SIMONE LEIGH: TROPHALLAXIS
Trophallaxis (2008–17) encapsulates Leigh’s emphasis on the female body—particularly the Black female body—as a culturally loaded signifier. The presentation marks the first time this work is shown since it was acquired for the museum in 2018 with funds provided by PAMM’s Collectors Council.
The title references a scientific term that describes the behavior of adult social insects as they transfer nourishment from their own bodies to the collective’s larvae—a significant gesture that entails cooperative care and communal labor. Hanging from the ceiling, this chandelier-like sculpture consists of a cluster of black terracotta and porcelain forms that resemble fruit or bursting breasts with nipples painted in silver and gold, from which a menacing network of fully extended car antennas protrude. The forms exude a sense of heightened fertility.
The scars and marks on each vessel create an ominous impression while recalling traditional African practices of body scarification. Here, Leigh confronts the viewer with a metaphor about the complex associations of the female body with fecundity, sexuality, and labor, alluding to the frequency with which it serves as a conduit for violence as well as its potential as a vehicle for empowerment.
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Detail of Simone Leigh, Trophallaxis, 2008–2017. Terracotta, porcelain, epoxy, graphite, gold and platinum glazes, and antennas. Dimensions variable. Copyright: Simone Leigh. Courtesy of the artist and Luhring Augustine, New York.
Simone Leigh (b. 1967, Chicago; lives in New York) creates sculptures, videos, and installations that center on the construction of Black female subjectivity. Drawing on various sources and disciplines including ethnography, folklore, alternative healing traditions, and buried histories of political resistance, Leigh delivers emblematic works that highlight the complex concerns of women of color related to physical and mental health, societal beauty standards, community, and equality, bringing them to the forefront of current cultural debates.
SIMONE LEIGH: TROPHALLAXIS
Pérez Art Museum Miami
January 28, 2022—February 12, 2023
1103 Biscayne Blvd. Miami FL 33132
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