Brooklyn Museum UOVO Prize winner’s art installation draws from her family history

PROSPECT HEIGHTS – THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM WAS SET TO UNVEIL an outdoor art installation by UOVO Prize recipient Keisha Scarville on Friday.

The May 8 opening, timed to herald Mother’s Day, will feature the work, “Keisha Scarville: Where Salt Meets Black Water,” at the Brooklyn Museum’s Iris Cantor Plaza. The Brooklyn-born photographer designed the site-specific outdoor installation, which transforms individual remembrance and loss into communal memory and shared belonging. “Where Salt Meets Black Water,” which also offers a poignant tribute to the Caribbean diaspora, will be on view through October 2026.

Scarville, who was awarded the UOVO Prize in March, was born to Guyanese parents who immigrated to New York in the 1960s. She draws from her own family history to examine the emotional resonance of inherited objects and images. Her art combines photography, collage and archival materials, bringing together photography, fabric and architectural space to create a gathering place for healing on the steps of the Iris Cantor Plaza.

As the recipient of this year’s UOVO Prize, Scarville will also unveil a mural on the facade of UOVO’s Brooklyn facility in Bushwick. The mural features an archival photograph depicting a mother and child, juxtaposed against a garment belonging to the artist’s mother.