2026-2027 Grant Solo Exhibition - Unhinged: The Exploration of Feminine Rage

Scholarship 2022-2023, 2023-2024, 2024-2025, 2025-2026

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Starr Smith is a visual artist specializing in portraiture and abstract expressionism based between New Orleans and New York. She primarily uses acrylic paint to build energetic compositions with vivid colors, while sometimes experimenting with bringing other media, such as fabric, photography, spray paint, paper, and molding paste into her painting practice. “The world around me constantly inspires me, and I take scenarios from my life experiences to build the backstories for many of my paintings,” explains Smith, who is also an experienced curator and installation artist, having recently earned a BFA in Fine Arts in Spatial Experience Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in NYC. “I am passionate about dynamic design with functionality. I plan to pursue these dreams by … designing and curating artistically driven exhibits and pop-up activations for museums, events, and brands,” she explains. Her dream is linked to a desire to empower communities, and she plans to pour the knowledge and resources she has gained into those around her through public exhibitions and youth education.

This grant will be used to support Smith's first solo exhibition, Unhinged: The Exploration of Feminine Rage which she has been developing over the past two years and plans to showcase at Axiom Gallery in New Orleans. “This exhibition investigates the spectrum of rage experienced by women, from explosive outward expression to passive-aggressive and inward, self-destructive responses shaped by systemic and personal inequities. Through painting, mixed media, and installation, I aim to create a space where these often-suppressed emotions are made visible, validated, and critically examined,” she explains. Grant funds will contribute to materials, supplies, studio space, exhibition space, and promotional materials. “My motivation for this project stems from deeply personal experiences navigating anger in environments where feminine expression is often constrained or dismissed,” reflects Smith. “This project is both cathartic and confrontational: it challenges viewers to reconsider how rage in women is perceived and to recognize its roots in broader social conditions.” She aims to create artwork that resonates on an individual level while contributing to larger cultural conversations around gender, power, and emotional agency.

This exhibit will be a manifestation of core themes in Smith’s work – emotional honesty and the reclamation of narratives that are frequently stigmatized. “Ultimately, Unhinged is more than an exhibition—it is an assertion of presence and a refusal to silence complex emotional realities. This project represents a significant step in my artistic career, and this grant will make it possible to fully realize its scope and impact,” she states. She will manage all creation and conceptual direction of the exhibit while utilizing a small team of other artists for production, installation, and documentation. “As a black woman in the art and design industry, I am acutely aware of the lack of representation and diversity. Through my work and advocacy, I hope to inspire and empower other women of color to pursue their passions and make their voices heard,” reflects Smith.

In addition to her BFA, Smith has earned an AAS in Communication Design Foundation and an AAS in Fine Art from FIT. She has exhibited artwork at FIT, where she was an incredibly active member of the Black Student Union, serving as Vice President, Executive Board Member, Director of Creative Content, and Social Media Manager throughout her tenure. ”One of my proudest achievements was leading the planning and execution of our 2025 Annual Fashion Show, Afrofuturist, which earned us the 2025 FIT Student Life Leader & Club Award for Collaborative Programming of the Year,” elaborates Smith. She interned at Center Stage Productions, studied at the New Orleans Center for Creative Art and first joined the YAYA Guild in 2013.