Publications

Now & then...

By: Edith Marie Pasquier

Edith Marie Pasquier interviews Ali Zaidi of motiroti.

The company motiroti cannot be pigeon-holed into simple art-form categories. Its work inhabits multiple worlds – the overlap between identity, language, history, geography, politics, race and the mythic. The company’s collaborative practice is a deliberate act to muddy the waters of art-form specialism, to encourage cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural enquiry and interest. Arts Council England (London) views motiroti as “a model of new practice, especially for digital arts, participatory practice and collaborative work. It has a strong international reputation, with a particular focus on diaspora communities.” In three years motiroti received a ninety percent increase in its funding ' from £137,585 in 2002/03 to £300,000 for 2005/06 motiroti was set up by Keith Khan and Ali Zaidi in 1990. Khan describes himself as a “spectacularist”. Born in Trinidad, Khan was trained in fine art at Wimbledon School of Art and Middlesex University and worked in carnival for many years. Recent commissions include Escapade, featuring 150 dancers and film projection, staged on the buildings of the South Bank Centre, and Waterscapes, a performance series in...

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