I am pleased to announce that I will be exhibiting along with Laura Sanders at the 15th Spring/Break Art Show in New York City, September 23 - 28, 2026. The theme of the show is "Hide N' Seek". Our project is titled "Lost N' Found" and is curated by Ingrid Dinter of DFA Curatorial.
Click HERE to purchase tickets to the fair!
Location: 555 W 57th St, New York, NY 10019
(CBS Television Studios + Offices)
Booth A27
SHOW DATES
September 23 - 28, 2026
Collector's First Look Preview
Wednesday, September 23rd 12:00 - 5:00PM
OPENING NIGHT
Wednesday, September 23rd 5:00 - 8:00PM
Public Show Days
Thursday, September 24th - Monday, September 28th 12:00 - 7:00PM
Curatorial Statement:
Hide n Seek or Lost n Found, both evoke actions of withdrawal and redemption. To hide something could be considered losing it, as well seeking implies eventually finding what had been lost or hidden.
Typically hide and seek is the name of a fun and lighthearted children’s game. A form of make believe, it involves choosing a person who then hides while the rest stand still and cover their eyes. When called upon they open their eyes and run around looking to find the spot where the person is hiding. Usually, great hilarity ensues and the next round starts.
Lost and found suggests a more serious set of circumstances: something of great value is misplaced, or displaced, or disappears, sometimes forever – and sometimes, to enormous relief, it is recovered, found.
Though two unique and highly skilled artists, each on their own individual path, the work of Daina Higgins and Laura Sanders reflects both of these themes.
In Daina Higgins work we see her reaching into her own personal past and history, including her experiences in the graffiti world. From her family’s flight as refugees and immigrants from Lithuania, leaving behind the old world for the new, to her own experiences growing up in Columbus Ohio, and finding herself in the graffiti world, trading the loss for the found.
“In The Blood Bowl” is the real name of a real place, a culvert that crosses under a highway, mostly empty but providing flood relief if called for. It was a perfect place for skateboarders to practice their runs and jumps, and for graffiti artists to leave their tags, and for best friends to hang out away from adult supervision. In this depiction we see a couple of teenage friends, with ghostly figures drifting and floating in the trees above. This evokes haunted memories of the transition from losing the innocence of childhood to gaining the knowingness of adulthood.
Higgins four smaller works are titled “Pensive Christ”, which are depicted in each of the four seasons. They are renderings from actual photographs taken while visiting Lithuania in recent years. (By chance her mother had taken similar photographs while on an earlier visit.)
It is typical, particularly in parts of rural Europe, to encounter these small shrines along roadways. They are lovingly maintained, and indicate there is a church or chapel close by. They offer spiritual protection, to those lost and hiding, guidance for those who seek, and comfort to those who find.
Laura Sanders works, though visually on a different wavelength, share similarities with Higgins.
The depictions, each showing a young woman in an outdoor setting, have a pervasive sense of urgency to them. “Cloud Formation” shows a woman reclining in what might have been a leisurely visit to a park, seeming to sit up in alertness to something happening in the surroundings. We, like her, don’t quite know what it might be.
Hovering just over her head is a floating silver pillow-size balloon – referencing Andy Warhols inflated clouds which he famously floated in his studio. Reflected on the balloons surface is a distorted image of something behind the viewer – we get to see something normally hidden.
The three smaller portraits of women, two with whistles, suggests that something more menacing than simply enjoying some time outdoors is taking place, or about to happen. Perhaps the fear of some threat lurking close by has them on edge, about to resort to a call for help. But their demeanor also suggests that they are ready to take care of themselves.
If you go out to the woods today don’t forget to pack your rescue howler. You never know what unexpected, unwanted, and unwelcome, situations may arise.
The loss of innocence. The hidden danger. Seeking safety. Finding security, especially within the self.
Both artists share a meticulous and unhurried painting technique. The depictions are realistic representations, finely rendered. The work is deeply considered and personal.
On the hunt for hidden gems, or stumbling upon mysterious circumstances, finding what one thought was lost, comes full circle.
I am pleased to be included in Yellow Chair Salon's "Community", a salon exhibition of over 90 New York City-based artists at Art Cake in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
Community
214 40th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11232
From the Yellow Chair Salon website:
Yellow Chair Salon and Art Cake are pleased to present Community, an exhibition celebrating the artists who make Brooklyn and the greater New York metropolitan area one of the most vibrant creative communities in the world.
Community marks the beginning of a new collaboration between Art Cake and Yellow Chair Salon and is rooted in a simple premise: an artistic community is itself a curatorial force.
Inspired by the democratic spirit of the Salon des Refusés, the community-centered ethos of projects such as the Brooklyn Museum’s GO, and the experimental, artist-driven culture of contemporary spaces like O’Flaherty’s, the exhibition proposes an alternative model for bringing artists together. Rather than relying on juries or traditional curatorial selection, it begins with trust in the artists themselves.
There is no application process, no jury, and no selection committee. There is simply an invitation to participate. Any artist living or working in the New York metropolitan area is welcome to exhibit.
Participation extends beyond contributing an artwork. Each artist is responsible for installing their own work, transforming the act of hanging into an extension of artistic practice. As participants respond to the works around them, the exhibition becomes a dialogue within itself—a call and response that evolves through the acts of conception and installation. One work prompts another; proximity creates unexpected relationships; decisions are made, reconsidered, and negotiated. Through this process, every artist becomes both participant and curator, and the exhibition emerges as a collective act of authorship.
To maintain the exhibition’s local and communal character, all artwork must be delivered, installed, and removed by the artist. No shipping or artwork handling will be provided.
Community is not intended as a survey or a competition. It is a gathering—a living portrait of a community seen through the artists who comprise it. It celebrates the diversity of practices, generations, and voices that continue to make Brooklyn and the greater New York area places where artistic experimentation flourishes.
At the heart of the collaboration between Art Cake and Yellow Chair Salon is a shared belief in the importance of creating spaces where artists can come together, take risks, exchange ideas, and actively shape the cultural environments around them. Art Cake’s commitment to providing artists with a physical space for experimentation and exchange meets Yellow Chair Salon’s broader ecosystem of conversation, critique, mentorship, exhibition, and community. Together, they are interested in what happens when those ideas move beyond programming and become a shared, participatory space—one shaped not only for artists, but by them.
This exhibition is an invitation to do exactly that.
Read: https://artspiel.org/interview-with-daina-higgins-on-graffiti-risk-and-the-art-of-impermanence/
I was honored to be interviewed by the independent curator Michele Jaslow of Radar Curatorial on "Graffiti, Risk, and the Art of Impermanence". The interview is accompanied by a video produced by author and photographer Daniel Paterna and published in the online independent journal Art Spiel.
Video still
It was a pleasure to host author and photographer Daniel Paterna and Michele Jaslow in my Sunset Park studio in December, 2025. Daniel really captured the essence of my ideas and inspirations, as well as the overall mood of my space. This video, "In the Studio with Daina Higgins", is featured in my Artspiel.org interview with Michele Jaslow, "Interview with Daina Higgins: On Graffiti, Risk, and the Art of Impermanence".
Daina Higgins, Blackbook I and Blackbook II on view
I was honored to be featured on Haystack Art's "In Conversation" blog series, where I discuss my inspirations for my Blackbook I and Blackbook II print edition with Haystack, a fine art print publisher.
"In Conversation with Daina Higgins, Who Will Always Have a Canvas Outside"
I was honored to be interviewed for Issue 012 of the "OnTV" Artist Insight Interview series by Thomas VanDyke, of Thomas VanDyke Gallery in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
J&M STUDIOS Spring Open Studios 2026
This event is a two-day exhibition of international contemporary art, showcasing the work of current residency and studio artists within our growing creative community. Co-presented with NARS Foundation, the event invites the public to meet over 40 artists and engage with a wide range of artistic practices and perspectives. Visitors are welcomed into the intimacy of the studio environment, offering a glimpse into the evolving creative processes of the artists who shape our community.
Friday, June 5 | 6–9 pm
Saturday, June 6 | 1–5 pm
Studio #407
201 46th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11220
Directions: J&M STUDIOS is two express subway stops from Manhattan. Take the “N” or “D” to 36 St. Transfer to the “R” one stop to 45 St. Walk to 46th Street then make a right and walk down 46th street to the building on the corner of 46th street and 2nd Ave on the right.
Hands On
A Studio Exhibition by the
Long Island City Studio Collective
Opening Friday, April 24, 5-7pm
Please join me!
For our Long Island City Studio Collective's Studio Exhibition, Hands On
Opening Reception: Friday, April 24, 5–7 PM
On View: Saturday, April 25, and Sunday, April 26, 10 AM–6 PM
21-16 40th Ave, 4th Floor
Long Island City, NY 11101Directions: One block from the M Train stop (F on weekends) at 21st-Queensbridge, five blocks from the 7/N/W stop at Queensboro Plaza. Entrance is on 40th Avenue between 21st and 22nd Streets. The studio is a walk up stairs to the 4th floor. Contact me directly for elevator assistance.
Artists: Elham Bayati, Katie Davis, Sarah Fairchild, Adrian Hatfield, Erika b Hess, Daina Higgins, Julie Himel, Heather Jones, Kurt Lightner, Jodi Lightner, Kira Nam Greene, Hannah Rotwein, Amy Sacksteder, Laura Sanders
Hands On is a studio exhibition featuring the work of painters, sculptors, and artists working in textile and mixed media from the Long Island City Studio Collective. For each of these artists, making is a physical act, an engagement with material shaped directly by the hand. With the accelerating influence of artificial intelligence on so many aspects of our lives, this hand-built realm remains outside AI’s domain. These works carry within them evidence of the artist’s body, its rhythms, hesitations, decisions, and touch. Hands On proposes that the act of making is not merely a means to an image, but that it transmutes the work with a bodily intelligence, a somatic knowledge that remains uniquely human.
Image: Detail of Keeping The Family Together, 2024, oil, acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 33 x 25 inches
@licstudios2116 @
laurasandersstudio @bitterdrinksforoldmen @sarahfairchildstudio @erikabhess @adrianhatfieldart@dainahiggins_studio @heatherjonesstudio @jodilightner @hannah_rotwein @elybayati @amysacksteder_studio @juliehimel @kiranamgreene @kdavisstudio
I am thrilled to have a work on paper in Palladium/Athena Project Space’s inaugural work on paper exhibition! Study for Keeping the Family Together, 11x8.5 inches, Acrylic, colored pencil, and ballpoint pen on 100% cotton rag paper, 2024, $750 USD, framed in a custom shadow box frame (frame size 16x12 inches). DM @palladium.athena.project for purchase
I am participating in the Fall 2025 Sunset Park Open Studios in Sunset Park, Brooklyn! I am in the J&M / NARS Foundation building on the corner of 46th Street and 2nd Avenue. Our building houses studios for over fifty local and international artists. Please note that my studio is #407, which is a walk up stairs to the fourth floor.
Friday, October 17th, 6 - 9 PM
Saturday, October 18th, 1 - 5 PM
Sunday, October 19th, 1 - 5 PM
Daina Higgins Studio
Studio #407
J&M Studios
201 46th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11220
Directions: NARS is two express subway stops from Manhattan. Take the “N” or “D” to 36 St. Transfer to the “R” one stop to 45 St. Walk to 46th Street then make a right and walk down 46th street to the building on the corner of 46th street and 2nd Ave on the right.
Aerosol Euphoria:Urban Street Art
Think of rooftop burners, freight train tags, alley murals, and the raw visual poetry found in every corner of the urban jungle.
From street veteran to studio rebel, this exhibition displays how the euphoria of street art lives loudly in every form and is a part of our culture.
Gallery Exhibition Dates: Saturday, September 13 – Sunday, October 12, 2025, weekends 1‐6 P.M.
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 13, 2025, from 1‐6 P.M.
100 WORKS ON PAPER
KENTLER BENEFIT EXHIBITION
Exhibition on view: September 20 - October 17
Thursday - Sunday, 12 - 5pm
Kick-off Party: Saturday, Sept. 20, 4 - 6pm
BENEFIT: Saturday, October 18, 6pm
More than 100 original drawings and works on paper donated in support of our annual Benefit, celebrating 35 years! The exhibition will open with a public reception on September 20th, then remain on view for three weeks prior to the ticketed event on October 18th.
All Benefit proceeds support our 2025 Exhibitions & Events, Kentler Flatfiles and K.I.D.S. Art Education. In addition to funding these vital nonprofit programs, the Benefit showcases the incredible talent of our international artist community. THANK YOU for your generosity!
BENEFIT EVENT INFORMATION:
PURCHASE ONE TICKET • CHOOSE ONE WORK OF ART!
$300 individual / $350 couple
Tickets are limited! (check back soon for link to purchase)
HOW IT WORKS:
• Ticket Holders DRAW A NUMBER upon arrival at 6pm.
• When your number is called, you CHOOSE ONE WORK OF ART from the wall!
• In the meantime, bid on silent auction items, enjoy delicious local fare and celebrate with fellow Kentler supporters!
I wrote a short editorial, "In Praise of Colored Mud", about the enduring appeal of painting in the age of artificial intelligence for (the)Magazine, a print and digital magazine organized by Trudy Giordano. The volume 3 issue of (the)Magazine is thematically centered around AI. A full e-pub or print copy can be purchased here.
Jonathan Stevenson's essay, "Daina Higgins: At Home With Discord", is published on Two Coats of Paint. The essay originally appearing in the catalogue, Growing Up Graffiti.
Growing Up Graffiti catalog published by Contemporary Art Matters, April 2025
Belonging: The Long Island City Studio Collective
April 10 – June 13th, 2025
Opening Reception: Thursday, April 10, 5-7pm
Contemporary Art Matters
243 N 5th Street, Suite 110
Columbus, OH 43215
NYC Counterpart, Open Studio Reception:
Tuesday, May 6th, 10am-6pm
2116 40th Avenue, 4th Floor
Long Island City, NY 11101
info@contemporaryartmatters.com
From the Press Release:
Belonging: The Long Island City Studio Collective
Co-curated by Rebecca Ibel and Laura Sanders
Participating Artists: Elham Bayati, Laura Bidwa, Sarah Fairchild, Adrian Hatfield,
Erika b Hess, Daina Higgins, Dion Johnson, Heather Jones, Kurt Lightner, Jodi Lightner, Nikos Rutkowski, Amy Sacksteder, Laura Sanders and Johnny Taylor.
Contemporary Art Matters is pleased to present Belonging: The Long Island City Studio Collective, an exhibition featuring the work of fourteen painters from this New York City collective. The show will be on view at the gallery’s 243 N 5th Street, Columbus, OH location, April 10- May 30th with an opening reception on Thursday, April 10th, 5-7 PM. In addition, a special LIC studio exhibition will take place during the first week of May, with a May 6th reception at the studio’s 2116 40th Ave., Long Island City, Queens location.
Belonging: The Long Island City Studio Collective, celebrates the power of solidarity between artists. By establishing a presence in NYC, the collective members gain access to a thriving arts community and the vast cultural opportunities of one of the world’s most influential artistic centers. Housed in a centuries-old former factory in Queens, the studio collective equips artists to strengthen their role within the larger art world by welcoming visits from gallerists, curators, and collectors. It serves not only as a workspace but also as a professional hub. Founded in 2021 by Kurt Lightner and Laura Sanders, the collective emerged from a shared ambition to create a dedicated space beyond the artists’ home bases to cultivate new opportunities for increased visibility and career growth. With members hailing from diverse geographical regions, the studio fosters connections that extend beyond local communities, expanding the members' cultural networks.
Inspired by the resilience and ingenuity that arise from artistic kinship, this exhibition presents dynamic works reflecting a spectrum of creative visions, all bound by a spirit of camaraderie that provides fuel for an artist’s lifelong practice. An artist’s journey is uniquely unconventional, yet one constant may be the network of support formed through creative communities. Collectives have long served as both a remedy for isolation and a means of sharing resources. With the establishment of The Long Island City Studio Collective, these artist allies have nurtured a space for collaboration, resource-sharing, and mutual encouragement, where they can belong to the conversation within a vibrant, global art scene.
Coinciding with the exhibition, Contemporary Art Matters is delighted to release Growing Up Graffiti, a catalog featuring new paintings by Daina Higgins, accompanied by an essay about her work by Jonathan Stevenson, a contributing writer for The New York Times and Two Coats of Paint. Higgins’ work reflects her personal engagement with graffiti culture and a fascination with forgotten urban sites, places unguarded from the expressive hand of a spray-paint-wielding artist. In this exhibition, Higgins revisits her formative roots in graffiti while incorporating its hallmark medium, spray paint, into her compositions. In the title painting, Growing Up Graffiti, a glowing neon tag beckons to us from under a freeway overpass. Its intensity is challenged by the last rays of sunset and the eye of the moon peering out from behind wisps of suggested curtains, subtly veiling the scene. Her vivid and layered approach to painting echoes the overlapping nature of memory.
Opens Thursday, September 26, 5-7 PM. More info here: https://contemporaryartmatters.com/flora-and-fauna/#
August 17th - 22nd
FREE! RSVP Required. RSVP here: https://www.intoaction2024.com/
Resolution Studios
2226 W. Walnut Street
Chicago, IL 60612