About “Bridgeport Art Trail USA: An Authentic Narrative”
Venice, Italy

Curated by Suzanne Kachmar, artist and executive director of City Lights/Bridgeport Art Trail

Exhibiting artists include Isa Aldyn, Carlos Biernnay, Will Corprew, Claude Desir Jr., Bob Keating, Suzanne Kachmar, Martha Willette Lewis, Inna Linov, Iyaba Ibo Mandingo, Rita Valley, Joan Wheeler.

Inspired in part by the title of the 2024 Venice Biennale theme, Stranieri Ovunque, Foreigners Everywhere, this suitcase art exhibit features the work of Bridgeport Art Trail artists depicting relevant concerns for people in the USA, offering a different perspective than the common narratives that people in other countries may have of people from the U.S. through stereotypes formed from popular culture and media. The art expresses contemporary concerns people in the USA contend with, including gun violence, sociopolitical and racial tensions, global warming. The process of literally transporting art in suitcases is a participatory metaphor representing the theme, celebrating our beautiful diversity, the appreciation of our differences and commonalities.

Viewers are asked to consider the concept of the American dream and hype in relation to the creative manifestations by a diverse group of Bridgeport Art Trail artists. For a city of 150,000, Bridgeport has an extraordinary resource of  8 arts studio buildings; the Bridgeport Art Trail represents 200+ artists, organizations and initiatives. Bridgeport CT is a city that struggles with the symptoms of  poverty and the wealth disparity of Fairfield County; Bridgeport is a stark contrast to the profile of one of the wealthiest areas in the country.

When you meet an individual from a foreign place, preconceived perspectives are changed, generalities are contextualized, and attitudes can change. The arts have the power to connect people from diverse backgrounds and perspectives. Otherness is no longer foreign, and commonalities create a bond. Most of the exhibiting Bridgeport Art Trail artists made the trip, to transport, install art and tour the Biennale, living in community to support each other as foreigners in Venice. This experience strengthens our peer-to-peer relationships of respect and friendship. 

Bridgeport's involvement in this extraordinary opportunity would not have happened if not for the vision, energy and open heart of Peter Hopkins, director of the SHIM art network. Executive director of City Lights/Bridgeport Art Trail expresses her gratitude, "Peter Hopkins has opened the gate to the global art world! It's a fabulous opportunity for the artists and an invigorating curatorial challenge."

To learn more about the Bridgeport Art Trail go to BridgeportArtTrail.org