Theaster Gates explores the troubling history of a coastal community forced out of home
For his first solo museum show in France, the Chicago-based artist dives into the dark past of the now-uninhabited Malaga Island off the coast of Maine
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

For his first exhibition in France, artist Theaster Gates has dredged up a dark and largely unknown fragment of American history. It concerns Malaga, a small island off the coast of Maine where, until 1912, a self-sufficient maritime community lived in relative isolation. Because the 40 residents represented a mix of African or partial-African descent at time when racism remained largely unchecked, they were evicted by the state so that Malaga Island might be transformed into a desirable tourist destination. This never happened; and the island remains uninhabited to this day. Yet within the Palais de Tokyo are a series of new monumental works, including a short film, through which Gates interprets and commemorates the larger history of colonial practices.
‘I’m trying to suggest what happens when you take real history and fake history and force it into a form like modernism,’ he explained during a preview of the exhibition. The show’s title, ‘Amalgam’, is a near-perfect anagram of Malaga; but more importantly, its meaning as a mix of elements (from materials to religious denominations) becomes the leitmotif under which Gates creates these evocative hybrid works.
Installation view of Theaster Gates’ exhibition ‘Amalgam’ at Palais de Tokyo, Paris.
Highly respected for his approach as a ‘social practice installation artist’, which essentially encompasses his pot-making and activism alike, Gates recently accepted Prada’s invitation to co-chair a Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council, a new initiative that aims to elevate voices of colour within the company and throughout the fashion world. Incidentally, the exhibition falls during Black History Month in the United States. In France, meanwhile, President Emmanuel Macron’s favourable stance on the restitution of ‘tribal art’ has become an ongoing issue with far-reaching ramifications. Gates and curator Katell Jaffrès may not have directly addressed either subject in his show, yet they give his complex cultural representations irrefutable relevance.
I’m trying to suggest what happens when you take real history and fake history and force it into a form like modernism.
And so, the visit begins with a structure resembling a giant rooftop covered in slate shingles. This sloping form positioned on the floor gives the impression of a house that has been buried – whether under earth or water. The dimensions are roughly that of a Malaga Island cabin and Gates has christened it Altar, as though imbuing its humble construction with sublime significance.
RELATED STORY
Further on, the Island Modernity Institute and Department of Tourism is a multi-part installation consisting of traditional African artefacts, made-up archival documents and obsolete mementos (such as old records) that depict the Malaga people as a pseudo-archaeological study and subject of fascination. Within a vitrine on the central podium, neon green signage reads: ‘In the end, nothing is pure’, which Gates said applied as much to his ‘ways of making’ as something racially charged.
Island Modernity Institute and Department of Tourism, 2019, by Theaster Gates.
In his 20-minute film, Dance of Malaga, Gates has spliced imagery of interracial cultural moments with the slow-moving, torqued choreography of American dancer, Kyle Abraham, who was filmed on the island. The Black Monks, a music collective to which Gates belongs, composed a score that sounds alternately ominous and meditative.
The final work exists as an immersive space where ash tree pillars – some topped with bronze casts of wooden African masks – are meant to both honour the forgotten people of Malaga and suggest how the island’s ecosystem has proven resilient. Through this forest of organic steles, visitors can wander and wonder whether the effect is calming or haunting. The title, So Bitter This Curse of Darkness, seems to declare a tragic end. Yet to hear Gates describe his first visit to Malaga in mostly positive terms might suggest otherwise. Despite arriving on a cold, damp day, what he remembers most is ‘feeling comfortable, alive and good.’
‘Amalgam’ is part of the Palais de Tokyo’s spring programming, titled ‘Sensible’, which runs until 12 May and also features creations by Angelica Mesiti, Julien Creuzet, Julius von Bismarck, Louis-Cyprien Rials and Franck Scurti. Elsewhere in Paris, Gagosian has devoted two floors to Gates, exhibiting works such as Yellow Hose, a large canvas paneled in a fire hose and his striking Black Madonna effigy in bronze.
Works in progress at the studio. Courtesy of Theaster Gates
Installation view of Theaster Gates’ exhibition ‘Amalgam’ at Palais de Tokyo, Paris.
INFORMATION
‘Amalgam’ is on view until 12 May. For more information, visit the Palais de Tokyo website
ADDRESS
Palais de Tokyo
13 Avenue du Président Wilson
75116 Paris
VIEW GOOGLE MAPS (opens in new tab)
-
Silver from X-rays recycled as sustainable jewellery by The Royal Mint
The 886 by The Royal Mint jewellery collection gives recycled X-ray films a new purpose
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Ten classic fountain pens for the personal touch
Ten fountain pens, from timeless designs to sleekly machined modern writing tools, prove that perfect penmanship is just a gold nib away
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Arctic conditions shape pared-down house in northern Sweden by Claesson Koivisto Rune
Claesson Koivisto Rune’s new pared-down house makes a bold sculptural statement on the banks of Sweden’s Lule River, shaped by building regulations and its location’s Arctic conditions
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Theaster Gates’ New Museum exhibition meditates on mourning, materials and community
Theaster Gates talks about his first US museum show, ‘Young Lords and Their Traces’ at The New Museum (until 5 February 2023), a moving homage to the creative forces who came before
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
Hiroshi Sugimoto: ‘The deeper I explore Shinto and Buddhist art, the more it reveals the shallowness of contemporary art’
‘Hiroshi Sugimoto – The Descent of the Kasuga Spirit’, at the Kasuga-Taisha shrine in Nara, Japan, sees the acclaimed photographer draw on Japan’s spiritual past and present
By Minako Norimatsu • Published
-
Cyprien Gaillard on chaos, reorder and excavating a Paris in flux
We interviewed French artist Cyprien Gaillard ahead of his major two-part show, ‘Humpty \ Dumpty’ at Palais de Tokyo and Lafayette Anticipations (until 8 January 2023). Through abandoned clocks, love locks and asbestos, he dissects the human obsession with structural restoration
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Artist’s Palate: Chiharu Shiota’s recipe for okonomiyaki
Get tangled up in Chiharu Shiota’s recipe for okonomiyaki, from our January 2023 issue’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By TF Chan • Published
-
‘East Meets West’: artists Samiro Yunoki and Kori Girard unite at Ace Hotel Kyoto
Art exhibition, ‘East Meets West’ at Ace Hotel Kyoto marks Japanese artist Samiro Yunoki’s 100th birthday, in dialogue with new works by American artist Kori Girard
By Pei-Ru Keh • Last updated
-
Reclaim the Earth, urge artists at Paris’ Palais de Tokyo
We discover the group exhibition ‘Reclaim the Earth’, a wake-up call for humans to reconsider our relationship with the planet (until 4 September 2022)
By Amy Serafin • Last updated
-
teamLab: how a Tokyo art collective pioneered an immersive art boom
With an operatic intervention and a show at Pace Geneva, teamLab, the now-700-strong Tokyo-based collective that blazed a trail for experiential, tech-fuelled art, continues to value ‘physical interaction in physical space’
By Nick Compton • Last updated
-
Tanabe Chikuunsai IV wraps Casa Loewe Barcelona in 6,000 strips of tiger bamboo
Inside the newly revamped Casa Loewe Barcelona, Japanese artist Tanabe Chikuunsai IV reflects on family traditions and environmental destruction with a staggering bamboo installation
By Malaika Byng • Last updated