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Wilmington photography exhibit to focus on reimagined downtown

Betsy PriceCulture, Headlines

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This portrait of photographers, from left, Julian Willingham, Andre Wright Jr., Sara A. Crawford and Shakira Hunt will be in ‘Downtown Reimagined.’ Photo by Joe del Tufo/Moonloop Photography

 

A sidewalk photography exhibit opening Friday by four Wilmington photographers offering a series of portraits capturing the creative and vibrant downtown culture.

Showing work in “Downtown Reimagined” exhibit are Joe del Tufo, Andre Wright Jr., Sara A. Crawford and Shakira Hunt.

The artwork is installed at 417 N. Market St., and an opening for the sidewalk exhibit will take place Friday, March 25, at 4 p.m.

The sidewalk exhibit will be accompanied by a speaker series at MKT Place Gallery, during which the artists will share the inspiration behind their submissions.  Dates and times for that will be announced later.

Following the unveiling, guests are invited to join the artists for a reception at The Knight’s Bar across the street at The Queen (500 N Market Street).

“Downtown Reimagined” is a part of The Buccini/Pollin Group’s ongoing efforts to support the downtown arts community and provide exposure to local artists. This is the second sidewalk art exhibit organized by BPG Cares.

 In 2020, BPG provided retail space for the Storefront Mural Arts Project, which connected local artists with businesses boarding up their windows after riots occurred in downtown Wilmington.

Instead of trashing the murals, BPG, Flux Creative Consulting and Moonloop Photography, created a sidewalk gallery to display all of them for public viewing at The Residences at Mid-town Park. They also recently went on display at the Longview Museum of Fine Arts in Longview, Texas as part of the “Addressing the Moment: The Artist’s Voice” exhibit.

MKT Place Gallery, at 200 W. 9th St., features monthly exhibits curated by Sara A. Crawford of The Original Coloure Collective.

“The idea for this collaboration came when I started seeing these rich, sophisticated portraits being taken around town – many in our spaces – that positioned a modern look at diversity in a downtown that has seen a lot of changes,” said Sarah Lamb, BPG’s vice president of design, marketing and community engagement. “I was overwhelmed to see how photographers were viewing our city as a place of culture, diversity, and finesse, a landscape that we are used to seeing attributed to the larger cities that surround us.”

del Tufo has been a professional photographer for more than 20 years and runs Moonloop Photography with Jim Coarse.

Hunt, of Shakira Hunt Creative, is a Wilmington lifestyle photographer. She graduated from Moore College of Art & Design, and worked as a commercial designer for four years before forming her own company.

Wright and Crawford are part of the Coloure Collective. Spearheaded by Crawford, a fashion designer who delights in connecting people, the collective has created a network and collaboration among local artists, creatives, influencers, designers and developers.

Wright describes himself as a strategic artist with a background in architecture, interiors and photography. He likes to focus “on capturing the culture and essence of community within brands and organizations.”

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