January 14th, 2023 - March 18th, 2023

OPENING January 14th 5 - 8 PM

Erika Nj Allen: This Is Not a Coup

This Is Not a Coup, a project by artist Erika Nj Allen, transformed the Welcome (M)art space into an immersive black and white photo installation to transport visitors to the banana farms of Guatemala. The exhibit drew on the “Chiquita Banana Cookbook.” From their phrase “decorate with fruit” to inventing tools such as banana boat, banana stands, banana knives, banana bowls, to “civilize” the banana, and highlighting the health benefits of the exotic fruit. Ceramic bananas adorn pedestals, bowls, and other elements, visualizing all the tools that were used to “civilize” the banana. This immersive ceramic and photo installation introduced the history of the United Fruit Company and how it led to a massive campaign to romanticize the presence of the banana in American homes, while committing crimes against the countries and their people where the exotic fruits came from. 

While the UFC created cookbooks with colorful images and used women as key elements to introduce exotic fruits into the American Homes, they were taking away the attention from the brutal treatment and exploitation they were causing to their neighboring countries particularly Guatemala. 

Erika Nj Allen is a multi-media artist with a BFA in photography from the Art Academy of Cincinnati and a MFA from the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, MI. in the ceramics department.

Welcome (M)Art is a program that blurs the lines between art gallery, grocery, and dinner party; providing a unique opportunity for social discourse in Cincinnati.

This exhibition was presented in conjunction with NCECA's 57th Annual Conference, Current, taking place in Cincinnati March 15-18, 2023.

The 2023 Welcome (M)ART program was generously funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Welcome Project is located at 2936 Colerain Ave. and is open Wednesday – Saturday 11am - 6pm

Programming