The Artist Residency started in Martinique on April 12 with two artists: Nicolas Derné, a Martinican photographer whose practice consists of creating a “Residual photography”, one in which the photographic print is used both as an imprint of an ongoing body of work and as a material that reintegrates the creative process of a new photograph; and Annabel Guérédrat, a performance artist and choreographer based in Martinique, motivated by black feminist histories and who incorporates sargassum into her performances that are also informed by eco-feminism and holistic as well as mystic faiths. Seven other artists have been selected from Martinique and Jamaica to participate in the residency program from April to June 2021: Gwladys Gambie, Ricardo, Ozier-Lafontaine, Henri Tauliaut, who are all based in Martinique; and Camille Chedda, Oneika Russell, Jordan Harrisson, Sheldon Green, who are based in Jamaica and will participate virtually.

The residency is taking place in Le François, Martinique at the HOLDEX site, a biotechnology company that focuses on developing technological solutions to recycle and transform the sargassum-algae. “The site for the Artist Residency is beautiful and very rich in creative opportunities for the artists to explore. It is also rare and unique for the artists and for myself to conceive an artistic project on an industrial and scientific site; it is challenging and exciting at the same time”, says Residency Coordinating Curator Matilde dos Santos. “In a context of a pandemic and continued lock-down and temporary closures of museums, galleries and cultural spaces, it is essential to look at alternative spaces and think out of the box”, insist Louisa Marajo and Vanessa Selk. Utilizing the sargassum-algae as a point of reference, the artists will regularly meet and interview with scientists and technical experts at HOLDEX and SARA for over two weeks, in order to imagine a constructive future: that of a world bridging Arts, Science and Entrepreneurship. The artists will then create either photographs, site specific installations, performances, paintings, sculptures, or video-works that reflect their imagined links between art and science. A temporary restitution of final or ongoing work, curated by Matilde dos Santos, will be presented to the public at the HOLDEX company site at the end of the residency season, i.e. the end of June 2021.

These creative productions will then be presented in the next steps of the HOMO SARGASSUM project: an experimental feature documentary film, produced in several episodes by the end of the year, and a travelling exhibition starting in Puerto Rico in 2022.

The HOMO SARGASSUM Artist Residency is facilitated and generously supported by SARA, HOLDEX and RUBIS MECENAT.