submitted
Contacts
Barak adé Soleil, Director: barak@emergingcurators.org
Nicole Thomas, Design and Communications Manager: nicole@emergingcurators.org
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota – The Emerging Curators Institute (ECI) proudly announces the newest cohort of curatorial Fellows for the 2023-24 cycle: Eshay Brantley, Josephine Hoffman, Nance Musinguzi, and Makeda “Keda” Tadesse.
The first of its kind in the region, ECI is designed to support Minnesota-based emerging curators from diverse backgrounds. Each Fellow will receive $3,000 for their participation and additional support in producing a curatorial project in Minnesota. As a cohort and individually they will have opportunities to meet with mentors, curators, artists, and thinkers within the contemporary arts field who, along with ECI’s Director, will inspire learning through a collaborative approach.
Statement from Emerging Curators Institute’s new Director, Barak adé Soleil:
“Boldly affirming intersectionality, accessibility and care, we look forward to supporting Eshay, Josephine, Nance and Keda in exploring their curatorial practices and intentions over this next Fellowship cycle. Continuing the ways ECI has amplified the visions of previous Fellows, we embrace the complexities that come with welcoming the distinct curatorial conversations that will emerge from this cohort. In alignment with the curators, thinkers, artists and mentors who are or will become part of this growing Emerging Curators Institute network, it will be a joy to be present, listen, tune in and be in community with these Fellows and all who will join us in experiencing the newness that’s to unfold.”
About Emerging Curators Institute’s 2023-24 Fellows:
Eshay Brantley (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist. Brantley’s artistic work commenced in a ritual-based performance. Eshay is committed to the work she does in the Twin Cities arts community and continues to plant seeds for a better future for Black babies.
Josephine Hoffman (she/they) a Minneapolis resident, holds a BFA in Fine Arts Studio and a Teaching Artist Minor from Minneapolis College of Art and Design and works as an artist, an aerial arts instructor, and a mentor for the Native Youth Arts Collective in Minneapolis.
Nance Musinguzi (he/they) is a Trans/Non-Binary 1st Generation Ugandan-Liberian photographer and multidisciplinary artist who documents contemporary social movements and DIY communities through publications and public presentations.
Makeda “Keda” Tadesse (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist and producer with large focuses in mediums such as painting and songwriting. She is most interested in themes of nostalgia, cultural expression and intergenerational conflict, womanhood, and the psychological relationship between music and the visual arts.
About the Selection Process:
The 2023-24 Fellows were selected from an expansive pool of applicants. Each year ECI invites curators and artists who reflect a range of experiences and creative practices to offer recommendations on who will become part of the newest cohort.
This year’s jurors include:
Alondra M Garza is a Tejana/Tex-Mex artist, educator, and curator. She is a recipient of the Emerging Curators Institute 2022-23 Fellowship and will present the culmination of her project at Franconia Sculpture Park in 2023. She is the Sr. Coordinator of the Latino Arts & Culture department at Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES). Garza was awarded the 2022 Visual Arts Fund Midway grant through the Warhol Foundation to inaugurate a Latine gallery.
Matthew Villar Miranda (he/they/siya) works as a Visual Arts Curatorial Fellow at Walker Art Center. They research for Museums Moving Forward (MMF), a cross-institutional coalition of art museum professionals advancing intersectional equity in the field. They earned their BA from UC Berkeley and MA from Arizona State University.
Sadie Woods is an award winning post-disciplinary artist, independent curator, and deejay. Her work focuses primarily on social movements, liberatory practices, cultural memory, and producing collaborations within communities of difference. She is the the Co-Founder of The Petty Biennial, Co-Founder and Selenite Arts Advisory, Curatorial & Residency Director of Atlantic Center for the Arts, Curator of COmmunity & Public Programs at Chicago Sinfonietta, and Faculty at the School of the Art Institute.
For more information on Emerging Curators Institute and the Fellow’s curatorial projects please visit their website at: emergingcurators.org/
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Celebrating 10 Years (2013- 2023) 