Juliet Seignious

Infobox Artist
bgcolour = silver
name = Juliet Seignious
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birthname = Geraldine Seignious
birthdate = birth date|1940|5|31|mf=y
location = Manhattan, New York
deathdate =
deathplace = | nationality = American
field = Painter, Dancer
training = Self-Taught
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works =
patrons =
awards =

Early life

Juliet Seignious was born and grew up in Manhattan as Geri Seignious. To be exact, she grew up in Harlem, the place where she witnessed Malcolm X enlightening the crowds on street corners, Adam Clayton Powell preaching in Abyssinian Baptist church, doctors and porters living in the same buildings, children playing a dizzying array of street games and people sitting on fire escapes to catch a breeze in summertime. It was here, in this time and place, that Juliet acquired her passion for art. This was particularly cultivated on rainy days - the “inside days” with paper, pencils, crayons and the expectation of creation as well as transformation. Having two passions as a child, painting and dance, Juliet elected to take both in Junior High School. It was then that she realized exactly how much she loved them. Although Juliet was accepted into the New York High School of Music and Art (later renamed Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts), she decided to attend the High School of Performing Arts (of Fame (film) fame).

A Period of Dance

After graduating with honors and entertaining offers from Martha Graham as well as the New York City Ballet, Juliet became one of the founding members of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company and it was here that her interest in African American history was peaked. According to Juliet, "working with Alvin was an extremely moving and visual experience." And being in the middle of a black company, talking about black heritage at the high-point of African American political and cultural awareness seemed to be inspiring on so many levels. In this context, Juliet first thought of expressing thoughts, emotions and history in paintings. Before moving in this direction, however, she went on to dance in Broadway, Hollywood and several countries abroad.

Returning to Painting

In 1990, Juliet became inspired and, more than a little, obsessed with painting. At this time, she had taken a trip to Edisto Island, South Carolina - a small island near Charleston, South Carolina where my parents were from. The Island was interesting because it was one of the first places where African-Americans arrived in the United States and it was always insulated from the rest of the country, retaining numerous vestiges of its unique history in language, architecture, food and beliefs. Initially, Juliet had gone to Edisto to learn about and feel a connection with her heritage, which was held from her because her parents never spoke about the place where they were born nor African American history in general. While on the trip, Juliet engaged in conversations with a wide variety of individuals that were either family members or that had intersected with the family in some way (e.g., legal officials, archivists, activists, and church-goers). The trip also involved site visits as well as some archival work: looking through pictures of relatives - alive and long passed, legal documents about slavery and property as well as several detailed personal diaries. This process seemed in many ways to be overwhelming. At once, Juliet felt connected to all of the information, while at the same time distant from it. Through art, however, she found her connection to her heritage and a modality in which to share it with others. Through her paintings, Juliet documents, explores and communes. Essentially, her work is an explosive assemblage of styles and techniques but they are largely figurative in nature with elements of abstraction. Within any one piece you might find painted portraits, photos, historical documents, cheesecloth, shells, oils, acrylics, varnish as well as pastels usually on my signature background of tarpaper. Self taught, one clearly sees the influence of numerous artists: Romare Bearden, Van Gogh, Matisse and Jackson Pollack.

The Work

Within the most recent series, Juliet is documenting as well as exploring the experience and spirituality of African Americans. We often look back, to understand, to move forward, but the looking back is never a simplistic exercise. Such an act is filled with fragments, clues and emotions but it is full of mystery. This work is at once personal biography, historical reconstruction, spiritual exploration as well as political necessity. All images are mixed media on tarpaper.

Exhibitions and Awards

Exhibitions

Actors Theater of Louisville (Louisville, Kentucky) - National Juried ExhibitionAkente Gallery (Denver, Colorado)Art Basel (Miami, Florida)Art International (Washington, DC)Barnes & Blackburn Gallery (Houston, Texas)Barrett House Gallery (Poughkeepsie, New York)Black Heritage Gallery (Houston, Texas)Castle Gallery (New Rochelle, New York)Chicago Museum of Science and History (Chicago, Illinois) -- National Juried ExhibitionCorridor Gallery (Brooklyn, New York)Dildile Gallery (Berlin, Germany)Graham Collectible Gallery (Washington, DC)Houston Museum of Art (Houston, Texas)Hoyt Institute of Fine Arts (New Castle, Pennsylvania) International Vision Gallery (Washington, DC)Iona Gallery (Savannah, Georgia)Just Looking Gallery (Hagersville, Maryland)Lab Gallery (New York, New York)Millbrook Center of the Arts Gallery (Millbrook, New York)Ninth Street Gallery (Washington, DC)Northern New Jersey Gallery (New Milford, New Jersey)Northern Westchester Center in the Arts (Mount Kisco, New York)Peekskill Arts Council (Peekskill, New York)Pen and Brush Gallery (New York, New York)Pounder-Kone Gallery (Los Angeles, California)Rosetta Stone Gallery (Los Angeles, California)Satta Gallery (Brooklyn, New York)Winslow Gallery (Poughkeepsie, New York)

Awards

Special Exhibition - The Lab Gallery in New York City, 2006Merit Award - Hoyt Institute of Fine Arts, 2006Second Place - Juried Art show at Pen and Brush Gallery, 2006

External links

* [http://www.julietseignious.com Juliet Seignious' Webpage]
* [http://www.abt.org/education/archive/choreographers/ailey_a.html American Ballet Theater biography]
* [http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/index.cfm?fuseaction=showIndividual&entitY_id=3507&source_type=A Kennedy Center biography]
*" [http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmah/ailey.htm Body and Soul: The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater] " from the Smithsonian Institution
*imdb_name|id=0014617|name=Alvin Ailey
*" [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5024561 NPR: Holiday Dance at the Alvin Ailey Theater] "
* [http://www.alvinailey.org/ Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater]

ee also

*Modern dance
*Postmodern dance
*20th century concert dance
*List of dance companies