What's my name?

May 24, 2020, 11:42 AM

Piece based on Muhammed Ali's headgear by Eva Quirentia Mansson.

"Muhammad Ali, being one of the absolutely most fascinating people on earth, is someone I have admired all my life. I am not a fan of boxing. Not even interested in sports. 

"But Muhammad Ali was so much more than his skills in the ring. When looking at his protection helmet, most probably used during a time when he was in the midst of deciding who he really wanted to be, I can only imagine his head being absolutely full of thoughts. Words would occasionally spurt out like from a volcano, perhaps only a fraction of what was really going on inside. 

"His poetry predating rap, his words could become songs, his self esteem expressed with such self irony and wit. But under it all, the anger and frustration rising and manifesting itself along with the movement of Black Power in the United States."

Part of the Smithsonian Treasures project, a collection of new sound works inspired by items from the Smithsonian Museums’ collections - for more information, see http://www.citiesandmemory.com/smithsonian