RaFia Santana

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RaFia Santana
Born1990 (age 33–34)
Brooklyn, NY
EducationSUNY Purchase College
Alma materSUNY Purchase College
Known forElectronic Music, New Media Art, Performance art
Notable work'Ain't Nothin', 'Dizzillusionz', 'Worked'
MovementConceptual, Internet Art, New Media Art, Postinternet
AwardsRhizome MicroGrant, 2015[1]
Websitehttps://raf-i-a.tumblr.com/

RaFia Santana is a non-binary[2] American artist, musician, and performer based in Brooklyn, NY.[3] Her work ranges from animated gifs[4] to self-portraiture,[5] videos, and performance to editioned clothing and electronic music exploring gentrification, the millennial mindset, mental health, and the lived black experience.[6][7] They use the internet as a medium to share their artwork, empower black and brown communities, and challenge ideas of solidarity and alliance. She had exhibitions and/or performances at the Eyebeam,[8] AdVerse Fest,[9] SleepCenter,[10] Times Square Arts,[11] International Center of Photography,[12] Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture,[13][14] Babycastles,[15] Museum of the Moving Image[16] and Museum of Contemporary African Disaporan Arts, Roots & Culture [17] amongst many notable venues. Her work has been featured in publications such as Huffington Post,[18][19] HyperAllergic,[20] Rhizome, ArtFCity,[21] Vogue, Teen Vogue and Salon. They have participated in panels, performances and discussions such as Cultured Magazine,[22] "Late at Tate Britain",[23] Creative Tech Week NYC,[24] Afrotectopia at Google NYC,[25] NYU,[26] "Black Portraitures IV: The Color of Silence" at Harvard University and International Center for Photography.[27] Their music is released through Never Normal Records.[28]

Background[edit]

Santana was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. Coming from a family of creatives where her mother, Marilyn Nance is a photographer and father a documentary filmmaker, Santana was encouraged to make art as they were growing up.[29] They studied photography at Purchase College.[30]

Career[edit]

Animated GIFs[edit]

Throughout their career, Santana has been invited to contribute animated gifs and graphics to online exhibitions and publications such as Body Anxiety,[31][32] "Bitrates" at Shiraz Art House.[33] Her gif work has been critically reviewed by The New Inquiry,[34] Vice,[35] Blavity[36] and ArtFCity. Of her gif work, Paddy Johnson and Rea McNamara of ArtFCity have opined " Santana is one of the rare digital artists exploring the vernacular of race, advertising and pop culture."[37][38]

GIF Six-Pack (2016)[edit]

In context of Black History Month and Beyonce's release of "Formation", Vice columnist invited Santana as one of six artists to contribute gifs that speak out against anti-Blackness and cultural assimilation.[39] Under her gif, RaFia is quoted: “People of color are underrepresented in every community that white people have ever presented due to the conditioning we’ve received that white is standard. White people are looked at and heard first while POC are represented only if they excel past that standard. Until we’ve abolished the white standard, people of color will always be underrepresented. We’re all here though.”[40]

Worked (2015)[edit]

Worked is a digitally manipulated image of the artist, partially naked with her lower body away from the camera as she gazes forward whilst wearing an apron. It was made with the intention of defying stereotypes around black, femme and queer bodies.[41][42]

'SELFiE' (2015)[edit]

In 2015, Santana mounted a solo show showcasing digitally manipulated images with soundscapes at the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts.[43][44][45]

RaFia's World (2016)[edit]

Commissioned by a Rhizome Microgrant in 2015, 'RaFia's World' is a static website serving as an archive of written works and drawings from Santana's childhood.[46][47] In a profile with Rhizome, Santana tells Cepeda, "Rafia’s World in its original form exists on my mother's website.[48] It is a selection of memories written anecdotally that I illustrated at age six for the purpose of living on my mom’s website as an art piece (my first net art!). It remains there unchanged ten years later. The new RAFiA’s WORLD is a collection of illustrations I made for school assignments and leisure that spans the course of eight years, following my developing consciousness and growth as a kid and artist."

#POWERVHS (2016)[edit]

‘#POWERVHS’[49] is a 9-artist visual mixtape that Santana compiled to empower black, brown women and queer femme/non-binary artists.[50] It features video works by Hattie Ball, Michelle Marie Charles, Angelina Fernández, Reagan Holiday, María José, Nandi Loaf, Liz Mputu, Sondra Perry, and Santana herself. The compilation debuted at Disclaimer Gallery on 603 Bushwick Ave, Brooklyn and is available at Printed Matter.[51]

#PAYBLACKTIME (since 2016)[edit]

"#PAYBLACKTIME" is a grassroots initiative started by Santana to collect funds for food delivery through Seamless and Grubhub to marginal individuals who can't afford meals.[52][53] In an interview with Vogue, writer Sandra Song summarizes its goal of turning racial allies' guilt into meaningful action: "...the #PAYBLACKTiME initiative, which allows the people asking "Well what can I do to help marginalized folks?" to manifest their intentions into something tangible — i.e. food for hungry black and brown people."[54] In its first three months, #PAYBLACKTiME transferred over $6,000 in donations into meals purchased.[55] The work is now archived in Rhizome's Net Art Anthology.[56]

re:trospective (2018)[edit]

As a parody retrospective of emerging artists curated by maneul abreu, the exhibition featured artworks made by artists of colour in a storefront space located in the gentrified and trendy neighborhood of Bushwick.[57] Of Santana's animation, critic Whitney Mallet writes, "Santana’s video work, which saw digitally rendered faces, including the artist’s and abreu’s, morph and distort."[58]

Midnight Moment residency (2019)[edit]

As part of Midnight Moment's residency, Santana created a multi-billboard animated video piece that would show for a minute every night for a month in New York in April 2019.[59][60] Titled Dizzillusions -the same title as their coterminously released album-the installation featured RaFia's face animated amongst pink and purple backgrounds.

Dizillusions (2019)[edit]

Dizillusions is a rap and electronic EP released in April 2019 through Never Normal Records.[61] Vogue writer Rachel Hahn observed that "the music video of track "Ain't Nothin'" directly references her Times Square installation with lyrics like, “I’m gonna make it big/I’mma see my name in all of them lights.”...which depicts Santana dancing in the middle of Times Square while her animated face takes over the billboards in the background."[62]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Announcing the 2015 Net Art Microgrants". Rhizome. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  2. ^ @rafiaswrld (October 17, 2021). "I'm a non-binary ghoul looking for a similar arrangement tbh" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ Cepeda, Gaby (10 August 2016). "Artist Profile: Rafia Santana". Rhizome.
  4. ^ "NFSW GIF of the Hump Day: Rafia Santana". Dallas Art Dealers. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  5. ^ Eler, Alicia (9 November 2017). "In Search of the Authentic Selfie". HyperAllergic.
  6. ^ "RaFia Santana". Black Portraiture[s]. 4 June 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  7. ^ "Dizzillusions". Time Square Arts.
  8. ^ "AFTERCARE WITH EYEBEAM + ICP". Topical Cream.
  9. ^ "RaFia". The Red and Black. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  10. ^ "Home School". SleepCenter.
  11. ^ "RaFia". Times Square Arts.
  12. ^ "9 Art Events to Attend in New York City This Week". ARTNews. 16 July 2018.
  13. ^ Garrett Stodghill, Alexis (13 October 2014). "Harlem artists team up for new Schomburg exhibit honoring the 40th anniversary of Ntozake Shange's poetic monologues". NY Daily News. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  14. ^ "New Exhibition i found god in myself, Marking the 40th Anniversary of Ntozake Shange's Seminal Poem, Opens at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture on Sept. 19". New York Public Library.
  15. ^ "Multiplay". Babycastles. 26 July 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  16. ^ "INSTALLATION The GIF Elevator". Museum of the Moving Image.
  17. ^ Feliz, Catherine (19 July 2019). "Mutant Dust Bunnies". Roots & Culture.
  18. ^ Parker, Asha (14 September 2015). "Young Brooklyn artist redefines the selfie in her new show: "It is not about vanity."". Salon.
  19. ^ Wright, Peter "Souleo" (16 May 2015). "On the 'A' w/Souleo: Rafia Santana's 'SELFiE' Is Better Than Yours". Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  20. ^ Eler, Alicia (9 November 2017). "In Search of the Authentic Selfie". HyperAllergic.
  21. ^ McNamara, Rea (17 December 2015). "GIF of the Day: Rafia Santana's FREE". Art F City.
  22. ^ "AN EVENING WITH TSCHABALALA SELF AND RAFIA". Cultured. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  23. ^ "LATE AT TATE BRITAIN: CELEBRITY". Tate Britain.
  24. ^ "Rafia Santana". Creative Tech Week. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  25. ^ "Festival at Google NYC August 16 - 18, 2019". Afrotectopia. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  26. ^ "About the Conference". Black Portraiture[s].
  27. ^ "DISMANTLING THE GAZE: READING THROUGH MULTIPLY, IDENTIFY, HER". International Center for Photography. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  28. ^ "WATCH THE GO-GO INSPIRED "CRUSH" BY RAFIA". Never Normal Records. 2 March 2018. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  29. ^ Nedrick, Jr., Howard. "PHOTOGRAPHER PROFILE: RAFIA SANTANA". Cove Alpa. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  30. ^ Cepeda, Gaby (10 August 2016). "Artist Profile: Rafia Santana". Rhizome.
  31. ^ "Body Anxiety and a new wave of digifeminist art". Dazed Digital. 26 February 2015.
  32. ^ "RaFiA Santana (info)". Body Anxiety.
  33. ^ "Bitrates". Gif Bites.
  34. ^ Dean, Aria (March 2016). "Closing the Loop". The New Inquiry. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  35. ^ "[Exclusive Preview] 40 Artists Create 'GIFs to Have Sex By'". Vice. 6 July 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  36. ^ "A Black Feminist Future: How Two Artists Channeled Mary J.Blige's Bold Feminist Statement". Blavity. blklivesmatter.
  37. ^ Johnson, Paddy (31 May 2017). "NFSW GIF of the Hump Day: Rafia Santana". ArtFCity.
  38. ^ McNamara, Rea (17 December 2015). "GIF of the Day: Rafia Santana's FREE". Art F City.
  39. ^ Mufson, Beckett (19 February 2016). "Black GIF Artists Speak Out". Vice.
  40. ^ Mufson, Beckett (19 February 2016). "Black GIF Artists Speak Out". Vice.
  41. ^ Seikaly, Roula (24 February 2017). "Defying Stereotypes, One Post at a Time". Aperture. Aperture Foundation.
  42. ^ Sargent, Antwaun (13 February 2017). "Four Artists Explore Black Queer Sexuality on the Internet". The Creators Project. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  43. ^ "Rafia Santana's 'SELFiE' Is Better Than Yours". Ebony. 22 July 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  44. ^ Parker, Asha (14 September 2015). "Young Brooklyn artist redefines the selfie in her new show: "It is not about vanity."". Salon.
  45. ^ Wright, Peter "Souleo" (16 May 2015). "On the 'A' w/Souleo: Rafia Santana's 'SELFiE' Is Better Than Yours". Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  46. ^ "Announcing the 2015 Net Art Microgrants". Rhizome. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  47. ^ "RaFiA's WORLD". RaFiA's WORLD.
  48. ^ Santana, RaFia. "This is Rafia's World". Marilyn Nance.
  49. ^ "#POWERVHS". Vimeo. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  50. ^ "#POWERVHS". Printed Matter.
  51. ^ Graves, Cassidy Dawn (10 August 2016). "Performance Picks: Harsh Noise Videos IRL, LOL Sadism, and Theatre Ina Garden". Bedford + Bowery.
  52. ^ "#PAYBLACKTIME". RaFiA. Tumblr.
  53. ^ "#PAYBLACKTIME BY RAFIA SANTANA DEMANDS REIMBURSEMENT FOR BLACK AND BROWN FOLX". felt zine. 17 November 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  54. ^ Song, Sandra (8 July 2017). "Meet RAFiA Santana, the Multimedia Artist Working GIFs and Grubhub for the Greater Good". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  55. ^ "#PAYBLACKTIME". Net Art Anthology. Rhizome. 27 October 2016.
  56. ^ "#PAYBLACKTIME". Net Art Anthology. Rhizome. 27 October 2016.
  57. ^ Mallet, Whitney (6 November 2018). "A 'Retrospective' for Emerging Artists in Bushwick's Former Pfizer Factory". Vulture.
  58. ^ Mallet, Whitney (6 November 2018). "A 'Retrospective' for Emerging Artists in Bushwick's Former Pfizer Factory". Vulture.
  59. ^ Bowling, Suzanna (29 January 2019). "Times Square Arts Presents Their Spring Season Arts Program". Times Square Chronicles. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  60. ^ Bowling, Suzanna (31 March 2019). "The Midnight Moment is Dizzillusions". Times Square Chronicles.
  61. ^ "Dizzillusions". Bandcamp.
  62. ^ Hahn, Rachel (5 July 2019). "A Life in Pink: Artist RaFia Santana on Her (Mostly) Magenta Wardrobe". Vogue.
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