PAMELA

PHATSIMO

SUNSTRUM

with

Amanda

Gluibizzi

I met with Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum over Zoom in early November. It was late afternoon in The Hague, the Dutch city of old masters and international diplomacy she now calls home. Sunstrum was sitting in “her corner,” perched before a dark wood cabinet, paneled with glass panes arranged in a diamond pattern, and a vibrant pool-blue oil cloth dotted with what looked like swirling tan baskets or flying saucers. Though cozy, the space vibrated with the motifs and colors surrounding her, potted plants arching over her head and tickling in from the side. We spoke about her newest exhibition of paintings on panel and drawings at Galerie Lelong in New York, Parabellum, and the liminality that adheres to space, time, identity, and growing up. By the time we finished, dusk had fallen, and all I could make out was her radiant face.