CURATOR'S TEXT

Beyond their shared medium of choice, Moridja Kitenge Banza and Marie-Danielle Duval both work on the elaboration of multiple narratives through storytelling. At first glance, their respective practices are very similar in terms of the colors they use. However, it's only when we talk to the two artists that we understand the depth of their characters and the meeting points of their works. Through their artistic explorations, Moridja Kitenge Banza and Marie-Danielle Duval reinvent and revisit powerful narratives that touch on the essence of identity and collective memory.  

In his work, Judith emportant la tête d’Holopherne, Moridja Kitenge Banza reinterprets biblical historical scenes by changing the image they present. Analyzing the Book of Judith and her strength in bringing freedom to her people, Banza reimagines Judith holding Holofernes' head in his work. This woman is no longer pictured so much as an adult but rather as a child braving immeasurable forces for her generation and those to come. Judith here, representing the artist's granddaughter, brings a more personal angle. She becomes a symbol of possibility, of a new story to tell.  

On the other hand, Marie-Danielle Duval reimagines moments on the edge between the fictional and the real, taken from several literary works by black women authors. Paying homage to the likes of Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou, she takes these characters, black women, as the central subject of these stories, and reinterprets them in everyday scenes. Although many of these stories are only fictional, they represent a daily life that may seem trivial, but is nonetheless just as political in its simplicity. Mascarade tells the story of a woman, Lula Ann Bridewell, a fictional character from Morrison's novel Délivrances. Duval's subtlety makes this work very intimate for those who know her story. Whether or not you're an avid Morrison reader, the artist allows us to glimpse at a space where blue tones are reminiscent of an aquatic environment. At its center, we find a seated woman with a steady gaze and an expression that combines a certain mistrust with a glimmer of defiance.

Banza, by transforming biblical historical scenes with a personal touch, and Duval, by reimagining literary moments on the border between the real and the fictional, create works deeply rooted in the experiences and histories of black communities. Together, their works invite audiences to reconsider the stories that shape our understanding of the past and present, while opening perspectives on new possibilities for the future.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

AL-ADEEB, D. (2016). Trauma, Collective Memory, Creative and Performative Embodied Practices as Sites of Resistance. Journal of Middle East Women's Studies, 12(2), 268-274. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26571770 

Carlson, M. (2005). [Review of The Archive and the Repertoire: Performing Cultural Memory in the Americas, by D. Taylor]. TDR (1988-), 49(3), 191-192. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4488666 

Poblete, J. (2005). [Review of The Archive and the Repertoire: Performing Cultural Memoryin the Americas, by D. Taylor]. The Americas, 61(3), 521-522.http://www.jstor.org/stable/4490941