15 / 24
was captivated by her family history. She remembers tales
her mother, Alice, shared about her childhood in North
Carolina, which she would later come to question upon
discovering her mother was schizophrenic. Many of the
pieces in
Her Story, My Dreams
reference this aspect of
Wells’ childhood experience.
At times humorous and dream-like, the settings for Wells’
assemblages are imaginary spaces that waver between
truth and fiction. Images of homes appear throughout
Wells’ collages, referencing one’s spiritual house, mind,
or psyche. Animals, recognizable characters, and lush
settings appear in much of her highly narrative work.
Her Story, My Dreams
features recurring characters
that symbolize specific concepts in Wells’ work. “Miss
Anne,” for instance, is a personification of the cruel
white mistress of the house from plantation-era slavery, a
reminder of racism, violence, and exploitation. The “little
colored girl” series features a young girl with an obscured
face, who stands in for the experience of young African-
American girls.
While each collage in
Her Story, My Dreams
contains
numerous symbols and characters, a chicken appears in
every piece. Wells cites a turning point in her childhood
as the source of this symbol. As a child, her father had a
routine of bringing treats home to her and her siblings
on payday. One week, he brought home a chicken—Della
and her siblings excitedly assumed the chicken would
become their pet, but her mother, who grew up on a
farm, had other ideas. As she watched her mother wring
the chicken’s neck, Wells realized where the meat in a
grocery store actually came from. She recalls this as her
first moment of realizing that things had to die in order
for others to live. The chicken, in her work, became a
symbol of truth and hidden narratives that are glossed
over in everyday life.
Women play a prominent role throughout Wells’ work
as mothers, girls, sisters, and friends. Many of these
female figures appear confident, defiant, and unflappable.
During her studies of African religions, Wells learned of
the
mambo
women, priestesses in the Haitian Voudou
tradition. This spiritual tradition had a great influence
on her work, and many of her depictions of powerful
women represent spiritual guides and high priestesses.
In addition to working in collage, Wells uses drawing,
painting, quilting, and doll-making to explore
similar themes. Her dolls are particularly powerful
representations of different characters, inspired by people
both real and imaginary. The artist remembers the
moment she received her first black doll, a present from
her aunt Doretha. Each of Wells’ hand-sewn and hand-
painted pillow dolls has its own back story.
By combining her personal experiences with folklore
and fairy tales, Wells illustrates the struggle of exploring
the inner-self and forming community. Her recent work
navigates the complexities of modern African-American
womanhood. Interweaving the personal and political,
Wells’ art responds to contemporary movements of
dissent and political consciousness.
13
Images (left to right): Della Wells,
We are Not America’s Wallflower and We March Proudly to the Dance
(detail), 2017, Collage, Image courtesy of Portrait Society Gallery; Portrait of Della Wells by Ted Degener.