Intervention: Wall Street
A response to the abuses by the largest and most powerful institutions on Wall Street that caused the Great Recession of 2008. A work of protest that highlights the urgent need to change the values and practices of the New York Financial Industry. Procession, performance, dance, music, textile arts, costuming, ritual, and protest.
The Brooklyn Jumbies and Laura Anderson Barbata. Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Photo: Frank Veronsky
Laura Anderson Barbata. Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Photo: Frank Veronsky
The Brooklyn Jumbies, Terrell Leacock Ali Sylvester. Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Photo: Frank Veronsky
The Brooklyn Jumbies. Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Photo: Frank Veronsky
Intervention: Wall Street, 2011
Laura Anderson Barbata in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies
Intervention: Wall Street was conceived as a response to the dire economic crisis that became most evident in 2008 which today afflicts not only Americans but has impacted 99% of the global population. Financial speculation and banking abuses by the largest and most powerful institutions on Wall Street have brought misery to individuals, institutions and to entire countries. In this public performance, Laura Anderson Barbata and the Brooklyn Jumbies bring to the Financial District of New York a world wide practice to remind viewers of the global impact of this crisis and the urgent need to elevate and change the values and practices of the New York Financial Industry.
On November 18, 2011, the Brooklyn Jumbies towered over the Financial District during an intervention that incorporated stilt dancers wearing 12ft high business suits and music. Anderson Barbata on the ground represented the proportion of women in executive positions in the banking industry. Together they handed out gold-foil wrapped chocolate coins embossed with the word: Mexico
In Western Africa, Moko is a spirit who watches over his village, and due to his towering height, is able to foresee danger and evil. In Africa, the Moko Jumbie (stilt dancer) is traditionally called in to cleanse and ward off evil spirits that have brought with them disease and misfortune to a village. On the other side of the Atlantic, in Oaxaca, Mexico, the Zancudos (stilt dancers) perform once a year to call upon the power of their saints to receive protection, blessings, and miracles. In the same spirit of warding off evil and seeking a change in the mindset of those causing misfortune, Laura Anderson Barbata and the Brooklyn Jumbies intervened on Wall Street.
The Intervention began on Broadway at Bowling Green and continued uptown to Cedar, across from Zuccotti Park, making stops in each relevant area including the New York Stock Exchange while handing out gold chocolate coins along the way.
Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Laura Anderson Barbata in collaboration with The Brooklyn Jumbies. New York Financial District.
Wall Street Bulls, 2013. Assorted fabrics with cardboard headpieces, paint. Suits in collaboration with Manuela Morales. Individual: 350 x 79 x 53.5 cm. Total dimension of installation variable. Performed: 2013. Exhibited: 2016-2017 Carnival and Masquerades in a Worldwide Perspective. Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen, and Afrika Museum, Berg en Dal, The Netherlands.
Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Installation view BRIC. Six large scale Jumbie business suits and one real scale female business suit. Assorted fabrics. Constructed in collaboration with Manuela Morales, Approximate dimensions of individual large scale suits: 350 x 79 x 53.5 cm, total dimensions of installation variable. Performed 2011 in the New York Financial District, portrayed by the Brooklyn Jumbies and Laura Anderson Barbata. Installation and video exhibited: Exhibited: 2012-2017 Transcommunality- Transcomunalidad, Laura Anderson Barbata. Various museums in Mexico and the US. Among them: Museo Textil de Oaxaca; Museo de la Ciudad de México; CONART Monterrey; BRIC Brooklyn; University of Wisconsin; Cornell Fine Arts Museum; Rutgers University.
Intervention: Wall Street, 2011. Installation view Cornell Fine Arts Museum, Orlando. Six large scale Jumbie business suits and one real scale female business suit. Assorted fabrics. Constructed in collaboration with Manuela Morales, Approximate dimensions of individual large scale suits: 350 x 79 x 53.5 cm, total dimensions of installation variable. Performed 2011 in the New York Financial District, portrayed by the Brooklyn Jumbies and Laura Anderson Barbata. Installation and video exhibited: Exhibited: 2012-2017 Transcommunality- Transcomunalidad, Laura Anderson Barbata. Various museums in Mexico and the US. Among them: Museo Textil de Oaxaca; Museo de la Ciudad de México; CONART Monterrey; BRIC Brooklyn; University of Wisconsin; Cornell Fine Arts Museum; Rutgers University.