Confluxes are a methodology for the tele-production of art, emphasizing remote collaboration, co-creation, and improvisational structure. Originating from a pan-African collective of artists, Confluxes blend the aesthetics of real-time collaboration with asynchronous workflows and experimental pedagogies. They have been used to produce music, visual art, writing, and live performance across geographic and technological boundaries.
Overview
A Conflux is both a methodology and a format. At its core, it is a way of making art together across distance. It can manifest as a live event, a facilitated workshop, or a distributed creative process. Inspired by historical avant-garde movements such as Fluxus and Happenings, Confluxes privilege co-presence, spontaneity, and collective authorship—whether in real-time or asynchronously.
Confluxes are often framed around themed events or “rounds,” where participants create, remix, and build on each other’s contributions using a shared toolset. While the structure is flexible, each Conflux tends to follow one of several defined techniques that shape the rhythm and intensity of collaboration.
Participation is open to the public and often facilitated by members of the originating collective. Events have included musicians, visual artists, writers, and interdisciplinary creators from across the globe.
History
The term Conflux was coined to describe a specific methodology for the tele-production of art, but the practice of making art across distance precedes its formalization. Long before digital technologies, people have developed creative strategies for remote collaboration.
Early Precedents
In the 18th century, West African griots used talking drums to send messages across long distances. This form of communication, referenced by Kodwo Eshun in the film The Last Angel of History, serves as an early example of sonic telepresence.
In more recent history, the American electronic band The Postal Service derived their name from their method of collaboration—exchanging demo tapes by mail to produce an album entirely remotely, without relying on the internet. Similarly, contemporary acts like 100 gecs and BADBADNOTGOOD (in collaboration with Ghostface Killah on Sour Soul) have produced large portions of their music via email exchanges.
Currents.fm and the Pandemic Era
The COVID-19 pandemic catalyzed new forms of remote artistic collaboration. A notable platform during this time was Currents.fm, a pro-social music streaming service that aimed to provide sustainable income for independent musicians. It offered direct-to-artist subscriptions and enabled the formation of collectives, where earnings could be split equally among members. Many members of what became ANANSI first met through their relationship with Currents.fm. Kadallah, MONRHEA, and Branice all worked for Currents.fm, and Coco Em and Vorbi Ogg among other members were active users of the platform.
Beyond its economic model, Currents.fm became a space for experimentation in social and artistic practices. While Kadallah was the head of R&D for community, the platform hosted virtual town halls and skillshares to support artists who had lost not just gigs but community as well. Currents.fm also birthed COMMON, a virtual club venue where global artists could perform remotely and still be compensated directly by audiences. COMMON also acted as a testing ground for what eventually became ANANSI, particularly through the Moment In Between festival.
It was within this context that the first Confluxtape was produced. This initial iteration involved nine artists—including Nabalayo, 7headc0, MONRHEA, and K_DALLA_—who exchanged tracks over email in a slow, deliberate process that unfolded over several weeks. This became a template for future Conflux events, setting the tone for the remix-based, non-hierarchical structure of the methodology. As more Confluxes were hosted through Currents.fm, the methodology evolved to explore synchronous techniques and reduce the downtime between contributions.
ANANSI and the Development of the Praxis
Many early participants in Currents.fm Confluxes went on to become members of ANANSI. Within ANANSI, Confluxes were further developed into a formal practice. The collective sought to refine not only the technical processes but also the social and artistic frameworks that supported remote co-creation.
One such event, ARC: CONFLUX, hosted by ANANSI as part of the ANANSI Radical Catalyst series, connected physical and virtual spaces simultaneously. Artists gathered in-person at the Santuri Salon in Nairobi, while others joined remotely from Zimbabwe, Indonesia, the U.S., and the U.K., creating a hybrid performance and collaboration environment.
Another major event, Black to the Future, took place across two locations in Nairobi, one in Los Angeles, and online. The night began with distributed tele-production and culminated in live performances that lasted into the early morning.
Through these events and continuous experimentation, Confluxes grew from a simple workaround into a mature art practice—one that emphasizes distributed authorship, mutual aid, and global creative solidarity.
Methodology
Confluxes use a variety of structured techniques, each with distinct pedagogical and creative goals. Four major modes have emerged:
- Async: Slow, intentional, and accessible. Participants contribute over time, often in weekly rounds. This method underpins projects like the Confluxtape.
- Co-teaching: One participant creates while narrating or demonstrating their process. Others observe and learn. This mode builds shared technique and understanding.
- Speed: Rapid-fire creation with simultaneous but structured contributions. Tracks or works are passed quickly in a rigorous round-robin fashion.
- Chaos: Freeform and improvisational. Everyone contributes to any part of the work at any time, creating unpredictable intersections and collisions.
Interdisciplinary Use
Music
Music Confluxes are the most developed form and include distinct formats:
- Confluxtape (Async): A full mixtape created over time, with each track passed from artist to artist for iterative layering.
- Jam (Co-teaching): A single song built collaboratively in real-time while one artist leads each round, ultimately putting every artist in a teaching and student role.
- QP / Quick Play (Speed): An EP created in parallel, with each participant working simultaneously on a different track.
- Conscendo (Chaos): A live, improvised tele-performance using tools like SonoBus and Tele-Midi. Performances are often rehearsed ahead of time but retain spontaneity.
Public outputs include:
Visual Art and Writing
Visual and written Confluxes use similar methodologies. Tools such as Figma and CryptPad allow synchronous or asynchronous collaboration. Past examples include:
- Co-designed posters and visuals
- Collaboratively created collages
- Real-time writing jams
While we've never hosted a writing Conflux on it's own, analogous practices point to the viability of these modes. For instance, forum-based roleplaying could be understood as an asynchronous writing Conflux, while online freestyling sessions could be considered co-teaching writing Confluxes.
Technology
Confluxes often rely on digital technologies to connect artists across physical distance. The specific tools used will differ based on the specific context of their use. Tooling is selected based on their accessibility, real-time affordances, and alignment with open-source values:
| Tool | Purpose | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gather | Spatial presence | Fun and low-stakes environment for co-presence |
| SonoBus | Low-latency audio | Ideal for tele-performance |
| BandLab | Beginner-friendly online DAW | Accessible, browser-based, sync capable |
| Soundation | Advanced online DAW | Professional-grade, with real-time collaboration |
| Muse Sessions | Musical tele-performance tool built for professional musicians | Built for Conflux-style collaboration |
| Tele-Midi | Audio routing stack | Complex, but highly responsive setup |
| Figma | Visual collaboration | Ideal for co-editing graphics |
| CryptPad | Sync writing | Privacy-respecting and real-time capable |
Legacy and Influence
While Confluxes originated within a single collective, the methodology has grown into a replicable model for distributed creativity. Like the Happenings of the 1960s or net.art of the early web, Confluxes are both practice and philosophy: a refusal to let distance diminish the power of co-creation.