{"id":16058,"date":"2025-07-17T09:49:13","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T09:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/16058\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T09:49:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T09:49:13","slug":"7-artists-to-follow-at-foundations-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/16058\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Artists to Follow at Foundations 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

This month, Artsy launches Foundations<\/a>, a curated showcase highlighting artists at the beginning of their careers. With over 250 artists from 85 galleries from around the world, there\u2019s a wealth of names to watch, making this the perfect chance to discover fresh voices and buy fine art at an accessible price. <\/p>\n

At Artsy, we\u2019ve been combing the works in Foundations for our favorites. From an Indian portrait painter to an Icelandic textile artist, we selected seven that stood out. <\/p>\n

B. 1991, Kwahu, Ghana. Lives and works in Accra, Ghana.Works available at: Galerie REVEL<\/a>\"KWAKU\"KWAKU<\/p>\n

Kwaku Osei Owusu Achim<\/a>\u2019s otherworldly compositions feature full moons and swirling bodies of water, exploring themes of spirituality. In Achim\u2019s Foundations presentation<\/a> with Galerie REVEL<\/a>, the Accra-based artist examines how ritual can forge connections between community and everyday life through paintings inspired by West African literature.<\/p>\n

Using drawing as a starting point, Achim applies bold brushwork and layers his canvases to create dreamlike oil paintings. The opaque skies of Silent Gathering<\/a> (2023) provide an uncanny backdrop for vibrant silhouetted figures that huddle together, communicating through gesture and hand motions. Elongated arms sprouting from their heads suggest hybrid forms. With palms positioned like antennae, Achim\u2019s subjects appear to perform a sacred ritual.<\/p>\n

The artist also explores storytelling through language, incorporating the Ghanaian dialect, Akan, into his artwork titles. For instance, Odo koma<\/a> (2023), which derives from \u201cOdomankoma\u201d (meaning \u201cGod\u201d in Akan), depicts figures holding hands while praying in a pool of water. Through religious imagery, Achim references Ghanaian mythology, blurring the lines between the living and the spiritual.<\/p>\n

Achim studied medical data at Yeshua Institute of Technology before pursuing a career in art. In 2024, he mounted a solo exhibition with Omenai Gallery in Chicago. His work has also been featured in group exhibitions at Mitochondria<\/a>, Gallery 1957<\/a>, and Chilli Art Projects<\/a>, among others.<\/p>\n

\u2014Adeola Gay, Senior Curatorial Manager<\/p>\n

B. 1990, Liverpool, England. Lives and works in London.Works available at: NEVEN<\/a> \"Jen\"Jen<\/p>\n

Soil, resin, and charcoal made from bamboo all feature in the abstract wall works of London-based artist Jen O\u2019Farrell<\/a>. At Foundations 2025, her textural, resin-covered pieces are on view with tastemaking East London gallery NEVEN<\/a>. In Consciously Unconscious<\/a> (2024), flaky golden fragments of soil and paint pigments are preserved in a smooth yellow surface and surrounded by a beautiful, grid-like walnut frame. Meanwhile, the dark, sticky-seeming surface of Refractions II<\/a> (2024) is encased by a burned-out, black frame. <\/p>\n

These works are typical of the artist\u2019s abstract style, which evokes the raw texture of both wild and urban landscapes. Unruly splotches flicker across these works, suggesting geological formations, or perhaps fossils. For her works in Foundations, O\u2019Farrell was inspired by an artist residency she completed in the Atacama Desert in Chile, where she sourced the bioresin used in Consciously Unconscious. Her work, with its rough textures and edges, also invokes urban decay, serving as a reminder of industrialization\u2019s ties to the extraction of resources. You can also feel the influence of land art<\/a>, whose practitioners used natural processes and materials to create work about the environment.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Farrell has exhibited across London at museums including South London Gallery<\/a> and the V&A Museum<\/a>, and at galleries including Nicoletti Contemporary, Niru Ratnam, and NEVEN.<\/p>\n

\u2014Josie Thaddeus-Johns, Senior Editor<\/p>\n

B. 1984, India. Lives and works in New York.Works available at: Aicon Contemporary<\/a>\"Kuldeep<\/p>\n

In Cuddling the Land in Raag Marwa <\/a>(2024), a semi-abstract figure appears to float or recline in an ambiguous, chalky background. It\u2019s one of two paintings by Indian artist Kuldeep Singh<\/a> on view as part of Aicon Contemporary<\/a>\u2019s Foundations presentation<\/a>. Loosely rendered with expressive, gestural brushstrokes, the figure\u2019s contours blend into the surrounding patches of colors, creating a sense of intimacy and vulnerability.<\/p>\n

The work is typical of Singh\u2019s practice, which draws on \u201ca sacred working knowledge of countless bygone generations,\u201d as the artist shared on his website<\/a>. Indeed, Singh spent a decade training intensively in Indian classical dance, specifically the style of Odissi. The discipline dates back more than two millennia and emphasizes fluidity, grace, and spirituality\u2014qualities that permeate his paintings, which often focus on queer male figures. He also draws on historical Ragmala miniature paintings that depict Indian musical modes or \u201cragas.\u201d <\/p>\n

Singh received his MFA in painting and intermedia at the University of Iowa in 2015. Recent solo shows include \u201cMen music, and Hills\u201d at Seattle\u2019s Sand Point Art Gallery and \u201cNakhra: Towards Sacred Sensuality\u201d at Mumbai\u2019s Chermould CoLab. <\/p>\n

\u2014Arun Kakar, Senior Art Market Editor <\/p>\n

B. 1996, La Jolla, California. Lives and works in Atlanta.Works available at: ALLGORITHIM<\/a>\"Rebekah\"Rebekah<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an ominous tinge to Rebekah Rubalcava<\/a>\u2019s seductive paintings\u2014a sense of glamour mixed with decay. Threats loom over her pastoral scenes of young, frolicking women in varying states of undress: Swarms of ants descend on picnics, and tornados tear through dark skies. A self-taught painter, Rubalcava explores sexuality, spirituality, and the subconscious mind through her practice, often subverting symbols from her evangelical Christian upbringing to unsettle notions of feminine purity. <\/p>\n

Recently, Rubalcava\u2019s work has become increasingly surreal, as exemplified by Kindred<\/a> (2024). Included in ALLGORITHIM<\/a>\u2019s group presentation at Foundations, the painting features a pair of irises emerging from a shadowy landscape that\u2019s seemingly engulfed in pink flames. The title suggests a deep spiritual bond, while the fiery imagery evokes both the beauty and the danger that accompanies such close relationships.<\/p>\n

Rubalcava has exhibited in Los Angeles, London, and Shanghai, in group and solo shows with galleries including Soho Revue<\/a> and Rusha & Co.<\/p>\n

\u2014Olivia Horn, Managing Editor<\/p>\n

B. 1996, Seoul. Lives and works in Seoul.Works available at: drawingRoom<\/a>\"Sanoh<\/p>\n

In Hovering<\/a> (2025), dozens of ceramic wings burst outward from a central panel etched with the image of a single bird in flight. This is one of 10 works featured in Sanoh Lee<\/a>\u2019s presentation<\/a> with drawingRoom<\/a> for Foundations 2025. The bronze-toned wings radiate in all directions\u2014some outstretched, others mid-fold\u2014creating the impression of a frenzied flock frozen in motion, as if orbiting or protecting the gliding central figure. <\/p>\n

Birds are often the focus of the Korean artist\u2019s works. Wings, in particular, recur across her drawings and sculptures, acting as symbols of violent yet graceful transformation. Blood Feather<\/a> (2025), a composition in colored pencil, watercolor, ink, pastel, and pigment on paper, features ripples with feathered arcs and gossamer curves. It evokes a flock of doves in movement, which the artist uses as a \u201ca symbol of weightlessness and transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI see a bird going through a process of pausing and regeneration in the cycle of life as a being symbolizing a kind of non-gravity, whose existence has become as light as a feather,\u201d the artist wrote<\/a> on Instagram. <\/p>\n

Lee earned her MFA in ceramic craft from Seoul National University of Science and Technology and her BFA in Korean painting from Sejong University. Her recent solo exhibitions in Seoul include \u201cEclipse Plumage<\/a>\u201d at drawingRoom and \u201cIsland of Pale Languages\u201d at Gallery Moomok.<\/p>\n

\u2014Maxwell Rabb, Staff Writer<\/p>\n

B. 1985, Bogot\u00e1. Lives and works in Bogot\u00e1.Works available at: Milk Moon<\/a>\"Vanessa<\/p>\n

Years spent living in Finland and Iceland inspired Colombian artist Vanessa Valero<\/a>\u2019s relationship to the environment. In particular, the Nordic region taught her to observe nature more closely, helping her to translate its moods into material form. For instance, Invisible Mountains<\/a> (2025)\u2014part of the artist\u2019s Foundations 2025 presentation<\/a> with Milk Moon<\/a>\u2014is made from layered, hand-tufted wool yarn arranged in horizontal bands that ripple across the surface. These waving bands shift in texture and color, forming a stylized mountain range in soft gradients of rose, ochre, moss, violet, and midnight blue.<\/p>\n

Much of Valero\u2019s work explores texture and depth, using the sculptural qualities of fiber to evoke natural phenomena. While Invisible Mountains depicts its titular peaks, Last Light<\/a> (2024), also part of her presentation, takes a more abstract approach. The field of hand-tufted blue yarn transitions into a dramatic cascade of vivid orange hand-knotted tassels\u2014perhaps evoking the fleeting moment when sunlight breaks against the horizon.<\/p>\n

Valero earned a design degree from Los Andes University in 2010, then moved to the Nordic region to study textiles more deeply. An internship in Reykjavik introduced her to Icelandic fiber traditions, the subject of her master\u2019s thesis at Aalto University in Finland. <\/p>\n

\u2014M.R.<\/p>\n

B. 1997, California. Lives and works in Utah and Montana.Works available at: Material<\/a>\"Kelly\"Kelly<\/p>\n

Serape blankets have a complicated history. These vibrant, finely woven textiles, often worn as cloaks or ponchos, originate in Indigenous communities of northern Mexico but reflect European influence. They also became a Mexican national symbol following the country\u2019s revolution in the early 20th century. For Xicana artist Kelly Tapia-Chuning<\/a>, serapes are a symbol of her mestizo identity, which she explores in her practice by dismantling these textiles. <\/p>\n

In her works on view in Foundations with Material<\/a>, the colorful weft threads are missing in parts, leaving behind diamond patterns strung together by only the undyed warp strands. These blank threads are pulled taut and fixed with copper nails, or sometimes braided together like hair, as in Visions of a Pink Sky<\/a> (2025). By deconstructing the serapes, the artist explains in her statement<\/a>, she intends to \u201csignal a dismantling of the systems within colonial power structures.\u201d The unraveled blanket appears vulnerable but also firm, turned into a bold abstract shape through the fibers\u2019 tension. <\/p>\n

Tapia-Chuning holds an MFA from the Cranbrook Academy of Art and received CAA\u2019s 2023 Visual Arts Fellowship. She has exhibited with galleries across the U.S. including Gavlak in Los Angeles, Material in Salt Lake City, and Eric Firestone Gallery<\/a> in New York. <\/p>\n

\u2014J.T-J<\/p>\n

Artsy Editorial<\/p>\n

Image credits, clockwise from top left: Sanoh Lee, \uc591\ub825 Lift, 2025. Courtesy of drawingRoom. Kuldeep Singh, Late in the Sunset Park, 2022. Courtesy of Aicon Contemporary. Vanessa Valero, Crossing Mountain Ranges, 2024. Courtesy of Milk Moon. KWAKU OSEI OWUSU ACHIM,
Between the lines of touch, 2024. Courtesy of Galerie REVEL.<\/p>\n