Work in Progress is an interview series with independent curator, writer and cultural worker Alyssa Alexander, that spotlights an emerging or mid career artist, allowing them to explore facets of their individual practices, share works in progress, and connect with overarching contemporary themes. Each iteration will have artists answer questions tailored to their work, but culminate with the same five questions. 

Shervone Neckles is an American-born, Afro-Grenadian interdisciplinary artist and educator living in South-East Queens, NY. Her work embraces collage, alternative printmaking techniques, book arts, sculpture, and social investigations. With storytelling at the foundation of her practice, Neckles intertwines personal and cultural histories in a body of work spanning embroidery, works on paper, and most recently, her monumental installation BEACON. Here we ruminate on the legacy of Lewis Latimer, the power behind creating visual vernacular, and our revolutionary roots. 

Alyssa Alexander: Okay, so I think this is going to be an interesting one because I have a little bit of a biased interest in your work, us being from the same ancestry. [laughs} Before we get into that, let's talk about your most recent project, the BEACON installation in Flushing.

Shervone Neckles: Yes, it's in Flushing, Queens at the Lewis Latimer House Museum now and excited to say that it'll be there until the 15th of August and then it will make its way to Brooklyn and be installed Downtown Brooklyn in Albee Square Plaza.

AA: Where exactly? Like on the outside towards Fulton? 

SN: I'm not sure if you are familiar with... it used to be where Albee Square Mall was years ago. You remember that, right?

AA: I remember that mall. I went to school at Tech. That was my mall.

SN: It was the gathering spot, it was a spot that sparked so much creativity, especially when talking about hip hop, if you were a young person in the area during the 80s and the 90s, then Albee Square means something to you. So being able to install BEACON in that location was a way for me to connect these ideas around our inner light, our potential and ingenuity.

AA: Yeah, let's talk a little bit more about what that sculpture and installation means for you. Like on a personal level, and almost metaphorical level too, I guess.

SN: So a couple years ago, the Lewis Latimer House Museum reached out to me. They were looking for Queens [based] artists to do temporary installations in their garden space. They invited me to visit the museum and learn about who Lewis Latimer was. And I’m ashamed to admit at the time, I did not know about Lewis Latimer. When I finally did the research, and eventually visited the museum, I got the chance to spend time with the staff who gave me a tour of the Latimer House and shared about his history. I left the museum feeling really frustrated. How is it possible that I am living in Queens, grew up in New York, raised  in Brooklyn, so close to Latimer’s home and never learned about him and all of his contributions? I mean, just thinking about some of the daily items we use to this day, he is responsible for contributing to. 

AA:  And it’s not until I became familiar with your work, and then BEACON by default, that I even knew about this history as well. So don't feel bad. And I think that that's a disturbing thing we see a lot in New York City education, not getting those tidbits of information that would be great in nurturing our connection to this land.

SN: I'm honored to know that my work could connect folks to history in that way. It reaffirms for me that the work is doing its job. Once I was exposed to this information, I realized that others could benefit from knowing this history too. I wanted  others to know about Lewis Latimer. I even started thinking about ways to introduce my son to Lewis Latimer’s legacy because that's where it starts with me contributing what I can, and doing my part. 

AA: Oh absolutely.

SN: I recall being amazed to learn that the inventor of the telephone Alexander Graham Bell, sought out the expertise of Lewis Latimer for his extensive knowledge in patent law, and his draftsmanship skills to help prepare and perfect his telephone patent application in 1876. And then in the 1880s Latimer assisted Thomas Edison in perfecting his patent for the lightbulb. A few years later, Latimer would make improvements to Edison’s lightbulb by creating a new method for mounting the carbon filament in incandescent light bulbs, which allowed for the bulbs to last longer, and to be more cost-effective. Latimer wasn't just thinking about producing light, but also how to get light into the homes of every American. That kind of expansive thinking is why light is more accessible to us today. We’re now able to have and control the light in our homes. It's become a household item we can purchase from our neighborhood discount store. Latimer’s inventions and his collaborations with other inventors continue to impact the quality of our everyday lives. He even assisted inventor Hiram Maxim in installing the public electric lighting systems throughout the U.S., Canada and also in the U.K.

AA: That part I didn't know.

SN: What also makes Latimer’s legacy more profound is considering the time, conditions, and circumstances he was born into and lived through. I mean just think about it, Latimer was born in 1848. So this is before the Civil War, he eventually enlists in the Union Navy and fights in the Civil War as a teenager. He lives through the short-lived gains of Reconstruction, and the unthinkable violence and systematic suppression of Black life that would follow Reconstruction...just to put him and his life into a timeline to offer more context. 

AA: That context, yeah.

SN: ...I’m humbled and amazed by all he was able to accomplish. From his civil rights and volunteer activities, to his ingenuity. His legacy must be acknowledged, remembered, and celebrated.

AA: And the legacy is still almost kind of lost in everyday conversation.

SN: That's exactly right. So what can we do to change that? Well, for me BEACON is a gesture of remembering. I wanted to create a work that uses cultural iconography and communicate about history in a way that would spark conversation. A work that has a presence, but is not intrusive. An inviting  presence that allows folks to want to know more. To want to stop, engage the work, ask questions about it, read the label or even sit and spend time with it. Not just pass it because it gets lost in all the visual noise, which can easily happen in New York City. 

AA: But I don't think that this particular installation warrants the ability to just pass by and kind of casually engage with it, and I think that public art in New York has this way of being interesting in ways that aren't necessarily engaging. It can just be there. It's like taking up space without necessarily engaging with any one particular community or thought process or anything. I think about the Rockefeller Center installations that they've been doing over the past couple of years. And it's like, I remember some of them, but like whether or not I went to go see it is another story. I'm not up there very often. And if I was there, I wanted to go see Sanford Biggers’ installation, but I wasn't going to see the [Jeff Koons] Split Rocker. [laughs] You know what I'm saying?

SN: [laughs] yes!

AA: But the size and the impact, the actual footprint of these installations don't necessarily always equate to their impact on a community.  And I think that the downtown area, downtown Brooklyn, is a very specific type of community that's aggressively been gentrified over the past... how old am I? Twelve, maybe even 16 years. I can say my going to Brooklyn Tech and knowing what downtown looked like and then going there now as an adult, are two completely different experiences. And, you know, I love City Point, shop there all the time, but I remember I actually called City Point a beacon of gentrification, because you can see it from far away. And it's so obvious that it was intentionally there to “revive” the downtown area, where there's already this super rich and specific culture that exists. So with BEACON, I think that kind of spirit, legacy forming. and informing a community that is always overlooked, is really important. And it speaks to an anchoring part of your work, which is storytelling and legacy, informing without being super aggressive.

SN: Yes. There’s power in the subtleties.

AA: Yeah, the idea of legacy. And I mean, coming from the Caribbean, where folklore is a really huge part of your upbringing, even if you're not necessarily aware of it. I know where that comes from, but I'd like to know how you made that a focal point of your practice and why?

SN: As you were talking, what immediately came to mind were the subtle gestures of communication I grew up seeing and using in my Caribbean household. I was thinking about what gets communicated through subtle gestures that speak volumes and carry the most impact. I’ve taken that childhood training and applied it to how I move in the world. I’m hypersensitive to body language. And I’m continuously exploring ways to translate those subtle ways of knowing in my work. I enjoy bridging the material and spiritual…. blending the fine art with the familiar or…

AA: Craft?

SN: Yes, craft. It’s also kitsch, it’s the ephemera that we have in our everyday lives that surrounds us. It's our cultural expression, knowledge production, and intellectual production that serves as the evidence of our lives. These items hold an essence that I’m interested in capturing in my work.Whether through subtle gestures or extravagant layers of adornment that shimmers, shines, sparkles, and even blings. [laughs] They all evoke a sense of optimism, and faith. I love the way Zora Neale Hurston describes this particular Black aesthetic that “decorates the decoration” which is how I grew up. This is how we styled ourselves and homes in my family. It is a specific sensitivity and sensibility that I'm always tapping into. Writer Kamau Braitwaite refers to this as  a type of Caribbeanness. It took me a long time to listen and value that voice. To find where I feel most comfortable. And I realized the more I use the things that are innate and instinctive, the clearer the voice. I literally can feel the joy and excitement on a cellular level when I’m drawing from these sources for inspiration. But it took a long time to get to this place to understand all the tools and resources that I needed to make my artwork, I already have in my possession.

SN: Lately, I’ve been really interested in storytelling that draws inspiration from primary source materials whether through repositories, cultural spaces or family records. Then using the information discovered to make connections and  respond to my surroundings.

AA: And that brings me to a really good point that I want to talk about. The liminal figure. I love that description of this figure that, again, we don't necessarily know anything about this particular figure in the work, but because they are occupying this space in these different ways, their connection is built, and you spoke about utilizing materials and ideas that we already know. And it makes me think of... I wrote a whole thing on visual vernacular, and the ways that even if you don't know... you know. And that exists within black culture, like globally, I think about the ways that folklore was changed from island to island, but we're all talking about the same thing, or terms and figures that exist that we don't even know other people are utilizing as well. And for me, that's been a very central part of my research practice. That connection doesn't come from nowhere. So in terms of that, there are recurring motifs within your work that I'd like you to speak about that utilize that visual vernacular we're discussing.

SN: Your question brings to mind a number of things.  For the last few years , I've been doing research around the first peoples on our island [Grenada]. Studying the Ciboney and the many Amerindian groups who first populated the island before European conquest. Since most of the groups were nomadic, there’s been some research done to track their migration patterns from South America throughout the Caribbean region both pre and post [European] contact. What’s been interesting to discover is the cross-pollination that happens between the escaped Africans and the Amerindians groups that come together to blend and build community as a form of resistance. I believe that shared history and connection is an example of these instinctual ways of knowing between us. 

                   Then there is  Jab Jab, which is a Grenadian masquerade ritual that my work draws its symbols and imagery from. I like using the most lush and richest black inks, paper, and textured velvet material for my figures to evoke the molasses, burnt cane, and grease the Jab Jab masqueraders used to adorn their bodies. The public ritual takes place at daybreak, a time when the living and the dead can exchange and conjure a new energy to bring order and balance to society. For me, using opaque black also relates to a free, infinite space that embodies divine femininity. The Jab Jab procession creates a similar liberatory space for masqueraders to free their mind, spirit, and physical being from oppression. The Jab Jab horned helmet and conch shell that I reference in my work are the cultural iconographies that signal to me the island's deeply rooted ties to our African spiritual traditions. 

AA: The horned helmets yea.

SN: I enjoy when viewers can find those personal connections in the work, whether it’s through the materials, imagery or the range of multimedia techniques I use from printmaking, beading, embroidery… 

AA: Collage work too.

SN: Oh, yeah, that's all part of my cultural expression, and a form of aesthetics that I grew up around. Where everything we do means something, and it serves multiple purposes, not just an aesthetic purpose. An object can have many roles; it tells our story, can be used for protection, to heal, and many other  layers of meaning.

AA: And it's not just spiritual, but practical, it literally can be a means of functionality of a material.

SN: Yeah, that functionality is absolutely important. The resourcefulness and ability to make objects to cover yourself to feed yourself.

AA: To hold something. 

SN: That's right, that's right. Or to remember someone. That's what I love about this journey I've been on to trace and track my maternal family history in Grenada back four generations using primary documents and records. At the same time I’ve also been really curious about the many Amerindian groups who first inhabited the island. I’m particularly interested in learning more about their patterns of regional mobility and the cultural exchanges that would transpire during that movement. That type of research is exciting to me. Just being able to learn more about those origin stories and draw those connections feels like I’m tapping into something intuitive. Like a frequency or something. I just need to be still enough, and listen, and trust what comes to surface or unfolds during the process. It’s actually a similar process I went through developing the concept for BEACON. Using Latimer’s mechanical drawings from his archives to inspire both the physical and metaphysical qualities of light. I wanted to emphasize that divine inner light within Latimer and within all of us. Latimer  had to believe in this internal light to accomplish all he did during his lifetime.  

AA: Absolutely, to make that happen in that time period.

SN: Exactly. It was important to me to create an installation that actually captures memory, history, and culture. Where light is used to encourage public  participation and reflection. This way of working is also reflected in many of my  new works that are in-process here [in studio]. I've been embroidering these  repetitive lines with gold thread and beading, and using reflective surfaces as a metaphor for the physical and sensorial transmission of light and energy. I recently started to incorporate electronic resistors into my work. The resistors are sewn into the surface of the work and blend in as a type of beading. I like the idea of incorporating an object that controls the flow of energy and power in an electronic device into the work...why not!

AA: Yeah, I mean, we're talking about energy all the time now, it's such a part of how we - well I can't say everyone - but how I think a lot of black people are moving through their days, considering the way the energy is being exchanged, where you're putting it, who's getting it, and how. What the energy you're putting out is allowing you to receive back. So I think that's super timely, it makes a ton of sense in terms of a further exploration of self and identity. And I mean, there's a theme that was mentioned in one of your series, but you're talking about that liminal space - of existing between. More recently, being a mother, being a caregiver for your child, and for the people who took care of you. Being of West Indian descent and being very tied to that culture, but also having this other part of you that's very New York. Those two things are married a lot here, but they're very different cultures. So talking about identity in your work is obvious, but I guess I'm interested in how you're investigating that as you're unfolding a new series.

SN: Yeah, absolutely. Well, it starts with how grounded I feel. Because I’ve been on this journey to consume and to just keep learning as much as I can about my family lineage. The more I dive in, and get my hands on family photos, have conversations with family members, carefully look through our archives, review documents like the physical land surveys and birth certificates. All of these documents that are used by the government to confirm and track your existence. To legally identify your property and show proof that you owned something in this world, whether that gives you some level of access, or not? Those archives confirm that we were here and lived full lives. Aside from the process of going through the archives there is a journey of me relearning and knowing myself.  Knowing where I come from. Understanding the source of where all this creativity comes from in the family. It’s not just me, my family is filled with creatives. We’re self-made folks, and that spirit didn't just come out of nowhere, that has a lineage. I’m interested in tracing that lineage back to its source to understand where that self determination, that creative mind and spirit comes from. The more I investigate, and learn, and discover, the more  exposed I become to new language, history, and materials. And from that research I build an understanding that sparks a desire to make things.

AA: Whatever comes out of that.

SN: Yeah! It just feels right to keep exploring, and doing, and feeling and making, and some of what gets produced will be good. Some of it is just for experimentation for the thing that's coming next, or later. It's just accepting and being okay that I'm all of these things, right? 

AA: And you have the ability to occupy all those things. 

SN: Yes, all those things. Absolutely. The limitations of just describing yourself as one thing is not who we are. We've always had to be a lot of things, for a lot of reasons. Otherwise, it's just denying our true essence and nature in the world. You know?

AA: I think that within the art space for an artist as well as someone like myself, who is operating in the background, I think that realization is very important, because they will try to put you in a box. They will try to describe you in a way that's very limiting. So having that kind of awakening and being like, wait, no, I can actually do all of these things! [laughs] I don't have to be any one thing. I don't have to work in any one space. I don't think that I would have arrived where I am now in terms of the things that I want to research, that shows that I want to curate, if I didn't have a few people ahead of me that I look to who said, "I'm going to specialize in this." And yes, it's because I am this, there's nothing wrong with that. And I think that at first, I was resistant to that idea for a while because of the whiteness of spaces, and not wanting to cause too much, you know?

SN: Disruption.

AA: Disruption. And then...

SN: Discomfort. 

AA: It came at a very specific time, where I said we're not doing that anymore. I'm not interested in anything you're giving me. So here's what we're going to talk about.

SN: That's right. There's a lot of us creatives doing that now. And we've always been doing it that way even without the scholarship and the research or the hyper-visibility. We do it because it's innate, and it's a calling, and it's something you have to do. I have to make the work that I make. It's just automatic. I need to.

AA: That's the thing I say that working in spaces where I just didn't respond to the work, I can think about it now, why I was so unhappy. And why I was so irritated, because I just wasn't being engaged in a way that was fulfilling to me. So I've been fortunate enough to interact with folks like yourself, who have already done all this work, and kind of are setting the stage for more of that to happen. 

SN: That’s right. They’ll catch up.

AA: So, I'm thankful.

SN: You're welcome. And I'm happy, I'm happy to see you and to connect with you. And excited, actually about the work you’re doing!

AA: Alrighty. Okay, first question. Which artist’s work are you currently most drawn to? That could be like a contemporary artist, someone who you've been researching?

SN: Oh gosh. 

AA: Who are you just obsessed with?

SN: Hold on, let me check my feed.

AA: I'm telling you I do the same thing. I'm like "who have I saved recently?"

SN: Who have I been looking at? Gosh, I've been doing so much research on things but artists... and another thing with me is that I have a point where I try not to look at work.  Because I don't want any influences coming in and interjecting. 

AA: That's fair.

SN: Oh.. Otobong Nkanga is one...

AA: I don't think I'm familiar with this person.

SN: …I have been following her work for some time. And I think when you see the work, her blending of figurative symbolism, abstraction, you'll understand why.  

AA: Ok, second question, if not working as an artist, what profession would you pursue? Like totally non-arts related.

SN: That's a good question. Probably some kind of attorney.

AA: Really? interesting. Everyone always picks something that's still art adjacent ... an attorney? Were you going to pursue law at some point?

SN: I've always been interested in it. It's still embedded in the work that I do as an administrator too. Given my focus has been geared towards protecting artists, thinking about legacy planning, estate planning. 

AA: Okay. Yeah. See, it always comes back to art. [laughs] Got it. That's actually very interesting. I could see that pivot, later on in life or something. Okay, in your opinion, what was the best moment for black and brown artists and their work? That can be like, a huge swath of time, it can be a specific moment in history. A moment where artists were really able to stretch their legs.

SN: Man... I feel like every revolution, every revolution within the US and globally. I can't wait to see 20 years from now, the outcome of this moment because we're not only experiencing it here in the US, but also abroad. Just think about all the countries that are experiencing their own uprisings, and have been for the last couple of years. I mean, I would say the last 12 years, there's been a consistent amount of uprisings everywhere. So I feel like this is what our work as creatives is about. Sometimes we're the ones to spark the revolution. Actually social change tends to stem from some kind of creative movement that brings folks together.

AA: It's kind of a changing of thought processes and theory. Like a cultural revolution being a precursor to a political or socio-political.

SN: Yeah, you and I have a very direct personal connection to that, through, the New  Jewel Movement in Grenada. And we've seen the long-lasting impact of it  to this present day. We're still working through those unresolved issues every day on the island. It even extends beyond the island. Look at us, we weren't physically there during the revolution but the remnants are there still being talked about, like it just happened.

AA: Because I mean, the spirit of it is the same. That idea of wanting better understanding how to get there, and making it happen.  

                      What was the last work that made you feel something? And I mean, like a visceral feeling like you cried, you laughed, you were angered by it, you felt very strongly upon viewing the work or hearing the work, interacting with the work.

SN: What did I see recently? That's a good question. Gosh, it's been so long since I've seen work, too. There were others but one that comes to mind is Brick House. Just because of where I was standing when I encountered it. I was at a distance from the Highline. And I love this idea of light not being able to penetrate through it but peeks out around it...like the event horizon in physics. I kept thinking about this black, beautiful, female forming vessel. It held me and spoke to me.

AA: I loved that piece, I can't get enough of Simone’s work. This is the last one, how, if at all, will your practice transform as you move towards a more digitally based and centered market? Obviously you have works that are printed and translate easily. But then you have a ton of work that is not, and that has to be experienced. So I just wonder, with all of the push for virtual viewing rooms, and pivoting towards virtual art fairs and this and this, are you thinking about that with your practice? 

SN: That's interesting. It's more about the expansion of storytelling and the possibility of what storytelling can be. What can the digital space do for my storytelling?

AA: So moreso, utilizing the moment to pivot the works, got it. 

SN: So I created an animation years ago, and that was the spark of something, I just haven't had the time to get back to it the way I want yet. I want a period of time where I have some uninterrupted space, more resources to work with, such as the technology, and maybe access to a few experts who can  take my stop motion animation idea and help me tweak it, and edit it, and get it to the place that will satisfy me. So for me the digital space would be the opportunity to continue integrating timed-based media into my work which I feel already has movement in its own way. And then I’m also very interested in playing with sound. I always had this vision of manipulating sound, and vibrations and connecting that to my work around energy fields, waves, and light. So viewers  would be able to see it, listen to it, and then if they're attending the show in-person, then could also feel it through motion sensor vibrations.

AA: I love that!

SN: So I'd love to play around and experiment more in the virtual space. If we were forced to think less about the physical experience and more about the digital, virtual one, then yeah, I've already had this bucket list of things that I want to do. It would just involve me having access to the expertise, time to play and understand the technology.

AA: I've not, experienced an artist saying that they almost feel excited about the opportunity to engage with [the digital space] a little bit more, because it'll expand their practice. Usually, it's more so from a purchasing standpoint, more so appreciative of the opportunity to work digitally, because it makes the work more accessible to people and therefore translates. That's great, that positive perspective in terms of the digitalization of the art world. I'm excited, I want to see that happen for you. 

SN: This makes me think about a wearable sculpture that I have been working on. It’s a project I’m returning to after a few years and wanting to fully bring to fruition. It was made with the intention of being a wearable sculpture that I would mount and display on the wall. In this next iteration it will be presented with a wire armature often used in Caribbean carnival costumes. So it will be   something that I could wear and perform in. I’m still a bit shy about photographing myself and even performing in public.

AA: Because performances have not been a part of your practice yet.

SN:  No, actually it has, through my cart, my Creative Gathering Wellness Station. But I don't really see that as a performance, but many folks have called it a performance because of how I activate the cart in public space.

AA: It seems more social practice than performance.

SN: Exactly. I believe folks associate it with performance because it brings together all my ways of working and the conversations I've been having within my 2 & 3 dimensional works and seeing it evolve overtime and  manifest into some type of happening. I don't really prepare folks for the cart or tell people in advance where I'm going to be with the cart. Many times I just show up with the cart in places and you “catch it if you can”.

AA: I mean, a performative element to your practice makes complete sense. We're just waiting on the edge of our seats.[laughs] It's really the last piece of the puzzle, quite frankly.

SN: It is! I’m still on that journey though. I'm a little shy. I still got a little work to do to reach that level of comfort.

SN: I know, it's only a matter of time because when I’m asked the question "Oh, so who's gonna wear the costume?" I cannot imagine anyone else wearing it but me.

AA: No, absolutely. 

SN: So clearly...

AA: It is going to be you.

SN: I've always known that I was building this garment for myself. I just have to own it now. I also can’t imagine giving someone else the task. There's still some construction details I’m working out around the distribution of weight considering the height of the garment and it’s elaborate beading. But there's something about the way I have to both balance and carry the weight of the garment that would be interesting to explore as a performance.

AA: The physicality. Absolutely.

SN: The way the garment moves, how my body feels wearing this structure. What would it look and feel like to wear the garment in water? What would being out in nature with the elements do to the garment? I want to continue to understand the mechanics and wearability of the garment before I could direct anybody else to do that.

AA: But circling back,I think that your response or your perspective on the art market, going digital or more digital rather kind of speaks to how BEACON centers hope. It's putting out positive vibrations in spaces that really need them. 

SN: I think there's infinite possibility. I really believe that. So I live and practice that in my life and work. It’s how I conduct myself and move in the world. And if we're saying we don't want to be confined by labels, then I want to continuously, stretch myself and explore as many things as possible and then decide from there how I choose to tell the story. 

AA:  Absolutely. So yeah, excited to see that.