Sylvia Sykes spent a lot of time throughout the last four years thinking about the term “auntie.” It started with her own family. In that timeframe, three of Sykes’ aunts died, two on her father’s side and one on her mother’s.
“I miss all of those aunts equally, but I noticed with my aunts’ passing on my dad’s side, how much the entire family structure shifted in their absence, as opposed to the aunt on my mom’s side,” said Sykes, whose father is Black and whose mother is Hungarian.
“The loss was felt, of course, but it was a different shift. It made me start reflecting on how the auntie figure in Black and brown communities is different. … It’s a lot more pivotal and central to the family structure than in white families.”
Around that time, Sykes began watching the Netflix series “Never Have I Ever” about an Indian-American teenager. She said the show introduced her to the concept of aunties in other cultures.
As Sykes ruminated on aunties, something else happened that “really threw a monkey wrench” into the whole situation. While at a gas station, a young man – maybe 19 or 20 years old – asked Sykes for money. When he approached her, he said, “Hey auntie.”
The experience jolted Sykes. Even though she was learning about the many positive associations people have with aunties and how some cultures view an auntie as a wise, trusted leader, the term didn’t sit well when it was applied to her.
“Like, auntie? I’m a young lady. What are you talking about?” said Sykes, who is 31. “I didn’t like it initially, and that was the first person to call me an auntie. So after that interaction, I’m like, ‘OK, let’s unpack this. Why did that bother me?’”
The result of all this is “The Aunties,” Sykes’ upcoming exhibit at Summit Artspace, which explores the role of aunties in Black and brown communities. The 14 large-scale paintings in the show depict both literal depictions of Sykes’ aunties (“Expanders”) as well as figurative representations of aunties (“Connecters” and “Advocates”).
Exhibit is third for BIPOC+ artists
Sykes’ show, which opens Friday, is the third annual solo exhibition for BIPOC+ artists. The Akron native was selected from a pool of 23 area artists by jurors and fellow artists Darius Steward and Gwen Waight.
Waight said Sykes’ idea was “unique and strong.” The concept of aunties also resonated with Waight, who is of Hawaiian and Japanese descent.
“Pretty much anyone of an older standing who is in or around you growing up, we called them auntie or uncle, even if they weren’t related to us,” Waight said. “This is gonna touch the community, as well as be a personal story, because I think a lot of people will identify with that person who has helped them along or who has supported them or given them guidance, and they are sometimes the unsung heroes.”
Many of Sykes’ pieces are portraits, and all of them are rendered in vibrant colors with realistic expressions and poses. “I like focusing on people because I think it makes the viewer reflect on the people in their lives and who’s important to them and who they are as a person,” Sykes said. “And it encourages them to prioritize their village and their community.”
The paintings exude joy, love and strength, but as Sykes learned during her research, the term “auntie” didn’t always have positive connotations for Black women. Up until the Jim Crow era, Sykes said Black women were called auntie because “they weren’t respected enough to be called ma’am or miss.” For many, the term conveyed disrespect.
“As I read more, I realized I picked up this messaging somewhere, and that’s why when the young man called me ‘auntie,’ a part of me was offended,” Sykes said. “So it was interesting to see how I’ve internalized so much of this messaging, even though I wasn’t consciously processing it on a regular basis.”
Thanks to her artwork, Sykes has a better relationship with being an auntie – even if she isn’t quite ready to embrace the term wholeheartedly. “I don’t feel like I’m wise enough yet to connect, to fill the shoes of an auntie,” said Sykes, who became an actual aunt years ago.
“The Aunties” led Sykes to consider the importance of her own aunties more, especially the ones that are no longer here. She hopes the exhibit inspires others to do the same.
“It’s funny because I’m processing all this now and thinking about it, and it’s at a time when my nephews, they’re in that teenage phase, so they don’t want nothing to do with me,” she said laughing. “I want to make sure my audience is not like that right now, and they are answering their aunties’ calls and texting their aunties back.”
Opening night for Summit Artspace’s spring exhibitions, including “The Aunties,” is Friday at 5 p.m. For more information visit summitartspace.org/upcoming-exhibitions.
