Gerard Caliste is a painter and mixed media artist who describes his organic process as coming from his subconscious.  With this grant, Caliste continues the development of Ge.Cali Studio Gallery, newly established in The Heights neighborhood of Houston where he has lived for the past 15 years.  Caliste works as a full-time visual arts teacher in the Houston Independent School District and his new studio gallery provides Caliste with an environment where he can immerse himself in his own practice, work on a large scale and connect more with his community. Caliste is working toward a solo exhibit at the Alley Theater and MidMain Gallery in Houston, titled In da City In na Citi, an interchangeable figurative installation that will draw inspiration from the figurative energy and emotion of Houston. The narrative and figurative elements of his work evoke his hometown New Orleans and the complexity of the human soul.

Caliste will also travel to Stockholm, Sweden to lay the groundwork for a collaborative installation with his Swedish cousin and music producer Marvin Caliste Lindstrom. Caliste will study the Swedish urban music culture and landscape firsthand, finding inspiration through sketches and immersion in the music scene. He and Lindstrom are creating an experience that melds music and space.

Caliste attended Savannah College of Art and Design as a presidential scholar and earned his BFA in 2001. His work has been exhibited at the Lois Lambert Gallery of Functional Art in Santa Monica, Diaspora Vibe Cultural Arts Incubator in Miami, and Prospect.1 and Prospect. 4 satellite exhibitions in New Orleans.  His work is in private collections including those of Oprah Winfrey and Brad Pitt.  

Gerard Caliste was active in the YAYA guild 1994-1997.