Artist Statement
Naïstini Valaydon is a Mauritian multidisciplinary artist based in London.
Her work explores the human condition and psychology through a complex exploration of the
human body, behaviour and mind. She makes use of photography, film and installation as primary
visual languages to translate her ideas.
Being from Indian descent, born and bred in an African country and having lived in multiple
European cities, her experiences and process of self reflection have led her to persistently question
the position of the woman, especially of colour in globalized, Americanized and Europeanized
societies.
Through her art practice she addresses issues related to the colonization and decolonization of the
body and the soul. What it means and how to be a woman according to the laws of nature; how the
female body and energy were meant to function as opposed to the male body and energy for which
this misogynistic patriarchal society is designed to function.
Therefore a recurring examination in her works is, how to exist and to co-exist in this current
society.
Naïstini’s artworks are known to be very visceral and provocative as she makes use of her personal
experiences and own body most of the time, which provides her work with authenticity and
relatability. Her practice aims at creating a cathartic release in the audience, opening a dialogue,
starting a conversation and allowing the audience to acknowledge the facts and reality a lot of us live
in, which is the first step towards change.
Naïstini uses the contemporary art scene as a terrain for activism as it is a place where the
unspeakable, the philosophical and the political ideas can meet and be discussed visually, but not
only.
Education
2021-2022, MA Fine Art, Chelsea College of Art, University of the Arts London
2020-2021, Graduate Diploma Fine Art, Chelsea College of Art, University of the Arts London
2017-2020, Bachelors Degree in the Science of Communication, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord
2019, Bachelors in Photography and Music Technology, Coventry University (Erasmus)
Exhibitions
March 2023, Hysterical, group show curated by Eliza Hatch & Bee Illustrates, Bermondsey Project Space, London
December 2022, Nowadays, group show, Florence Contemporary Gallery, Florence
September 2022, Handle With Care, group show curated by Mackenzie Montgomery & Clara Greenfield, Cookhouse Gallery, London
July 2022, MAFA Degree Show, group show, Chelsea College of Arts, London
March - April 2022, Le Patriarcat Passe à la Casserole, group show, l'Atelier Marthe, Paris
March 2022, Fine Ants, group show, Cookhouse Gallery, London
February 2022, you Don't own Me, group show curated by Aida Paloma & Alina Savina, Dream Bags Jaguar Shoes, London
November 2021, Root, MAFA 21-22 group show, Cookhouse Gallery, London
November 2021, Creatives of London City Island, group show, Lighthouse Gallery, London
June 2021, Open Studios, Graduate Diploma 20/21 group show, Chelsea College of Art, London
May 2021, I'm Ready To Dance Again, Graduate Diploma 20-21 group show, Safehouse 1 & 2, London
April 2021, Can't Touch That photography exhibition, Cookhouse Gallery, London
January 2020, Double i photography exhibition, Blacksheep Bar, Paris
March 2019, Digital Exhibition, group show with LAHAD and the Bushwick Community Darkroom, Brooklyn, New York
March 2019, Exposure Festival, group show, Coventry Market, Coventry
Art Fair
Mobu International Art Fair 2023, Bucharest, represented by Danuser & Ramirez Gallery
Publication
50 Artists to Watch: 2023 Edition by the Florence Contemporary Gallery, 2023
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYPJPQRZ
Interview
Artist Interview with the Florence Contemporary Gallery, 2023
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CoDFFKfokGX/