Artist Statement:
I am an un-disciplinary artist and educator who thinks through sculpture, talking, writing, performance and experimental exhibitions.
My artwork focuses on neurodivergent experience, labor and politics. I have partnered with neuroscientists, academics from critical psychiatry, artist collectives, disability justice social media influencers, and somatic therapists to co-create accessible resources particularly around mental health, potentially as a form of anti-capitalist solidarity.
Me and my artwork have been described as 'Pathologically Curious', a lovely, tender way of describing my neuro-divergent ADHD/Autism (aka Time-"Blindness", aka Intention Deficit Disorder, aka Interest-Based Neurotype)
Some of my work is setup systematically (coding / spreadsheets / workshops / repetition) so that I can focus on the spontaneous and experimental way of engaging with a particular audience.
Other works are intentionally not efficient, and more like love letters wherein I come to know someone or something through the process of making the work.
What brings my work together is the magic element of PLAY; Play that begins in the landscape of the unconscious, made of doubt, ritual, grief, healing, honesty, tiny pleasures, guilt and responsibility. All of these elements are authentic and alive in my work, speaking to each other. That conversation is what I hope the viewer experiences.
Bio:
Cedric Tai, born in Detroit (1985), has an Art Education degree and BFA from Michigan State University (2007), and an MFA from the Glasgow School of Art (2013). Tai is an un-disciplinary artist and educator whose work focuses on neurodivergent experience, labor and politics.
Awards: 2009 Kresge Artist Fellowship, 2015 Knight Foundation Challenge Grant, 2016 Vermont Studio Center Fellowship, The Brutus Fund at Yucca Valley Art Material, CA
Selected Solo / 2-person Exhibitions include: Kumasi J. Barnett/Cedric Tai, Roy G Biv, Columbus, OH (2008), "Concept Structure Torture Survival Title", New City Space, Glasgow (2011), "Indirectly Yours", Intermedia, CCA, Glasgow (2013), "We Need More ________!", Re:View Contemporary (2014), "Amateur Strategies", UCLA (2016), "50 Bad Artworks", Casa Lü, Mexico City (2020), and "Glass Material Library", Santa Fe Art Institute (2022).
She is represented by Simone DeSousa Gallery in Detroit and he currently works, writes and volunteers between Los Angeles, Detroit and Glasgow. Recent collaborative projects include: Bar-Fund, The Best Friends Learning Gang, and theDetroiter.com, and Rev School. Ongoing passion projects include 'Over Over Over' (Detroit/Glasgow), SolidarityClub.org, MakeBrixels.com, and AnyonesIdea.com
Origin Story:
As an experiment, I took it upon myself to create 17 websites on theDetroiter.com for local artists voted 'best-unknown-artist-least-likely-to-self-promote' by their peers. I was embracing my 'imposter syndrome' after winning a fellowship and wanted to focus on the inherent generosity of this art scene, unpack the baggage of 'scarcity mode' and actually do something with my privilege. My favorite part was that each page included a video of the recommender gushing about how everyone will love this artist, encouraging them, and each featured artist got to do the same for another. After giving everyone high quality photo documentation from my studio visit, many artists' careers picked up steam and some won significant grant awards using my photos!
The process was a culmination of so many ways that I manifest the joyful attention of art making and how my practice is value-oriented, exploratory, and devoted.
Though I was born an artist, I am always entering and reentering the community of art. Art gave me a respite from how I would struggle with timeliness, consistency, emotional dysregulation all from undiagnosed ADHD/Autism (which I call 'Time Blindness' or 'Intention Deficit Disorder') and because of this I couldn't take myself seriously. Yet, my curiosity and imagination brought me to new paths and uncovering what others take for granted.
I completed a K-12 teaching certification to pursue a career in teaching art, but instead I found myself taking the ideas/concepts/politics from my education classes and expressing them as kinetic sculptures, interactive performances, and experimental exhibitions. Since arriving in Los Angeles in 2014, I've been too anxious to reach out directly to curators/gallerists/producers, but instead I was invited to exhibit at UCLA by a student educator I impressed at the Hammer (which became 'Amateur Strategies'), I met under-the-radar artists who I shared big values with (which led to LA mini-grant, 'bar-fund'), and this month I started a gallery to promote QDTBIPoC art/artists ('Canela Art Gallery' kicking off in Mexico City).
Despite my mental health struggles, and reliance on serendipity, a friend called me 'Pathologically Curious', which is the most tender way I've ever heard my ADHD described back to me.
Some of my work is setup systematically so that I can focus on the way that I want to elicit a response from a specific audience:
Other works are intentionally not efficient, and more like love letters wherein I come to know someone or something through the process of making the work:
Right now I'm most excited about my idea for an 'ADHD Conference for/by Artists'; an experimental art piece that brings neuro-divergent minds together over 3-days for meeting and exhibiting a culmination of new artwork. I want to bring together artists to holistically illustrate the unique position of artists with ADHD, (aka Time-Blindness / Intention Deficit Disorder) or other neuro-divergencies to take on disability justice, accessibility, and stigmas- prioritizing QDTBIPoC perspectives.
The throughline in my body of work is the magic element of PLAY. Play begins in the landscape of the unconscious, it's made of doubt, ritual, grief, healing, honesty, tiny pleasures, guilt and responsibility. All of these elements are authentic and alive in my work, speaking to each other, inviting and rewarding the viewer.
My definition of success in art is this: if I am old and I'm still making art, I'm a HUGE success. It's how I use my life.
I'm proud to have a series of artist-in-residencies on the horizon for the first time where I can really develop this newfound sense of agency.
Interests:
Expertise: