On the last episode of season 4, we highlight the work and voice of Paula Mans.  Paula is a self-taught painter, collagist, and art educator based in Washington, DC, Original land of the Nacotchtank and Piscataway peoples.  While Paula is a native Washingtonian, she spent many of her formative years living in Tanzania, Mozambique, Eswatini, and Brazil. Her experiences throughout the African Diaspora shaped her identity and informed the development of her artistic voice.

Living in Washington, DC and Salvador, Brazil has been particularly impactful for the artist. Both cities are diasporic meccas for Black cultural expression and are famous for their prominent and influential Black populations. Nonetheless, racism and gentrification often render Black people invisible within the power structures of both cities. Paula seeks to critically address this social phenomenon by amplifying the visibility and agency of the Black figure in her artistic practice. 

To learn more about Paula, and see more of her work, visit her website (https://paulamans.art/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/paulamansart/).

To learn more about the artists that inspire Paula, please visit the links below:

Zanele Muholi - https://www.instagram.com/muholizanele/?hl=en

Elizabeth Catlet - https://nmwa.org/art/artists/elizabeth-catlett/

Simone Leigh - https://www.instagram.com/simoneyvetteleigh/?hl=en

Romare Bearden - https://beardenfoundation.org/

Octavia Butler - https://www.octaviabutler.com/

Rivers Solomon - https://rivers-solomon.com/

Nnedi Okorafor - https://nnedi.com/

The Waystation Podcast is an important pillar of The Chrysalis Institute. For more information on our residency, please visit: www.thechrysalisinstitute.com to learn more!