Access Black Art presents Abstract Stich & Dye and Art Exhibit at Café Melo Gallery in Harem from November 18 – December 18, 2022. The exhibit will feature artwork by three exemplary NYC area artists: William Daniels, Heather Williams and Jaleeca Yancy. The 28 works of art on exhibit represent important genres of visual art; abstract painting, quilting and fiber art. Exhibit curator, Ulysses Williams shares “I chose these genres due to the spiritual and organic nature of each artist’s process and their attachment to historical, cultural and ancestral references.” The exhibit opens on Friday, November 18, 2022, with an opening reception from 6:00pm-9:00pm.
Café Melo Gallery Hours
Wednesday – Friday 1:00pm – 7:00pm
Saturday 12 noon – 6:00pm
Sunday: 1pm – 6:00pm
ABOUT THE ABSTRACT. STITCH & DYE ARTISTS
Heather Williams
Heather Williams (b. 1969) was born in St. Croix US Virgin Islands and raised in Brooklyn, NY. She was always interested in becoming an artist but her parents who were first generation from Trinidad and Grenada encouraged her to find a job. She followed their advice and studied finance in undergrad but ultimately changed careers to become an Art Therapist. She worked with the domestic violence population for over ten years providing group and individual therapy. Later, she became a mother and a certified Montessori Primary teacher. After several years of teaching, she resigned and returned to grad school, this time to fulfill her dream of focusing on her art.
Heather earned a Masters in Fine Art from the School of Visual Arts in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. She has been awarded the Paula Rhodes memorial award for exceptional achievement in MFA Art Practice. Her short film, Safe Passage II was awarded honorable mention at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago. She has also been awarded residencies at Eileen S. Kaminsky Family Foundation (ESKFF) at Mana Contemporary, ArtCrawl Harlem at Governors Island, NY and a Sustainable Arts Fellowship at Gallery Aferro, NJ. She has exhibited in many group exhibitions including Peel off the Surface, Tribeca Loft, and solo shows Damage and Repair at Akwaaba Gallery and Protective Spirits at The Bridge Art Gallery. She is currently based in New Jersey. Her sculptures and abstract paintings are in many private collections.
Williams Daniels
William Daniels is an independent curator and visual artist working primarily with textiles. His art quilts and accessories feature traditional quilt blocking and paper piecing techniques, but he sometimes utilizes nontraditional components. He draws inspiration from urban art practice that confronts contemporary issues and is always experimenting to integrate modern archetypes with historical, societal, or spiritual topics. While some of the concepts in his work are quite unambiguous and literal, others are abstract references to the anthropological experience, individuality, or contain esoteric philosophies and historical references from the coded glyphs of ancient cultures.
Daniels was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Currently, he lives, works, and creates art in the Central Harlem section of New York City. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts from SUNY Empire State College, a Master of Science degree in Business/Project Management from New York University and is currently a PhD candidate pursuing an interdisciplinary degree in Art Theory, Philosophy and Aesthetics at the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts
Jaleeca Yancy
Jaleeca R. Yancy (b.1990) is a multi-disciplinary artist developing a visual abstract language rooted in experimentation, imagination, and sustainability practices. From Memphis, Tennessee, she currently lives and works in New York. Yancy is innovative and unafraid to challenge tradition by encompassing digital media, dye techniques, illustration, graffiti, and painting to depict radical imagination through abstract expression. Her goal is to link ancestral and modern art with diverse materials rich in color, form, and texture. She has exhibited her work in numerous shows, including Knowhere Art Gallery, The National Art Club, Calabar Gallery, Superchief Gallery, and Urèvbu Contemporary.
