Artist Cassi Namoda Shares Her Favorite Artworks From Our California Cool Auction

With her breezy, laid-back
nature and relaxed sense of style, artist Cassi Namoda proves that
you don’t have to be from the Golden State to exude California
cool.

The Mozambique-born Namoda, who
grew up traveling the world, found herself fascinated with Southern
California in her early twenties and decided, one day, to move to
Los Angeles. 

Today, she spends her time
between LA and East Hampton in New York, making artworks that
examine the influence of Portuguese imperialism on African and
African-diaspora cultures. For Namoda, her practice—which she
likens to exercises in “contemporary consciousness”—allows her to
engage fully in artistic explorations of her own childhood, which
was spent in several countries across
Africa.  

Ever since she can remember,
Namoda has admired those who choose to pursue creative paths, and
has pursued several in her career. Although she is a painter, she also studied
literature and film as a college student, and worked as a fashion
designer, art curator, and even a perfumer. 

In honor of Artnet’s “California Cool”
sale, presented in partnership with LA-based fashion brand
Vince, we sat down with Namoda to hear more about what inspires her
these days, what “California cool” means to her, and why she values
the art of collaboration.

What does “California cool” mean to you?

I think the term “California
cool” is sort of like a state of mind or being. It embodies a sense
of beauty and a real passion for something intangible, like
watching the sunset over Malibu Canyon, or taking a hike in
Topanga, or the visceral energy you get from downtown LA. It feels
raw.

Why were you drawn to living and making work in Southern
California?

At the time, it felt like a
great way to alienate myself. LA is complex and it’s not an easy
place to navigate. I think it’s good for creative people to
experience that. 

You were born in Maputo, Mozambique, and then spent your
childhood traveling and living in different countries around the
world. What was it like to experience so many different cultures
from such a young age? When did those experiences begin to manifest
in your work?

I was born in Maputo, yes, but
being of Mozambican descent didn’t start to inform my work or my
thinking until much later.

My experience growing up, moving
from place to place very often, was, for my family, very much a
quest to achieve a higher understanding of the world and what it
means to be alive and human. I think my father really wanted to
instill that in his children.  

You’ve also worked as a fashion designer, an art curator, and
a perfumer, for which you collaborated with Linda Sivrican of Orris
Perfumery to design a signature scent. How did you go about
gathering inspiration for each of these different creative
endeavors?

Collaboration is a very
important part of my DNA. I think it’s because I was born into this
world as a twin, and the idea of making something beautiful with
other people makes a lot of sense to me. 

I don’t think there’s one path
to creativity, or that it has to be achieved through solitary,
traditional methods. You can work together in the way that two
people get married and have a child, and then that’s the product of
making something beautiful with someone.

The scent I made with Linda
Sivrican was based on one of the recurring characters in my
paintings, Maria. I always thought about what her scent would
be like if I were to ever bring her to life. The scent we made for
her felt appropriate. I could tell from the process that Linda has
the same spirit that I do running through her veins.

A lot of the drive behind my
collaborations comes down to intuition. I have a couple more
projects coming up, like [the production of] a single-origin tea
from my grandfather’s property in a place called Gurue, in
Mozambique. For that, I am working with a graphic designer named
Maria Triconis. Her name was a serendipitous surprise, and worked
so well for this collaboration. The tea is also very special, and
it makes you remember your bones on this earth.

Has your background as a curator informed your work as an
artist at all?

I’d like to think of my short
time curating as a period when I was telling a story that I felt
was crucial. 

What period in art history has influenced your work
most?

You can view it at the Neue
Galerie: German and Austrian art from the early 20th
century.

What’s inspiring you right now? Who are some of your favorite
artists? 

Right now, what’s inspiring me
is [the late German expressionist painter and printmaker] Ernst
Ludwig Kirchner, and very early Makonde sculptures.

What are some of your favorite ways to relax and unwind when
you’re not in the studio? 

I really like to read, do yoga,
be in nature, and spend time with my family. I like to learn new
things.

What’s next for you? Do you have anything planned for
2020?

I have a show forthcoming at
Pippy Houldsworth Gallery in London in January, and of course the
launch of the tea project in Mozambique.

See Cassi’s auction picks from our California Cool
sale below.

Notepad Doodle 3 (State
II) (2018)
Jonas Wood

“There’s something about Jonas
Wood’s works that are so effortlessly full of joy. There’s a real
sensitivity to living, and daily life. I like these plants—they’re
so colorful.” 

Prototype #4
Methenge (1990)
Edward and Nancy
Kienholz

“Composition, form, abstraction, theater, and
Surrealism—this work has it all. It’s a very good survey of all
these components combined.” 

Marilyn
Crying (2013)
Russell Young

“I love this screen print of
Marilyn Monroe crying. I often paint a figure crying in my work. I
am attracted to vulnerability in humans.”

Illustrations for Six Fairy Tales from
the Brothers Grimm (complete set of 45 works)
(1969–70)
David Hockney

“I love Hockney’s illustrations,
and to have them in the format of a book is such a treat. There’s a
certain lightheartedness and tenderness in the work. I also love
fairy tales.” 

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