Diverse Discourse

Thomas J. Lax is Associate Curator of Media and Performance Art at the Museum of Modern Art. Previously, he was Assistant Curator at The Studio Museum in Harlem, the nexus for artists of African descent locally, nationally and internationally and for work that has been inspired and influenced by black culture. Most recently, he organized the Studio Museum exhibitions When the Stars Begin to Fall: Imagination and the American South (2014) and the Studio Museum’s presentation ofRadical Presence: Black Performance in Contemporary Art (2013). In 2008, he developed and launched the Museum’s VideoStudio program, an ongoing series of exhibitions of time-based art; in 2011, he initiated Studio Lab, a think tank and short-term residency program for ideas in formation. At the Studio Museum, he has also organized Fore (2012);Ralph Lemon: 1856 Cessna Road (2012); Lyle Ashton Harris: Self/Portrait (2011); and Kalup Linzy: If it Don’t Fit (2009); among others. Thomas received his BA from Brown University in Africana Studies and Art/Semiotics, and an MA in Modern Art from Columbia University. Co-presented by DiverseWorks and Core Residency Program at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston

Xandra Eden assumed her position at DiverseWorks in June 2015, having most recently served as Curator of Exhibitions at the Weatherspoon Art Museum at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. Previously, she held positions at The Power Plant, Toronto; Pollock-Krasner Foundation, New York; and Women & Their Work Gallery, Austin. Eden will speak about her past curatorial projects and vision for DiverseWorks’ future programming.

Chris Sharp is based in Mexico City and is editor-at-large of Kaleidoscope magazine, a contributing editor of Art Review, and his writings have appeared in many print and online publications including Artforum, Frieze, and Mousse. In 2013 he co-founded, with artist Martin Soto Climent, Lulu, an independent, Mexico City-based project space.

Diverse Discourse brings national curators, artistic directors, and critics to Houston to present a free public lecture and conduct studio visits with selected Houston-area artists, performers, and writers.  Diverse Discourse provides a significant opportunity for area artists in all disciplines to have their work reviewed by a variety of distinguished arts professionals, fostering a cultural exchange across the nation between artists and cultural producers. Click here for studio visit application guidelines. ABOUT ANGELA MATTOX Angela Mattox is the Artistic Director of Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA), which presents performance and visual art programs and embraces those artists who exist at the borders of disciplines and ideas. Through the annual TBA Festival, artist residencies, performances, exhibitions, and workshops, PICA creates a broad platform for contemporary art and vital issues of today. Her global curatorial approach focuses on experimental performance practice, cross cultural exchange, and interdisciplinary work. Mattox was the former Performing Arts Curator at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA) - San Francisco’s leading multidisciplinary contemporary art center. She joined the curatorial team in 2003 and was instrumental in revitalizing the performing arts presenting program. In her eight years at YBCA, she supported such visionary artists as Ralph Lemon, Meg Stuart, Nick […]

Diverse Discourse brings national curators, artistic directors, and critics to Houston to present a free public lecture and conduct studio visits with selected Houston-area artists, performers, and writers.  Diverse Discourse provides a significant opportunity for area artists in all disciplines to have their work reviewed by a variety of distinguished arts professionals, fostering a cultural exchange across the nation between artists and cultural producers. Click here for studio visit application guidelines. ABOUT SOFÍA HERNÁNDEZ CHONG CUY Sofía Hernández Chong Cuy is the curator of contemporary art for the Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros, a position she has held since 2011. In the past decade, Hernández Chong Cuy was Director of the Museo Tamayo in Mexico City, and held curatorial positions at Art in General and Americas Society, the latter two in New York. She has curated exhibitions for Kadist Art Foundation in Paris, MALBA in Buenos Aires, Center for Contemporary Art in Vilnius, and MUSAC in León. Sofía was an agent for dOCUMENTA(13), 2012, in Kassel. She was also the artistic director and chief curator of the 9a Bienal do Mercosul | Porto Alegre, which took place from September 13 to November 10, 2013, in Porto Alegre, Brazil. She writes regularly for […]