ACCNV presents

2025

The second iteration of the Desert Biennial Project, inspired by Gravity: defying it, needing it, feeling it, ignoring it, agreeing with it.

AALIYAH FAFANTO

Defying Gravity: Uplifted by Unity

MATERIALS

Artist Statement

"This piece symbolizes the resilience of Black communities in the face of systemic oppression. The faceless Black doll, suspended and uplifted despite the weight of white concrete hands pulling downward, represents our collective strength and refusal to be broken by racism, capitalism, or social expectation. Adorned in African fabrics and locs, the doll becomes a vessel for shared memory, struggle, and ascension. Defying Gravity: Uplifted by Unity invites viewers to witness both the weight and the triumph of the Black experience—how we rise, together, even when the world tries to hold us down.

My artistic practice is rooted in storytelling as a form of cultural preservation and resistance. Through film, poetry, installation, and community-centered work, I explore the intersections of Blackness, queerness, and ancestry. I center the voices, histories, and dreams of marginalized people by creating immersive, emotionally resonant experiences that challenge societal norms and inspire collective healing. My work is deeply influenced by my upbringing across Inglewood, New Orleans, and Las Vegas, and often integrates spiritual and folkloric elements as tools for survival, memory, and joy. I believe in the power of art to shift consciousness and liberate the soul."

Artist bio

Aaliyah Fafanto is a Black, queer multidisciplinary artist, educator, and cultural worker based in Las Vegas. Their work spans film, poetry, and performance, with a growing focus on visual installation. In 2025, Aaliyah’s first installation piece, Flags of Our People, will debut at the Juneteenth in the Present exhibition at Henderson City Mall. This marks a new chapter in their practice, expanding into large-scale, immersive storytelling. Aaliyah’s work uplifts Black queer experiences, blending cultural memory with social commentary. A published author and multi-award-winning poet, they use art to inspire reflection, dialogue, and healing across marginalized communities.

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ALEX PANZER

TBD

TBD

Artist Statement

Informed by traditional and experimental [graphic] design methods, Alex’s [digital] work primarily focuses on psychological concepts, emphasizing the inner child on a personal individualized level and in broader social contexts. Visually, he achieves this with the help of cartoon imagery and other childhood references. Attempting to provoke the viewer’s mind, Alex walks the fine line between being subliminal and rather obvious. Recently, Alex has taken a slight step back from the screen to explore art and [graphic] design in the physical world. Using the following question to guide him on this journey, “How does one take something digital and make it physical beyond the traditional practice of printing it and framing it?”

Artist bio

Alex Panzer lives and works in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he was also born and raised. He graduated twice from UNLV, first with a degree in Graphic Design and a minor in Art History, then with a degree in Psychology. Alex would go on to work at the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, where he would focus on graphic design and other museum tasks gaining skills in exhibition design, art handling and much more. During this time, Alex would release his first few zines, participate, and show work for the first time in the group show, Bridging the Gap, an architecture and design exhibition hosted by UNLV’s architecture department, spotlighting six fine artists among various architects and architecture students hosted by UNLV’s architecture department. Soon after, Alex would pivot and begin working towards a career in art education. Since then, he has become an elementary school teacher, teaching the first grade and has shown work in two more group art shows, OOPS! 2 and SKETCH PARTY.

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APRIL BERMUDEZ

ORBITAL DANCE

Brown paper, gesso paint, rocks of various size

Artist Statement

"A dancer as the axis, with a spin that creates the rings of a planetary orbit; the embodiment of life and existence, painted with twist and turns, resulting in a continuous path.

Every one of us has had experiences that shape who we are. For me, I choose to use my experiences as a means to understand existence and the chaotic magic of life. My experiences have informed my life and soul; and now, my art. "

Artist bio

April Bermudez is a multidisciplinary artist whose work is informed by personal experiences and the deciphering of life. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she tells stories of her past, while seeking to define the complexities, absurdities, and marvels of existence. Whether presenting her direct experiences, or serving as a mirror to the experiences of her audience, Bermudez challenges the conceptualization of art to stretch beyond the conventional boundaries of medium or style. She has participated in numerous group shows in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, with work most recently at Las Vegas City Hall and Winchester Cultural Center.

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HEATHER LANG-CASSERA

DID YOU HAVE FEATHERS?

Clay, metal, cord, paint, cardboard

Artist Statement

"Featuring a flying dinosaur, this piece explores gravity as both a physical and metaphorical force, anchoring fossils in the earth and imagination in the sky, evoking the beauty found at the intersections of science and wonder.

Driven by curiosity, juxtaposition is the backbone of my creative practice. My work explores seeming dualities: fire and flood, repetition and redundancy, vulnerable witness and autonomous self. I am drawn to contradictions that shape both internal and external landscapes and the spaces in which opposites blur and even collide. My explorations embrace the terrifying splendor of our natural world, from larger-than-life ancient oceanic fauna to modern-day flora blooming discreetly in sidewalk crevices. In downtown Las Vegas, I work across mediums from vitrified ceramics to the vivid sprawl of literary language. My work does not seek to resolve incongruities. Rather, I invite the audience to revel in their own curiosities, to both take control yet self-surrender, to investigate what it means to thrive, curiously, within dichotomies."

Artist bio

Heather Lang-Cassera is a multidisciplinary artist. She served as the 2019-2021 Clark County, Nevada Poet Laureate, was a 2022 Nevada Arts Council Literary Arts Fellow, and was named 2017 Best Local Writer or Poet by the readers of KNPR’s Desert Companion. She is the Poetry Editor for Black Fox Literary Magazine and teaches Creative Writing at Nevada State University. Her newest collection of poems is Firefall (Unsolicited Press, 2025). Recently, Heather’s ceramics have been included in exhibitions at the Charleston Heights Art Gallery, Clark County Wetlands, Grand Gallery in Las Vegas City Hall, Sahara West Library, Winchester Dondero Cultural Center, and Art 321 in Casper, Wyoming, among elsewhere.

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HUE

MAKING SHADOWS TOGETHER

TBD

Artist Statement

MAKING SHADOWS TOGETHER is a performance kite-flying piece responding the the gravity of today's world. It gives Hue an excuse to draw in the sky with their friends through flying kites that portray symbolic shapes with radical meanings.

Hue is a gender-queer Chinese cultural worker and multidimensional artist based in Las Vegas, pondering ways to return home to the soul through making art in various mediums. They create artwork in community with sentimental items to regenerate the objects with new life. Their garments, performances, and community initiatives act as invitations to connect with the yearning for closeness and embodied rage in a world that is ever changing and often horrific. They attempt to counter the latter through imagining radically queer and delicious futures, slowness, and “Interbeing,” a Plum Village philosophy rooted in ethical living, mindfulness, and compassionate action.

Artist bio

Hue is a multidisciplinary artist rooted in social practice, fashion, and sculptural installations. They're currently based in Las Vegas, NV, the ancestral lands of the Nuwuvi. They earned a BFA in Fashion from Parsons the New School of Design, and have also studied at Central Saint Martins. They have worked for fashion companies Thom Browne, Adam Selman, Werkstatt NYC, and SavagexFENTY. Currently, Hue is an art handler and archivist at MGM Resorts. Previous exhibitions include: "Unseen Territories," (2025), Las Vegas, “In Relations,” Barrick Museum (2024), Las Vegas, “Son de mi Ser,” Grant Hall Gallery (2024), Las Vegas, and “Hanging By A Thread,” Left of Center Gallery (2024), Las Vegas.

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• Hue
• Cloud House

TBD

TBD

Artist Statements

The work created for DBP's Gravity exhibition features a cast aluminum dress interacting with the desert-scape. Inspired by collaborator Caralea Cole's time living and photographing for two months in the Mongolian desert, the work references the Buddhists of Central Asia practicing Sky Burial, the dress standing in as the corpse being offered back to the land.

Iulia Filipov-Serediuc's work addresses gendered violence against women through the visual language of penetrating and perforating to evoke the feeling of bodily invasion. Using sound, light, and surveillance, she creates sociological lures and traps. By distorting the bodily qualities of bone, flesh, and form, the work questions the sanctity of self-hood and safety. Filipov-Serediuc fabricates scenarios to elicit a connection with the viewer and their own experience with bodily harm.

Artist bios

Iulia Filipov-Serediuc is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice consists of sculpture, painting, installation, and non-traditional materials and processes. Filipov-Serediuc enjoys building within her community, most proudly as a co-founder of the Arts Community Coalition Nevada 501(c)(3), Desert Biennial Project, and My Boyfriend Is Out of Town. Her work has been shown in Nevada, California, New Mexico, Arizona, and New York in over 15 exhibitions since 2023. Filipov-Serediuc graduated with her BFA in studio art and is currently pursuing an MFA from the University of Las Vegas, Nevada.

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• Iulia's Website
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KALEB WESOLEK

TAXI TABLE

Acrylic and Ceramic on Wood

Artist Statement

The Taxi Table functionally serves as a coffee table but symbolically represent themes of gravity, hyper-commercialization, Las Vegas, and design. The sculpture resembles a classic Las Vegas taxi that looks and feels as though it is protruding from or embedded into the ground.Wesolek most closely identifies with analog practices like drawing and painting, though he is also well-versed in the anatomy of design. His work embodies a spirit of push and pull between the worlds of art and design, sometimes merging the two, or giving way to one or the other. Conversations in his work take place between nihilism and themes of wonder, rooted in the curiosities of life and optimistic living.Wesolek seeks more figurative forms and welcomes the nuances of design to inform his compositions. While structure, technique, color, and letterforms all serve as descriptors of his current practice, line and shape have naturally become the most consuming. Systematic linework commands his drawings, while methodical shapes characterize his paintings.Continuing to evolve as an artist, Wesolek explores sculpture as well, drawn to the dimensionality it offers. His introspection extends to materials, inviting viewers to reflect on their perceptions of physical being.Wesolek’s renderings emerge from neurotic waves, but shape a path toward contentment in the act of simple living.

Artist bio

"I’m Kaleb Wesolek, an artist and designer from the desert of Las Vegas. Born on January 1st as the eldest of three, my inclination to create began young. That passion continues to drive my work today, fueled by desires of evolution and cultivating a love for life.Earning a degree in Graphic Design from UNLV instilled in me an understanding that design principles extend beyond aesthetics—they inform my processes as a thinker and as a human. Art and design have served as outlets for reflections on my own cognition. My journey to understand and live with OCD has shaped my identity as a creative. While compulsions can sometimes feel debilitating, I have learned to view this as an innate gift.My work is often characterized by obsessive mark-making and a loyalty to structure. To create is therapy, and therapy offers a look into more intuitive, unstructured creation. I seek out this liberation in my practices.I have been fortunate enough to have been a part of the following exhibitions since 2023: 2025, Big Softy, Clark County Public Arts (Group); 2025, The One Motorcycle Show (Group); 2024, Sport Social (Solo Exhibition); 2023, Modern Romanticism, Curated by JK Russ (Group); 2023, Lucky Gut, Scrambled Eggs (Group); 2023, Portraits of Temporary People, Scrambled Eggs (Solo)."

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LAURA ESBENSEN

TENSION/TRAJECTORY

Concrete, gelatin, vinyl, epoxy resin, fluorescent mica, battery-operated lighting.

Artist Statement

Tension/Trajectory foregrounds the relationship between potential, body, science fiction, and the exhibition thematic, gravity. As sort of ambiguous shrine, carefully arranged glowing objects dropped in the open desert, this installation explores gravity as a governing force of inevitability and omnipotence–everything is impacted and influenced, physically and metaphorically.Esbensen’s work connects with the contemporary grotesque and utilizes humor as a a proposition of hope, presenting a playful haphazardness alongside potential toxicity. Her abstract, theatrical sculptures are made of construction materials and assorted plastics that reference the body, exploring processes of mutilation and healing, and the blurry boundary between the authentic and the artificial.

Artist bios

Laura Esbensen is an artist living and working in Las Vegas, Nevada. She holds a
BA in Studio Arts from the University of California, San Diego and an MFA in Fine Arts from
Lesley University. She serves as the Administrative Director for The Art+Everywhere Foundation.Recent exhibitions include:
2025 (two-person) EXPANSE, fraiche arts, Las Vegas, NV
2025 Year of the Snake, Historic Fifth Street School, Las Vegas, NV
2025 Subtle Force, Union Grove Gallery, Huntsville, AL
2025 Roots/Wings, MASS MoCA, North Adamms, MA
2025 Our Imagined Future, Bell Projects, Denver, CO
2024 (solo) SOMA, Core Contemporary, Las Vegas, NV
2024 Ply, Lowe Mille Arts, Huntsville, AL
2024 As Above, So Below, Co-curator, Backfence Society, Vista, CA
2024 Small Things Matter, Squishy Studio, Las Vegas, NV
2024 Core/Cavity, Co-curator, Backfence Society, Vista, CA
2024 Lesley MFA Thesis Exhibition, Roberts Gallery, Cambridge, MA
2024 Use the Other Door, Core/Contemporary, Las Vegas, NV
2024 Shades of Red, Backfence Society, Vista, CA
2023 It was Fine…A Dining Experience, Cosmic Bloom, Vista, CA
2023 Blue Butcher, Artist’s Alley, Oceanside, CA
2023 (solo) Portal Play, Goblin Shark Emporium, Oceanside, CAUpcoming exhibitions include:
July 2025 Body as Instrument and Archive, Gallery RAG, Gloucester, MA
Aug 2025 SH!FT, Ocean Beach, CA
Sept 2025 (curator) MARK, Art Therapy Cafe, Las Vegas, NV

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LEILU HART

TBD

TBD

Artist Statement

"I am creating a house made of fabric, symbolizing the deep connections to femininity that are essential in creating a home. To me, home is not just a physical space, it is a construct that can exist anywhere that anyone can build."

Leilu Hart’s work examines the gendered associations society assigns to inanimate materials, highlighting the emotional connections people form with objects. Rooted in their nonbinary and queer identity, they challenge societal norms that shape perceptions of trans, femme, and queer individuals. Fiber is at the heart of their practice. They often work with yarn, fabric, felt, and other soft materials, mediums historically tied to “women’s work” and dismissed as simply craft. By embracing these traditions, Hart reclaims their significance and invites a reexamination of their cultural and artistic value.

Artist bio

Leilu Hart is a mixed media artist based in Las Vegas, NV. As a queer femme nonbinary artist, their pieces delve into themes of relationships, sex, memories, religion, and trauma. Their work has been exhibited across Nevada, including several fiber based group shows and their recent solo show “Flesh & Form” at South Square Studios. They are currently pursuing a BA in sculpture with a minor in history at UNLV, and are set to graduate in 2026.

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RORA BLUE

I'D RATHER BE HERE

Mattress, pillows, bedding

Artist Statement

"I’d Rather Be Here is a series depicting my bed in various outdoor landscapes. These are the places I’d rather be, when I am stuck in bed for long periods of time due to my disability.

I live in a body with bones that ache, a heart that beats twice as fast as everyone else’s, and fingertips that go numb. Most of the time my body does not feel like mine. Gender dysphoria, coupled with conditions that impact my vision leave me looking down at my body as if it is someone else’s. This is not a tragedy; it is simply a fact of my existence.Queer and disabled people are often viewed as unnatural. I respond to this in my work through using natural materials and imagery of the outdoors. My sculptures, photography, and installations reposition the queer and disabled body as being synonymous with nature. Outdoor spaces can be inaccessible, and it is important for me to reclaim my body’s relationship to the environment.I introduce an alternate trans-disabled reality by utilizing transgender and disability-specific medical objects that are commonly disposed of or hidden away. Through the overlaying of photographs on top of hospital fluorescent lights, weaving flowers in between bandages, and suspending images of the sky within IV bags, I propose a world in which bodies like mine are cared for and celebrated."

Artist bio

Rora Blue is a queer disabled artist living and working in Reno, Nevada. His current work utilizes soft sculpture and installation to relate queerness and disability to nature, invisibility, and celebration. Blue is the recipient of the VSA Emerging Young Artist Award of Excellence from the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C as well as the International IphiGenia Gender Design Award awarded at the Museum of Applied Art in Cologne, Germany. His work has been exhibited in group exhibitions spanning nine different countries and he has been written about in publications including the New York Times. Blue received his BFA in New Genres from the San Francisco Art Institute and MFA from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2024.

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VALENTIN YORDANOV

BORDERLAND

Painted wood

Artist Statement

Dynamic Mohave Desert inspired open plan sculptural artwork connecting the environments elements desert lake, sand, sky to visually merge together becoming one , transforming the work into a harmonious extension of its natural surroundings.

Inspired by the phenomena of urban generation, globalization and changing environment. Valentin Yordanov is a contemporary explorer. His Geometrical Abstract paintings act like a travelogue, impressions of locations he visits or dreams about. Mountains, roads, rails and raising constructions offer a dynamical view of a changing environment around us. They are complex of layer and directions. As maps, Valentin Yordanov paintings take us on tour in impact of the invisible world around us. The geography itself becomes unsettled. The ground twist awkwardly in time and space, brightly colored shapes, plan drawings, high-impact graphics each place becomes with the logo ‘non-place’, a triumph of color and shape .Valentin Yordanov was born in the city, seemed to have always been able to capture that uniqueness in the works he dedicated to the city, with bold colors, elongated vantage points and cartoon aesthetic.
He makes vibrant paintings and installations centered on themes of travel, tourism, globalization and urbanism.

Artist bio

For more than a decade, Valentin Yordanov has been an artist in residence in beautiful Las Vegas. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Bulgaria, and then was awarded a scholarship to pursue his study at the Bucharest National Academy of Arts, Romania and Bulgaria. His studies included intensive drawing trips and major exhibitions around Europe, including Vienna and Budapest. After completing his education, this urban explorer was on his way to enlarging his mental maps, discovering the new world, and setting up his studio in Las Vegas.Valentin Yordanov is part of art collectors around the world including The Mayor of Las Vegas, Meow Wolf, Life Is Beautiful, The City of Las Vegas, MGM International, Nevada State Collage. He has exhibited extensively including solo exhibitions Deser Oasis, Nevada Humanities, Las Vegas 2025, Viva Las Vegas, Donna Bean Fine Art Gallery (2024), Seoullo 7017 Skygarden, Seoul, S.Korea(2024), Art Expo Beijing, Beijing, China, Art Capitol Mural,Building 63,Seoul, Korea (2017) ,The City of Las Vegas, NV, USA (2017), Nobu Hotels Art Collection 2023, Art Combining the factual precision of traditional street maps with his own interpretation of the local environment, these large scale composition documented the artist’s perception of the great cities of Europe, Asia and North America.

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