Register for this event here.
Please join us on June 2nd at 6:30pm for the last of four virtual panel discussions facilitated by Cleo Barnett, Executive Director of Amplifier.
Barnett facilitates a conversation with Diaz and Chau about their artistic practices that center cultivating and uplifting community while healing and empowering themselves and others.
Monyee Chau- (b.1996) is a queer Taiwanese/Chinese American artist. Receiving their BFA from Cornish College of the Arts in 2018, they further their analysis of diaspora and decolonization with themes of labor, ancestral healing, and community. They have curated and exhibited at institutions both throughout Seattle and internationally, with the intent of cultivating and empowering communities by sharing intimate and vulnerable stories
Gabriel-Bello Diaz is a Puerto Rican artist, designer and instructor. As founder of Efficio he combines 3D printing and laser cut technology with leather to create custom high end leather products for clients including: accessories, jewelry, bags and various garments. He has curated half a dozen fashion shows focused on using fashion as an artform to express a deeper dialogue. Ancestral Future is his proudest fashion vision of highlighting indigenous and ancestral traditions of textiles and symbols through digital fabrication to help hidden stories of our community emerge.
With his background in architecture and robotic engineering he has developed educational programs and curriculums that encourage students to pursue a variety of STEAM careers. Gabriel has been published in several books for his research in robotics and architecture and has grown this part of his career into working with the city and other community partners to expand the resources and classroom philosophy in teaching.
Recently working with The Office of Art and Culture through Creative Advantage he has hosted workshops on developing online classes for instructors both in and out of public school. Bridging his skills in fashion, writing and community organizing he launched a publication, AntiSocial, late 2019 that highlights artists telling their own stories on navigating Seattle through the art industry. This collection of perspectives are accompanied with photoshoots with the writers / artists as models wearing local brands. From cover to cover this fashion editorial speaks loudly on the diversity Seattle has to offer and the beautiful behind the scenes collaborations with community members.
From small businesses to individual artists and community organizers, Gabriel has spent his career flexibly navigating through various projects and mediums with this same focus on highlighting underrepresented voices through multidisciplinary collaboration.