Interact at Outsider Art Fair New York
Interact is thrilled to announce our debut presentation at the Outsider Art Fair in New York.
Held annually in Paris and New York City, the Outsider Art Fair features work by artists who have historically been marginalized, providing a vital opportunity to connect with museum curators, gallerists, and collectors from across the globe. Since the mid-nineties, the fair has been a critical institution for advancing the careers of artists with disabilities.
Interact's booth will feature drawings, paintings, and ceramics by Carl Clark, Janice Essick, Lucy Picasso, Scott Sorensen, and Matt Zimdars. They were selected by guest curator Lauren dela Roche, a self-described queer punk feminist artist, who has exhibited at well-known galleries like Eric Firestone Gallery and Various Small Fires.
DETAILS
February 27 – March 2, 2025
Metropolitan Pavilion
125 W. 18th Street
New York, NY 10011
For tickets and more, please visit outsiderartfair.com.
EXHIBITING ARTISTS
CARL CLARK has presented work in galleries and institutions throughout the Twin Cities, including the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, The White Page, and HGA Architects & Engineers. Clark's work is in private collections in both the United States and Canada. In 2021, he presented work in WILD GOOSE, a two-person exhibition with New York-based artist Jack Arthur Wood, Jr. In 2024, he presented work alongside Mike Harris, Jr. in Armadillo at Interact Gallery.
JANICE ESSICK presented her first solo exhibition in in 2022 at Interact Gallery. She has presented work in two-person and group exhibitions in venues throughout Minnesota, including Midway Contemporary Art, The White Page, and HGA Architects & Engineers. In 2024, her work was selected for inclusion in The Art of Disability Justice Now at the Mill City Museum. In 2021, Essick collaborated with New York-based accessories label KARA on promotional artwork for their Spring 2021 capsule collection. Essick has practiced at Interact since 2005.
LUCY PICASSO has presented work in venues throughout Minnesota, including the Institute for Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, Gamut Gallery, The White Page, and Interact Gallery. Her work has also appeared in group exhibitions at Art Enables (Washington, D.C.). Picasso has practiced at Interact since 2008.
SCOTT SORENSEN has presented work in exhibitions at Interact Gallery, including Glaze Haze (2023), the annual Great Big Holiday Sale (2018-2024), and Uniquinox: Tarot Alive (2022). In 2024, he presented work in a three-person exhibition at Modern Times Cafe in South Minneapolis. Sorensen has practiced at Interact since 2018.
MATT ZIMDARS has presented work throughout Minnesota at Interact Gallery, the Thorpe Building, and Franconia Sculpture Park. He has presented work nationally in exhibitions at Lyndon House Arts Center, Western Wisconsin State College, Make Studio, and Art Enables. In 2024, he was an artist in residence at Interact Gallery. Zimdars has practiced at Interact since 1999.
GUEST CURATOR
LAUREN DELA ROCHE (b. Santa Rosa, CA, 1983) is a self-described queer punk feminist artist whose autodidactic approach integrates a broad range of references, including zines, European modernisms, and autobiography. While largely self-taught, her consumption of visual culture and art history allows her to draw upon long traditions of art history, remixing Egon Schiele's line drawing with the influence of transgressive cinema, Persian miniatures, Greek mythology, and folklore into her own iconic, fresh style. Growing up in the Bay Area of California, and living for a period of time in both Seattle and Asheville, NC, dela Roche has resided in the Midwest since young adulthood and currently lives and works near St. Louis, MO. She is represented by Eric Firestone Gallery in New York.
Image descriptions (above):
(1) Image courtesy of Outsider Art Fair. A photo of the Outsider Art Fair in 2023 shows a sculpture of a boat with a figure paddling. framed drawings are hung on the walls. A small group of people mingles amongst the work.
(2) A photo of Carl Clark shows the artist sitting in front of many of his paintings. Clark identifies as a Black man. He wears a beanie and blue plaid shirt and has a mustache. He smiles slightly, holding a pencil.
(3) A photo of Janice Essick shows the artist standing in front of her drawings and paintings at Interact Gallery. Essick identifies as a Black woman. She wears a grey turban, a purple skirt, and has long hair. She smiles.
(4) A photo of Lucy Picasso shows the artist smiling and looking straight ahead. Picasso identifies as a white woman. She has short, purple hair, and wears glasses. She is smiling and wears a tie dyed shirt.
(5) A photo of Scott Sorensen shows the artist glazing a mask while some his other mask hang on the wall behind him. Sorensen identifies as a white man. He wears glasses and has short hair. He wears a black button-down shirt and has a focused expression.
(6) A photo of Matt Zimdars shows the artist standing in front of his work, looking off to the right. Zimdars identifies as a white man. He wears glasses and has short, grey hair. Zimdars wears a sweatshirt. He has a serious expression.