Open Center: Artists-in-Residence — A Conversation

On May 29, 6 - 8 pm, join us for a final evening with our Open Center artists-in-residence--Jillian Crochet, Dawline-Jane Oni-Eseleh, Natalie Palms, and Sabina Shanti Kariat. Hear directly from the artists about their practices, the ideas and works they've been developing, and the experiences and reflections that have shaped their time at the Berkeley Art Center. Artist and writer Thet Shein Win moderates the evening conversation.

Spend an evening with us, to sit together, listen, and talk about art, nature, and our environment, connecting with Live Oak Park and the broader Bay Area. Enjoy refreshments and snacks, and stay to hang out afterwards!

ABOUT OPEN CENTER: Artists & Community

OPEN CENTER was a month-long program at the Berkeley Art Center throughout April. During this time, the gallery transformed into a communal workspace for artists and community gatherings. BAC artists-in-residence, working across a variety of media, explored the multifaceted relationships among art, nature, culture, and site to expand their creative practices.

The gallery also served as a laboratory for developing new forms of engagement and activation, drawing inspiration from BAC and the surrounding natural environment. Through public programs, artists shared their creative work and processes with the community.

Date & Time: Saturday, May 29, 6-8 pm

Location: Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St., Berkeley

Masking required. Thank you!

Fee: Free and open to the public. Donations welcome! Your support matters!

Let’s envision the arts ecosystem together, where art and community flourish side by side.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE:

Jillian Crochet is a disabled interdisciplinary artist based in the Bay Area working in interactive sculpture, video, and performance to engage embodied perception and challenge inaccessibility. Her work confronts preconceived expectations for how we interact with the world - revealing the inherent ableism of our built environment and social structures. She asks: What is natural/unnatural? Which bodies are included/excluded—important? This work seeks to open up what could be possible in a more inclusive world. Website: https://jilliancrochet.com/

Dawline-Jane Oni-Eseleh is an Oakland-based visual and teaching artist. Her mixed media artwork is inspired by memory, family stories, her cultural Afro-Caribbean heritage in the Diaspora, and the natural world, as well as the shifting urban landscape. Dawline-Jane pulls images from self-constructed archives and combines printmaking, painting, and drawing to tell stories of the world as she experiences it. While at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, she exhibited her work in spaces across the US and internationally. Her illustrations have been featured in The LA Times, Science Friday, ProPublica, and Teen Vogue. Website: https://www.dawlinejaneart.com/

Natalie Palms (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist, working primarily in textiles. She studied Art and Social Behavioral Studies in her hometown of Los Angeles before moving to Oakland. She received her BFA in Individualized Studies at California College of the Arts in 2015. Upon graduating, she began teaching K-8th art in numerous schools throughout the Bay Area, including her alma mater, California College of the Arts, and Kala Art Institute. As a multiracial woman, creating a classroom environment focused on social-emotional learning, anti-racism, and sharing culturally diverse artists is important to her. She has her own business, Natalie Rose Textiles, creating accessories she hand-dyes using natural pigments and prints, while curating and leading textile-focused workshops for children and adults throughout the Bay Area, to share knowledge, build community, and inspire. Natalie currently teaches at Kala’s After School Studio program. Website: https://www.nataliepalms.com/

Sabina Shanti Kariat (she/they) is an SF-based Indian-American animator, muralist, and cultural worker. Sabina creates animations for documentary films about diasporic narratives and historical activist movements that remain relevant today. She has worked as a teaching artist throughout San Francisco and Oakland and led co-creation workshops in India, as a Brown University Social Innovation Fellow, and in Turkey as a Fulbright Independent Research Fellow. Her work explores placemaking, collective memory, and the radical visibility offered by nonfiction storytelling. She manages public arts programs at ARTogether, an organization that creates arts-based support systems for immigrant and refugee communities. Website: https://www.sabinakariatart.com/

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