Bunnell Street Arts Center welcomes visual artist, Kelsen Nnaji, from Nigeria, September 1 – 28, as virtual Artist in Residence. Artist Talk September 28th, Noon AKST.

Kelsen Onyedikachi Nnaji, is a visual artist from Nigeria. He mainly works in graphite, charcoal and acrylic. He is also a student of Radiography at the University of Lagos, Nigeria, where he produces digital art. Adept in portraiture, he captures the essence and emotion of his subjects through his rendering of sweat, water droplets, skin pores, acne, moles, hair strands, wrinkles and fabric texture. Recently he has delved into the NFT (Non-Fungible Token) space as he believes they will play an important role in the future creative industry.

During his virtual residency at Bunnell, Kelsen will be designing a label for Grace Ridge Brewery. In his virtual artist talk, Kelsen will share about his artwork, life and culture in Lagos, as well as reflect on the new work created through his virtual residency.

Register for Kelsen’s artist talk on Zoom here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEqce6rqTwrGtRYLnYOvHurCPADVZiIyasU

Kelsen’s Artist Talk with Community Partners will be available Friday, September 30th on Bunnell’s youtube channel: https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCFUX1NlMSDvCbpLYM_4ahOg

Specific support for this residency is provided by the Alaska Community Foundation Irma Scavenius Fund for International Understanding, long-time Bunnell supporters, Kathy and Maynard Smith, and Grace Ridge Brewery.

Bunnell Street Arts Center’s Artist in Residence (AIR) features Alaska, national and international artists for residencies of varying lengths, from one week to two months. The program has evolved with support from Rasmuson Foundation, USA Artists, Homer Foundation, ArtPlace America, National Performance Network, Alaska Community Foundation, The CIRI Foundation, McKnight Foundation, the Alaska State Council on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Today, it is primarily supported by private donors, foundation grants, and application fees.

Bunnell Street Arts Center’s mission is to spark artistic inquiry, innovation and equity to strengthen the physical, social and economic fabric of Alaska.

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