Survival Instinct

For an artist working between Kingston, Jamaica, and Chicago, the botanical world is not what it seems.

- Nafeesah Allen

WOULD YOU CUT A painting in half?" This is how Ebony G. Patterson responds when people ask if her artwork can be displayed without her signature wallpapers. Maximalist floral patterns are often the backdrop of the Jamaica-born artist's displays, but they aren't there for decoration. Patterson views the garden as a multilayered metaphor for the human ecosystem in today's postcolonial world: Vines enshrine her portraiture and sculptural depictions of Black people. "My work examines ideas around visibility and invisibility," the artist explains.