Tau Lewis

Seal

€10,000

Edition of 2030.5 (H) × 28.0 (W) × 28.0 (D) cm

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Healing via making, Tau Lewis stitches together memory, history and the Black imaginary.

The Church of Mantic Plants is a series of 20 unique sculptures stitched by hand in Lewis’ Brooklyn studio. Every work has been named individually, in this case — Seal.

The works are launching alongside a print edition by Ludovic Nkoth as part of Inner Visions, a series curated by Larry Ossei-Mensah.

Medium

In keeping with the generative, radical upcycling seen throughout the artist’s practice, each sculpture is made from an assemblage of textiles including cows leather, pig suede, sheep suede and shearling, stuffed with polyester fibre fill and detailed with white river rocks, acrylic paint and blackened steel.

Certificate of Authenticity

Arrives with a certificate of authenticity.

Finishing

Arrives accompanied by a leather-bound monograph containing drawings of all 20 works, alongside a collection of short poems and writings by the artist.

Release date

August 25, 2020

Payment

Pay with bank card, crypto, Apple Pay or Google Pay. If you wish you to use an alternative payment method, get in touch.

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Behind the scenes

Tau Lewis1 collaborationLewis’ work is abundantly detailed - tactile, transformative and terrestrial. She works predominantly with fabric and leather to create “soft portraits” using a broad range of techniques from sewing to carving. The labour-intensive processes act as a symbolic mode of healing. Materials like shells, hair, rock and plaster are recycled into fantastical figures and shrines, while objects foraged from numerous cities are constructed into what the artist calls “portraits of the landscape.” Exploring the erasure of Blackness in both art history and Canadian culture, Lewis illuminates the geographical and social histories that each found object has witnessed. Her work sits within a lineage of Black cultural production including mixed-media artists like Lonnie Holley and Betye Saar, where the recycling of found materials is made generative and radical.

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Reviews from Avant collectors

first class experience from start to finish. really impressed with the work and with the Avant Arte process. 💯
Review of Guardian
strong work from all team members - i look forward to the next purchase!
Review of Untitled [Man in Car with Shed]
Love my print and the safe packaging provided by Avant Arte. Thank you!
Review of Menippean Satire
outstanding paper quality and excellent packaging. love it.
Review of Actual Size
we appreciate the care taken in transport. Our piece was unframed but we appreciated how the packaging was done to protect it and also extras like the information on the art and the tote bag. We love the art work.
Review of Guardian
Thanks again for great collaboration and looking forward to new projects and pieces for my collection.
Review of Descendent - Lucid Dreamer
It's my 1st art piece and I love it! I wish I got it framed.
Review of Guardian
The unboxing was wonderful! Great work! This was a total experience!
Review of Inner Love

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