Darius Steward

Darius Steward

Darius Steward is a visual artist and educator currently living in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from the University of Delaware obtaining a Master of Fine Art degree in May 2010. His undergraduate work was completed at the Cleveland Institute of Art, where he had a concentration in drawing and painting. Since graduating, Darius has shown artwork with Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, Tregoning & Company, Zygote Press, William Busta Gallery, FORUM artspace, Kent State and Cleveland Clinic. He has completed murals with INTER|URBAN art initiative and MidTown Cleveland, and recent articles about his achievements have appeared in Canvas, Cleveland Scene, and Hyperallergic. In addition, Darius has a collection of his work at the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, the Cleveland Clinic, The Presidents’ Council, and the University of Delaware, and was awarded a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. Starting June 2018, Darius will be working full time with the Cleveland Museum of Art as the Scholar Squad manager. In July, Darius will be showcasing some of his artwork as part of FRONT International as well as the CAN Triennial.

Justin Woody

Justin Woody

Justin Woody is a Cleveland-based artist and actor, born and raised in Canton. He received a BFA in painting from the Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) in 2015. Justin has long been involved in plays and musicals in Canton and the Greater Cleveland area. Some of his favorite roles include Donkey in Shrek, the Musical at both Near West Theatre and Mercury Summer Stock in Cleveland; Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast and Snoopy in You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown at the Canton Players Guild, where he was most recently cast as Gator in Memphis; and his upcoming lead role as Youth in Passing Strange, this summer at Cleveland’s Karamu House.

Woody recently completed his six-month artist residency at the new Praxis Fiber Workshop, where he worked with the beautifully talented Annmarie Suglio, and Jessica Pinsky. There, he continued to learn traditional weaving techniques using hair, jewelry, blunt raps, and clothing. In November, 2017, Justin opened NAPS, his first two-man show at Praxis, with fellow CIA graduate Marcus Brathwaite.