Announcing: 2023 Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program: Visual and Multidisciplinary Arts Participants

Program mentees’ home countries and regions include Bangladesh, Greece, Honduras, New Zealand, Nigeria, and Ukraine.

New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is pleased to announce the participants in the 2023 NYFA Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program: Visual and Multidisciplinary Arts, presented in collaboration with New York cultural partners New York Live Arts, Bronx Council on the Arts, Asian American Arts Alliance, Flushing Town Hall, Haiti Cultural Exchange, Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, and Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden. The newest cohort of our Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program brings together 20 artists from 16 countries and regions.

With thanks to our partner New York Live Arts and artists Yanira Castro (Fellow in Choreography ‘16) and Martita Abril (IAP Alumna), for the third year running, mentees will have the opportunity to exhibit their work in In/Between, on view from March 17 to April 30 at the New York Live Arts’ Ford Foundation Live Gallery. The name In/Between reflects on the multiplicity of immigrant artists’ experiences, identities, practices, and politics, while also speaking to the liminal experience of home/residence/community. 

NYFA’s Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program pairs immigrant artists with artist mentors who provide one-on-one support for their mentee, guiding them to achieve specific goals and providing them with broader access to the New York cultural world through an exchange of ideas, resources, and experiences. Most importantly, the mentoring program fosters a community, providing opportunities to connect with other immigrant artists through group meetings, peer learning, and informal gatherings that include alumni from 2007 to the present. Through access to other artists, arts professionals, and organizations, the program offers immigrant artists the opportunity to focus on their career goals while navigating the shared experiences and challenges of being an immigrant artist.

Meet this year’s participants!

2023 Participants and Disciplines:

Mentee David Benjamin, Multidisciplinary (Nigeria and Zambia), paired with Mentor Sarah Walko, Multidisciplinary (United States).

Mentee Xiangyun Chen, Multidisciplinary (China), paired with Mentor Andrew Kung, Visual (United States).

Mentee Jin Yong Choi, Visual (South Korea), paired with Mentor Armita Raafat, Multidisciplinary (Iran).

Mentee Katerina Ganchak, Visual (Ukraine), paired with Mentor Inna Babaeva, Multidisciplinary (Ukraine).

Mentee Laura Garcia Serventi, Visual (Argentina), paired with Mentor Rafaela Gomez Luna, Visual (Dominican Republic).

Mentee Emilija Gasic, Multidisciplinary (Serbia), paired with Mentor Luz Zamora, Video/Film/New Media (Venezuela).

Mentee Clare Gemima, Visual (New Zealand, Aotearoa), paired with Mentor Kate Bae, Multidisciplinary (South Korea).

Mentee Isabel Hamdan, Multidisciplinary (Brazil), paired with Mentor Lina Montoya, Visual  (Colombia).

Mentee Bipasha Hayat, Visual (Bangladesh), paired with Mentor Sky Pape, Visual (Canada).

Mentee Hsiao-Chu Hsia, Multidisciplinary (Taiwan), paired with Mentor Simone Couto, Multidisciplinary (Brazil).

Mentee Pilar Lagos, Visual (Honduras and Chile), paired with Mentor Chemin Hsiao, Visual (Taiwan).

Mentee Yi Hsuan Lai, Visual (Taiwan), paired with Mentor Santina Amato, Multidisciplinary (Australia).

Mentee Carlos Morales, Video/Film/New Media (Mexico), paired with Mentor Hai Zhang, Visual (China).

Mentee Himeka Murai, Visual (Japan), paired with Mentor Yasuyo Tanaka, Multidisciplinary (Japan).

Mentee Xinan Ran, Multidisciplinary (China), paired with Mentor Jennifer Wen Ma, Visual (China).

Mentee Linda Sok, Visual (Australia), paired with Mentor Cecile Chong, Visual (Ecuador).

Mentee Johanna Strobel, Multidisciplinary (Germany), paired with Mentor Eva Davidova, Multidisciplinary (Bulgaria, Spain). 

Mentee Matteo Uguzzoni, Multidisciplinary (Italy), paired with Mentor Gal Nissim, Multidisciplinary (Israel).

Mentee Hong Wu, Visual (China), paired with Mentor Jaclyn Reyes, Multidisciplinary (Philippines).

Mentee Despina Zografos, Visual (Greece), paired with Mentor Rosemarie Fiore, Multidisciplinary (United States).

Click here for more information on the Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program. And don’t forget to sign up for the monthly Con Edison Immigrant Artist Program Newsletter to receive opportunities and events as well as artist features directly to your inbox.