Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

To view images of the exhibition, please click here.

Artist Talk with Natalie Wood on Saturday November 2 at 11:15am, door at 11am.

This exhibit links to my academic and performance work on the Trinidadian carnival character of the Blue Devil. Thematically I explore Blue Devils as a source of creative Black queer feminist eco warrior liberation and power. Therefore the works bridge a connection to the sea, tidal sub-marine relations through time and across the Black Atlantic, and diasporic resistance moves that embody ancient knowledge and satirically engage with imposed labels of Blackness, womyness and queerness as devil. Aesthetically, I draw upon afro-surrealist practices, art as activism, portraiture, historical, and pop culture references. The exhibit explores the question of who or what lies between the devil and the deep blue sea.

The idiom “between the devil and the deep blue sea” means you are in a situation where you must make a choice between two negative options and outcomes. The saying originates from a nautical term referring to the necessity to caulk the seam of a sailing ship while suspended over the deep rough sea. This work thematically explores what it means to be suspended through time in a space where repeatedly your options are to choose between two or more bad choices. Yet Black queer folks often find ways to create something different, and beautiful outside of these imposed options. I explore the beginnings of Carnival and the liberatory practices of the Blue Devil mas as a queer Afro-Caribbean diasporic practice of creating something different, beautiful and spiritually resilient. -- Natalie Wood, 2024