Diana Eusebio, AIRIE 2023 Fellow — Artists in Residence in Everglades

Diana Eusebio

2023
Interdisciplinary
Miami, FL

Diana Eusebio is a Peruvian-Dominican multidisciplinary artist based in Miami, Florida. In a practice that spans wearable garment, textile, and photography, Eusebio researches Black and Latinx diasporic stories and Pre-Columbian textile traditions. Her pieces employ color as a means to honor indigenous natural dyeing techniques and recontextualize our reciprocal connection to the natural world. By combining ancestral and modern processes such as natural dyeing and digital textile printing, her work catalogs a powerful record of contemporary Afro-Latinx and Indigenous history.

Eusebio was the recipient of the 2022 Green Family Foundation Award. Institutional exhibitions include the Museum of Modern Art in New York, The Hall of Nations in Washington D.C., and the Rubell Museum in Miami. Studio residencies include Anderson Ranch Art Center in Aspen, CO; Oolite Arts’ in Miami, FL; Deering Estate in Miami, FL; and Red Hook Labs in New York, NY. Eusebio holds a BFA in Fiber from the Maryland Institute College of Art.

BIO

Informed by her career as a fashion designer, Diana Eusebio progressed into photography and textile art which employs a multidisciplinary approach that begins by interviewing and photographing members of the diaspora, then digitally printing these photos onto fabrics and garments, and finally, manipulating the fabric surfaces through textile techniques such as natural dyeing and embroidery. A first-generation American, born, raised, and based in Miami, at the intersection of Peruvian-Dominican heritage and Black-Latino-Indigenous culture, Eusebio draws inspiration from the intersections of identity and community. It is important that Eusebio’s image-making process employs a multidisciplinary approach in order to research the lived experiences and traditions of other members of the diaspora. Through audio-visual recorded interviews, fashion, textiles, and photographic storytelling, her work catalogs a powerful record of contemporary Afro-Latinx history.

STATEMENT

How can we make the outdoors a space of belonging?

“Growing up it was common to hear the Quechua word “Pachamama,” or Mother Earth in English, thrown around as a household term, now I’m proud to say that it has become a word that grounds myself and my artwork. My family is of Quechua origin (Indigenous Peoples of Peru) and within our practices, we truly believe that all life is interconnected and that the “Pachamama” is to be respected. From the wildlife to the air we breathe there is a sacred balance that needs to be maintained for our natural environments, and even our own human lives, to be preserved and therefore thrive. In line with AIRIE’s mission, I believe that we have a responsibility to uplift Black, Latinx, and Indigenous voices that have been overlooked and erased over time, and by preserving our traditions and telling our stories we can make the outdoors a space of belonging. Within my artistic practice, I combine these elements by preserving indigenous textile traditions and sharing the stories of members of my community.”

AIRIE Asks with Diana