Valerie Piraino

Valerie Piraino
Born1981 (age 44–45)
Kigali, Rwanda
EducationMaryland Institute College of Art (BFA),
Columbia University School of the Arts (MFA)
OccupationsVisual artist, educator
Known forSculpture, installation art, drawing
SpouseDrew Piraino
Websitevaleriepiraino.com

Valerie Piraino (born 1981) is a Rwandan and American contemporary visual artist, who works mainly in sculpture, drawing and installation. Her art reflects her transnational identity, and includes themes like defining the many aspects of identity as a whole, anti-colonialism (or anti-imperialism), African diaspora, and ancestral identity and memory.[1][2] She lives in Ulster County, New York.[1]

Biography

Valerie Piraino was born in 1981 in Kigali, Rwanda,[3] and she raised both in her home country, as well as in the United States. Her mother, is a Rwandan apparel designer and seamstress and her father, is an American, who has worked in international development and relief. She spending her early childhood in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and three other countries throughout Africa. At the age of 4, she moved with her family to the United States,[4] first to Arizona, and later to Baltimore, Maryland.

She studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art (BFA degree, 2004) in Baltimore.[5] While studying, she was awarded a large grant and traveled back to Rwanda, where much of her mother's side of the family had been killed in the Rwandan Genocide.[4] This trip inspired her work as a transnational artist, including her thesis project.[1] In 2005, Piraino moved to New York City, and began studies at Columbia University School of the Arts, where she received a M.F.A in 2009.

She previously worked as a part-time faculty member at Parsons School of Design at The New School.[6]

Notable works and exhibitions

Arguably, her most notorious work is a series of sculptures consisting of papayas created by carving layers of polystyrene, and then covering the shapes in black epoxy clay, paint, resin, sawdust, and occasionally using gold paint to accent the work.[1] The papayas are either displayed on flat surfaces or, as a later development, hung using nets created with twine.[1] When discussing the significance behind the colors, black and gold, Piraino states that the black and gold are reminiscent of the mining and environmental damage that has taken place in Africa due to colonialism.[2][7] The colors and textures are also said to represent the skin of the people from the region who were exploited for the natural resources of the country.[2][8] Papayas were the fruit chosen to represent the artists transnational identity and anti-colonial attitude for two main reasons. First, papayas were a common breakfast for the artist when she was a young girl growing up in Africa. Secondly, papayas, native to the Caribbean, represent colonialism because they "follow the trajectory of imperialism and colonialism".[1] Throughout the years and across multiple exhibitions, the meaning behind the work has shifted slightly. In a group exhibit that ended in January, 2017 called Dis Place in the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts, the papayas appeared to be broken and bruised, representing violence against African women.[9]

While the papayas are some of Valerie's most notable works, she has created many other bodies of work and has been in exhibitions across the country, as well as being featured in exhibits in other countries around the world.

List of exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Piraino's solo exhibitions
Year Exhibition title Institution Location Notes
2011 Solo show by Valerie Piraino Meyerhoff Gallery, Maryland Institute College of Art Baltimore, Maryland [10]
2013 Valerie Piraino: Reconstruction Crosstown Arts Memphis, Tennessee [11]
2013 Valerie Piraino: Photoplay Cindy Rucker Gallery New York City, New York [11]

Group exhibitions

Piraino's group exhibitions
Year Exhibition title Institution Location Notes
2009 The Practice of Joy Before Death Scaramouche New York City, New York [12]
2010 Usable Pasts Studio Museum in Harlem New York City, New York [13]
2011 The Third Party Night Gallery Los Angeles, California
2012 The Bearden Project: Homage Studio Museum in Harlem New York City, New York [11]
Get it on the Record Visceglia Gallery, Caldwell College Caldwell, New Jersey [11]
Fore Studio Museum in Harlem New York City, New York [11][14]
2013 Present Future Artissima Turin, Italy
Body Language Studio Museum in Harlem New York City, New York
Round 39: Looking Back, Moving Forward Project Row Houses Houston, Texas [11]
2014 Lucky Draw Sculpture Center New York City, New York
The House Seems All Upset: Exploring Critical Whiteness Jade Addams Hull-House Museum Chicago, Illinois
Retreat Valerie Carberry Gallery Chicago, Illinois [11]
The Bearden Project: Homage Texas State University San Marcos, Texas
2015 After Afropolitan Weeksville Heritage Center Brooklyn, New York
Africa's Out Gladstone Gallery New York City, New York
Mirror Mirror Kate Werble Gallery New York City, New York
Displace MoCADA Brooklyn, New York [9]
2016 SHE: Deconstructing Female Identity ArtsWestchester White Plains, New York [15]
Collector's Club Project Row Houses Houston, Texas
CAMSTL Gala Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis St, Louis, Missouri
Palatable Studio Museum in Harlem New York City, New York
Lucky Draw Sculpture Center New York City, New York
Whatever moves between us also moves the world in general Murray Guy Gallery New York City, New York
Africans in America Goodman Gallery Johannesburg, South Africa
2017 Elective Affinities: A Library Hunter College Art Galleries New York City, New York
A Fast, Moving Sky The Third Line Gallery Dubai, United Arab Emirates [1]
The Socrates Annual Socrates Sculpture Park New York City, New York

Awards and residencies

Valerie has received many fellowships and awards throughout her years of creating art.

Piraino's awards and fellowships
Year Name of award Notes
2004 Jacques and Natasha Gelman Travel Award [4]
2009 Studio Museum in Harlem, artist-in-residence [16]
2014 Joan Mitchell Foundation, emerging teaching artist fellow [6]
2015 Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, process space residency [17]
2017 Socrates Sculpture Park, emerging artist fellowship
Offshore Residency
2018 Joan Mitchell Center, artist-in-residence [6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Woods, Lynn (May 28, 2017). "Two Kingston artists featured in Dubai exhibit". Hudson Valley One. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  2. 1 2 3 "SHE: Deconstructing Female Identity Exhibition Brochure". ArtsWestchester. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  3. ↑ "Valerie Piraino - Lower Manhattan Cultural Council". Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Archived from the original on 2017-05-18. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  4. 1 2 3 "$25,000 MICA travel grant allows African homecoming". The Baltimore Sun. May 18, 2004. pp. B1. Retrieved 2026-06-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Article clipped from The Baltimore Sun". The Baltimore Sun. February 17, 2011. pp. T8. Retrieved 2026-06-02.
  6. 1 2 3 Valerie Piraino Archived 2019-05-08 at the Wayback Machine on Joan Mitchell Center
  7. ↑ Thomas, Greg (2019). "Terms of Engagement". Aesthetica Magazine. Retrieved 2026-06-02.
  8. ↑ Kalsi, Jyoti (July 5, 2017). "In a constant state of flux". Gulf News. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  9. 1 2 Reis, Victoria (December 10, 2015). "Artists of the African Diaspora Cast Off the Legacy of Displacement". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  10. ↑ "Imaginary images". The Baltimore Sun. 2011-02-17. pp. A4. Retrieved 2026-06-02.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Piraino, Valerie. (b. Kigali, Rwanda, 1981; active Brooklyn, NY, 2014)". African American Visual Art Database (AAVAD). Archived from the original on March 4, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Art in Review". The New York Times. 2009-04-16. ISSN 0362-4331.
  13. ↑ Wong Yap, Christine (September 10, 2010). "Shotgun Review From New York: Usable Pasts". Art Practical (review). Archived from the original on June 2, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Museum and Gallery Listings for Feb. 1-7". The New York Times. 2013-01-31. ISSN 0362-4331.
  15. ↑ Clement, Douglas P. (April 1, 2016). "The Female Identity, Discussed in Art". The New York Times (review). ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-06-02.
  16. ↑ "Valerie Piraino". Studio Museum in Harlem.
  17. ↑ Valerie Piraino Archived 2017-05-18 at the Wayback Machine on Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC)
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