On June 15, we plan to put on a 1 day massive house art show titled “Small & Strange” to support a mix of over 30 emerging and established local DC artists, musicians and creators in Washington DC.

All of the creators are local to DC. Visual artists keep 100% of their sales and fees. Musicians and performers will be paid through funding from this grant.

Noncommercial art exhibition spaces in DC have always been difficult if not impossible to find. Since the pandemic, DIY spaces and group living houses have become a rarity, significantly decreasing the ability of DC’s underground arts scene to thrive.

Artists must either give up to 40-50% commission on their work, or if allowed to show, they must rally their patron following who may have to pay entry to a venue to see their work, or buy alcohol to generate funds that artists never see. This event will be different. We have over 30 confirmed local artists who will hang work on the inside and exterior private alley of our nearly empty house in Parkview DC (we are minimalists and move all our belongings into 1 room). There will be a live electronic cello performance, a full jazz set, local food vendors, and an on site tattoo artist.

This will be the second iteration of this show. Last year we had over 20 artists exhibiting. Almost 90% of the artwork shown sold that night with proceeds going directly into the pockets of the artists themselves. This year the number of artists interested has tripled. We believe this show was a success because the artists and patrons were able to interact in person in an unpretentious and FUN environment.

Imagine a city where artists could make a living without having to be represented by inaccessible galleries, or attach themselves to developers and corporate entities. Now imagine the ART those artists could make. Some day I’d like to help artists show their enormous beautiful pieces, but for now I’m happy keeping things SMALL & STRANGE.