Ellex Swavoni: The Computations Guide Me | In Collaboration with Sheree Renée Thomas

6 October - 2 December 2023
  • Johnson Lowe Gallery is pleased to present Ellex Swavoni: The Computations Guide Me as part of our current exhibition In Unity, as in Division.
     
    Ellex Swavoni explores the concept of cosmic genesis from a feminine perspective, anthropomorphizing black holes as totems of cosmic fertility. Her sculptures, often struggling to blend toy-like figurative forms with Afrofuturistic aesthetics, capture the essence of blackness and femininity as guiding forces for creation and progress.
     
    The Computations Guide Me is accompanied by an AI-Generated Interpretation of Swavoni's artist statement, as well as "Birth of a Singularity", a poem by Sheree Renée Thomas.
  • Artist Statement

    Artist Statement

    A branch heavy with fruit reaches towards me. I accept its offering. I claim the flesh and spill the

    seeds. I accept my role. I am hopelessly tethered. When I am disgusted my face contracts

    resembling a father I hardly know. My vocal cords tighten and my proclamation is rendered in

    my mother’s voice. I chose a lover with eyes almost like mine, the sum of us will only be a small

    deviation. I carry the algorithm of countless generations. The computations guide me. I iterate

    and pass the records down. I accept my role.

     

    I am looking for god in the tetherings. The rhythms of nature are my compass. As I walk towards

    the origin point nodes of an artificial being are broken. Trojan horses breached our shores and

    it's been 400 years of malware. Who was I before I was cloaked in nomenclature? Can my code

    be rinsed? Can a power-cycle save our sanity? Can we be rebirthed in the void?

  • AI Generated Interpretation

    AI Generated Interpretation

    In my artistic exploration, I delve into the intricate interplay between human existence, heritage, and the symbiotic connection with the natural world. The text "A branch heavy with fruit reaches towards the earth. I accept its offering" symbolizes the convergence of ancestral wisdom and the ongoing exchange between past and present. As an artist, I embrace this offering, delving into the duality of acceptance and transformation.The act of claiming the flesh and spilling the seeds represents an acknowledgment of our roles within this continuum. This acceptance, however, is not without its complexities. The physical reactions described—the facial muscles contorting in unfamiliar ways, the voice echoing a maternal legacy—highlight the internal conflict between embracing heritage and striving for individuality.Choosing a lover with similar eyes, envisioning the fusion of selves, and the notion of a "small deviation" poetically reflect the blending of genetic histories and the lineage we inevitably carry. This concatenation of generations' algorithms guides our trajectory, as if nature's computations intricately orchestrate our journey.

     

    I yearn to find transcendence within this tethering. The rhythms of nature, reminiscent of the compass guiding explorers of old, offer a sense of direction in the labyrinth of existence. Yet, my pursuit towards origin and authenticity comes at a cost. The allusion to broken nodes in an artificial being evokes a sense of rupture in this journey—a breach, spanning centuries, echoes in the metaphor of Trojan horses as malware infiltrating our cultural narrative. Reflecting on the weight of nomenclature, the text prompts contemplation: Who were we before labels defined us? Can our essence be cleansed from the layers of historical coding? The desire for a power-cycle hints at a profound need for renewal, a collective yearning to restore our sanity and rediscover the core of our humanity.

     

    Amidst these reflections, the ultimate question lingers: Can rebirth be found within the void? The void, a realm of possibilities yet unexplored, becomes a metaphorical canvas upon which we might reimagine ourselves, unshackled from the burdens of history and expectations.

  • Birth of a Singularity, by Sheree Renée Thomas

    Birth of a Singularity

    by Sheree Renée Thomas
    Their century gone, the flesh ones lie here and wait

    for the future to emerge from the past’s grave light

    wait for the past to reconcile  

    But We are syncopated chaos, rhythmic rejuvenation

    We defy your clocks and sundials, your dead star

    inching toward the infinite, We turn our backs 

    on the inevitable destinies storied and memorized

    the slumber you drown in

    spirit avatar peers curiously through the endless

    gloom of naysayers who cannot imagine the impossible

    cannot fathom the unfathomable

    pariah who traverses the mossy stones

    of reborn times, gather to sing black hole hallelujahs

  • About Ellex Swavoni

    Ellex Swavoni (born Alexis Crawford) was born in 1992 in Louisville, Kentucky. Her artistic journey began at the age nine...

    Ellex Swavoni (born Alexis Crawford) was born in 1992 in Louisville, Kentucky. Her artistic journey began at the age nine when she stumbled upon art toys online, sparking a lifelong passion for sculpture. Through her resourcefulness and the power of the internet, Swavoni taught herself the art of sculpting and manufacturing toy-like figurative sculptures.

     

    Swavoni grew to embark on a transformative exploration of spirituality, diverging from her Baptist upbringing to delve into the rich tapestry of spiritual practices from various corners of the world, particularly those rooted in the African continent. The captivating imagery and narratives she encountered during her quest found their way into her artistic practice, giving rise to an Afrofuturistic aesthetic that characterizes her work.

     

    Swavoni's exceptional skill set has been instrumental in reshaping prevailing narratives surrounding the portrayal of women. Her artistic endeavors are driven by a profound desire to capture the essence of blackness and femininity as guiding forces for both creation and progress. The inspiration for depicting women in this empowering manner can be traced back to the multigenerational matriarchy that enveloped Ellex. Guided by the wise words and resolute hands of her predecessors, she discovered the ability to forge something meaningful out of nothing, defying the forces of adversity.

     

    Ellex Swavoni is a self-taught sculptor from Louisville, Kentucky. She studied graphic design at Campbellsville and where she received a Bachelor of Science in 2014. Swavoni developed an art practice focused on exploring Afro-futurism, representing women as powerful entities and processing ancient ideas into a futurist aesthetic. She is currently living and working in Atlanta, Georgia, where she has conducted multiple traveling and permanent public art installations. She is an exhibiting artist in galleries and museums, in addition to speaking engagements at universities as of late.

  • About Sheree Renée Thomas

    Sheree Renée Thomas is a New York Times bestselling, award-winning short story writer, poet, and editor. Her work is inspired...

    Sheree Renée Thomas is a New York Times bestselling, award-winning short story writer, poet, and editor. Her work is inspired by myth and folklore, natural science, and Mississippi Delta conjure. 

     

    Nine Bar Blues: Stories from an Ancient Future (Third Man Books, May 2020) is Thomas' first all prose collection. She is the author of the Marvel novel adaptation of the legendary comics, Black Panther: Panther's Rage (Titan Books, October 2022). She is also the author of two multigenre/hybrid collections, Sleeping Under the Tree of Life (Aqueduct Press July 2016), longlisted for the 2016 Otherwise Award and honored with a Publishers Weekly Starred Review and Shotgun Lullabies (Aqueduct January 2011). Thomas edited the World Fantasy-winning groundbreaking black speculative fiction anthologies, Dark Matter (2000 and 2004) and is the first to introduce W.E.B. Du Bois’s science fiction short stories.  Her work is widely anthologized and appears in The Big Book of Modern Fantasy edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer (Vintage, 2020). Thomas is the Associate Editor of the historic Black arts literary journal, Obsidian: Literature & the Arts in the African Diaspora, founded in 1975 and is the Editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, founded in 1949. She also writes book reviews for Asimov's.

     

    Thomas was recently honored as a 2020 World Fantasy Award Finalist in the Special Award – Professional category for contributions to the genre and is the Co-Host of the 2021 Hugo Awards Ceremony at Discon III in Washington, DC with Malka Older. Sheree is the Guest of Honor of Wiscon 45 and a Special Guest of Boskone 58. She is a Marvel writer and contributor to the groundbreaking anthology, Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda edited by Jesse J. Holland. Thomas lives in her hometown, Memphis, Tennessee near a mighty river and a pyramid.