Mementos of the Sun

A solo exhibition by T. Eliott Mansa
February 7 – 28, 2025

T. Eliott Mansa‘s Mementos of the Sun is a poignant and powerful solo show—his second with the gallery. Emerging from four years of deep reflection and personal exploration, Mansa presents works assembled from found materials and objects, repurposed and transformed, to convey a profound narrative. Through his visual poetry, the artist offers a glimpse into his truth, inspiring viewers to do the same.

Themes of memory, mourning, and resilience thread through the exhibition, evoking a shared experience of emotion, connection, and solace. Mansa’s innovative approach, incorporating unconventional elements—teddy bears, nails, sand, seashells, mirrors, sea glass, ceramics, and more—echoes the layered aesthetics of roadside memorials, Southern vernacular sculpture, and West African ritual traditions. At the intersection of painting, fiber art, assemblage, and sculpture, Mansa dissolves boundaries merging symmetry, abstraction, and tactile depth to achieve both spiritual intensity and historical weight.

His work honors the endurance and sacrifices of the African diaspora. Drawing on cross-cultural iconography— navigation charts, ritual artifacts, and ancestral symbols—he expands the language of materiality in ways that recall the legacy of
Thornton Dial, Chakaia Booker, and Theaster Gates.

Mementos of the Sun invites viewers into a space where materials hold memory and history is woven into every texture. In Mansa’s hands, these assemblages become acts of remembrance—both an homage to the past and an assertion of presence.