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Artist Spotlight: Ryan Frame

Alphaa.io is pleased to welcome visual artist Ryan Frame to our network of creatives!

Frame was born in South Africa and is based in Los Angeles. He incorporates body paint, human subjects, water, and photography to create surreal yet intimate portraits.  Learn more about Frame in our interview below and check out his works on Alphaa.io.

Where are you from? 

Ryan Frame: I was born and Raised in Johannesburg South Africa, then lived in Cape Town from 18-24 and then moved to LA where I have lived since 24. I am 30 now.

What is your background?

RF: I have been working in the motion picture industry throughout my entire professional career, which led me to move to Los Angeles. There, I studied for my MFA at UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television.

How did you get started in your artist career? 

RF: As I became more involved in the motion picture business I begun feeling frustrated at how long things take for a creative vision to materialize. It was through this creative frustration that I searched for more immediate ways to express myself. I gravitated towards body painting because I have always been fascinated by the originality of how this medium combines naked skin, paint and photography. The immediacy of this art form gave me an emancipation from the long drawn our process of making films.

Any exciting upcoming projects in 2023? 

RF: I’ve been experimenting with underwater photography and testing paints and powders that will enable me to achieve it.

What excites you the most about technology (NFTs, Web3 blockchain etc) right now? 

RF: I think the promise of NFT technology is well suited for fine art for three reasons. First is that it provides provenance for these works as a certificate of authenticity that cannot be manipulated. Second is the ability for the creator to participate in secondary sales in perpetuity which I find most exciting. Third, I believe NFTs should ideally be accompanied by the original works. Although some can exist on their own, the value of art is the ability to appreciate it in person.

What inspires you? 

I get inspired when I observe life's contrast through witnessing my hopes and dreams against another person's pain and suffering, or my own pain and suffering against another's hopes and dreams. Seeing creation and destruction both in a natural context is another source of inspiration. I like to choose locations for my photoshoots in places that highlight the beauty of natural landscapes or places that carry a heaviness to them through political or religious affiliation. 

How did you get in touch with Alphaa.io and how would you see the relationship growing this year? 

RF: I met Manu at an event several months ago where she saw my work and invited me to apply. I would like to see our relationship become one where Alphaa.io represents my work to its clientele for sale.

What are you currently working on?

RF: I’m currently in Cape Town until the end of February. It’s summer here so I’m using the opportunity to create a series featuring local muses and landscapes. We’ll see how it comes together.

Anything else you want to add?

RF: Just that I recently started becoming more public with my work in the past year. It took some courage to come out because I wanted to build up enough works before I shared with whoever might find them pleasing.

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Recap: alphaa.io at #LATechWeek

Manuela Seve and Ba Minuzzi at Female Founders and Funders panel, by Maya Dondonyan

LA Tech Week just wrapped and we are still buzzing! The week was a whirlwind of exciting panels, networking and new ideas being shared. Manuela spoke at three panels with movers and shakers in Web3 and connected with other women at the forefront of the industry. The final panel of the week, Demo Day, was a big career highlight for us. We received over a million dollars in investment interest from Manuela’s 2 minute pitch! 

Stay tuned and follow us on Instagram for real-time updates from the events. We will be hosting more events out of LA where we are based and continue to feature female founders and funders.

Female Founders and Funders panel, all photos by Maya Dondonyan

Panel Reacps:

LA Tech Week Demo Day

On Wednesday, Manuela pitched alphaa.io at Demo Day, an event where ​LA's top early stage startups pitched to a panel of celebrity judges and a room of 100 tech leaders in a Beverly Hills mansion. It was a very special day for us. Manuela Seve presented alphaa.io in front of top investors and legends Andrew Chen, Nikita Bier, Sophia Amoruso, and Turner Novak. Her pitch raised over a million dollars in interest. Watch the pitch here

Takeaway:  Manuela opened up with the question: What does the NBA, YSL and Jeff Koons have in common? The answer? “They all have real problems that can be solved exclusively through alphaa. They don't really capture resale revenue on the secondary market, they don’t have proper connection to their community, and they can’t really attest authenticity.” 

She spoke about how alphaa.io offers solutions for three problems: authenticity, resale and community building. She also used our recent deal with two NBA teams, one being the Sacramento Kings, to show a real world use case.

Celebrities, Viral Content & Venture Capital

Manuela co-hosted the event with Sandbox Ventures, Serena Ventures, UMANA Venture Studio, Viral Studio on Tuesday. Venture capitalists and content creators spoke to a packed audience at a breathtaking mansion. Industry leaders co-building VC funds with celebrities, investing in celebrity-founded companies, and co-building startups spoke with Gen Z content creators about the power of viral content and celebrity influence.  

Takeaway: Panelists shared insight about how to collaborate with celebrities from giving them the creative liberty to creating transparency to choosing the right people to work with. The biggest message: Authentic content is the best content. Celebrities and influencers understand their audience the best. Let them be authentic and share content how they see fit instead of forcing a script.

Female Founders and Funders

Manuela co-hosted Monday's event, empowering panel highlighted women in Web3, with Ba Minuzzi of Umana House of Funds. The panelists discussed how feminine energy can be used as a business strategy to challenge the  deeply embedded patterns of patriarchal society. Speakers offered tips, techniques, and first hand experiences to support how to demand equal treatment and opportunity from their male colleagues.

Takeaway: Manuela shared a personal experience where she took a sexist comment from a male programmer on one of her articles and used it to create a viral article that opened a larger dialogue about gender equality in tech. “It’s not about holding back our feminine energy, it’s about using the resourcefulness that we have,” she said.

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Artist Spotlight: Anastasia Blackman

Meet Ukrainian photographer Anastasia Blackman. Anastasia collaborated with Alphaa.io to create a series of limited edition prints and NFTs to raise funds for Foreign United Peoples, an NGO working on the frontlines to evacuate Ukrainian refugees and provide vital support to hospitals in war zones.

Anastasia was born in Crimea, Ukraine and currently is based out of San Francisco, California. She has been interested in visual language since her childhood and began pursuing photography when she moved to California as a young adult. She has worked as a commercial photographer as well as a fine art photographer. Anastasia is currently working on an ongoing project that addresses the displacement Ukrainians are experiencing due to war.

Anastasia’s ongoing project UKRAINE UNITED features a series of images taken from zoom calls with Ukrainian women artists affected by the war. 

Marta 2 and Katro 3

She created the images for this moving project by connecting her computer to a video projector during the calls. She took photos of the projections and transported images of her subjects at home in Ukraine to her San Francisco apartment. Many of the scenes from Ukraine in her series no longer exist, adding an extra layer of meaning to the project.   

Yova Yager and red fish

A majority of the proceeds from UKRAINE UNITED will be donated to support Foreign United Peoples’ efforts. Foreign United Peoples is a group of volunteers, consisting of everyday people from all over the world, who provide direct aid to Ukrainians affected by the war. Volunteers deliver food and medical supplies to hospitals and civilians in the hardest hit cities and evacuate the most vulnerable civilians to safe areas. The money raised will help volunteers fund their efforts from gas for their vans to the essential supplies that they deliver. 

Katro 1

“UKRAINE UNITED is a special project about Ukrainian women artists during the war. In heartbreaking times, it is important to stay strong and create help and support instead of spreading hate and fear. I hope to raise awareness and funds to support Ukraine with our voices through this project,” says Blackman.

Marta Borovets and Making of

For part of the series, Anastasia Blackman interviewed her friend, journalist and activist Marta via Zoom during lockdown from Marta’s home in Vyshgorod, Ukraine. “We talked about sunflowers and a feeling of home. I lost my home when Russia occupied Crimea. For Marta, home is where her family is,” says Blackman. “Today, that house is not on a map as it was bombed and destroyed by Russians. Marta is safe in Germany, raising awareness and funds for the Ukrainian army,” she adds. We talked with Blackman about why this project is so close to her heart and why photography is the perfect medium for her.

Window to Ukraine

How did you come up with the idea for UKRAINE UNITED?

Ukraine United is a special project about Ukrainian women artists during the war. In heartbreaking times, the hardest thing is to stay strong and create help and support instead of spreading hate and fear. I talked with my artist friends and we decided that we wanted to raise awareness and funds to support Ukraine using our own voices. So I photographed Ukrainian women artists while they told me their stories. We talked about the current war, its impact on millions of lives, and the future of Ukraine.

The unity and dignity of Ukrainians under extreme terror and consistent attack is an example of how to fight for freedom and independence in the world.

How did you get into photography?

Since childhood, visual storytelling has been my language. It felt like the only way to show what I meant and how I saw the world around me. Then, after I moved to California, the image became a way to connect and learn about culture through stories of outstanding people. I learned I could make a bigger impact by translating their stories into images.

How did you develop the “teleportation” technique you use in UKRAINE UNITED?

The idea of photographing anyone from anywhere without leaving my home developed into a photo technique that I call "teleportation.” That connected me to an amazing art community of Ukrainian and European artists around the world. 

Can you share a story of one of your subjects that impacted you?

Yova Yager is a Ukrainian hospitality designer. She fills the space and people with her unique energy, never-ending childlike wholeness, joy, and ironic attitude. Her designs are known for their functionality and attention to detail as well as the same feeling of charm and humor. Her work always contains an important message: keep the planet safe and living species cared for. 

Unfortunately, one of her recent creations, Bar Koktelka was destroyed in Kharkiv during the air attack in March 2022. Today Yova is in Cologne with an emergency suitcase, a backpack with her work electronics, and two chocolate bars from her beloved that she is saving until the victory. 

“I didn’t want to leave Kyiv till the last minute as I felt direct responsibility to support my people, and almost like a proof that everything is ok because I am still in town.I realized that I was never afraid to die but was fearful of war and its massive damage and impact. I don’t have many choices other than staying strong and giving as much support as possible fearlessly guiding and helping people to stay safe and inspired,” she told me. “Our people are united worldwide and support each other with a kind attitude and dignity under extreme violence.”

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Alpha’a x Molteni&C in the Heart of Miami’s Design District

We collaborated with Molteni&C to curate artworks for the leading Italian furniture and design firm’s flagship store in Miami. We reached out to local Miami artists to select works that complement the interiors of the space. The final selection captures Miami’s scenic beaches and vibrant city streets while giving a nod to Molteni&C's modern aesthetic.

Molteni&C|Dada’s 7,300 square foot, two-story Flagship Store shines with new design elements under Creative Director Vincent Van Duysen. The space incorporates a variety of textures, proportions, materials, and patterns inspired by Miami’s aesthetic. The space showcases Molteni&C’s furniture including wardrobes as well as Dada kitchens that are artfully staged throughout the store.

In Flight No.3 by Lizzy Taber

Our in-house curator, Iman Mazhar, sourced textured and layered paintings, minimal pieces, works with geometric patterns, as well as some sculptural and 3D works. The cool tones and ocean blues of the art balance the warm tones of the showroom’s interior. All artworks displayed at the store are available for purchase on-site as well as on alphaa.io.

Mazhar selected an assortment of artworks from various partnerships including Alpha’a artists, independent artists, and gallery-represented artists. The collections includes works by Alpha'a artists Lizzy Taber and Cecilia Thibes, as well as works by Alberto Biasi, Pablo Atchugarry, and Jorge Riveros in collaboration with Piero Atchugarry Gallery in Miami.

Meet the artists who brought the vision to life:

Lizzy Taber

Lizzy Taber is a multimedia artist whose projects investigate the relationships between art and science with an emphasis on marine ecology and seafloor mapping. She often incorporates data visualization into her work. Her current work is inspired by her interests in geology as well as human connection and emotion. 

Cecilia Thibes

Cecilia Thibes is a painter, art teacher, and art therapist who was born in Parana, South of Brazil and is based in Miami. She creates vibrant abstract paintings with thick brush strokes. All her works are imbued with an element of spirituality and inspired by her studies in anthroposophy.

Alberto Biasi

Alberto Biasi is an Italian pioneer of Kinetic and Op Art. His vibrant geometric works are characterized by their mathematical precision and elaborate symmetry, offering the illusory sensation of movement even if the work remains perfectly still.

Pablo Atchugarry

Pablo Atchugarry, is internationally renowned for his monumental public sculptures. Atchugarry uses marble as his primary medium. Simultaneously abstract and numinous, massive and delicately carved, his sculptures are reflections on the intervention of the spiritual in everyday life.

Jorge Riveros

Jorge Riveros is one of the most important abstract geometric living artists from Colombia. Always following the golden mean or golden ratio as a mathematical and aesthetic principle, he has devoted his life to painting as a spiritual practice, as a way to elevate life and dignify reality, and as a meditative and discreet way of living.

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Alpha’a X Moletni&C: A Love Letter to Design in NYC

Alpha’a recently wrapped up an inspiring project curating a collection for Molteni&C’s new New York flagship store.

Molteni&C has been at the forefront of the Italian design industry for decades. All of the modern design firm’s furniture is made in Italy but it has an international presence with hundreds of retail spaces in over 80 countries.

Our in-house curator Iman Mazhar worked closely with the leading Italian furniture and design firm to highlight local NYC and East Coast artists alongside world renowned artists. The result is a vibrant collection that complements the space and creates an inspiring dialogue about design.

As a nod to Moldenti&C’s forward thinking approach to design, we sourced works that experiment with form: textured and layered paintings, minimal pieces, works with geometric patterns, as well as some sculptural and 3D works. We selected warm vibrant colors and hues of blue to add vibrancy to the showroom’s interior and included monochrome works to add moments of calmness. 

Mazhar worked with Alpha’a artists, independent artists and gallery represented artists to create a dynamic roster of artists for the final selection. Alpha’a artists David Stephen Johnson and Senem Oezdogan were highlighted as well as works from artists from Praxis Gallery, Opera Gallery, Nohra Haime Gallery, and Hemingway African Gallery.

Molteni&C’s New York store is located on Madison Avenue in the heart of Manhattan. The building was designed by Vincent Van Duysen and combines Italian style and elegance with classic New York design.The spacious two story storefront is over 12,500 square feet with four large shop windows that offer passersby a peek into Molteni&’s stunning display. 

Shoppable designs by the Group’s three brands: Molteni&C, Dada and UniFor fill the New York space alongside prints installed by Alpha’a. Moletni&C’s open layout imagines a range of settings for the brands’ furniture to shine, from an intimate home setting to a contemporary office environment. All artworks displayed at the store are available for purchase on site.

Meet the artists in the Molteni&C X Alpha’a collection and purchase their works on alphaa.io:

David Stephen Johnson , Alpha’a

David Stephen Johnson is an abstract painter based in Westport, Connecticut who often works with large scale canvases, exploring color and shape. He is self taught and is influenced by post-war abstract expressionists and great action painters.

Senem Oezdogan, Alpha’a

Senem Oezdogan is a Brooklyn-based mixed-media artist who uses color and form to create optical illusions. Smooth gradients give a sense of volume to the bold shapes that are subsequently flattened by her illusionistic use of spatial composition. 

Claudia Vieira, PRAXIS 

Claudia Vieria lives and works in Porto Alegre, Brazil and New York City. She recreates spaces by drawing and painting on the walls. She often creates site-specific installations and immersive drawn environments in which the action of drawing the line is as important as the final appearance of the work.

Julie Hedrick, NOHRA HAIME GALLERY 

Julie Hedrick is a Canadian-American artist known for her abstract and vibrant oil paintings. Hedrick’s art displays a characteristic peeling texture, tactile complex surfaces and an elemental human quality.

Francisca Sutil, NOHRA HAIME GALLERY 

Francisca Sutil is a Chilean painter known for her research of the chromatic surface and the relationship between color and light. She uses her work to encourage reflection and meditation. She creates prints and drawings on textured handmade paper, pigmented gesso surfaces, and vertical oil bands she calls Spaces. 

Sophia Vari, NOHRA HAIME GALLERY 

Sophia Vari is a world-renowned Greek visual artist. She specializes in bronze sculpture and is also known for collages, oils, and watercolors and her use of patina along with contrasting colors. Her work is an investigation of form and balance.

Hemingway African Gallery 

Alpha’a selected sculptures from Hemingway African Gallery. The NYC gallery’s collection is ethically-sourced, often directly from artisans across the continent, and ranges from antique to decorative.

Alfred Haberpointner, OPERA GALLERY

Alfred Haberpointner is an Austrian sculptor who uses wood as his primary medium. He is best known for his wooden plates that he cuts, burns, saws and then bleaches and re-pigments creating a texture, rhythm, intensity and movement.

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Alphaa.io Speaks with Artist Laura Kimpton About Mental Health, Mindfulness, and Creativity

Laura Kimpton is a California-based mixed media artist and activist with a lifelong dedication to supporting mental health initiatives. Kimpton uses her background in psychology and art education to create uplifting messages that directly engage her viewers. She is inspired by her personal experience overcoming trauma and growing up with dyslexia. “Being a dyslexic person, you’re very aware of how important words are to people, so I do these very large monumental words,” she says.

Laura recently partnered with Alphaa.io for Mental Health Awareness Month to create an NFT to raise money for Blue Fever, a mental health platform for Gen Z, as well as for the nonprofit Mental Health America.

Believe: Burning Man 2014, Laura Kimpton

She comes up with her creative ideas through daydreaming and is a process oriented artist who is continually exploring new mediums. She is one of the most well-known artists at Burning Man and is a six-time recipient of Burning Man’s Honorarium Grant. She is best known for her Monumental Word Series that features large scale word sculptures such as Believe, Dream, Love, and Ego. 

Kimpton has a Masters in Psychology and worked as an art teacher for over 15 years. Her work explores psychology and her personal experience with PTSD and shares a universal message of love and acceptance. 

Laura Kimpton's immersive art installation Dream with Me will be installed at Burning Man 2022. Alphaa.io has partnered with Kimpton to create NFTs related to the physical piece to raise funds for the interactive structure.

We joined Laura Kimpton to talk about the impact of mental health on her art and why it is so important to create from the heart.

How has your relationship with mental health evolved over time and what is the most important message? Have there been things you have learned that have changed the way you think about mental health?

Laura Kimpton: Everyone is suffering with some type of mental health issues, so I want people to know they are not alone and that everyone is affected by mental health and now it is safe to talk about it. In the past it was more looked down upon, but now in 2022 we can talk about mental health more easily. Covid brought up trauma for a lot of people so almost everybody’s mental health was affected in one way or another. 

Do you think that artists help open that door by creating works that might be minimal or abstract but still touch on mental health and offer an entry point to concepts that might be darker?

Laura: One hundred percent. Especially for creative people because we are right brainers. When I was growing up I was told that something was wrong with me because I was dyslexic. Now I know that my dyslexia is my genius. Art is a way for people to express themselves. I was an art teacher for at risk kids and creativity is how I helped them get their emotions out. 

How can art help youth express feelings that are maybe too complicated or taboo for them to say outright?

One thing is that kids spend eight hours a day in a linguistic world and a mathematical world framed around learning about other things rather than self expression. Art does not have to be factually exact to what you are expressing. A lot of my art is very emotion-based, I’m not saying exactly what happened to me. Art can be a healing way to express childhood traumas. I’ve learned that talking about it outright can be way more difficult than creating art.

The year I created “Believe” was the year my daughter turned 16 and became more independent, getting in cars with 16 year old boys. And when you suffer from PTSD one thing is sometimes it’s very hard to deal with fear of the unknown or loss of control. So I kept repeating the mantra to myself “believe, believe, believe.” You just have to believe. Worry doesn’t help, positivity helps.  Art is the way I have survived in a very linguistic world and how I have processed my family trauma. 

Can you explain why it is so important for youth to use art as a creative outlet that is attached to a deeper meaning?

My favorite saying I tell myself all the time is that it’s about the process not the product. When I make my digital collages it can take 72 hours and when I’m working, I’m not worrying or doing anything else. It is a meditative state. When I worked with kids it was very much about making them feel safe and empowered to create. I encouraged them to not make art for others but to instead make art that stems from the meditative process. Also teens need to know that every teen is going through something. There is so much emphasis now about getting acceptance online instead of just expressing yourself.

Especially now with our attention going in so many directions it is so important just to be mindful. How do you incorporate mindfulness into your art and your teaching?

When kids who are making art start to doubt themselves, I remind them of my mantra: ‘It’s about the process not the product.’ And I say that a thousand times over in my head when I’m making art and I’ve been making art for over thirty years. Affirmations are very helpful for my personal practice, like ‘be kind’ or ‘be art.’ 

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Top Alpha'a Artists of 2021

2021 was a difficult, but productive year for us. Despite ups and downs, we were able to grow our roster of Artists and complete 70 design projects. We couldn't have done it without our talented artists. Here is a roundup of the top artists we worked with this past year.

Angel Estevez

Angel Estevez is a Spanish painter and digital artist based in Brazil. He creates engaging abstract works with vibrant colors and geometric shapes that imbue his art with a meditative sense of balance. His main focus is digital art but he also creates acrylic and watercolor paintings. His work was featured in our recent Fernish collaboration as well as Bridgeton, San Francisco.

Bows

Reinhard Görner

Reinhard Görner lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He has been an architectural photographer since 1981 and transitioned to fine art photography in 2005. Görner was inspired to turn his gift for capturing iconic buildings into an art while he was working for architects. Görner’s wide format works are immersive, inspired by physical space and the architecture that frames it. His sensitive eye, use of lighting and emphasis on symmetry elevate his love for historic buildings to an art. His photos are often devoid of spectators: the structure takes up a life of its own, inviting the viewer to look around and take in the details of his environments from an intimate perspective. His work was featured in our recent curatorial project for Beacon, Boston.

Academia Carolina

Brien Hollowell

Brien Hollowell is based out of New York and Denver, Colorado, where he was born. He fell in love with photography at the age of twenty-two and decided to develop his skills at the Art Institute of Colorado. Hollowell enjoys spending his time in the photo studio capturing the movement of body, beauty, and hair. He has produced editorial work for Google, NYFW, NBA Dime Magazine, and Inc. Magazine. Brien believes life giving experiences can develop with the right exposure to the Light. He currently works in Denver and New York. Hollowell’s work was used in our Beacon, Denver project.

BH Interior

Yojiro Imasaka

Yojiro Imasaka is a fine art photographer who turns his lens to the natural world to create lush, verdant images. Imasaka currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. He received a BFA in photography from Nihon University in Tokyo, Japan in 2007 then moved to New York after graduating to pursue an MFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York in 2010. His works are in permanent collections at the San Jose Museum of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Mead Art Museum in Amherst College, Carnegie Museum of Art, and multiple private collections. Imasaka’a photography was placed in our Beacon, Denver project.

Trade Winds #14

Micah Crandall-Bear

Micah Crandall-Bear’s abstract landscape paintings are inspired by natural resources and daily and seasonal shifts in light. He infuses his painting with gestural expanses of color and gradient lines that cascade from atmospheric to subterranean. Micah’s construction of space is enhanced by his painting method. His ‘wet-on-wet’ method is a contemporary application of ‘alla prima,’ a traditional technique used mostly in oil painting where layers of wet paint are applied to previous layers of wet paint. This highly active method of painting is sometimes tempered through rapid buffing and blending. The outcome is a smooth, boundless, and energetic surface. His work is represented in the United States, Asia, and Europe. His paintings were featured in our Bridgeton, San Francisco project.

Talva

Stephen Matera

Stephen Matera combines a passion for all things outdoors with a unique creative eye for symmetry. His photographs present natural landscapes as painterly images highlighted by his eye for distinctive light, and natural symmetry. Matera captures many of his images around the mountain West, Alaska and beyond. He has had his work published in countless publications and commercial campaigns. His photographs were featured in our first retail partnership with Lighthouse and in our project with Beacon, Seattle.

SM_6

Steve Lefkovitz

Steve Lefkovitz has a background in photojournalism and was a staff photographer for the USA before he switched to fine art photography. His photographs celebrate the beauty and spiritual elements of the natural world and often highlight close up details that appear to be kaleidoscopic under his observant lens. We used his work in our Beacon, Seattle project.

Glacial Ice Detail-6356

Kelly Ording

Kelly Ording compiles simple repetition, geometric patterns, and mathematical markings that contain an inherent capacity to evoke representation. Ording is based in Oakland, California and has exhibited internationally since graduating from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2000. Her work was featured in our design project for Lincoln Property Company.

Pippen Apple

Dustin Harewood

Dustin Harewood’s art practice over the last decade has explored themes of multiculturalism and the consequences of colonialism and industrialization. Harewood draws inspiration from his familial lineage and the 21st century world of desire for immediacy in all aspects of life and seeks to find nuance within vanishing moments in order to capture a narrative between histories. Harewood’s often embellishes, collages, adorns discarded packages, mass produced manufactured single use plastics and recycled fibers. He creates mixed media works that question narratives of the past, present and future through a holistic approach.

Humidity

Cristina Ripper

Cristina Ripper’s practice includes drawing, painting, making sculptures, and testing different techniques and mediums. She was born in Rio de Janeiro and studied at the art school of Lúcia Matos, Rio de Janeiro. Ripper obtained a degree in Architecture from the Faculdade de Arquitectura e Urbanismo Mackenzie, Saint Paul, Brazi. In 1989 she moved to Lisbon, Portugal, where she attended several courses at the National Society of Fine Arts. Today, she teaches the visual arts to High School students. She also works as a freelance architect. The sources of her inspiration for her art come from nature, the sun, blue skies, strong winds, mountains, and the sea.

Stones

Patricia Carparelli

Patricia Carparelli is an established contemporary artist based in Brazil who uses bright playful colors and liquid shapes to create abstract watercolor and oil paintings. Carparelli is inspired by the fluidity of water and the way its spontaneous movement relates to the unconscious. She paints directly on to her canvases without any draft and leaves an element of chance in her work. Her paintings aim to connect the dream universe with reality. View Carparelli's work here.

Jordan Holms

Jordan Holms is an artist and scholar who works primarily in painting and sculpture. She has exhibited internationally in the US, the UK, and Canada and her work is held in multiple private collections. Her paintings have recently been featured at BAMPFA and in Adidas’s San Francisco storefront. She is the recipient of the San Francisco Art Institute’s 2016-2019 Graduate Fellowship Award and a 2020 Artist-in-Residence Grant at the Vermont Studio Center. She earned an MA and MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2019. Holms is represented by Marrow Gallery, in San Francisco, California. View her work here.

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Alphaa Inc focuses on different aspects within the art world, most importantly, working with local and global artists to customise any space with artworks.

Founded by Manuela Seve and Renata Thome, Alphaa Inc acquires artworks through a range of sources to also tackle environmental and societal issues in the art world.

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Alpha’a Artist Spotlight: Lizzy Taber

Lizzy Taber is a multimedia artist whose projects investigate the relationships between art and science with an emphasis on marine ecology and seafloor mapping. She often incorporates data visualization into her work. She is a Florida native and received her BFA in Painting, Drawing, and Printmaking at the University of North Florida in 2014 and her MFA in Printmaking from Arizona State University. Taber’s work has been shown widely in museums and galleries across the U.S. and internationally. She has attended artist residencies in Croatia, Iceland, The Florida Keys, Savannah, Georgia and Hawaii and has received multiple awards, recognition, and grants. Her current work is inspired by her interests in geology while focusing closely on human connection and emotion.

We caught up with Lizzy Taber to find out about what inspires her and what is next for her in 2022.

Where do you find inspiration? I find inspiration in the unknown, the feelings, thoughts, ideas that aren’t translated into words. I create abstract art because I am drawn to those things, all the things in life that aren’t representative of something that already exists. My main source of inspiration is the ocean. I am drawn to scientific data, which is very representative of concrete facts, but I imagine all the worlds of possibility within the lines, color and data that their findings are transformed into. As the ocean is still wildly uncovered, the unknown landscape brings me so much excitement and curiosity, which you will find in my work.

What is your dream project?

I have many dream projects! But the first one that comes to mind would be to collaborate with a scientist to create a public installation at a museum or institution that would be interactive and educational. What are you working on at the moment? I am currently working on some private commissions and designs for a new painting series that I want to create in 2022. It’s going to be a shapes series that I am working with a woodworker on at the moment. I am getting all the panels built, I am very excited about it! What advice would you give artists just starting out? I would definitely advise artists that are just starting out to follow their creativity and see where it takes them. Don’t follow what you think will sell or be popular. I promise you once you create something authentic and put it out there for the world the people who connect with you on that level will find you and they are out there!

Do you have any exhibitions coming up?

Yes! I have 3 big ones coming up in the first quarter of 2022. All group exhibitions that I am excited to be a part of. One is in Kentucky at the Morlan gallery at Transylvania University curated by Anthony Mead. Another one is at the Museum of Contemporary art in Jacksonville, and another one is at the beautiful Frank Gallery in South Florida! I am currently getting all of my work ready for those 3 which will open in January, February and March of 2022.

Here is a behind the scenes look into Lizzy’s studio courtesy of the artist. You can follow her on instagram here and view her new works on Alpha’a here.

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Alpha’a Talks: Guillermo Rozenblum of Creative Cluster Development

Guillermo Rozenblum gives old buildings a new life through the arts. Rozenblum is a collector and entrepreneur who recently launched Creative Cluster Development, a creative industry accelerator that works with local artists across the world to place artworks in physical spaces.

Like Alpha’a, Rozenblum has one foot in the real estate world and one in the art world. Rozenlbum’s grew up around art, his father is a long time collector and his mother is an artist. He collected his first work of art at the age of 18 when he used the money that his parents gifted him for a trip to instead invest in a work by a famous Argentinian artist. He also has a family real estate business which has given him the resources to integrate his interest in art into the business and showcase the artworks he champions in his family’s buildings. Real estate gives Rozenblum access to hundreds of walls to hang art. “From those walls, you can sell, you can show, you can teach,” says Rozenblum. “I am naturally putting my two worlds together.”

Rozenblum’s collaboration with Alpha’a came naturally once he realized that their efforts to connect design projects with local artists was directly in line with Creative Cluster Development’s mission. He has known the co-founders of Alpha’a for years and considers them friends first and foremost. Alpha’a’s online platform offers CCD a way to provide the artists that pass through the studios with extensive opportunities to sell their prints as well as have their work showcased in major commercial buildings.

CCD came to life in January 2021, when Rozenblum turned a dilapidated building in Punta del Este, Uruguay into an expansive art space that functions as an artist residency program as well as exhibition space, and art fair venue. Rozenblum’s connections in the local art community made it easy to fill the space and once it was built galleries began reaching out directly and suggesting artists. The building’s walls, ceilings, and floors are regularly filled with contemporary paintings, sculptures, and functional furniture from local artists.

Instead of charging the artists rent for using the studio spaces in Punta del Este, Rozenblum accepts payment in artworks that he selects from each artist and adds to his personal collection. He understands that many artists do not have the advantage of studio space. The building became the prototype for all of CCD’s following community based art projects.

Now Rozenblum has created spaces across the world that follow the same ethos as his original project: this past year he opened another multi use artist space in Rosario, Argentina as well as a building in Buenos Aires that hosts 30 artist studios. Along with introducing a digital arm of his project, he also has plans to transform an empty hotel into studios for artists: 69 hotel rooms will function as temporary art studios until the hotel resumes operating. The rise of vacant buildings provides an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive and provide both artists and developers with revenue. “In COVID there's so much vacancy around the world, so turning to the arts teh fill that space is one very easy way to ensure that the property does not remain empty or fall apart,” explains Rosenblum.

As Rozenblum continues to create space for artists to work on their crafts, his art collection continues to grow. One day, he plans to use the works from his collection to furnish the walls of his real estate buildings and residential properties. In the meantime, he fills his homes with the fine art he has amassed over the years, which most recently has included a majority of black and white artworks and minimal paintings.

His home in Buenos Aires as well as his brother's house in Miami are full of art from his private collection that he cycles out like a private art exhibition. For Guillermo, the way art is presented in a collection is key in creating a mood and telling a story not only about the art, but also the person curating the art. “It's important for the artist to be shown, but it's important to get shown wisely,” he explains.

Many of the works hanging on the Miami house’s walls are either black and white or grey scale, with the exception of some colorful works that provide a welcome pop of color. Rozenblum doesn’t just put art on the four walls of the rooms, he places art anywhere it can fit. “I put art on the ceiling,” Rozenblum explains. “I have a beautiful work of art from Cynthia Cohen, it's full of color, you know like a cartoon, anime sort of thing that breaks up all the other peaceful art when you look up at it.”

When Rozenblum is not working on design projects, he attends art fairs across the world. He normally goes to around a dozen a year, and while he hasn’t gone to as many in the recent years due to COVID restrictions, he has still managed to go to most of the major showcases. So far, he has seen a notable lack of NFT presence in the fairs, something that he was most excited to see at Art Basel, Miami, which boasted a heavy NFT presence on the schedule. Rozenblum also looked forward to interacting with artists, collectors and friends in person throughout the week, something that he feels is important to his role as a facilitator of the arts. “My biggest collection and the most important impressionist collection is amazing, amazing friendships,” says Rozenblum.

During Art Basel Miami, Rozenblum and Alpha’a hosted a brunch on Fisher Island at the end of the art fair where collectors came together to unwind after the busy week.

We asked Guillermo to choose his favorite works on the Alpha’a platform. He was drawn to minimalist abstract and black and white works as well as the nature photography of Alessandra Rehder.

Here are his picks:

Form and Subtraction, Alessandra Rehder

Skógafoss, Ángeles Peña

Oculus Shapes II, Walter Passos

Phillips Exeter Academy, Reinhard Görner

Malmo City Library, Reinhard Görner

Blue Serenity, Angel Estevez

Abstract Composition 888, Angel Estevez

Untitled 2020, Emon Surakitkoson

Foreshadowing, Carina Isabella Tenaglia

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Alpha’a Talks: Isabela Galvao from London Art Walk

Alpha’a is excited to announce our partnership with Isabela Galvão, a London-based Brazilian curator who turned her love of visiting galleries into a thriving art walk business. Pre-pandemic, Galvão was well known for her art walks throughout London where locals would return again and again to be guided through the city’s most buzzing exhibitions.

After the new COVID restrictions forced her guided tours on pause, Galvão began channeling her same enthusiasm into a blossoming career representing up and coming artists and hosting private art viewings at her centrally located London apartment. Like our team at Alpha’a, Galvão is passionate about making art accessible and engaging with the community, making her the perfect partner.

Galvão got her start hosting art walks in London five years ago. After taking her friends with her to gallery visits, she began advertising her tours online and attracting Londoners and tourists alike. Galvão would combine her enthusiastic and inviting charisma with detailed educational elements like sending out a pamphlet with information about the art shows a few days prior to the tour to choosing a few artworks per exhibition to present.

Since COVID-19 hit, galleries have greatly reduced their maximum occupancy so bringing along large groups of twelve-plus visitors isn’t realistic anymore. “My clients who are visiting exhibitions since the pandemic have reached out to tell me that they miss my tours. When they go see art without me something is missing and they don’t get the same experience,” says Galvão.

Galvão still frequently posts art recommendations to her 36,000 followers on Instagram, but her focus remains on in person experiences where people can discuss art and view its tactile qualities.

While many tour businesses simply shuttered their doors or discontinued their businesses until the pandemic is behind them, Galvao used this opportunity to reevaluate her approach and come up with new ways to channel her passion for bringing art that she vouches to the public.

The result: private artist exhibitions in Galvãos centrally located London apartment in Mayfair. This way, Galvão can foster real life conversations about art while ensuring guests feel safe by enforcing COVID protocols and maintaining a limit of visitors at once.

Galvão hosted similar viewings in her home in Brazil before moving to London. These events are more intimate than a gallery tour and visitors are invited to linger after viewing the work to socialize, a nice change of pace from the average 30 minute gallery visit.

Her in person events bridge the gap between artists and the art market. By spreading the word of artists she personally believes in, Galvão is not only connecting buyers, curators, and art enthusiasts to a new artist, but she is also giving that artist access to potential sales and a new following.

As Galvão gets ready to prepare her first home exhibition in London in collaboration with Alpha’a, she talks to us about what she looks for when choosing an artist to support and how our collaboration is reshaping the way she shares art with the public.

The state of the art market:

The partnership between Galvão and Alpha’a came about through a shared ethos of making art accessible and marketable to the general public. “I think art should be accessible, I don't care if it's a print, if it's an edition. Budget is something that cannot be ignored,” says Galvão.

The gap between emerging and established artists has increased since the pandemic according to Galvão. “What I have found is that generally since the pandemic, the very established artists are selling work at a very high price. The established artists have gotten the chance to become even more established but where is the middle? ” asks Galvão. For her, and the artists she represents, having a platform like Alpha'a, where artists can showcase their art to a broader, international public is a game changer.

Working with Alpha’a:

“I think it's a great collaboration. I do this by myself. I'm a mother of three young ones. I can only work at a certain pace when I do it alone. So to have an institution like Alpha’a go and help with all the work and the outreach is awesome.”

“I think we do join forces, you know, because I've been here for 6 years and have a local clientele, not only people who buy the work but also curators and people who want to hear and see what I'm talking about and what I am showing. Working with Alpha'a can bring more exposure,” says Galvão. “I'm already thinking about two other artists who would be a very good match for Alpha’a. I hope this is a collaboration that is only starting,” she adds.

How she started expanding beyond art walks:

“Hosting private exhibitions and representing artists started naturally. During walks, my clients would sometimes ask, what can I buy? What do you suggest? Because I also collect, I started thinking to myself ‘yeah I think I can do this,” says Galvão.

Galvão started out by reaching out to her friend Hormazd Narielwalla, a collage artist from India who has been based out of London for the last 20 years. She started taking his work with her back to Brazil and presenting it to collectors and curators there. He became the first artist she represented and in the four years since they began working together, she has sold 200 of his works.

The British Museum

Connecting Brazilian and London art scenes:

After her success bringing a London-based artist to Brazil, Galvão turned her focus to bringing Brazilian artists to London. “I think overall, I think there are great Brazilian artists, many established ones, that are presented in London. But there is not a lot of space for up and coming young artists from Brazil here,” she observes.

“It is very exciting for me to actually provide a space for artists that are not so established yet,” Galvão says, emphasizing the importance of personally believing in the artists she promotes. It is her genuine conviction that the artists she backs will achieve success that makes Galvão’s voice in the art scene so compelling.

Her clients follow her lead and stay in touch because they not only want to hear about the biggest shows happening, but also about the lesser known artists that Galvão predicts will become successful. Along with providing London locals with a curated list of the best shows to visit, Galvão also uses social media to bring these shows to her following based out of Brazil.

“For my instagram account, I think half of my followers more or less are in Brazil. The other day I was looking at the statistics and some of them are in the Northern area of Brazil and it's just great to think of myself as a vehicle for someone who is in the North of Brazil to see exhibitions that are happening right now in London.”

Her upcoming collaboration with Alpha’a marks the first time Galvão will present a Brazilian artist in London. “It just felt right, you know, to circle back: I am a Brazilian in London taking work from London to Brazil. So now I want to bring a Brazilian artist to London so that's what I'm doing with Alessendra Rehder,” says Galvão.

Environmentalism in art

For the approaching viewing, Galvão went with Brazilian nature photographer Alessandra Rehder, who she first discovered at an art fair in São Paulo, Brazil. For Galvão, Rehder’s work ticks all the boxes of what she looks for in an emerging artist: a unique and identifiable style and point of view and a body of work that partakes in a current cultural conversation.

To capture her images, Rehder travels around the world turning her lens to different cultures and landscapes. Her work promotes the belief that art can be a powerful tool to raise awareness for environmental activism.

“She won't photograph the dying trees, instead she photographs the opulence of nature. I think opulence is an important word in her work because she always doubles the number of leaves that the trees have,” explains Galvão. “She shows the beauty of nature by adding more color, more leaves, more abundance. Her work engages the view with nature, how beautiful it is, how important it is, how vital it is, and how we need to take care of it. She is doing it in a very positive way. She is creating awareness by showing nature at its best.”

Galvão will showcase a series of Rehder’s works that focus on the solitude of nature for this show. Close up images of the leaves on trees offer a meditative respite from day to day urban life. Rehder’s collection speaks to the collective desire to escape and unwind in nature following the pandemic. She cuts and assembles her prints resulting in three dimensional reliefs reminiscent of looking out a window. Along with original 3D prints, Alpha’a will also have limited edition prints of Rehder’s works available to purchase through the Alpha’a platform.

The event is on Monday, October 11th from 5-9pm and kicks off Frieze Art Fair. The opening party will be followed by private viewings throughout the week. We look forward to seeing you there! Please RSVP if you can make it.

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8 street photographers to inspire you

In the past 10 years, photography was the art medium that got most democratized by the advance of technology. Today, a huge part of the world’s population has access to a smartphone with a quite good camera. But what does differentiate an amateur photographer - like me, and maybe even you - and an actual great photographer? The answer can be very broad and subjective, but we can all agree that  great photographers combine the perfect pitch of momentum, aesthetic experience and symbolism. In this article, we selected 8 street photographers, between famous and emerging ones, that we consider outstanding.

Photo by Henri Cartier-Bresson

  1. Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908-2004)

The most famous street photographer of all times, Cartier-Bresson, must be the first one in this list. He is known for his candid photos that capture the ‘decisive moment’, and portrays powerful spontaneous scenes from streets. If you think about  a reference of momentum and visual composition, his name can easily come to mind.

Henri Cartier-Bresson

  2. Fan Ho (1931-2016)

Born in Shanghai, Fan Ho is known for capturing the ‘decisive moment’ as well as Cartier-Bresson. He started shooting in the streets very young, at the age of 14. He creates a dramatic and intense atmosphere by capturing effects of smoke and light in alleys, streets and subway stations. He builds smart geometric compositions by combining texture, patterns and shapes from the city in his photos scenes.

Fan Ho, “Her Study” and “Down”

  3. Jill Freedman (1939-2019)

Her works portrays the protests and streets from marginalized communities from the USA. She was an activist for social justice and anit-violence. She documented human behavior in a time that many unquestioned moral values were being disrupted, and her photography had an important role in revealing these social issues.

Jill Freedman, “Gun Play, Street Cops,” 1979, and “Five-Alarm Fire,” 1976

  4. Girma Berta

Born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Girma Berta portrays her city with a fresh and colorful gaze. Just like Cartier and Fan Ho, she has the ability to capture de decisive-moment. She shoots candidly and brings to the viewer an unseen perspective of her own city.

Girma Berta

5. Felipe Cerchiari

After several years working as innovation executive and living in different cities, Felipe Cerchiari found a new concomitant path as photographer. Cerchiari’s photos portray the subjective atmosphere from places where he has been around.⁠

Felipe Cerchiari, “Chicago by night” and “Urbano 2”

  6. Walter Passos

His photography focuses on capturing the greatness and beauty from buildings to nature to nature. The angles he chooses to shoot enhances the power and presence of the subject he is portraying. His lenses empower any scene he targets.

Walter Passos, Squirrel Silhouette

  7. Leeroy New

Going in a whole different style of photography, Leeroy New uses wearable sculptures to address “staged displacement,” a literal and visual duality between the native and the “alien”. His series of photos speaks to the wider experience of cultural displacement but is profoundly informed by the artist’s own familial experience with the phenomenon of what he refers to as “OFW” — Overseas Filipino Workers.

Leeroy New, “DSC0227” and “DSC6426”

Discover more emerging photographers

Besides these 10 outstanding photographers, there are a lot more talented artists to discover. Here we selected a few to inspire you and awake your interest in street photography. Find more great artists on our platform.

Explore more artists

About Alpha’a Inc platform

We are an art platform that aims to give light to emerging artists worldwide. Through a crowd-curation system, people can vote in their favorite artworks, and the most voted become produced and available for sale. The limited edition prints are gallery-quality and have secure delivery worldwide. We have developed an exclusive technology that generates digital certificates for artists and buyers to guarantee artwork authenticity and property, enabling artists to make their work collectable.

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From NY’s 50s to Rio’s 2020s: Art as Voice to Marginalized Communities

What does it mean to be black and/or homosexual during an era that continues to prosecute your existence? What if that era continues from very old times until these days? And what does it mean to live in a country like Brazil where your own president states that he would rather have a dead son than a Queer one? Prejudice and discrimination have been challenging non-white straight groups since a long time, and art has been a medium to fight against it. In this article we will explore a little bit about Roy DeCarava and contemporary Brazilian photographer Rodrigo Oliveira artworks.

Joe and Julia singing, 1953, from The Sweet Flypaper of Life. Photograph: © The Estate of Roy DeCarava ​2018. All rights reserved. Courtesy David Zwirner

Rodrigo Oliveira is quite aware of how difficult it is to be black and queer in Brazil. To have the feeling that you are constantly being watched with contempt by mainstream society. He observes the same people but through different eyes, those of his camera. Mechanical eyes that see not only bodies, but glimpses of souls. Eyes that naturally deconstruct the concept of gender, and instead see the singularity of each human being. The Afro and the LGBTQI+ communities are raising their voices to the world demanding respect and equality, strengthening social and political awareness to previously unseen levels. These are the souls Oliveira photographs, souls of fighters, of heroes.

Framing moments when the queer community feels alive, electrified by the freedom of being who they are in a place where they feel embraced and understood, capturing a snapshot of a resilient culture. No judgment, no fear, only the pleasure they share with one another. A lot of photos are shot in favelas (slums) but rather than magnifying the struggle of their circumstances, Oliveira focuses on people, with lives that urge to be seen and captured. And this approach actually reminds me of a great photographer from the 50s: Roy Decarava.

Going all the way back to this time in the USA, anti-racial segregation movements were becoming more influent and powerful, until it finally “ended” at 1964, when the Civil Rights Act was signed. Roy Decarava - a brilliant photographer broadly known for his photos of jazz sessions - lived in this period, when not only African Americans had difficult lives and diminished access to opportunities, but also their art was not recognized. Racism exists all over the globe, and this feeling of injustice is shared within all black communities. To overcome this unequal conjecture a political move is essential. Art is personal and political, and Roy DeCarava was also being political when he chose to focus on intimate moments of everyday lives of African Americans, what dialogues a lot with Oliveira’s choices of portraying black queer groups from peripheric zones of Rio. Artists such as De Carava broke barriers and opened doors to other future African Descendants artists, including Rodrigo Oliveira.

On the left, Roy De Carava - David, 1952. On the right, Rodrigo Oliveira - Suburban.

There is a common saying by Karen Blixen: “The cure for anything is saltwater- tears, sweat, or the sea.” This came to mind when I first saw Oliveira's black and white photo of footprints marked in the sand. Have you ever looked back at your footsteps when you were at the beach? The next day you realize they are not there anymore; they faded because of the seawater. The sand is composed of particles of rocks that were hit by the sea until they become only fragments. You cannot easily erase something carved in a rock, as you cannot dissolve the memory of it in the sand because at the end of the day they are still made of hard stones. As you cannot erase the stone, you cannot erase colonialism and homophobia. It takes a long time, but the water will fight until the rocks little by little become sand. Saltwater is only a metaphor for resilience, activism and the endurance fight of LGBTQI+ and the Black community. It takes time for the sea to erode the stone as it takes time for these communities to overcome the invisible structures of society. But the sea never fails to wash away the footsteps.

Rodrigo Oliveira - “Impressões”

In a cruel, uncaring world that suppresses every voice, every person that stands on the lower edge of the socio-cultural pyramid, Oliveira’s pictures, not denying that, chooses to change the direction and empower these communities with art and culture. Rodrigo Oliveira is an artivist. He shows beauty in everyday life. He portrays the everyday life of black Brazilians in the favelas and the Queer community. Oliveira prioritizes showing the strength of these communities, rather than man’s inhumanity to man. Rodrigo Oliveira’s photographs are of a powerful tenderness that deals with sensitive subjects in an elegant way. He portrays histories that matter and ought to be told.

On the left, Roy DeCarava - Woman seated at window, 1953. On the right, Rodrigo Oliveira - Naivety.

Text written by Maria Marchesi Lunardi

Reviewed by Alpha'a Inc

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Desert-X 2021: A dialogue between arts, land and people

As our world begins to reopen, we are excited to once again be able to experience exhibitions and explore new works. Our co-founder, Manuela Séve, recently visited Desert X 2021 to explore these works first-hand. 

Running from March 12 - May 16 in Coachella Valley, CA, Desert X 2021 is an art exhibition that explores the desert as both a place and an idea. Curated by Cesar Garcia-Alvarez and Neville Wakefield, the exhibition acknowledges the realities of people who reside there, as well as the political, social, and cultural landscape that shapes our stories. Newly-commissioned works explore a variety of themes including land rights and ownership, migration, racial narratives of the West, social justice, water exploitation, and the gendered landscape.

Site specific installations by almost a dozen renowned international artists activate the desert landscape, and some works will remain on-site for viewing even after the exhibition closes. 

Safely Operating During COVID-19

Given the rapidly-evolving conditions associated with a global pandemic, Desert X was postponed from its initial scheduled opening in February. By March, restrictions had eased enough that the exhibition was allowed to open. While public bus tours were not offered as they had been in previous years, trained docents were available on-site. Desert X 2021 was one of the first events in the region after the COVID pandemic lockdowns, offering a safe, outdoor setting for visitors. 

Over 650,000 visits were recorded during the event, which took place from March 12 – May 16. This year’s visitor records exceeded the 2019 event by more than 200,000 visits.

Alpha’a Visits Desert X 2021

Our experience attending and interacting with the works was extremely insightful. Key themes from this year included the challenge histories of land art, what we can do as individuals and communities, reflecting on the moment, speaking from indigenous land, working with indigenous people, and land art. We are thankful that we were able to partake in this experience along with so many others.

Artists & Artworks

Here are some of our favorite works from the exhibit - 

“This Land: Making Never Forget” Nicholas Galanin

Nicholas Galanin’s monumental project “This Land: Making Never Forget” explores the complex histories of the land it stands on. Galanin’s inquiry compels us to assess who we are as individuals and human beings and our personal connections to the desert while reflecting on this current moment. The work battles conversations that are endangering people and their forceful removal from the land they belong to. The work’s focal intention is to bring a call to action to this cause. Today, we live in a world where land acknowledgment has become normalized in institutional societies.

The work connects with the iconic imagery of the Hollywood sign, which initially was spelled “Hollywoodland” and was built in a black neighborhood with the purpose of selling real estate for the elite from the film industry. California has a major history of moving out local communities to promote “development”, such as the indigenous that originally inhabited Palm Springs, and the black community that used to live in today’s region of Hollywood sign. This is the history of America and the american dream that often excludes non-white communities from the conversation.  “Never Forget” stands as reference to the land and its history.  It is not about the piece itself or the letters, but how it engages with people and invites them to participate in this call to action through the powerful meaning the work conveys. 

The Future of the project is how the work evolves through peoples histories, conversions, and ideas. The work can move to other locations to see how the conversations will evolve in those different communities. “The work is not done when it is up, it’s just the beginning” 

— Nicholas Galanin’s Never Forget until August 15

“In What Lies Behind the Walls” Zahrah Alghamdi 

Alghamdi’s work explores hope and a promise of spiritual preservation and human freedom. The piece is a sculptural work of a wall, almost 25 feet high, created with what visualizes as stacks of turf or folded fabric. The work was built using the earth in Palm Springs.  The colors, mountains and desert resemble those of her own country. 

The wall is positioned facing northwest and southwest, touching on the directions of Mecca, representing on one side the roots of her islamic faith and her hometown in Saudi Arabia and to the other side, the union between what’s in both sides of it. Her work is inspired by her hometown in Al-bahah, as well as the stories and memories she has lived. She explores ideas of history, memory, trade and cultural convergence. In her own words “You might always see a wall as a barrier, that’s a problem that you face, which makes you sit behind the wall. My idea is that we shouldn’t build walls between us”.

https://desertx.org/dx/desert-x-21/zahrah-alghamdi

Zahrah Alghamdi, “What Lies Behind the Walls,” 2021, mixed media

“The Wishing Well” Serge Attukwei Clottey⁠

The Wishing Well is a sculpture of two 9 ft  installations of large-scale towers, created with pieces of yellow plastic Kufuor gallons used to transport water in Ghana.

The work is in response to the shared struggles with water insecurity that are occurring,  representing the many wells around the world that people must trek to daily to collect water, especially during the 6 year drought in Ghana that took place by the end of the 60’s. The installation also speaks to the land it sits on, situated in Coachella Valley, whose future is also dependent on water. 

This is an issue that African communities deal with every single day. Even in modern African life, this is a necessity,  and their lives revolve around the consumption of water through these jerrycans. The yellow cubes represent a form of richness and the material is tied to a larger critique on colonialism. 

The artist is interested in the community aspect, bringing people together and collaborating. This conversation translates across geographies. 

https://desertx.org/dx/desert-x-21/serge-attukwei-clottey

If you want to discover more contemporary artists that explore similar discourses and themes, have a look in these selected artists from Alpha’a Inc community: 

Marvin Amberg, a photographer with a series of ghost towns in Namibia.

Elias Souza is a photographer, whose work revolves around the nature and culture of the Amazon.

Julia Vanderput, writer, photographer and creative strategist from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Her work explores dismantling all oppressive structures and how decolonization is now more pertinent and urgent. 

Moises Patricio, who lives and works in São Paulo, Brazil, explores art and its relation with social media, everyday life in São Paulo, and the politics of race in Brazil today.

Steve Lefkovits is a landscape and nature photographer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. His work explores themes of the importance of nature and how it is connected to the spiritual understanding of life. 

Nick Turner is an American artist born in Boston in 1983. There is a  deeply personal relationship with nature and his personal interest in horses and surfing that are juxtaposed against family history motifs and vast empty landscapes from around the globe. There is a play between his individual experiences in life as an artist and the larger dialogue about society and man’s place in the natural world.

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Highlights and expert’s top picks from FRIEZE NY 2021

The art fair has always been an important business opportunity–and happy place–for collectors, artists, and galleries alike. The bustling rooms of people having lively conversations about art; never-ending swells of conversation; the fast-paced atmosphere of money passing hands; and of course, the celebrity sightings.

And then, COVID, and the resulting quarantine and social distancing rules, popped the happy bubble of the in-person art fair. When the virus hit in March of 2020, various art fairs were postponed, and eventually cancelled. What was previously an energetic, community-based affair suddenly transitioned to video conferences and online viewing rooms. However, for FRIEZE, this was no major issue. They bounced back with alarming speed, creating an innovative online art fair that might even rival the in-person one. Read on to learn about FRIEZE 2021, favorite pieces, conferences, and artists, and Daniela Séve Duvivier’s expert picks!

FRIEZE is one of many art fairs that has developed in response to the demand for a more public, community-based art market. Art fairs are important spaces for leaders in the art world to network with collectors, artists, and galleries to learn more about the community and scout new talent. They are vibrant arenas that feature curated spaces, conferences/presentations, artist and collector talks, and social gatherings. Art fairs originated in European cities like Cologne, Basel, and Bologne that lacked the gallery system to support a large base of artists and collectors. Now, there are fairs all around the world to bring together industry leaders around the world, host pop-ups, joint ventures, and group shows, and of course, to support the culture of that city. 

Of course, COVID has put a damper on this hallmark social event for the art world. With social distancing and other safety measures, it is difficult to maintain the packed rooms, energetic conversations, and overall vibrancy of an in-person art fair. However, FRIEZE has done a wonderful job of replicating this environment while maintaining safety and social-distancing-compliancy for fair-goers. In honor of this new–perhaps improved– art fair experience, we live-streamed with art consultant Daniela Seve Duviver to discuss her top picks for this year’s online FRIEZE.

Daniela Seve Duvivier is an art consultant that founded MASTERARTE to advise her clients on the purchases of works; she also organizes exclusive courses in contemporary art. This year, Duviver gave Alpha’a exclusive access to her top picks at FRIEZE by gallery and by artist. Coming in first is Olafur Eliasson at the Tanya Bonakdar gallery and his work “Glacial Containment”, a colored glass prism. A renowned environmental artist, Eliasson has thoroughly established himself in the international art world and continues to do so at art fairs like FRIEZE.

Olafur Elliasson, “Glacial Containment” at FRIEZE NY 2021

Another favorite–this time exhibiting with the Pace Gallery– was Trevor Paglen, an American artist who creates images and sculptures about privacy concerns, data collection, and mass surveillance. His work in FRIEZE titled “Bloom (#7a5a4e”)” seems like a simple photograph of flowers; however, this photo was created by computer algorithms that analyze parts of real-life photographs then regenerate them according to color and shape. Echoping vanitas paintings of the sixteenth century, in which flowers represented the fleeting nature of life and beauty, Paglen creates an image where nature, beauty, and life lives on forever in technology.

Trevor Paglen, “Bloom (#7a5a4e”)” at FRIEZE NY 2021

Jeff Koons, “Sling Hook” at FRIEZE NY 2021

Duvivier selected two artists exhibiting with the Gagosian Gallery: Jeff Koons and Richard Artschwager. Jeff Koons is an artist that all of us doubtlessly know well– his balloon sculptures, obviously, but also his intentionally kitschy statues referencing mass-marketed pop culture. For the fair, Koons showed “Sling Hook”, two inflatable lobster and dolphin pool toys rendered in steel. This work is another example of the typical juxtapositions present in Koons work–the material being both hard and soft, the content being both mass-produced and worthy of presentation in a blue-chip art fair. Meanwhile, Artshchwager is an American painter, illustrator, and sculptor that works within the arenas of Conceptual Art, Pop Art, and Minimalism. His paintings deal with structures of perception, and use utilitarian objects, commercial and industrial materials to explore image versus object. His work at FRIEZE was a sculpture of an exclamation point covered in plastic bristles with a poplar wood core.

Marina Perez Simão, “Untitled” at FRIEZE NY 2021

Duvivier’s final FRIEZE pick was Marina Perez Simão, from the Mendes Wood gallery. Simão uses collage, drawing, and oil painting to approach the intersection of memory and images; she references narratives of her own lived experience, as well as those of literature and journalism. She exhibited “Untitled”, a rich, colorful painting of an abstracted ocean scene.

Obviously, every artist at FRIEZE is blue-chip, and are exhibiting pieces worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions. However., you can shop similar, more affordably priced pieces on Alpha’a, and support smaller artists and earn the approval of Daniela Séve Duvivier and art critics alike! For example, the environmentalist nature of Eliasson’s work– especially the emphasis on ocean conservancy– is mirrored in the work of Alpha’a artist Leah Harper, who creates pieces about the ocean and marine life from her time on the beaches of Florida. And similar to Marina Perez Simão is Ping Zheng, who creates richly abstracted landscapes imbued with a touch of magic and imagination. Want to know more contemporary artists? Explore our website.

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How can art help fighting environmental issues?

Recently, a lot of people talk about “artivism”, and many important art fairs call out the art & environment theme. But what exactly can art do for environmental issues? Keep reading to understand all about it.

Artivism is the obvious combination of art, and activism. It developed as a direct result of a 1997 gathering of Chicano artists in Mexico; the term itself and its derivatives (“Artivism”, “artivist”, etc.) were disseminated through East Los Angeles artists, musicians, and organizations such as Quetzal, Mujeres de Maiz, and Self Help Graphics and Art. But on a broader scale, was catalyzed by anti-war and anti-globalization protests. Artivists, of the past and of today, attempt to push a certain political agenda, as well as raise awareness of issues such as climate change, immigration, and social issues. Artivism is also revolutionary in form: the mediums involved are creative and groundbreaking, and include street art, spoken word, subvertising, and culture jamming.

Leah Harper artwork, “Larsen B”

  Art can help environmental causes through many vehicles, one of the most obvious being spreading awareness about specific issues such as endangered sea animals, deforestation, ice caps melting, among others. However, art can also help the environment in more novel ways: for example, the artist El Anatsui recycles bottle caps to create textured, gleaming sculpture pieces that could almost be likened to textiles. 

  Finally, there are an increasing amount of artists that choose to use proceeds from their art to donate to environmental causes/organizations. For example, Valentino Vettori’s project, “Arcadia”, in which he created 10 prints, all depicting solutions to our current environmental crisis, then sold them for charity and, further, created a whole platform to engage and promote sustainable initiatives. Another example is Alpha’s project titled “Artivism Challenge: Rainforest Edition” used art to raise awareness about rainforest pollution to incite change. Artists nominated art pieces that addressed rainforest conservation, and a judging panel of environmental and art experts chose a winner, whose prints were also sold for charity. Alpha’a is a prime example of an organization that “leverages the universal appeal and emotional power of art to raise awareness on critical issues… create awareness of existing solutions to environmental problems, and connect individuals, brands, and community organizations to enable organic action”. 

Olafur Eliasson installation, Ice Watch, 2018

  Olafur Elliasson is one of the more popular examples of an artist combining his practice with activism to fight against climate change. His well-known installation Ice Watch brought 12 blocks of melting glacial ice to the Paris Climate Change conference, forcing viewers to confront the impending environmental crisis. Eliasson says it best: “to take all the data, news, and scientific papers and turn it into something you can touch is, I think, incredibly effective”.

  However, there are also more emerging artivists to familiarize yourself with, on the Alpha’a platform and otherwise! One of these is Leah Harper: originally from Florida, her work explores the environmental systems of the ocean and marine life. Her mixed media pieces imbue ocean life with a colorful sense of childlike joy, imploring the viewer to protect something precious that is slipping away. Another Alpha’a artist that engages in artivism is Augusto Amado, specifically his work No over Nothing. It’s a piece focused on the overconsumption of plastic, and shows the real horrors of the fishing industry today.

  As you can see, art–and artivism– holds an incredible place in the fight against climate change, and even activism as a whole. Artists and projects such as Leah Harper’s, or even ALPHA PROJECT, ignite action and awareness in the art world and beyond. To support these agents of change, and participate in the climb towards environmental peace, support artivists’ work on Alpha’a, and spread the word! 

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Artist Q&A: Helio Vianna

Helio Vianna is one of Alpha’a’s first collaborators, and has been creating his colorful, bright works for almost six years. Learn more about his career, and his partnership with Alpha’a in this video interview, or read on!

Vianna has been living in Mexico City since 2018, keeping busy through his studies and his painting-- however, COVID drastically changed his life, even more so than everyone else’s. Vianna fell into a deep depressive state, and “only saw people when he took his garbage out… ironically, in the middle of this rare situation, one of my galleries started selling a lot during this period. I sold more than ever, I was almost sold out. I only have one last piece available today. Against all odds, my life has changed a lot.”

Brasil-RJ available here

He continues on how COVID has changed his life, and even induced an unexpected love story: “I ran into a neighbor. After two months together, I moved to his house. My house became our co-shared studio. You might think we are crazy, but we’re just married!”

After discussing his recent major life updates, Vianna takes it back to the beginning of his career as an artist. Vianna was an art manager studying international relations, and got a scholarship to study art. But, he wasn’t intending to be an artist-- Vianna wanted to study more, so he could better sell the artists that he was representing at the time. However, a few months after studying painting--and this was, notably, his first experience ever in the arts-- he “found his calling”.

Then, he met Alpha’a. His earliest work, Mexico (pictured above and available here), was voted as a winner as one of Alpha’a’s first crowdsourcing initiatives, and this “totally unexpected event” propelled his trajectory into the art world. His collaboration with Alpha’a was truly the very beginning for Vianna’s work; as such, co-founder Renata Thome describes him as “part of the very first group of artists that trusted us, and became a core part of Alpha’a.”

“If Helio from six, seven years ago had met me, and somebody told him you’re going to be an artist, and you’ll be represented by art galleries, I would have laughed.”

Vianna also addresses some of the criticism of the political nature of his work, that he is taking the perspective of a “colonizer” or otherwise appropriating cultures. He describes that he found himself “in a position of a protestor, an activist, that doesn’t necessarily please everybody… I’ve had to mix my role as an artist and a role as an anthropologist”.

Russia available here

However, though he describes some of the criticism as a natural response to the controversial nature of his work, Vianna also elaborates on his own errors in representing cultures in art. Namely, his views on the countries/cultures he represents have changed with time and knowledge, and his work must reflect that. For example, in 2014, he painted Russia; and yet, in 2019 Vianna realized that the way he represented the country in 2014 is quite different from his more contemporary views on it. Thus, Russia II was painted-- an updated, more accurate representation of the culture.

Check out more of Helio Vianna’s work here!