FERRARA SHOWMAN GALLERY proudly presents the 29th Annual NO DEAD ARTISTS International Juried Exhibition of Contemporary Art. For the 2025 installment of the exhibition, thirteen artists from and/or living and working across the United States, as well as: Azerbaijan, Lithuania, and the United Kingdom. The finalists were selected by the jury from over 500 submissions by artists worldwide. The exhibition will be on view from 17 September through 1 November with an opening reception on 4 October 5-9 PM in conjunction with the Arts District New Orleans’s (ADNO) First Saturday Gallery Openings and city-wide event Art for Art’s Sake Downtown and a closing reception on 1 November 5-8 PM.

The NO DEAD ARTISTS exhibition was founded by Jonathan Ferrara in 1995 to give a voice to emerging artists. The exhibition’s name is derived from the old adage that artists never achieve success until they are dead. NO DEAD ARTISTS turns that notion on its head and often gives emerging artists their first break in the art world. In the 90’s, the exhibition was open to New Orleans-based artists and subsequently grew to include artists of Louisiana, then becoming a national juried exhibition in 2010. In 2014, Matthew Weldon Showman opened the call internationally, expanding the opportunity to artists everywhere and producing an even more diverse and compelling survey of Contemporary Art. Now in its 29th iteration, the exhibition has been a springboard for numerous artists; leading to national press coverage, recognition, gallery representation, art fair exhibition, and acquisitions by museums and other prominent collections. Each year the gallery invites a panel of renowned arts professionals and collectors to select the newest creative talents from around the world.

::: The 2025 NO DEAD ARTISTS Jury :::

  
KELLY FREEMAN - Art Market Productions - New York, NY

Kelly Freeman is the Vice President (Event Operations & Partnerships) at Art Market Productions (AMP), a creative events firm that designs, builds, promotes, and produces cultural experiences worldwide. Freeman is responsible for directing AMP’s suite of art fairs, including San Francisco Art Fair, Seattle Art Fair, Art on Paper, and Atlanta Art Fair, which launched its inaugural edition in October 2024.

Prior to her role at AMP, Freeman garnered extensive experience in the realm of private wealth management at renowned financial institutions such as Citigroup and UBS. With a scholarly background in art history, she found inspiration in the UBS Global Art Collection, prompting a strategic shift in her professional trajectory towards contemporary art. She pursued a master’s degree at Christie’s before gaining experience with esteemed New York-based commercial galleries, including Galerie LeLong, Morgan Lehman Gallery, and PPOW. 

CAROLINE SCOTT LOW - CSL Art Consulting - San Francisco Bay Area, California

Caroline Scott Low received her BA in Art History and studied abroad in Paris, France, and Florence, Italy. She continues to travel nationally and internationally, expanding her network of art acquisitions.

With her Fine Art curation, Caroline acquires artwork that elevates the clients’ spaces and simplifies the curating process. She assists clients with curating art to build an extensive collection, the beginning foundation of a collection, or individual pieces for their home or office. Her team specializes in Contemporary and Modern art.

Since college, Caroline has been a devoted philanthropist, sitting on many boards and chairing annual fundraisers. She has served on the Council of the Asian Art Museum for several years and chaired their annual family event, “Once Upon a Time In Tokyo.” In addition, she collaborated on the inception of the Kids and Art Foundation and worked with the foundation, planning its first annual Fundraiser. Her passion for art intersects with her dedication to children’s well-being and their ability to thrive in the art experience. Caroline is on the Board of Trustees of the Monterey Art Museum as the Development Liaison and continues working on its Annual Fundraisers.

KRISTINA KAY ROBINSON - Burnaway Magazine  - New Orleans, LA

Kristina Kay Robinson is a New Orleans-born poet, writer, and visual artist.. Robinson co-edited Mixed Company, an anthology of fiction and visual narratives by women of color, and has curated exhibitions such as Welcome to the Afrofuture and A Disappearance. She is a 2019 Rabkin Prize winner and a 2024 recipient of an Andy Warhol Arts Writers grant. She currently serves as New Orleans editor-at-large for Burnaway magazine.

::: The 29th Annual NO DEAD ARTISTS  Finalists :::

VIRGINIA CANDLER  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

ALEXANDRA CHIOU  -  Arlington, Virginia

BEN HAMBURGER  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

NOE KUREMOTO  -  London, United Kingdom  /  Zarasai, Lithuania

RYAN LEITNER  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

NICHOLAS LICAUSI  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

KIARA AILEEN MACHADO  -  San Gabriel Valley, California

DEMARCUS MCGAUGHEY  -  Brooklyn, New York

FARHAD NIKFAM  -  Baku, Azerbaijan

PEYTON PICKENPAUGH  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

MARTRYCE ROACH  -  Pennington, New Jersey

SHARON SHAPIRO  -  Charlottesville, Virginia

KATIE YAQUINTO  -  New Orleans, Louisiana

Comprised of painting, drawing, photography, digital media, sculpture, textile/fiber, ceramic, printmaking, collage, and mixed media installation, NO DEAD ARTISTS continues to exhibit a great diversity in media with a cohesive cross-section of the pulse of contemporary art.  For the grand prize of the exhibition, one of the selected jury-winning artists will be awarded a solo exhibition at FSG in 2026. Previous recipient awardees include: Jenny Day (2016 + 2017), Kat Flyn (2018), Trenity Thomas (2020), Michael Tole (2021), Brandon V. Lewis (2022), and Ginger Williams Cook (2023). In addition to these award winners who have all since become represented by the gallery, FSG has continued to exhibit and take under representation other former finalists: Adam Mysock (2009), Marna Shopoff (2013 + 2014), Tony Dagradi (2017), REWA (2018), Kristin Moore (2019), Barbara Kuebel (2020), Andrew Lyman (2021), and Wencke Uhl (2023). Not only have all of these past finalists received solo shows at the gallery but some have also successfully continued on to exhibit at art fairs in New York, Miami, Basel (Switzerland), Leipzig (Germany), San Francisco, Houston, Seattle, and other traveling exhibitions and museums worldwide. These artists and the NO DEAD ARTISTS exhibition have garnered great interest from curators, museums, and press, and have also been acquired by many prominent public and private collections. . . Stay tuned for the announcement of the 2025 winner at the close of the Exhibition and their subsequent exhibition in 2025.

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For more information, press or sales inquiries please contact Partner + Gallery Director Matthew Weldon Showman at 504.343.6827 or matthew@ferrarashowman.com. Please join the conversation with FSG on Instagram (@FerraraShowmanGallery) via the hashtags: #NoDeadArtists, #NDA2025 #FerraraShowmanGallery, and #ArtsDistrictNewOrleans.