New Orleans, LA — Ogden Museum of Southern Art announced today the artists selected for the 2021 edition of Louisiana Contemporary, presented by The Helis Foundation, the Museum’s annual juried exhibition featuring work by contemporary artists from across the state. This year’s guest juror, Hallie Ringle, Hugh Kaul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art, has selected 51 works by 39 artists from a total of 1,170 submissions. Louisiana Contemporary will be on view at Ogden Museum August 7, 2021 through October 10, 2021.
Ogden Museum of Southern Art first launched Louisiana Contemporary, presented by The Helis Foundation in 2012, to establish a vehicle that would bring to the fore the work of artists living in Louisiana and highlight the dynamism of art practice throughout the state. Since its launch, Louisiana Contemporary has presented 729 works by 450 artists. This statewide, juried exhibition promotes the contemporary art practices in the state of Louisiana, provides an exhibition space for the exposition of living artists’ work and engages a contemporary audience that recognizes the vibrant visual arts culture of Louisiana and the role of New Orleans as a rising, international art center.
The roster of 2021 artists includes:
Diana Abouchacra
Luke Alex Atkinson
Luis Cruz Azaceta
Christine Bagneris
Mac Ball
Hagit Barkai
Wendo Brunoir
Maria de Bellorin
NH DePass
Tama Distler
Michael Eble
Maryam EL-Awadi
Kate Gordon
Charles Gudaitis
Jeremiah Johnson
Israell Johnson
Chris King
Faith Laurent
Shelby Little
Christy Lorio
Andrew Buckner Lyman
Kaori Maeyama
Kristin Meyers
Jacob Mitchell
Angel Perdomo
Dorthy Ray
Kenneth Scott, Jr.
Kelsey Scult, Music by Sava Wolf
Rosalie Smith
Elliot Stokes
Maddie Stratton
Brandon Surtain
Trenity Thomas
Brandt Vicknair
John and Erin Wales
Bianca Walker
Thomas Walton
Johanna Warwick
Michael Whitehead
“I feel incredibly honored to have been asked to jury Ogden Museum’s Louisiana Contemporary exhibition,” shares Hallie Ringle, Hugh Kaul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art. “It’s clear from the many wonderful submissions that these artists are at the forefront of contemporary art and are inspired by the extraordinary events of the past year. Though it was difficult to narrow down, I was drawn to this group of artists for their insightful perspectives and innovative practices that speak to life in Louisiana today.”
Each year, with support from The Helis Foundation, Ogden Museum honors four of the presenting artists, highlighting some of the most provocative and compelling works in the exhibition. The four awards come with cash prizes and special recognition at the Museum. The recipient of the lead award, The Helis Foundation Art Prize, will receive the unrestricted amount of $5,000.
“With the opening of the 2021-22 edition of Louisiana Contemporary, Ogden Museum will have presented 780 works by 489 artists since the exhibition first began in 2012,” says William Pittman Andrews, Executive Director of Ogden Museum. “With the support of The Helis Foundation, Louisiana Contemporary has served as a platform for artistic expression for a decade, helping to lift up the incredible artistic talent in the state of Louisiana. This year’s exhibition speaks to very serious issues in our world today, such as inequality and social justice and the severe impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
In addition to Hallie Ringle, prior jurors of Louisiana Contemporary have included René Morales, Director of Curatorial Affairs and Chief Curator at Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM); David Breslin, Director of Curatorial Initiatives at the Whitney Museum of American Art; Courtney J. Martin, Director of the Yale Center for British Art and former Deputy Director and Chief Curator at the Dia Art Foundation; Shantrelle P. Lewis, an independent curator, author, and documentarian; and Bill Arning, former Director of Contemporary Arts Museum Houston.
Ogden Museum of Southern Art will host a public opening reception for Louisiana Contemporary on August 7 from 6 to 9 p.m., in connection with White Linen Night, an annual community arts event in the Arts District of New Orleans. This public opening reception will also serve as a 10 year reunion for all current and former Louisiana Contemporary artists to gather, connect and celebrate.
About Hallie Ringle
Hallie Ringle is the Hugh Kaul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art, where she curated Celestia Morgan: REDLINE, Wall to Wall: Merritt Johnson (co-curated) and Barbie: Dreaming of a Female Future. She was formerly Assistant Curator at The Studio Museum in Harlem, where she curated Maren Hassinger: Monuments, Firelei Baez: Joy Out of Fire, Fictions (co-curated), Rico Gatson: Icons 2007–2017, Video Studio: Meeting Points, Palatable: Food and Contemporary Art, and Salon Style. She was a fall 2018 Andy Warhol Curatorial Fellow. She has a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.
About Ogden Museum
Located in the vibrant Warehouse Arts District of downtown New Orleans, Louisiana since 1999, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art welcomes 85,000 visitors annually to experience and learn about the artists and art movements of the American South. It is home to a collection of more than four thousand works, making it the largest and most comprehensive repository dedicated to Southern art in the nation, with particular strength in the genres of Self-Taught art, Regionalism, photography and contemporary art. The Museum is further recognized for its original exhibitions, public events and educational programs, which examine the development of visual art alongside Southern traditions of music, literature and local craft. Museum admission is free on Thursdays for Louisiana residents, courtesy of The Helis Foundation. The Museum is located at 925 Camp Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130. For more information, visit www.ogdenmuseum.org.
About The Helis Foundation
The Helis Foundation, a Louisiana private foundation established and funded by the William Helis Family, advances access to the arts and focuses on community needs primarily within the Metropolitan New Orleans area. The Helis Foundation’s Diana Helis Henry and Adrienne Helis Malvin Art Funds make grants to sustain operations, to provide free admission to, to acquire significant art works on behalf of major institutions, and site artwork in public spaces within the Metropolitan New Orleans area. The Art Funds underwrite major initiatives and special projects such as Poydras Corridor Sculpture Exhibition presented by The Helis Foundation, Louisiana Contemporary at Ogden Museum of Southern Art, and The Helis Foundation Enrique Alférez Sculpture Garden. The Foundation also launched the first large-scale mural exhibit: Unframed presented by The Helis Foundation, a project of Arts Council New Orleans, which features a collection of seven murals in Downtown New Orleans.
Past projects include: Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires at the Contemporary Arts Center, Melvin Edwards: Crossroads at Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Prospect.3’s Basquiat and the Bayou presented by The Helis Foundation, Solidary & Solitary: The Joyner/Giuffrida Collection presented by The Helis Foundation, and Art of the City: Post Modern to Post Katrina.