Western Front is pleased to present a new performance installation by Angel Bat Dawid, developed as part of our artist-in-residence program.
The work is inspired by the life of Henry "Box" Brown, who in 1849 subverted chattel slavery by mailing himself from Virginia to Philadelphia inside in a three by two by two-and-a-half feet wooden crate. Brown's act of survival and self-determination launched him into a remarkable public life as a magician, illusionist, preacher, and performing artist. Dawid's work reclaims his legacy and draws on the tradition of the "hush harbor"-secluded gathering spaces where enslaved people practiced liberatory spiritual worship and political resistance. In the work, live ritual, projection, sculpture, and original composition form what Dawid calls a "contemporary sanctuary of emancipation."
One of four major parts of the work is Song-Hymn in Five Movements, a new composition performed by Angel Bat Dawid (clarinet, piano, voice, electronics) and the Professor H. "Box" Brown Cosmic Soul Arkestra-featuring musicians Feven Kidane (trumpet, bass) and Camila Vick (voice), and actor Audre Steph
A "Blind Box" sculptural telemetry built to the exact dimensions of Henry's box, functioning as a physical portal for ancestral transition.
Design & Fabrication: Camila Isabel Vick
Designed and physically constructed by Chicago-based interdisciplinary artist Camila Vick, this vessel serves as the physical anchor of the exhibition. Vick hand-built the gold-leafed wooden sculpture to replicate the exact 3 x 2 x 2.5-foot dimensions of the historic escape crate used by Henry "Box" Brown. Adorned with gold tassels and African textiles, the exterior integrates sound-responsive Tesla spheres that react dynamically to live acoustic frequencies.
Recontextualized as a contemporary Ark of the Covenant (Aron HaBerit) and an Ethiopian Tabot, the vessel features a removable gold lid. The underside reveals a mirrored backing etched with Psalm 40 in both English and transliterated Hebrew. Designed to be carried before participants, this mirror invites viewers to gaze at their own reflection and activate the sacred text through song.
Inside, an opulent chamber of plush burgundy fabric, mirrors, and radiant projection mapping creates an optical illusion of infinite internal space-revealing the limitless, un-enslavable reality of Henry "Box" Brown.
Photos by Deninis Ha