鈥淭he concept of diaspora allows for artwork to be framed through ideas of movement and transformation, exceeding the limitations of geographic boundaries鈥 states Jeffrey De Blois, curator of ICA/Boston鈥檚聽new show. Forecast Form: Art in the Caribbean Diaspora, 1990s鈥揟oday. The exhibition brings together the works of 28 international names who have a connection to the Caribbean. These include conceptual and performance artists Lorraine O鈥橤rady (b. 1934), Ana Mendieta (b. 1948) and Mar铆a Magdalena Campos-Pons (b. 1959). Their perspectives highlight the global network of communities and histories that have shaped the identities of people linked to the region.聽It’s a show that takes the 1990s, when debates around identity and difference featured front and centre, as a cultural backdrop. This transformative decade had a major effect on the cultural sector, laying the grounds for the Pan-Carribean art exhibition model.
The display features the project of Suchitra Mattai (b. 1973), a Guyanese American multi-disciplinary artist of South Asian descent. Her textile piece, titled聽An Ocean Cradle聽(2022), is made from ghungroo bells and vintage saris collected from friends and family. The materials are woven together to create a large-scale yet painstakingly intricate embroidered wall hanging. It鈥檚 difficult to pinpoint the colours in front of you, as they take over the white gallery wall. Initially, shades of blues and pinks stick out, but the longer you look, the more hues, shapes and textures come into focus. The effect is intentionally disorientating as the artist gives the 鈥渆xperience of being an immigrant鈥 a physical form. Mattai鈥檚 ancestors were indentured servants who emigrated from India among others from 1830-1900. The resulting piece is an expression of her family history, one intertwined with other stories imbued into each bit of fabric.
Elsewhere Danish-Trinidadian Jeannette Ehlers鈥 (b. 1973) video work,聽Black Bullets聽(2012), shows the sky mirrored on a reflective surface. It divides the screen horizontally. Along this invisible line, a procession of Black people walk from left to right. They appear to sink into the horizon as they exit the screen. It serves as Ehlers鈥 tribute to the Haitian Revolution in 1791, which paved the way for the country鈥檚 independence from French rule in 1804. By bringing together voices from across the Caribbean diaspora,聽Forecast Form聽shines a piercing light on the threads between colonialism and migration.
Forecast Form: Art in the Caribbean Diaspora, 1990s鈥揟oday | Until 25 February 2024
Words: Diana Bestwish Tetteh
Image Credits:
Christopher Cozier (b. 1959, Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago; lives in Port of Spain),听Gas Men聽(still), 2014. Two-channel video; display dimensions variable. Courtesy of the artist.
Teresita Fern谩ndez, Manigua(Mirror),听2023. Solid charcoal, black sand, and mixed media on aluminum panel.
Jeannette Ehlers,聽Black Bullets聽(still), 2012. Video (black-and-white, sound; 4:33 minutes). Sound: Trevor Mathison; Technical Assistance: Markus von Platen; Camera: Jette Ellgaard & Jeannette Ehlers. Private collection. Courtesy the artist. 漏聽Jeannette聽Ehlers
