Vicki Pierre Reimagines Fairy Tales In New Exhibit
Miami-based artist, Vicki Pierre, is showcasing her latest exhibition “Be My Herald of What’s to Come” at the Boca Raton Museum of Art, on view now through September 5.
A multimedia artist with a Haitian heritage, Pierre grew up in Brooklyn and studied amongst Manhattan’s art scene. With a rich background pulling from all walks of life, Pierre’s ancestry crystallized into her artistry where memory, identity, and fantasy are quintessential.
There is always a sense of melancholy and longing in my work, it comes from the otherworldly state I put myself in when I am creating.
Pierre’s process is informed by a deeper sensibility towards storytelling. Her installations rely on arts and crafts to negotiate larger themes surrounding racial injustice and history. In “Be My Herald of What’s to Come,” Pierre makes use of distorted fairy tales to tell a contemporary story of colonialism, brutality, and the modern princess.
By subverting objects into subjects, Pierre invites viewers into the lurking realities behind a fairy tale’s facade. Bracelets and jewelry become symbols for the slave trade. European interior design and textiles for France’s colonial rule over Haiti. And deconstructed Avon perfume bottles for the absurdity of feminine expectations.
“Who gets to be a princess?” Is the question posed by Pierre’s Avon bottles (Courtesy of News Travels Fast)
The push and pull of fantasy and reality, or beautiful and grotesque, is a creative focus that pillars Pierre’s work. She continuously crafts eclectic installations that position contemporary society in Neverland-like settings. The latter testified through her piece “Black Flowers Blossom (Hanging Tree),” where victims of racial injustice are memorialized through a gothic chandelier suspended in mid-air.
“Black Flowers Blossom (Hanging Tree)” photo by Zachary Balber (Courtesy of News Travels Fast)
Pierre’s art offers viewers glimpses of surrealism that carry realistic and meaningful connotations. Her work marries politics, identity, and history with design, heritage, and deities. “Be My Herald of What’s to Come” is another addition to her long line of exhibitions, and is a must-see for all art lovers in the area.
For more information visit the Boca Raton Museum of Art’s webpage.