Description

As a sculptural fiber artist, my work exists figuratively, in full or often fragmented forms that speak to geographical histories, ancestry, ritual practices and community. Through installation, performance, and collaboration, these needle felted sculptures morph into a form of storytelling that expands the above themes, and reinterprets new ways to settle in our realities. I communicate stories that mirror the memories, complexities, and tenderness of Black people and our communities, by taking our collective histories and developing a larger story, to then offer a single moment within that narrative through my work. Whether it’s the hairstyles of my figures, the detailed and intentional gestures, language used in the title, or the iconography of our cultures, there are always special details, a visual coded language, that reminds my audience that this work is for and about them. Turning Seeds: Using a 2lb bag of Carolina Gold Rice, I carefully embellished the surface of the wool mask, one grain at a time using a pair of tweezers. The use of rice in this piece was significant as it symbolizes women’s labor in Savannah, GA during enslavement, and the ancestral ties of rice cultivation from West Africa to the American South. I was heavily inspired by the Egungun Masks and Masquerades. I performed in this mask for a site-specific piece commissioned by the SCAD Museum of Art.