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Me gritaron negra (They shouted black at me)

Victoria Santa Cruz2020

Biennale of Sydney

Biennale of Sydney
Sydney, Australia

Me gritaron negra' is a filmed performance of poetic self-emancipation from the late African-Peruvian poet and choreographer Victoria Santa Cruz. Joined by a chorus of voices and a cajón (a box-shaped percussive instrument) accompaniment, the artist launches into a powerful and expressive performance with language and spoken word at its core. Me gritaron negra emerged after years of internalised shame catalysed by an early childhood experience in which Cruz first became aware of her Blackness. The artist was shunned from playing with a group of children for the colour of her skin and the psychic consequences of this incident stayed with her long after. This performance is emblematic of Cruz’s uncompromising work, which made the reality of Black culture a topic of public debate in Peru, holding space especially for Black women living within a colonial, racially oppressive, and patriarchal society.

Cruz was interested in liberating ceremonies and performances involving song, dance and music. Her pioneering work as director of the Conjunto Nacionale de Folclore of the Instituto Nacional de Cultura made a space for Afro-Peruvian expression in theatre, to publicise Black stories of the African diaspora in Peru.

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  • Title: Me gritaron negra (They shouted black at me)
  • Creator: Victoria Santa Cruz
  • Date Created: 2020
  • Location Created: Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
  • Physical Dimensions: duration; 3:58 mins
  • Provenance: Courtesy OTA-Odin Teatret Archives.
  • Type: video
  • Rights: Biennale of Sydney
  • Medium: video documentation of performance, excerpt from the documentary "Victoria - Black and Woman" (1978). Director: Torgeir Wethal; producer: Odin Teatret Film.
  • Edition: 22nd Biennale of Sydney (2020): NIRIN
Biennale of Sydney

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