The West Harlem Art Fund will present a sustainable outdoor sculpture Haint Blue Waves Triptych

The West Harlem Art Fund will present a sustainable outdoor sculpture Haint Blue Waves Triptych for the public season in Nolan Park on Governors Island. Created by Jaleeca R. Yancy, (b.1990) is a contemporary artist working with mixed media, paper, and textiles from Memphis, TN living in New York. Her abstract compositions are rooted in experimentation, radical imagination, and sustainability. She creates contemplative work prompted by self-identity, black culture, and mythology informed by history, literature, music, and spirituality. In the spring of 2022, Yancy presented her series Mother Nature’s Daughter in her first gallery solo exhibition in her hometown, Memphis, TN, at Urèvbu Contemporary. Her works have been exhibited at Knowhere Art Gallery, The National Art Club, Bronx Art Space, Calabar Gallery, and Superchief Gallery. She has created public art murals for The Harlem Community Fridge supporting mutual aid for food insecurity, Paint Memphis, and Uptown Grand Central: Grand Scale Mural Project in Harlem. In the fall of 2022, she completed her first art residency Art Crawl Harlem Studio Residency on Governors Island. Jaleeca Yancy draws inspiration and encouragement from the uninhibited and consistent voice of Faith Ringgold, the exuberant exploration of color theory and vivaciousness of Alma Thomas, and the experimental forms of Sam Gilliam.

Haint Blue Waves Triptych is a sustainable sculpture that honors Black alchemy, legacy, and folklore. A collage of various upcycled textiles ranging from cotton, denim, and silk sourced from thrift stores, FabScraps, and Materials for the Arts. Hand-dyed with Indigo to create an array of hues that resemble water. This historical pigment carried significant meaning for centuries before it became an American cash crop. Southern folklore says that indigo was better known as “haint blue” – “had the power to protect enslaved Africans and their descendants from evil spirits. The color was said to trick haints into believing that they’ve stumbled into water (which they cannot cross)” (SHOSHI PARKS, Atlasobscura.com). 

Upcycled poly-plastic garment bags encase the quilted indigo textiles to create a stained glass effect that reflects “bottle trees” a continuation of the Haint Blue folklore “sky (which will lead spirits farther from the victims they seek). Blue glass bottles were hung in trees to trap the malevolent marauders” (SHOSHI PARKS, Atlasobscura.com). Poly-plastic would otherwise wind up in landfills and the ocean, causing detriment to the earth’s ecosystem and leading contributor to climate change. The frame of the sculpture is lined in cowrie shells which harness spiritual power, and symbolic meaning that links this work to black folklore themes around water. The post of the sculpture is anchored in oyster shells to pay homage to the northern Black oyster legacy and sourced from the Billion Oyster Project on Governors Island. 

This work is a call of urgency to protect our beautiful earth, the ubiquity of toxic materials over natural materials, protest black erasure, and encourage visual, oral, and written narratives of black mythology and legacy in America. 

About the West Harlem Art Fund (https://westharlem.art) 

The West Harlem Art Fund (WHAF) is a twenty-five year old, public art and new media organization. Like explorers from the past, who searched for new lands and people, WHAF seek opportunities for artists and creative professionals throughout NYC and beyond wishing to showcase and share their talent. The West Harlem Art Fund presents art and culture in open and public spaces to add aesthetic interest; promote historical and cultural heritage; and support community involvement in local development. Our heritage symbol Afuntummireku-denkyemmtreku: is the double crocodile from West Africa Ghana which means unity in diversity.