Arts & Entrepreneurship
Big ideas, real impact.
When we set forth to build a coworking space in Albuquerque, we wanted to develop a space where a community of “creatives” could come together. When we think of creatives, it isn’t a narrow definition, but rather any person or group of people who uses original and unusual ideas to produce something. Both artists and start-up entrepreneurs fit into this category.
In today’s world, there are lots of resources for venture-backed businesses, but there are far fewer for emerging artists. In addition to supporting Deciens Capital, a venture fund and the primary tenant of Blue Sky Coworking NM, we aim to leverage the resources designed for start-ups, also to support emerging artists.
Likewise, it was imperative to have dedicated philanthropic funds to support the work of emerging artistic professionals. We aimed to partner with established programs to expand their reach rather than competing with them.
That’s why for our 2026-2027 pilot season we decided to collaborate with the Harwood Art Center to help them expand the reach of their already tremendously impactful SURFACE: Emerging Artists of New Mexico, which is in its 17th cycle.
This partnership is rooted in a shared belief: creative work thrives when artists have access to space, community, and ongoing support. By bringing SURFACE programming into a coworking environment, we’re creating a setting where artists, entrepreneurs, and creative professionals intersect—sparking conversation, collaboration, and new possibilities.
Gallery Hours M-F 9 AM to 5 PM
-
Arts and cultural industries in New Mexico enjoy a national reputation that is far beyond the state’s size or economic standing. Narrowly defined, these industries employ 43,031 persons in New Mexico, equal to 1 of every 18 jobs. But sometimes it is hard to break into the industry. We wanted to create more paid opportunities for emerging practitioners to gain experience.
-
Almost everyone can use a bit of support as they take on a new endeavor. And even though there are some opportunities for emerging professionals in the NM ecosystem we want to help amplify the impact by partnering with them and offering incremental ways to leverage these resources.
-
So many philanthropists just start a new nonprofit or competing initiative instead we’d like to amplify the impact of successful programs.
Inhale + Exhale: The Embodiment of Self
A SURFACE Artist Alumni Satellite Gallery Exhibition
Curated by Jakia Fuller
Open November to February
Blue Sky and Harwood Art Center present our third SURFACE: Artist Alumni Satellite Gallery Exhibition featuring Robyn A. Frank and Latasha Hagan. Inhale + Exhale: The Embodiment of Self explores the journey of becoming who we are. Serving as a gentle reminder to breathe, this exhibition considers the open-ended conversation of identity through our relationships to self and community, and the spectrum of change. We invite audiences to reflect on embodiment, embodying authentic identity and what it takes to get there.
Opening Reception
November 13th
4:30 to 6:30 PM
Current Artists
Latasha Hagan
SURFACE Emerging Artist 2011
Latasha Hagan (they/them) is a photographer and illustrator whose creative journey began in Beaumont, Texas. Captivated by film photography, Latasha honed their skills and developed a passion for portraying the environment around them. A pivotal moment in their career came when they were given a Canon, marking the transition into digital photography. Moving to New Mexico and being surrounded by the state's beauty and culture reignited their love for photography. They are creating with renewed enthusiasm and a fresh perspective and expanding their skills as a current CNM art student.
For Latasha, photography is a way to connect without words that evokes an open-ended conversation about identity. Their work examines the intersections of light, identity, and embodiment, while centering the lived experiences of the LGBTQIA+ Black American community. Through the use of both natural and artificial light, they explore themes of visibility, tenderness, and resistance, creating intimate images that honor vulnerability and human connection. Latasha’s practice seeks to foster the recognition of love, presence of being, and care within communities that have socially and systematically been marginalized or overlooked.
Robyn A. Frank
SURFACE Emerging Artist 2013
Robyn A. Frank (they/ she) is a queer, jewish artist living in Albuquerque, NM. Frank grew up in Tampa, Florida where they began studying printmaking and interned at GraphicStudioUSF. They moved to Brooklyn, New York where they earned a BFA in Printmaking from Pratt Institute. Later, as a professional fine-art fabricator, Frank created paintings and prints for world-renowned artists including Japanese artist Takashi Murakami and Iranian artist Y.Z. Kami; works that have been exhibited at Gagosian, BLUM, and the Palace of Versailles. Now, as a full-time studio artist living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Robyn makes paintings, prints, and art objects for galleries, retail, and wholesale clients. Her art practice explores relationships, change, and our sense-of-self through a visual language of color and shape.
Our Emerging Curator
Blue Sky NM and Harwood Art Center are excited to announce the inaugural SURFACE: Emerging Curators of New Mexico Fellowship, a new opportunity designed to support the professional growth, visibility, and viability of curatorial talents in our community. The SURFACE: Emerging Curators of New Mexico Fellowship is dedicated to cultivating the growth of local creative talents, supporting their professional viability in the field, and expanding their visibility in the public sphere. The fellowship reflects a new component to Harwood Art Center’s SURFACE Emerging Artists of New Mexico Program, now in its 14th year.
For 2026-2027 Jakia Fuller is our fellow.
Let's create something meaningful together We're not here to just show work—we're here to build something together. We are building a series of workshops to help creatives on the entrepreneurial journey if you’d like to help co-create a session reach out.
Support emerging artists based in NM.
Improve ecosystem connectivity for “creatives”.
Learn from our pilot year.
Program Goals
Foster a sense of kinship between artists and entrepreneurs.
Have Blue Sky Coworking NM be a hub for impactful innovation in NM.
Our Partner
Harwood, the outreach program of Escuela del Sol Montessori, is a creative center for community and the arts. They engage the arts as a catalyst for lifelong learning, cultural enrichment and social change, with programming for every age, background and income level. They believe that equitable access to the arts and opportunities for creative expression are integral to inspired, passionate individuals and to healthy, vibrant communities. Participating at a grassroots level, they recognize and engage the arts as a catalyst for lifelong learning, social change and community development.
Their SURFACE: Emerging Artists of New Mexico program, now in its 17th year, is one of the few juried opportunities to focus on our local artists at pivotal point of inflection in their early careers. This program supports the creative and professional growth of emerging artists and to expand their visibility and viability in our community. They now have over 200 alumni artists and each year the program turns away many talented participants due to capacity constraints. We are excited to help them expand the reach of this important endeavor.