Rebecca Marimutu
Portraits Adhered
Jul 6 - Aug 13, 2023
At the start of 2021, I embarked on a creative journey with my series, Portraits, Adhered. This series embraces a departure from traditional photographic methods by combining digital shooting techniques with a unique approach to mounting self-portraits on wooden boards using unconventional materials such as wheat paste, PVA glue, clear acrylic gesso, and staples.
I aim to challenge the prevailing material hierarchies within the contemporary image and media consumption through these experimental techniques. By breaking away from the confines of traditional framing and display methods, I seek to disrupt the viewer's expectations and provoke contemplation on the nature of photography as a medium.
This series has taken on a deeper significance during the period of self-isolation that marked much of our recent history. Through creating these works, I engage in a profound act of self-examination, using my image as a landscape for abstraction and deconstruction. Each self-portrait becomes a metaphorical mirror, reflecting my physical appearance and my inner thoughts, emotions, and self-identity complexities.
Working in this style has allowed me to explore the sculptural potentials inherent in photography. I invite tactile engagement with the artwork by mounting the images directly onto wooden boards. The wood's materiality, the paste's texture, and the staples' presence create a multi-dimensional experience that transcends the flatness typically associated with photographs. This fusion of photography and sculpture invites viewers to question the boundaries between two-dimensional and three-dimensional art forms.
In Portraits, Adhered, I strive to challenge conventional notions of photography, disrupt material hierarchies, and explore the depths of self-examination. Through this creative exploration, I uncover new possibilities for expression, blurring the lines between mediums and expanding the horizons of photography and sculpture.
By examining the image of myself as a landscape for abstraction and deconstruction, I invite viewers to embark on a journey of introspection and contemplation. Through these unconventional techniques and materials, I aim to provoke dialogue and challenge preconceived notions about art while offering a perspective on the intersection of photography and sculpture.
Through Portraits, Adhered, I strive to push the boundaries of artistic expression, encouraging viewers to engage with photography in a new and thought-provoking way. By disrupting material hierarchies and embracing the sculptural potentials of the medium, I aim to inspire a reimagining of the possibilities within the realm of contemporary image-making.
Rebecca Marimutu (American, b. 1994, she/her/hers) is a multidisciplinary artist whose work explores themes of identity, memory, and cultural hybridity. Born in a diverse and multicultural environment, Marimutu draws inspiration from her experiences growing up in different countries and navigating the complexities of multiple cultural identities.
Her work has been shown at Spring/Break Art Fair in New York, Waller Gallery, Catalyst Contemporary, Black Artists Research Space, and Eubie Blake Cultural Center in Baltimore, MD. Currently, she is a professor at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and Towson University and the founder of Anchovy Press, an independent publishing company based in Baltimore dedicated to storytelling that centers BIPOC experiences. Through her practice, Marimutu aims to inspire a reimagining of art forms, encourage inclusive representation, and provoke meaningful conversations about the complexities of identity in a globalized world.