BLACK
ITALIA
Antar Mohamed Marincola
(Bologna)
Antar Marincola's about Colonialism
UNITS: THE LEGACY OF ITALIAN COLONIALISM
Antar Mohamed Marincola is born in Mogadishu. He lives in Italy where he studied, worked as a translator, actor, writer and teacher. His last publication, published by Einaudi was "Timira. Mestizo Novel", initially written through collaboration between Wu Ming and Timira Hassan Yere (Isabella Marincola), who was Antar’s mother and an actress who played in "Riso Amaro" by Giuseppe de Santis. During the process of writing, Timira died, and so Antar took over the role of co-author. The book is a sort of biography of Timira Hassan Yere that has many historical references to the political context of her time: Italian colonialism, fascism and (post) colonialism. In the book Giorgio Marincola, Timira’s brother is also mentioned; he was a Black Italian partisan, who was murdered by Nazi troops in May 1945, only few days after the “Italian Liberation Day” (25 April 1945). Antar will lead us in the cluster about Colonialism, Afro-Italians born in the Colonies, and the immigration from Africa of the 50s, 60s 70s.
Justin Randolph Thompson
(Florence)
UNIT: BLACKNESS IN ART HISTORY, CONTEMPORARY AFRO-ITALIAN VISUAL ARTISTS
Justin Randolph Thompson is a new media artist, cultural facilitator, and educator born in Peekskill, NY in '79. Living between Italy and the US since 1999, Thompson is Co-Founder and Director of Black History Month Florence, a multi-faceted exploration of African and African Diasporic cultures in the context of Italy founded in 2016.In 2023, Thompson premiered his solo exhibition "Minted in Enemy Bronze" at the British School at Rome, This exhibition represented the culmination of a decade-long film-based journey, presenting a dozen films dedicated to the excavation of Black histories in Italy. His work continues to deepen discussions around socio-cultural stratification and hierarchical organization by employing fleeting temporary communities as monuments and fostering projects that connect academic discourse, social activism, and DIY networking strategies. Thompson teaches at SACI Studio Arts College International Florence and is a recipient of numerous awards, including a 2022 Creative Capital Award and a 2020 Italian Council Research Fellowshi.
Jordan Anderson
(Milan)
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UNIT: THE BLACK ITALIAN QUEER, FASHION INDUSTRY
Jordan Anderson Born and raised in Kingston Jamaica, Jordan Anderson is a fashion and culture journalist & creative director who is currently based in Milan. His work often magnifies & explores political themes in and outside the fashion industry including race, gender, identity & brand, and cultural ethics. He contributes to a variety of publications including Document Journal, Teen Vogue, Vogue Italia. Jordan founded the project, sponsored by Converse, “My Queer Blackness, My Black Queerness”. Also known by the acronym MQBMBQ, the platform aims to be a virtual safe space for Black queer people in Italy.
Marilena Delli Umuhzoa (Venice)
UNIT: THE BLACK WOMAN EXPERIENCE IN ITALY, PUBLISHING AND PODCAST
Marilena Delli Umuhoza is an Italian-Rwandan author, filmmaker, and educator, born outside Rome to an Italian father and Rwandan mother. She earned her Master's Degree in International Communication and studied documentary filmmaking at UCLA in 2007.Delli Umuhoza has published several books, including "Razzismo all'Italiana" (2016) and "Negretta: Baci Razzisti" (2020), a young adult novel featuring a Black Italian protagonist. Her latest works include "Storia vera dell'Italia nera" (2024), "Lettera di una madre afrodiscendente alla scuola italiana" (2023), and "Pizza Mussolini" (2023).In 2021, she became a curator for Radio Radicale and started hosting a podcast on racism and topical issues. Delli Umuhoza is highly active in anti-racism efforts, having launched the Anti-Racism Academy and writing for Vanity Fair. She also founded the Academy Antirazzismo, the first online school offering courses on deconstructing racism.
Ark Ndulue(Naples)
UNIT: THE TIMELINE OF THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT IN ITALY
Ark Ndulue, born and raised in Castel Volturno (Naples), is an Italian-Nigerian co-founder of Collettivo Articolo3.it, activist, community organizer, and model. He graduated in Law Studies at the University of Naples and is completing a Master's in Cybersecurity at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. He currently works as an entertainment lawyer in Los Angeles. Ark will guide us through the history of the pre-BLM and anti-racist movements in Italy and the current digital activism of Black Italian youth.
Fred Kudjo Kuwornu(New York)
UNIT: BLACK ITALIAN CINEMA, DIGITAL CREATORS, MUSIC INDUSTRY, AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, MIXED-RACE EXPERIENCE
Fred Kudjo Kuwornu is a multi-hyphenate socially engaged artist, filmmaker and scholar whose work is deeply influenced by his background as a person of African descent. Born and raised in Italy, Kuwornu is based in New York. His unique background is reflected in his triple citizenship, holding Italian, Ghanaian, and U.S. passports. By consistently bridging past and present, visible and invisible, the seen and unseen, Kuwornu's practice emerges as a vital contribution to contemporary visual culture, understanding the complex interplay between history, identity, race, and representation in our globalized world. Kuwornu's curatorial vision can be understood as a form of historical remixing in which he reconfigures archival materials and contemporary narratives to enlighten a rethinking of perspectives. His works have been exhibited at prestigious venues including the Central Pavilion at the Venice Art Biennale (2024), Museum of Moving Image in New York, Library of Congress, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, George Eastman Museum and numerous international film festivals. As a scholar and cultural organizer, in 2021 he founded the Teaching Black Italy project, and in 2022, he established the Black Italia Film Showcase, a nomadic showcase of productions by Italian Afrodescendant filmmakers. He has taught courses on Documentaries and Social Change and Black Italian Cinema at universities in the United States.