Satellite Collective's Tribeca Show 2025 presents Violence, Beauty, and Resistance: Draper and Robertson vs. Societal Decay

New York, NY – In a time when violence, power, and resistance are at the forefront of global discourse, artists Kevin Draper and Lora Robertson bring these powerful themes into focus in their groundbreaking exhibition, Violence, Beauty, and Resistance: Draper and Robertson vs. Societal Decay.

Opening Reception: Friday, May 9, 2025
Exhibition Dates: May 8-18, 2025
Where: Mriya Gallery, 101 Reade St, New York, NY 10013

●     6:00 PM – Opening Reception

●     7:00 PM – Panel Discussion:

"Violence, Beauty, and Resistance vs. Societal Decay", moderated by Christa Terry, Senior Arts & Culture Editor at Observer

Hosted by Nikhil Melnechuk, award-winning filmmaker

The exhibition will explore the deep connections between violence, beauty, and resistance through the unique lens of each artist's personal experiences and perspectives. Draper and Robertson’s works resonate with the cultural and political climate of today, challenging the viewer to confront uncomfortable truths about the state of the world.

Kevin Draper, mixed media and collage
 

Kevin Draper: Exploring Violence and the Legacy of American Culture

Kevin Draper’s art is deeply rooted in his upbringing in rural Michigan, where he was surrounded by a culture steeped in violence, machinery, and the reverberations of a tumultuous political landscape. Draper’s work invites viewers to reflect on the impact of this inherited violence in the context of today’s fractured world. His provocative pieces ask, “What happens when the violence I inherited from my culture faces the chaos of the present?”

"I grew up in rural America where religion and guns are woven into the fabric of life," says Draper. “We seem to understand that a certain number of us Americans are killers. It can be found in our hearts. This show examines something frightening about it—the violence is fast becoming an attribute of beauty. Through my work, I am confronting that violence and examining it within myself."

Draper’s featured works include With Respect to the Killer in My Heart, a mechanized sculpture, and Dominant Landscape A and B, large scale prints that showcase the passage of time and urban decay. Draper’s explorations of motion, broken systems, and Brutalism paint a haunting picture of a world dominated by force.

Lora Robertson, bronze sculpture

Lora Robertson: Resistance and the Power of the Molotov Cocktail

Lora Robertson’s work turns toward resistance, symbolized by the Molotov cocktail—a powerful emblem of protest and defiance. Through this lens, she explores grassroots resistance, particularly in response to the ongoing erosion of basic human rights, especially for women, in a world where oppressive forces continue to rise.

Growing up in the Catholic Church, Robertson was faced with the stark reality that women were excluded from leadership roles. Later, she entered fields dominated by men—commercial photography and bronze sand-cast sculpture—where her technical mastery is often overlooked in favor of the content. To challenge this, she incorporates traditional female art forms like knitting, lacework, and wool felting into her sculptures, while using old Hollywood glamour and lighting techniques to transform herself into a "femme fatale" in her self-portraiture, both in filmmaking and photography.

“Women are not given the grace to make mistakes,” she reflects. “To even be considered, my work has to be technically flawless.” Yet, she embraces the challenge, using her art to subvert gender expectations. “I am not a woman photographer. I am a photographer, period.”

Robertson’s featured works include The American Yes, a series of large-format photographs printed on aluminum sheets, and Maiden | Mother | Crone, a series of nine bronze sculptures that focus on female anatomy and the struggle for gender equality. These pieces speak to the fundamental injustices of a world where women’s rights are rapidly being undermined, especially in the face of political and social backlash.

About the Exhibition

Violence, Beauty, and Resistance is not only an artistic exploration but also a call to action. Draper and Robertson ask us to consider the consequences of a government that fails its people and to examine how art responds to the decay of societal structures. In a world where everything seems to be falling apart, this exhibition serves as a powerful reminder that people fight back—and art is an essential part of that resistance. The exhibition will feature two weekends of premieres, new prints, photography, and sculpture, with the opening and artist reception.

About Kevin Draper
Kevin Draper (b. 1967, Maple City, MI) is an architect, sculptor, and technologist who captures the unexpected momentum of the creative process. His works explore themes of time, disjuncture, motion, and the collision of formal systems with internal reality. Draper is the founder of Satellite Collective and has exhibited his works at prestigious venues such as the Baryshnikov Arts Center and Brooklyn Academy of Music.

About Lora Robertson
Lora Robertson (b. 1971, Ann Arbor, MI) is a Leica Master Photographer and filmmaker. As Executive Director of Satellite Collective, Robertson advocates for women’s voices in the arts and explores themes of resistance and identity in her photography and sculpture. Her works have been featured at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and numerous other renowned venues.

About Satellite Collective
Satellite Collective, founded in 2010 by Lora Robertson and Kevin Draper, is a New York-based arts organization that fosters collaboration across disciplines. With a commitment to innovation, Satellite Collective produces performance art, films, music recitals, and multimedia exhibits. The company has received recognition from the Borough of Brooklyn for its contributions to the arts and has supported artists from diverse backgrounds and disciplines.

For more information on Satellite Collective and the exhibition, visit www.satellitecollective.org.

Media Contact and RSVP:
Olga Samofalova
olga.samofalova@gmail.com
(347) 749-0205