Visual Collaborative

American festival and publishing platform From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Visual Collaborative

Visual Collaborative is an American festival and publishing platform highlighting the intersections of people, commerce, and innovation. The platform organizes exhibitions that feature talks, art, technology, development, and live music performances.[1] Over the years, the initiative has grown in scope and size, aligning with sustainable goals.[2][3]

Quick Facts Status, Genre ...
Visual Collaborative
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Logo since 2011
Status    Active    
Genre    Conference, Pop-up exhibitions and digital properties    
Frequency    Seasonal    
Venue    Various locations, Online    
HeadquartersNew York City, New York, U.S.
Years active19
Inaugurated2007    
Founder    Olufeko    
Organized by    Visual Collaborative, LLC
(Minneapolis) (2007–2023; dissolved)
International joint venture; Publishing only
(2024-Present)    
Electronic Publishing
CategoriesLifestyle
Innovation  
First issueApril 5, 2019  
LanguageEnglish (Some articles in French or Spanish)  
ISSN  2642-9780  
OCLC1096432925  
Websitevisualcollaborative.com
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History

In 2006, inspired by the open collaboration movement, designer and technologist Ade Olufeko founded Visual Collaborative to bridge the gap between creative professionals and their commercial value.[1] Since originating in Minneapolis, Visual Collaborative has showcased collections and talks in Minneapolis, Miami, New York City, The Mission San Francisco California, Columbia Maryland, and Washington D.C.[4]

In 2007, the group's inaugural event featured international artists Miko Simmons and Linda Zacks, which took place at the original Center for Independent Artists, inside Instituto de Cultura y Educacion located in a community of South Minneapolis. In 2011, in Washington D.C., Visual Collaborative produced an exhibition featuring emerging and established artists with a collection described as vibrant new art.[4]  In 2015, the platform collaborated with the Arts District Hyattsville Master Association in Hyattsville, utilizing the Lustine Center to host a group exhibition themed Vanity.[5]

Operating model

Up until 2015, the platform's exhibitions occurred as disruptive innovation in a traveling formatted pattern.[6] They have been held in reputable galleries, lofts or donated spaces by private owners who include art enthusiasts and lifelong patrons of the arts.[5] They are executed through joint ventures with other arts and humanities organisations[7]  which have in the past included Arts District Hyattsville Master Association in Prince George's County and Voices for Children Miami.[8] In April 2019, Visual Collaborative launched an open access online collective called Polaris, also documented as North Star by the Library of Congress, ISSN 2642-9780.[9]

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A month-long pop-up exhibition featuring emerging artists and creatives took place in Adams Morgan, Northwest of Washington, D.C., 2011

Exhibitions

Events held in U.S. cities before publishing expansion:

Publishing

Summarize
Perspective

In April 2019, Visual Collaborative launched an open access online collective called Polaris. The project commenced in the winter of 2019 for a period of three months. The interdisciplinary collective featured 26 practitioners from various disciplines.[12][13] The Polaris catalogue explores creative disciplines, perspectives and intrinsic value of the featured practitioners and how they interact with society.[14][15]

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French musical duo Hélène and Célia of Les Nubians featured in TwentyEightyFour, the collective's fifth publication.

Polaris features both established or emerging people in the creative industry, intersecting with anthropology and humanities. Its subtopics may include health and wellness, architecture, fashion, entertainment news and non-partisan political themes. In addition to covering professionals from regions around the globe, the content aims to boost literacy in various socioeconomic circles.[16]

In June 2019, the second volume of the Polaris series featuring 25 people was released under the title Voyager.[17] Seun Kuti was one of the main features.[16]

2020 TwentyEightyFour

In May 2020, international news outlets announced the release of the TwentyEightyFour series. The 5th volume of the Polaris catalog consisted of conducted and transcribed interviews, among the 21 participants featured French music sisters Les Nubians, Metal Gear music and soundtrack composer Rika Muranaka, Global strategist Busie Matsiko-Andan, Comedian Chigul, Electronic music artist Coppé and a reprised conversation of Nollywood actress Dakore Akande.[18] Themes of adaptability and empathy ran consistently across the collective, aiming as a reprieve and alternative to the COVID-19 pandemic media barrage.[19]

References

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