Kinfolk

 Danielle Scott: Kinfolk

    Upon entering Danielle Scott’s Kinship exhibition I immediately knew that this work belonged in the space because of how the noticeable age of the room enhances the rich history being told on its walls. She described her operation of making as a research-oriented process but she was first called to the particular subject as an exploration of her own cultural identity. After 20 years of being a painter, she put down her brushes and over the course of a year she traveled across the country and overseas to collect found objects such as historical texts, fabrics, metal, photographs and so much more to create this body of work. She explained how she would sit at antique shops for hours just looking through boxes of old photographs and found that pictures of black people of that time were extremely scarce because they weren't photographed often. I found the story of her trip to a plantation in North Carolina very moving. For her 40th birthday, she decided that she needed this experience to begin this new and meaningful chapter in her life. While there with her family she picked the cotton that she used in a few of her pieces and handed it out to people at the gallery. I thought it was really intriguing and different to have her audience hold a piece of the story she was telling, especially to demonstrate a small part of just how difficult of a task picking cotton by hand was. After harvesting the cotton she recounted how she got permission to enter an old church on the grounds and after trying and trying all entrances she gave up and began to walk away until she heard the front doors swing open. She paused for a moment before entering to thank the spirit of the building for allowing her to enter to genuinely feel this place and absorb the powerful energy of its past life.

    This type of spiritual connection to history is perfectly translated in the way she makes and presents her work. She explained how she has had conversations with every single piece in the collection, some more than others, to guide and even contradicted her on how best to tell their story. The three girls featured in the piece Celestine argued with her about how they should be dressed but received an attitude specifically from the center girl about having the halo above her. This halo has three rings representing the energy of each girl. They sit in a line dressed in brightly colored fabrics with papers stacked in layers behind them. What looks like weathered wallpaper against the torn pages of the old books containing the names, ages, and occupations of registered free slaves. I found it particularly interesting when she mentioned the piece that didn't even make it to the show. A large work that she had been fighting with for a long time, something about it told her that this piece didn’t want to be made or be exhibited but she continued the fight to make it anyway. After months of hard work, she reached the last step of the process, after applying the resin she started to torch the bubbles and the entire piece burst into flames. I thought it was a kind of beautifully powerful symbolic message which could speak to how the history of some images or stories should respectfully rest in peace. Another work of hers I found compelling was King Constance where a group of three younger children are shown in a room constructed from rich colored papers and fabrics with walls lined with the text of their history. The youngest-looking child sits in the corner next to the doorway dressed in golden flowing fabrics which seems to be a swatch of a detailed embroidery patch. The other two children stand next to each other in bold patterned fabrics, the oldest child is adorned with a golden cape and dramatic crown and the smaller one has a glowing halo. Behind the two standing children, there are two figures cut out of the paper with gold auras highlighting their shape. This calls attention to the people lost and separated from their loved ones and may never be reunited.

Celestine, 2022

mixed media and resin

King Contance, 2022

mixed media and resin

This is my selfie inspired by Danielle Scott's exhibition. I chose to play around with a baby picture of mine while it focuses on the theme of history and cultural identity in a way that is personal to me. I honestly don't know if I have or could define my cultural identity. My ancestors on either side of my family immigrated to the U.S. from Italy and wanted to fit right in with the "All American" culture and attempted to erase their own. My grandparents only knew a few words of Italian and the only real traditions we observe are over the holidays. I do wish I had more of a connection to my bloodline and culture but unfortunately I do not. Therefore it seems I can only look within to find my identity and this picture is part of how it started. My childhood wasn't the best but I'm not about to air out my dirty laundry. But living with ptsd and coming to terms with it all in order to heal is a difficult process, so looking at this picture of myself smiling big and sipping a juice box brings up mixed emotions. I wanted to give her more color and light which is why I chose such bold and playful patterns with two halos for who she is and will become. Behind her in the white foam of the waves are excerpts from the children's story Peter Pan, a child who never wants to grow up. In the darker part of the water part of a photo of mosaic tiles I saw on a trip to Italy, to give a nod to that part of me. And the rocks are taken from another picture I took from a hiking trip years ago, rocky path symbolism things and such and such.

"Apple Juice"