Fractal Dread (2003) explores the link between Afro-Caribbean femininity and cybernetics. Drawing on Eng Lash’s study on the cybernetic relation between African hair patterns and the architectural patterns of African villages, Fractal Dread follows the non-linear and polyrhythmic movement of the dreads: tentacles of an alien creature that feel and act on the bases of their sensations as do the tentacles of the Aonkali, described by Octavia J. Butler in Xenogenesis. Fractal Dread uses variations in speed, repetitious movement and static electronic feedback to generate new variations of perceptual patterns.

Fractal Dread was commissioned by AfroBionics for Hair: The Show and presented at the Tablet Gallery, The Tabernacle, London in March 2003.

play fractal dread clip>