Goodman has solidified her place in art innovation history through painting using sequins and in Altered States, she uses the glittering portraits as an elixir to the often mundanity of everyday life. Inspired by the works of American surrealist painter and founding member of the women’s liberation movement in Mexico in the 1970s, Leanora Carrington, Goodman references and reimagines some of Carrington’s work in Altered States. Much like her venturing into ceramics, the artist employs sequins in new techniques to showcase escapism through our current obsession with magical realism. Some paintings are portrayals of dreamlike states created to mimic 3-D like effects where the sequined characters almost leap out at you, while others adorn elaborate costumes fit for a sci-fi series. A costume change, like popping a pill, can alter a mood and a room.

Text by Lerato Tshabalala