Channeling:
On Fragmentation and Expansion

SIA SERAFINA

SEPTEMBER 26 - OCTOBER 17
press release

Channeling, a solo exhibition of recent works by Brooklyn-based visual artist and dancer Sia Serafina, features four glazed charcoal collages. The artist brings attention to the apparent brokenness that exists within the legacies of three successful artists across three different artistic disciplines. This current series features the faces of three of the artist’s longtime inspirations… Billie Holiday, Ana Mendieta, and Maya Deren. What started as a dedication series, the project came to life when Sia started analyzing the impact of these artists on her own existence and creative practice.

Through her work, she began questioning the familiar archetype that a lot of art that is deemed valuable comes from artists who have experienced considerable darkness and trauma in their lives. While all of these subjects’ experiences are unique and ultimately indescribable, she asserts that not only are these artists valuable in their brokenness and deconstruction but also in their expansion and reconstruction. The work became personal because through both research and introspection, she was able to define qualities about these seemingly broken figures that she hopes to channel in the way that she moves through the world. The alternation between sharp and curved forms in these collages allude to the protectiveness and resiliency that results from both physical and spiritual destruction, and the high contrast helps amplify the effect of these layered forms on canvas. The way these drawings are reconstructed aims to provide collective hope that despite adversity, we can learn to channel the shamelessness, intention, and vivacity of these artists.