Martine Syms


Martine Syms is an American artist residing in Los Angeles, specializing in various mediums including publishing, video, installation, and performance.
Her artistic endeavors revolve around themes of identity, particularly the representation of the self, with a focus on subjects like feminism and black culture. Syms frequently employs humor and social commentary as vehicles for exploration within her work. In 2007, she introduced the term "Conceptual Entrepreneur" to describe her artistic approach. Martine Syms is represented by Sadie Coles HQ and Sprüth Magers.

Early life

Martine Syms was born in 1988 in Los Angeles. She grew up in the Altadena suburb of the city alongside her three siblings. During her formative years, she received homeschooling from her parents between the ages of 7 and 12. Recognizing her passion at a young age, Syms expressed her aspiration to become an artist early on. Reflecting on her homeschooling experience, Syms has commented on the challenges of accessing quality education in her area, stating, "The area I grew up in didn't have the best public schools, and it was hard to get all of us into the same private school—for a lot of racist reasons, from what it sounds like." Both of Syms' parents fostered her creative development, with her mother having an interest in art and writing and her father being an amateur photographer. During high school period, she participated in the California State Summer School for the Arts at CalArts.
In 2007, Syms earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in film, Video, and New Media from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She later pursued a Master of Fine Arts degree at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, completing her studies in 2017.

Career

From 2007 to 2012, Syms was a co-director of Golden Age, an artist-run space in Chicago.
In 2015, Syms participated in the New Museum Triennial Surround Audience. During the same year, her video titled "Notes on Gesture" was exhibited at Bridget Donahue Gallery in New York City and the Machine Project in Los Angeles. The video delves into the significance of seemingly little bodily gestures in shaping one's identity.
Syms collaborated with Willo Perron and Associates in assisting with the writing of Kanye West's speech at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, where he announced his candidacy for the 2020 Presidential Election.
In 2016, Syms presented the performance piece "Misdirected Kiss" at the Storm King Art Center in New York's Hudson Valley, as well as at the Broad Museum in Los Angeles. The work's title is inspired by the 1904 film "The Misdirected Kiss." Incorporating elements reminiscent of a TED talk, the performance critically examines issues related to language and representation. In the same year, Syms held a solo exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, titled "Martine Syms: Fact & Trouble," which featured her video series "Lessons."
In 2017, Syms had a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, titled "Projects 106: Martine Syms," which revolved around a feature-length film called "Incense, Sweaters & Ice." Additionally, Syms was shortlisted for the Future Generation Art Prize and received the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation grant in the same year. Syms joined the faculty of the California Institute of the Arts in September 2018 and was awarded the Graham Foundation Fellowship for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts. She also received the Future Fields Commission in time-based media from the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo.
Syms founded Dominica Publishing, an artists' press dedicated to exploring Black identity in contemporary art and visual culture.
In 2022, Syms made her directorial debut with the film The African Desperate, which premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. The distribution rights for the film were acquired by the streaming service Mubi.

Conceptual Entrepreneur

The concept of artists seeking financial self-determination is a recurring theme in modern and contemporary art. Artists such as Marcel Duchamp, Marcel Broodthaers, Piero Manzoni, David Hammons, and Joe Scanlan have explored this idea. Scanlan, in particular, articulated this concept in his text "People in Trade," which highlights the business potential of conceptual art. Scanlan argues that artists with unique skills and production methods, such as Agnes Martin and David Hammons, embody personal branding, value-adding, and just-in-time production principles. These artists have often been overlooked for their contributions to state-of-the-art business innovations. Syms embraces the notion of self-determination through a sustainable institution, influenced by her interest in independent music and black-owned businesses. Her artwork has been showcased in various venues, including Human Resources, Bridget Donahue Gallery, the New Museum, Kunsthalle Bern, The Studio Museum in Harlem, Index Stockholm, MOCA Los Angeles, and MCA Chicago. Currently, Syms holds a teaching position at the California Institute of the Arts.

Work

Syms' artistic practice delves into contemporary Black identity, queer theory, and the significance of language. Her exploration takes shape through various mediums such as video, performance, writing, etc. She often incorporates found footage from contemporary media to convey her thematic concerns. Syms values the concise nature of video as a means of transmitting important information and considers herself a collector of "orphaned media." For instance, she examines the role of smartphones as tools for constructing identity, even though she abstains from using social media. Syms finds enjoyment in exploring how self-constructed identities manifest through these platforms. In her artistic process, Syms frequently utilizes gallery spaces to create multimedia collages. She possesses diverse technical skills, including self-taught coding supplemented by classes at the Armory Center for The Arts in Los Angeles. Satire is a source of inspiration for Syms, employing parody and sarcasm to convey her artistic messages. She describes her working style as project-driven, adapting her approach throughout the creative journey.

Publications

In 2011, Syms contributed to the Future Plan and Program project by publishing Implications and Distinctions. This publication examines the performance of black identity in contemporary cinema and was part of a collaborative effort led by Steffani Jemison.
In 2013, Syms published The Mundane Afrofuturist Manifesto on Rhizome. The manifesto advocates for black diasporic artistic producers to focus on creating culture that envisions a realistic future on Earth. Syms emphasizes the challenge of imagining a world without fantasy realms or escapism, urging a contemporary and futuristic perspective. Quoting DuBois and Ol' Dirty Bastard, she reflects on the notion of "twoness" and how it feels to be seen as a problem.
In 2014, Syms released Most Days, featuring a table read of her screenplay that depicts an average day in the life of a young black woman in 2050 Los Angeles. The album's score was composed by Neal Reinalda.

Personal life

Syms participates in soccer as a player for Sativa Football Club, assuming the position of midfielder.

Collections, Lectures and Exhibitions

Public Collections

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  • William Greaves: Psychodrama, Interruption, and Circulation, Lewis Center for the Arts, Princeton University, Princeton NJ, co-organized with Fia Backström, Feb 21, 2020
  • with Colin Self, Sadie Coles HQ, London, Oct 1, 2018
  • March Meeting 2018: Active Forms, Sharjah Art Foundation, Shuwaihen, Sharjah, UAE, Mar 17-19, 2018
  • Experience It: Martine Syms, A conversation with Martine Syms, Sharon Hayes and Jon Rafman, The Lab with California College of the Arts, San Francisco CA, USA, February 26, 2018
  • Lounge Talk, Yebisu International Festival for Art and Alternative Visions, Tokyo Photographic Museum, Tokyo, Japan, February 9, 2018
  • Martine Syms and Rizvana Bradley in conversation, Raven Row, London, England, April 23, 2017
  • Friday Flights at the Getty, Getty Center, Los Angeles CA, USA, August 26, 2016
  • Martine Syms, Todd Madigan Gallery & Department of Art at California State University, Bakersfield CA, USA, February 16, 2016
  • Tip of Her Tongue: Martine Syms 'Misdirected Kiss', The Oculus Hall at The Broad, Los Angeles CA, USA, January 21, 2016
  • A Pilot For A Show About Nowhere, PNCA Mediatheque, Portland OR, USA, May 12, 2015
  • Seven on Seven, 7th Edition: Empathy & Disgust, Rhizome, New York NY, USA, May 2, 2015
  • Lessons of the Tradition, California State University at Long Beach, Long Beach CA, USA, 2015
  • Quality Television, Light Industry, New York NY, USA April 28, 2015
  • Lessons of the Tradition, Pomona College, Claremont CA, USA, 2015
  • Nite Life, O, Miami Poetry Festival, Miami FL, USA, 2015
  • In the Archives, Contemporary Artists Books, Los Angeles CA, USA, 2015
  • Lessons of the Tradition, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond VA, USA, 2014
  • Black Radical Imagination II, REDCAT, Los Angeles CA, USA, November 14, 2014
  • Black Vernacular: Lessons of the Tradition, London College of Communication, London, England, October 17, 2014
  • Do You Follow? Art in Circulation, Rhizome/ICA Institute of Contemporary Art London, London, England, Oct 15-17, 2014
  • Black Vernacular: Lessons of the Tradition, Oberlin College & Observatory, Oberlin OH, USA, April 29, 2014
  • Most Days, Moogfest Biennial, Asheville NC, USA, April 26, 2014
  • Black Vernacular, Insights 2014 Design Lecture Series, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis MN, USA, March 18, 2014
  • Direct Design, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis MN, USA, 2014
  • Most Days, Arts Incubator, University of Chicago, Chicago IL, USA, 2014
  • Direct Design, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles CA, USA, 2014
  • Becoming Artists: Critique, Originality & Identity - Managing Biography: Negotiating Audience, Yale University, New Haven CT, USA, February 8, 2014
  • New Paradigms in Digital Media 'Mainstreaming' a DIY Culture, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore MD, USA, April 13, 2013
  • Conceptual Entrepreneurism, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore MD, USA, 2013
  • Black Vernacular: Reading New Media, SXSW, Austin TX, USA, 2013
  • Science Fiction & What It Feels Like To Live In the Future, Actual Size, Los Angeles CA, January 11, 2013
  • Real Talk, California Institute of the Arts, Valencia CA, USA, November 5, 2012
  • Reading Politics, Summer Forum, Chicago IL, USA, 2012
  • The Didactic Possibilities of Film Titles, Houston Museum of African American Art, Houston TX, USA, 2011
  • Artist/Authors, The Gregory School, Houston TX, USA, 2011
  • Implications & Distinctions, Project Row Houses, Houston TX, USA, 2011
  • Future Plan and Program - Lecture by Steffani Jemison and Martine Syms, Prairie View A & M University, Prairie View TX, USA, April 19, 2011