For Art Basel Miami Beach 2023, Roberts Projects is pleased to present a tightly curated selection of works that challenge the prevalence of linear narratives by highlighting new and emerging voices, such as Wangari Mathenge, Suchitra Mattai, Mia Middleton, and Justin Williams, and diverse works from established artists including Amoako Boafo, Jeffrey Gibson, Betye Saar, and Kehinde Wiley, among others. Connecting the works on view is a profound use of storytelling which thematically explores relationships between history, memory, performance and imagination.
A major highlight of our booth is a new mixed-media sculpture by Indo-Caribbean artist Suchitra Mattai entitled Re-Union, which reflects on the complex layers that constitute one’s identity. Made of braided and woven saris from both India and the United States, the work depicts “twin” girls who have found and made peace with one another, offering empathy by recognizing oneself in the other. The artist alludes to the longstanding practice of transforming discarded scraps into braided rugs, a culturally rich tradition that links American and diasporic communities while remaining rooted in the artist’s South Asian and Caribbean heritage.
In Re-Union, Mattai critically employs the practice of braiding to imbue the work with multiple references, primarily the bond formed between mother and daughter through braiding hair and the ability to "create something from nothing" through sheer human ingenuity and resilience which characterizes diasporic identity. Using color, texture, pattern and form, the work designates the domestic sphere as a meaningful site for reconciling the overlap of culturally significant practices between the West and the global South.
World-renowned for his large-scale beaded paintings and punching bags, monumental installations, and public works that blend literary and film references with pop culture and dance, Jeffrey Gibson will premiere a new mixed-media painting at our booth in Miami Beach, utilizing his singular visual language which combines American, Indigenous and Queer histories to reflect the hybridity of American culture. A member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and of Cherokee descent, Gibson will represent the United States at the 60th edition of the Venice Biennale in 2024 and is the first Indigenous artist to have a solo exhibition in the U.S. pavilion.
A semiotician in a profoundly visual sense, Mia Middleton will present a special, site-specific installation featuring an ambitious series of intimate paintings which capture the delicate balance between conscious and subconscious realms. Demonstrated through a sequence of poetic vignettes, Middleton’s uncanny ability to delve into the transience of existence invites viewers to contemplate the interplay between interiority and exteriority, corporeality and the world beyond. The artist’s skillful manipulation of composition, color and subject matter produces striking freeze-frames that compels viewers to cross the threshold into a profound psychological exploration.
For additional information regarding availability, please contact Mary Skarbek, Senior Director at 1.323.549.0223 and mary@robertsprojectsla.com
PRESS INQUIRIES
For press inquiries, please contact Hannah Gottlieb-Graham, ALMA Communications
hannah@almacommunications.co
