GUIDED OBSERVATIONS AND ACTIVITIES
  1. What is a ‘shimmering’? See defi nition below and compare to your understanding of the concept.

  2. How might we listen for a shimmering? In a song? A story? How do we look for a shimmering in an image?

  3. Timothy Yannick Hunter self describes as an artist who employs bricolage and collage to make meaning and examine relationships.
    • What sounds do you hear when you listen to these tracks? Can you identify where the sounds are from? Jot a list of the sounds you hear on a piece of paper.
    • Choose a track on this album and create a collage to match the sounds you hear in the song.

  4. What is a vinyl record? Why does the artist use this medium to record these audio tracks?

  5. If you were to record sounds (rather than images) to archive something important to you, which medium would you choose and why?

  6. Spend some time researching the figures which each track is named after. Why do you think the artist chose to archive their words in this way?

Theorist Roland Barthes refers to the phenomenon of “shimmering” as an aspect (or entity) whose meaning is, perhaps, subtly modifi ed according to the angle of the subject’s gaze. —Roland Barthes and Thomas Clerc. The Neutral: Lecture Course at the College De France (1977-1978). New York: Columbia University Press, 2007.

FURTHER ENGAGEMENT
  1. Braithwaite, Edward Kamau. “part II of Sequence 1 ‘Libation’ from Masks.” The Arrivants: A New World Trilogy, Oxford University Press,. 1968.

  2. Byrd, Antawan I. and Felicia Mings, editors. The People Shall Govern!. Yale University Press, 2020.

  3. Jafa, Arthur. “Arthur Jafa at Glenstone Museum.” Glenstone Museum, September 2021. https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=p3YIeRljQ3s.

  4. McKittrick, Katherine. Dear Science and Other Stories. Duke University Press, 2021.

  5. Ndikung, Dr. Bonaventure and Candice Hopkins. “Listen into the Cracks in Time.” OCAD University’s The Sherman Foundations President’s Speaker Series, May 2021. https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=8yMGYiktQDg&ab
Image of works by Timothy Yanick Hunter
Suggested Age/Grade

K-12, Families, Intergenerational

Curriculum Links

The Arts, Social Studies, History and Geography, Canadian and World Studies, Afro-diasporic Studies, Social Sciences and Humanities, English.

Keywords

audio, shimmerings, bricolage, collage, sound, archive, Black and Afro-diasporic, decolonization, journey.

Downloadable Content:
LISTEN TO THE MIXTAPE
True & Functional: DARE (The Shimmering Mixtapes) Track list (10:25 min)

Side A

Miriam Makeba Interview, 1969 Material Wealth Buchi Emecheta 1975 (Busy Life) Medu Medu Medu*

*refers to Medu Ensemble

Side B

Abdullah Ibrahim (Dream Time), 2011 Fan Palms Basketball Drawing (David Hammons and Ulysses Jenkins, 1978) SOUTH AFRICA NOW

About the Contributors

Timothy Yanick Hunter (born in 1990, Toronto, Canada; lives and works in Toronto, Canada) is a multidisciplinary artist and curator. Timothy’s practice employs strategies of bricolage to examine non-neutral relationships relating to Black and Afro-diasporic experiences and strategies for decolonization. His approach alternates between the exploratory and the didactic, with a focus on the political, cultural, and social richness of the Black diaspora. Timothy’s work often delves into speculative narratives and the intersections of physical space, digital space, and the intangible.

Chiedza Pasipanodya (chee-ed-za pasi-pano-jga, born in 1987, Harare, Zimbabwe; lives and works in Harare, Zimbabwe, and Toronto, Canada) is an artist, community builder, curator, and educator. In their research and creative practice, Chiedza is curious about remembering and belonging. They work toward presencing what has been subtly or violently disappeared. They are also committed to contributing to the continuum of work that seeks to elevate narratives that might otherwise be forgotten and misremembered, especially the cultural productions of people of African descent. Chiedza holds a BFA in Criticism and Curatorial Practices from OCAD University.

Image Credit: Timothy Yanick Hunter, True and Functional, 2022. Installation view at Small Arms Inspection Building, Toronto Biennial of Art 2022. Photography: Toni Hafkenscheid. Commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art.