IN EVERYTHING WE DO, WE BELIEVE THAT ARTISTS ARE THE DRIVING FORCE OF THE ART WORLD, CAPABLE OF SHAPING CULTURES AND SOCIETIES THROUGH DIVERSE FORMS OF COLLABORATION.
We believe that artists are the most important agents in the art field and must have complete freedom and access to the means of production and distribution while preserving the integrity of their practice.
This is crucial for them to continue creating meaning in a way that is materially, emotionally, and spiritually sustainable.
We exist because we believe that independent artists working together are essential in transforming the contexts in which we live.
MISSION
VISION
To be the most exciting and reliable option for artists worldwide seeking to become independent forces in the art world, capable of navigating both established and alternative scenes through enriching and diverse collaborations.
VALUES
– Welcoming diversity and respect for life
– Intense and intensive production of critical thinking
– Consistency, resourcefulness, and commitment
– Affective, generous, and active listening
– Emotional strenghtning and agency
– Enthusiasm, proactivity, and action
– Community-based learning experiences
Uncool Artist, established in Brooklyn, NY, in 2018, is an artist-run international organization dedicated to providing diverse opportunities for artists. It is the culmination of over 20 years of artistic practice and education led by the Brazilian artist Carolina Paz.
Our focus is on nurturing bonds among artists, providing collective support, and facilitating the creation, management, and execution of significant projects. We aim to produce critical and creative knowledge in art that strengthens subjectivities, creates new communities, and transforms social structures to be more inclusive and diverse.
Building on expertise in online education in Brazil applied to the contemporary art field since 2010, UA offers a comprehensive ecosystem for artists to grow in their practices and careers. We provide customized remote and in-person programs and projects with the latest technologies and methodologies.
As an artist-run international organization, UA serves artists with consistency, resourcefulness, and commitment. We offer resources, advice, opportunities, and connections to help artists strengthen their presence and position themselves internationally, fostering a prolific environment for all participants.
2e1 was established in 2010 by Carolina Paz. It initially offered study groups and mentoring programs for artistic projects. The creation of 2e1 was guided by an idea, a desire to socialize and generate knowledge related to contemporary artistic practices.
In 2012, 2e1 presented its first exhibition and the "Fachada" (Façade) project, in which several artists were able to experiment with their ideas and share their creative processes.
Since 2013, 2e1 has worked with artists, critics, and curators from various cities in Brazil and around the world.
Several special projects were created, such as the artistic residency “Nômade 2e1” (Nomad 2e1) and the international art exchange program “In the care of…” Also in 2013, the in-depth training program in visual arts called “Vitamina” (Vitamin) was initiated, offering courses in Sound Art, Painting, Career Management, Art History, Installation, and Performance.
Photo: Cristina Suzuki, Val Schneider, José Bento Ferreira, Carolina Paz, Renata Huber, Sheila Ortega, and Juvêncio Vilhena on an meeting in 2014.
Concluded in 2014, the “Vitamina” project was responsible for implementing synchronous and asynchronous distance education tools. These tools made it possible for artists located in different regions of Brazil and worldwide to access the content and discussions generated in the in-person meetings.
Coletivo 2e1 became a network of practice, experimentation, coexistence, and creation of knowledge in visual arts.
Photo: Lara Perl’s open studio invitation at our first studio space in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY
We moved to New York in 2018. At the time, 2e1 was still a valid format, so we wanted to preserve it. We decided not to adapt it but to keep it as a document, a digital archive, and created Uncool Artist.
Initially, it functioned as a newsletter, a blog, and a YouTube channel. Uncool Artist debuted with an email about letters that featured Sol Lewitt and Eva Hesse in the first week of September 2018.
We offered free classes, organized an artist residency, strengthened connections that we had brought from São Paulo, and began to form a new community.
In early 2019, we launched our first 100% online courses as Uncool Artist: Ser Artista Hoje; Lygia Clark, Uma Poética Viva; Paulo Freire e A Práxis Artística; Escrever É Preciso; A Arte que Fazemos Na América Latina; Espinosa e a Filosofia do Afeto.
In an overwhelming year for all humanity, we sought to become stronger and more united. The number of participants in our projects grew.
We:
- Offered free training in creative distance learning with the Corpo Ensinante (Teaching Body) course
- Launched our training program in art, ILAP (in Portuguese)
- Launched our first online exhibition space at Clube da Uncool
Now ILAP speaks English and runs in parallel with its Portuguese language version.
For DO write [right] to me, Uncool Artist invited artists from its community (U.S. and Latin America) to think through their artworks about the idea of remote communication, asking questions, proposing action, reflection, and dialogue.
The result was exhibitions in Chelsea (NYC, NY) and Miami Art Week (Design District, MIA, FL) that spoke to our time by interrogating wholeness, remoteness, isolation, and the use of technology to maintain human connection, while reviving the Mail Art network that was extremely important during the 60s and 70s in Latin America.
At the end of the pandemic, we reopened and expanded our artist residency project in NYC in 2022.
The DO write [right] to me, went to São Paulo. We had a blast!
10 artists from our community produced the installation circuit "FOR A CEILING OF OUR OWN" in an incredible project by Uncool Artist carried out on the shores of Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro.
We started 2023 by acquiring a new space, and hosting up to seven artists in our residency program.
We opened our own social network for our participants and it became our online hub for all of our activities. 🙂
In the first half of 2024, we expanded our residency program again, relocating it to the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Following the residency expansion at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, just across the street, we opened our first storefront gallery.
In its first months of life, our gallery was the space for six individual and group exhibitions
In a natural process developed throughout the year, the International Lab of Art Practices officially became what it was born to be: our best online artistic residency experience with an option also for artists who wish to opt for the In-Person Studio Practice in NYC.
With a new model of studio programs came the need for an exhibition space within the Brooklyn Navy Yard and closer to our residents.
Uncool Artist serves as an art communities generator, encouraging critical discussions and executing meaningful projects in contemporary art.
We seek to offer opportunities in art in an accessible way to people from various parts of the world.
As an artist-run organization, our work needs resources to grow and support new creative minds. Give us your support if you believe in quality and exciting, consistent, and inclusive arts production!
To learn more about Uncool Artist, our ideas, and our projects, contact us at info@uncoolartist.com.