A Behind-the-Scenes Look at this Year’s Nine Incredible Blumenthal Fellows Projects
Sep 28, 2024 / Blog
It’s your FINAL WEEKEND to check out the third annual Charlotte International Art Festival with tons of free, interactive art installations and performances. As you explore from Uptown Charlotte to Ballantyne’s Backyard, be sure to catch the nine wildly inventive and engaging public art projects from this year’s class of Blumenthal Fellows.
These local artists have pushed themselves to new creative heights, thanks to generous project funding from Wells Fargo and professional development support from Blumenthal Arts.
Artists received grants ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 to create their projects. Since its inception in 2021, there have been 41 Blumenthal Fellows’ projects with overall funding reaching $415,000.
Here’s a close up look at the entire 2024 cohort of Blumenthal Fellows, what inspired their work, where you can find them, and some of the secrets behind them.
Special thanks to our friends at Wells Fargo, TD Bank, and Wastequip for sponsoring this year's Blumenthal Fellows program!
Have fun exploring!
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Aguinaldo Santos
Project Name: “Leaf of Light”
Where to Find It: Ballantyne’s Backyard
About the Artwork: “Leaf of Light”
Santos explores links between technology and nature with his unique project, inspired by the beauty, form and function of a leaf. His giant sculpture, made of a steel structure and a large UV blocking sun shade canopy, measures 10’ tall by16’ long, and includes solar panels.
Playing with the idea of photosynthesis, the sculpture uses sunlight and converts it into power. Up to four phones or other electronic devices can be charged simultaneously. The solar panels also help power LED lights around the sculpture.
For Santos, every art project begins from a place of curiosity. He keeps an idea notebook that he returns to often for inspiration. That’s where he rediscovered photos of a leaf he had noticed on the ground back in 2020, when he had just moved to Charlotte. He’d arrived from his native Brazil to study interior design and English at Central Piedmont Community College and pursue his dream of making art in the U.S.
Something about the leaf’s graceful form stood out to him. It was as though it was whispering: “Hey — take me!” Santos recalled.
On a hunch that someday it would be useful, he took photos of the leaf from various angles, imagining it at a large scale with people walking through it.
Now, that vision has finally been realized, thanks to CIAF.
This was Santos’s first time working with solar energy but he never shies away from trying something new. Finding solutions to creative challenges is exactly what he loves.
“If you don't have it,” he said,“...find a way to make it happen.”
About the Artist: Brazilian born Aguinaldo Santos, Jr. uses painting, photography and architecture in his work. He is the first artist selected for a second Blumenthal fellowship. His first Fellow's project was a giant camera that people could walk inside. He’s participated locally in multiple festivals. His studio is located in Nine Eighteen Nine Studio Gallery in the VAPA Center. You can find out more about his latest projects on Instagram: @ajsjunior.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Cat Babbie
Project Name: “Interlude”
Where to Find It: The Green - Uptown
About the Artwork:
Babbie, a fiber artist, supersizes a theme she’s been exploring for some time with this project.
“‘Interlude’ at its core is the evolution of my Cocoon series, which up until this point has been small woolen sculptures that everyone wants to climb into, and this sculpture is my answer to that call,” Babbie said in an email interview. “The work is made with all my heart, creating safe spaces for us to pause and reflect as we move through our busy lives.”
At 6’ tall, 8’ wide and 5’ deep, it dwarfs her previous sculptural works by far, but she tried to stay true to her concept, substituting materials that would resemble her smaller pieces. She drilled holes in iridescent pieces to create giant sequins, cut down neon colored tubes to mimic bugle beads, and filled clear Christmas ornaments with paint to create other large bead embellishments.
The sculpture has a wood and steel base, draped in lights. It’s covered by zippered fabric panels. The latter has been crafted in a special way to replicate her focus on carefully creating her own palette of colors, in a way that’s weather-proofed.
“I use a lot of wool felt and yarn, which I always dye myself, and is an integral part of my process,” Babbie said. “I wanted the same color movement for ‘Interlude,’ but knew that wool wouldn’t do well outside if it rained. To solve this I dyed the felt like usual and had those pieces photographed. When I had the files ready, I sent those to a local fabric printer, Decor Prints. Their team put the files into repeats for me and digitally printed my colors onto fabric that can withstand the elements. The fabric printed perfectly and I love that I didn’t have to compromise on my colors!”
Babbie said her experience as a Fellow has been a rewarding challenge and “a wild ride.”
“I’ve been so excited and honored that I got to solve all the obstacles ‘Interlude’ tossed my way, and lucky to be part of such a fantastic cohort!... I can’t wait to see people’s reactions, just setting up ‘Interlude’ brought so many smiles, having the rest of the festival up and running will add so much to the magic!”
About the Artist: Fiber artist and creative project coach Cat Babbie’s past projects with Blumenthal Arts include serving as an artist in residence and creating merchandise for the boutique at Immersive Van Gogh in 2021. She also served as the project manager for “100 Tiny Things” two years in a row for CIAF. Her studio is located at the VAPA Center. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @catbmakes.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Eliza Dunaway
Project Name: “Moiré Movers”
Where to Find It: Levine Avenue of the Arts
About the Artwork:
In her creation, Dunaway borrows a technique that is most often associated with textiles, especially silk. “Moiré” is a French term that means “watered.”
“It kind of looks like ripples… kind of watery,” Dunaway said. “And the way that they do that is interesting…They submerge the cloth and then they press down and that creates slight variations in the parallel nature of the weft and the weave.”
Dunaway, who usually draws and paints, adapted this technique to a totally different set of materials for this 3D piece. The work, made of two polycarbonate (or plastic) tubes, one inside the other, looks like a thick pole. It measures 7 feet high.
As lights within the pole change colors, images — like a ballerina spinning, an eye opening and closing and a butterfly flapping its wings — appear to move. The outermost tube has vertical lines running up and down it, which help create the illusion. Each image has been divided into four frames and when the vertical slats move by, the viewer sees each section sequentially. That’s what creates the animated effect. (Note: try giving the outside tube a spin!)
Dunaway chose images to capture different aspects of contemporary life. Some are symbols for Charlotte, like a crown, others are allusions to political issues such as a thermometer representing climate change, cultural icons like the ballerina and more.
One of the most challenging parts of her Blumental Fellows experience was overseeing all the components needed to create the artwork and stepping into a project management role, since constructing the piece required the aid of outside fabricators.
“This is my first time I've ever been like a grant recipient of this sort of magnitude so… I was challenged to bring all the pieces together, honestly,” she said.
That included getting the tubes manufactured, getting her designs printed and applied as decals, and working with an artist friend to develop the kinetic aspects of the artwork.
She worked hard and she said she's grateful to each of her collaborators, who also made it possible.
She’s also loved being part of a cohort of artists as a Blumenthal Fellow.
“Bree Stallings has been great … She set up these dinners for us to, you know, chat and to, like, connect on what we're working on.” Dunaway enjoyed hearing about their respective processes and getting to know the other artists.
“Everybody’s really talented,” she said. “...I feel lucky to be a part of it.”
About the Artist: Originally from South Carolina, artist Eliza Dunaway holds a Bachelor degree in Art History from Skidmore College. After graduating, she moved abroad for two years, teaching English at a university in Northeastern China and then traveling throughout the country as well as to destinations across Southeast Asia and Russia. Dunaway, who is a software engineer by day, also lived in Brooklyn, NY before relocating to the Charlotte area five years ago. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @elizamakescoolart.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Emily Núñez
Project Name: “Echoes of Thought: Constructing Spaces for Reflection”
Where to Find It: Ballantyne’s Backyard (*had to be removed early due to storm damage)
About the Artwork:
Multimedia artist Núñez grew up in Charlotte with strong family roots in the Dominican Republic.
“Most of my life has been here but… my heart and my soul are in the Dominican Republic,” said the 24 year old artist, who spent about three years in that Caribbean country in her youth, and later attended high school at Phillip O. Berry and Harper Middle College.
Her installation project for CIAF, “Echoes of Thought: Constructing Spaces for Reflection,” takes the form of a greenhouse, measuring approximately 8’ wide x 10’ long, that looks like it's made of stained glass. It’s designed to encourage self-reflection.
The greenhouse is built from PVC pipes and incorporates clear plastic vinyl and tinted window material. Núñez created a stained glass effect on the ceiling by layering these colorful pieces to create portraits of people, representing a variety of backgrounds and ages.
The space is also decorated with flowers made from recycled materials and features questions for visitors to consider, like “Where do you see yourself in three months?” and “Where do you see yourself in society?”
“Echoes” has pushed Núñez to try some new techniques, while working at a large scale. She usually works with acrylic paints and draws with soft pastels. In those mediums, she says, she blends her colors. But for this project, she had to think in shapes, which she layered on top of one another to create the illusion of certain colors.
As in her other works, Núñez says this piece is about connecting with yourself and finding others with whom you can connect.
She’s excited to get to know people in Charlotte and see what they are willing to share either through QR codes in the installation or with photos they post on social media.
About the Artist:
A 2020 graduate of Appalachian State University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, Emily Núñez’s murals have been popping up around the city, including a recent work on North Tryon Street near NODA. Her artwork usually focuses on her Dominican heritage and revolves around themes of connection — opening up opportunities for viewers to get to know Núñez and others through it. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @EmilyNunezArt
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Heather Kostell
Project Name: “Planet Pretend”
Where to Find It: The Green - Uptown
About the Artwork:
Kostell’s inspiration comes from pure imagination. “I’m thankful I’ve not lost my sense of wonder and playfulness,” she shared via an email interview.
“I think that has a lot to do with being a parent and former teacher. Spending time with young people forces you to be in the moment. I can forget about the worries of the world and let my imagination go wild, be silly and spontaneous. And that’s the approach I take when creating my work.”
Her creation is actually four separate pieces, ranging in size from 2 ½ to 8 feet long, and of vastly different heights. “Planet Pretend” is made from many recycled materials that she found at home. “I like the challenge of giving objects that would typically go into the trash a new purpose,” Kostell said. “From produce and dish soap containers to aluminum cans and cardboard scraps — I used a lot of junk.”
Some extras had to be purchased, like paint and mortar for papier-mâché elements, to ensure her artwork would be weather-proofed.
A fun aspect that viewers may not notice at first glance are the secret doors she’s built in. Those are a nod to her grandparents’ collection of antique cabinets with little doors and drawers.
“As a child, it was fun to sneak off and explore them because they were always full of little trinkets and treasures,” she said. “I was also inspired by the lift-the-flap picture books that my kids and I used to read when they were younger. I thought it’d be fun to give people those same
experiences in my work.”
When Kostell learned she’d been selected as a Fellow, she said she was simultaneously excited and terrified. This was her first large-scale outdoor installation.
“Luckily, I was surrounded by a kind, supportive group of artists who cheered me on and were always there to share resources and advice. Being in this cohort gave me the courage to move out of my comfort zone, take risks, and be vulnerable. This experience has helped me grow in ways I can’t express and I’m so grateful for it.”
She’s looking forward to seeing how the community responds to all of the different Fellow projects.
“There’s something really special about watching people, young and old, interact and connect with my art,” Kostell said. “ …I hope the community enjoys my installation and gets as much joy from interacting with it as I had in making it.”
About the Artist:
Heather Kostell is a native New Yorker. Her art practice includes hand-drawn illustrations, acrylic paintings and hand-crafted items. Last year, she participated in CIAF’s “100 Tiny Things” with her whimsical creation “Fungi is Fun!” You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @heatherkostellart.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Kortney Paloalto
Project Name: “I am:”
Where to Find It: Levine Avenue of the Arts
About the Artwork:
Stretching across the sky, as you enter the CIAF Biergarten from Tryon Street, you can see Paloalto’s colorful creation,“I am:”. The artwork is made of 120 individual pieces, cut from tinted vinyl, hanging between the string lights and adding to the festive flair of the space.
Her Papel Picado-cutouts (a traditional Mexican folk art form, usually made of paper) feature six images that reflect her own life experiences, from growing up in the Pacific Northwest and playing soccer to being a fan of video games and more.
“I have been wanting to kind of dive into my past and my upbringing and my culture and my roots and I think for a long time… even, like, in high school and growing up I really didn't… tap into the Mexican side of my culture,” Paloalto said.
Paloalto grew up down the street from her paternal grandparents, whose roots are Norwegian, Czechoslovakian and German. Most Christmases, she said, “it was pickled herring and lefse (a Norwegian dish) and all of my dad's side of the family was really close so we did all the holidays with them, but my mom's side is in Idaho so it's a little bit harder to go there.”
But moving across the country in 2000 and starting a whole new life in Charlotte has given her the opportunity to more deeply explore these aspects of her heritage. “And I think a really beautiful way of expressing them and showing them is through art.”
Initially, Paloalto’s primary focus wasn’t art: she was finishing up her master’s degree in molecular diagnostic science at UNC-Chapel Hill.
After graduation, she worked in a lab in Charlotte and practiced art as a hobby on the side, the same way she always had while growing up in Seattle.
Then she got laid off from her job and her life took a turn into uncharted territory. While traveling abroad, she and a friend both decided to apply for CIAF’s “100 Tiny Things.”
She got back home and set to work on her project. “There wasn't any time to think about, like, ‘Oh man, I'm so sad I lost my job.’ I'm, like, ‘I don't really care, I'm doing something fun.’”
It’s been a year now that she has worked full time as an artist but she’s still getting used to that idea as a member of the Blumenthal Fellows cohort.
“I think there was a surreal moment where I was in a room full of artists that I had been following on Instagram and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh… that's Emily Núñez or that's, like, Cat (Babbie),’ but I think it took me a second… after the dinner to be, like, ‘I was also sitting in the room. I also had a seat at the table.’
“But I think the beautiful side of it is ...t everybody has been so nice and everybody is so creative in their own way and they're all so, so talented.”
She’s confident these relationships will continue long after the festival ends.
“It's going to be something where we continue to uplift one another,” she said.
About the Artist: Kortney Paloalto is a mixed media artist, originally from Seattle. Her work includes 2D and 3D creations, and has also been featured in CIAF’s “100 Tiny Things” and as part of Charlotte Shout. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @paloaltopaints.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Laura Sexton
Project Name: “Is This Love?”
Where to Find It: The Green
About the Artwork:
Sexton’s giant 6 foot-tall “plarn” (or plastic yarn) teddy bear is made from more than 3,000 plastic bags. She used them to crochet the outside of the artwork as well as fill it inside. As part of her project, she invited the community to collect and contribute bags to make “Is This Love?” possible. She shared regular updates on her process via social media all summer long.
“I'm so grateful for everyone who has followed along and contributed to collecting bags for this project!,” Sexton posted on Instagram.
“I feel like you really have to get up close, give 'er a good pat, not only to see the different kinds of brown bags that make up the outside, but ALSO where all of the Food Lion, Walmart, Target, and miscellaneous bags went.”
This is Sexton’s biggest installation project to date. She also participated in Charlotte Shout last spring with a giant plarn Easter egg.
In addition to her art practice, Sexton is an educator. She’s taught high school Spanish and English for many years. More recently, she’s added Wine and Design classes and plarn crochet workshops to her repertoire.
About the Artist:
Laura Sexton is a Spanish teacher, parent and artist. Her creative practice includes collage, acrylic paintings and upcycled art. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @sxtnimpressions.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Lori Schember
Project Name: Nebula Bloom
Where to Find It: Ballantyne’s Backyard
About the Artwork:
Schember’s creation finds inspiration in both outer space and the natural world on earth. The 10-foot long and 6-foot tall artwork resembles a clamshell in its shape and coloring. Or maybe it’s a futuristic flower…
“It’s kind of up to interpretation,” Schember said. “I mean if you look at a flower, normally, you're gonna see a lot of different shapes and everyone's going to kind of read into things differently. So, I like that aspect about it, where it's got this sort of… abstract form that's really up to the viewer's interpretation.”
The project title is a hat tip to her son, who is named after Orion’s Belt, a constellation right above the Orion Nebula. (A nebula is made of dust and gas and is where new stars are born.)
She knew she wanted an interactive, furniture-like creation. Schember considered about 30 different iterations before settling on her final design. To give it enough strength to hold multiple children and adults at once, she welded a steel armature as the base. On top of that she cut and carved EPS (expanded Polystyrene) foam to build the shape. The whole project was then covered in Habitat Black, an epoxy putty that hardens and is often used in zoos, Schemeber said, to create rock-like structures. Her design also features special lights for nighttime illumination.
While she’s worked as part of a team creating large interactive installations before, this is the biggest project Schember’s ever single-handedly taken on, including the design, engineering, purchase of materials and construction of the artwork. Schember said it’s been a great opportunity to build and stretch her skills.
“It was a big leap forward for my career, for sure, just getting all that knowledge and all that
experience for the whole process,” she said.
She also loved the opportunity to connect with other sculptors. “It’s a very unique field and there's not many people that do it so it was great to meet other… like minded individuals.”
Schember and her family relocated to the Charlotte area two years ago for her husband’s work.
“It's been the best art city I have ever lived in, in my entire life. The art scene is so huge and I've lived in Denver, I've lived, like, all over the country and this by far surpasses anywhere for the amount of funding they've had for artists, the amount of… support they've had for artists,” she said.
“We won’t leave.”
About the Artist:
Lori Schember is a painter, metal sculptor and photographer. She and her family love exploring nature and practicing a variety of outdoor activities including hiking, paddleboarding, and BMX racing. You can find out about her latest projects on Instagram: @lori_schember.
2024 Blumenthal Arts Fellow: Paige Reitterer and Will Rudolph
Project Name: “A Gathering While Everything Flows”
Where to Find It: Ballantyne’s Backyard
About the Artwork:
If you visit “A Gathering While Everything Flows” during the festival, you’re bound to see it swarming with happy kids. But that’s not how the artists originally imagined it. The initial concept began as a spiral picnic table for all sorts of people to gather. Then it morphed.
Artists Reitterer and Rudolph knew with its bright colors and fun shapes, kids would surely be drawn to the work. But even in its final version, the project included features expressly intended for festival-going grown ups, such as the little built-in cocktail tables perched up high.
Kids saw them differently: as platforms on a spiral staircase they could climb on. That’s just one of the many ways the project has delighted and surprised the artists.
Thinking about how best to engage with “the most playful side of adults,” Rudolph said they forgot that “the playfulness of kids is going to overshadow that, if they're around.”
Reitterer and Rudolph have been friends for a long time and they both share a background in tech theater design but this is the first time they have worked as a duo to create an art installation. Reitterer’s practice usually includes more fine art components and Rudolph’s more craft based projects.
The project’s inspiration came from an initial question Reitterer posed: what would happen if you created a place that encouraged people to interact and linger?
“I travel a lot for work,” Reitterer said. “...I'm in a lot of airports and I am looking around and I'm seeing a lot of places for the public that could be considered hostile architecture or if not hostile, it's definitely trying to usher people in and out of an area without allowing them to feel like they can stay for very long periods of time.”
As they worked on their concept and built models, the project kept evolving. As technical designers, they both were hyper-aware of the need to ensure it was solidly and safely built with good materials to accommodate people of all ages.
The artwork measures 15 feet long, 8 feet wide and 8 feet tall. Its enticing circles, arches and other structural elements are all modular pieces that Reitterer and Rudolph designed. About 400 different individual pieces had to be fabricated and glued or otherwise connected to create the 12 solid modular units that the artists assembled like a giant puzzle.
Rudolph described their process working together as an “enjoyable challenge,” requiring them to find solutions collaboratively.
That was to be expected, Reitterer added, since they “are different people with different lives and different practices and different trains of thought.”
Both artists hope to have the opportunity to work together again and to design more public play spaces.
“This was really fun and it was… so wonderful to see how much interaction people had with it and their children,” Reiterrer said.
“That's what art is about for me… creating a stage for people to engage with each other and for creativity to blossom in the younger generation.”
About the Artists:
Paige Reitterer’s art practice includes fine art techniques like painting and printmaking, as well as creative work for experimental arts institutions. She also specializes in lighting design for events.
Will Rudolph studied technical design and performance and has worked behind-the-scenes for theater groups and in theater education. His artwork is more craft-focused, often centering on materials like wood, metals and plastic, as well as contemporary digital fabrication practices.
You can find out more about their latest projects on Instagram: @worm.embrace and @0_0wrudolph