Join us on Thursday, May 16th, 2024 at 6:00 PM at the Castle for Presentations by current Fellows Sonya Belaya (USA/Russia) & Devan Shimoyama (USA).

Sonya Belaya
Music, USA/Russia

Sonya Belaya is a first generation Russian-American pianist, singer, composer, and improviser based in New York. Her work is centered around music as social work, exploring trauma-informed healing practices as it relates to the immigrant experience and intersectional feminist ancestry. Her awards include the 2022 & 2024 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award, 2021 American Composers Forum Create Award, the 2020-2021 Resident Artist & 2021-2022 Commissioned Artist at Roulette Intermedium, made possible by the Jerome Foundation. Sonya is a Yamaha Artist.

Devan Shimoyama
Visual Arts, USA

Devan Shimoyama is a visual artist who works primarily in painting and self-portraiture, with works inspired as much by classical mythology as by the culture of his youth. Through his depictions of the queer black male form, Shimoyama investigates the politics of queer culture while navigating his own personal narratives. Shimoyama graduated from Penn State University in 2011 with a BFA in Drawing/Painting. He received his MFA from Yale University School of Art in Painting/Printmaking in 2014. He lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA and is represented by Kavi Gupta Gallery in Chicago.

Thursday, May 16th, 2024
6:00 PM Welcome cocktail 
6:15 PM Presentations
Please RSVP here