Preisträgerin Sonderpreis zum Cynetartfestival des Netzwerks Medienkunst: Stacy Gillian Abe

Eröffnung: Mi 10.10.2018 / 20 Uhr

Stacey Gillian Abe’s concepts highlight the strengths and fragility of the female mind as seen as autobiographical and drawn from past experiences, they attempt to critique stereotypical depictions of her as a black woman. These materialize into created imagined spaces that instigate a surreal mystical feel to the work at their best borne of two realms contrasting and complementing each other. The work probes unsettling narratives on the subject of identity, gender, spirituality and cultural mysticism, the past and present like; Seat of Honor (2017), Pareidolia (2017), Enya-Sa (2016), Strange fruit Konyagi (2015).

Each space that Gillian works on has its own contexts and gets its own interpretations; it also springs views on self-resilience and what can be overcome. She has incorporated a metaphorical and experimental approach to her work through her interest in exploring new techniques with parallel mediums like glass and ceramics, fibers, textures and light photography. They draw attention to the hand-made through the method of tying together and binding, stitching, clustering and pairing which are assembled and layered to construct a metaphorical concept.

Stacy Gillian b. 1991, lives and works in Uganda

Stacey Gillian Abe graduated with a BA Hons in Art and Industrial Design from Kyambogo University Kampala, Uganda 2014. Her installations and performances are integrations between man and the spiritual realm and more believing these spheres influence and form our individual identities. Her concepts materialize into created imagined spaces that probe thought on identity, spirituality and cultural mysticism like; Seat of Honor (2017), Pareidolia (2017), EnyaSa (2016), Strange fruit Konyagi (2015), with the installations taking centre stage as they star in these new worlds. Besides participating in group exhibitions like Women without Borders, Institut Francais Kinshasha (2014), Kampala Contemporary, Circle Art Agency Kenya (2016), Eroticism and Intimacy Faces, Places and Paths, the Underground Art Space (2016), Being Her(e) –Angola Luanda (2017) and The 2nd Kampala Art Biennale-KAB (2016). Workshops like; (Re)-Thinking Feminism and Black womanhood Iwalewahaus-Germany, Goethe Institute (2016), Decolonizing the Museum (2017) Abe also completed a residency at 32° East | Ugandan Arts Trust (2014); Nafasi Art Space Dar es Salaam (2015); Culture Vultures Morocco (2016), East African Soul TrainEAST (2017) and holds a certificate in Cultural Leadership-Arterial Network, Goethe Institute (2015).

She is a receiver of the new talent award (2nd place) – the boda boda project KLAART 014 and a Prince Claus fund award (2016). She was nominated for an artist in residency fund program for African artists through Africa Centre 2016/2017 and also listed among the young provocative African artists to watch in the continent- featured in ‘This is Africa’ and ‘Africa.com’ (2016).