With an exhibition titled ‘Sovereignty’, the American artist Simone Leigh (born 1967) is representing the United States of America at the 59th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.
Official description: “Characterised by an interest in performativity and affect, Simone Leigh’s expansive body of work in sculpture, video, and performance parses the construction of Black femme subjectivity. Leigh’s large-scale sculptural works join forms derived from vernacular architecture and the female body, rendering them via materials and processes associated with the artistic traditions of Africa and the African diaspora, redefining notions of space, time, and existence. Sovereignty commingles disparate histories and narratives, including those related to ritual performances of the Baga peoples in Guinea, early Black American material culture from the Edgefield District in South Carolina, and the landmark 1931 Paris Colonial Exposition. With a series of new bronzes and ceramics, Leigh intervenes imaginatively to fill gaps in the historical record by proposing new hybridities.”

Simone Leigh: Sovereignty / Pavilion of the USA at Venice Art Biennale 2022. Pre-opening, Venice, Italy, April 21, 2022.

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