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"FRIED PLANTAIN AND DESMOND’S AT GRANNY’S HOUSE IS A GROUP OF MIXED MEDIA WORKS EXPLORING BRITISH CARIBBEAN CULTURE. ROOTED IN SYMBOLISM OF THE POST-WAR WINDRUSH GENERATION WHO MIGRATED TO THE UK FROM THE CARIBBEAN AND ITS DESCENDANTS, THE PORTRAITS CAPTURE THE EVERYDAY OF NOW AGAINST A BACKDROP OF THE ICONIC ‘WEST INDIAN’ LIVING ROOM.  

 

THE WORKS IN THIS SERIES OFFER AN INSIGHT INTO THE HOPES, PRIDE AND MOMENTS OF BLACK BRITISH EVERYDAY PEOPLE. IT EXPLORES NOSTALGIA AT ITS CORE AND ITS CONNECTION TO THE PRESENT AND FUTURE.  

 

I HOPE ALL THE VISITORS WILL BE INSPIRED TO RECONNECT WITH MOMENTS FROM THEIR PAST. CELEBRATING THEIR STORIES AND THOSE OF THEIR ANCESTORS. I HOPE THEY CAN DRAW FROM THE COMMON THREADS OF IDENTITY, HOPE, PRIDE AND HUMOUR THAT LINK US ALL DESPITE OUR DIFFERENCES. THIS IS ABOUT HUMANITY. 

 

EACH PIECE IS STEEPED IN THE EVOCATIVE REPRESENTATIONS OF THE WINDRUSH GENERATION. THE WEST INDIAN ‘FRONT ROOM’ BECAME A DEMONSTRATION OF RESILIENCE, EXPRESSION AND BLACK JOY IN THE FACE OF HARDSHIP, RACISM AND REJECTION IN POST-WAR BRITAIN. THE GAUDY PATTERNED WALLPAPER TYPICALLY USED IN THOSE HOMES BECOMES THE FOUNDATION OF EACH PIECE. IT REPRESENTS LAUGHTER, TASTY FOOD, HARDWORK, MUSIC AND COMMUNITY. THE RESULT IS A SERIES THAT CELEBRATES LAYERS, THROUGH THE USE OF COLLAGE, BRUSH STROKES AND EVEN TEXT. WITH SUBJECTS WHO ARE BOLD IN COLOUR AND BODY."

- YVADNEY DAVIS

VISIT THE VIRTUAL GALLERY

FEATURED ARTWORKS

Download the free Kunstmatrix app art.augmented for iOS or art.augmented for Android and demonstrate at the spot how the work of art would look like in reality.

Scan the QR code to view selected artworks in your space:

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ABOUT THE ARTIST

Yvadney Davis is an London-based artist championing her British Caribbean experience. Self-taught, her art practise has transformed from a hobby to an award-winning practise, which includes exhibitions, commissions and most importantly connecting the nostalgia and joy of the Windrush Generation with its descendants. She has been shortlisted for the JMP Painting Prize 2023, ING Discerning Eye Prize and Royal Academy Summer Exhibition both in 2022. Most recently her art has been exhibited at the Black Cultural Archives and 198 Contemporary Art Gallery.

"My art is a love letter to the black British experience from my heritage as the granddaughter of the Windrush Generation. I am not only holding onto the memories and dreams of those that came before me, but also celebrating the everyday of my community through portraiture.

Working from my South London studio, I create pieces that focus on surface. This includes building up layers of rhythmic paint strokes, memories and conversations captured in text and referencing the iconic mid-century 'front rooms' of the Windrush Generation, using vintage wallpaper either as the foundation of my artwork or as collage.

 

Representing the everyday with grandeur is integral to my work, so I ensure that the gaze and posture of each subject is both powerful and soulful. Listening to loud jazz music while I paint is an important part of this practise."

CONTACT THE ARTIST

YVADNEY DAVIS
WEBSITE: www.yvadney.art
IG: @yvadneydavisart
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