As a part of The University of Michigan School of Social Work, Juliana Huxtable will perform at the campus February 6th and 7th, she will present a new iteration of her performance work, highlighting her compelling use of language, phenomenal music collabs, projection and lighting design. Joining her will be pianist and composer Joe Heffernan, Detroit-based harpist Ahya Simone and Michael Potvin, lighting designer.

This event series and special performance marks Michigan Social Work’s first commissioned artist in over 20 years, as a part of the Social Justice Art Collection. On Wednesday, February 6, 2019, doors open at 4:30 PM in the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre, and Thursday, February 7, 2019 Lecture starts at 5:15 PM in the Michigan Theatre.

If you haven’t heard of the electric Juliana Huxtable- you must be living on a different planet. The NYC-based artist, DJ and poet is a powerful force in contemporary culture that everyone must know. Her work takes you on a journey through the perception and presentation of identity, history and the nourishment of online communities. Throughout the years, Juliana has used her wisdom and experience as black and intersex identifying person to shake up the status-quo, taking on the challenges of creating safe spaces for those who need to breathe freely.

Much of her artwork and practice is manifested through self-portraiture, writing, text-based prints, banging DJ sets and organizing queer nightlife in New York City.

Juliana questions and critiques what society suggests to be ‘normal’ and replaces institutional thoughts with alternative possibilities. She regularly mixes in her poetry through her live DJ sets that help sweat out your weave. She also has had her music featured on the runway soundtrack for Hood By Air, and been cast as a model for fashion campaigns including Kenzo x H&M as well as featured on magazine covers representing transgender women from all walks of life.

Breaking all stereotypes and binary boundaries, her work has been recognized and featured in various museums. The New Museum Triennial Surround Audience featured her text-based and self-portraits from “Universal Crop Tops For All The Self Canonized Saints of Becoming” in 2015. The Museum of Modern Art and Performa co-commissioned her performance piece “There Are Certain Facts that Cannot Be Disputed” that featured her poetry, audio and voice elements.

EVENT DETAILS:

February 6, 2019 Doors open at 4:30 PM in the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre.
February 7, 2019 Lecture starts at 5:15 PM in the Michigan Theatre.
Juliana Huxtable Live in Performance at U of M

All events are free and open to the public.
First come, first seated.

Follow more of Juliana’s work through her iconic Instagram. and if you’re ever in New York we dare you to get jiggy with her at ShockValueNYC, a nightlife collective ran by women.