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Local Art at Chocolat

At Chocolat Restaurant & Bar, we offer our wall space for community artists to showcase their art either for purchase or for display. The Harlem community is known worldwide for having such a diverse and passionate array of artists; we aim to treat our restaurant as a space for community artists, and expose our guests to extraordinary local talent. For more information, contact us at (212) 222-4545 or info@chocolatharlem.com.

Omo Misha

"Untitled"


Curator and Featured Artist

An active member of the Harlem creative community, Omo Misha enjoys a vibrant career in the arts and education. She has curated exhibitions and art events on behalf of the NYC Parks Department, Harlem CDC, Helene Fuld College of Nursing, Columbia University, Community Works, Knox Gallery and other creative and community-based establishments. She is curator-in-residence for Café One, near City College, and has exhibited her own art throughout New York City. Misha has been featured on HGTV, National Public Radio, and in numerous local and national print publications; has executed public art installations on behalf of the Harlem River Park Task Force and the 125th Street Business Improvement District (2011), and; has been awarded artistic grants by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (2011), Puffin Foundation (2007, 2010) and Harlem Arts Alliance (2008, 2009).

Misha is a published author, contributing writer to Of Note Magazine and Arts & Culture writer for The Morningsider. She currently serves as Program Director for the LeRoy Neiman Art Center in Harlem and has affiliations with the Curriculum Art Project at Symphony Space, Curate NYC, ArtCrawl Harlem and Harlem Biennale.

www.OmoMisha.com


ANTON

"Look Beyond The Surface"


Featured Artist

Modern Artist, Anton, dwells in the New York City area creatively exploring the many artistic avenues life has to offer in New York’s urban inner city melting pot. Aggressively creating new paintings almost daily, the artist expresses that when creating, his themes instinctively revolve around striving through adversities no matter how challenging. “My intentions are to provoke and jolt the viewers’ thinking by challenging them visually.”

Addictively drawn toward colors and shapes, Anton began nurturing his artistic ability at an early age. Painting, drawing, coloring and sketching were a few of the many art forms in which the artist showed natural talent. With a thirst to create a unique style of his own, the artist began studying unconventional artists and African art. Soon after, a style evolved and Anton has nurtured this empowering vision since.

The artist quotes, “I am traveling my soul’s path. I create fearlessly and spontaneously. My spirit is adventurous, free of boundaries and limitations caused by rules and regulations, whatever they may be or whatever I was told to believe. When creating, I have no idea of what I’m going to do or in which direction I will go. This means I have no idea of what the outcome will be. I don’t think about such things; I just create. This organic approach is truly unique, refreshing and inspiring.

https://sites.google.com/site/antonmodernart/

BAI

"Mask Untitled"


Featured Artist

Carl E. Karni-Bain aka BAI was born in Virginia in 1959. He attended California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California, majoring in classical drawing and painting.

Over the last three decades BAI’s work has dealt with the human form. He has consistently used the African Mask as the foundation of his portraits. The mask, much like the human face, takes the artist as well as the viewer on a never ending journey of twist and turns, ups and downs.  He uses color to capture the emotional state of his subject: The reds and dark oranges generally symbolize the turmoil and suffering the subject has endured; blues and greens represent the calm and peacefulness, and; the bright yellows indicate a bright future ahead. Like life, his portraits are not always predictable, however.

BAI has exhibited throughout the United States and Internationally. His works are in the collection of private museums. He has exhibited in major art fairs like The Affordable Art Fair New York and Art Basel Miami. His work can be found in several private collections throughout the world.