%C2%A9 2015 Ren%C3%A9e Stout
Metal, glass, wood, pigments, other materialsexpand_more
The Blythe Brenden Endowment for Art Acquisitionexpand_more 2016.2
Stout finds inspiration in African cultures to create art that encourages self-examination, self-empowerment, and self-healing in contemporary America. Throughout the African Diaspora, she finds inspiration to create works that encourage self-examination, self-empowerment, and self-healing.
In this work, Stout transformed a found piece of wood into a boat, a symbol for the slave trade. At the same time, the boat is a vehicle for African symbols and beliefs that were carried, along with peoples, to America. The cross, for instance, is an important Kongo sign that refers to the crossroad between the world of the living and that of the ancestors and spirits – hence the work’s title.
© 2015 Renée Stout