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Grant Amount <br />Requested <br />$2000 <br />Project Start Date <br />(no earlier than July <br />1, 2020) <br />July 6, 2020 <br />Project End Date (no <br />later than June 30, <br />2021) <br />June 30, 2021 <br />Project/Program <br />Summary <br />Addressing the need for non-commercial exhibition v enues in the <br />Triangle, BASEMENT (since 2019) is an artist-run project space in <br />Chapel Hill that supports experimental and critical art practices to <br />foster connections between artists and communities. Located in a <br />priv ate residence at 605 Caswell Road, BASEMENT consists of a 500 <br />sq-ft white-walled gallery and 265 sq-ft concrete walled space. <br />Through a collaborativ e model with rotating and shared curatorial, <br />preparator, and administrativ e responsibilities, BASEMENT’s team of <br />eight founding artist-curators—Jonh Blanco, Sarah Elizabeth <br />Cornejo, John DeKemper, Peter Hoffman, Mike Keav eney, Laura <br />Little, Chieko Murasugi, and Hồng-An Trương—selects artists with <br />Southern ties for the caliber of their work, and relev ance to the theme <br />of the proposed exhibition. <br />In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we initiated a series of <br />inv itational digital residencies, where artists take ov er BASEMENT’s <br />Instagram page for three weeks to share insights into their work and <br />studio processes with our social media audience, using the platform <br />as a v irtual open studio space. Our first resident was Erick Antonio <br />Benitez (DC/MD) a multidisciplinary artist, musician, organizer, and <br />curator. Caroline Bugby (NC/UK), Aaron Turner (AK), and Natalie <br />Baxter (KY/NY) are scheduled through October, and we plan to inv ite <br />two more residents for Nov ember and December. Artists-in-residence <br />receiv e a small stipend, which we wish to sustain particularly <br />because of the economic insecurity many artists face during the <br />COVID-19 crisis. <br />W e are planning two in-person group shows, currently scheduled to <br />open in March and June 2021 for six to eight week runs. Selected <br />artists will exhibit in our space and participate in public ev ents that <br />engage fellow artists and our local community. Each show will hav e <br />an opening reception and a closing ev ent, which prev iously was a <br />mediated artist panel discussion. The first exhibition, with Sarah <br />Elizabeth Cornejo as lead curator, will feature Felicity Palma (NC/CA), <br />Kate Robinson (NC), and Petra Szilagyi (VA). The show inv estigates <br />human response to place, both liv ed, unfamiliar, v isited, and <br />immigrated, and its personal and political implications. The second <br />show, led by Laura Little, will examine the intersections of mysticism, <br />power structures, and anthropic anxiety in contemporary society. <br />BASEMENT has extended an offer to Zipporah Thompson (GA) and is <br />in the preliminary stages of rev iewing Lily Cox-Richard (TX/VA), <br />Phaan Howng (MD), Tra Bouscaren (FL), and Doug Pierre Baulos (AL) <br />DocuSign Envelope ID: AD7B27F2-795B-4B6F-90F1-521AA8752A69