Tawny Chatmon: Sanctuaries of Truth, Dissolution of Lies

This presentation of Tawny Chatmon’s work at NMWA marks a significant evolution in her photography-based practice. The exhibition debuts selections from her latest series, “The Restoration” (2021 to present) and “The Reconciliation” (2024 to present), which incorporate assemblage, embroidery, film, and audio narrative. These works broaden the visual language Chatmon established in her iconic gilded series such as “If I’m no longer here, I wanted you to Know…” (2020 to 2021), “Remnants” (2021 to 2023), and “Iconography” (2023 to present); selections from these series are also on view. These large and lushly patterned works depicting children are stylistically inspired by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt as well as Byzantine mosaics.

For Chatmon, the materiality of her work is as important as her subjects. Concerns over ethical sourcing of gold and cobalt, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have led Chatmon away from using genuine gold. Instead, her two new series explore the conceptual and visual possibilities of embroidery and textiles. In “The Reconciliation,” Chatmon addresses stereotypes surrounding the food of the African diaspora. By reclaiming subjects and stories that have been distorted by racism, she honors the meals that have nourished Black families for centuries.

Chatmon’s series “The Restoration” was born out of a desire to remove antique racist dolls and figurines from circulation. In it, she features children holding these objects, which the artist has lovingly and carefully repainted and reclothed, symbolically reclaiming Black bodies and histories. Through her works, Chatmon urges viewers to celebrate the “significance, preciousness, sacred nature, and value” of her Black subjects.