Called "Burning Desire To Be Touched", Mwangi Hutter premiered this work of art commissioned by Smithsonian National Museum of African Art on July 18th. In the video, a body cloaked in black cloth tenderly holds a feminine figure covered with white cloth. According to the Smithsonian, Hutter's piece of work was featured in an exhibition called The Divine Comedy, which "examines our profound desire for harmonious relationships".
Within the first few minutes, the feminine figure's white clothing is increasingly blacked by the hands of the cloaked black figure. Does this mean that she is becoming consumed by the darkness? Or could it be that the two figures are becoming harmonious in their tight embrace? On the side of the two figures sit two televisions. On the screen, a woman with hands over her face. Minutes later, the hands slowing fall down her face leaving a white handprint.
While I can't say that I understand this piece of art, I found it very beautiful and slightly frightening. "Haven't you realized, we're all gonna die?" sang over and over. And maybe it's not meant to be understood, but rather interpreted within in the context of "harmonious relationships". Maybe it means something to different to every viewer. After all, art is subjective.
Source:
"Burning Desire To Be Touched." Smithsonian Institute: National Museum of African Art.
15 August, 2015. Web. <http://africa.si.edu/2015/08/burning-desire-to-be-touched/>
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