22 May – 14 July 2020

Live Zoom performance and opening reception 12 June at 6pm.

Marginal Utility is proud to present Upon Second Reading or The Prequels a solo online exhibition by the Philadelphia based artist Taji Ra’oof Nahl.

“With the advent of terms such as SHADOW BANNING, SOCIAL DISTANCING, FALSE POSITIVES, 5G, and RED BAITING, new forms of divisive rhetoric are sliding into the lexicon of life. I have titled this grouping of videos “Upon Second Reading or The Prequels” & find these works to offer an almost prophetic vision when viewed thru the lens of the Plandemic.”

 

1. The Yellow Fever Report- Calculating Banneker:

A research based performance & collaborative undertaking with Aislinn E. Pentecost. This site-specific gesture was staged on the grounds of the Lazaretto Quarantine Hospital, the oldest quarantine station in the United States.  Nahl and Pentecost imagined how on this actual landscape thousands people infected with the Yellow Fever were received by the doctor & nurse on duty. Benjamin Banneker reported on the epidemic in his popular Almanac with accounts of the number of fatalities.

Activators: Aislinn E. Pentecost &TR7.
Filmed & Scored by TR7
2019

 

2. M47 – Morphological Phase 47 [iteration 47]:

The duo Tarna & Nahl explored sonic modalities and visceral notions of temporality & corporeal maneuvers that agitated the space. This was the first time Nahl used an armature as part of the gesture for Morphological.

Activator: Ravish Momin
Filmed & score by TR7
c. 2017

 

3. Glass is a Girls Best Friend – Preservation Series:

This site responsive video essay is from a body of works that investigates the agency of observation thru collecting specimens. In this iteration Sara J. Adams ‘Instagram Star’ from  Sydney Australia,  improvises a dance with the glass and emotes her sentiments about her new found celebrity status. This video filmed on the cultural center stage of Masjidullah’s Center for Human Excellence questions space, engagement & the dichotic effects of social practice.

Activator: Sarah Jane Adams
Filmed & score by TR7
circa 2015

 

4. The Kitchen is Closed – Morphological  Phase 98:

A site responsive deployment on the occasion of sound artist & composer Hprizm’s event at the Kitchen NYC as part of Kevin Beasley’s residency. On a guerrilla stage in front the Kitchen’s closed rolling gate one found this amebic form looking to spring forth and give new life.

Filmed by Hprizm,
Activator: TR7
Score  & edits TR7
c. 2019

 

5. Morphological 114 [Ephemeral Sculptures]:

A site responsive iteration executed at FDR park in Philadelphia. We activated the Greek columns & greenery backdrop of the park’s pavilion with the intent of striking sculptural poses that form the models of abstract, cubist & Bauhaus aesthetics.

Captured thru stop motion stills to create a sense of force & energy, this is a polyvalent endeavor that I like to call ‘calculated improv’ where I plot & plan the strategy & tactics then allow the work make itself.

Activated, filmed, edit & score by TR7
c. 2018

 

6. Guilty Conscious part 2 – Black Desk Continuum:

Video essay questions the mental state of people suffering from cognitive dissonance & Stockholm syndrome. Feral & unpredictable a man seeks sanctuary from the web of fake news, misinformation, gas-lighting, propaganda & mind control.

Activators: Jamele Ransom Patient, Jerry Puryear, Charles Lloyd, Muhummad Abdur Rahim, Erik Honesty &  TR7 Psychiatrist
filmed by TR7
2019

 

7. Salah:

In Arabic, the word “Salah” صلاة originated from the word “صلة” which means a ‘connection’ & that is because “Salah (prayers)” is meant to be a connection between the human & their God (Allah).

The primary purpose of Salah is to act as a person’s communication with Allah. Purification of the heart is the ultimate religious objective .

This video is an example of the artist in action stopping activities in middle of the day to pay respect to THE  Ultimate Creator and then continues thereafter with the task at hand.

Filmed by Jamele Ransom,
Devotee-Taji Ra’oof Nahl
c. 2018