Jessica Helfrecht, owner of Echo Contemporary Art, has been building an art empire on the westside of Atlanta since 2022. While working at MINT in early 2020, Helfrecht was tasked with designing a studio and gallery space for the Lincoln Property Company at Echo Street West.
Echo Street West is located along the Westside Beltline Trail and features apartments, retail spaces, offices, the event space Guardian Works and the Guardian Studios gallery with 31 artist studios. MINT declined to take on the project, and for the first year the space was managed by Black Women in Visual Arts (BWVA).
“When BWVA did not want to renew their contract with Lincoln, I seized the opportunity and joined the Lincoln team in July of 2022,” said Helfrecht, who is now the studio manager for Guardian Studios as well as the owner of Echo Contemporary Art.
For Helfrecht, the first two years in the role have been focused on building up a community of studio artists, curating exhibits, collaborating with guest curators, and growing partnerships with local nonprofits.
“The first annual open call exhibition represents a widening of the artists I will work with and exhibit,” she told me. The open call is also an opportunity for emerging artists to exhibit their work in a gallery setting.
“There are so few places for young artists to show their work to the public and I think it’s really important to provide that opportunity.”
Helfrecht shared that the future will offer even more opportunities for up-and-coming artists and curators. She shared that she particularly enjoys working with local colleges to host senior and MFA exhibitions, and in 2025 will be working with SCAD, Spelman, Morehouse, and GSU.
In January of 2025 ECA will host Rose Hypolite and Sharica Brooks as guest curators, Helfrecht will curate four exhibitions, and there will be one open call for a holiday show.
Over the past two years, Echo Contemporary Art has showcased more than 500 artists in 30 exhibitions. The upcoming 1st Annual Open Call Exhibition opens on Fri., Nov. 1 from 7-10 p.m. and will feature the work of 38 artists from America, Mexico, and Ghana.
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