The Psychic Landscape at NYC Culture Club
February 1 - March 3, 2024
The Final 2 Weeks
World Trade Center Oculus
Artists: Paola de la Calle, Francisco Donoso, Kathryn Godoy, Elsa Muñoz, Marisol Ruiz
Curators: Veronica Petty and Francisco Donoso
This compelling exhibition showcases the works of artists—Paola de la Calle, Francisco Donoso, Kathryn Godoy, Elsa Muñoz, and Marisol Ruiz. Their art delves into the profound terrains of memory, interiority, and temporality.
By utilizing abstraction as a vehicle to deliberately blur the boundaries between representation and visibility, these Latinx artists are challenging the prevailing expectations imposed upon them today. Through a variety of visual strategies and mediums, they embark on a journey through imagined spaces, using color as seduction, where the boundaries of identity, spirituality, and locality are blurred, revealing new and profound ways of relating to the world.
Paola de la Calle (she/her), a San Francisco based artist of Colombian descent, creates mesmerizing textiles. Her work combines family photographs, found images, poetic texts, and found objects to explore the nuances of cultural subjectivity. By mining the aesthetics of nostalgia, she makes palpable the need to never forget. The show marks the works NYC debut since their unveiling at her July 2023 SOMArts solo exhibition, "In This House We Are All Buried Alive," which garnered coverage in Refinery29 and Latina among others.
Francisco Donoso (he/him) born in Ecuador and raised in Miami, leads viewers through a multidimensional psychic space, transforming the chain-link fence motif into a range of possibilities. In a time when external traumas of migration dominate headlines, Donoso, a DACA recipient, suggests that the liberated interiority can serve as a refuge. He is a recipient of an Artist Corp Grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts, a Cultural Solidarity Fund Grant, and is currently at the LMCC Workspace Residency 2023-24. As co-curator of the exhibition, Donoso also brings his unique perspective and expertise to the curation process, including the notable 2023 'ELIGIBLE/ILLEGIBLE’ for PS122 Gallery.
Kathryn Godoy (they/them) a New Yorker with Chilean heritage, uses abstraction to draw connections between memory and the spaces that contain it. Their work features geometric flattening, stacking, and collaging of shapes, creating cavernous spaces that function as windows and doorways into imagined realms. Godoy's artwork takes the viewer on a visceral exploration of the passage of time and the residues of presence, like imprints in the sand. Affordable Art Fair recognized Godoy as their Young Talent Exhibition recipient in 2022.
Elsa Muñoz (she/her) a Chicago native from La Villita with Mexican roots, delves into the intersections of ecology and spirituality, exploring these connections within her own interiority. Muñoz centers the urgency of finding restorative and sustainable ways of being by drawing connections between the psyche, the body and our developing climate crisis. Elsa, boasting 11 solo shows, has been honored with a SPARK Grant from the Chicago Artists Coalition (2022) and received the Helen and Tim Meier Foundation For The Arts Achievement Award (2019).
Marisol Ruiz (she/her) creates paintings that spring from her Puerto Rican heritage and subconscious. The imagery travels through different dimensions of the ethereal and the intangible experience of life. She creates a visual language that transcends the limitations of reality, transporting viewers into ethereal realms where imagination and memory intertwine. The poetic visuals are meditations on the complex and healing nature of memory. In 2023, Ruiz exhibited in group shows with Tchotchke Gallery and Selenas Mountain.
Domingo Comms, an inclusive art business, provides personalized services in communications, art advisory, and interior design. Veronica Petty, a New York-based PR specialist, art advisor, and curator, founded Domingo Art Advisory as a crucial part of this arts communications platform. Specializing in promoting Latinx artists, the Advisory uses meticulous curation and strategic exhibition planning. Domingo is dedicated to creating opportunities for contemporary artists, expanding their reach through in-person showcases and online platforms.
NYC Culture Club The NYC Culture Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and exhibition program that provides artists and curators with exhibition opportunities free of charge and commission. The program was founded by brothers, Clayton and Parker Calvert and is made possible via a partnership with Westfield World Trade Center. The NYC Culture Club has exhibited 384 artists and hosted over 120,000 visitors to date. The goal of the project is to have an impactful arts program that contributes to the vibrant culture that makes New York City thrive.