Open Studio & Artists' Conversation

Join us on Friday, September 18, for an Open Studio and Artists' Conversation event at El Espacio 23 with our current CCI+WOPHA Fellow, Noa Batlle (b. Dominican Republic, lives in Santo Domingo), and WOPHA Artists in Residence, Val Souza (b. Brazil, lives in São Paulo), and Kay Zevallos Villegas (b. Peru, lives in Paris).

The work of the three artists sits at the intersection of photography and performance, with each exploring this relationship from different angles rooted in their personal inquiries and relationship with the world. Noa Batlle is interested in how urban spaces may or may not be welcoming for people with diverse abilities; Val Souza explores ideas of beauty through the Black woman's body; and Kay Zevallos juxtaposes the violence inflicted on the Amazonian woman's body and historical processes of extractivism.

This is a fantastic opportunity to meet the artists, explore their workspaces, and engage in stimulating discussions about their artistic practices and inspirations. The event will commence at 2:00 pm with a visit to the artists' studios, followed by a conversation with the artists at 3:00 pm, chaired by Charo Oquet, artist and founder of Edge Zones, a non-profit for experimental art and performance, and the Miami Performance International Festival.

Event schedule:

2:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Open studios visit

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm | Artists' conversation

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Reception

About the CCI+WOPHA Fellow

Noa Batlle develops a research-based practice through experimentation and collaboration, examining how systems organize access, belonging, and perception. Since 2013, their work has moved between artistic research and structural interventions within public institutions. Through The Interventions (2020–present), they have contributed to rethinking accessibility in Dominican public life, including the creation of the first municipal Department of Inclusion and Accessibility and initiatives supporting the country's most inclusive electoral process in 2024. Batlle approaches accessibility not as accommodation but as a critical lens for questioning dominant sensory and social orders. Recent work includes La Ocupación / The Occupation (2026), developed with curator José Roca for the Eduardo León Jimenes Biennial, and an ongoing nationwide intervention with the Dominican Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources advancing accessibility across the country's protected areas.