Simon Tatum explores themes of double consciousness, colonialism, and cultural identity through deconstructed and reconstructed imagery and found objects.
SIMON TATUM'S EMERGING VOICE
An interdisciplinary artist from the Cayman Islands, Tatum's work delves into processes inspired by W.E.B. Du Bois’s concept of double consciousness. He deconstructs and reconstructs printed imagery—such as advertisements and documentary photos—and found objects to create a personal visual language.
His chosen imagery and objects reflect his interest in colonial narratives, tourism, and his experience as a mixed-race Caribbean man navigating external expectations of cultural aesthetics.
EDUCATION AND EXHIBITIONS
Simon Tatum is currently based in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. He earned a BA in Art from the University of Missouri in 2017, followed by an MFA in Sculpture and Expanded Media from Kent State University in 2021. His thesis exhibition, Romantic Caribbean, was shown at the CVA Gallery of Kent State University in March 2021.
Tatum has participated in several notable group exhibitions, including Arrivants: Art and Migration in the Anglophone Caribbean World at the Barbados Museum and Historical Society (2018). In 2022, he joined the Alice Yard contingent at Documenta 15 in Kassel, Germany, presenting posters from his series See Your Travel Agent.
Simon currently lives in Nashville, where he continues his artistic practice and works at Vanderbilt University.
