"I Said What I Said" - Exhibition (Novado Gallery)

Title of Exhibition: I Said What I Said

Curator: Jerome China

Location: Novado Gallery

Artist Statement

My creative process is based on layering, recycling, reimagining, and mixing media. Abstract collaging is at the heart of the process. At times I digitize my 2D and/or 3D work, then reimagine the work as a new mixed media collage, the possibilities are endless. I am a storyteller. Texture is so important for me in telling narratives. I use all mediums in my art practice to bring life to each piece. I play with ordinary materials used by my seamstress grandmother and other immigrant women -- fabric, lace, clothespins, safety pins, cowrie shells, beads, buttons, and string. Other ephemeral materials are also sourced in antique stores, newspapers, historical documents, old photos, hymnals, to name a few.

My work comes from a deeply spiritual place that enables me to travel through cosmic energy, and time. I listen to the voice of God sometimes in silence, other times listening to music, to translate messages from ancestors, and unborn spirits. My art practice is informed, in part, by nature, in particular water, wind, and trees, at times visible in my colors, textures, translucency and even sound. I am an advocate for women, using history, politics, culture, and imagination to tell their stories. My art is a commentary on injustice and the magical thick lives of marginalized people. I create as a way of unpacking rage, pain, contradictions, beauty, agency, and joy, while trying to understand the complex history and narrative of blackness in the United States and black the diaspora. I hope viewers ask questions and thinks more critically about the world around them.

Description of Work

Nappy Patriot Map, 38” x 38”x 2.5” Mixed Media Collage (fabric, oil, pins, cowrie shells) on wood board reimagines the America patriot narrative by mapping some of African American’s noted touchpoints from our 1619 arrival, to lynching, Selma march, MLK Jr. Letter from the Birmingham Jail, the Little Rock Nine, Greensboro Sit-ins, BLACK LIVES MATTER protests, and the Jan 6th Insurrection. Gold Cowrie Shells indicates the rich tradition of resistance and standing our ground.

Blues Brother-Man, 38" x 50” x 2.5", Mixed Media Collage on Wood celebrates the original music of the Blues and Gospel. Black life is centered in music, blues deep soul music. This piece also gives a nod to the Freedom Riders and young black people of the 1960s. They used music as a shield, a call to action and a lift to move forward, pressing towards the freedom prize.

In the Beginning I & II, 14" x 50” x 2.5", Oil, Fabric, Pen on Canvas are origin totems that roots black people’s story in Africa. The tapestry pays homage to ancestors, cosmic energy, and powerful cultural traditional practices.