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Chrys Weedon<\/strong> | Entertainment Editor<\/span><\/p>\n Nat Turner was a Black man that led the 1831 Southampton County slave rebellion \u2014 the only large-scale slave rebellion in American history. It is after him that the Nat Turner Project is named, a project whose goal is to give a voice to artists of traditionally marginalized groups.<\/span><\/p>\n The two members of the Nat Turner Project are Melanie Stevens and maximiliano. They state their mission statement as follows: \u201cNTP allows artists of color to go beyond the usual initial expositions inherent in presenting art borne of marginalized perspectives to a dominant culture; allowing artists of color freedom to create or express their own language within and without the parameters of racial commodification or designation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The project has recently introduced three new mini-exhibits into the Cannon Gallery of Art in Campbell Hall. Artists Carla Javier-Brea, Holland Andrews and Alejandra Arias Sevilla are on display in the gallery, which opened on Feb. 20.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think each of the artists, all of whom I\u2019ve been long time admirers of, are using print and illustration in these really beautiful, soft, and intimate ways. \u00a0Each of them, of course, is very different,\u201d said Stevens. \u201cHowever, I think the that the way Alejandra Arias Sevilla\u2019s work combines the formalities of print and language with social engagement pairs nicely against the rhythmic flow of Holland Andrews\u2019 thoughtful studies of space and body. And Carla Javier-Brea creates these amazing characters that whisper of worlds past and future; memories long gone but lingering on.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Javier-Brea was born in Berkeley, California to a Dominican family. Her passion for the Dominican Republic\u2019s history and mythology heavily influenced the pieces hanging in the exhibit. \u201cCriaturas que Nacen del Viento\u201d is a series of drawings that are, according to the artist, \u201cexecuted entirely in graphite, as a form of meditation\u2026 a representation of childhood, natural curiosity, and an embrace of the parts of our heritage that modern day colonialism still looks to erase.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Holland Andrews is a self-taught artist based in Portland, OR, whose exhibit \u201cLow Synth Bass\u201d focuses on representations of the human body and ponders on the nuances of being seen. Andrews\u2019s illustrations are simultaneously minimal and emotional. <\/span><\/p>\n The exhibit\u2019s program writes: \u201cfrequently highlighting themes surrounding visibility, vulnerability, and identity, Andrews chooses to create a world in which subversion of the status quo is seen for its elegance and power.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Alejandra Arias Sevilla is a Mexican artist who is also based in Portland, OR. Her work \u201clos susurros de mi ser\u201d focuses on: \u201cthe limbo and duality of two opposing identities.\u201d Sevilla\u2019s pieces are done in letterpress and consist of stories and poems in both her native Spanish and in English, touching on the reality of code-switching and hiding parts of her identity in order to assimilate. The intricacy of Sevilla\u2019s work reflects the experience of intersection of two cultures and two identities.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cGarima Thakur gave us this amazing opportunity, and we have been fans and following the work of Carla, Alejandra, and Holland \u2026 and love to be able to exhibit it and pay them,\u201d commented maximiliano.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n