Kelcie McQuaid
If you’re reading this publication, you’ve probably already encountered local artists Kelcie Mcquaid and Lindsey Mills in one form or another. You may have met Mcquaid while attending an exhibition by ShangriLa Collective, art-walking in FATVillage or buying art supplies at Jerry’s Artarama. You may have encountered Mills while listening to her play bass in Surfer Blood, going to shows at Respectable Street or learning to play an instrument at School of Rock.
Together, they’ve paired up to create People Pleaser, a ingenious multimedia exhibition at 1310 Gallery in Fort Lauderdale that runs through April 19. (The opening is 7 p.m. Friday, March 22.) The exhibition features 105 portraits of local art luminaries accompanied by notes, photographs, and correlated NFTs offered through an exclusive online community.
The show is anchored by a trio of Mcquaid installations: Chaos Pendulum, comprising large scale abstractions, sequenced lights and a manipulated mirror; Fragments and Echoes, a wall-mounted ceramic installation; and Radical Self-Acceptance, a video installation self portrait of Kelcie.
In tandem with the opening, Mills offers an hour-long presentation on “the ways that blockchain can empower artists of all media to own their work and connect more directly with their fans and collectors.
“I see a huge opportunity for independent artists here in the local scene to get into this while it’s still a nascent technology,” Mills tells PureHoney. “There’s so much space for creativity and exploration of blockchain as a new medium.”
If you miss the March 22 opening (with live painting by Mcquaid and live music by Ashley Reda and tiny.blips Psych Soul Party featuring Laura Atria) you can attend an additional free NFT workshop on April 12 at the gallery or online where you’ll learn about smart contracts, copyright in the age of AI and controlling creations using blockchain.
Mcquaid, for her part, says, “I’m writing a thank you letter to my community.” After a difficult personal experience, Mcquaid relied heavily on her local community of fellow artists and creators, and it was those friends that she chose to immortalize in trippy washes of color.
“It’s pretty trippy,” Mcquaid agrees. “It’s like a sensory overload, I would say. So, that is exclusive to these two large-scale abstract pieces that will be on the second floor. It’s a three-story gallery, so there’s a lot of room to play here.”
With Chaos Pendulum, she says, “Basically, you stand in the center and see yourself with all these lights moving around on your body. It’s an interactive element where people can maybe capture full images of themselves or see themselves in different lights.”
“I had some dysphoria after the traumatic experience, and some things came up for me,” Mcquaid says in discussing her portaits. “I think a lot of people, when they see a portrait of themselves, it’s hard for them to claim it or see themselves in it. People get very picky about the way they look in portraits. My style is very lucid and not a classic portrait. I expect people to have these confrontations in the space with their image.”
“But then, the other people in the space [who] are such good people — some of them know each other — will say, ‘Wow, look how beautiful you are.’ I want this to be a bit of a social experiment. All these people are in the same room. For me, it’s about capturing the real, authentic expression and seeing how the subjects engage or interact. I feel these portraits, in particular, are very empathetic because these people have been there for me when I needed them.”
Mills, for her part, is focused on artistic independence: “When I discovered blockchain, I felt like this was an opportunity for artists who have remained independent and haven’t sold out and given the rights to their work away. You now have this chance to capitalize on that ownership and have a greater community. We’re a community of people spread out over this space, and I’d like to bring us all together and get empowered.” NFT’s will be launched live during the Onchain workshop.
VIP OPENING: Friday March 22nd 2024 7pm-10pm
Performances by Ashley Reda + Tiny.Blips Psych Soul Party ft Laura Atria
ART ONCHAIN: Friday April 12th 2024 6pm-8pm
Interactive Blockchain Workshop w Lindsey Mills + Artist Talk w Kelcie McQuaid
CLOSING PARTY: Friday April 19th 7pm – 10pm
Performances by Nervous Monks, Lindsey Mills + Sweet Bronco
@kelciemcquaid and @chillylmilly on Instagram
~ Kelli Bodle
