Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley creates a speculative universe in Berlin
The artist confronts racism and transphobia with two solo exhibitions, at Halle am Berghain and the Highsnobiety store.
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British artist Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley is confronting racism and transphobia on the German art scene with two solo exhibitions. The first, at Halle am Berghain in Berlin, features a game-based installation that places viewers in the position of players in a speculative universe. The other, at the Highsnobiety store in Berlin, deals with the erasure of Black trans people in archives.
LAS Art Foundation organized the show at Halle am Berghain, part of the famously-selective Berlin nightclub Berghain. This is Brathwaite-Shirley's first solo exhibition in Germany. The artist is showing a newly-commissioned video game installation THE SOUL STATION. The exhibition also documents Brathwaite-Shirley's video game practice over the past five years. THE SOUL STATION was conceived as an interactive gaming platform, where the players must cooperate to navigate a strange new world.
The installation is divided into two episodes. The first, YOU CAN'T HIDE ANYTHING, throws players into the midst of a parallel world undergoing cataclysmic changes after the conclusion of a revolution which has overthrown an oppressive system founded on globalized slavery. Players are invited to immerse themselves in this surreal milieu which, through a series of choices that they encounter and the decisions that they make, will motivate them to contend with their own experiences and ingrained biases.
The second, ARE YOU SOULLESS, TOO?, allows the audience to witness conversations between characters who have migrated from one universe to another. This episode uses the digital realm to reflect the real people and conversations that served as the inspiration for the preceding episode.
Brathwaite-Shirley's other Berlin exhibition was a temporary show at the Highsnobiety flagship store in Berlin. Its title, YOU WON'T FORGET ME EVEN IF YOU TRY, addresses the erasure of Black and Brown transgender people from historical records. The inspiration for this installation draws upon the story of Peter Sewally (aka Mary Jones), a Black transgender sex worker from 19th century New York City. It then further expands to encompass the shared experience of neglect and revulsion that Black trans people have been subjected to.
Brathwaite-Shirley's multifaceted artistic practice is founded on an amalgamation of animation, sound, performance and video games. They endeavor to maintain the memories and experiences of Black trans people while simultaneously confronting viewers with the erasure and marginalization of minorities from public archives.
The first episode of THE SOUL STATION is on view through September 1, with the second episode open from September 13 through October 13, 2024. The temporary show at Highsnobiety was presented during Berlin Pride in July 2024. For more about both of these shows, read the interview with the artist on Highsnobiety.