Dear Diary / Bxbmi / Site Specific Installation / 2021
A MONTH LONG FASHION & ART EXPERIENCE
MEET THE CURATORS
2023
ALLAN PAULOUSEAfter an arduous search spanning a couple decades, he had clarity on his 'Ikigai'(Japanese for a sense of purpose) - he wanted to professionally represent, promote and curate art by under-represented but talented artists like his dad. In Q4 2020, he was part of the founding team at Art on the Square art gallery, Bentonville, AR, where he volunteered over 400 hours helping with gallery design, installations, operations, marketing, inventory and event management. In 2021/22, he started working with established local artists to kick start the learning process and curated several self funded exhibits in spaces sponsored by WeWork Labs NWA. Allan is part of the 2023 Interform Art Annual Curatorial Cohort where he looks forward to learning more about curating from the real professionals in this space. He has a background in mechanical engineering(design) and business administration. Allan enjoys his earned spare time traveling to different countries and experiencing their art and culture, besides trail running with his dog when he's back home in Bentonville, AR.
- AMY TERRY
I have been a creative person for as long as I can remember. That creativity has woven its way into all areas of my life including business, parenting, and faith. But its greatest outlet has always been the arts, and the career born from it has ranged wide, from mural and collage to hair and makeup. My current focus is exploring a passion for assemblage and narrative. After relocating from Minneapolis several years ago, Bentonville is now home with my husband, two children and two pups. I am thrilled to be part of the inspiring NWA arts community and have found my art evolving in new and exciting ways.
- JASPER LOGAN
From releasing socially conscious music to being a very active change leader in his community. Jasper Logan's aim to bring about change through inspiration is at the core of everything he does. His music catalog is a consistent tale of personal and social striving for better, in hopes to inspire people to do the same. His community events for black and brown communities offer resources to help people deal with issues on mental health, grief, racial trauma, and community collaboration. His clothing line Logan Levere exists to expand the ideas of creativity, cool, and everyday use. He also has partnered with various local organizations to create spaces for aspiring musicians to learn new skills, collaborate with new artists, and receive mentorship. "Everything I do is to inspire others to do something. I believe inspiration is the key to innovation and innovation is the key to change".
- KENNEDIE DANIEL
Kennedie Daniel, painter and sculptor, creates as a way to digest the world and personal relationships that surround her. Born and raised in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Kennedie graduated from The University of Arkansas in 2020 with a fine art degree. Since I was a little girl, art has always been my favorite escape. I use my practice as a reminder to let go of the burden that is control and to accept that I have none. I find inspiration in color, the emotion it evokes and the messy art of relationships. When creating my portraits, I start with a large amount of acrylic to provide texture that feels up close and personal. With my background and love of sculpture, I enjoy using my hands and a variety of palette knives to work with the paint. Each portrait is unique, displaying a mixture of feelings and giving them permission to flow naturally throughout the silhouette. Sometimes these figures will represent a loved one, a stranger, or even myself.
- SARAH TURNER
Originally from Bentonville, Arkansas, Turner moved to upstate New York to attend the New York College of Ceramics at Alfred University. She fell in Love with the embodied nature of light and sculpture, and the relationships she could form to her own body. She continued her investigations using neon as her primary medium and graduated in May 2021 with her BFA and a minor in Dance. Turner is a Light and Mixed Media Artist focusing primarily in her investigations with Neon. Her work explores many themes surrounding the inner workings of the body, aspects of touch, negotiation of unseen boundaries and shared sensations. She aims to provoke a sensitivity using light as her medium of choice.
Interested in joining Assembly II? Let us know!
2021 ASSEMBLY Archive
ASSEMBLY is the first of its kind, kaleidoscopic project created to bring together, cultivate and spotlight artistic talent in the region. This June in Downtown Springdale, INTERFORM is showcasing a series of 13 multimedia exhibitions PLUS a Designer Runway Show ALL curated by and featuring local and resident artists expressing talent of all types and genres. this project, collectively titled ASSEMBLY, is the culmination of the work of 7 curators, working alongside INTERFORM leadership. Through four months of collaboration they have created a unique and immersive set of art experience across multiple venues and locations. The curators selected artists, handpicked artworks, created exhibition themes, coordinated with spaces, and worked together to install their exhibitions. The result is a month long project high-lighting the talent of creatives from across the region. INTERFORM's goal is to empower more cultural producers who can expand opportunities across the community. We see the addition of curatorial skills to the local landscape as a step toward democratizing access to exhibitions and cultural opportunities.
HER - CUrated by Jess Whalen
This show is about the history, stories, and perspective that being a woman is. We experience life in deeply empathetic, visceral ways. We become story keepers and storytellers as we soak in all of this life. Some are the stories of those we love, some are the stories of those before us with strong shoulders we now stand on, but mostly there are the stories of us and how we see the world. This is an exploration of women and how we process life, the world, and the people around us. My goal for this space is for it to feel safe, honest, and celebratory. And I think this alchemy of artists is perfect for injecting that life into the show.
Featuring: Danielle Hatch, Jenn Terrell, Lucero Aguirre, Kennedie Daniel, Kellie Lehr, Robyn Jordan
FRAGMENT - CURATED BY COCO LASHAR
Fragment is a collection of work from local NWA artists that repurpose and reconstruct memories, objects, time, and space. This process of storytelling using collected bits of life explores how we can translate the world around us using our individual experiences. We ourselves are collections of fragmented memories, relationships, and perspectives. We are able to grow and change through this never-ending process of gathering and letting go. These works are an amalgamation of different fragmented parts of life and interpretations of each artist’s experience, that come together and offer something whole, something new.
Featuring: Damned 2 Divine, Jesse Johnson, Stephanie Petet, Taylor Loftin
FLOW - Curated by Marcela Rojas-Perez
Have you ever felt so immersed in what you’re doing that you lose yourself in the process?
The concept of flow stems from the creative process There is a loss of awareness of time, of yourself, and everything is just “clicking”. Flow comes with practice, by seeking to surprise yourself and discover new things about yourself and the activity that you are engaging in. Flow is overcoming the urge to stop at every mistake. Flow is activity, resilience, and perseverance.
What is your flow?
Featuring: Maximiliano Calabotta, Jesse Johnson, Jacob Skinner, Orlo
KORA EM AN KIL - The Creative Women (of the Marshall Islands)
Organized by Basana Chhetri and Fei Debrum.
This project was a Marshallese collaborative pop-up shop featuring handmade goods such as dresses, necklaces, earrings, head bands, and bracelets. All proceeds when directly to the artists.
Featuring: Fei Debrum, Gina Janer, Valentina Lokebol, Tie Lawin
(A) typical sanctuary
(a)Typical Sanctuary is a safe haven where the selected artworks have a home and live in. There is no judgement here in (a)Typical Sanctuary. All that is different, unique, is welcomed here and treated no different than anything else. Guest that enter this new world will become a part of a scene full of color, light, and sound, experiencing and connecting back to the sense of wonder that everyone can enjoy again and again.
Featuring: Athulu, EARL, Goop World, Kara Chanthala, Nuubeum, PrintGurl
YES. AND... - curated by Robin wallis atkinson
This exhibition holds space and grants permission for the celebration of art. As we all begin to unmask, allow this art, also, the room to breathe. It may hold deeper messages for you to unravel below the surface, but it needs no more justification than the joy of creation and the communities built around it. Be brave with our understanding of what is possible Allow ourselves an optimistic and expansive notion of what can come to be. We each have conflicting and complicated experiences that frame our understanding of images and artworks we encounter. IN this exhibition, allow yourself to hold two contradictory thoughts as true simultaneously. Allow things to be as complicated as they are. Isn’t there poetry in that? Allow the answer to be, at least when you are in this space: Yes. And…
Featuring: Amber Perrodin, Ashtone, Blue Brasher, Brody Parrish Craig, Bxmbi, Cheryl Kellar, Coco Lashar, Evelyn Sosa, Jess Whalen, Jonathan Perrodin, Junli Song, Kathy Thompson, Kayla Andrus, Leah Grant, Lucero Aguirre, Marcela Roja-Perez, Melissa Loney, Shelby Fleming, Rumwolf, Live Deliciously, Stacy Pants, Tay Butler, Trinity Kai
optical synergy
Optical Synergy aims to blend two different mediums to create on symbiotic experience. Much like Springdale, which is full of diverse people and cultures coming together in a community, this exhibition embodies and explores how two very different artists and mediums can come together to crete one cohesive piece.
Featuring: Eel Eye, NUGZ
