Soundtrack Link: here.  

Presented by Big Think, in partnership with Republic, please join us Uptown for a night of fine art, cocktails and conversation with two of Harlem's rising stars: Jay West and Justin Gilzene.

Emphasizing cross-cultural connections, encouraging personal discoveries and sparking new ways of seeing the world, pop expressionist artist Jay West and the surrealist concept artist Justin Gilzene join forces for Harlem Rhapsody.

Produced by independent curator André Smith, the centerpiece of the evening will feature a collaboration with Jay and Justin that explores the broader meta-narrative of the contemporary Black male, a theme that their works explore. Following this immersive performance, the pair will be in conversation with moderator, artist M. Tony Peralta. 

Jay West is a contemporary artist from Harlem, NY, who is quickly gaining recognition as one of the most promising young painters in the world. West's brilliance is about “mixing opposites” and making “worlds collide.” Drawing from a wide spectrum of inspirations, West’s paintings deal with subjects as diverse as popular cartoon characters, religion, technology and Greek mythology.

From a more global perspective, his work embodies “tales of defeat and triumph” as well as oppression and celebration. West subverts the grandiose aura of art history through his adaptation of pop aesthetics using the expressiveness of abstraction, surrealism, and the stylistic rendering of graphic illustration.

Justin Gilzene is a Bronx raised, Harlem based surrealist concept artist. His philosophy is a confluence of craftsmanship, imagination and divine purpose. Justin often cites the cautionary tales of icons and fallen heroes in his work--distilling identity, memory, misconception and cultural aesthetics. 

Having exhibited alongside the likes of Hanksy, Plastic Jesus and Dean Styers, Gilzene has become recognized for  his surrealist misconception character studies, work that conjures deeper meanings from memory--achieving this thru nostalgia and immersive play.

Gilzene's forthcoming sophomore solo show, Master Year, will exhibit this October, 2017. 

New York native and first-generation Dominican, M.Tony Peralta, is a contemporary artist and designer known for his fusion of pop art aesthetics, cultural iconography and vibrant hues.

In 2016, Peralta's original "Celia Con Rolo" was acquired by the Smithsonian Institute and is now part of the permanent collection at the Anacostia Community Museum in Washington, D.C.

Most recently, Peralta was tapped by Pharrell Williams to contribute to a collaboration with Twyla. “We believe individuality is the new wealth and M. Tony has carved out his own lane,” says i am OTHER Chief Creative Office, Mimi Valdés. “He’s OTHER, plain and simple. There’s no other artist who creates the kinds of images he does.”

André Smith is an independent curator, thought leader, agency strategy vet and content producer--coming from 9+ years of creative experience blending story, strategy + tech, across content, print, digital, video + immersive activations.

He's checked his boxes over the years with Soho House, Momentum | McCann, Team Epiphany, 1stAveMachine, and now Big Think... to name a few. 

With a curatorial practice focusing on art intervention for awareness and social good, André is currently studying under Profs. Hentyle Yapp and Kathy Engel, amongst other distinguished academics, as a 2018 MA candidate in Art Politics from NYU's prestigious Art & Public Policy program at the Tisch School of The Arts.