Sena Cleave is an artist and writer living in the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh and səlilwətaɬ peoples, or Vancouver, Canada. Working in sculpture, language, and photographic experiments, they address ideas of illegibility and hybridity, as well as change and reciprocity. They pilfer scraps of cultural matter from everyday life (including objects, images, and textual passages) and recombine them. Together, the scraps generate something resembling a whole—one that is jumbled and misbehaving.
Cleave holds a BFA from Simon Fraser University. Recent exhibitions include 560 Gallery, 2023; Seymour Art Gallery, 2023; Mónica Reyes Gallery, 2022; and Massy Arts Society, 2022 & 2024. Their writing has been included in Contemporary Art Gallery's Timelines, and The Only Animal Theatre's Slow Calendar. Collaboratively, they have curated exhibitions through The Couch, an art space consisting of a purpose-built couch and coffee table.
IG @irohasena
Creative Access Description
A close-up photo showing details of the sculpture With Now Holds Always. Light pink and shimmery white threads are woven loosely together. A pale green bamboo leaf is tied into a knot pulling at the threads at the centre of the photo, and to either side is a line of pine needles woven to align with the vertical threads.