Resident Artist Talks

Fall Resident Artist Talks

Thursday, November 12, 2026 | 6 PM in the Green Room

Get to know the artists behind the work at Crosstown Arts’ Resident Artist Talks. Join Chiara Oscuro, Stephen Deusner, Yane He, Akina Morrow, Ali Radell, and Adele Ferguson for an evening exploring their creative practices, influences, and projects in progress. From music and storytelling to painting and experimental performance, this season’s residents bring a wide range of approaches to making and sharing art.

Memphis-born singer-songwriter Chiara Oscuro draws together the musical traditions of the American South with jazz and South Asian classical influences. Inspired by artists including Sade, Etta James, and Amy Winehouse, her music explores identity, love, and longing.

Music journalist and author Stephen Deusner examines Southern music through the lens of place and community. His work has appeared in Pitchfork, Uncut, The New York Times, and Oxford American. He is currently developing an alternative history of Memphis music, tracing the city’s last 50 years of punk, new wave, hip-hop, and blues.

With a background in computer science, architecture, and visual art, Yane He brings code, architectural drawing, painting, and time-based studies into conversation. Her work considers how systems of power shape personal experience, finding moments of vulnerability and resilience within seemingly rigid structures.

Akina Morrow works at the intersection of storytelling, theater, media, and community engagement. Deeply rooted in Memphis, her practice explores expression, culture, and the people and places that shape our collective narratives, drawing on her experience as a director, consultant, and collaborator.

Detroit-based keyboardist and composer Ali Radell, who performs as Alicesun, explores alternative approaches to piano performance beyond Western tonal traditions. Her practice spans solo composition and collaborations with experimental band FM Corpus and psychedelic hard rock band Sonic Smut.

Memphis-based painter, animator, and muralist Adele Ferguson creates vibrant, dreamlike worlds populated by figures in intimate relationships. Drawing on the psychology of interpersonal connection and the neuroscience of dreams, her paintings use bold color and a collage-like visual language to explore emotion, forgiveness, and our connections to one another.

Come hear directly from the artists about the ideas and experiences shaping their work during their time at Crosstown Arts.

Crosstown Arts Residency is supported by the Tennessee Arts Commission.

Free and Open to the Public