Raheem Nelson
The Alchemy of Art.
The small portrait of New Haven arts maven Ann Lehman welding in her studio is instantly recognizable to anyone who visited “The Alchemy of Art,” the show devoted to her work last year at Creative Arts Workshop. But New Haven-based artist Raheem Nelson’s graphic surrounds that portrait with a constellation of ideas that distills much of that complex exhibition and the various reports of it. In less than 10 seconds, we get a snapshot of who Lehman was, what her contributions to Creative Arts Workshop and the city were, and why we continue to celebrate her legacy. And our curiosity, perhaps, is whetted for more.
The piece is part of “Visual Notes,” an exhibition of works by Nelson, running now through Dec. 2 at Creative Arts Workshop’s Hilles Gallery at 80 Audubon St. The exhibition features works of “graphic recording,” in which Nelson, who has a BFA in cartooning, “attends meetings or events and creates infographics, on the spot, to convey all the important information and ideas discussed.” Supported by an American Rescue Plan grant, the New Haven Department of Arts, Culture & Tourism, and The Arts Council of Greater New Haven, Nelson created graphic recordings documenting the work of 20 New Haven organizations. Nelson “views his graphic recordings as a means ‘to support, uplift and use words and pictures to convey a powerful narrative.’”
Raheem Nelson
In Common Spaces.
Nelson’s work succeeds in capturing more than one narrative, covering events related to arts organization, climate action, the power of poetry, and more. In In Common Spaces, a graphic for an exhibition in Newhallville, the New Haven skyline appears hazy and in silhouette, a little off in the distance, a reminder of the proximity of the neighborhood to downtown, close yet apart. Following the graphic from left to right, it’s possible to trace the development of ideas about the exhibition as they may have happened at the meeting, moving from general to specific, and toward concepts that can lead to action.
New Haven Top 52 Places to Visit: Convening.
Taken all together, Nelson’s graphics also capture the larger narrative of a city in the process of steady change, and aware of that change. For New Haven Top 52 Places to Visit: Convening — regarding New Haven’s inclusion on a worldwide list by the New York Times of places it felt its readers should visit — the style of the graphic is friendly, a mood echoed in some of the comments from people at the meeting Nelson covered: “we love our city and each other”; “the world is shining on New Haven.” But there’s a sense of urgency embedded in those bright colors, too. “Invest,” one cloud reads, but right next to it, so as not to miss it, “honor social intelligence.”
Again reading left to right, the celebratory mood and high-minded ideas give way to more practical and pointed directives, conveying the dual understandings that any development of a place takes time, but that New Haven as a city may be finding itself at a crossroads, looking at possibilities for development unavailable for decades while having to ensure that it doesn’t shut out the people who make the city vibrant in the first place.
“This is a journey,” says one comment. It speaks to how long it has taken the city to reach the point it has. “A moment in time comes along only so often,” says another comment. That one speaks to something else: the need to act now, with the knowledge that we still have a chance to get it right.
“Visual Notes” runs at Creative Arts Workshop, 80 Audubon St., through Dec. 2. Visit CAW’s website for hours and more information.