Nástio Mosquito

Biography

Nástio Mosquito is a multifaceted artist (Luanda, Angola, 1981) who soon left behind his training as a television cameraman and film director to embrace an artistic practice that brings together music, video, installations and performance in unmistakably personal ways. Internationally acclaimed for his irreverent and provocative performances, Mosquito, more often than not, has adopted the role of an unpredictable showman, comprising the characters of a presenter, singer, actor and theatrical producer.

Mosquito’s practice revolves around the theme of cultural inheritance, which, as a fusion of the past, present and future, runs counter to more static and limiting concepts like, tradition, identity and their futurity. Intrigued by the potential and specificities of different verbal, musical and visual forms of language, the artist creates engaging public performances in which politics and entertainment become complementary aspects in a unitary artistic program. Among his most recent projects, the solo show Projects 104: Nástio Mosquito at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Nástio Mosquito: T.T.T.—Template Temples of Tenacity, The Fondazione Prada, Milan early this year, in addition to the collective shows, 9 Artists, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, 2013; Politics of Representation, Tate Modern, London, 2012; and 29th São Paulo Biennial, São Paulo, 2010. Mosquito was honored with the Future Generation Art Prize in 2014.