From Our Archives: Mickalene Thomas Presents Christie Neptune

Head Bowed in Assembled Construction, 2018 © Christie Neptune

This article first appeared in our 22nd Issue: Impact

Mickalene Thomas Presents Christie Neptune

What I see in Christie’s work exists nowhere else. It is all hers. Her language, her authority, her agency. “If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive. When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.” Audre Lorde (Sister Outsider)

Exposing my Limits Behind the Great American Curtain, 2018 © Christie Neptune

Untitled Assembled Man-Made Construct, 2018 © Christie Neptune

The first time I was introduced to Christie Neptune’s art was by my partner, collector and art consultant Racquel Chevremont. We were working on co-curating the “curated section” at Volta in 2018 as a part of our Deux Femmes Noires global collective platform. Racquel presented images of her work to me and the first still images that captivated me were Christie’s “She Fell from Normalcy,” a poetic gaze into her afro-surrealist universe.

I needed to see more of it and I knew immediately that I wanted to meet Christie; more importantly I knew we had to exhibit her in Volta. Since then I’ve continued to be captivated by her intelligence and her profound ability to transcend the intersection of the westernized notion of the black body(ies) from the familiar into new complexities that shatter your beliefs.

Sitting Like Gordon With Bare-Back, Indigo and Shutter Release in Hand, 2018 © Christie Neptune