Both a site and an idea, home is a place to stay, leave, and return to, as well as a feeling, a metaphor, an aspiration. But what if it were also something you could take with you wherever you went? In the inventive mixed media practice of artist Dominique Moody, home is where the artist is—the perfect muse for creating both a nomadic vessel to inhabit, and works of art responding to her meandering routes. Her early peripatetic life in a military family—and their strategies for creating comfort and stability across the adventures—imbued her with a permanent wanderlust. Responding to challenges with her sight, at a certain point Moody undertook an exploration of tactility and intuition, working with collage and assemblage in a site-specific modality that also deepened and expanded her sense of place—or, rather, of all the places. Forty-six moves later and counting, Moody and her famous tiny live-in studio on wheels are still ruling the road. But for the past few months she’s been an artist in residence at Blue Roof Studios, where she’s organized an installation that embodies her inventive, far-flung experiences.
L.A. WEEKLY: What is your short answer to people who ask what your work is about?
DOMINIQUE MOODY: I use ordinary objects to tell stories that are extraordinary.
Why do you live and work in L.A., and not elsewhere?
I’ve lived in many major cities over the decades but Los Angeles has a strong diverse BIPOC assemblage artist community and a public that embraces that aesthetic and my work.
When is/was your current/most recent/next show or project?
Recently, I’ve spent the past 4 months in an artist residency through Arts at Blue Roof, located in the heart of L.A. This residency has provided me an opportunity to explore the sacredness of the artist studio, through an assemblage installation titled Sacred Studio, which will open on Saturday, August 12, at Blue Roof Studios.
Dominique Moody: Sweat Equity, 2005
What artist living or dead would you most like to show or work with?
There are many, but there is a group of artists that have inspired me greatly and they are the Quilters of Gee’s Bend in Alabama—an extraordinary community of generations of quilters that create quilts made from remnants of clothing and fabric, based on the aesthetics of everyday life. And the late Samuel Mockbee of the Rural Studio where he modeled the role of the citizen architect and created functional and beautiful unique houses made from found and salvaged materials for those living in poverty.
Dominique Moody: Inner Visions, 2021
Do you listen to music while you work?
Yes I do, especially if I’m working alone, I have a deep appreciation for music although I do not play an instrument or sing—instead, I listen! Born and living abroad as a child in the 50’s I listened to Jazz, from Coltrane to Monk, Holiday, and Simone. In the U.S., popular music connected me culturally, but I began listening to World Music as an adult, which combined everything I understood about being a part of the African Diaspora. Here’s a link to one of my favorite mixes of African music.
Both a site and an idea, home is a place to stay, leave, and return to, as well as a feeling, a metaphor, an aspiration. But what if it were also something you could take with you wherever you went? In the inventive mixed media practice of artist Dominique Moody, home is where the artist is—the perfect muse for creating both a nomadic vessel to inhabit, and works of art responding to her meandering routes. Her early peripatetic life in a military family—and their strategies for creating comfort and stability across the adventures—imbued her with a permanent wanderlust. Responding to challenges with her sight, at a certain point Moody undertook an exploration of tactility and intuition, working with collage and assemblage in a site-specific modality that also deepened and expanded her sense of place—or, rather, of all the places. Forty-six moves later and counting, Moody and her famous tiny live-in studio on wheels are still ruling the road. But for the past few months she’s been an artist in residence at Blue Roof Studios, where she’s organized an installation that embodies her inventive, far-flung experiences.
Dominique Moody: NOMAD (Narrative, Odyssey, Manifesting, Artistic, Dreams), 2015-ongoing
Dominique Moody: Sweat Equity, 2005
Dominique Moody: Inner Visions, 2021
Dominique Moody: Inner Visions, 2021 (detail)
Dominique Moody (McBrown Photography)