Imaginaries of Diasporic Self
Scott Carrillo Azevedo • Aruni Dharmakirth • Joan Hanley
Elena Kalkova • Kate Quarfordt • Jency Seka
Given recent events in the United States, including violence and widespread discrimination against immigrants,
LGBTQAI, and others, it is vital to move beyond the dominant narrative to encompass the plurality of people
and stories that compose our communities and country. Imagining this diverse society, with its many shades, shapes, smells, sounds, and movements, is no small feat.
In Imaginaries of Diasporic Self, 6 artists working in various media embrace multiple diasporas—Indian,
Sri Lankan, Irish, Mexican, African American, and Russian. These artists apply art as an essential tool to excavate
difficult contemporary themes, reclaim histories from their gaps and erasures, trouble dominant perspectives,
and as acts of healing and repair, hope and transcendence. They poignantly excavate the self and consider
dilemmas of identity, immigration, and life in the U.S. Through their work, they unpack in real terms what is often
hidden, yet so important within diaspora and life. They invite us to consider differently and understand with
wisdom the past, and the dark and complex shadows it casts over the present. To work within these imaginaries
is to think about how better to move and exist within present day uncertainties. The imaginary can also provide us with speculative agency, allowing us to break free from repressive norms and/or the imprisonment of traumas and the past.
In her book On Poetry, Mary Oliver says that poetry is a river upon which many voices travel. Similarly, Imaginaries of Diasporic Self shows work that will move throughout The Stairwell Space providing a river of voices and visual works that arrive in their own historical and present contexts at a pungent and disturbing moment in American history. Within this stairwell river, these works are not isolated islands but are reflections—reflecting back to us other people, other cultures, and other ways of encountering and engaging with the world.
~ Maria Markham, Curator
For more information about the exhibition or the artist, please contact:
Linda Colletta
Founder, The Stairwell Space
linda@lindacolletta.com
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow The Stairwell Space on Instagram @thestrairwellspace for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
GETTING THERE
The Stairwell Space is located in the entrance foyer of the American Fabrics Artist Studios building at 1069 Connecticut Ave in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Click HERE for directions via Google Maps. Parking is available in the adjacent parking lot.
ACCESSIBILITY
The front entrance to The Stairwell Space is on Connecticut Ave and is equipped with an temporary access ramp which is available upon request. The building’s back entrance, accessible through the parking lot to the West of the building, is wheel-chair accessible to an elevator. Taking the elevator to the second floor will allow access to the gallery’s second level. If visitors attending these events need assistance, they can text Linda Colletta at 646-456-3622 prior to their arrival and share their ETA and any assistance needs.
For more information about The Stairwell Space or to schedule a visit, contact Linda Colletta at linda@lindacolletta.com
To stay up to date on our shows and programs, follow us on IG @thestairwellspace
ABOUT US…
The Stairwell Space is an artist-led, mission driven alternative art space in Bridgeport, CT situated in the historic American Fabrics Arts Building. Inhabiting the building’s original entrance, a grand marble foyer that features a two-story spiral staircase, we aim to contextualize and champion the work of local, regional, and national artists, cultivating meaningful conversations about art and culture.
We seek to build an ethos for innovation and advancement of the visual arts by providing an alternative gallery space to foster and facilitate artists to elevate their work, provoke dialog, and contribute to the greater conversation of the Arts.
Our mission is to advance the visual arts, elevate under-represented artists, and foster community engagement through innovative exhibitions and educational programming. to unite and expand the visual arts community in Connecticut through cultivating new opportunities, perspectives, curators and collectors from New York City and other renowned art hubs around the country. We seek to galvanize Bridgeport as an incubator for forward thinking artists and patrons of the arts. We mount exhibitions that prioritize under-represented, marginalized artists emerging artists regardless of age, education or gender, that are actively engaged in pushing the boundaries of their practices.
Through public events and educational outreach,
The Stairwell Space also plans to engage with local residents and create art outreach programs within the Bridgeport Public School System. These programs will provide content and funding for local visual arts after-school and summer programs.
The Stairwell Space is located at 1069 Connecticut Ave. Bridgeport, CT 06607, through the main entrance on CT Avenue. TSS is 90 minutes from Grand Central Station, NYC on Metro North's New Haven line and a 5 minute drive/Uber from the station. If driving, TSS is off Exit 30 on I95, and the Bridgeport/Port Jefferson Ferry port is a 5 minute drive to the gallery.
Ample parking is available and we are equipped with an temporary ADA compliant access ramp at the front entrance, and an wheel-chair accessible elevator to the 2nd floor which allows access to the gallery’s second level.
