[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:01.08,0:00:02.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[DRUMMING]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:09.56,0:00:11.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[KEVIN BEASLEY]\N--There's not going to be a beginning...
Dialogue: 0,0:00:11.04,0:00:12.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[DRUMMING]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.26,0:00:35.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--I think that's enough to start.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:36.34,0:00:37.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[DRUMMING]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:42.88,0:00:43.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[CLAP]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:43.50,0:00:44.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So right now,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.58,0:00:50.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've been putting a lot of energy\Ninto an exhibition at the Whitney,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:50.17,0:00:54.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is my first major solo exhibition\Nhere in the city.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:57.68,0:01:00.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The project is multiple parts.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:01.76,0:01:04.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There is a sound installation,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:04.86,0:01:08.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that is rooted around\Na cotton gin motor,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:09.34,0:01:13.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and three large sculptural works.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:15.42,0:01:19.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The work really comes out\Nof an experience I had at a family reunion
Dialogue: 0,0:01:19.45,0:01:24.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in Valentines, Virginia,\Nin the summer of 2011.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:25.52,0:01:27.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I drove down from New Haven.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:27.60,0:01:34.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The property has a meandering road\Nthat leads to the house.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.86,0:01:39.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I look up,\Nand I see the fields are planted.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:40.46,0:01:42.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I stopped the car and I looked,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:43.39,0:01:46.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I was like, "Whoa, what is that?"
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.28,0:01:51.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I rolled the window down,\Nand I saw that it was cotton.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.98,0:01:57.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It struck me in a way that I couldn't quite\Nwrap my head around.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:57.52,0:01:59.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Emotionally, it was too heavy.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:59.22,0:02:00.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Mentally, it was too heavy.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:01.40,0:02:03.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I felt like I hadn't reconciled something.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:03.46,0:02:06.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I was like, "Why am I so mad at this plant?"
Dialogue: 0,0:02:07.12,0:02:13.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This plant is not doing anything other than\Ngrowing and being beautiful.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.84,0:02:19.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I felt like, okay, there's a lot of unpacking\Nthat has to happen.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.26,0:02:26.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--You know, I want to actually point to this\Ncotton here.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:28.20,0:02:30.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--This here has all been ginned.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:30.86,0:02:34.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--This is all cotton from Virginia,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:34.24,0:02:36.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--Valentines, Virginia.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:36.53,0:02:40.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Using cotton, raw cotton, as a material\Nis really important,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:40.44,0:02:45.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because as materially-oriented as I am,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:45.11,0:02:50.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's all because there is a context\Nfor those materials.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:51.32,0:02:56.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For the exhibition, there will be\Nthree large sculptural works.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:56.04,0:03:01.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've been calling them slabs,\Nbecause of their relationship to architecture.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.84,0:03:05.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're made from wildly different materials.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:06.12,0:03:07.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--This is a sweater.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:08.68,0:03:11.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--It's a Yale cotton,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.06,0:03:15.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--really nice, preppy sweater.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:15.76,0:03:19.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--And then these are some durags,\Nsome blue ones.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:20.12,0:03:23.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--For this they're going to represent a\Nriver,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:23.26,0:03:26.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--or some sort of flowing water.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.84,0:03:31.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Every material has some sort of\Nhistory or life that it's lived.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.44,0:03:33.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They become ways of telling stories.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:35.46,0:03:42.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--This is a collar from my cap and gown,\Nwhen I graduated from Yale.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.28,0:03:45.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When I think about cotton,\Nit takes me everywhere.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:45.04,0:03:46.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You think about politics.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.30,0:03:48.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You think about social relationships you have.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:48.88,0:03:51.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You think about economics.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:51.30,0:03:52.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Reparations.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.74,0:03:57.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It all just unfolds and is laid out.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:01.14,0:04:06.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These pages come from an\Natlas of the Transatlantic slave trade.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:09.88,0:04:13.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's remarkable that these records\Nhave been kept for so long
Dialogue: 0,0:04:13.09,0:04:14.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and in such detail.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:14.73,0:04:18.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it's also indicative of trade and commerce.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:19.44,0:04:22.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You keep track of every single thing,\Nevery movement,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:22.81,0:04:26.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because there's money\Nand there's capital involved.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:27.20,0:04:29.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But these were bodies.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.76,0:04:35.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Being a Black person in this current state,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:35.30,0:04:39.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that’s what you're encouraged to do--\Nis to move on.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:39.48,0:04:41.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Like, "Ok, there's been time."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:41.88,0:04:43.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"There's been space," right?
Dialogue: 0,0:04:43.56,0:04:44.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a false narrative.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:44.82,0:04:48.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it also is one that you\Nfeel the pressure from.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.66,0:04:52.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That to me is an essential aspect\Nof making sculpture.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.28,0:04:56.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You have to deal with its materiality.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:56.42,0:04:59.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These works, I think,\Nthey demand that.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:59.66,0:05:02.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They demand you to confront them,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:04.10,0:05:06.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because they're confronting you.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:07.30,0:05:10.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[DRUMMING]
Dialogue: 0,0:05:25.78,0:05:27.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[DRUMS STOP, SILENCE]
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.40,0:05:29.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I was searching for a cotton gin.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:29.41,0:05:31.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I had cotton, and I was thinking,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:31.46,0:05:34.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,maybe I could make t-shirts,\Nor I can make garments.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:35.24,0:05:37.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I went on eBay,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:37.05,0:05:40.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,searching for a small hand-held,\Nhand-cranked thing,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:40.61,0:05:46.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the first thing I came across\Nwas an ad for this large cotton gin motor.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:47.82,0:05:50.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I felt like it was telling me what I needed\Nto do.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:51.44,0:05:55.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The cotton gin was invented by\NEli Whitney in 1794.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:55.90,0:05:59.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What it does is it separates\Nthe fibers from the seeds,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:00.12,0:06:04.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which was the most time-consuming part \Nfor slaves.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:05.40,0:06:09.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,People thought that it would decrease\Nthe number of slaves.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.12,0:06:11.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it actually had the opposite effect,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:11.27,0:06:14.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because more land was acquired,\Nplantations got larger.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:14.98,0:06:17.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It actually increased the number of slaves.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:20.36,0:06:24.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The cotton gin motor is encased\Nin a sound-proof glass chamber,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.06,0:06:29.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and primarily came out of this decision\Nto be able to experience
Dialogue: 0,0:06:29.76,0:06:32.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and see the motor running,\Nand not hear it.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:38.26,0:06:42.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That came out of a conversation\Nwith the former owner,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:42.90,0:06:46.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where, when I asked him about\Nwhat it sounded like,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:46.55,0:06:47.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he couldn't articulate.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:47.55,0:06:51.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He didn't have the words\Nto really describe that sound.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:51.49,0:06:54.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was really something that\Nyou had to experience for yourself.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:59.40,0:07:00.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,--Okay.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:01.32,0:07:03.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sound has always been important to me.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:05.52,0:07:10.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It has increasingly become a way\Nfor me to process the world.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:11.96,0:07:16.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sound is just as physical and tactile\Nas any other material.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:16.12,0:07:19.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[PROCESSED SOUND OF COTTON GIN MOTOR]
Dialogue: 0,0:07:35.92,0:07:37.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[SILENCE]
Dialogue: 0,0:07:45.00,0:07:50.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How do you deliver that physicality,\Nor that tactility of something you can't see,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:50.36,0:07:54.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or something that you don't feel\Nin a traditional way?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:55.34,0:07:57.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[PROCESSED SOUND OF COTTON GIN MOTOR]
Dialogue: 0,0:08:05.24,0:08:07.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It shakes your insides.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:07.28,0:08:08.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You feel the vibrations.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:10.06,0:08:13.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Do people want to sit and listen to this?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:13.37,0:08:16.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Do they want to take the time to consider
Dialogue: 0,0:08:16.65,0:08:20.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what that sound is,\Nand where it is coming from?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:26.56,0:08:31.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm interested in people asking\Nwhat their relationship is to this material--
Dialogue: 0,0:08:32.11,0:08:37.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to see a wall of cotton\Nthat comes from a really specific place,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.35,0:08:38.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the American South--
Dialogue: 0,0:08:38.87,0:08:42.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,just to think about\Nwhat their relationship is to that,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:42.44,0:08:45.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and how do they feel implicated,\Nif at all.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:51.30,0:08:55.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Are we really taking the time to process\Nand understand these things?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:58.20,0:09:04.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So I think setting up a scenario\Nwhere people can take the time
Dialogue: 0,0:09:04.27,0:09:07.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is as much as I can really offer.