My name is Juliana Coles and I am an award-winning fine artist recognized for mixed media artworks that combine provocative text with raw imagery. As an Epileptic, it is important for my well-being to live and create in the extraordinary landscape of Albuquerque, NM. Though the vastness of the high desert fuels my creative output, a viable career as an artist requires greater exposure than I can achieve here. It is my goal to establish opportunities for networking and representation in the Los Angeles/ Culver City/Santa Monica area. Based on research, my graphically powerful works are a great fit for this urban art market.
The first step toward career expansion has been working with the Clark Hulings Foundation Accelerator Program for Artists as a 2017 fellow where I learned to focus on my career as a creative entrepreneur. The next step was an artist residency at Otis College of Art and Design’s first Summer Residency program in Los Angeles, June 2017. While there, I was able to network with other artists, make connections with Otis’s incredible staff, and visit prestigious galleries in Culver City and LA. We met with gallerists and curators at prominent art institutions such as the Craft and Folk Art Museum and Regen Projects, and we attended lectures and peer reviews. I had a mentor meeting with controversial artist Sam Durant, which was a profound experience. All of this while developing a new printmaking technique based on a series of portraits I began at Green Olive Arts Residency in Tetouan, Morocco, the year before.
As a pivotal step for gaining exposure in the LA art market, I am honored to say I have been selected to participate in the StART Up Art Fair LA, a unique model that provides art fair opportunities for independent artists to present their own work, sell on their own terms, and enjoy 100% of sales. The Fair will showcase a series of solo exhibitions by independent artists chosen by a prestigious selection committee. Each artist will get their own hotel room to curate their art. Art Los Angeles Contemporary(ALAC) will simultaneously be showing at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, a mere 3 minutes from the StART Up Fair at the Venice Beach Kinney for added attendance! My goal is to exhibit my work to an international audience, network with other professional artists, attract opportunities from galleries, collectors and curators, and potentially sell artwork. Participation in this art fair is a huge financial commitment; this is where you come in...
FUNDING: My booth fee is $2600.00 ( due Dec. 15, 2017). Entry fee, airfare, shipping costs there (and God forbid) back of artworks, 4 purchased panels 36" x 36," hardware and supplies to build 8 24" x 24" panels, airfare for me and my assistant (to help with packing, set up of exhibit space, taking sales, etc.), supplies such as paint, gesso and varnish, three days of meals for 2, extra lighting and extension cords, hanging materials, all add up to $3150.00 for total expenses of $5750.00.
An artist doesn't achieve success and financial security through isolation, but through community. To take this exciting step in my art career, I need your help.
