C& exhibition “Show me your Shelves”, part of Wunderbar Together – The Year of German-American Friendship. to cite: diaspora is based on the idea of citation. Janine understands citation as a conscious act of connecting, giving attention to and aligning oneself with others. She put this in conversation with the concept of diaspora, which is also about making and maintaining connections.

Focusing on music and musicians also allowed her to show how citation is not limited to the written word but resonates in a multitude of practices. to cite: diaspora traces therefore different sonic strategies across times and spaces, approaching sound as a sphere of empowering and analyzing, mobilizing individually and collectively.

Janine Jembere is a filmmaker and sound artist working in different constellations on performances, educational projects, films and film programs, sound works, and interventions. She studied visual communication/media at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste Hamburg and was a visiting student at the Department for Fine Arts and Design at the Addis Ababa University.