NorahScheinerHawkenProjects2025

During an artist studio visit with Awwful Aaron, ( His website ) I got to see how personal his creative process really is. We met at his studio in East Cleveland. There were works in progress and finished ones. Aaron talked a lot about how Cleveland itself influences his work. His style is loud and bold, but also really thoughtful. He uses a mix of cartoonish characters, abstract shapes, and rough textures to say something deeper about identity, community, and emotion. He explained that some pieces start from a really spontaneous place, like a sketch, and then slowly build into something more layered and intentional. He also showed us some of his earlier work and talked about how much he’s evolved, not just in style but also in how he approaches art as a job and a way of life. He attended the CIA for some time, but he does not have a degree in art. He uses this experience to show that being “successful” in the art world does not need to come with a traditional college degree/ Being in ...

Describe something fun or pleasantly unexpected that happened: Something that happened that was pleasantly unexpected was that I got to propose a lot of what has made it to the final Kelli Connell show. As previously mentioned, DJ let me design/curate a layout for the upcoming Kelli Connell show in moCa's first floor gallery. I met with DJ and the Progressive curator, Scott, in the space for a couple hours, and majority of what I picked made it for Kelli to approve, which she did! We talked through everything and really tried to see how the space would be used for the works. While doing this we had to imagine the new wall and paint job that would come. This collaborate experience helped me get a serious glimpse into what DJ does as curator. He has to work with so many different people with different roles and personalities. He juggles so many moving parts. Overall, I didn’t expect was how much technical planning goes into even small adjustments within an exhibition space. We had to...

Finally, it was time to compile some groupings of photographs for round one (super super super preliminary) of layout. I sorted the photos in the layout I thought was best after spending a good bit messing with colors and vibes of the photos. I showed DJ what I was thinking and we went from there! Soon, DJ will meet with the Progressive curator and work with him to finalize the layout. It was so much fun having input in this process! I am so grateful I was given time to be creative and catch a glimpse of what I think is one of the most exciting parts of curating a show. Everything from how the viewer's eyes will move through the pieces to the emotions that certain colors evoke is interesting to me, and I am so thankful DJ gave me free range to explore the curatorial side of a show on my own. I will not be inserting pictures of the layout I worked with here, as that I feel like that should be saved for when the show opens. Tomorrow I am meeting DJ at a studio visit with an artist do...

When designing a space there are many things to take into consideration. As I learned last week, the artist, lender, etc. can have and most likely will have input on layout and design. In the case of Kelli Connell’s works, Progressive has a say as these works are a part of their collection. DJ will work with Progressive’s curator to design the show and bring Connell’s works to life in moCa’s space. I was tasked with exploring possible layouts and ideas for the Connell show titled Double Life. Connell's Double Life is a photographic series that explores themes of identity, intimacy, and self-perception. It was started in 2002, and the project features digitally constructed images where the same model, Kiba Jacobson, portrays both individuals in intimate scenarios, creating the illusion of a relationship between two women. Through staging and digital editing, Connell crafts "constructed realities" that challenge viewers' perceptions of authenticity and explore the flu...

Today I went with DJ to a meeting with the registrar and exhibitions director. They discussed the silent auction and benefit (held a couple weeks ago) and debriefed shortly. Then they moved on to discussing moCa's incident management protocols and policies. I learned that the museum has fine art insurance and so they also have to follow certain policies from that agreement which seems pretty complex. I also learned that certain pieces have certain policies based on who the lender of the work is. The team discussed security measures and what not, making sure they check all the insurance company's boxes, as this is quite important. The higher the value of the piece, the higher the security needs to be.  This may seem uninteresting to some, but to me this is all really exciting. I enjoy learning about all the behind the scenes work that goes into museums like moCa. In this meeting the team discussed their temperature and humidity systems as well, which have to be extremely specifi...

I am working with DJ Hellerman (lead curator) and moCa, Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland. I have learned that everyone here at moCa is super invested in their work and extremely dedicated to helping artists in this community, and bettering the community in general through the arts. moCa is committed to creating a space where art is enjoyed and celebrated here in Cleveland. On my first day I shadowed DJ. We did a “vinyl walkthrough” which is where DJ, the graphic designer here Shannon, and Ray the installation specialist walkthrough the print that will go on the wall, the titles, and more for the next exhibition. This was super interesting to me because I had no idea so much time and effort went into something that seems as simple as the positioning and font of text next to the art. Obviously, the text itself is crucial, but I did not even think about the time that goes into the logistics of cutting the vinyl (which they do in house) for the text, shipping it off to get turned in...