“LA REINE NOIRE” (2024) LUMIÈRE Series, Limited Edition photography by artist Indira Cesarine featuring Janine Tondu. Archival ink on sheer aluminum, dimensions variable, also available as an animated NFT on MakersPlace.

“LA REINE NOIRE” premiered in the “LUMIÈRE” Solo Exhibition curated by Jessica Marinaro at the The Canvas 3.0 gallery presented in collaboration with MakersPlace at the Oculus World Trade Center, as well as The Untitled Space, from January – February 2024.

Inspired by Surrealism, Indira Cesarine’s “La Reine Noire” photographic series features light paintings of model and dancer, Janine Tondu. The unique method of light painting involves using light as a brush, painting ethereal strokes onto the canvas of darkness, thus capturing a play of luminosity that transcends the boundaries of traditional imagery. The nude silhouette of the dancer becomes a canvas body painted with the form of a spiraling serpent, creating a visual reference to Eve from the Garden of Eden, as well as Queen Cleopatra. The spiral, a recurring theme in Cesarine’s work, holds profound symbolism. The spiral is an ancient symbol of evolution and one of the oldest pagan symbols in existence. The spiral vortex, as found in the double helix structure of DNA molecules, is known as nature’s favored form for transmitting energy. It represents the cyclical nature of existence, life, growth, evolution, creativity, and change. With Cesarine’s light paintings, she embraces the symbol of the spiral to depict concepts of infinity, the journey of life, and the path to higher consciousness. With its graceful curvature and hypnotic rhythm, it becomes a metaphor for the unknown forces that shape life and existence – as well as the surreal nature of the unknown. The portraits and light paintings were captured in camera with single exposures.