, her solo show at MoMA in 2017; or her contribution to the 2019 Whitney Biennial – is to be submerged in an operatic cacophony of both her references and her many talents. Having only started exhibiting four years ago, Syms has amassed a small but mighty roster of showcases in a remarkably short space of time.
As with many of Syms’ works, the narrative centres on a black female protagonist, this time the star and professional golfer Athena, a character Syms previously explored in Capricorn, a short video work and a character study of sorts that she presented at Frieze 2019 for Sadie Coles. In that 100-second film, the golfer – clad in a printed Marine Serre bodysuit fluorescent green sports T-shirt – intermittently warms up, dances and takes on a driving range.
For AnOther Magazine, the artist presents a series of exclusive collages, which encompass the frenzied and multifaceted layers of her research process, the result of which will form the basis of this new work.