Don Dada Connecting The Jamaican Diaspora Through Art, Dancehall And NFTs

It’s a known fact that Jamaican culture has inspired the global music scene. What many have yet to realize is how the culture is also making waves on the art scene. That is soon to change, thanks to Jamaican creatives and movements from yard to foreign.

One such creative is Bonito Thompson, a Jamaican digital artist more widely known as Don Dada, who creates augmented reality experiences that fuse art with technology while shining a light into Jamaican life. While his work aims to represent all aspects of Jamaican popular culture, he is heavily influenced by dancehall. The key elements are found all throughout his work: sound systems, zinc fences, dance moves and of course, iconic Dancehall imagery.

Before the emergence of Don Dada in 2019, Bonito held his first solo art show, the aptly titled ‘Passionfruit’, in partnership with Chillitos in Kingston, Jamaica. In 2020, he was featured as Kingston Creative’s artist of the month for the island’s annual Reggae & Dancehall month. By 2021, Don Dada began making moves in the augmented reality space, with the conception of the ‘Paper Planes’ art show which spanned two locations in Kingston for a week-long exhibit. Bonito went on to collaborate with Grammy-winning artists such as Damian Marley and Common, however, he has a laundry list of Dancehall artists on his collab radar as well. 

This year, Don Dada is back on it with the ‘Mango Kush’ augmented reality art show, this time with an accompanying NFT and merch collection. The show, which is actually a multi-city tour, provides an immersive deep dive into art, giving attendees a chance to experience a piece of yard while amplifying Jamaican stories around the world. The art literally jumps off the wall with the help of Instagram and custom filters while the curated music and vibes transport you visually and socially right back to the heart and streets of Kingston. 

The Don Dada brand has recently expanded by adding on Alexia James as Brand Strategist and Cultr Creative as Project Manager, forming a solid Caribbean creative trinity. We spoke with Bonito about the brand, the art tour, dancehall and his vision for Jamaican creatives as a whole.

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So how did Don Dada come about? What’s the story behind the name and brand?

Don Dada came about when I was working on my first AR collection (Paper Planes). I wanted to create a body of work that represents Jamaican Pop culture (Dancehall) as it is currently and show the evolution of the culture. ‘Don Dada’ can be broken down a couple of ways –

Don dada is a strong cultural element in Jamaican history

Don –  cause my aim is to be a leader in the art and tech space

Dada which is a link to dadaism avant garde art 

What was the inspiration behind the Mango Kush art tour and incorporating the NFTs and augmented reality experience?

All of my artworks are augmented reality which makes them immersive and trippy when you get to experience it. The inspiration behind Mango Kush started with me asking what if you view the art high and see it leap off the canvas, imagine what that experience would be like for people. Weed is already a part of Jamaican culture, so it’s fusing everything into one experience. NFTs fit in because it’s the future of art collecting.

What was your process for creating the art and what artists did you collaborate?

My art process is fairly mapped out. I’ll start with a concept which can come from anywhere. Compose it in photoshop then paint it digitally. Once the painting is done I’ll break it down into individual layers and export them into Spark AR and build out the augmented reality component then upload to instagram. From there I’ll generate a QR code and embed it in the digital art. The QR code connects the digital art to the AR art which allows it to come to life. Mango Kush is a solo show but I am collaborating with a couple artists like Nicholas Huggins and Anya Ayoungchee in The Caribbean for a joint show in Trinidad in November.

What role does dancehall music & culture play in how you create and gain inspiration?

Dancehall music/culture is the catalyst for my work. There are some connecting visual elements throughout all of my work like zink fences, crates, drums, domino speakers etc. There are also a few pieces that were directly inspired either by dancehall songs or artists like Vybz Kartel and Skillibeng.

Who are some dancehall artists that you would love to collaborate with creatively?

I’d love to collaborate with Koffee, Vybz, Shenseea, Sean Paul, Skillibeng, Masicka, Steff London, Popcaan and Protoje. All of these artists are out there doing things and moving the culture forward. I’d love to link up with them and put some crazy visuals to their music and because my work is AR and NFTs we could make a body of work that’s revolutionary not only for JA culture but has a huge impact globally.

What are your goals for the Mango Kush tour as it relates to Jamaican art & music?

My main goal for this tour is to introduce the world to myself and my culture through art and gain international recognition for the work I’m doing.. Jamaica already has a recognizable brand internationally but now I want to show people Jamaican life through modern art. I want to be as big as Kaws or Takashi Murakami and with the team I have around currently, Alexia James, Simone Russel and Jahneen Leslie, I believe the sky’s the limit.

What would you like the world to know about Caribbean art & culture in general?

There’s so much talent in Jamaica and The Caribbean. We are known for our music and beaches but our culture is more diverse than what you see in pop media. There are so many stories waiting to be told and the more young artists that get light shined on their work the more these stories will come out. There is a lot of depth and texture in the region.

The ‘Mango Kush’ augmented reality + NFT tour spans from August 3 – December 17 across the diaspora, with an impressive rollout in NYC earlier August that featured sounds by Gab Soul and special guests. Next on the map is Los Angeles in October, then Trinidad and Miami’s Art Basel, before bringing it back a yard to Kingston.

Don Dada is also holding an open call for brands in the Jamaican diaspora to partner on the tour from custom joint NFTs to promotional materials. You can email bonito@dondadaja.com or read more at the official website: dondadaja.com. Follow @dondadaja on socials for more vibes.