FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 18, 2024
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Jill Pearson
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Orchid Gallery set to Host its Inaugural Exhibition, Gather, featuring eight New Haven-based artists
TODAY: THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 2024 | 6:00 P.M. TO 8:00 P.M.
NEW HAVEN, CT (April 15, 2024) - Gather-An exhibition, is set to open today Thursday, April 18, featuring artworks by eight local artists. The exhibition will be open to the public and be on view through the summer. The Opening Reception will be held today at 6pm in celebration of the inauguration of Orchid Gallery.
Developed in partnership with nico.w. okoro, founder and principal of the bldg fund, Orchid Gallery is a new exhibition space showcasing artworks by early-career artists of color who call the Greater New Haven Area home. Orchid Gallery, a division of ConnCORP, was established to invest in artists as creative entrepreneurs, build culturally specific space in Greater New Haven, and mobilize creative community more broadly. Visitors can expect to encounter a captivating array of artworks that reflect the beauty and complexity of Connecticut’s creative communities.
"Gather honors the work of artists who archive oral histories, collect and conserve artifacts, and otherwise assume the role of culture bearer—those who dutifully gather, reinterpret, and hold the stories and symbols that both define and enrich our communities," said exhibition curator, nico. w. okoro. "We are in debt to these artists who, through carrying lessons from the past into the present moment, make our collective future possible. Our hope is that Orchid Gallery becomes a home—a gathering space—for rich and ongoing artist-led discourse.”
"As stewards of culture and champions of community enrichment, ConnCORP recognizes the profound impact of art in shaping our shared narrative,” said CEO of ConnCORP Erik Clemons. “By supporting local artists and providing platforms for creative expression, we not only cultivate a vibrant cultural landscape but also foster a sense of belonging and unity within our community."
The Orchid Gallery's inaugural exhibition will feature works by:
Kulimushi Barongozi
Ruby Gonzalez Hernandez
Aisha Nailah
Moshopefoluwa “MO” Olagunju
Daniel “silencio” Ramirez
Liah Sinq
Arvia Walker
Yves Wilson
Admission to the Orchid Gallery is free, and all members of the community are invited to attend.
About Orchid Gallery:
Orchid Gallery is powered by a spirit of innovation and experimentation and celebrates artists who boldly question and envision creative solutions to the socio-economic issues that disproportionately impact our communities. Orchid Gallery sits on the ground level of ConnCORP’s Hamden campus located at 496 Newhall Street, and is accessible during operating hours and special events. It shares a floor with Recess Café and Orchid Hall, a large event rental space.
About Nico. w. Okoro:
Nico w. Okoro is an independent arts consultant, curator, educator, and writer. She works across sectors to build equitable representation within contemporary art, and nurture reciprocal relationships between artists, communities, and cultural institutions. She is also the founder and principal of the bldg fund, llc, a collaborative engine for the cultivation of place-based projects envisioned by artists, entrepreneurs, and neighbors in New Haven.
About the Artists:
Kulimushi Barongozi was born in Bukavu, DRC. He currently lives in New Haven, CT where he spends his time making art, painting houses and being a translator among other things.
Art Mediums includes: mix-media painting, sculpture, storytelling, writing, film, clothing, performance, and installation.
Ruby Gonzalez Hernandez (she/her/ella) is an Indigenous Zapotec artist, educator, and curator born on Quinnipiac land (New Haven, Connecticut). As a lens-based artist, she uses photography as an expansive tool through printmaking, silk screening, and drawing to investigate religious exploitation, spiritual salvation, redemption, institutional oppression affecting BIPOC, and more, often speaking to a person she once was.
Aisha Nailah is a Bridgeport, CT based multidisciplinary teaching artist and certified teacher. Her works are mainly abstract and abstract figurative in nature. She has experiences in public arts and murals, recently completing the B'port Gates on Baldwin Plaza in Bridgeport.
Moshopefoluwa “MO” Olagunju, a Nigerian-born United States-raised artist and independent curator, explores themes surrounding identity, power dynamics, and unconventional representations of the body. A graduate of Bard College, he was awarded the Milton Sally Avery Arts Scholar and Senior Studio Arts award. MO's artwork has been exhibited at venues such as Susan B. Hilles Gallery in New Haven, the Kipp Gallery in Pennsylvania, and The Residency Project x Motor in Los Angeles.
Daniel “silencio” Ramirez (He/They) is a first-generation Salvadoran-American artist based in New Haven, Connecticut. As a current Artist Corps grantee through the Mellon Foundation and New Haven Arts Council, combined with pursuing a B.A. in Studio Art with an Arts Administration and Cultural Advocacy minor at Southern Connecticut State University, they work towards an equitable and sustainable future for artists in New Haven + broader Connecticut through radical and community based projects.
Liah is a New Haven based artist whose work is inspired by her matriarchal line – namely her mother and grandmother– who, alongside their treasure troves of familial artifacts, serve resiliently as each of their generations' altar space. Her photographs aim to document these types of borderless containers that are malleable yet sturdy enough to hold and nourish our clean and dirty pain, which reach across vast distances and generations, to pull us in, and feed us our truth.
Arvia Walker is a Black woman artist, creative and political organizer; blending art with archival preservation and storytelling into her work. Driven by her deep love and passion for Black culture, history, and narratives, Arvia’s art beautifully embodies her conviction that every Black person deserves to be revered.
Yves is a multidisciplinary artist based in New Haven, Connecticut. His work is a mixture of traditional photography, printmaking, graffiti, and repurposed found objects. The artist brings together African and American visual traditions with the intention of creating new representations of identity and creating new dialogues between the object and audience. Orchid Gallery will have its inaugural art exhibit, Gather, on Thursday, April 18th. The art show will feature work from eight local artists of color and will be open to the public for 10 weeks.
About The Lab at ConnCORP:
The Lab at ConnCorp is a dynamic cultural space dedicated to fostering creativity, innovation, and collaboration within the community. Through a diverse program of exhibitions, workshops, and events, The Lab catalyzes artistic exploration and expression, enriching the cultural fabric of Connecticut and beyond.
About Nico. w. Okoro:
An independent arts consultant, curator, educator, and writer based in New Haven, CT, Okoro is an advocate for artists of the global majority, she works across sectors to build equitable representation within the canons of modern and contemporary art, and dismantle the hierarchies that hinder reciprocity between artists, communities, and cultural institutions. She is also the founder and principal of the bldg fund, llc, a collaborative engine for the cultivation of place-based projects envisioned by artists, entrepreneurs, and neighbors in New Haven.
ConnCORP seeks to drive economic development in the Dixwell and Newhallville sections of New Haven by investing in local commercial and residential real estate. The objective is to deliver well-planned multi-use real estate investment, which can help stabilize the local economy, provide affordable goods and services, and create local jobs. Their mission is to drive economic development and economic justice in impoverished communities by investing in local commercial and residential real estate, and minority-owned businesses. Learn more at Conncorp.org.
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