
video still: Afronautic Research Lab | Newfoundland filmed and edited by Brian Ricks
The Afronautic Research Lab is a futuristic reading room where visitors are invited to contemplate evidence of colonial Canada’s links to and participation in transatlantic slavery as well as its aftermath. The Lab has been traveling across the country gathering local histories. Above is a still of a video created for the Afronautic Research Lab project that was presented in Bonavista, Newfoundland from Aug 17 – Sept 15, 2019 as part of the Bonavista Biennale. The video was completed during a residency at 2 Rooms Artist Residency in Duntara, Newfoundland.
Press about this work:
Radio Canada International, Aug 18 2019
CBC Nfld. & Labrador, Aug 18, 2019
CBC Newfoundland Morning, Aug 16, 2019

Afronautic Research Lab, University of Toronto, Feb 6, 2016 Performers: Camille Turner, Karen Turner and Lee Turner

Afronautic Research Lab, University of Toronto, Feb 6, 2016 Performers: Camille Turner, Karen Turner and Lee Turner

Afronautic Research Lab, University of Toronto, Feb 6, 2016 Performers: Camille Turner, Karen Turner and Lee Turner

Afronautic Research Lab, University of Toronto, Feb 6, 2016 Performers: Camille Turner, Karen Turner and Lee Turner

Afronautic Research Lab, University of Toronto, Feb 6, 2016 Performers: Camille Turner, Karen Turner and Lee Turner
The Afronauts, are descendants of the Dogon people of Mali. They left earth 10,000 years ago and have returned home to save the planet. Tackling one issue at a time, they invite citizen researchers to join them in their Afronautic Research Lab. Their goal is to save the planet and they do this through unsilencing the past.
Review of the Afronautic Research Lab’s performance appeared in Overcast, Newfoundland’s alternative newspaper, Sept 12, 2016
“Two silent attendants dressed in futuristic capes, bright white turbans and boots, welcome citizen researchers into the dimly lit Afronautic Research Lab. They guide visitors to a long table covered in books and photocopies of historical documents, including advertisements for escaped slaves placed by Canadian slave owners.”