Dr. Nettrice R. Gaskins, Boston Arts Academy

“Kongo and Yoruba

cosmology (indicates) a

connection to and contiguity

with the spirituality of

African continental space.”

Artists, particularly in Afrofuturism, re-contextualize and assess history and

imagine the future of the African Diaspora via science, science fiction, technology,

sound, performance... and their own world views.

ORIGIN MYTHOLOGIES

Kalunga is Kikongo for “threshold between worlds” and is often associated with

the Atlantic Ocean. The Kalunga line is a line under the Atlantic Ocean where the

living became the dead and the only way back to life was to re-cross the line.

KALUNGA (WATER) LINE

(Cosmograms) have been

evident in West African

cultures and have been

elaborated upon, showing

complex intricate patterns or

simplified into abbreviated

X’s, or even V’s implying an

arc of travel or motion.

CROSSROADS

Afrofuturist art resonates

with P-funk’s Funkentelechy,

or a sense of completeness

or utopia. These works re-

position or direct the

viewer/listener to ensure that

everyone is on ‘the One.’

FUNKENTELECHY

Image Credits:

Jean Michel-Basquiat. “King Alphonso,” 1983.

Kikongo Cosmogram. Courtesy Duane Deterville and SFMoMA.

Ellen Gallagher. “La Chinoise, (detail)” 2008.

Kahlil Joseph, with Flying Lotus. “Until the Quiet Comes (still),” 2012.

Maxwell. “Embrya,” 1998.

Parliament. “Motor Booty Affair (inner cover),” 1978.

Sanford Biggers, with David Ellis. “Mandala of the B-Bodhisattva II,” 2000.

Brides of Frankenstein. “Funk or Walk,” 1978.

Xenobia Bailey. “Sister Paradise's Apron (detail),” 2000.

Saya Woolfalk. “ChimaTek,” 2014.

Jean Michel-Basquiat. “Tuxedo,” 1983.

QUESTIONS