Miller Theatre unveils its new installation
Caribbean L 38 ife, September 13-19 2019
Daniel and Mel Simon (Trinidad
and Tobago), along with
the introduction of two young
designers from St. Kitts and
Nevis – Mikaya Collins and
Shafeyah Guishard,” Lawrence
Clarke said.
thousands of concertgoers as
they arrive for performances,
Miller Theatre said in a statement
on Thursday.
Known for her photographic,
video and mixed media practice,
the theatre said Fawundu
incorporates elements of biography,
geography, migration
and cosmology “as a way of
symbolizing the individual and
collective experience of the
African Diaspora.”
“This piece is made up of
composited images of the
Mano River, which begins in
the Guinea Highlands, and
connects Sierra Leone to Liberia
before emptying into the
Atlantic Ocean—along with
traces of masked beings,’ and
scans of fabric handmade by
Fawundu’s aunt using water
from the Mano River,” the Miller
Theatre said.
It said Fawundu’s ancestral
home is in Sierra Leone along
the Mano River, where she has
spent time travelling, listening
to, and documenting stories
of family history that pre-date
European colonialism in the
region, and recalling memories
of rebellion and resistance
during British occupation.
“Her time in Sierra Leone,
particularly on the islands of
Mano and Talia, on the Mano
River, provided an opportunity
to connect with her family who
are still there,” the statement
said.
“While on the river with
her family, Fawundu heard stories
of Mami Wata, symbolized
through the river’s transformation
during the wet and dry
seasons, with its great agricultural
bounties, abundance of
fish and its connecting force
as a means of transport,” it
added.
The theatre said the idea
of connection is at the center
of Fawundu’s practice, “as it
relates to the larger theme of
physical and non-physical connections
between Africa and
its Diaspora.”
“These connections are
especially significant in that
they persist in spite of the terrorism
of European colonialism
and slavery meant to dislocate
and disorient people of
African descent,” Miller Theatre
said.
It said Fawundu incorporates
hair in her work to critique
“the dominion of European
standards of beauty and
honor it as a subversive material
for geographic communication,
in particular, the use
of cornrows as escape maps for
runaway slaves.”
The mask, which is another
recurring symbol in Fawundu’s
work, derives from her Mende
heritage, the theatre said, adding
that Fawundu incorporates
masking as “a device for entering
altered states of being and
negotiating alternative ways of
seeing.”
Miller Theatre said Fawundu’s
journey and research
reimagine the traditional narratives
by which homeland,
spirituality and history are
communicated “in an attempt
to align more closely with the
borderless, hybrid, inter-cultural
geography of the African
Diaspora.”
“The transformation of Miller’s
lobby has been a major
highlight of the last six seasons,
as we have annually commissioned
a visual artist to use
our lobby walls as their canvas,”
said Melissa Smey, Miller Theatre’s
executive director. “It has
been a real pleasure working
with Adama Delphine Fawundu,
an outstanding alumna of
Columbia’s School of the Arts,
on this year’s installation.
“She draws inspiration from
her ancestral home in Sierra
Leone along the Mano River,
which connects beautifully
with the University’s Year of
Water, an interdisciplinary
investigation of water in all of
its social, political, cultural,
economic, and environmental
inequities and complexities,”
she added. “I am eager for visitors
to explore her installation
throughout the year ahead.”
Miller Theatre said his year’s
site-specific exhibition is the
seventh lobby installation it
has commissioned.
It said Fawundu’s installation
succeeds Joiri Minaya’s
“Redecode II: La Dorada” from
her “Tropical Surfaces” series
that adorned the walls last season.
Previous murals were created
by Lina Puerta, Tomo
Mori, Scherezade Garcia, Maya
Hayuk and Vargas-Suarez Universal,
Miller Theatre said.
Located on Broadway at
116th Street, Miller Theatre’s
lobby is open to the public
Monday through Friday, from
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and
beginning two hours before
each scheduled performance.
Continued from Page 37
A model shows off an outfi t designed by Mel Simon for
Brooklyn Clothing Lab. Richimage
Continued from Page 37
Sankofa, Bird of Paradise, Touch
of Africa, so I looked, and there
was no black and red collection,”
said March, a Brooklynbased
designer whose signature
colors have made a statement
on the runway for the last 10
years.
“I had to reach within these
colors for this collection,” he
added. “I wanted to return to
who I am. I like classy, clean-cut
detailing, and elegance. I don’t
follow trends. I design where my
mind is. How I feel. And I love
the roses over the head.”
“This element is different,”
he said of the ring of roses that
matched the outfits and accentuated
the faces of the models.
March used his ornate skill
to embellish the collection. All
the outfits have different character,
yet captures the evenness
and design sensibility that the
designer reached for.
The collection, seen at the
Sept. 8 New York Fashion Week
event on the rooftop of Brooklyn
Commons, dazzled the runway.
Pieces included a red gown
design with a plunging neckline,
another with a black cape,
separates in black and red, an
embellished floor-length dress
with beading and feathers and
a black cloaked swimsuit. Every
piece followed the collection
theme, which included intricate
detailing for men’s shirts, shorts
and swim trunks.
March is pleased with the
spring line that came with hard
work and dedication.
“I have learned from my
grandmother who always said,
‘The harder the bottle, the
sweeter the victory,’” March
said.
This time around, the Jamaican
born couturier presented
the designs of three up-andcoming
designers whom he
mentored.
Sixteen-year-old Mikaya Collins
and 19-year old Shafeyah
Guishard are high school students
from St. Kitts & Nevis,
while Michael Lewis is a design
student at the University of Delaware.
Fashion lovers also had a
chance to view the House of
D’Marsh collection of bow ties,
lotions, and scented candles,
that can be purchased, along
with his ready-to-wear collection,
at www.dmarshcouture.
com, or by calling, 646-361-
5087.
Continued from Page 37
Brooklyn-born artist Adama Delphine Fawundu transformed the lobby of the Columbia
University Miller Theater with her new installation, “Tales from the Mano River.”
Miller Theater
Spring collection wows in Brooklyn
Fashion exchange
/www.dmarshcouture
/www.dmarshcouture