Katrina Coombs The Autobiographical Artist

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“In attempting to understand the self in relation to the Other, it becomes an enterprise in conflict. My artwork manifests such emotional conflicts, especially given that the level of impact of the Other, guides the direction of the artworks produced; and perhaps, make the works autobiographical and confessional.”

Her conflict began the day that she was born.

She was ten days late, and while in the womb, the umbilical cord had wrapped around her neck. According to her mom, this was the beginning of her journey as an artist, intricately weaving her way into the world

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The moment I saw her artwork, my spiritual antennae went up. Brampton’s distinguished art gallery (Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives) had once again outdone themselves with the opening of “when night stirred at sea: Contemporary Caribbean Art Exhibit,” a brilliant partnership with the Caribbean Art Fair and the Black Artists’ Network in Dialogue. Toronto Caribbean Newspaper had been invited for an exclusive viewing of the exhibit before it had opened to the public, which made us privy to some of the beautiful pieces that would be shown to the public on their opening night.

I must admit that I was very impressed by all the work that I had seen, but there was something about a set of pieces that captivated me to the point that I had to return to look at them several times during my visit.

“As it Breathes Life, Life is Taken, 2020.”

It was the piece that had intrigued me to the point that I had to speak to the artist who was responsible. It was a mounted piece made out of textiles and fibre. I was unsure how to describe my visual experience, and it was only after speaking to the artist that I understood my initial intrigue.

Katrina Coombs was born in St. Andrews, Jamaica, and has lived in Stony Hill all of her life. She will tell you that she was drawn to fibre, threads, and yarns from a very young age. She has always had sensitivity to the touch and feel of threads and fabrics, which she now uses to create unique designs and sculptural forms.

This brilliant artist has been featured internationally. Her work has been displayed in exhibits in Kingston, Manila, Berlin, New York, Bogota, Miami, Chicago, and Washington. It was during our discussion that I learned the depth of this young woman’s soul. She has taken the pain that she has experienced in life and poured it into her work. It is because of this that her work seems to pull at your soul and make you want to ask questions.

“I had felt rejected for a long time. Even though the general may not accept there are people who will.”

Her journey started in high school when she began to experiment with macramé. Creating seemed to come naturally to her, but she never thought about making a career out of it. “I never thought about the arts,” Katrina began. “I originally wanted to do landscaping design, but they told me that I would have to take physics in school, and I was like no, no!”

Her mom saw something in her daughter, so she sent her to art school. It was here that Katrina first realized that she truly had a love for fibre. Although the school offered applied arts, Katrina would not subscribe. She wanted to make art that made a statement. When it came to fibre, the only offered the typical fashion design, but Katrina was not having that either.

“People would want me to stitch clothes, and I was like no, I am not doing that. I wanted to get into installation-based art, and really dive into material fibre. Believe me when I say that this was a fight because at the time, fibre art was not seen as art. For a while I was forced to create within a box that I was not comfortable with. I felt limited and forced myself to fit into the Jamaican art scene. When I would try to do my thing, people wouldn’t pay attention to my work. They would see it and say, ‘That’s nice,’ but that was it.”

It was in 2013 that she applied and was accepted in the Masters of Fine Arts program that her eyes were opened to the possibility of creating pieces in a way that inspired her. Geniuses are rarely understood, and Katrina was no exception.

“After my Master’s program, my eyes became open to the possibility of stepping outside the box that had been created for me. I knew that I had to push my practice; push the concept of using fibre to create beautiful pieces of art. I will never forget when the National Gallery of Jamaica denied my work. One of the panellists told me that my work was ‘unresolved.’ She couldn’t quite explain why she didn’t like it. That remained with me for a while, but then I realized, this is just one person’s perspective. Maybe they were just not ready for my vision.”

“Interestingly enough,” Katrina giggles softly, “I was interviewed about that piece not too long after, and the panel there fell in love with the same piece that was denied by the National Gallery of Jamaica. I exhibited that work as it was, and the same woman who had said that my work was unresolved, came over and gushed, ‘You did it! You did it!’ I had accepted gracefully, but just shook my head. I had not made any changes to the piece, but somehow, now it was unresolved.”

After multiple rejections from the Jamaican art scene, Katrina took it upon herself to begin to curate her own pieces and put on shows to showcase her work. It was then that her work began to shift.

“Absence was the first piece that I ever sold, and it was to a Canadian woman. It made me feel like yes! There is a place for my work. Now it was time to make a move. I was encouraged to step outside of Jamaica more. They liked the work, but will not invest in the work. Most of my work has been sold to people outside of Jamaica. I learned how to network outside.

I reached out to Galleries in New York, Manhattan. I decided to do residencies. One took me to Columbia. Being away from the scrutiny. I was able to dive into my practice. What am I doing, and why am I doing it?

It was during my time in Columbia that I began to truly bond with my work. I had gone through the process of losing my child, and it allowed me to show this through my work. My friend says that I silently protest, and I have to agree somewhat.”

Her work became autobiographical in nature. The piece that I had been drawn to “As it breathes life, life is taken,” had been created during this time, and why I had been drawn to it now made sense. She began to explore the womb, and the female’s need to separate from the womb. In her work she was able to explain the fact that women externalize their wombs, especially when they get their periods.

“Society forces us to separate ourselves from it. I investigated it and came to the realization that we need to celebrate our womanhood, not disassociate from it.”

Her practice then evolved and focused on the impact of the Other on the “I” and the role and existence of the woman. Her artwork then began to engage the ambivalent and stigmatizing ways that society engages the female persona.

“I began to perform with the fibres itself. I was always interested in doing it. If you look up ‘Wandering womb’ on YouTube, you will see how I use fabrics and my body to express the existence of oneself. How our womb shapes who we are. It tears itself apart, and then heals itself. That is so powerful.

This experience was followed up with residencies in upstate New York, and then one in Miami. It was here that she came to an impasse. She had worked through her pain during her residency in Columbia, so now she was uncertain of where to go with her work from there. This is when her work took on a spiritual nature.

It was after her grandmother’s death that she was introduced to Yoruba spirituality and the goddess Oshun. She began to look at herself intergenerationally especially after her grandmother died. She turned her grandmother’s room into a studio, and the pieces that I fell in love with were made in that room.

There is so much to be said about this creative soul, and although I would love to say more, I think that hearing from her directly would allow you to capture the intensity of her passion. You can check out Katrina Coombs at her intricately designed website https://katrinacoombs.wordpress.com/, and definitely look out for her on Thursday, January 28th, at 6:00 pm for P.A.M.A.’s Artist Talk.