Present with Past Mistakes, 2023
Acrylic, oil sticks, the Holy Spirit, womb energy, self forgiveness, salt, rain water
Image courtesy of the Artist and Almine Rech
CICA Vancouver proudly announces the upcoming exhibition “Everything is Now” featuring the extraordinary works of American artist Genesis Tramaine, opening from June 2 – July 9, 2023.
Featuring a selection of old and new works, this exhibition will be the artist’s debut solo exhibition in Canada. Tramaine’s paintings, scrupulously crafted after deep exploration of biblical narratives, invite viewers into a profound visual experience that transcends boundaries and challenges conventions. Adorned with an unconventional fusion of the divine and the whimsical, these powerful representations take on added layers of meaning through the lens of Tramaine’s identity and experience as a black artist rooted in Brooklyn.
Her works go beyond religious iconography; it becomes a platform for personal and collective introspection. Through the captivating eyes that grace her canvas, Tramaine not only prompts viewers to lock their gaze with the subjects but also challenges social conventions and invites conversations around identity, spirituality, and the human experience. The enthralling works of Genesis Tramaine will transport the viewers into a realm where spirituality, symbolism, and human connection converge.
About the Artist
Genesis Tramaine (b. 1983) is an expressionist devotional painter who creates abstract portraits of men and women who transcend gender, race, and social structures. She digests the everyday and regurgitates it as work that evokes déjà vu, beckoning memories of past lives and glimpses of undiscovered futures. The blueprint of Genesis’ style is rooted in strong mix of 1980’s urban New York graffiti, and imagined images of gospel hymns sung on Sunday morning during church.
Tramaine paints with a confrontational and provocative use of color and through an urban-inspired, mixed-media approach. The artist describes her practice as focused on the shape and definition of the American Black Face, explaining that her subject’s exaggerated features capture the spirited emotions of the untapped, underrepresented soul of Black people through a mixture of acrylic and oil-based paintings.
Tramaine’s work is also powerfully influenced by Bible verses and other readings she studied in church. Her spiritual influences have a strong impact on the composition and depth of her paintings, which explore deeply human themes including ethics and insanity, the mundane and the inhumane, spirituality, sexuality, and sentimentality.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Tramaine earned her M.S from Pace University and B.S from Utica College of Syracuse University. Tramaine has exhibited nationally and internationally, including an inaugural solo exhibition with Almine Rech in London in February 2020, ‘Parables of Nana’, as well as exhibitions at Richard Beavers Gallery, Brooklyn, NYC; The Tree House, Governors Island, NYC; The Salt Space, Chelsea, NYC; The Raging Spoon Gallery, Toronto, Canada; AOF Gallery, NYC; and more. Her work resides in prominent museum collections including the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), Miami and the Contemporary Art Foundation, Tokyo.
Partners & Sponsors
We sincerely thank you for your generous contribution to CICA Vancouver’s exhibitions and programs.
Learn how to get involved.
