[Many thanks to Peter Jordens for bringing this item to our attention.] Myrlande Fixed’s “Drapo” opened on January 11 and can stay on view till March 11, 2023.
New York…Starting January 11, 2023, Fort Gansevoort will current Drapo, its first solo exhibition with Haitian artist Myrlande Fixed, who has attracted worldwide consideration for dazzling hand-beaded and sequin-embroidered textile works wherein heritage methods are used to mingle up to date and conventional themes. The evolution of Fixed’s private aesthetic and mastery of her medium will likely be evident in monumental new items juxtaposed with examples from earlier within the artist’s profession.
Fixed’s work was lately showcased within the Venice Biennale exhibition The Milk of Desires, curated by Cecilia Alemani (April 23— November 27, 2022). The artist’s upcoming survey exhibition, Myrlande Fixed: The Work of Radiance, will open on the Fowler Museum in Los Angeles on March 26, 2023 – the primary U.S. museum exhibition dedicated to a feminine Haitian artist.
Primarily based in Port-Au-Prince, Myrlande Fixed is understood for stylish figurative compositions composed with beads and sequins on material. Whereas drawing upon the vernacular of conventional Vodou flags (generally known as drapo Vodou), which frequently adorn temples and are utilized in ceremonial practices, her oeuvre is characterised by a distinctively sensual, painterly high quality. Intricate particulars and luxurious colours coalesce in elaborate narrative scenes. Lots of Fixed’s flags depict lwa spirits and illustrate myths central to the Vodou faith. Increasing right into a secular
context, Fixed’s artwork additionally incorporates imagery taken from Haitian historical past and civic life. Though industrial flag making is a craft historically dominated by males, Fixed is the primary feminine Haitian textile artist to realize worldwide approval for her innovation within the longstanding drapo Vodou apply. In depicting her distinctive variations of the Haitian faith’s myths, she has harnessed a recent and up to date non secular power that elevates her work above the realm of folks artwork and craft.
In Lasirène (c. 1990), the titular determine—an necessary lwa in Haitian Vodou—is depicted within the type of a mermaid. As Haiti is an island nation, water performs an especially necessary position in its civic life and options prominently in its spiritual practices. Much like the sirens of Greek mythology, Lasirèn (Lasirène) is characterised as having essentially the most lovely voice of all of the lwa. Right here, Fixed surrounds the mermaid’s physique along with her related iconographic imagery: the mirror above her tail is believed to operate as a portal between the bodily and mystical realms. The flowers above the siren’s head, the glass of champagne, and the bowl of sweets moreover characterize a few of her favourite choices. As vivid now as when it was made greater than three a long time in the past, this work demonstrates the flat fields of shade and simplified kinds that characterize Fixed’s earlier compositions. Right here, the spatial division between the monochromatic grey sky and the sphere of graphic squiggles representing water is sharply outlined. The affect of this and different early works resonate with visible readability and directness.
In dramatic distinction, Fixed’s monumental new work Apres Gran Met La Fey Nan Bwa Se Tretmant Yo Viy, 2022 depicts a energetic scene that includes a big grouping of the lwa from the pantheon of Haitian Vodou. On the heart of this dense composition, measuring at almost ten ft in size, Fixed depicts Danbala, one other necessary lwa in Haitian Vodou, historically represented within the picture of a snake. Danbala is named the creator of the cosmos who formed the hills and valleys on earth together with his slithering motion. As a serpent, he strikes between land and water, producing life. Within the background of her composition, Fixed illustrates this origin story with a panorama of lush, rolling hills. Even whereas together with quite a few figures, Fixed articulates the facial options, expressive gestures, and patterned clothes of every kind with meticulous element. In one other departure from the work made earlier in her profession, Fixed right here performs with depth of subject, depicting dwellings nestled in a pastoral panorama at a particularly small scale with a purpose to set up the phantasm of receding house. As seen within the verdant hills and objects surrounding the central composition, the artist additionally creates shading and quantity by combining totally different chromatic variations of the identical shade of beads or sequins.
The borders of Fixed’s artworks are sometimes simply as necessary because the central compositions. Across the perimeter of Apres Gran Met La Fey Nan Bwa Se Tretmant Yo Viy, baskets containing vegetables and fruit symbolize the bounty of the harvest. The motif of a wood mortar and pestle can also be repeated. As a vital instrument utilized in Haitian kitchens, the pilon is synonymous with each day meals preparation in a secular context whereas additionally signifying ceremonial choices.
Along with her deft craftsmanship and visible sophistication, Fixed melds the secular and the non secular as she seamlessly integrates conventional artwork practices with a daring up to date aesthetic. The tactility and luminescence of her works activate their environment with luxurious, provocative presence.
For extra photographs and press launch, see https://www.fortgansevoort.com/exhibitions/myrlande-constant#tab:slideshow and https://www.fortgansevoort.com/exhibitions/myrlande-constant/press-release
For extra info please contact: Andrea Schwan, Andrea Schwan Inc., data@andreaschwan.com, +1 917 371.5023
[Shown above: St. Patrick (Damballa Wedo), 2022.]