Gio Swaby
My work revolves around an exploration of identity, more specifically, the intersections of Blackness and womanhood. I am interested in the ways in which this physical identity can serve as a positive force of connection and closeness, while also examining its imposed relationship to otherness.
Each piece I create continues to build upon an integral aspect of my practice: to contribute to the visibility of Blackness in the art world. At many points in our lives, Black women can live within a paradox of hypervisibility and yet still not feeling truly seen. I want my work to function as a love letter of sorts to Black women, to create space for us not only to be represented but to be celebrated.

Love Letter 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in
96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Love Letter 5

Pretty Pretty 8

Pretty Pretty 7

New Growth 2

New Growth Second Chapter 2

Pretty Pretty 5

Love Letter 3

Pretty Pretty 9

My Hands Are Clean 1

Going Out Clothes 3

My Hands Are Clean 3

Another Side To Me 2

My Hands Are Clean 2

Going Out Clothes 1

My Hands Are Clean 4

Another Side To Me 1
Gio Swaby
Love Letter 5, 2021
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in
96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
- Tumblr

Gio Swaby: Both Sides of the Sun
April 10, 2021 to June 5, 2021
Claire Oliver Gallery
View exhibit press release (pdf)
My work revolves around an exploration of identity, more specifically, the intersections of Blackness and womanhood. I am interested in the ways in which this physical identity can serve as a positive force of connection and closeness, while also examining its imposed relationship to otherness.

Current image:
Love Letter 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 6 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 6
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Love Letter 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 7
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Love Letter 7
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
New Growth 1
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 5 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Love Letter 6
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 9
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Love Letter 4
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 8
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 8 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
New Growth 2
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021

Current image:
New Growth 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2021
Four Now; Leonardo Benzant, Barbara Earl Thomas, Adebunmi Gbadebo & Gio Swaby
December 1, 2020 to January 23, 2021
Claire Oliver Gallery
View exhibit press release (pdf)
Four Now Is A Presentation of The Gallery’s Booth at Untitled Art Fair,
Telegraphing the Excitement of Miami Art Week To Claire Oliver’s Harlem Headquarters
With A Dynamic Program of Virtual Talks

Current image:
That Which Weaves All Of Time Together
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
2020

Current image:
That Which Weaves All Of Time Together (detail)
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
2020

Current image:
Four Now
Exhibition Installation Photograph
2020

Current image:
Holding Fire 2
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
2020

Current image:
Holding Fire 2 (detail)
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
2020

Current image:
Four Now
Exhibition Installation Photograph
2020

Current image:
Production 1
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
2020

Current image:
Production 1 (detail)
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
2020

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2020

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 3 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2020

Current image:
That Which Weaves All Of Time Together
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
2020

Current image:
On Fire
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
2020

Current image:
A Dilemma of Inheritance: pages 7-15-10
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
2020

Current image:
Pretty Pretty 4
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
2020
Love Letter 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 6 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 6
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Love Letter 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 7
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Love Letter 7
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

New Growth 1
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 14 x 1 in | 96.5 x 35.6 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 5 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Love Letter 6
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 9
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Love Letter 4
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 8
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

Pretty Pretty 8 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in | 96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021

New Growth 2
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 14 x 1 in | 96.5 x 35.6 x 2.5 cm
2021

New Growth 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 14 x 1 in | 96.5 x 35.6 x 2.5 cm
2021

That Which Weaves All Of Time Together
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
40 x 150 x 15 in | 101.6 x 381.0 x 38.1 cm
2020

That Which Weaves All Of Time Together (detail)
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
40 x 150 x 15 in | 101.6 x 381.0 x 38.1 cm
2020

Four Now
Exhibition Installation Photograph

Holding Fire 2
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
26 x 40 x 1 in | 66.0 x 101.6 x 2.5 cm
2020

Holding Fire 2 (detail)
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
26 x 40 x 1 in | 66.0 x 101.6 x 2.5 cm
2020

Four Now
Exhibition Installation Photograph

Production 1
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
36 x 84 x 3 in | 91.4 x 213.4 x 7.6 cm
2020

Production 1 (detail)
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
36 x 84 x 3 in | 91.4 x 213.4 x 7.6 cm
2020

Pretty Pretty 3
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
36 x 84 x 1 in | 91.4 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2020

Pretty Pretty 3 (detail)
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
36 x 84 x 1 in | 91.4 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2020

That Which Weaves All Of Time Together
upholstery fabric, string, monofilament, leather, gel-medium, acrylic, pony beads, semi-precious stones and seed beads
40 x 150 x 14 in | 101.6 x 381.0 x 35.6 cm
2020

On Fire
cut Tyvek and hand-rolled lithograph
26 x 40 x 1 in | 66.0 x 101.6 x 2.5 cm
2020

A Dilemma of Inheritance: pages 7-15-10
Human Black Hair, Cotton, Rice Paper, Denim, Indigo, Hair Dye, Silk Screen Print
77 x 30 x 1 in | 195.6 x 76.2 x 2.5 cm
2020

Pretty Pretty 4
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
36 x 84 x 1 in | 91.4 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2020

Solo Exhibitions
- Rooted: An Exploration of Blackness and Womanhood –
The Current | Nassau, Bahamas – 2018 - We All Know Each Other – Unitt/Pitt Projects | Vancouver, BC – 2017
Selected Group Exhibitions
- Net Worth – UNITED CONTEMPORARY | Toronto, ON – 2020
- Transforming Spaces – The D’Auguilar Art Foundation | Nassau, Bahamas – 2019
- Die Textile: Stoffsuche – Kunsthaus Alte Mühle | Schmallenberg, Germany – 2018
- 5th Annual Art Competition – Central Bank of The Bahamas |
Nassau, Bahamas – 2018 - Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series (Vancouver Finals) – Gallery Jones |
Vancouver, BC – 2018 - Going Out Clothes – Cheeky Proletariat | Vancouver, BC – 2018
- Übersee: Cuba and The Bahamas – Halle 14 | Leipzip, Germany – 2017
- National Exhibition 8 – National Art Gallery of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas – 2016
- Graduate Exhibition – Emily Carr University of Art & Design | Vancouver, BC – 2016
- Nassau Calling – HilgerBROTKunsthalle | Vienna, Austria – 2015
- Black Girl in Unnatural Habitat – Abraham Rogatnick Gallery | Vancouver, BC – 2015
- 32nd Annual Art Competition – Central Bank of The Bahamas | Nassau, BahamasMap of the New Art – Giorgio Cini Foundation | Island of San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice – 2015\National Exhibition 7 – National Art Gallery of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas – 2014
- Intersect: Junior Residency Artists’ Exhibition – Popopstudios ICVA | Nassau, Bahamas – 2013
- Celebrating 40 Years of Bahamian Independence – Bahamian Embassy | Beijing, China – 2013
- SINGLESEX – National Art Gallery of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas – 2013
- Harry C. Moore Library Mural Project – The College of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas -2012
- Independence Invitational – Central Bank of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas 29th Annual Art Competition – Central Bank of The Bahamas | Nassau, Bahamas -2012
- Transforming Spaces – The Hub | Nassau, Bahamas -2012
- Transforming Spaces – The Pro Gallery | Nassau, Bahamas; Bahamas International Film Festival | Nassau, Bahamas – 2011
Awards and Distinctions
- BC Arts Council Grant – Project Assistance for Visual Artists | 2020
- Emily Carr University – President’s Media Award for Best Art Installation | 2016
- Emily Carr University of Art & Design – Scholarship | 2015
- Charitable Arts Foundation – Tuition Grant | 2014
- Ministry of Education of The Bahamas – Tuition Grant | 2013
- Popopstudios ICVA – Junior Artist Residency Prize | 2013
- College of The Bahamas – Tuition Bursary | 2011

Love Letter 5
thread and fabric sewn on canvas
38 x 84 x 1 in
96.5 x 213.4 x 2.5 cm
2021
Download Biography

Museum & Institutional News
Diaspora, Darning and “Die Textile”: Giovanna Swaby takes her place in Germany
National Art Gallery of the Bahamas
July 24, 2018

Museum & Institutional News
The Translation Conversation: Migration and navigating blackness in Bahamian womanhood
National Art Gallery of the Bahamas
January 24, 2017