Kimberly Morris

Lives and works in Los Angeles, CA, USA

Artist statement

What is beauty, what is beautiful to the world I live in today? Being a multi-ethnic individual of Creole heritage has played an enormous role in the way I view the world around me. I am of African and European decent; this greatly influences the way I experience society. Through the lens of beauty, I examine my position in the diaspora. The pressures of fitting into what majority culture defines as normal, neater hair and constrictive body type casting dictate my daily routine. Tangled in a mixture of black and white are the constant changes in trends and standards layered onto the historical weight of my skin. I am questioning the judgment that is placed on not only me but on those who navigate the world with this same burden. For the majority of black people hair has become a racial identifier, which speaks for us before we have an opportunity to speak for ourselves. In thinking about my own hair and my existence within the diaspora I often reflect on how my culture influences my perspective. Mardi Gras is a tradition that dates back thousands of years in Europe but took place for the first time in New Orleans March 3, 1699. By the time it made it to the shores of North America it had lost much of it pagan meaning but was now shrouded in a blanket of Catholicism. Masking is one the most visible and significant traditions during Mardi Gras. Masks are worn to escape class, societal constraints, and being free to participate in social commentary while keeping ones identity...

Artwork