Projects
Mary Edmonia Lewis: a lost portrait bust re-imagined
Mary Edmonia Lewis: a lost portrait bust re-imagined
A re-imagining of the lost marble bust of the revered 19th century mixed race sculptress Mary Edmonia Lewis as a 3D moving virtual abstract portrait with sound.
The lost marble bust of Lewis, made by her friend the British sculptress Isobel Cholmeley in Rome in the 19th century, was displayed in Cholmeley's studio and described in 1870 by the (London) Arts-Journal as:
“On one side of the head the hair is woolly, her father having been a negro, on the other, it is of the soft flaccid character which distinguishes the Indian race, from which her mother sprang.”
Deprived of actual examination of the bust, the mystery of its loss and its depiction spur my imagination and inspires me to realize a contemporary digital 3D portrait study using immersive arts technology to explore a non-figurative representation and integrating elements of African and Native American symbolism.
As well I am interested in discovering new methodologies and techniques on ideas for constructing a digital setting of Lewis's studio in Rome with soundscapes and employing haptic devices to capture the essence of the materials, shapes, movements and textures prevalent in Edmonia's Lewis's practice as a sculptor.
Explore
£5,000
Aims of the Project
I am hoping that my one to one mentoring with pioneering digital artist Auriea Harvey will help me further develop ideas on how to achieve a contemporary abstract virtual sculpture using 3D technology.
While assessing best short, medium and long term goals on production of the idea and an action plan with manageable tasks I plan to implement and practice the initial steps of making a virtual prototype aided with tutorials on scanning, 3D modeling and printing.
Expanding my digital knowledge will allow my practice to create new innovative work and place it in today’s contemporary digital art platforms.
Meet the artist
Gisela Torres
Lead artist
she/her
I’m a London based artist working in still/moving image, self-portraiture, performance, 3D technologies, printmaking, sculpture and sound. Storytelling with otherworldly aesthetic intent is at the helm of my practice.
Disrupting time and space, I interrogate deeply personal and more broadly, historical archives to uncover some of the timely narratives of today such as spirituality, under-represented histories, female identity and loss with playful and atmospheric intentions.
I have a BFA in Film/Video from SVA, NYC and an MA in Photo Arts from Westminster University, London. Exhibitions include Peckham 24, October Gallery, The RA, Freud Museum, National Portrait Gallery and MBAL, Switzerland.
