“Written in the Body” Solo Show to Debut at Frame & Art Co.
I am proud to share that my first solo exhibition in Barbados, "Written in the Body," opens at Frame & Art Co. on October 7, 2016. This show marks a significant moment in my creative journey, not just because of its location, but because of the work it brings together.
The exhibition features a body of collage work created over the past year that continues my exploration into female subjectivity, abstraction, and emotional resonance. Using mixed media techniques that include acrylic, ink, and mylar, the works delve into what I describe as the emotional residue we carry and release through our physical form. "Written in the Body" is a title that nods to Jeanette Winterson's novel Written on the Body, and like the novel, my series is concerned with interiority, longing, and the body as a site of layered experience.
At the center of the show are several large and small-scale collages that embrace the language of Black feminist portraiture. These are not traditional portraits in the photographic or realistic sense. Instead, each piece seeks to articulate an internal landscape through torn, cut, and layered textures. Figures emerge, recede, and reassemble. In many of the works, bodies are fragmented or obscured, suggesting that identity is never fixed, but rather accumulated through experience.
The “Three Graces”, a trio of 9 x 12 inch collages on painted canvas, are among several supporting works in the exhibition. These pieces reinterpret the classical motif of muse figures through a contemporary, Black feminist lens. Here, the figures are not simply inspirational ideals; they are assertive in posture, composed in form, and present without explanation. Composed using layers of painted mylar and paper, the collages explore how softness and strength can coexist across multiple frames.
Two of the most prominent works in the exhibition are “Seraphina” and “Kimba”. These collages hold the center of the show in both placement and tone. They are composed using painted paper, mylar, and acrylic, and reflect a deepened inquiry into how abstraction can still suggest presence. Each piece features a female figure built through layered textures that evoke both vulnerability and unapologetic force. There is a restraint in their composition that allows space to feel just as important as form. Their titles reference women who may or may not exist, but who feel vital and fully realized within the bounds of each piece. These collages serve as grounding points for the exhibition and carry much of its emotional weight.
Also featured prominently are collages from my "My Girls" series, many of which were composed in sketchbooks over the last year. These works are more intimate in scale—each about 9.5" x 10"—and use fragments from previous paintings to create fictional portraits of women of color. While these are not representations of specific individuals, they are rooted in admiration and familiarity. Each figure feels known, or at least knowable, through their fragmented but intentional construction.
Both the larger and smaller works speak to the same core idea: that the body is a place of transformation. What we hold emotionally finds a way to surface, whether through gesture, posture, or absence. In this exhibition, I am interested in how we see those traces, how we witness the unsaid through the seen.
What I appreciate most about this exhibition space is its intimacy. Frame & Art Co. provides the kind of environment where viewers can take their time with the work. The lighting and layout allow for close observation, which suits the layered nature of the collages. Nothing here demands instant recognition. Instead, the work invites slow looking, encouraging viewers to piece together each composition on their own terms.
This show is also a culmination of my growing relationship with the artistic community in Barbados. Having returned to live and work on the island after years in New York, this exhibition is a way of grounding my practice here while also reaching outward. It means a great deal to debut this body of work in a space that has allowed me to reconnect with my roots while remaining engaged in the larger conversation about identity, gender, and representation.
"Written in the Body" will remain on view at Frame & Art Co. through the end of the month. All works are available for sale through the gallery. I look forward to seeing how the pieces resonate with audiences here, and to building on this foundation in future exhibitions.
