Tschabalala Self

August 3 - September 7, 2020

Tschabalala Self’s paintings, sculptures and animation have been shown internationally, including ICA Boston, the Rubell Museum, and Frieze London 2019.  She has been covered in numerous publications like Art Forum, Vogue and Vanity Fair.  In 2012 she received a B.A. from Bard College which she followed up with a  M.F.A. from the Yale School of Art in 2015.  Tschabalala was born and raised in Harlem, NYC and currently creates in New Haven, CT.

At Window On Hudson, a former corner deli, Tschabalala’s animation “Wild Blue Cherry” runs continuously in both windows.  This piece is part of 2017’s project: Bodega Run.  Bodega Run examines the neighborhood convenience store as both a gathering place for community and a microcosm of how current economic and political issues are impacting people’s lives.  Bodegas are commonplace in Harlem, where Self was born and the Bodega Run series traces some of the changes of ownership and demographics associated with these small stores and how they reflect the shifting identities of urban neighborhoods.

This animation is one part of a larger installation that works across a range of mediums, including painting, print-making, sculpture, collage, and sewing.  Tschabalala often depicts ample, powerful, and self-contained figures to explore cultural attitudes toward race and gender. She simultaneously embraces and rejects stereotypes and fantasies that revolve around black women’s bodies in particular, her lively and spirited portrayals propose new forms of representation that are empowered and celebratory.