Senga Nengudi: Introduction

Senga Nengudi’s practice begins with bodily experiences. She transforms these into sculptures, photographs, and performances that expand both the limits and possibilities of the body and embrace a wider view of social and political norms. Early on, she began experimenting with everyday materials including paper, worn pantyhose, rubber, sand, and discarded objects. Within a framework that was intentionally conceptual, these materials became poetic forms.

Nengudi was part of the vanguard of Black artists in the late 1960s and ’70s who pushed the boundaries of creative practice and defied art historical traditions through a multitude of art forms and styles. Nengudi was committed to addressing Black experiences and social inequities through art, yet she found inspiration in abstract forms rather than in realistic figuration.

She also sought a universal message: “I want people to know that they can expand themselves, that they don’t have to be viewed as one thing and kept in that box.”

ANYTHING I MAKE
HAS BLACK FINGERPRINTS ALL OVER IT
BECAUSE I AM BLACK

ANYTHING I MAKE
HAS THE FRAGRANCE OF A WOMAN
BECAUSE I AM A WOMAN

ANYTHING I MAKE
HAS A RECOGNITION OF SPIRIT
AND A SALUTATION TO THE ONE
BECAUSE I AM THAT

-Senga Nengudi, 1996

Senga Nengudi: Topologies is organized by the Lenbachhaus Munich, in cooperation with the DAM. Concept and idea by Stephanie Weber, Lenbachhaus. Funding is provided by the donors to the Annual Fund Leadership Campaign, and the residents who support the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Promotional support is provided by 5280 Magazine and CBS4.