We recently connected with Michelle Talibah and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Michelle thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

There have been several meaningful projects. One that immediately comes to mind is the opportunity to curate a sequence of exhibitions at regional international airports, Baltimore- Washington/Thurgood Marshall International, Reagan International, and Dulles International Airport. These sites allowed for the presentation of large-scale works that are sometimes excluded due to their scale. The exhibitions received broad exposure to travelers from around the world. The artists that were exhibited in these projects were also international.

Michelle, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am an artist/curator. My professional engagement in visual arts is unique, encompassing creative studio, public art, and curatorial practice. Over the past thirty years, I have achieved national acclaim as a painter, and have exhibited in galleries and visual art venues throughout the United States. I have enjoyed the opportunity to experiment with a broad range of media during residencies at The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York,  Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, Vermont; and most recently, the Experimental Printmaking Studio at Lafayette College, and Raven Editions in Easton, Pennsylvania.

In 2004 I founded New Door Creative Gallery in Baltimore, Maryland, featuring the work of regional professional and emerging artists. The pioneer gallery was the first to originate in Baltimore’s Station North Arts District in 2006, aligned with the mission to broaden the exposure of artists exploring a wide range of perceptions, cultures, and traditions. My curatorial trajectory is informed by my work as an artist. The gallery has exhibited creative practitioners from around the globe, featuring exhibitions that engage concepts ranging from volume and space to gentrification, and is distinguished as a venue for introducing artists whose exciting work often deviates from the “popular” aesthetic, including the work of so-called Outsider artists. The mission of the gallery is to present “good work” by dedicated artists deserving of broader recognition and support. Gallery clients appreciate the broad range of expressions presented in addition to the curatorial guidance that is informed and personal. New Door Creative is also proud to have highlighted many women artists of color, and legendary artists Faith Ringgold, Richard Mayhew, and the late David C. Driskell.

As a public artist, I have participated in the artist team for three installations designed by the late contemporary artist Sol LeWitt, located in the Washington, D.C. Convention Center, and Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum.

My academic history includes study at Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio, and The University of Massachusetts-Boston; and a Master of Arts degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is a practice that demands that one continually make decisions toward refinement. I enjoy the broad community that explores creative thought and practice, and the ability to create “something” out of (what appears to be) “nothing.”  It is an exciting journey that demands thought, discipline, vision, and courage.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I believe that many artists are looking for something invisible. My goal as an artist is to discover the nature of a process by which one might see themselves in context to their society, and to then introduce their unique interpretation in works that resonate with others in an intellectual, physical, or spiritual space.

Contact Info:

• Website: newdoorcreative.com
• Instagram: #newdoorcreativefineart
• Facebook: new door creative
• Linkedin: Michelle Talibah Weatherly

Image Credits
IMAGES 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 Gallery Installations IMAGES 4, 5 Artist Sheila Crider, “Volume” series IMAGE 6 Artist Acquaetta Williams, ” Street Musicians” series