Enam Gbewonyo
Master of Fine Arts Student, Art Practice
Bio
Enam Gbewonyo is a British-Ghanian textile and performance artist, curator, and founder of the BBFA (Black British Female Artist) Collective - now defunct. Her art practice investigates identity – Black womanhood in particular, whilst advocating the healing benefits of craft. She uses performance as a vessel, creating live spaces of healing that direct audiences to a positive place of awareness, countering systems of oppression such as racism and sexism. Her work enables audiences to face the truth of the dark past surrounding colonial legacies and the emotions it brings forth.
Recent exhibitions include Memoria: récits d’une Histoire at Fondation H, Madagascar, Neo-Custodians: Woven Narratives of Heritage, Cultural Memory and Belonging at Bemis Center in Omaha, USA, DELLU her first institutional solo show at New Art Exchange, Nottingham, UK, Body Poetics at Southampton’s GIANT Gallery, and Rites of Passage at Gagosian London. Her work has been exhibited and showcased internationally at the 58th Venice Biennale, Art X Lagos, and UNTITLED Art Fair, Miami. Her performance films have been selected for notable film festivals including; Portland Dance Film Festival, Aesthetica Short Film Festival, Alchemy Film & Moving Image Festival and AVIFF Cannes Art Film Festival.
Gbewonyo’s works are in private and public collections including Fondation H, Madagascar and White & Case LLP, UK. She is a 2022 recipient of the Henry Moore Foundation Artist Award and winner of the 2022 Dentons Art Prize and New Art Exchange Future Exhibition Prize respectively. She is also a fellow of Black Rock Senegal, Bemis Center, (Omaha, USA) and Fondation H, Madagascar artist residencies.
Honors & Awards
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Artist Award, Henry Moore Foundation (2022)
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Dentons Art Prize, Dentons Law Firm (2022)
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Future Exhibition Prize, New Art Exchange (2022)
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Outstanding Achievement Award, Worshipful Company of Woolmen (1999)
Education & Certifications
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BA Hons, University of Bradford, European Textile Design (2001)
Research Interests
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Diversity and Identity
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Gender Issues
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Race and Ethnicity