Embodied Metadata · LaJuné McMillian

Embodied Metadata is the data about the data that our bodies produce. LaJuné McMillian presents self-portraits displayed in triptych video format using 3D-scanned avatars, using digital systems to confront Western technology's limitations and its harmful effects on Black communities. The work questions how bodies can be translated and recognized while maintaining dignity beyond data production, exploring "what worlds must be built for the liberated body to exist." McMillian reframes motion-capture metadata as "a cultural asset that is celebrated through individual movement," treating the process as ritual space for Black bodies. The exhibition features video, VR, and interactive works including Movement Portraits (collaborations with dancers and performers), Antidote (co-authored with Marguerite Hemmings), and Spirit & Child. Related projects include the Black Movement Library (BML), an ongoing archive maintained since 2018.

Works

LaJuné McMillian

Spirit & Child, 2022