Mashilo, Brackens and Selden will share their speculative visions of collective transformation, looking to the representation of the body as a site for communal reclamation. Representation of the body remains a powerful locus for storytelling. Cultural documentation of the body can never be read in isolation, but speaks to broader narratives of place, memory and collectively affirmed notions of selfhood. In essence, our bodies are relational.

Questions such as “How do new modes of representation alter our ways of seeing?” and “How can artmaking actively dismantle inherited histories and envision intersectional possibilities for shared agency?” will be unpacked and discussed, followed by a Q&A.

The panel also coincides with the opening of Mashilo’s first US solo exhibition, The Laying of Hands, opening at the gallery on 13 February at 6PM.

Spaces are limited. RSVP to: rsvp.la@southernguild.com

PANELLISTS

ABOUT Essence Harden

Essence Harden is the co-curator of Made in LA, 2025, curator of Frieze LA, Focus 2024, and a visual arts curator at the California African American Museum. Harden has curated several exhibitions throughout the States, including at the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD), and Oakland Museum of California, amongst others. Harden has contributed to publications such as the New York Times Magazine, Contemporary Art Review LA (CARLA), Artsy and Cultured Magazine, and has written catalogue entries for California Biennial: Pacific Gold; Brave New Worlds: Exploration of Space: Palm Springs Art Museum; and What Needs to Be Said: Hallie Ford Fellows Exhibition. Harden has also served as an art consultant for film and television. In 2018, Harden was the recipient of The Creative Capital, Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant, and in 2020 was the Annenberg Innovation Lab Civic Media Fellow.

ABOUT Manyaku Mashilo

Mashilo’s practice is world-building; rendering a liminal landscape for identity formation, modes of being and belonging. Using cultural and spiritual symbols, the artist refutes ongoing and historic issues of violence, systemic racism and mass displacement, crafting an alternative realm where her figures can rebuild towards a more justified, creative future.

ABOUT Diedrick Brackens

Brackens is known for his intricate, vibrant tapestries that explore African American as well as Queer identity, merging the everyday with the allegorical, the poetic with the political. He incorporates weaving and quilting techniques from across the globe as a base for his tapestries, creating a language based in texture. His work almost always features figures in various poses and settings - entire worlds captured in a single moment.

ABOUT Ayesha Selden

LA-based collector Selden has been building her art collection since 2021, having since amassed a robust mix of contemporary, historic and international artists. Comprising over 150 works by African artists from around the globe, the collection consists of paintings, textile works, conceptual pieces and ceramics. Unique works by legacy artists such as Sam Gilliam and Alma Thomas, alongside mid-career artists like Hank Willis Thomas, Bisa Butler, and Shinique Smith feature, will Selden also champion emerging talents such as Alteronce Gumby, Roberto Lugo, and Lindsay Adams.

Patronage is a fundamental aspect of her collecting practice, with significant institutional contributions, including donations of artwork to the Smithsonian and the National Gallery of Art. Additionally, works from her collection have been loaned for exhibitions to institutions such as SF MoAD and the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art. Selden has successfully enmeshed herself in a growing community of dedicated Black art collectors.