Belkis Ayón (1967–1999) was a self-proclaimed atheist whose large body of work and short-lived but prolific career were dedicated to the creation and development of a figurative iconography surrounding the exclusively male Afro-Cuban secret society known as the Abakuá. Ayón juxtaposed her own life with that of Sikán, a central female figure in the Abakuá mythology. La Consagración i, ii, iii (The Consecration i, ii, iii, 1991), which is presented as part of the 10th Berlin Biennale, depicts a grand ceremonial ritual, perhaps an initiation ceremony. Central to this composition is the motif of Tanze, the sacred fish found by Sikán, which communicated the secrets of the sect.
In 1997 Ayón started working on a new composition of mid-sized circular prints also on view at the 10th Berlin Biennale. On this body of work Ayón remarked, “The image of Sikán is evident in all these works because she, like i, lived and lives through me in restlessness, insistently looking for a way out.” Ayón would end her life on September 11, 1999 at the age of thirty-two.
—Gabi Ngcobo
Venue:
Akademie der Künste
LIST OF WORKS
¡¡Déjame salir!! (Let me out!!), 1997
Collography on paper
Edition 3/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
Acoso (Harassment), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition AP 2/3
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
Hay que tener paciencia (One must have patience), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition 10/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
La consagración (The Consecration), 1991
Triptych, part I
Monoprint on paper
Collection Ludwig-Museum at the Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
La consagración (The Consecration), 1991
Triptych, part II
Monoprint on paper
Collection Ludwig-Museum at the Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
La consagración (The Consecration), 1991
Triptych, part III
Monoprint on paper
Collection Ludwig-Museum at the Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
My Vernicle o la honda herida (My Vernicle or the wounded wave), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition 6/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
My Vernicle o si yo no te olvido (My Vernicle or if I don’t forget you), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition 4/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
My Vernicle, o tu amor me condena (My Vernicle, or your love condemns me), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition 4/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
Siempre hay algo que nos escapa o lo inevitable (There is always something that escapes us or the inevitable), 1998
Collography on paper
Edition 3/10
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
Temores infundados (Unfounded fears), 1997
Collography on paper
Edition AP 3/3
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
Untitled, 1998
Collography on paper
Collection Estate de Belkis Ayón, Havana
With the support of Peter und Irene Ludwig Stiftung