Nyugen E. Smith
Nyugen Smith makes alternate worlds that are inspired by the creativity and resilience of the Black diaspora. His Bundle House series comes from ten years of exploring themes of uncertainty and forced migration. With roots in Trinidad and Haiti, Smith focuses on the Caribbean. He sees it as "ground zero" for climate disasters and recognizes the area’s fragility. In his sculptures and works on paper, Smith uses materials like rubber, plastic, and wood, which remind him of makeshift shelters. He is especially interested in collage because the technique echoes how Africa and other regions were cut up and rearranged under colonial rule. For Tribamatica, Smith combined the shorelines of Trinidad, Cuba, Martinique, Haiti, and Jamaica to show that the idea of the Caribbean as a single entity is a falsehood.
Nyugen E. Smith. Bundle House Rise up and Walk I, 2022. Found wood, fabric, canvas, fur, metal, wire, bells, acrylic, rubber, shoes, nails, ceramic, leather, plastic, oil pastel, oil stick, graphite, net, cork, sequins, and beads. 80 x 30 x 30 inches. Courtesy of the artist and John Michael Kohler Art Center.
Nyugen E. Smith. Bundle House FS Mini No.11 (Oh, Sing Me A Shanty), 2023. Wood, branches, fabric, acrylic, watercolor, beads, sequins, rubber, plastic, wire, foam, oil pastel, bolts, twine, rope, and Sweden 42 yacht sail fragments. 47 x 28 x 21 inches. Courtesy of the artist and John Michael Kohler Art Center.
Nyugen E. Smith. Bundle House FS Mini No.6 (For the Record), 2021. Fabric, wood, nails, cork, glass vials, metal, faux fur, fur, rope, sequins, beads, rubber, acrylic, nails, plastic, collage, and foam board. 40 x 23 x 23 inches. Courtesy of the artist and John Michael Kohler Art Center.