Artist Statement
I am a New York-based interdisciplinary artist with a movement-based practice that centers queer, Black diasporic emotional and spiritual connections between the brain, body and spirit. To explore these connections, my work unearths how (mis)alignments of the self are largely reflected in how our society and governments engage with the water, land and environment around us. My artistry is a means to witness and honor my family’s legacies of farming, Church going, and storytelling. I engage emotional and spiritual knowing that connects the body, ancestral memory, and Black futurity through experimentation and exploration. Mediums I employ include choreography, writing, sound, installation, video, and performance. By interweaving these forms, I cultivate intimate moments that make space for learning/unlearning of embodied trauma by centering joy, pleasure, and liberatory transformations for Black and queer folks. Abolitionist, anti-racist principles guide my collaborative and creative process.
Maya Simone_Waters of Oblivion_performance_2021 Maya Simone kneels before a screen, holding a white bowl, on a reflective surface during a performance of Waters of Oblivion, Dec. 2021.