Project Description
In her new book Entangled Species. Conversations on Contemporary Art in the Caribbean, Sasha Dees takes us with her on a personal journey showcasing the depth and variety of artists and art communities of the Caribbean.
Language: English // Available: 12 December 2021 // Pages: 272 // Print 30 euro // E-pub-Mobi 19,95 euro // ISBN 9789083064864 // Publisher: Art Agent Orange, Rotterdam
ORDER: https://shop.trendbeheer.com/product/sasha-dees-entangled-species
Book presentations/talks:
17 August 2022: Framer Framed, Amsterdam-Oost
18-20 July 2022: Oxford University – Worchester College, SNSC Auditorium, the UK (in English)
2 July 2022: Back to Normal / Billytown, Den Haag, The Netherlands (in English)
22 April – 3 May 2022: FILSD2022 / International Bookfair Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (HERE)
5 April 2022: De 100 vrouwen van Marcel Musters, the Netherlands, Podcast (in Dutch, listen HERE)
18 February 2022: Kunstinstituut Melly, Rotterdam, the Netherlands (in English, watch it HERE)
6 February 2022: Kelly TV, Trinidad & Tobago, Podcast (in English, watch it HERE)
26 January 2022: Creative Justice Initiative, San Juan, Puerto Rico (in English, watch it HERE)
16 December 2021: CBK Zuidoost, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
7 December 2021: Een vrijblijvend gesprek, Paramaribo, Suriname, Podcast (in Dutch, listen HERE)
29 November 2021: Montclair University, Fine Arts Department, New Jersey, USA
An exciting new publication that indirectly invites us to dialogue on what contemporary art is at the intersection of power, privilege, government, and funders who commodify art. This book highlights the artistic distinctiveness of the individuals who lay bare what binds them: their multiple social identities forged in marginalized peoples who are dismantling their colonial past and redefining via their art the face of the Caribbean. Brilliant work Sasha Dees! Congratulations to all who contributed to this work! – Derrick Brown, University Bern
,,Met haar passie voor kunst en voor de Cariben, neemt Sasha Dees de lezer mee op reis door deze bijzondere regio. De prachtige foto’s van werken van de kunstenaars maken dit boek een echte gids voor iedereen die van kunst en van het Caribisch gebied houdt”. – Nina Jurna, Latijns Amerika correspondent NRC & NOS
Sasha Dees has written a wonderful art travelogue, connecting the dots in the little-known contemporary art world of the Caribbean. While visiting artists in almost twenty countries, she also describes the diverse region itself painting a picture of its vibrant cultures. A must-read for those with a professional interest in the Caribbean art scene, and highly recommended for travelers whose interest reaches beyond the region’s beaches. – Max Westerman, journalist
Congratulations on your beautiful book, crystal clear, authentic, and inspiring and I realize how little I really know about this region. So I’m going to take my time to take it in really well, but I want to thank you now for mapping it out, traveling with you, through your eyes. Your years of commitment, generosity, modesty, and fire are contagious and I really hope that the museum directors listen to you: don’t call me, but call people from this book. – Willemijn Lamp, director Read My World Literary Festival Amsterdam
“My initial feeling about the book stands up beautifully throughout the 200 pp. To me, you’ve written more than an information resource for artists wanting to work in the Caribbean: You’ve written a monograph in the form of analysis, travelogue, and engaging conversation that gets to the spirit of art-making. It’s a big book handled with aplomb. Cheers to you for a job well done!!” Shawn Stewart Ruff, author New York
Sasha Dees geeft met Entangled Species een indrukwekkend overzicht van de infrastructuur van hedendaagse kunst in de Cariben. Een bewijs dat spannende kunst niet alleen uit het westen komt maar ook dat er hier meer bewustzijn voor moet groeien. Dees’ boek geeft een mooie eerste uitnodigende aanzet daartoe. – Marcel Musters, mede oprichter mugmedegoudentand, Amsterdam
“Entangled Species by Sasha Dees is an intimate creative arts tour of the Caribbean welcoming others to join her in her research while forging friendships that others are welcome to make. It is an informational reference guide to the contemporary artists, locations, and projects occurring in the Caribbean region. It is a treasure of information that is generally unavailable to cultural workers outside of the Caribbean. Entangled Species serves to share information lessening the isolation often felt by us in the Caribbean” Marta Morena Vega, Creative Injustice Initiative Puerto Rico
Wat een geweldig boek heb je gemaakt! Zo enorm uitgebreid informatief op zoveel verschillende fronten over àl die eilanden! En dan ziet het er heel mooi uit ook nog. Heerlijk om te lezen over bijvoorbeeld je problemen bij het reizen naar de verschillende eilanden. Dat is iets wat ik nooit duidelijk kon maken wanneer ik iemand in NL probeerde uit te leggen hoe moeilijk het is hier in de regio te exposeren. Kortom; pabien!! – Ellen Spijkstra, kunstenaar, Curacao
We follow writer and curator Sasha Dees on a journey in the Caribbean, where she explores the infrastructure for contemporary art. Decolonization discourse and international politics are reflected in her encounters and conversations with artists and art professionals in the Caribbean.
Entangled Species. Conversations on Contemporary Art in the Caribbean, written by Sasha Dees (the Netherlands) is the result of a fifteen-month research project. After having spent two decades working and traveling in the region, Sasha visited 16 countries in the Caribbean (including Barbados, Curacao, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and the Virgin Islands) from November 2017 to May 2019. She interviewed over 800 artists and art professionals. Some she knew previously, many she met as she researched and traveled.
Part travel book and 100% toolkit, Entangled Species is filled with engaging anecdotes and extended conversations with artists and art professionals. As passengers on Sasha’s journey, we learn about this world as she explores and documents it.
The opening chapter gives the reader a general introduction to the Caribbean region. Subsequent chapters discuss the infrastructure of the arts and the art marketplace: Education; The economy of art; Galleries; Museums; Biennales; Funding and Project Spaces and Residencies. With each chapter comes a contact list of artists and institutions. Additionally, there is a list of relevant publications, a 50-page selection of artworks by contemporary artists from the region, and a glossary of (art) terms used in the book.
Experience the Caribbean through the lens of contemporary art and Dees’ unique personal perspective. Her personal experience and long relationship with the Caribbean sets this book apart from traditionally academic publications. She offers the reader resources, tools, and direct access to the art community in the Caribbean, making this book a must-have for emerging artists, art professionals, collectors, (contemporary) art lovers, and those who are interested in the Caribbean.
It took a Village!! The publication is in part made possible by Trendbeheer, Mondriaanfonds, Hendrik Mullerfonds (Netherlands); UniArte, Marguerite de Rooy (Curacao); Max Westerman en Nina Jurna (Rio de Janeiro).
