The Reach
Collaborative text by Yaniya Lee and Oreka James
–

"You've come to visit," she says, smiling. "What stories have you brought to tell me today?"
It is no story
I sit down next to her

The arch of Aporo Hill cuts the sky in half
Lightning shatters above
Provoking everything underneath to shine… the colours seem to scream
Moving shapes and patterns rise up from all surfaces
I run for shelter under a wilted looking tree, almost glowing
This particular tree harbors the most vibrant of reds below dancing shadows, amid a zephyr stirring
In Koji, the ground all around is a soft red, staining the mind of anyone who leaves

Grandma gazes out beyond the low fence. Her arm keeps a steady pace with the pestle, but her eyes confirm - she listens

CRACKKK! the thunder echoes throughout the lands
Illuminous crimson begins to shift and move around my feet
An apparition, black as night, returns my gaze
although I cannot see that which is looking back
Stillness surrounds us entirely as the heat off their body encircles mine
For a moment I imagine, perhaps they do too
Our force
if we manage, it would cause a coming-together. If we reached hard enough there would be a Collapse, some kind of folding of what could be.
A coalescence of all of the realms, of all the heres and elsewheres – if we could just reach

Using an amalgamation of materials, Oreka James explores the connections between fabricated and literal scapes, the extraordinary and the mundane––potentially to reach a revelation. Believing animism to be the link to an unveiling of possibilities and realities, James composes works that become activated in the space they occupy. In a bid to give them life, James explores the beauty of oralities, at times transposing objects and symbols that hold cultural values and beliefs and serve as placeholders to the unknown. Fascinated with African-Caribbean folklore and comparative mythology, they often make reference to characters from age old tales, proverbs and material culture.

Beings emerging from the dark, or manifesting in the light, the scenes depict a curiosity between the metaphysical and spirituality. They intimately visit moments of love and loss, joy and loneliness, and the playful quarrel between life and death––often arriving at vibrant animations. Oils and acrylics heavily lather smooth surfaces while found objects are transformed into structures that beckon for connection. In James’ works, fleeting moments, visions and memories are transmuted into vivid stories.

Oreka James (they/she, b. 1991, Toronto, Canada) received their BFA in Drawing and Painting from the Ontario College of Art and Design while studying Furniture Design. They have completed a group residency at the Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto) and have shown at Pangée (Montreal), Efrain Lopez Project Space (Chicago), Cooper Cole (Toronto), Patel Brown Gallery (Toronto), Mercer Union (Toronto), Gallery 44 (Toronto), and Margin of Eras Gallery (Toronto). Their work is part of the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts of Montreal.