Residency Events
on view & special gallery hours
August 1-9
Monday – Friday, 4–7 pm; Saturday & Sunday, 1–4 pm
Jo Nanajian is the Gallery 263 summer 2025 artist in residence. Nanajian’s residency will culminate in a one-week solo showcase that will be on view to the public August 1-9, 2025.
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
My name is Jo Nanajian. I’m originally from Beirut, Lebanon and moved to the Boston area when I was around 12. I also lived in Baltimore for some time, which played a big role in shaping my path as an artist. It’s where I began developing my practice more seriously and started showing work professionally. My background and experiences across different cities have deeply influenced both the themes I explore in my work.
What kind of work do you make?
It’s always a little difficult to describe, but I create abstract wall sculptures with a strong emphasis on material and texture. I often work with materials like plaster, nylon, and resin, combining them in experimental ways to explore ideas around memory, preservation, and transformation. The forms I build are influenced by nature, but they’re not direct representations. They’re more like emotional landscapes or fragments of memory made physical.
What concepts does your art explore?
My work explores concepts of memory and preservation. I use elements from nature as metaphors to reflect how memories shift, fade, or distort over time. Just like natural forms grow, change, or decay, our personal histories and the places we belong to also transform. I’m interested in capturing that fragility. The way something can be both beautiful and deteriorating at once.
In what ways is your identity reflected in your work?
Everything I create seems to circle back to the idea of home, missing it, yearning for it, and wondering how much of it has stayed the same or how much has become unfamiliar. The experience of moving across seas stays with you. It shapes the way you remember, the way you long for places, and the way you try to preserve something that is always changing. That tension is at the core of my practice.
What do you hope to accomplish in your residency?
During this residency, I am looking forward to shifting my focus to smaller scale works. I usually work quite large, so this will be an exciting challenge for me. I want to explore how my process translates when working with more intimate dimensions. I am curious to see how it pushes me to pay closer attention to detail, color, and surface. It also makes it way more easier to transport.
What are your most used materials? Most unusual?
One of the most unique aspects of my work is the way I approach surfacing. I have used tire shreds, granulated crystals in a range of textures from fine to flaky, and even ceramic dust. Each material becomes a new exploration in how to fuse texture and form.
What historical or contemporary artists inspire you?
Right now, I am very inspired by Diana Al-Hadid and Kennedy Yanko. They both approach sculpture and material in ways that are completely their own, which I really admire. Even though their practices are very different, they each push the boundaries of form and texture in powerful ways. That kind of individuality and experimentation is something I strive for in my own work.
How do you hope to engage the local community this summer?
I’m really excited to host a two-day workshop this summer. My sculptural process is very hands-on and experimental, and I’m eager to share it with others. The workshop will focus on building forms and exploring different surfacing techniques. My goal is to show how open and freeing sculpture can be, especially when working with unconventional materials. I hope it encourages people to experiment and discover their own creative language.
What are you looking forward to in the future, beyond this residency?
I am looking forward to continuing to grow my practice and share it more openly, not just within the art world but with broader communities who may be curious about sculpture. After leading this workshop, I would love to host more. Teaching and connecting through making has felt incredibly rewarding, and I hope to create more opportunities for people to learn and engage with the materials and ideas I work with.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
I guess just that there will be an opening reception at the end of the residency, and I would really love for everyone to come by. It’s on August 8th, which I recently remembered is also my birthday — so feel free to come see the work and make a wish with me. I promise there will be lots of texture, and good energy.
