Giovanna Swaby participates in ‘Antillean, An Ecology’.
The extensive group exhibition features the works of 47 Bahamian contemporary artists addressing issues around Caribbean identity.
Until May 10 in National Gallery of the Bahames.
About:
Last year I migrated from The Bahamas to British Columbia, Canada. I experienced the initial culture shock and the subsequent difficulty assimilating into a society where I now represented only a marginal demographic. ‘The Other’ seeks to explore my personal experience of being culturally displaced and navigating the adjustment to a foreign set of societal norms. Of all factors, I feel that outward appearance most contributes to my inherent sense of singularity. My hair, my skin, and my facial features are the contributing factors of my classification as a visible minority. I chose to create self-portraits to focus on my physical appearance, as it now dually functions as the means by which I identify, with myself and others, and as the physical representation of my alterity.
Biography:
Mixed media and installation artist Giovanna Swaby was born in Nassau, Bahamas. Swaby studied fine art at The College of The Bahamas where she obtained an Associate of Arts degree. Her work has been featured in several institutions throughout the Bahamas and Canada. Currently, Swaby is based in Vancouver, British Columbia, pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree at Emily Carr University of Art and Design and majoring in Film, Video and Integrated Media.
