Contemporary Art of the Caribbean Archipelago at Frost Art Museum FIU

Nadia Huggins, Selections from the series Circa No Future, 2014, Digital photographs, Courtesy of the artist

Marianela Orozco, Horizons, 2012, Digital print, Courtesy of the artist

Miguel Luciano, Amani Kites, SmART Power, Kenya, Courtesy of the Artist

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables (detail), 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables, 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables (detail), 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables (detail), 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables (detail), 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Camille Chedda, Wholesale Degradables (detail), 2014-2015, Acrylic paint on plastic bags, (photo by Jose Lima)

Kishan Munroe, The Sinking of HMBS Flamingo, 2014, Oil and acrylic on canvas, Collection of Royal Bahamas Defence Force

Didier William, Dancing, Pouring, Crackling and Mourning, 2015

 The Sculpture Park at Florida International University

Elizabeth Turk in her studio

Frost Art Museum

Florida International University

Sixty-seven contemporary Caribbean artists with roots in: Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba,  Puerto Rico, Curacao, Aruba, Saint Maarten, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Trinidad, Jamaica, The Bahamas, Barbados and Saint Vincent.

Relational Undercurrents:  Contemporary Art of the Caribbean  Archipelago (Oct. 13 – Jan. 13) headlines the powerful new season of exhibitions and programming for Art Basel 2018 at Florida International University’s Frost Art Museum in Miami. This is the first major survey of this size and scope of 21st century art by 67 contemporary Caribbean artists representing 14 Caribbean countries, whose works offer expansive perspectives that transcend the boundaries imposed upon Caribbean cultures. “Because of Miami’s geographic proximity to the Caribbean nations, as well as our cultural mosaic which Caribbean cultures have shaped, it was important for us to bring this exhibition to Miami during Art Basel season,” said Dr. Jordana Pomeroy, the Director of the museum. “Our new season opens up a dialogue about global commonalities rather than differences, from ecological changes to societal values around the world.” Nearly seventy works by Caribbean painters, installation artists, sculptors, photographers, video and performance artists connect through ideas that go beyond language barriers, politics, and historic colonial divides. Artists in Relational Undercurrents include: Allora & Calzadilla, Edouard Duval-Carrie, Adler Guerrier, Deborah Jack, Glenda Leon, Beatriz Santiago Munoz, Angel Otero, Manuel Pina, Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Jimmy Robert and Didier William, among others. Features more than 67 contemporary artists with  roots in Haiti, the  Dominican Republic, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Curacao, Aruba, Saint Maarten, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Trinidad, Jamaica, The  Bahamas, Barbados and Saint Vincent. Departing from the premise that the concept of Latin America favors mainland countries, the exhibition proposes a mapping of the region that begins with the islands. Arising from a legacy of colonialism, recurrent themes include race and ethnicity, history, identity, sovereignty, migration and sustainability. The works in this exhibition speak for the Caribbean’s indigenous peoples whose homes were fractured and divided by colonialism. These are spaces that were mercilessly exploited for labor and goods by distant European monarchies. This area also marks the site of one of the West’s first rebellions (the  Haitian slave revolt which led to the independence of the island in 1804) and the Cuban War of Independence in 1898, a byproduct of the Spanish- American War. The Caribbean is inhabited by many different indigenous cultures whose languages include Spanish, Dutch, English, French and Creole. Although the Caribbean has been fragmented by centuries of tyranny and  domination, the contemporary artists in this exhibition draw upon themes of connection that often envision what lies beyond imposed borderlines. The exhibition is comprised of the following four sections: Conceptual Mappings Artists in this section challenge the organization of traditional maps. In contrast to colonial maps, these artists create images that inspire a process of decolonization, creating new spaces that suggest a more diverse, just and complex concept of the world. Perpetual Horizons Horizons are the prominent characteristic of island geography, representing boundaries and possibilities. Whether the artists in this section incorporate the horizon as a portal to the past or present, or as a representation of limit or potential, each artist in this section contributes to a common dialogue about this prominent feature where they live - offering strength in the acceptance of infinity. Landscape Ecologies The Caribbean is a region of shared ecosystems and inhabitants. Artists in this section depict landscapes in relation with to history, ecological issues, and current social and economic issues. Perceptions of the Caribbean have shifted throughout history from those of wonder, to fears of disease and degeneration during the height of colonialism. Representational Acts All Caribbean islands have seen their autonomy challenged through colonialism and foreign occupations. Political agency is elusive and, in many cases, unattainable. Representation takes on an urgency for artists in Relational Undercurrents, who actively reconfigure the world they inhabit through social practice and self-expression.