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Contact: Lori Brooks | 405 951 0000 | lbrooks@okcontemp.org
Evangelista brings broad curatorial experience in both the United States and the Philippines to Oklahoma’s leading institution for contemporary arts exhibitions and education
Further expanding Oklahoma Contemporary’s exhibitions team, Tabitha Austin joins as Registrar
Today, Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center announced two major hires in its curatorial and exhibitions department. Carina Evangelista, most recently the editor of the Chuck Close Catalogue Raisonné for Artifex Press (New York), joins as Director of Curatorial Affairs, and Tabitha Austin, an experienced conservator, will take the position of Registrar. Evangelista and Austin will further Oklahoma Contemporary’s mission to bring outstanding contemporary exhibitions and education to the region.
Evangelista brings almost three decades of contemporary art experience both in the United States and the Philippines to the newly created position of Director of Curatorial Affairs. Her curatorial credentials include work on numerous exhibitions at Delaware Contemporary (Wilmington) and the Museum of Modern Art (New York); as well as Art Fair Philippines, Ayala Museum, and MO_Space (Manila), while also active as a writer on Philippine contemporary art.
At Oklahoma Contemporary, Evangelista will work closely with Artistic Director Jeremiah Matthew Davis to identify, develop and present contemporary arts exhibitions of national relevance, while also collaborating with Oklahoma Contemporary’s robust team of educators to interpret artworks and exhibitions for Oklahoma Contemporary’s diverse audiences.
Tabitha Austin will join the Oklahoma Contemporary exhibitions team as the institution’s Registrar, overseeing coordination of loans, shipping and care for the institution’s many traveling and temporary exhibitions. Austin has five years of experience in museum conservation and gallery archives in South Africa as well as in the United Kingdom and United States.
About Oklahoma Contemporary
Oklahoma Contemporary is a multidisciplinary contemporary arts organization, providing a catalyst for the exploration of creativity and contemporary art through a program of groundbreaking exhibitions, performances and educational programs. Developed by and for Oklahomans to present and explore the key innovations, issues and concerns of the art of our time, Oklahoma Contemporary does so while drawing on the dynamic aesthetic, cultural, historical and political landscape of the state. At its core, the institution is an inclusive space — Oklahoma Contemporary believes that art is for everyone and places accessibility and education at the center of all programming. Exhibitions are always free, and everyone is welcome. Oklahoma Contemporary is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1989 by businessman and philanthropist Christian Keesee and Kirkpatrick Foundation Director Marilyn Myers.
After a delayed opening due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the campus is now fully operational and open, with limited timed-ticket access, to all. Designed by Rand Elliott Architects, the new building features a luminous facade that captures Oklahoma’s ever-changing weather and light. The grounds also include a renovated historic warehouse (housing ceramics and fiber studios and metal and wood sculpture studios) and a three-block arts park, providing space for outdoor exhibitions, education programs and public performances.
Image: Oklahoma Contemporary's entrance. Photo credit: Architect Rand Elliott.
