CURRENTLY ON VIEW

The Joy of Beer Labels: Caroline Alterman

Through 29 March 2025. Caroline Alterman (New Orleans, Louisiana, USA) pays homage to the complex beauty found in nature and takes inspiration from the everyday, often working with found materials. “My work is a reflection of a state of mind that comes to life upon creating.” She wrote, “My latest passion is working with beer labels. During the pandemic, my friend Adam Ritter let me set up a studio space in Zony Mash, his small batch brewery. While painting, I gazed upon rolls of his colorful beer can labels and I was moved to work with them. As a child I played with labels, but with the abundance of these exotic graphic adhesives, my creativity exploded: slicing, layering and adhering to create complicated energetic compositions.”

Technicolor by Caroline Alterman
(7”x5”; beer labels on canvas board; 2024)

CURRENTLY ON VIEW

Run to Earth: Collage by David Chalmers

Through 29 March 2025. Having a lifelong fascination with the fractal and quantum elements of visual media, David Chalmers (New Orleans, Louisiana, USA) found a home for their arts practice in analog collage in 2014. They draw inspiration and motivation for their practice in a policy of material and company freely given and openly received, collecting material discards from their community and hosting small local collage gatherings. Their work often explores themes of queerness, gender, change and climate where their physical and tactile exploration of material mirrors their introspective search for meaning. Cap de Bonne Espérance (2005) and Run to Earth (2021) both use the same material set to modify framed prints long discarded as stylistically irrelevant decor. Thousands of cars are cut to simulate a painter’s palette comprised of the shades of automotive paint from the 1950s. The shades of that commercial boom obscure the original works as reflections on man’s obsession with domination, classification and control over nature. Shape Up (2024) begins by applying more matting over its original print, and then suspending collage over these newly defined frames of imagery. What was once a pastoral scene becomes a meditation on gender and boundaries through its constant breaking and reforming of frames within the motion of the piece. Chalmers is a non-binary collage artist who was born and raised in New Orleans and studied film as an undergraduate as they, their family and their city recovered from hurricane Katrina.

(detail) Cap de Bonne Espérance by David Chalmers
(24.5″x30″; thrifted prints with magazine clippings in thrifted frame; 2024)

CURRENTLY ON VIEW

Rabbits, Bunnies, & Hares, Oh My: Collage by Ric Kasini Kadour

Through 29 March 2025. Rabbits first appeared in the art of Ric Kasini Kadour (New Orleans, Louisiana, USA & Montreal, Quebec, Canada) in early 2020 while artist-in-residence in Sanquhar, Scotland where, during a late night walk on his third day, he encountered a herd of rabbits in Queensberry Square. Selections from “The Bunny Series” are on view in the gallery and a 9-foot by 4-foot bunny is on view in the Great Hall of the New Orleans Healing Center downstairs. “I wanted to make something joyful and playful,” said Kadour. “In the folklore of the region, Sanquhar witches are known to turn themselves into hares to escape danger. I like to imagine these furry denizens exploring the town, munching people’s gardens, and generally living out lives guided by curiosity and wonder.” Kadour, a 2020-2021 Curatorial Fellow from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, is a writer, artist, publisher, curator, filmmaker, and cultural worker. He maintains an active art practice, rooted in conceptual art. His photography, collage, sculpture, and films have been exhibited in and are part of private collections in North America, Europe, and Australia. He is the director of Kolaj Institute and the editor of Kolaj Magazine.

Wild Rabbit Run Free by Ric Kasini Kadour
(48″x100″; acrylic and repurposed house paint on collaged book pages; 2025)

Collage Artist Meet-Up

Tuesday, 25 February 2025, 6-8PM
Tuesday, 25 March 2025, 6-8PM
Tuesday, 22 April 2025, 6-8PM
Tuesday, 27 May 2025, 6-8PM

Cost: Free

At Kolaj Institute, we reject the myth of the solitary artist and believe that artists are better in community with one another. In that spirit we invite working artists to join us for a monthly meet-up to get feedback on work, and network with one another. Find out who’s looking for folks to exhibit, meet other working artists, and get the low-down on the skinny of what’s up and up. The event is hosted by LaVonna Varnado Brown at Kolaj Institute Gallery. RSVP is helpful but not necessary. Artists are encouraged to bring artwork to share with the group. Questions? Send an email to info@kolajinstitute.org

Chewbacchus Parade Viewing Party

Saturday, 1 February 2025, 6-10PM

Cost:
Tickets are $35, $50, $75 and $100

From 6PM to 10PM on Saturday, 1 February 2025, come to Kolaj Institute’s gallery in the New Orleans Healing Center and enjoy the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus from our balcony that looks onto the corner of St. Claude and St. Roch. This is an ideal venue on a second story balcony overlooking the parade, two blocks from the start!

Click here for a map of the parade route and more info

At the Viewing Party, enjoy music, pulled pork sliders, king cake, space punch, and other munchies. There are four types of tickets, each in limited supply. The basic ticket is $35. All tickets include a wristband, two drink tickets, and food during the event. Bar service includes a selection of beer and wine, soft drinks, and liquor. 

Those who donate a minimum of $50 will receive a ‘zine. Those who donate a minimum of $75 will also receive a collage print from the “Hello Robot” series. Those who donate a minimum of $100 or more will also receive an original collage. 

Collage making supplies will be available, and we invite you to make a space-themed collage! 

The event is appropriate for ages 12 and up. Tickets are required for entry.  

This event supports the ongoing work of Kolaj Institute.

Open Studio with Kolaj Institute Artist-in-Residence Marcy McChesney

Friday, 24 January 2025, 4-6PM

Cost: Free, limited space

During her Solo Residency, San Antonio-based artist, Marcy McChesney is creating a body of work that is specific to the city of New Orleans as a subject itself. The artist is investigating the women of New Orleans and their role in society, whether through family ties, healing capacities, religious practices, etc. 

On Friday, January 24, 2025, 4-6PM, the public is invited to visit Kolaj Institute Gallery to meet the artist and see how the artwork is progressing.

Learn more about Marcy McChesney’s Solo Residency https://kolajinstitute.org/solo-residencies/

Open Studio with Kolaj Institute Artist-in-Residence Melissa Eder

Saturday, 11 January 2025, 2-4PM

Cost: Free, limited space

During her Solo Residency, New York City-based artist Melissa Eder has continued to explore her “Still Life with a View” project. She is making more elaborate still lifes in the studio which she is photographing and creating mixed media works on canvas. The works include images of New York City and New Jersey, as well as photographs that she has taken in and of New Orleans.

On Saturday, January 11, 2025, 2-4PM, the public is invited to visit Kolaj Institute Gallery to meet the artist and see how the artwork is progressing.

Learn more about Melissa Eder’s Solo Residency https://kolajinstitute.org/solo-residencies/

Getting Started with Collage

Thursday, November 14th, 6:30 to 8:30PM

Cost: $50 for one, $75 for two

Are you curious about collage but not sure where to start? This workshop is for you. Kolaj Institute Director Ric Kasini Kadour guides participants into the world of collage. He will provide an overview of the medium and some tips for gathering materials and getting started. He will discuss various approaches to cutting and composition. Participants will collaborate on a group collage and then make their own.

All supplies are provided. Kolaj Institute has a variety of supplies, including magazines, books, ephemera, substrates, X-acto knives, and of course, scissors and glue. Attendees are welcome to bring their own materials or projects to work on. Donations of materials are always appreciated.

Participants will leave the workshop with a collage they made and a deeper understanding of how they can make collage at home.

This workshop is for ages 18 and up.

Through a Glass Brightly: A Collage on Glass Workshop

Saturday, November 9th, 2-5PM

Cost: $75 for one, $100 for two

Participants will explore using glass as a substrate for mixed media collage with collagist Julie A Bell. Similar to reverse painting, the collages are made on the back of a clear glass plate to be viewed from the front. Participants will learn the technique of working from foreground to background and in mirror image (materials placed on the left of composition will appear on right when the glass is turned over). The result is a striking collage composition with a clear glass finish. In addition, participants will explore repetitive patterns through stenciling, visual texture, and building layers through transparencies. All necessary materials are included.

From Windsor, Ontario, Canada, Julie A. Bell was artist in residence at Kolaj Institute in April 2024 where she worked in a maximalist, abstract style, using found materials, handmade paper, acrylics and inks, Bell developed a series of collages that explores the history and tourist culture of the city. Her unique and eclectic imagery is rooted in the exploration of place, traditional culture and the evolving social landscape. Using found materials, handmade paper, acrylics and inks, Bell carefully constructs compositions that are full of energetic color and layered meaning.

Open Studio with Kolaj Institute Artist-in-Residence Emmanuel Laflamme

Saturday, 2 November 2024, 2-4PM

Cost: Free, limited space

Montreal-based collagist Emmanuel Laflamme writes, “Combining cultural references, I combine ancient and modern myths to share my perspective on the world, at once tender and critical. The absurd is my playground and anachronism is my specialty.” During his residency, Laflamme will create a new series of collages that push his boundaries and focus on developing a better understanding of his own artistic practice. He will meet with New Orleanians and collect materials locally, working from what he finds. He will seek inspiration in archives and local history museums. The body of work he creates in New Orleans will influence future work in painting, mixed media and other artistic endeavors.

On Saturday, 2 November 2024, 2-4PM, the public is invited to visit Kolaj Institute Gallery to meet the artist and see how the artwork is progressing. 

Learn more about Emmanuel Laflamme’s Solo Residency https://kolajinstitute.org/solo-residencies/