Corner Stories at Da Vinci Art Alliance
An Exhibition and Food/Toiletry drive
Eustace Mamba, Nasir Young, and Jake Weiss (Alchemy Art Ensemble)
August 02 - August 20, 2023
We in Philadelphia are living in a time of rapid change and growth for our city. We are witnessing the skyline change and an influx of new people from all corners of the world calling our city home. Unfortunately, segregation here in Philadelphia (and the greater United States) still exists. Though we don’t blatantly see the damage it is wrecking, it remains a problem that artists like Nasir Young, Eustace Mamba, and Jake Weiss (members of the Philadelphia-based Alchemy Art Ensemble) see in so many coded, complex ways.
Segregation can be identified by looking at the neighborhoods we live in, where we work, our level of education, and our health (including environmental pollution/racism and access to healthy food and clean water). Food deserts are defined as urban areas where the access to healthy food options or fresh, affordable food does not exist. Here in Philadelphia, this has been a major issue for decades. According to nonprofit Bebashi–Transition to Hope, 25% of Philadelphians currently experience food insecurity.
Corner Stories puts a spotlight on these realities through the lens of local corner stores and other identifiable locations that Philadelphia’s food-insecure communities rely on. The artists hope to not only document these realities though their art, but offer the opportunity for others in the greater Philadelphia arts community to help make a difference.
Paired with the show, there will be an ongoing food drive with donations/contributions being given to the local non-profit Bebashi – Transition to Hope ‘s Food First Pantry, located on 11th and Spring Garden. Click here to see a list of acceptable food donations for this cause.
Yikui (Coy) Gu and Eustace Mamba at Commonweal Gallery
July 2022
In a world that, over the past century, has developed into a truly global society, approximately 272 million people (1 in 30) live outside their country of birth or citizenship as of 2020. In America, as of 2019, 18.2 million children (1 in 4) had at least one immigrant parent. Both Gu and Mamba are recipients of these legacies as first-generation Americans born to Chinese and Antiguan parents, respectively. Growing up between two worlds - one that situates itself in the private space of family and expatriate community and one in the public sphere - has resulted for them both in a hyper-sensitivity to cultural nuance which they engage within their works to interrogate the politics surrounding the construction (or deconstruction) of identity.
Street Sweepers, 2019
Temporary Installations