Arthur Jafa (American, born 1960). <em>akingdoncomethas</em>, 2018. Video, color, sound, 1 hour 41 minutes Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Contemporary Art Committee and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund, 2018.22. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2018.22_view01_SC.jpg)

Arthur Jafa (American, born 1960). akingdoncomethas, 2018. Video, color, sound, 1 hour 41 minutes Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Contemporary Art Committee and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund, 2018.22. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2018.22_view01_SC.jpg)

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akingdoncomethas

Arthur Jafa

Contemporary Art

Arthur Jafa’s akingdoncomethas is composed of a series of clips, sourced from the internet, of pastors delivering sermons as well as singers and choirs performing gospel songs for their respective congregations. Jafa uses light editing to isolate shared narratives and performative gestures. The film portrays a culture of deep faith, healing, and perseverance that offers messages of resistance and staying the course. Through Jafa’s sequencing, the viewer gets a sense of the ethics of the Black Christian (Pentecostal) church as well as its aesthetics—the undulation of voices, the slow-build tempo of testimony, the wail, the scream, and mellow moments of reflection. The viewer is left with an awareness of not only what constitutes a church program but also how it feels—and a sense that perhaps it is this feeling that matters most.

ARTIST Arthur Jafa, American, born 1960

MEDIUM Video, color, sound, 1 hour 41 minutes

DATES 2018

COLLECTIONS Contemporary Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 2018.22

CREDIT LINE Gift of the Contemporary Art Committee and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION Arthur Jafa (American, born 1960). akingdoncomethas, 2018. Video, color, sound, 1 hour 41 minutes Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Contemporary Art Committee and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund, 2018.22. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2018.22_view01_SC.jpg)

EDITION Edition: 1/10 (edition of 10 plus 2APs)

IMAGE screen capture, Timestamp: 05:02, 2018.22_view01_SC.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2020

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akingdoncomethas

Arthur Jafa

Contemporary Art

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