Trans-lation 1: Berlin, 2022 /transˈleɪʃ(ə)n,trɑːnzˈleɪʃ(ə)n/

1. the process of translating words or text from one language into another.
"the translation of the Bible into English"

2. the process of moving something from one place to another.

Yoruba Ọfọ̀ is a technology of Yoruba indigenous science in which the materiality of words, ie sound, alter physical materialities. This technology, loosely related to the Western scientific fields of cymatics and quantum mechanics, predates and surpasses them in technological advancement. In Trans-lation 1: Berlin ọfọ̀ technology is explored for its ability to alter reality and is engaged as a rectifying and corrective force.              

Through the sound, a recorded vibration and archive of bodies, two Yoruba people that would not otherwise easily access Haus der Kulturen der Welt (where the work is installed) due to immigration laws, are able to circumvent legal boundaries. Their power as the inhabitants of Yoruba bodies, somatic archives of indigenous history that cannot be replicated or stolen, is enacted through their utilization of ọfọ̀ technology. The translation of the words of the ọfọ̀ from Yoruba to English and German is engaged as art and performance and stresses refusal. Just as African indigenous bodies have and continue to be refused their humanity and refused access by global anti-blackness, so must we also refuse access to our bodies, our indigenous technologies and data, and to our innermost selves.