ONÈ RESPÈ (HONOR DIGNITY) | Cindy Lys | June 1 - 27, 2021

ONÈ RESPÈ (HONOR DIGNITY) | Cindy Lys

The title is in Haitian Kreyol which is the greeting one uses to enter a home and a social expectation. The person entering says "honor", the person dwelling in the home responds with "respect" or "dignity".

Artist Talk: Saturday, June 19, 2021

Click here to download a PDF with all the exhibition images

Closing reception: Saturday, June 26, 2021

3:00 - 5:00 in the RAC Galleries and Garden

A contemplation of the dispossession of Black humanity and an attempt to spiritually restore honor to those who have been defiled by police.

Artist Statement:

My art investigates Haitian history, its sacred tradition of Vodou and the divine feminine inspired by my waking dreams. A physical result of binding, tension, alteration, submersion, exposure, transformation and release of the materials. I also explore timed mark-making in an attempt to address the emotional weight of violence against Black people by police. In ONÈ RESPÈ, I specifically explore the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and the home invasion of Anjanette Young. Haitian Vodou is a spiritual tradition that has been similarly dishonored and disrespected. Historically there have been overt and violent campaigns to eradicate Haiti’s spiritual traditions. The aim of my work is to promote healing by channeling the ancestors and so honoring Haitian spiritual expression as well as black lives, traditions, narratives and power.

BIO

Cindy Lys is a Haitian American fiber and mixed media visual artist using textile design, indigo, Japanese Shibori, collage, stamping, painting, ink, sculpture and graphic design. Her art investigates Haitian history, its sacred tradition of Vodou, the divine feminine, the Black diasporic experience, trauma and loss. Lys has taught at Hyde Park Art Center since 2016, and has shown work at THE.creaetive.ROOM (2018-2019), Hyde Park Art Center (2020), Haitian-American Museum of Chicago (2019 & 2020), and the Black Creativity Juried Art Exhibition (2020 & 2021) at the Museum of Science and Industry placing second in the adult category in 2020. Lys is a Clinical Social Worker on the southside of Chicago and Clinical Manager at Pivot Collaborative.