A Night with Zoe Buckman

Faena Rose recently hosted celebrated artist, Zoë Buckman, for a thought-provoking conversation about her multidisciplinary work, followed by an intimate dinner at Los Fuegos.

The conversation, moderated by the Pérez Art Museum’s María Elena Ortiz, unpacked how Zoë’s works pay particular sensitivity toward issues of sexual violence, abuse, and gender identity. During the conversation, Zoë discussed the significance behind the manual labor techniques used in her practice. “The labor of hand sewing is a part of the female lineage and female expression.”

The act of hand sewing derogatory lyrics about women from rap songs onto recognizable items of female clothing is her nod towards empowering the female psyche and recontextualizing the lyrics into a new dimension. When asked about materiality, Zoë noted that she relies on materials to help create successful narratives. For example, neon—as a light source— can be used to draw the viewer in. But certain neon colors, like bright white, are unbearable to the eye and serve to repel the viewer. This unbearable lighting became the inspiration for her neon series featuring the female sexual organs lined with boxing gloves.

The conversation continued over dinner in the open-air terrace of Chef Francis Mallmann’s Los Fuegos restaurant. Rose members enjoyed one-on-one time with Zoë and had the opportunity to learn about her new projects and visions for the year ahead.

Zoë Buckman was born in 1985 in Hackney, East London. Her work has been featured in exhibitions at The Studio Museum in Harlem, Paul Kasmin Gallery, The National Museum of African-American History & Culture, and The National Center for Civil & Human Rights among many others. Buckman currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.

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