Don’t assume you know Evan Ifekoya. They’re an artist who likes to keep things fresh – in the past they have made collage, knitting and drawings – at the moment they work predominantly in video and performance. At a recent live event at David Roberts Art Foundation in London, Ifekoya performed ‘Let The Rhythm Keep Pulling You Towards Your Edges’ (2015) – a DJ set that included artists as musically divergent as X-Ray Spex and Felix Da Housecat and played over a two projections. One was a live-updated Twitter feed and the other was a hypnotic looping video montage. Ifekoya’s ongoing series of music videos includes the catchy ‘Ojulowo’ (2014), which questions the notion of cultural or personal authenticity, ‘The Gender Song’ (2014), that attempts to playfully unpick pervasive gender binaries, and ‘Disco Breakdown’ (2014), its lyrics expressing the desire to dance over images of the artist as they painstakingly construct a disco ball out of silver card.
As part of an ongoing series of artist profiles in partnership with Video In Common, aqnb visited Ifekoya at their home, to talk about why they place importance on physical making, how to show the banal side of life, and what it means to be ‘entertaining’. There’s dancing (although often unenthusiastic), craftsmanship (collaging, or knitting with broomsticks), and banal activities like hair-combing and tooth-brushing. Don’t expect cleanliness or sterility – Ifekoya likes to take a hands-on approach.
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Produced in partnership with Video in Common. This project has been made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England.
