Hiba Ali's Ocean-Sensing Performance Lecture at Transmediale 2026
At Transmediale 2026, Dr. Hiba Ali delivered a performance lecture entitled 'Sounding the Ocean: Spiral Networks of Remembrance and Elation,' curated by Neema Githere and Juan Carlos Garcia Sossa. This presentation is part of a three-year initiative conducted in Saudi Arabia, Zanzibar, and India, supported by fellowships from the American Institute of Indian Studies, Deccan Archive, and Dhow Countries Music Academy. Ali's work merges audiovisual storytelling with sonic ocean-sensing. The performance incorporated a voice modulator, music from Chema Bent Hammoud and Vugo Matondoni, and a short story titled 'The Pearl,' translated into Swahili by Abdulrahman Ndegwa. Additionally, Ali is a 2024 Performing and Creative Arts Fellow at the American Institute of Indian Studies and a member of NEW INC Art & Code for 2024–2025.
Key facts
- Performance lecture 'Sounding the Ocean: Spiral Networks of Remembrance and Elation' presented at Transmediale 2026.
- Curated by Neema Githere and Juan Carlos Garcia Sossa.
- Research conducted over three years in Saudi Arabia, Zanzibar, and India.
- Fellowships include American Institute of Indian Studies, Deccan Archive, and Dhow Countries Music Academy.
- Ocean-sensing defined as embodied, durational listening practice.
- Draws on Kamau Brathwaite's 'tidalectics' and Dylan Robinson's 'Hungry Listening'.
- Short story 'The Pearl' translated into Swahili by Abdulrahman Ndegwa.
- Ali is a 2024 Performing and Creative Arts Fellow, NEW INC member, and Akademie Schloss Solitude Fellow.
Entities
Artists
- Hiba Ali
- Neema Githere
- Juan Carlos Garcia Sossa
- Kamau Brathwaite
- Dylan Robinson
- Chema Bent Hammoud
- Vugo Matondoni
- Suleiman Mohammed
- Abdulrahman Ndegwa
- Siti Bint Saad
- Madosini
- Bi Kidude
- Pia Menon
Institutions
- Transmediale
- American Institute of Indian Studies
- Deccan Archive
- Dhow Countries Music Academy
- Women and Their Work
- NEW INC
- Akademie Schloss Solitude
- MIT Press
- Maqam.tv
Locations
- Saudi Arabia
- Zanzibar
- India
- Austin
- Texas
- United States
- Stuttgart
- Germany
- Karachi
- Pakistan
- Arabian Sea
- Pemba Island
- Tanzania
- Kerala
- Swahili Sea
- Indian Ocean
- Kuwait
- Bahrain
- Austin, TX
- Ziwa Kuu