Raneece Buddan, Redefining a Story I (Igbo)
artist statement
In 2019 I began researching hand-building pottery techniques in Nigeria, Ghana and India from YouTube tutorials and library books. During this time I was focused primarily on the process of reconnecting to cultural art forms unknown to me as a descendant of the African slave trade and Indian Indentured servitude. The results were a fusion of all the techniques learnt from each culture like coiling and hammer and anvil methods.
These hybridized pieces are self-portraits of my identity as an Afro and Indo-Jamaican. There’s beauty in merging these cultures through sculpture and textiles. I have added Ankara and Indian textiles and, painted motifs to these pieces.
Hair is another constant theme in my work because of its importance culturally and in societal beauty standards. Whether it’s the style, the length or the texture of the hair, it is seen as a way to fit into a group, especially in Jamaica. The straighter my hair is the more Indian I look, so my “Indianess” is valid whereas if I wear African hairstyles like braids and the Bantu knots I am connected to my black roots.
about the artist
Raneece Buddan (she/her) is a Jamaican interdisciplinary visual artist who resides in Treaty 6 territory, Amiswaciwâskahikan (Edmonton). She immigrated to Canada in 2015 and completed her BFA in Art and Design with Distinction at the University of Alberta in 2020. Her artistic practice is an ongoing journey of reconnection. It’s an attempt to learn more about her cultural identity as an Afro and Indo-Caribbean woman through material exploration and textile research. She works primarily in oil painting, woodworking, clay sculpting, pottery, printmaking, weaving and resin casting.
Raneece’s artwork has been exhibited throughout Alberta, the USA and France. She has completed Artist Residencies in Edmonton, Alberta, Salem, New York and most recently in Mandelieu-La-Napoule, France.