Artist Statement

I want you to think of your favorite puzzle. How many pieces are there? What kind of picture is it? How do you look at the individual pieces? How do you feel when the puzzle comes together? Not everything you try will work, and not every piece of the puzzle is going to fit the way you wanted, or look the way you envisioned. Collage is a medium characterized by communication and the fragmentation of experiences. With my collages I hope to visually express how the world has changed and how my experiences of living in unique cities have helped form my personality and outlook on life.         

The older I become, the more I realize how my world view and outlook on life has been modeled and shaped by my experiences. When I was ten years old, my father moved to Harlem, New York. A sharp change from the stagnant suburbs allowed me to perceive life in a new way. I realized New York City is in itself is like a collage. There’s a certain chaos that surrounds the urban space categorized by sounds, lights, and movements. The characteristics, styles, and unique tastes were celebrated and exciting. My experiences in the city and learning about museums and how they functioned educationally and socially have allowed me to dive deep into a world of individualism where I was developing traits and styles that I felt defined who I was.

My goal is to capture and emphasize the essence of the city, intricate spaces, and the culmination of experiences to create artwork that expresses the importance of human connection. My research in art history is modeled by the drive to understand our human past and its relation to our divergent and ever-changing present. My goal is to capture and understand the fundamental elements of artistic and human culture as they relate to our world.

Laura Yacoubi

About the Artist

Laura Yacoubi is an interdisciplinary artist and art historian from Long Island, New York. Growing up as the only child of two divorced immigrant parents, her worldview was shaped by culture, learning, and two urban spaces: New York City and Baltimore. As a child, she spent most of her free time alone which left her hungry to learn more about the world as a place of social exchanges, art, intricate places, and human connection. A good portion of her teenage years were spent exploring New York City. Her college years were spent in the whimsical city of Baltimore. These miraculous urban spaces allowed her individuality to sprout and cultivate. Laura began learning about museums as educational institutions, but also as a place where history can be curated to evoke change. As an artist focusing on collage, the reworking, remixing, and assembling of ideas and images allowed her to recontextualize the modern world. The drive to intertwine past histories and human connection as they relate to ideas of the world today fuel her work. This personal narrative recognizes the different ways art history combined with our experiences can create meaning.