Everything Is Connected

On this episode I’m joined by Alexa Kumiko Hatanaka as we discuss her latest work on view in the 61st edition of the Venice Biennale.   Alexa is a Japanese-Canadian artist who brings together historical and sustainable craft technologies of her heritage, including hand-papermaking, natural dye, linocut, gyotaku (printing real fish), and washi (Japanese paper).  Her work, taking the form of sewn pa...

On this episode I’m joined by Anina Major. We discuss the themes of identity, migration, and memory present in her work. Discussing her latest works and the context of her practice, we explore the ongoing negotiation between self and place. Drawing from her upbringing in the Bahamas and her life in the United States, Major reflects on craft as a language of memory, the influence of familial knowle...

Darold Brown — known to the world as Ferg — grew up watching his father build a business, a brand, and a community from the basements of Harlem. In this episode, musician, and all around artist, Ferg reflects on his upbringing in Harlem, the deep influence of his late father’s entrepreneurial spirit, and the world-building ambition that now drives everything he does. From learning to paint on T-sh...

Manyaku Mashilo began as a drawer—using pencil to mimic texture, memory, and feeling—long before painting became her primary language. In this episode, visual artist Manyaku Mashilo reflects on her evolution from fashion design into a multidisciplinary practice rooted in painting, mark-making, and storytelling. Her work moves through texture, memory, and color—building intimate, emotional worlds t...

Demetrius Wilson describes painting as a living exchange—where the canvas responds, shifts, and ultimately becomes something greater than he first imagined.  In this episode, abstract painter Demetrius Wilson reflects on his second solo exhibition at Half Gallery and the evolution of a practice rooted in intuition, movement, and material dialogue. Working at the intersection of environment, memory...

Lyndon J. Barrois, Sr began creating art from discarded chewing gum wrappers when he was 10 years old.  In this episode, award‑winning animator and visual‑effects artist Lyndon J. Barrois, Sr discusses his latest exhibition, his most ambitious project to date, the groundbreaking show - Futbol is Life: Animated Sportraits on view at the LACMA through mid July 2026. Iconic moments from both women’s...

On this episode, Leo Iheagwam aka Soldier, the London-based painter-sculptor who rose to prominence in the art and skate scene of Lagos, Nigeria and London, discusses his first digital curation, Future Tense presented with myma.art.  Soldier has emerged as one of the strongest voices is shaping the new African creative landscape in recent years. In 2025, Soldier was selected as a finalist for the...

On this episode I’m joined by Lindsay Adams and Caitlin Berry as we discuss Lindsay's latest exhibition at the Irene and Richard Frary Gallery at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center.  Ceremony brings newly created paintings and drawings into conversation with archival materials and previously unseen ephemera from Johns Hopkins special collections. Lindsay reflects on how her backgro...

 Welcome to Season 6 of Light Work Presents: Everything is Connected.  This year, we're releasing bigger episodes, recording more episodes, and deepening conversations at the intersection of art, education, and culture.    More artists and more art. More impactful conversations on art and culture. Exclusive resources, BTS footage of my travels and insights into the international art world and...

On this episode I’m joined by Bisa Butler. We discuss her pivot from painting to quilting, what it was like for her to study at an HBCU, she earned her BFA in Painting at Howard University, how that experience shaped her and what she hopes her work does in the world. Bisa talks about her recent exhibition Hold Me Close that was previously on view at Jeffrey Deitch Gallery in LA. Bisa Butler (b. 19...

On this episode I’m joined by Rashaad Newsome as we discuss his film Assembly . The documentary details the personal journey and events that inspired his 2022 Park Avenue Armory installation. I was fortunate to attend a final performance, thanks to my ARTNOIR family, and was captivated by Rashaad's immersive world. Shoutout to ART NOIR! I especially loved the dances and spoken word segments,...

On this episode I’m joined by Salome Asega. Salome and I discuss her journey from working at the Ford Foundation to returning to a more intimate engagement with artists at New Inc.  We cover the importance of alternative spaces for artists, how New Inc supports interdisciplinary creators, and the impact of geopolitical tensions on creative communities. And the significance of teaching, community,...

On this episode I’m joined by Kennedy Yanko as we discuss her recent artistic endeavors, working with paper pulp prints which are on view in her latest exhibition, Without Gravity, at Pace Prints now through Oct 4th. Kennedy shares the joy of returning to immediate, experimental creation, reminiscent of her earlier abstract expressionist paintings. She reflects on her 20-year journey as an artist,...

On this episode I’m joined by Michelle Kuo, Chief Curator at Large and Publisher, of the MoMA, as we discuss Jack Whitten: The Messenger, the first comprehensive retrospective dedicated to the groundbreaking art of Jack Whitten (American, 1939–2018). The exhibition showcased more than 175 works from the 1960s to the 2010s, including paintings, sculptures, rarely shown works on paper, and archival...

On this episode I’m joined by Brice Yonkeu as we discuss his career in the arts. With a background in political science, Brice transitioned to the arts, seeking to make a more relevant contribution to culture. In this episode, he shares his experiences working in the arts, from opening his own gallery, Bwo Art Gallery in Cameroon, to participating in Amoako Boafo’s residency, dot.ateliers, as the...

On this episode I’m joined by Hugh Hayden as we discuss his newly commissioned work presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as, what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Hugh Hayden was born in Dallas, Texas in 1983 and lives and works in New York City. He holds an MFA from C...

On this episode I’m joined by Cassi Namoda as we discuss her newly commissioned work presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as, what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Born in Maputo, Mozambique, Cassi Namoda is known for her strong color palette and narrative approach to...

On this episode I’m joined by Luke Willis Thompson as we discuss his newly commissioned work presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Luke Willis Thompson is a New Zealand artist of Fijian and European descent, currently working pri...

On this episode I’m joined by Rita Mawuena Benissan as we discuss her newly commissioned works presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Born in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire in 1995 to Ghanaian parents, Rita's journey led her to the U...

On this episode I’m joined by Kaloki Nyamai as we discuss his newly commissioned works presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Kaloki Nyamai is a multidisciplinary artist working with installation, painting, and sculpture living an...

On this episode I’m joined by Rajni Perera as we discuss his newly commissioned works presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage?  Rajni Perera was born in Sri Lanka in 1985 and lives and works in Toronto. She explores issues of hybrid...

On this episode I’m joined by Daniel Boyd as we discuss his newly commissioned work presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as, what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Born in 1982 in Cairns Australia, Daniel Boyd is one of Australia’s most highly regarded artists. In 2014,...

On this episode I’m joined by Zadie Xa as we discuss her newly commissioned works presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Zadie Xa was born in Vancouver, Canada on unceded, ancestral and continually asserted territories of several...

On this episode I’m joined by Julian Knxx as we discuss his newly commissioned work presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as, what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Julianknxx’s work merges his poetic practice with films and performance; he engages in a form of existenti...

On this episode I’m joined by Ndidi Dike as we discuss her newly commissioned works presented for 16 edition of the Sharjah Biennial, elucidated through the curatorial theme, to carry. Asking questions such as what does it mean to carry a home, a history, a language, a legacy, and a lineage. Ndidi Dike was born in London. She returned to Nigeria to train as a painter and graduated from the Univers...