THE-FORESTATION

Celia Ledón

2024, recycled cardboard, plastic, 15' x 18'

REACH to FOREST commission

In Cuban visual artist Celia Ledón’s hands, discarded videotapes, pop-top rings, plastic bags, and rubber tires are given new life as dramatic wearable art. Celia’s show-stopping works have been featured at the Kennedy Center’s Artes de Cuba and RiverRun festivals. For REACH to FOREST, she has created THE-FORESTATION, a towering baobab tree of cardboard and other recycled materials, in collaboration with the GW Innovation Center, George Washington University.

Located in the Welcome Pavilion at the REACH

Celia Ledón

Celia Ledón is a visual artist, costume artist, and art director based in Miami, Florida. In recent years, she works with installation and performance as representational elements, appropriating the knowledge acquired to create wearable art. Her practice mainly focuses on avant-garde and sustainability as a call-to-action, generating awareness about climate change and the pollution generated through the fast fashion/garment industry. She received her degree as an Industrial Designer at ISDI (Higher Institute of Industrial Design) in 2011. She has received several courses and workshops on art direction and costume design for movies, among others. Celia has presented her work throughout the US, at the Kennedy Center (Washington, DC), DesignLab (Miami), DORCAM Doral Contemporary Art Museum, Doral Cultural Center, galleries and pop up shops in NY and Miami, Denver’s Biennale of the Americas, galleries in Portugal and Spain, and Cuban top art venues such as Fabrica de Arte Cubano, and the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. She has worked in various theater, dance, and film productions. She is an award-winning costume designer and art director in video clips, fiction short films, commercials, and feature films. Celia works as a costume designer in Teatro el Publico, Ludi Teatro, several dance companies, and other independent performing arts companies in the production of theater plays, operas, and dance shows. Between 2018 and 2020, she joined the Clandestina creative group as a garment and pattern designer. During the pandemic, she made several exhibits as a visual artist and participated in several independent theater projects in collaboration with FUNDarte.