Mare Residency x SunSpot sTudios Pilot

In 2019 Mare Residency connected painters Jerrell Gibbs (Baltimore) and Raelis Vasquez (Dominican Republic) for a two-week residency at SunSpot sTudios Baltimore. The work of both artists is connected by themes of family, memory and the Black experience in the Americas. The exhibition featured eight new figurative paintings from Gibbs and Vasquez as well as photographs by SunSpot sTudios artist-in-residence Mark Anthony Benson (Philadelphia, PA) documenting the residency’s process.

During their time at SunSpot sTudios, 2019 Whitney Biennial artist Daniel Lind-Ramos visited with us while critiquing the artists’ work. They were also a part of a documentary about the residency by filmmaker Retji Dakum which was screened at Gallery CA in West Baltimore.

Mare Residency x SunSpot sTudios Daniel Lind-Ramos
Jerrell Gibbs and Raelis Vasquez
Raelis Vasquez Mare Residency
Jerrell Gibbs Mare Residency
"La Vecina del Pueblo de Dios" - Raelis Vasquez
“Conversaciones con Raelis” - Jerrell Gibbs
Mare Residency Sunspot Pilot 15.jpg

In the documentary made about the inaugural SunSpot sTudios x Mare Residency collaboration Baltimore native Jerrell Gibbs spoke about how the program’s focus on highlighting Baltimore helped renew his appreciation for his hometown. As a newcomer to Baltimore, Raelis Vasquez, learned of the vast Black culture of the city, including the current and historic artistic contributions of Black Baltimoreans to American art history.

Before the residency, the artists were given a Baltimore specific reading list to inform their time in the residency and the city. The reading lists, developed by Ward, included texts about the Black Baltimore accent, cultural contributions of Black Baltimore artists and writers, as well as general Baltimore history.

"Limpa Bota" - Raelis Vasquez
Mare Presents KinShips
Mare Presents KinShips
Mare Presents KinShips
Mare Presents KinShips
Mare Presents KinShips
“Amor” - Jerrell Gibbs
Tiffany Auttrianna Ward and SunSpot sTudios Founder mTkalla Keaton