martine syms

los angeles
art
martine syms

interview by MAURIZIO CATTELAN AND MARTA PAPINI
portrait by TAYLOR RAINBOLT

All artworks copyright of the artist

MARTINE SYMS AND KAHLIL JOSEPH STILL FROM MEMORY PALACE, 2015

Los Angeles artist Martine Syms explores all avenues of contemporary African-American identity politics, and ostracism in popular culture. She plays with a variety of media, including video, performance, and writing, to create visually stimulating installations. She’s also the founder of Dominica Publishing, an artists’ imprint dedicated to the topic of blackness in art and culture.

MAURIZIO CATTELAN AND MARTA PAPINI — How long have you been living in Los Angeles?
MARTINE SYMS — I was born and raised here.

MAURIZIO CATTELAN AND MARTA PAPINI — Where do you feel LA is placed today: east of China or west of New York?
MARTINE SYMS — My experience of Los Angeles has always been east of…