PURE Guest.054 Juliana Huxtable

Grinding and crushing ​all sounds like an electric saw.

 

In her multimedia universe, Juliana Huxtable stands out as a DJ and musician with a distinctive approach to using the structures of music. While her visual art and poetry navigate the complexities of desire in an increasingly technologically mediated life, her music goes further, using the sounds of technology to construct parallel realities embodied in rhythm and harmonic tableaux.

Huxtable's DJ sets skillfully incorporate the notion of sampling and re-blogging as strategies, blending a diverse array of influences that play at the boundaries of genre, balancing intuition and experimentation. Her performances never adhere to the mainstream; each one is a loud declaration of freedom and an ode to the evolutionary structure of electronic music subcultures. They aim for the sublime, evoking what can only be described as witchcraft behind the decks, grinding down shattered and decayed sounds with the force of a chainsaw. Sharp beats pierce through the mind, like sudden storms of industrial grit, experimental club, and relentless Techno pounding relentlessly.

Beyond her role as a DJ and musician, Juliana Huxtable is an American artist, writer, performer, and co-founder of the New York-based nightlife project, Shock Value. Her multidisciplinary art practice explores various projects, including the internet, the body, history, and text, often through a process she terms "conditioning." She is a published author, a member of the House of Ladosha collective, and part of the talent agency Discwoman. Huxtable's interdisciplinary practice delves into topics such as identity, the body, and text, drawing influences from Afrofuturism and science fiction. Her recent works explore language, conspiracy theories, fashion, and various countercultures. Notably, her visual practice involves examining and remixing enduring imagery with symbolic power.

Despite being a vital voice in current transgender discourse, she remains humble, admitting her difficulty in succinctly describing her practice. Huxtable's demand in the industry reflects her ability to craft euphoric and boundary-pushing experiences, making her a unique and sought-after figure in both the contemporary art and music scenes.

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