Curator & Speaker – KC Potter Center, Vanderbilt University
March 2024
In March 2024, I was invited by the KC Potter Center at Vanderbilt University to curate a group BIPOC & Queer exhibition, an opportunity that allowed me to expand my work beyond New York. This exhibition highlighted the intersection of identity, culture, and artistic expression, providing a platform for underrepresented voices within the queer and BIPOC communities.
Alongside curating the show, I led artist talks, fostering meaningful conversations about representation, resilience, and the power of storytelling through art. Engaging with a new audience in a different region reinforced the importance of these spaces, and I am proud to continue expanding my curatorial work to institutions and communities beyond the Finger Lakes.
This experience reaffirmed my commitment to creating inclusive and empowering exhibitions, ensuring that BIPOC and Queer artists have platforms to share their stories, not just in New York, but wherever art can be a catalyst for change.
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Orozco Gallery Reimagines Space, Culture, and Community Through a Month-Long Pop-Up Series in Downtown Ithaca
Ithaca, NY – May 2025
In a time when our communities crave connection, celebration, and healing, Orozco Gallery emerged this May as a sanctuary for creativity, culture, and collective joy. Located at 115 S Cayuga Street in the heart of Downtown Ithaca, this month-long pop-up gallery and event series brought a powerful vision to life: to create a space where art doesn’t just hang on walls, but lives, breathes, and gathers people across generations, languages, and lived experiences.
Curated and organized by local artist, community leader, and activist Yen Ospina, Orozco Gallery became a vibrant hub of activity, dialogue, and movement. What began as a temporary gallery quickly grew into a deeply meaningful experiment in community-building. Through a robust calendar of over 25 unique events, the gallery welcomed hundreds of people throughout the month—offering something for everyone, from live music and dance, to bilingual story times, artist-led workshops, puppet shows, and late-night dance parties.
A Full Month of Art and Action
The opening reception on May 2nd set the tone for what was to come: an atmosphere filled with warmth, non-alcoholic refreshments, and food lovingly provided by Jojo Cook. From there, the gallery hosted a mix of immersive, interactive events that encouraged visitors not just to observe, but to participate.
Spanish Story Time sessions invited children and families to sit together on rugs while being transported into magical worlds through language and projected illustrations. The bilingual format created an inclusive, cross-cultural space that resonated deeply with attendees.
Live music performances, such as the Venissa Santi Trio’s Afro-Cuban set and an intimate Bossa Nova jazz evening, transformed the gallery into a listening room where community members could experience the power of music in a sober, accessible setting.
Workshops and artist talks became the beating heart of the month. Dozens of local and regional BIPOC artists—including Gabriella Evergreen, Luna Fiber, Sarah Lopez, Bevi Wallenstein, Yessica Martinez, Pilar Gutierrez, and more—shared their processes, inspirations, and personal stories. These evenings were tender, illuminating, and at times emotionally charged, creating room for vulnerability and shared understanding.
The gallery also partnered with performers like Lizzy Fajardo, who taught a joyful Colombian rueda dance class, and Lilypad Puppet Theatre, which brought “Alfonso’s Story” to life for a room full of captivated children and families. The event was performed primarily in Spanish, underscoring the gallery’s mission to uplift voices and narratives that are too often left out of dominant cultural spaces.
Other crowd favorites included the Sip & Paint night, where participants explored color theory while interpreting Bob Ross’s iconic landscapes in their own styles, and the Zine Workshop, where scissors, glue sticks, and imagination collided in a celebration of DIY storytelling.
The month concluded with a warm and emotional closing reception on May 30th, followed by a final dance party led by aparece that pulsed with joy, music, and laughter—a fitting finale to a space that had become a temporary but transformational home for many.
A Vision Beyond the Gallery Walls
What made the Orozco Gallery initiative truly special wasn’t just the volume of events—it was the intentionality behind every decision. From prioritizing a sober space (where mocktails and aguas frescas replaced alcohol) to offering sliding scale admission to ensure accessibility, the gallery’s framework challenged traditional models of how art is experienced and who gets to experience it.
Behind it all was the dedicated leadership of Yen Ospina, whose vision for the space extended beyond aesthetics. Her commitment to creating opportunities for underrepresented artists, fostering cross-cultural dialogue, and offering alternatives to alcohol-centered nightlife shaped every corner of the pop-up gallery.
This effort was deeply community-driven and made possible with the collaboration and support of the Latino Civic Association, as well as institutional partners such as Cornell’s Einhorn Center for Community Engagement, the Rural Humanities Grant, the Emerson Hinchliff Chair, and the Latina/o Studies Program. Their contributions helped sustain this bold experiment in grassroots organizing, cultural celebration, and radical imagination.
Looking Forward
As the artwork came down and the space returned to its former emptiness, what remained was the echo of stories shared, songs sung, connections formed, and dreams planted. The Orozco Gallery pop-up may have been temporary, but its impact will ripple forward in the hearts and minds of everyone who passed through its doors.
For those interested in learning more, supporting future programming, or hosting future pop-ups, visit orozcogallery.com.
In a time when so many systems feel broken, Orozco Gallery reminded us of what we can build when we come together—with open hands, open hearts, and the courage to imagine something different.