KOLAJ INSTITUTE NEWS
Last Summer at Kolaj Institute
The mission of Kolaj Institute is to support artists, curators, and writers who seek to study, document, & disseminate ideas that deepen our understanding of collage as a medium, a genre, a community, and a 21st century movement. We operate a number of initiatives meant to bring together community, investigate critical issues, and raise collage’s standing in the art world.
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It’s been a busy summer for Kolaj Institute in New Orleans, the first in our new space. Nestled above the Peach Cobbler Factory in the New Orleans Healing Center, we use the space to elevate collage’s standing in the artworld by mounting exhibitions, hosting artists in residence and workshops for the community, and building and maintaining a library and archive.
16″x12″; photographs on panel; 2023. Courtesy of the artist.
In August, we opened the exhibition “Advanced Wound Healing Techniques: Collage by Robbie Morgan.” Made in the months leading up to the artist’s 40th birthday, the artwork is a collection of collage made with personal photographs that were destroyed in a series of fires that took place when the artist was 24 years old. In the intervening sixteen years, the artist carted around these photographs, moving them from home to home, storing them, occasionally reflecting on them. The collages speak to trauma, destruction, memory and how, as we age, we make sense of things. The exhibition is part of our exploration of Photography & Collage which will be the subject of the exhibition “Camera & Collage” that opens in December as part of PhotoNOLA 2024, an annual celebration of photography in New Orleans.
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In October, we opened “Temporal Geolocation” which explores how Paula Mans, T. Owens Union, Candace Caston, and Jeanna Penn make artwork that uses history and place to explore contemporary identity. The exhibition coincided with the artist residency “Plantations as Buildings, Metaphors, and Systems of Power.” Collage artists came to New Orleans and explore the history of plantations and learn how to adapt their artist practice to pick up the unfinished work of history and make art that contributes to the civic discourse. The residency is built on the series of residencies taking place in Scotland this year that will culminate in an exhibition, book, and related programs in 2025-2026 that invite viewers to consider how the history of castles, colonies, plantations, and corporations relate to one another and shape the world we live in today. A virtual residency on Castles will take place toward the end of the year.
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This summer, we completed a similar project with the launch of the book Magic in the Modern World. Developed during a series of residencies that took place in October and December 2023, the project included an exhibition and artist talks. Taking a broad view of magic and drawing from multiple histories, the book proposes a way to think about magic in the 21st century, what it means to communities, and how it negotiates itself in systems of power. The book asks, What role can artists play in nurturing and supporting magic traditions? Curator Ric Kasini Kadour wrote, “Through our artwork, we can share stories, demystify histories, reinforce ancestral or community connections, and celebrate magical practices in ways that are safe, comfortable, and legible. We can make visible cosmologies other than those of the prevailing culture and hold space for alternative worldviews. At various times, such work can be profound acts of resistance, caring, or celebration. With its history of surrealism, collage in particular lends itself to this work.”
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Kolaj Institute Gallery has had a steady stream of solo artists in residence. Designed to provide artists, curators, and writers with dedicated time and space to work on a project, we’ve hosted fifteen residents since we opened the space in March and we are booked through the end of the year. Noreen Smith from Baltimore, Maryland researched the intersection of Voodoo and Mardi Gras, “specifically focusing on the profound impact these traditions have on authentic practitioners as opposed to their sensationalized portrayal for tourist appeal and financial gain.” Jordan Crouch, a queer multimedia artist from Phoenix, Arizona, made collage that explored how one navigates recovery and sobriety. From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Alicia Finger created a series of cut-paper collages representing her experience in New Orleans. Colleen Coleman and gwen charles from the New York City area came as joint residents to explore ideas of healing and rest. Coleman made an installation in the Great Hall of the Healing Center. charles experimented with making layered collages using transparencies. Alan Pocaro traveled from Champaign, Illinois to continue his series of collage-based artist books that he calls travel journals. Pocaro will show his New Orleans works along with the other books in the series at a solo exhibition in Cleveland, Ohio in Spring 2025. The full roster of artists in residence (and the call to artists if you want to apply) can be found on Kolaj Institute’s website.
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This fall, we are excited to release the outcome of the Collage & Illustration Residency: Frankenstein. In August 2023, artists worked to visually interpret Mary Shelley’s 1818 proto-science fiction novel. In October, Kolaj Institute will publish the illustrated book along with a companion zine and a folio of prints. Frankenstein tells the story of a young scientist who becomes obsessed with uncovering the secret to creating life. However, he soon realizes that his aspiration of “playing God” comes with severe repercussions. Artists worked together to use collage to bring this 19th century story into the 21st century.
Note: This article originally appeared in the print magazine, Kolaj #40. Since 2011, Kolaj Magazine has documented, reported on, and explored the amazing artists who make up the international collage community. We hope you enjoy the articles and images in the magazine, but also, we hope it leads you to asking great questions and ultimately to great artwork. SUBSCRIBE or GET A COPY