2018
Lost in Display is a virtual reality experience in which a West African masquerader and a team of ballet dancers reanimate and return movement to African masks in the collection of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
In this work, Fernandes uses the Museum’s collection as a starting point to reveal the colonial history of African masks and calls into question the notion of authenticity. Fernandes’ work articulates the absence of context in museum settings that obscures our understanding of the traditional use of masks. Taking inspiration from the original purpose of the masks, the artist’s installation gives them new life as they are worn and set in motion. Drawing on African and contemporary dance, as well as virtual reality, Lost in Display invites us to think about the impact of colonization.