Zulu Speaking in Radical Tongues

'Zulu Speaking in Radical Tongues' is a sculpture activated through performance by an actor. The three-dimensional letters ‘Z’ ‘U’ ‘L’ ‘U’ resemble a discarded advertising hoarding or props from a film set. During the performance, 'Zulu' both as sign and stage, is appropriated by a performer channelling dialogue and physical gestures borrowed from the diaries and manifestos of 1960s/70s urban guerrilla groups, communes and their cinematic counterparts. Presented as a seamless monologue, she acts out their political attitudes, bridging the gap in time, subjecting them to scrutiny in terms of their message and effect.

The monologue is serially interrupted through the performers constant pushing and shifting of the life-size ‘Zulu’ letters into multiple configurations. Each performance of the work is recorded onto analogue audio-tape, the reel-to-reel player is part of the installation for the duration of the exhibition. This residue of the performance - reminiscent of the communiqués these groups would have produced at the time - becomes an intimate one-on-one experience as the audience’s only access to the recordings is through headphones.

'Zulu Speaking in Radical Tongues' was exhibited in the international group exhibition ‘Here We Dance’ at Tate Modern in 2008 with production funding from Tate.

‘Here We Dance’ looks at the relationship between the body and the state, exploring how the physical presence and circulation of bodies in public space informs our perceptions of identity, nation, society and democracy. The title derives from a work by Ian Hamilton Finlay, which refers to the celebrations that took place during the French Revolution, and alludes to the importance of social gathering in any form of political action or resistance. Bodily movements and gestures, collective actions and games are examined through media as diverse as film, photography, neon text and performance. Each work presents the viewer with the residue of a past event, be it personal memory, cultural tradition, or a moment of historical or political significance. Here We Dance includes work by Johanna Billing, Katinka Bock, Yael Davids, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Gail Pickering and Yvonne Rainer.

Here We Dance is the third in a series of four related exhibitions in the Level 2 Gallery, Tate Modern’s dedicated space for contemporary and emerging international artists. The series explores ideas of citizenship through themes of economy, belief, the state and the individual.