Kahlil Joseph’s new Fly Paper installation pays homage to Harlem music past and present

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The Store X The Vinyl Factory-commissioned work is currently on display at Joseph’s Shadow Play exhibition at NYC’s New Museum.

Artist and film-maker Kahlil Joseph’s new 20-minute film installation brings together past and future images of Harlem, shaped by the community of black artists, writers and musicians who called it home.

Inspired by the photographs of Roy DeCarava – the photographer who captured Harlem street life alongside portraits of its most important jazz musicians – Fly Paper continues Joseph’s exploration of the collaborative interplay between disciplines unique to the area.

“Black talent is exponentially propelled by other black talent,” he told The Guardian. “We have a particular genius for improvisation, from preachers in the pulpit to pianists.”

In that vein, Joseph enlisted the talents of Lauryn Hill and Kelsey Lu for the soundtrack to Fly Paper, while Alice Smith features in a new 5-minute companion film Black Mary, commissioned by Tate as part of its Soul Of A Nation show in London.

Featuring Smith’s scorching rendition of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ ‘I Put a Spell on You’, you can watch Black Mary in full below:

Both works follows Joseph’s recent high-profile collaborations with Beyoncé on Lemonade, Sampha on Process and Kendrick Lamar on m.A.A.d, the latter of which stole the show at last Year’s Infinite Mix.

Released ahead of the final week of Soul Of A Nation at Tate Modern, you can watch Black Mary in full above and see installation shots from Fly Paper at New Museum below.

Click here for more information about how to visit Kahlil Joseph’s Shadow Play, which is open at New Museum until 7th January 2018.