ALT ATL: Artist-Run Spaces and Experimental Projects
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Atlanta has a long, rich history of alternative, artists-run, DIY spaces and projects that foster new talent, build community, and provide essential resources for Atlanta’s emerging and mid-career artists. Although they are often precarious—vulnerable to funding scarcity, founder/volunteer burnout, and access to space—these projects are the lifeblood of Atlanta’s arts ecosystem. Blurring the lines between artist, curator, administrator, and visionary, these panelists represent some of the city’s most innovative and exciting spaces.
This conversation will be moderated by Art Papers Executive + Artistic Director Sarah Higgins. Panelists include Anna Akpele (founder + curator, elsewhere), Jessica Helfrecht (Guardian Studios / Echo Contemporary, Gallery owner), Éngel Ellis (Co – Director, Day & Night Projects), and Amanda P. Norris (Assistant Director, The Bakery Atlanta and Programming Director, The Supermarket)
Jessica Helfrecht, Guardian Studios / Echo Contemporary, Gallery owner
Guardian Studios launched in the summer of 2021, with studio spaces ranging from 200 to 1,000 square feet. Guardian Studios also houses Echo Contemporary Art, a 3,000-square-foot Southeastern art gallery in Atlanta, Georgia that focuses on exhibiting emerging to mid-career artists.
Jessica Helfrecht is the owner of Echo Contemporary Art and the Studio Manager of Guardian Studios. Echo Contemporary Art features mid-career and emerging Southeastern artists. The gallery is located within Guardian Studios that has 31 studios for visual artists and Atlanta creatives. Helfrecht has over 25 years of experience in the arts, retail galleries and nonprofit sectors.
Éngel Ellis, Co – Director, Day & Night Projects
Day & Night Projects is an artist-run gallery near downtown Atlanta. We aim to provide opportunities for artists to exhibit in a non-commercial setting; to become a nexus for the Atlanta artist community; and to exchange exhibitions with galleries around the world.
Èngel Ellis is one of the Co-Directors at Day & Night Projects, based in Atlanta, Ga. Her passion for art, demonstrated through curating shows, launching her own online gallery, Kei Museum, and volunteer work, led to her collaboration with Day & Night founders Steven L. Anderson and William Downs. At Day & Night, Ellis and other artists enjoy the freedom to explore and express their creativity without restrictive boundaries.
Anna Akpele, founder + curator, elsewhere
elsewhere is an experimental art concept lead by Atlanta-born curator, Anna Akpele. elsewhere fosters a symbiotic relationship between artist and curator, working together to bring forth relevant exhibitions that educate and inspire, providing an outlet for artists to be free and explore without limitations.
Anna Akpele (b. 1991, Atlanta, GA) is a curator & arts administrator based in Atlanta, GA. In 2022, Anna conceptualized elsewhere, a curatorial concept centered around fostering a symbiotic relationship between artist and curator. Anna received her BFA in Graphic Design from Savannah College of Art and Design.
Amanda P. Norris, Assistant Director, The Bakery Atlanta and Programming Director, The Supermarket
The Bakery Atlanta is a collective of artists, curators, and administrators dedicated to offering alternative models to local creatives and the general public. We host and produce experiences that connect and inspire people through collaboration, experimentation, and play.
Amanda P. Norris is the Assistant Director at The Bakery Atlanta and the Programming Director at The Supermarket. The Bakery Atlanta is a 501(c)3 nonprofit art services organization on a mission to broaden awareness of, and build community around, progressive ideas in the arts. The Supermarket is a new creative event space built and operated by artists. Both businesses envision an Atlanta that supports the emerging, DIY, and underground arts as it grows, locally and in the Southeast.
Norris is an arts administrator, curator, and artist based in Atlanta with a B.A. from Georgia College and State University in Mass Communication and Theatre. She has lived and worked in Atlanta since 2017, gaining experience in arts administration, marketing, and nonprofit operations. In her free time, you can find Amanda drinking lambrusco on her porch, riding her bike on the Westside Beltline, or watching movies with her husband.
Image credit: Artwork by Aineki Traverso
Atlanta Art Fair is under the leadership of Fair Director Kelly Freeman, working alongside Artistic Director Nato Thompson and Atlanta-based advisors Tim and Dirk von Gal, founders of the Intersect Art Fair group.