In each other we trust
Solo Exhibition by Jeff Kasper for ECA Invitational 2024 & Panel Conversation on the value of arts and sustaining artist communities
Jeff Kasper, In each other we trust opens Art Walk: Saturday, Oct 5, 4-7pm, through Oct 28, 2024
ECA Gallery at Old Town Hall | 43 Main St, Easthampton, MA
Panel conversation, Monday, Oct 28, 6-7:30pm
Blue Room at CitySpace, Old Town Hall | 43 Main St, Easthampton, MA
In each other we trust emerged from urgent calls for rethinking and planning in Easthampton around the value of arts, how artists are supported and arts communities maintained, and centers artist-led organizing towards sustaining them. It is the framework for this year’s ECA Gallery Invitational and also of a panel conversation that constellates those ideas with local arts leaders. The ECA Gallery Invitational is an annual opportunity to highlight local artists addressing the spirit of the moment.
Jeff Kasper’s work asks driving questions around how we relate to one another, what responsibilities we have in those relationships, and how they're formed and codified. For his solo exhibition from October 5 - 28 for the ECA Gallery Invitational, Kasper presents a selection of new flags from his prototypes for white flags series, some smaller text-based scores, and projected video. Kasper’s immersive installation underscores relationships of mutuality as an aspiration and necessity. Attendees are invited to engage with select works where prompted.
A panel conversation follows on Mon, Oct 28 to continue exploring the ideas of In each other we trust—relationships, organizing, and sustainability in the arts. We seek to constellate these topics through a panel of local artists and organizations who are creating new ways of collaborating and presenting the work of artists in Easthampton.
Panel Conversation: In each other we trust - Oct 28 from 6-7:30pm in the BlueRoom
In each other we trust continues with a panel conversation on Monday, October 28 between local artists that explores relationships, organizing, and sustainability in the arts. The panel features artist Jeff Kasper, whose solo exhibition is on display throughout the month of October in the ECA Gallery, Emma Chubb and Matthew Cummings, the artists and curators behind the new gallery and project space Out Of Office, and Lisa Miranda, a musician and board member of The Heavy Culture Co-op (THCC, pronounced “thick”). Panelists across artistic disciplines who are creating new ways of collaborating and presenting the work of artists in Easthampton will share more about their projects and organizing ethos, and together weave possibilities for richly creative and well-supported futures. This discussion will be moderated by ECA Committee member and community arts organizer Maude Haak-Frendscho.
Jeff Kasper is an artist, writer, and educator working in public art, design, cultural accessibility, and social engagement. He creates text-based projects, social spaces, publications, games, digital media, exhibitions, community workshops, and participatory learning projects, often in partnership with organizations. His artworks center dialogical, reflective, and instructional texts, as well as pedagogical objects that prompt meditation, relationship building, and serious play. https://jeffkasper.co
Out Of Office (OOO) is a space for contemporary art in downtown Easthampton. It opened in September 2024 in a former German Lutheran meeting house that later became part of a lumber yard and then a private residence. OOO hosts exhibitions and events on a seasonal schedule with an emphasis on site-specific or site-responsive works. OOO is run by curator Emma Chubb and artist Matthew Cummings. https://www.oooeasthampton.com
The Heavy Culture Cooperative (THCC) is a cooperative owned and operated by workers, artists, and fans. THCC was founded in 2022 with the goal of establishing a music and performing arts venue that embraces various subcultures within the underground arts community. THCC is soon to open its venue in downtown Easthampton. Lisa Miranda is a musician and board member with a focus on policy and governance. https://www.theheavyculture.coop
In each other we trust is organized by Pasqualina Azzarello, Arts & Culture Program Director for Easthampton City Arts (ECA), Tracey Eller, ECA Committee Chair, and E. Maude Haak-Frendscho, ECA Committee member.