This past winter Fannta's work was featured in the "Life Blood Exhibit" at Gallery Visio. Organized and curated by Jennifer Weigel, the group exhibition focused attention on the topic of menstruation. The fifteen female artists that participated in the show employed a variety of media to examine and celebrate the physiological, psychological and sociological issues associated with this female rite of passage.
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| Fannta Drummer, Self Portrait, 2011 |
SC – How did your artwork become a part of the "Life Blood Exhibit" at Gallery Visio?
FD - Stephanie Sivils, the director of Gallery Visio, sent out a call for artists. I found the topic intriguing, and submitted Parvati, which I thought was fitting for the exhibition. Parvati was created in 2007 and for me she represents the embodiment of the total energy of the universe.
SC - The drawing features a black nude, female torso, whose mid-section is incised with lines. Although the figure is fragmented, the subject matter overall seems celebratory. How would you describe the piece? Why is this theme important to you?
FD - Women from all over the world adorn their bodies in one fashion or another. In my image, I wanted to draw attention to different forms of beauty. The physical markings on Parvati's body symbolize beauty marks and her regal, black skin represents the power of melanin.
Parvati is definitely a celebratory piece. She not only celebrates the regalness of Nubian women, but she also celebrates wealth through tradition. Unfortunately, in our society black women are not viewed as objects of beauty, but more so as sex objects. This perspective, which began during slavery, is still prevalent today. It is important that audiences digest positive representations of black women in order to counteract the negative ones circulating in Western art and the media.
SC - Can you explain how you created the image?
FD - I took a fine point, black sharpie and sketched the image. My goal was to provide enough detail so that the viewer could discern that the figure was a woman. Then, I scanned the sketch into Adobe Photoshop and used the program to reverse the colors. The black lines became white lines and the white background became black. Next, I added color to the beads to draw attention to the top of the image and to guide the eye from top to bottom.
SC - Tell me about your involvement with GYA Community Arts and Fine Arts Gallery. How does the collective's mission, of empowering women by nurturing their creative spirits, influence your art and vise versa?
FD- GYA is a not-for-profit women's cooperative founded by Dali Chambers. In addition to exhibiting works by local and national artists, GYA also runs art based empowerment programs for women and young girls.
The name GYA (Gaia) means mother earth, which is a direct tribute to women. GYA reminds society that women are the givers of life and should be valued and blessed. So much has occurred throughout his-story to hide this truth. For me, being a part of a high vibration womb like GYA recharges me when I need it. There I create and bless GYA with my gifts.
SC - Your work will be featured next in an upcoming exhibition sponsor by RAW: Natural Born Artists. How did you get involved with this organization? What piece (s) will you exhibit in the show?
FD - I am very excited about the "Illuminare" exhibition, which will be on view Thursday, July 28, 2011 at the Vertigo Sky Lounge in Chicago, IL. The last time I was in Chicago, I was visiting a good friend Fanta Celah, who is also an established artist. Yes, we have the same name - that is one of the things that attracted me to her. I accompanied her to a RAW exhibition and before I left the show I grabbed their information. After communicating with RAW about my own work, I was invited to participate in the show.
I am currently working on a series of four new pieces that I will be exhibiting along with some older works. I will not spill the beans on what they look like, but visitors to the exhibition are in for a treat.
SC - What do you hope viewers will walk away with after observing your artworks?
FD- My prayer is for viewers to approach my work with an open mind. I would like for them to observe and slowly digest the image. My pieces have multiple layers and can be read on an emotional or spiritual level. When viewers depart from the exhibition, I hope that my artwork will make a lasting impression upon them.
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