THE BXMA BALL PATHMAKERS HONOREES:

Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont - Deux Femmes Noires

Deux Femmes Noires: the dynamic duo that is Mickalene Thomas & Racquel Chevremont. Years in the making and debuting at the Volta New York art fair with a curated show, “The Aesthetics of Matter,” Thomas and Chevremont set out to increase visibility and opportunities for artists of color through two areas of focus: first, by working directly with artists to provide guidance and career opportunities; and second, by curating shows, advising institutions, and securing funding for exhibitions. The goal is to push artists of color—with an emphasis on female artists of color—to greater prominence in the art world.

Thomas and Chevremont, respectively, bring different but complimentary expertise to the table in this mission. For Thomas, it is the first-hand experience of negotiating her own path to considerable stature in the art world as a queer artist of color. For Chevremont, it is the experience of seeing the inner workings of how shows are produced, and how institutional structures play a crucial role in what gets seen, how pieces get bought and sold, and by whom. 

Thomas (born in Camden, New Jersey, 1971) earned her BFA in painting at Pratt Institute in 2000 and an MFA at the Yale University School of Art in 2002. Her work has been exhibited in countless exhibitions worldwide, including at the AGO in Toronto, the Wexner Art Center, Ohio, Aspen Art Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC; Hara Museum, Tokyo; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; and Brooklyn Museum. She has upcoming museum exhibitions this fall at the Contemporary Art Center New Orleans, Baltimore Museum of Art, and Bass Museum of Art during Art Basel Miami Beach.

Racquel Chevremont was born and raised in NYC. In 1991, two years into her studies at NYU, she was discovered by photographer and Elite model management scout Steve Landis at the HMV on 86th Street. That chance meeting led to a 20 year career as a model for Elite model management and Wilhelmina models. In 1998 she started Crux Candles, Inc., a high-end candle company carried in stores around the world as well as QVC. She ran Crux Candles until 2003. She is known for her expertise and experience with curating shows and advising institutions, corporations, collectors and artists. 

Jerome LaMaar

Jerome is a lifestyle futurist and has a strong perspective on art, culture, fashion, food,urban development,  and technology. He has worked in the fashion industry since age 15, working directly with russell and kimora lee simmons as a designer & creative director for the baby phat & phat farm lifestyle brands.  Later, he apprenticed for the only official american couturier chado ralph rucci.  At 25 years old, lamaar was recruited by promostyl paris as a design, color and trend forecaster traveling the world for trend inspiration and consulting brands. Brands such as, tommy hilfiger, samsung, swarovski, uniqlo, essie, nike, hanes , columbia, adidas outdoor, champion, maybelline, mattel,givaudan, calvin klein,fisher price, victoria’s secret, microsoft, adidas, hasbro, proctor and gamble vans, converse and many more.  In 2013, jerome lamaar launched 5:31 jerome a playful streetwear collection which fuses jerome’s love for embellishments, maximalism, glamour and south bronx street-style into what he calls “street glam” or “glamorous streetwear.”  The brand received accolades from ny times, elle magazine, vogue, teen vogue, wwd, style.com, fashionista and refinery29 as a brand to watch and “the next big thing.”  Celebrity supporters include: beyonce, hailey baldwin, kelly rowland, tina knowels-lawson, swizz beatz, alicia keys, angela simmons, ingrid burley, iris apfel, rihanna, sza, kim kardashian, serena williams, missy elliot, jay-z and taraji p. Henson and many more.  The brand has now switched to custom only as it requires craftmanship and time. This model is key for sustainablity.

Instagram: @JeromeLaMaar

Ana "Rokafella" Garcia is a NYC native who has represented women in Hip-hop dance professionally over the past two decades. She co founded Full Circle Prod Inc- NYC's only non profit Break Dance Theater company with her husband veteran Bboy Kwikstep generating theater pieces, original poetry and NYC based dance related events. She directed a documentary highlighting the Bgirl lifestyle entitled "All The Ladies Say" with support from the Ford foundation and performs music based on her experiences growing up in Hip-hop's Mecca. She is hired internationally to judge Break dance competitions based on her mastery of the classic Hip-hop dance style and she teaches unique workshops aimed at evolving and preserving its technical aspects. She has worked within the NYC public school system exposing young students to the possibility of a career in dance. Presently she is a co director at Pepatian Inc, an adjunct professor at The New School and a DANCE NYC Annual Symposium planning committee member. In May of 2017 she launched Shiroka-- a t shirt fashion line with Shiro a Japanese grafitti writer. She has been featured in pivotal Rap music videos, tours, film and commercials as well as choreographed for diverse festivals/ concerts such as Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Momma's Hip-hop Kitchen and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Rokafella is a multi faceted Hip-hop artist who references street and Latino culture as her foundation.

Instagram: @bgirlrokafella

www.larokasoul.com

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