Curtis Talwst Santiago: Drawings and Miniatures at Rachel Uffner Gallery

Rachel Uffner Gallery is pleased to present new sculptures and drawings from Curtis Talwst Santiago. His practice explores issues of transculturalism, memory and ancestry in the contemporary Diasporic experience. Talwst’s infinity series of miniature dioramas in reclaimed ringboxes consider the absence of certain narratives in dominant culture and draw on the tradition of storytelling to question the production of historical understanding. The ringboxes are unusually mobile artworks; between exhibitions they close and travel with the artist. Encased in structures that protect and transport precious objects through generations, the ringboxes become symbolic of oral historical practices. The lack of an immersive experience in viewing these works and their overt objecthood suggest the distance between dominant culture and the stories they hold.