Artist Statement.

In February 2022, I was contacted by a woman who worked at my orphanage that said my birth dad wants to meet me. I was born in Haiti in 1999, and had no contact with my family for 23 years after being adopted. A week after being contacted, I was finally able to meet my birth father and siblings on a video call. I learned that I have an entire family living all over the world! My immediate family lives in Haiti, some of my cousins live in New York, my other cousin lives in Brazil, and my aunt and uncle travel between the US and Haiti frequently. I had a family reunion with my cousins in April of 2023 that was life changing. 

My adoptive mom and I collect African masks from our travels over the years, so I wanted to contribute to our home by making my own masks based on my ancestry. In 2021, I took a DNA test that revealed I’m from several African countries, outside of being Haitian! I’m part Nigerian, Cameroonian, and Malian. The first collection of masks were small and personal, but after being reunited with my family, I was able to make more and dedicate the masks to them. Additionally, in 2021 I made a house, To Mom and Dad, Love Naomie that represented my idea of my childhood home. Each time I got more information about myself and family, I expanded on this series. In the summer of 2021, I created a life size clay sculpture of myself dedicated to my birth mom, Mwen, which was inspired by the Cameroonian painter, Angu Walters. The sculpture has scarification bumps to represent my birth mom’s age when she passed away (29), and mine when I created the piece (21). 

My father and brother both work in masonry, do tile working for homes, and brick laying. In 2022, I made four cement tiles for my dad, birth mom, me and my brother, Travay Fanmi. I wanted to combine all our practices for the sculpture. Additionally, I set up two cement bags next to the tiles, and projected a video of my brother pouring cement at his job.  

One of my final pieces from my undergraduate career was Claire Epi Naomie. This sculpture was one of the hardest ones to make because of how personal it was. I wanted to make something to thank my birth mother, and I felt like she was watching over me as I worked. I made the sculpture with the intention of it looking old, since found work in museums are not always in one piece. As I navigate life as a graduate and have more opportunities to learn about myself and my family, I look forward to being inspired to create more work for my birth family.