Lanussi Pasquali was born in Riozinho, Rio Grande do Sul, 1972. As a visual artist, she works in sculpture, installation, and fibers. She enjoys sewing and tailoring, embroidery and other slow and forgotten affairs. Pasquali holds a Master's in Visual Arts from UFBA and enjoys teaching, advising poetic research, encounters and conversations about art. She is the founder of Projeto Ativa and its offshoots, Riso Ativa and Ativa Atelier Livre. She lives and works in Salvador since 2002.

Edbrass Brasil is a sound artist, educator and researcher. Edbrass is also a producer and active organizer in the experimental music scene in Salvador, where he has developed an intense exchange with musicians and artists from across Brazil and the world. In his artistic practice, he investigates the manipulation and collage of recordings and samples, coupled with the use of unconventional wind instruments, traversing different creative processes, with an emphasis on free improvisation and microtonal music.

Patricia Almeida is trained as an architect and urbanist and works professionally in two main fields. As a photographer, she develops authorial projects and covers theatrical events and performances. As a designer, she is a co-founder and collaborator in the collective TANTO – Criações Compartilhadas, whose work traverses the fields of graphic design, publishing, visual arts, architecture and urban planning.

Candai Calmon is a Black woman, urban quilombola, community feminist. She is a professional dancer, ballerina, and educator. She has worked in the field of dance for 18 years, where I have obtained an artistic education Brazil and abroad, concentrating on Contemporary Dance in its most Afro-referential, South-decolonial and feminist practices. In this field, she has worked with several mentors who are pioneers in the study of the “discursive body” and “corporal states” in Dance.
Calmon holds a bachelor’s in Gender and Diversity Studies from the Universidade Federal da Bahia and a Master’s in Dance from the same institution. She currently participates in collectives of popular and ancestral culture, such as Capoeira Angola and Maracatu do Baque Virado, in Salvador, and is involved in political movements for solidary economy in Salvador.
Her current research revolves around the female body, negritude, and memory, seeking pathways for empowerment, self-care and expression. She has developed various immersive artistic experiences with the Black women and traditional quilombola people, using the creative elements of contemporary dance and improvisation.

Edgard Oliva (born 1957) originally obtained a bachelor’s in Biological Sciences from the Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA) in 1982. In 1984, he began his studies in Visual Arts, with a concentration in Painting at the School of Fine Arts at UFBA. Between 1990 and 1994, he lived between Brazil and Germany, presenting his work in several solo and group exhibitions. In 1994, he began to teach painting at the Visual Arts Workshop at the Museum of Modern Art of Bahia; while his own advancement in photography techniques led him to pursue deeper studies in the area. In 2004, he became a professor of Photography at the School of Fine Arts at UFBA. In 2004, he also began his Master’s in Fine Arts at the School in Fine Arts of the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (completed 2016), with a focus on night-time photography. In 2015, he pursued a doctoral internship at the Department of Art and Communications at the Universidade de Aveiro, in Portugal. His work is regularly featured in individual and group exhibitions in Brazil and abroad, including Germany, France and Portugal. He also has experience in video art, documentary film, and curation.

Adriana Araújo is a visual artist whose work investigates nature through installation and other art forms. Her work has been exhibited in Salvador, São Paulo, Germany, Australia, Portugal and Angola. She has attended residencies in Australia (2009) and Portugal (2010) with projects supported respectively by the Ministry of Culture and the Cultural Office of the State of Bahia.

A black woman and artist from Bahia, Inaê Moreira holds a degree in Dance from the Dance School at Funceb, a bachelor's with a teaching certificate in Dance from the Universidade Federal da Bahia, and a professional certificate in Circus Arts from the Escuela de Artes Urbanas in Rosário, Argentina. She worked for two years as an instructor in the Centro de Movimento Débora Colker. In 2018, Moreira founded the project Dança Intuitiva para Mulheres ("Intuitive Dance for Women"). She has experience in a diversity of techniques of the body: dance, acrobatics, capoeira angola, contact improvisation, physical theater, and performance. Her current projects incorporate issues lived by the female, Afro-Brazilian and diasporic body.

Daniel Sabóia is a co-founder and collaborator in the collective Tanto Criações Compartilhadas, which develops projects in architecture, design and visual arts. He has a Bachelor’s in Architecture and Urban Planning, and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Urban Planning at the Universidade Federal da Bahia. As a member of the Laboratório Urbano (“Urban Lab”) research group, he investigates methodological possibilities for the apprehension and collective construction of critical thinking about the contemporary city, through the crossing of urbanistic and artistic practices.

João Oliveira is a visual artist with a BA in Visual Arts from the Universidade Federal da Bahia (2011), and a Master's in Creative Process in Visual Arts from the same university (2017). He is trained in lithography and metal engraving through the Workshops at the Museum of Modern Art of Bahia (MAM-BA). He works on the encounter of metal engraving with other supports, appropriating personal experience in order to create works with a forged autobiographical nature, obtained through small rituals of self-fiction. A selection of his exhibitions includes "Tomar coca-cola com você” at Galeria ACBEU, Bahia; “Prêmio Gravura EAV”, the Engraving Prize at the School of Visual Arts Parque Lage, Rio de Janerio, where his works have been included in the school's collection; “Circuto das artes” at Galeria do Conselho, Bahia; “Cabra cega” ant the Allliance Française, Bahia; “Como refazer o mundo” at Luiz Fernando Landeiro Arte Contemporânea, Bahia; “Esquizópolis” at the Musem of Modern Art, Bahia; "Arte londrina 4"in Londrina, Paraná; the 11th Recôncavo Arts Biennial, in Bahia; two editions of the Salão de Abril (April Arts Salon) in Ceará; and five editions of the Salões de Artes Visuais (Visual Arts Salon) of Bahia, where he has earned Honorable Mentions and a Prize. Other achievements include the shows "Panapaná - Visual Arts November" at Galeria de Arte Archidy Picado, in João Pessoa, Paraíba; "Paisagem intermitente" at the Coaty House occupation in Salvador, Bahia; "Entre II" at Galeria Entre, in Salvador, Bahia; the solo show "Último ato de orgulho"at Galeria RV Cultura e Arte, in Bahia; and the residencies "Cambio 14" at the Museo Universitario del Chopo, in Mexico; and the prize for engraving "Prêmio Gravura EAV Parque Lage + Mul.ti.plo Espaço Arte", in Rio de Janeiro, which awarded him a residency at the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica di Venezia, in Venice, Italy.

Alex Simões is a poet and performer. He has published "trans formas são" (Organismo Editora, 2018), "Contrassonetos" (Mondrongo, 2015), "(hai)céufies" (Esquizo, 2014) and "Quarenta e Uns Sonetos Catados" (Domínio Público, 2013). Every now and then he presents the performance pieces"você tem seda?", "a cappella de Wally" and "poesia chã", among others. His poems have been published in anthologies, collections, and national and international magazines, with some poems translated into English and Spanish. Since the 90s, Simões regularly participates in important literary events and in various readings and mulilingual events in Bahia and elsewhere. He is currently working ona visual poetry project, #experimentoscomletrasurbana ("experiments with urban letters" or "urban literature"). He has a blog: toobitornottobit.blogspot.com.br

Vanessa Coelho, young Black woman, Black feminist, studies Social Sciences at the Universidade Federal da Bahia. She is a community educator and marginal poet, a member of Coletivo Zeferinas, and poetry slammer, having won the first edition of the Slam das Minas of Bahia in 2019. Coelho also studies theatre at the Teatro Escola program of the Teatro Jorge Amado. She is an organizer with the Articulação Nacional de Negras Jovens Feministas of Bahia (National Alliance of Young Black Feminist Women), and a Youth Ambassador for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC). Coelho is a member of the Ruptura Black collective, where, through the SaferLab (SaferNet Brasil) program, she runs a counternarratives project to combat disinformation and hate speech on the Internet.

Amina was a 2018-2019 Artist-in-Residence at Arts & Public Life and the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture at the University of Chicago. Ross is currently an MFA candidate at Yale School of Art within the sculpture department.

Angel Bat Dawid is a Black American Composer, Improviser, Clarinetist, Pianist, Vocalist and vinyl addict. She is a sonic archaeologist gathering and excavating soundz/music from space, the heavens, the ether and beyond. In 2018, Angel composed a “cosmic love opera” based on Song of Solomon that was performed by prominent free-jazz musicians at the Co-Prosperity Sphere in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. This year 2019, Angel makes her recording debut on Chicago record label International Anthem. Her Album “The Oracle” was created entirely alone – performing, overdubbing & mixing all instruments & voices by her self – recorded using only her cell phone in various locations, from London UK to Cape Town RSA. Angel also curates a series of nine multidisciplinary concerts at Elastic Arts in Chicago called "Mothership9" where she is building a sonic mythological spaceship to the cosmos. Music is a language, you see, a universal language.-Sun Ra

Damon Locks is a Chicago-based visual artist, educator, vocalist/musician. He attended the Art Institute of Chicago where he received his BFA in fine arts. Since 2014 he has been working with Prisons and Neighborhood Arts Project at Stateville Correctional Center teaching art. He is a recipient of the Helen Coburn Meier and Tim Meier Achievement Award in the Arts and the 2016 MAKER Grant. He operated as an Artist Mentor in the Chicago Artist Coalition program FIELD/WORK. In 2017 he became a Soros Justice Media Fellow. In 2019, he became a 3Arts Awardee. Currently he works as an artist in residence as a part of the Museum of Contemporary Arts' SPACE Program, introducing civically engaged art into the curriculum at the high school, Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy.

Ayanna Woods is a composer, performer and producer from Chicago, IL. She earned her BA in music at Yale University. Woods’ work has been performed by Third Coast Percussion, Wet Ink Ensemble, the Chicago Children’s Choir, and members of Fifth House Ensemble. Her music has also appeared in a range of film and theater projects, including the Emmy-nominated web series Brown Girls and an original Manual Cinema play No Blue Memories based on the life of Gwendolyn Brooks. Currently, she's recording her debut solo album under the name Yadda Yadda. Her music explores the spaces between acoustic and electronic, traditional and esoteric, wildly improvisational and mathematically rigorous.

Ben LaMar Gay is a composer and cornetist who moves components of sound, color, and space through folkloric filters to produce brilliant electro‐acoustic collages. The layering and mingling of various styles feeds and plays with a larger musical narrative. The Chicago native’s true technique is giving life to an idea while exploring and expanding on the term “Americana.” Actively participating in the vibrant experimental music scene of Chicago, including a three-year residency in Brazil, allows him to collaborate with influential figures in the world of music. Ben received his BA in music education from Northeastern Illinois University. He has shared information as a music instructor in the Chicago Public School system, guest lectured at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and was a facilitator for six years with the Chicago Park District’s Inferno Mobile Recording Studio. The latter helped set the tone for a staple philosophy fueling his musicianship. A fundamental component of this approach is exploring the lineage of an idea passed from one generation to another. He aims for his work to have the same functionality as most folktales, which is to create variations on timeless themes to help people make sense of their existence and place in the world.

Soto has exhibited widely at venues including the Pérez Art Museum, Miami, Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, Omaha, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, where she was invited to inaugurate the MCA’s new space for civically-engaged art, the Commons, in 2018. Soto also recently completed a commissioned public project, Screenhouse, for a two-year exhibition in Chicago’s Millennium Park. She received her MFA in 2000 from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and has attended residencies including Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, Headlands Center for the Arts, and Art OMI, among others. In addition to her art practice, Soto is also co-director of The Franklin, an outdoor project and exhibition space located in the backyard of her home.

Alexandria Eregbu is an artist, curator, and dreamer. Her practice draws from history, lived experiences, and her own imagination to deepen her connectivity to the natural world. These mythic narratives often show up as an invitation to her universe, through textiles, drawing, writing, performance, and moving image. Alexandria's work has received generous support from Rebuild Foundation, Independent Curators International, Joyce Foundation, and 3Arts. She received her BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Anna Martine Whitehead does performance. She has been presented by venues including the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art; San José Museum of Art; Velocity Dance Center; Chicago Cultural Center; Links Hall; AUNTS; and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. She has developed her craft working closely with Onye Ozuzu, Jefferson Pinder, taisha paggett, Every house has a door, Keith Hennessy, BodyCartography Project, Julien Prévieux, Jesse Hewit, and the Prison + Neighborhood Art Project, among others. She has been recognized with awards and fellowships from the Graham Foundation, Portland Institute of Contemporary Art, the University of Chicago, 3Arts, Chicago Dancemakers Forum, Foundation for Contemporary Arts, Headlands Center for the Arts, Rauschenberg Foundation, and Djerassi. Martine has written about blackness, queerness, and bodies in action for Art21 Magazine, C Magazine, frieze, Art Practical; and has contributed chapters to a range of publications including Queer Dance: Meanings and Makings (Oxford, 2017), Organize Your Own: The Politics and Poetics of Self-Determination Movements (Sobsercove, 2016), Platforms: Ten Years of Chances Dances (2016), and Girl Zines: Making Media, Doing Feminism (NYU, 2009). Martine is the author of TREASURE | My Black Rupture (Thread Makes Blanket, 2016). annamartine.com

Jordan Martins is a Chicago based visual artist, curator, and educator. He received his MFA in visual arts from the Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA) in Salvador, Brazil in 2007, and is a lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and North Park University. He is the executive director of Comfort Station, a multi-disciplinary art space in Chicago. Martins’s visual work is based in collage processes, including painting, photography, video and installation, and he has exhibited nationally and internationally. His work has been featured in exhibitions at Goldfinch, The Mission, Evanston Art Center, LVL3, The Franklin, The Museu de Arte da Bahia, Zeitgeist, and Experimental Sound Studio. He was a resident in the Chicago Artists Coalition’s HATCH program in 2013. Martins is co-director of the Perto da Lá <> Close to There, a multidisplinary project with international artists in Salvador, Brazil and Chicago.

Josh Rios is faculty at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he teaches courses in visual critical studies and research-based practice. As a media artist, writer, and educator his projects deal with the histories, archives, and futurities of Latinx subjectivity and US/Mexico relations as understood through globalization and neocoloniality. Recent projects and presentations have been featured at The Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts (Omaha), the Blue Star Contemporary (San Antonio), Konsthall C (Stockholm), Tufts University Art Galleries (Boston), The School of Visual Art (New York), DiverseWorks (Houston), The Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art (Overland Park), The Luminary (St. Louis), the Mountain Standard Time Performative Art Biennial (Calgary, Canada), and the Sullivan Galleries at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago).Upcoming work will be featured at The Vincent Price Art Museum (Los Angeles). Additionally, Rios will chair a College Art Association session in 2020 titled, “Re-Working Labor: Art, Work, and Working Art” which examines the changing nature of labor and its relationship to creativity.

Sadie received her BA from Columbia College and MFA from The School of the Art Institute. She is a full-time artist and freelances as a curator, soundesigner, deejay and performs under the moniker Afrodjia. Sadie is currently a resident deejay at Lumpen Radio, Residents Orchestrate Project Manager at the Chicago Sinfonietta and Faculty at the School of the Art Institute.