Holding on to your identity as a contemporary artist: community, queerness, perceptions and traditions
In this episode of IETM Global Pod, moderator Silvia Ribero is joined by Femi Adebajo (Nigeria) and Miloš Janjić(Serbia) for a rich and deeply personal conversation about artistic identity, marginalisation, queerness, community, and the realities of creating contemporary performance work outside mainstream structures. Together, they explore how artists navigate social expectations, build alternative support systems, connect local and international communities, and use art as a tool for resistance, visibility, and social transformation.
Guests
Silvia Ribero (Italy)
Performing artist, artivist, and cultural strategist based in the Italian Alps. Silvia works with Biloura, an intercultural and transdisciplinary performing arts collective focused on both local and international artistic exchange.
Femi Adebajo (Nigeria)
Dancer, choreographer, filmmaker, and artistic director of Future of Dance Company in Lagos. Femi’s work combines movement, film, performance art, objects, and multimedia to explore identity, tradition, queerness, and contemporary Nigerian society.
Miloš Janjić (Serbia)
Choreographer, multimedia artist, producer, and representative of Serbia’s independent dance scene. Based in Belgrade, Miloš works across contemporary dance, collective organising, queer artistic practice, and cultural advocacy.
Episode Highlights
- Artistic freedom beyond disciplinary boundaries
- Building contemporary dance communities in Nigeria and Serbia
- Creating art outside mainstream cultural institutions
- Queer identity, visibility, and representation in performance
- Self-organised learning and peer-to-peer artistic exchange
- The relationship between local communities and international collaboration
- Art as activism, resistance, and social responsibility
- Challenging traditional perceptions of artists and performance
Key Discussion Points
Finding Artistic Freedom Through Interdisciplinary Practice
The guests reflect on how their artistic journeys evolved beyond single disciplines, combining dance, film, performance art, multimedia, costume, and community work to create more authentic forms of expression.
Creating Contemporary Art in Marginalised Contexts
Femi and Miloš discuss the challenges of working in environments where contemporary dance and experimental art remain underfunded, misunderstood, or socially marginalised, and how independent communities become essential support systems.
Self-Organisation & Peer Learning
The conversation explores the importance of informal education, collective learning, and self-organised artistic spaces where artists exchange knowledge, skills, and support outside traditional institutions.
Queerness, Identity & Visibility
The guests discuss how queer perspectives shape artistic practice and reflect on the social pressures, stereotypes, and public perceptions surrounding queer bodies and non-conforming identities within their communities.
Tradition, Ritual & Contemporary Performance
Femi shares research from his performance work exploring gender expression and masquerade traditions in Nigeria, revealing how historical and cultural practices complicate modern assumptions about identity and queerness.
Art as Social Responsibility
The episode closes with a powerful reflection on the responsibility artists carry to challenge oppression, respond to social and political realities, and create spaces for empathy, visibility, and change.
Memorable Quotes
“You teach me what you know, I teach you what I know.” — Silvia Ribero
“I needed to go to a place that my dance language would be appreciated.” — Femi Adebajo
“The surroundings are somehow also queer because of this fluidity of identity.” — Miloš Janjić
“Once someone shifts their point of view, this is a change that is going to provoke actions.” — Silvia Ribero
About IETM Global Connect
The IETM Global Pod is part of the IETM Global Connect programme, bringing together performing arts professionals from across continents to exchange perspectives on urgent global issues shaping artistic practice today.
More information:
Credits
Produced by:
Margherita Petti, Lottie Atkin, Giselle Musabimana & Ilaria De March
Recorded, edited & produced by:
Ben Phoenix / NEXI Media
Co-funded by:
IETM Associate Members & the European Union
