ARTIST STATEMENT
Most of us can recall a very vivid food memory. A memory so strong that it calls upon all our senses. Through a series of miniature sculptures Charisse explores the representational potential of food memories and their ties to cultural identity. Each 1:12 scale food sculpture is a replication of soul food from her own food histories. Raised in the midwest with parents who migrated from the south soul food was a staple in her home. With a family of 7 her mother lovingly prepared family meals from scratch everyday. Centering her own food memories ; Charisse explores the evolution & complexities of soul food in Black culture. Her hope is to draw out meaning in what we eat, illustrate the power food has to connect, and position soul food in the greater American food discourse.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Charisse Harris is a mixed-media artist and educator born and raised in Ohio. She received her MFA from Kent State University in 2016. Since then, she has participated in a number of exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and curatorial pursuits. Charisse is the current Visiting Professor of Drawing at Oberlin College. In 2021 she become the Exhibitions & Programs Manager for East Avenue Gallery in Akron, OH. East Avenue Gallery is a community space geared at supporting local artists. The range of issues she explores in her art – identity, black culture, faith, food and female representation are as broad as the media she employs. Her work is multifaceted and complex in its analysis of the individual’s relationship to one’s external environment. Often personal in inflection, her works explore the connection between psychological states of mind and socio-political behavior.
© Charisse Harris