WSS is thrilled to bring together DC-based artists Lex Marie and Melvin Nesbitt Jr. for the next installment of our Artist in Conversation series.
Wednesday, December 6, 6:30 - 8 pm EST live via Zoom
Images courtesy of the artist. Portrait of Melvin Nesbitt Jr. by Rodney Choice of Rodney Choice Photography
Join us for this live, unfiltered, online conversation between the artists about childhood memories and stories, their process, practice, and materials, what informs their work, and more.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Lex Marie holds a BA in studio art with a concentration in painting from the University of Maryland, College Park. Lex's first solo exhibition Remember? Remember. opened in two separate locations in Washington, DC through Arena Social Arts Club (2021). Her work has been curated into group exhibitions including We Can’t Predict Tomorrow (Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA, 2021); Through the Eyes of a Muse at Black Wall Street Gallery (New York, NY 2021); FRESH START by McCall Art Advisory (online, 2021); Women in the Arts on Artsy.com, curated by Latela Curatorial (2020), and a virtual art fair curated by Monochrome Collective in 2020. She received the Alma Thomas Scholarship from Washington Studio School in 2019 and 2020. She currently lives and works in the metropolitan DC area.
Melvin Nesbitt Jr. (b. 1973, Spartanburg, SC) is a DC-based artist specializing in collage or “painting with paper.” Inspired by the celebratory imagery of painter Ernie Barnes, Melvin centers children in his visual narratives of everyday American life. Paper materials layered over drawings and paintings emphasize the complex natures of community, poverty and race. Nesbitt delves into his own fading memories to recreate the settings of his childhood years in a low-income South Carolina neighborhood. Melvin Nesbitt Jr. has developed a unique style of visual storytelling that invokes nostalgia and explores the inherent joy and enthusiasm of youth.
This program is free and open for all, but registration is required in order to receive the Zoom link to join. Questions from the audience will be welcome toward the end of this informal conversation.
This conversation is supported in part by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and The Joan Burgess Shorey Legacy Fund.