Khan Named 2024 Art of Resilience Artist; Will Host Benefit on April 2 at National Arts Club.
Acclaimed contemporary artist Baseera Khan has been named the 2024 Art of Resilience Artist and will create an original work for permanent installation at the new HELP Logan Fountain, a purpose-built shelter for homeless families in Brooklyn, New York. Set to be unveiled in January 2025 once construction is completed, Khan’s commission is the next in a series of art initiatives with leading artists undertaken by HELP USA aimed at raising awareness about the trauma faced by people who have experienced homelessness and the power of art to help those in crisis.
“I am honored to champion HELP USA’s cause and to bring attention to their innovative art therapy program. Through the process of creating, we reveal truths about ourselves, heal from wounds to our sense of self, and gain strength to recover and rebuild,” said Baseera Khan. “It is my intention that this commission will serve as a reminder to all who seek shelter at Logan Fountain that homelessness is not hopelessness and that when they view the work, they are encouraged to remain hopeful during their journey to stability.”
Baseera Khan is a New York-based performance, sculpture, and installation artist whose work is widely collected and can be seen in major museums, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Brooklyn Museum. Khan’s public art commission, “Painful Arc, Shoulder High,” can be viewed at The High Line Park, NYC located by the Standard Hotel until summer 2024. Khan won an Artist Prize for the MTV/Smithsonian Channel TV docu-series, called The Exhibit in 2022-23.
HELP USA’s Art of Resilience program is an innovative method that marries the healing potential of art with individual social and emotional clinical assessment. Through the language of art, HELP USA’s therapists gain unique insights into the needs of those in crisis. This allows the care team to develop informed support plans and map pathways to lasting solutions for each participant. Dedicated programs are currently offered at two transitional housing sites for single adult women, one for single adult men, and a domestic violence shelter for women and children.
Logan Fountain, designed by MHG Architects and built by Broadway Builders, an affiliate of The Hudson Companies, is constructed inside and out to support families as they work toward long-term housing stability. HELP USA will deliver high-quality, trauma-informed supportive services for homeless families with children who will occupy the 169 transitional housing units that comprise the eastern wing of the complex. An on-site Art Therapist will introduce the Art of Resilience program and offer studio hours specifically for children, individual and small group sessions for families, and open studio hours to help residents process traumas caused by homelessness.
“Hudson Companies & Broadway Builders are honored to join forces with HELP USA & Baseera Kahn to support initiatives that bring healing and hope to those affected by homelessness,” said Sarah Pizer, Managing Director, The Hudson Companies. “We are especially excited about Baseera’s commissioned work at Logan Fountain, which promises to serve as a beacon of resilience and inspiration within the community.”
To support the expansion of the program, on April 2, 2024, HELP USA will hold the annual Art of Resilience Benefit at the esteemed National Arts Club in Gramercy Park. Baseera Khan is the Artist Host and will lead a collective artmaking experience, sharing insight into their practice. The evening will feature a gallery showing of works by residents at HELP USA’s transitional and supportive housing sites, a silent auction of fine art and luxury items, including an original work donated by Baseera Khan and a handbag from sponsor LANVIN, and live music provided by New School musicians. Limited tickets are still available.
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About Baseera Khan
Baseera Khan’s practice uses the lens of their own body to investigate how desire and surveillance shape subjectivity, including the construction of the artist’s own gender and Muslim identity. Khan assembles references from ancient Middle Eastern cultures found in museums and archaeological archives, abstracting architectural scale, and humanizing ostensibly objective collections of art and artifacts. Khan’s large-scale installations are inviting – often incorporating sumptuous colors and radical adornments – and encourage viewers to think about challenging topics such as xenophobia, spirituality, and invisible labor.
Baseera Khan’s work has been acquired by major museums and is in the collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Brooklyn Museum; and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis. The New Orleans Museum of Art; among many leading private collections.
Recent solo exhibitions include: Art Basel, Switzerland; Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C.; Georgetown University, Washington D.C.; Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati; Moody Center For The Arts, Houston, Texas; Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York; The Kitchen, NYC, Queens Museum. In mid-April 2024, Khan is mounting an exhibition at Simone Subal Gallery in NY, and will be honored by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council for its Michael Richards Award for Visual Art.
About HELP USA
HELP USA works to ensure that everyone has a place to call home. We provide shelter for people in crisis, ongoing support for individuals and families in need and work to strengthen vulnerable communities. Every day, we address the root causes of homelessness at over 40 transitional and housing locations and through more than a dozen prevention and support programs. For more information, visit www.helpusa.org.