Multimedia KAOS at Ben Caldwell retrospective

Art + Practice has organized a multimedia retrospective dedicated to the filmmaker Ben Caldwell in collaboration with the California African American Museum (CAAM) in Los Angeles. KAOS Theory: The Afrokosmic Media Arts of Ben Caldwell is inspired by the eponymous book by Caldwell and Robeson Taj Frazier, which follows the artistic path that Caldwell began as a child in New Mexico, how he honed his cinematic skills during the Vietnam War, his involvement in the LA Rebellion film movement, and his foundation of the KAOS Network.

Ben Caldwell was first exposed to film as a child when he helped his grandfather project movies at a small theater. He was drafted into the military during the Vietnam War while attending a two-year animation course at Disney. Exchanging his rifle for a camera he had purchased in Japan, Caldwell documented the hardships his fellow combatants endured during the conflict.

After returning home, Caldwell enrolled in the Master's program in filmmaking at UCLA, studying alongside iconic filmmakers such as Charles Burnett, Julie Dash and Billy Woodberry. This generation sparked what became known as the LA Rebellion, which was akin to a new wave in Black cinema. The filmmakers associated with this grouping sought to break away from Hollywood conventions and placed a greater focus on the social and cultural realities of the Black community in Los Angeles.

In 1984, Caldwell opened the KAOS Network, a media arts hub which encourages the development of Black artistry across generations, with a special focus on fostering an understanding of 21st century “cyber” technologies among artists and filmmakers of the African-American community. In the words of CAAM Executive Director Cameron Shaw, Caldwell has been an essential figure in shaping the cultural landscape of Black Los Angeles, with the KAOS Network, among other achievements, fostering Afrofuturist tendencies in the visual arts, cinema and education.

The curators Jheanelle Brown and Robeson Taj Frazier have stated that Caldwell's involvement in community building inspired them to organize this retrospective. The show is on view through March 8, 2025. For further information about this and other events at Art + Practice, please visit their site.