A Letter to the Community

My name is Raelle Myrick-Hodges, and it is my profound honor to serve as the newly appointed Executive Director of the Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans. To lead this vital, artist-founded institution and step into stewardship of the CACNO at this moment which is poised between a rich history and an expansive future, is both humbling and exhilarating.

As we approach our next fifty years, we do so with intention.

This anniversary is not only a celebration of the beauty, experimentation, and cultural impact the CACNO has offered New Orleans since 1977, but is also an opportunity to reflect honestly on the complexities of our past. We believe that care, accountability, and imagination must move together. In that spirit, we are looking closely at our structures, our relationships, and our responsibilities, so that the future we build at this organization is more generous, more eclectic, and more responsive to artists and audiences alike.

Over these winter and spring months, our staff and our Board of Directors have been engaged in thoughtful self-examination while continuing to do what the CACNO has always done best: present ambitious work by local visual artists at every stage of their practice, from seedling to featured.

In Gallery One, our current exhibition, Proximity, explores mentorship and the beauty of long-term artistic relationships. And, our exhibitions, Sorbet, honors the often-invisible labor of arts administrators and reflects on communion, rest, and the necessary patience of course correction. We are also grateful to continue hosting installations by Mel Chin, Carlie Trosclair, Kathy Randell, and Jan Gilbert, alongside the beloved latex room on our second floor.

At the same time, we are opening new doors.

‍Sensei Saturdays invite artists and creatives under the age of eleven to learn, imagine, and make art together at the CACNO.

Cinema Sundays offers film programming that explores performance, documentary, and culture through a contemplative, intimate cinematic lens.

Across these programming experiments that are vital and within our purview, we are joyfully testing new waters by presenting diverse practices that celebrate artists of all backgrounds for audiences of differing aesthetics.

Founded by numerous artists, the CACNO has always been shaped by curiosity and creative exchange. We remain committed to championing new ideas from local, regional, national, and international artists. We wish to amplify voices that reflect the richness and complexity of the world we share. Through visual and performing arts, collaboration, and education, we support thoughtful experimentation, evolving practices, and expansive ways of seeing.

As April arrives, we will begin our introductory 50th anniversary celebrations with a Festival of New Works: a visual art exhibition that honors those who are part of the prologue of the CACNO and who are deeply invested in the future of art and artists within this institution.

We are also re-establishing and strengthening our relationships with the theater community, and I am delighted to welcome Crescent City Theater to the "At the CACNO"  program this May.

Though my time in leadership here has only just begun, I am deeply committed to guiding the CACNO with care, courage, and clarity, while continuing the mission and values that so many in this city hold dear, and ensuring that the change we undertake is both meaningful and enduring.

All are welcome here.

Step inside,

linger,

question,

rest,

and dream with us.

Be part of the art.

With gratitude and excitement,
Raelle Myrick-Hodges
Executive Director
Contemporary Art Center, New Orleans

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