VIDEO: Caribbean Architecture Explored Through its Own Material History

How do aesthetics act as material evidence of history? What does an architecture of leisure look like outside of the western canon? How has colonialism reinforced the idea that ornamentation and function are opposing forces? These are some of the questions examined in a new video essay directed by Sucking Salt, a collective focused on archiving Caribbean architecture and aesthetics. The poetic short film is a collaboration with artist Akeem Smith and was produced in concert with Smith’s exhibition No Gyal Can Test, which archives the dancehall scene Smith grew up around, showcasing photos and videos but also the architectural spaces where the parties took place. Many of the same typologies which Sucking Salt examine the sociopolitical histories of in the video above were on full display in Smith’s show, which saw the artist shipping from Jamaica walls, doors, concrete blocks, and window grills and then transforming them into walk-in sculptures. The architectural exhibition first debuted in 2020 at Red Bull Arts New York in 2020 before traveling in 2021 to Red Bull Arts Detroit where it recently closed.

Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture? directed by Sucking Salt


Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture?


Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture? directed by Sucking Salt


Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture? directed by Sucking Salt


Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture? directed by Sucking Salt

Video still from Sucking Salt: What is Caribbean Architecture? directed by Sucking Salt



Directed by Sucking Salt
Videos and footage by Akeem Smith and Sucking Salt
Writing and Narration by Sucking Salt
Art Direction by Erin Knutson
Animation and 3D Models by Phil Vanderhyne and Alessandro Zhangi
Sound Design by Leon Louder
Produced by Red Bull Arts