This is life long work
This is life long work
By Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo
This is life long work (2020) is a newly commissioned artwork by Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo. Reproduced as a 13 x 12 foot banner displayed at the front Barrett Street entrance of Richmond Art Center, the work was created via a collaborative community process.
Branfman-Verissimo says of their work, “The process of gathering the narratives of people and communities that surround me is on equal ground with the artistic craft of telling them.”
For This is life long work, Branfman-Verissimo collaborated with RAC staff and teaching artists through a discussion of community care. Specifically, they asked them, “How does this community enact, support and prioritize care, mutual aid, collective care and collective action?”
Photos by Francisco Rojas @pac_pops
About the Artist: Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo is an artist, activist, educator, storyteller & curator who after being based in Oakland, CA for 10 years, now lives and works in Richmond, VA. They got their BFA from California College of the Arts [Oakland, CA] and is currently getting their MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University [Richmond, VA]. Branfman-Verissimo’s work has been included in exhibitions at Deli Gallery [Long Island City, NY], EFA Project Space [New York City, NY], Pt. 2 Gallery [Oakland, CA], Leslie Lohman Museum for Gay & Lesbian Art [New York City, NY], Signal Center for Contemporary Art [Malmo, Sweden] and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts [San Francisco, CA], amongst others and performances at SOMArts Cultural Center [San Francisco, CA], Highways Performance Space [Los Angeles, CA], ACRE Gallery [Chicago, IL] and Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive [Berkeley, CA]. Branfman-Verissimo has been awarded residencies and fellowships at Kala Art Center [Berkeley, CA], ACRE Residency [Steuben, WI], Vermont Studio Center [Johnson, VT] and CENTER [Grand Rapids, MI]. They are the Founder of Nook Gallery, a gallery that was located in their home kitchen from 2015-2020 & will take new forms in the future! www.lukazabranfman-verissimo.com
About the ‘Art Lives Here’ Series: When Richmond Art Center’s facility is temporarily closed due to Covid-19, we worked with artists on these projects online and outside (at a safe social distance!) to find new ways to connect and make meaning with community through art.
Artists Caring for the Richmond Community
