“mystic ocean”
:Artist Statement:
My multimedia, interdisciplinary practice, explores the intricate relationship between nature, society, and self. My works navigate our world and universe, focusing on environmental concerns, with viewpoints that vary from close-up to panoramic.
My practice encompasses mixed-media collage, immersive installation, suspended sculptural form, poetry, and video. The most current work in the studio today can be described as constructed landscapes. The blending of playful and ominous visual imagery conveys past, present, and future visions of life on our Earth. Works exhibit layers of assembly, overlap, and erasure, blurring the division between image, object, and viewer. My goal is to immerse myself and viewers in a seductive experience that encourages a greater connection to our planet and a better understanding of our place in it.
As a reflection of my own ethnicity and experience, subjects in my work appear as hybrid forms. Whether working with the human body, animals, clouds, or trees, they become a marriage of contrasting parts. Form and image reference our unsettled landscapes, embracing connections and contradictions, and expressing the fertile possibilities existing in-between.
Miami, Florida
Summer
2023
:Bio:
Alette Simmons-Jiménez is multidisciplinary artist examining human/nature and concerns for the sustainability of human life on Earth. She has maintained a studio practice with forays into graphic design, large scale commissions by designers and architects realized for public and private spaces, the foundation and direction over eight years of a Miami artist’s run space, producing/hosting a Miami based podcast, and as the Miami Chapter Chair and a mentor to younger artists and arts professionals through ArtTable Inc. Her work has been exhibited internationally in festivals and exhibitions such as a solo screening at the Art in Public Places Moving Image Gallery at Miami International Airport, the Museum of Arts & Sciences in Daytona Beach (solo), the BluPrnt Show, Bridge Red Studios, Miami; the 2022 Florida Biennial at the Art & Cultural Center in Hollywood, FL; Space S|223 Miami Design District, FL (solo); Museo de Arte Moderno, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (solo); Palm Beach ICA Media Room, FL (solo); Inter-American Development Bank, Washington D.C.(solo); Oolite Arts, Miami Beach, FL (solo); Frances Wolfson Gallery at Miami-Dade College, FL (solo); Chelsea Museum, New York; The Mobile Museum of Art, AL; US Dept. of State Art in Embassies Program in Saudi Arabia and Honduras; Casa de la Cultura, Valencia, Spain; Musée du Luxembourg, Paris, France; Boca Raton Museum of Art, FL; Appleton Museum, Ocala, FL; Lowe Museum at UM, Miami, FL; MOCA N. Miami, FL; Frost Museum at FIU, Miami, FL; Gulf Coast Museum of Art, FL; Museum of Art Ft. Lauderdale, FL. She is the recipient of a Miami-Dade Individual Artists (MIA) Grant (2023), a Knight Arts Challenge Grant (2008), a Florida Artists Enhancement Grant (2006), a Florida Fellowship Grant (1998), a Miami-Dade Community Grant (2008), a 1st Prize in Video at the XVIII Biennial (1992) in Santo Domingo that recognized her as the first women to exhibit Video Installation in that country. The artist attended artist residencies at “Les Cliníques” invited by the Es Baluard Museum in Palma de Majorca, Spain (2017) with a grant from Oolite Arts, Miami Beach, and Residence D’Artiste Ifitry in Essaouira, Morocco, via invitation from Maroc Premium Foundation (2019).
alettesimmonsjimenez.com
instagram: @alette2012
“Three Sitting Spheres”
generously loaned for the installation by artist: LAURA MARSH
q/A
In a candid conversation, artists Alette and Haiiileen open up about their practices, the challenges they face in the world of art installations, and their experiences during a recent art festival. Their shared enthusiasm for their work, deep understanding of their process, and genuine love for art shine through their exchange.
Haiiileen: The inception of the festival was a reaction to feeling misused and overlooked as an artist. It was my vision to craft a space where art wasn’t an afterthought but the main conversation. I wanted a festival for artists like me. The whole experience, from conceptualizing to realization, was intense, but the passion drove it to fruition within just three months.
Alette: Your decision was impeccable. The ambiance you curated was palpable. While there were elements that didn’t resonate with me, the sheer talent of the artists made up for it.
Haiiileen: Every artist has a unique style, and that’s what makes the whole experience dynamic. It’s about being connected with the process and with each other.
Alette: Speaking of the process, when I started my installation, the physical space challenged me. I aim for a smaller environmental footprint in my work. For this particular installation, I recycled and repurposed materials, like the yellow cloud with chains representing rain. And that green material? It’s a relic from 2008. Art is about reincarnating ideas and elements.
Haiiileen: Your approach mirrors mine. An essential trait for an artist is being able to utilize what they have at their disposal. I see life as a spectrum, and the Rainbow Oasis encapsulates that idea – it’s a space where every hue of life and art blends, symbolizing various human developmental aspects.
Alette: The materials speak to me. They guide my artistry. It’s like they have a voice and tell me their purpose.
Haiiileen: It’s fascinating how the environment we were in – being so close to Superblue and monumental artists like James Turrell – gave us energy. We might not have had direct views of their installations, but their presence was a silent motivator.
Alette: Absolutely. The aura was magical. Even though we were in our own space, the entire room echoed the essence of Superblue. It was as if we were absorbing the inspiration from these renowned artists and infusing it into our work.