2023 Scholarship Awardee

Andrea Tosten

Common themes explored through my work are social constructs, binary thinking, and the nature of existence. I often utilize letterforms, paper, and sewing to re-contextualize and conceptualize my Catholic upbringing, my background, and where I fit into how history has unfolded. Influences include Annette Lawrence, Janine Antoni, Tierney Malone, and Glenn Ligon.

I want to be active and present, a part of my community from my perspective as a Black woman. I am often engaged in an open exploration of social constructs, how they affect me, and how I can shift and change them. As a maker, I'm very into technique and love to indulge in perfection. Even as I work towards that perfection in a very technical way, the materials are going to do what they are going to do. Visual conversations between me, community, gender, race, and the material form the identity of my work.