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Artist Highlight: Hyper Precious, Nadira Narine
This month, Craft Ontario is highlighting the work of an exceptionally talented glass artist, Nadira Narine, who is also known as Hyper Precious. Hyper Precious is where Nadira's art, craft and design meet to celebrate her culture and nostalgia.
Inspired by her name, which means "precious", Nadira's creations at Hyper Precious embody a rich tapestry of personal and cultural narratives. Each piece, reflects a connection to themes of innocence, wonder and sense of home. Through a blend of bold hues and heartfelt storytelling, Nadira invites you to explore a world where her work becomes a vessel for memories and emotions. Continue reading below for the interview between Craft Ontario and Narine and shop Hyper Precious products in our Shop.
Raised in Panama City, Nadira Narine has a deep interest in her cultural roots. Having lived in Canada since 2011, Nadira explores objects and memories from her childhood as a means of self-discovery and connection to home. Nadira is a current Artist-in-Residence at the Living Art Centre in Mississauga ON. She holds a Bachelor of Craft and Design with a specialty in Glass and Textiles, completed a 4-year Artist-in-Residence (Glass) position at Harbourfront Centre and has been most recently recognized as a finalist for the prestigious 2023 RBC Glass Award.
Your pieces in the Woven Series are very intriguing and feature a surface design that is very singular to your work. What inspired this technique and no pressure to give away any secrets - how did you develop it?
The Woven Series, which features this surface texture and pattern, is always evolving. I grew up in Panama City and this series is inspired by traditional Panamamin textiles, woven and clay baskets. The Woven Series is an exploration of sense of belonging and home. Having lived in Toronto for a bit over a decade I constantly find myself struggling with a sense of belonging. Every year that passes the feeling of "ni de aqui ni de alla" grows. This series helps me work through those emotions and that leads to new iterations of the series.
The original series features the black and white pattern which I've honed in over the last 5 years and bands of colours. I've been exploring different surfaces applications, theres a few pieces I've made that are inspired by bead work and more recently I've been playing around with techniques that mimic reverse applique which is the process used in traditional textiles called Mola. With these I carve away the black and white surface to reveal the colours. These will make a debut at One Of A Kind Show over November 22 - Dec 1, 2024.
How has your time as an artist in residence in multiple arts organizations shaped your practice?
Doing different residencies allows for growth. It's easy to get comfortable in the space you are in. I was at Harbourfront Centre for 5 years moving on to the Living Art Centre was quite tough but now that I have been at LAC for a year and a bit I can already see my work evolving. Being in a new environment surrounded with new people really pushes you to do more.
I am currently working on some new things I'm very excited about. I have a project in mind that uses hundreds and hundreds of glass beads. I am still in the development stages but I can't wait to get this project going.
I have also been developing a new series, "Chromatic Echoes" that explores the power of colour in relation to nostalgia. Through the body of work,"Colour Fields", I use memories, emotions, mirrors, glass, metal and coloured resin to create ~*memory landscapes*~. You will be able to see this new work in January as part of DesignTO at Cafe Pastel!
Be sure to visit Nadira Narine's work at both Shop locations and browse her works online!