Stephen Arboite (b. 1987) is a multidisciplinary artist of Haitian descent who was born and raised in New York City and now resides in Miami, Florida. Arboite’s work considers beauty outside of classical aesthetic paradigms; and places an emphasis on spiritual transformation and evolution of human consciousness. Arboite attended State University of New York, Purchase College for drawing and painting. He has exhibited nationally including a debut solo exhibition with N’Namdi Contemporary in Miami, Prizm Art Fair, SCOPE NY/MIA, and has recently exhibited in a group show entitled Translating Valence: Redefining Black Male Identity at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts in Michigan.
Stephen Arboite was selected for his work, “Dreamscapes: The Metaphor Has Shifted To Healing,” exploring the connections between cultural heritage, spirituality, healing and well-being. Streaks, speckles, and splotches detail the molecular frenzy of such transformations while alluding to subconscious escape.
“My work renderers an intimately ontological approach to unpacking my
journey of self-discovery through paintings of seemingly distant, yet familiar faces and forms,” explains Arboite on how he employs dreams as a metaphor for individual and communal healing. “Placing an emphasis on the historical and material use of coffee, I draw parallels from my Haitian background and use coffee both as a spiritual medium to emote scenes from my psyche, while simultaneously navigating a path of healing for others yearning for a greater sense of self. I ask the viewer to introspectively examine their understanding of self, through a psycho-spiritual lens of their world, hopefully generating awareness of emotional and mental well-being, a topic that is unfortunately considered wildly taboo throughout society.”
