Born in France to a Ghanaian mother, Catherine’s art is deeply rooted in duality, where earthy textures and storytelling traditions of her African heritage meet the quiet introspection of her European upbringing. Afteran international modeling career, she rediscovered painting as a profound calling - a way to honor the pastwhile creating space for transformation.Catherine Decôme creates art that bridges worlds, weaving together emotions, identities, cultures, and histories. Her large-scale, layered mixed-media paintings explore the resilience of the human spirit and theechoes of ancestral memory, transforming struggle and displacement into beauty and growth.Through her art, Decome invites us to cross the bridge between the seen and unseen, between shadow andlight, personal and universal. Her layered compositions mirror the complexity of the human experience — a harmonious dialogue between the tangible and the infinite.
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Sacred Feminine - New York
With Sacred Feminine, Catherine Decôme presents a concise yet charged body of work exploring memory, embodiment, and the untamed feminine. Originating from her foundational 2019 painting Boudoir, the series follows the passage from soul to body: ink becomes flesh, gesture becomes form, presence becomes visible. The figures hover between spirit and matter, carrying a quiet wildness and ancient clarity.
Following the visual journey of From Ether to Earth, Sacred Feminine deepens Decôme’s inquiry into becoming. The paintings invite viewers to slow down, soften, and reconnect with what lies beneath identity. At its heart, the message is simple: Be. Be unapologetically yourself.
About Time To Be Happy Gallery
Time To Be Happy Gallery is a contemporary art space in the Bowery district of New York City, dedicated to presenting artists whose work explores inner presence and emotional form. Through exhibitions and community programs, the gallery creates a space where experimentation and reflection meet.
@timetobehappygallery | www.timetobehappy.io |
219 Bowery, New York, NY 10002, USA
From Ether to Earth - Lisbon
Curated by Federica Elena
With her first exhibition in Lisbon, From Ether to Earth, Catherine steps into the European scene with a powerful and intimate visual language that redefines portraiture through diasporic memory, maternal lineage, cultural resistance, and emotional presence. Her layered paintings explore ancestry, transformation, and the unseen connections that shape us, translating memory into matter, silence into form. “My work is a bridge between memory, spirit, and becoming,” she says. Each canvas is a passage—from shadow to light, from fragmentation to presence. Her paintings do not simply depict: they reclaim, observe, and speak. Rooted in Afro-heritage and postcolonial critique, her work invites us to slow down, to look with care, and to feel beyond the frame.
About MAR
MAR is an artist incubator established in Angola in 2020 with the mission of fostering connections between Lusophone artists and the international contemporary art ecosystem. Conceived as a platform for research, creation, and professional development, MAR supports emerging talents through mentorship, exhibitions, and strategic visibility within the art market. By promoting exchange among artists, curators, and collectors, the project contributes to a more inclusive and interconnected global art landscape.
@mar_movart | www.movartgallery.com | www.estrela74.com
R. Santo António à Estrela 74A, 1350-184 Lisbon, Portugal | +351 912 470 024
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