Glitch partnership with UK–based photographer Serena Cecilia
About Serena:
Serena Cecilia—born and raised in East London—is an artist who specialises in photography. Her work focuses primarily on highlighting scenery and the things we tend to be surrounded by, but take for granted.
Educated at The University of East London, Serena considers East to be a place that is very much integrated into her character; a defining component.
Inspired by a myriad of different mediums, she draws her influences from the likes of artists such as Eric Gyamfi and Casper Kofi, who capture an elegance within their work.
About Our Collaboration:
"The Birds" and "Pueblo Tamisa" are from Serena's collection entitled 2019 BC (Before COVID). These images capture still moments that present a visual wave of calm that (unbeknownst to us then) we now desperately crave.
The other three pieces are based on photos Serena took at Brighton Beach from a collection called So Why See The World? This project was inspired by Frank Ocean’s "Sweet Life" and the concept of staycation. Serena says, "We have many beaches in the UK that we take for granted and with COVID-19, the concept of staycation has been highly recommended. So why see the world, when you’ve got the beach?"
"Nostalgia" is a wistful reflection on summers that have passed.
"Stay Afloat" features a child on their own in an inflatable. Staying afloat is literally what we’ve all been trying to do this year, though its meaning to adults is (hopefully) quite different from a child's more innocent point of view.
"Beach Politics" presents a game of ping-pong, which is reflective of this year as a whole, which has been very back and forth, up and down; we don’t know what we’re going into next.
Serena adds, "For example, beyond everything COVID, here in the UK we have the running theme of Brexit, which takes place December 31 as we leave the EU for good. Everything is political, even if it doesn’t appear so on the surface."
Next Steps:
Looking ahead, our plan is for Serena to select more images from her 2019 BC series. I'll then glitch them, representing the rupture in our present reality, compared to the relative serenity of captured moments past.
Exhibition History:
Debuted at “Digital Soup Takes Over Boston Cyberarts,” September–October 2020 Part of Boston Cyberarts’ “The Window Show” Photos courtesy of curator Lani Asuncion
