Torkwase Dyson: Bird and Lava (Scott Joplin) 

Commissioned by Counterpublic 2023

April 15 – July 15, 2023

Production | Exhibition Grant

Bird and Lava (Scott Joplin)is a sonic, architectural installation by Torkwase Dyson that investigates Black spatial liberation strategies as experienced through the Ragtime composer’s musical experimentation. Taking the form of a semipermeable wood and steel structure that viewers can move through and occupy, Dyson’s project expands on Scott Joplin’s radical use of syncopation asking visitors “to experience ragtime in the round.” Sited nearby the original location of the Rosebud Café, where Joplin often performed,Bird and Lava (Scott Joplin)explores the intersections between architecture, ecology, and race through creating new ways to experience sound, encouraging real fidelity to more livable futures. 

Counterpublic is a triennial founded in 2019 by The Luminary. Counterpublic’s second edition will run from April 15 to July 15, 2023. Actively engaged with both its neighbors in St. Louis and national conversations on the role of contemporary art, Counterpublic aims to be a beacon of creative thinking and community engagement—an inclusive art platform that expands social, political, and civic horizons.Working in public places, cultural institutions, historic houses, and community gathering spaces, Counterpublic commissions dozens of artists, collectives, and community organizers to make and present works in St. Louis that engage the city’s histories and imagine new futures. The three month festival also includes active education, research, residencies, performances, publications, public projects, and commissions.

“Rendering of Torkwase Dyson, Bird and Lava (Scott Joplin) for Counterpublic 2023. Image courtesy of the artist and Richard Gray Gallery.”