Curtis Talwst Santiago

Santiago is a multimedia artist making work centered on the diasporic experience, transculturalism, and memory. Key to Santiago’s oeuvre is the idea of entanglements shaping the consciousness of the postcolonial condition. A singer, performer and musician, he reconnects with music as part of an identity that is transmitted from one generation to the next. Santiago is best known for his miniature dioramas, which recreate personal stories, shed light on underrepresented histories, or serve as creative retellings of violent-catastrophic events that are inherent to the struggle of the black diaspora.

Santiago has exhibited internationally at venues such as the Art Gallery of Alberta; The Drawing Center, New York, NY; The FLAG Art Foundation, New York, NY; The New Museum, New York, NY; The Eli and Edythe Broad Museum at Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; the Institute of Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA; the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan, Canada; The Pérez Art Museum Miami, Miami, FL; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada; and the SCAD Museum of Art, Savannah, GA; among others. The artist was included in the inaugural 2019 Toronto Biennial of Art in Toronto, Canada, and was featured in the 2018 and 2022 Biennale de Dakar in Dakar, Senegal.