Episode 11: SOULEO: Showing Out in Harlem, Newark and Beyond
Peter “Souleo” Wright curates entertaining and informative events, exhibitions, and cultural programs. Souleo has collaborated with noteworthy institutions and brands, including the New York Public Library, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Museum of Arts and Design, Columbia University, Barnard College, Newark Museum of Art, Stax Museum of American Soul Music, Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, and AARP.
Souleo's work has been widely covered in outlets including the Associated Press, NY Times, The New Yorker, NBC, and more. Souleo is a graduate of Brown University.
His focus on education and amplifying underrepresented stories are paramount to his curatorial mission and practice.
For more information:SouleoUniverse.com or IG: @souleouniverse
I first met Peter “SOULEO” Wright in Harlem in 2012 through a mutual friend and colleague, Leanne Stella, founder of Art In Flux Harlem. He curated an exhibition at her gallery titled “Art Enology” that featured the works of artists who repurposed wine bottles into elaborate works of original art. Both Souleo and Leanne introduced me to a newly vibrant art scene that continues to grow and has reestablished Harlem’s prominence as a global art center.
The Pandemic hasn’t slowed Souleo down. His most recent exhibitions in Harlem, NYC and Newark, NJ, dynamically illustrate his amazing ability to bring the intersection of art, fashion, and celebrity to a widely diverse audience.
Check out the images in this episode on the website: What’s Newark To Do With It?
“Styling: Black Expression, Rebellion and Joy Through Fashion”, in September 2021 was an exhibition curated by Souleo at Nordstrom’s NYC Flagship store. Souleo poses in front of a photograph by Kwame Braithwaite in a digital installation by artist Dianne Smith. The exhibition, in association with Long Gallery in Harlem, featured the work of 15 contemporary Black artists and is a celebratory exploration of style within Black culture as a historical form of creative expression, rebellion against oppression and a source of joy as inspired by movements such as the Harlem Renaissance. Paintings, photography and wearable art were represented on each level of the store as customers traveled up the store's main escalator. as well as a pop-up shop where customers can purchase wearable art and prints featured in the show. Photograph by Ruben Natal-San Miguel
“Styling: Black Expression, Rebellion and Joy Through Fashion” exhibition featuring three “African Diva Project” paintings by Margaret Rose Vendryes.
Newark Arts celebrated its 20th Newark Arts Festival in October with a headline exhibit honoring legendary entertainer and New Jersey native Dionne Warwick. Dionne Warwick: Queen of Twitter was curated by Souleo and sponsored by Audible, in partnership with the GRAMMY Museum Experience™ Prudential Center. The exhibit featured original artwork inspired by the humorous, sassy, profound, and inspirational tweets of Ms. Warwick, plus rarely seen archival material including items from Ms. Warwick’s personal collection. Featured Artists: Lavett Ballard, Pamela Council, Jo-El Lopez, Beau McCall, Dianne Smith, and Felandus Thames. Image: Detail of one of Beau McCal’s artworks.
When the Dandy meets Afrofuturism. Left: Portrait of Souleo for the Dandy Style Tutorial Zoom session on October 28, 2021 as part of the “God Is A Dandy” virtual event at the Paul Robeson Galleries, Rutgers, Newark, NJ. Curated and moderated by Souleo, it was a virtual mini-symposium on Black dandyism, generally defined as a style of dress that combines African Diasporan elements with European influences. Right: Jerry Gant, the late, legendary multidisciplinary artist’s unique dandy style is included in a film that is part of the exhibition.
“Showing Out: Fashion in Harlem”, a multimedia exhibition presented by the Schomburg Center, and curated by Souleo, in honor of the 55th anniversary of the Harlem Institute of Fashion opened in September, 2021. HIF was founded by trailblazer Lois K. Alexander-Lane. Souleo said that his aim was to help bring greater attention to an "underrepresented piece of fashion history" that was important in helping to preserve, document, and support Black creatives in fashion. Images above: Souleo giving a tour of the exhibition the Spectrum News broadcast. One of the models wearing contemporary fashion and the interior photograph of one of the exhibition installations.
Harlem Institute of Fashion (HIF) founder, trailblazer Lois K. Alexander-Lane.
Souleo, left, and partner Beau McCall, recently shared their story on “National Coming Out Day”, via a virtual event “LGBTQ+ Lessons on Creativity and Connecting Generations”.