Ashanté Kindle American, b. 1990

Ashanté Kindle utilizes waves from hair as a visual language used to celebrate the history and beauty of Blackness. 

“My practice exists as a form of personal healing as I create with a desire to celebrate the history and beauty of Blackness. I find inspiration in the s-curl waves that form in Black hair through wetting and different styling techniques like finger waves and daily brushing. Through the use of mark making in drawing, painting and sculpting, the marks transform into abstracted wave forms that resemble the natural textures that occur in Black hair. The process of creating becomes as important as the final piece as these durational marks begin to represent the echo of a soft whisper or a frenzied scream of emotion.

Transformation tends to hide what was once there but can not deny its existence. I sit with and embrace the vastness and beauty of my identity. The circle calls to the crown of the body as an infinite portal. I embed the work with objects like hair bows, beads, barrettes and black obsidian. This symbolic act of adornment infuses joy and protection into memory while on a journey of healing.”

Kindle currently resides in New Haven, CT as a NXTHVN 04 Studio Fellow. She  received her BFA from Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN and her MFA from The University of Connecticut. She has exhibited at Philadelphia’s Magic  Gardens, The Benton Museum (Connecticut), Red Arrow Gallery (Tennessee) and  numerous other galleries and institutions. She is currently preparing for an  upcoming solo exhibition at Belmont University opening in March.