Artists Residency

Macon Reed is an artist working in sculpture, ceramics, installation, fibers, video, and social practice. Their work draws from participation in queer, punk, and DIY communities that experiment with how we can, and cannot, consciously shape the world in which we live. Their brightly colored, large-scale installations combine studio and social practices to create temporary worlds that highlight undervalued histories and social issues.

Reed’s work has shown at venues such as the National Art School and University of New South Wales Gallery (Sydney), San Francisco Museum of Craft and Design, Transmediale Vorspiel (Berlin), La Patinoire Royale (Brussels), Columbia University, Center for Craft, Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, and Museum of Art and Design NYC. They received First Prize at the 2023 Louisiana Contemporary exhibition at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.

Reed completed their MFA at University of Illinois at Chicago (2013) and BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University (2007). They studied Physical Theater at Dah International Theatre School (Belgrade), Radio Documentary at Salt Institute for Documentary Studies (Maine), and Socially Engaged Arts at The Kitchen (NYC). They attended residencies and fellowship programs at Royal Academy of Arts (London), Eyebeam Center for Art + Technology, and Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture.

To learn more about Macon Reed, visit www.maconreed.com.

Macon’s residency was generously sponsored in part by Phyllis Childress.

Atisha Fordyce is a multi-disciplinary artist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drawing inspiration from family traditions and Caribbean folklore, her work serves as a vessel for collective memories. Her work often portrays floating figures, symbolizing the in-between, the many places she has called home, and her yearning for a sense of belonging. This conceptual space reflects what many immigrants navigate. Fordyce is of Guyanese birth and American citizenship.

Her art is profoundly influenced by the Maroon cultures of the Americas. Through her practice, she merges landscapes and interiors to explore the concept of safe spaces, particularly in relation to resisting displacement. Her work honors leisure, featuring depictions of domestic environments, flora, found patterns, fabric, and, most importantly, people. Her art celebrates the resilience and beauty of her heritage.

Fordyce holds a BFA from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art and an MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts. Her work has been shown in The Galleries at Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia, the Zimmerli Art Museum in New Brunswick, the New York Academy of Art, BSB Gallery in Trenton, and many other institutions and private collections throughout the United States and Guyana.

To learn more about Atisha Fordyce, visit https://atishafordyce.com/.

Nela Garzón is a multidisciplinary visual artist whose work explores the intersection of traditions, cultural diversity, and acculturation. Drawing inspiration from diverse cultures, she addresses themes of colonialism, racism, social injustice, and migration, critically examining the impact of ethnocentrism in dominant societies. With a passion for folk art and handcrafts, Garzón immerses herself in traditional techniques, reinterpreting them to comment on the effects of globalization and capitalism. Her work advocates for the preservation of ancestral knowledge, the promotion of pride in minority communities, and the acceptance of immigrants and refugees in a pluricultural world.

Born in Bogotá, Colombia, Garzón earned a Bachelor of Visual Arts from the Javeriana University in 2004. Her art has been featured in significant exhibitions in Colombia, including the 41st Salón Nacional de Artistas and the 4th Salón de Arte Bidimensional. In the U.S., she has received notable achievements, such as the 1st Award at the Assistance League of Houston Show (2019), the LIFTS grant (2020), and a sculpture featured at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (2022). She also received a Jones Artist Award from the Houston Endowment (2023). A commissioned work is permanently installed at Meow Wolf Houston (2024), and she was a resident artist at PAC (2023).

To learn more about Nela Garzón’s work, visit http://www.minkstereo.com.

Nela’s residency was generously sponsored in part by Jereann Chaney.