5 BIPOC Artists You’ll Want to Check Out at Art-A-Whirl
5/19/2022-Compiled by SJ
Art-A-Whirl, the giant open studio tour hosted by the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association, is upon us. This Friday through Sunday (May 20-22) get out into the community and support local artists. The annual festivities now feature more than 1,000 participants at upwards of 60 locations.
There’s no shortage of amazing artists at Art-A-Whirl, which has been going strong since 1995, but we wanted to highlight a few participating BIPOC creators whose works should be on your itinerary this weekend.
We would like to mention that this short list is, by no means, comprehensive but we hope that it inspires you to do your own research and maybe even take home some amazing art.
Art-A-Whirl is a free event.
Event hours are:
Friday 5pm – 10pm
Saturday Noon – 8pm
Sunday Noon – 5pm
More information including a full directory of participating artists, sponsors, spaces and events can be found HERE.
LESLIE BARLOW
Leslie Barlow is an oil painter, a drawer, and a muralist who, according to her website “is interested in reimagining our relationship to our racial identities through healing our collective understanding of belonging and what it means to be family. Her life-size oil paintings serve as both monuments to community members and explorations into how race entangles the intimate sphere of love, family, and friendship.”
Barlow has a BFA from the University of Wisconsin-Stout as well as an MFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. She is also a lecturer at the University of Minnesota, where she teaches drawing.
Barlow has been awarded several prestigious fellowships including the Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship, the McKnight Visual Artist Fellowship and the 20/20 Springboard Fellowship.
Leslie Barlow will be open Saturday during Art-A-Whirl in the Northrup King Building
More information HERE.
SUYAO TIAN
Suyao Tian is a painter, a drawer, and the owner of a fashion brand called Modern Cover.
According to Tian, “Painting is my own language to connect to the world, and my way to find and connect the similarities in our soul that we all share. I am a one-child-only generation of China-born in the 80s. Growing up, I hadn’t any siblings, I couldn’t have pets, and making friends was limited by rules, inhibited communication and confidence.”
Tian has a BFA from the University of Central Arkansas, as well as a degree in Music Education from Xiamen University in China, and an MFA in Design from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design.
Instagram: @suyaotian
Suyao Tian is open Sat and Sun of Art-A-Whirl in the Q.arma Building
MNISOTA NATIVE ARTISTS ALLIANCE
“The Mnisota Native Artists Alliance is a Native Artist-led initiative formed to advance our right to develop, create and protect the past, present and future expressions of our art. We call for equitable access to the resources needed to grow the Native Arts economy.”
The Mnisota Native Artists Alliance nonprofit is hosting three artists who will be in the Northrup King Building during the festivities. Stop by to meet artists Brian Dow, Jes Dufree, and Woodland Thunder, and shop their amazing collection of art.
More information HERE.
Mnisota Native Artists Alliance is open Fri, Sat and Sun of Art-A-Whirl in the Northrup King Building
TAYLOR NGIRI SEABERG
Taylor Ngiri Seaberg is playing with their band, Seaberg & the Black Velvet Punks, at the 331 Club on Saturday, May 21, at 7pm as part of the club’s Art-A-Whirl lineup.
According to their profile, “Taylor Ngiri Seaberg is a genderqueer, multi-instrumentalist in the Twin Cities, MN alt jazz, hip hop, and punk band, Seaberg & the Black Velvet Punks and the Chicago jazz fusion group, BLK FM.”
For more information check out @taylornseaberg and @blackvelvetpunks on Instagram
MEMORIALIZE THE MOVEMENT:
JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD EXHIBIT
This is the second annual Justice for George Exhibit. According to the event details, “Memorialize the Movement’s (MTM) Justice for George exhibition is a community event that displays the protest murals from the Minneapolis uprisings of 2020, highlights Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) artists, speakers, and performers, and brings the community together to collectively heal, reflect, and learn.”
In addition to the art exhibit this event will feature performances, speakers, workshops, live painting, youth activities, a healing and wellness station, and more.
*It is important to note that this event is at Phelps Field Park in South Minneapolis.
Saturday, May 21, 12pm-8pm
701 E. 39th St.
Mpls, MN 55407
More info about the event HERE.
GENESSIS LOPEZ
Genessis Lopez is a painter and illustrator. Lopez is, according to the website, “a Mexican artist living in North Minneapolis, MN and I paint and illustrate plants and flowers to create colorful clusters of bliss. My work centers around nature and I try to capture the joy and ease I feel while I’m in it. I spent a chunk of my childhood in Mexico, growing with the plants and flowers in my grandmother’s garden. Most of my artwork reflects the colors, feelings and emotions that I carry with me from those beautiful memories, as well as the new memories I create while experiencing the natural world as an adult.”
Lopez focuses on a series called “Color Therapy” featuring bright and colorful floral imagery.
More information HERE.
Genessis Lopez will be tabling at WORKSHOP (1300 Quincy St. NE) Friday 5-9pm and Saturday 12-8 pm
