The 1-54 Studio Visit Series: Alexis Peskine

Artist Alexis Peskine, represented by October Gallery (London, UK) in the current 1-54 Online Edition, invited us to visit his studio and told us more about his most recent large-scale portraits. Building on his heritage and personal experiences, Peskine’s reliefs and photography focus on the complexity of themes impacting people from the African Diaspora. Peskine’s signature works are large-scale mixed media portraits rendered by hammering gold leafed nails of different gauge into treated wooden planks. The use of metal hammered into wood as a primary medium makes conscious reference to the Minkisi power figures of the Congo Basin: spiritually charged objects whose traditional function was to protect and ward off evil spirits.