Interview
Stacey Gillian Abe gives Unit her thoughts on her inclusion in the group exhibition In Praise of Black Errantry (17 April – 29 June 2024), the legacy of the new all-female FAMM Museum in France and divulges the secrets behind her signature use of indigo in her work.
Unit: Stacey, what does it mean to be included in In Praise of Black Errantry and to exhibit in Venice during the Biennale?
Stacey Gillian Abe: Exhibiting with internationally recognised artists from the African continent and its diaspora at the Venice Biennale has had a profoundly positive impact on my work and artistic career.
U: Your work in the exhibition, The Farmer’s Daughter II (2024), displays a spirit figure with both human and animal features. What folklore traditions does this work refer to? And how do you read this work in the “errant” context of the exhibition?
SGA: The subjects of my work are hybridised figures that continue to realise autobiographical, spiritual and surreal elements. As their creator, my own view of them is constrained by what I myself contribute to the canvas, but when out of my sight these characters transcend my conception of them. The figures are free to change into anything they want to be; time and our structural constraints do not apply to them. Instead, memories of past experiences, when recalled, actively influence and transform them and give them the appearance of living, breathing Black bodies with the capacity to actively emerge and transform. In a way this links to the exhibition’s theme.
Unit: Your grandmother had a farm – what memories do you have of it and what influence do they still hold over your life and work? How much of your work is autobiographical?
SGA: My artwork is usually autobiographical and involves shared memories. For example, my mother’s memories of my grandmother shaped her own experiences which in turn shaped the way I was raised by her. These shared memories and the lasting effects they have on my own life subconsciously shape the way I view the world. My artwork recalls my grandmother’s farm and her domesticated animals. In The Farmer’s Daughter II, for instance, the figure is a cross between herself and a sheep.
U: How did you first arrive at your signature use of indigo for your characters? And how have you developed the relationship between this particular colour and your depictions of the female body?
SGA: In 2017, during my residency at Salem Art Works in upstate New York, I incorporated indigo into my art for the first time. While researching my collection Sylvia’s Letters To My Future Self I came across writings by renowned curator and author Catherine E. McKinley. It was through her work that I learned about the history of indigo and its significance to Black history.
In Catherine’s book, Indigo: In Search of the Colour That Seduced the World, which happens to be my favourite, one detail stuck in my memory which was that one length of indigo cloth was valued as equivalent to one human body in the slave ledgers used throughout the transatlantic slave trade, indicating that indigo was a frequent form of currency. That mentally stayed with me, so I utilised the information to inform both my performance installations and my material and colour studies. Examining the colour indigo and its historical and cultural significance to the Black body from a Black, female perspective added a new layer to my autobiographical practice as a whole.
U: The FAMM (Femmes Artistes du Musée de Mougins) will open soon in the South of France, displaying your work in its all-female collection. What does it mean to you to be included amongst such art historical greats, and what do you hope for the legacy of such an institution?
SGA: Being a part of the collection makes me happy. It merely serves to highlight the continued significance of my work and its ideals. I think FAMM is timely in dedicating and devoting the institution space to solely artworks created by women. There are still fewer women in institutional spaces like this and this is a step in the right direction to change these dynamics. In my opinion, FAMM is ahead of its time in allocating the institution’s space to exclusively women-created art. While there are still not as many women in formal settings like these, this is a positive start toward altering the balance of power.
U: What are you working on at the moment, and have you found any new themes you’re enjoying exploring?
SGA: I am spending most of my time in the studio cooking up ideas for my second solo show with Unit. It is still too early to zero into the details!
U: We’ll stay tuned for more! Thank you Stacey.
