Unite And Persevere

Loft Artists Association (LAA), in collaboration with McKinsey & Company, is calling for pieces of art that
capture and memorialize the inflection point we find ourselves in as a community and a country. Aimed at
celebrating the artistic voices and perspectives of the many talented Black artists in Connecticut, we are
hosting a juried exhibition in which all accepted submissions will be hung in the LAA gallery and made
available for purchase. Among the exhibiting artists selected by the jury, three 'featured entries' will
receive additional recognition in the form of a one-year LAA membership and/or monetary awards (see
details below), and one additional artist from the show may be selected for a separate commissioned
piece which will be showcased at McKinsey's office in Stamford, Connecticut.

Juror panel:

Valerie Cooper, a native of Stamford, CT, is an accomplished entrepreneur, corporate art consultant and
diversity art curator. In 2002, Valerie founded Picture That, LLC, a fine art consulting firm, after a 15-year
Wall Street career at Goldman Sachs as VP of Risk Technology where she led software development
teams globally. Picture That, located in Stamford, CT and Atlanta, GA, supplies artwork, manages art
collections, curates cultural exhibitions, and provides art advisory and appraisal services for organizations
nationwide. Besides being a highly sought-after art consultant Valerie is an adjunct professor and enjoys
teaching African American Art History especially. Valerie graduated with a B.S. from Morgan State
University and has an MBA from Columbia Business School in NYC. Valerie is also an accredited member
of the Appraisers Association of America with a specialty in African American Fine Art.
Valerie's involvement in the Arts for the City of Stamford runs deep. She is the Vice President for
Stamford, CT's Arts and Culture Commission; and is a member of Fairfield County's Community Foundation's Community Impact Committee, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and The Links,
Incorporated where she serves on the Arts committees for each. In 2004, Valerie created a Stamford
Public Schools Cultural Arts Program that sponsors art exhibitions and trips to NYC museums to enhance
each students' cultural experience. This 18 yr. long program continues today, incorporating virtual
components during the pandemic. http://www.picturethatart.com/harlem-bus-trip-video. In July 2020,
Picture That spearheaded the City of Stamford's Black Lives Matter Street Mural Project and engaged 16
'Frontline' African American Artists to create unique renderings for each letter. A 2021 BLM event will
occur Juneteenth weekend to retouch the letters with community participation and cultural activities once
again.

Marlon Blackwood is a CT based artist who grew up in Stamford, Connecticut. He furthered his
education by attending Southern Connecticut State University for Sociology and is currently attending
Central Connecticut State University, in which he plans to pursue a degree in Graphic Design. From an
early age, drawing was something he enjoyed doing and it was something to take his mind off things. He
is currently employed by Connecticut Valley Hospital as a Mental Health Assistant. During his time at
Connecticut Valley Hospital art became more prominent in his life. His passion became about his art and
he started Artifex Custom Gallery, an online art gallery for his artwork. Marlon is also passionate about
giving back. He has organized art shows and comedy art auctions and part of the proceeds from those
events go to organizations such as Down Syndrome Association of Connecticut, Special Olympics, Breast
Cancer Awareness and MOVE, Inc. (Mothers of Victim's Equality).

Marc Alan is a life-long lover of art, as well as a passionate supporter of the arts. He is a resident of
Norwalk, CT where he is the Director of Marketing for Factory Underground Media, and Factory
Underground Tech. The diverse art-based company, in business since 2010, operates a recording studio,
a media production house, as well as a nationally accredited school for music recording. Marc is also a
professional audio engineer, who has worked in over forty countries. Since retiring from touring full time,
Marc has become deeply involved with growing the Arts Community of Norwalk, which he serves as
Chairman of the City of Norwalk Arts Commission. He believes that one of the important roles of the Arts
Commission is to create equitable economic opportunity for artists, along with promoting and celebrating
the diverse arts and cultural heritage of the city. Marc is a founder of the Norwalk Film Festival, whose
slogan is 'Celebrating Unity through Diversity in Film'. He is a long time-supporter of the Carver
Foundation of Norwalk and is an acting advisor to the Norwalk Arts Place.

Earl Fitzhugh is the first black partner elected to McKinsey's Stamford office, where he started working as
a summer associate, in 2011, while an MBA Consortium Fellow at NYU Stern's School of Business. Earl is
a leader in the McKinsey Black Network and has contributed as a thought leader on the topic of closing
the racial wealth gap, and broader racial equity, including the article he co-authored in December 2020,
'It's time for a new approach to racial equity'. He serves companies in the fields of technology, software,
and software as a service (SaaS) to optimize their go-to-market efficiency and catalyze growth in new
markets. Prior to McKinsey, Earl graduated from Howard University with a mechanical engineering degree
and worked at the National Nuclear Security Administration on the Elimination of Weapons Grade
Plutonium program as the deputy federal project director and risk manager. In his free time, he and his
wife Patricia invest a lot of time raising their two energetic kids, McCoy (4) and Ellison (2). Earl also is a
leader on NYU Stern's alumni council.

David DeLallo is an accomplished writer and musician who has called Stamford home for two decades.
David has served as the Executive Editor for McKinsey's Digital practice for four years, skillfully distilling
complex concepts like artificial intelligence into digestible videos, interactive experiences, and articles. He also has two children's books to his credit as well as dozens of articles published in a variety of
publications, from American Iron Magazine to Harvard Business Review. David developed a passion for
art and music at an early age, spending hours drawing and learning a variety of musical instruments,
including violin and guitar. He wrote and recorded two acclaimed pop folk albums and continues to play
locally. David reconnected with his love of drawing as part of his recovery from a brain tumor suffered in 2014 and developed a new skill in acrylic portraiture, which he has continued to hone through practice and
commissions. David is equally passionate about ensuring diversity and inclusion in the workplace and
society, spearheading education efforts as a representative of McKinsey's LGBTQ+ organization,
supporting McKinsey initiatives for racial equality and raising money for local charities through his musical
performances.


About Loft Artists Association:
Founded in 1978, the Loft Artists Association is a non-profit organization of professional working artists
dedicated to building connections within the visual arts community and offering many artistic and
educational opportunities to the public, free of charge. As an established cultural institution, their
grassroots events attract thousands of visitors throughout the Tri-state area and have been recognized by
funding agencies, including the Connecticut Commission on the Arts, corporate and private sponsors, the
City of Stamford and by visitors who return year after year.

About McKinsey:
McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm committed to helping organizations create
Change that Matters.
In more than 130 cities and 65 countries, our teams help clients across the private, public, and social
sectors shape bold strategies and transform the way they work, embed technology where it unlocks value,
and build capabilities to sustain the change. Not just any change, but Change that Matters -for their
organizations, their people, and in turn society at large.
In 2020, McKinsey put forth a public commitment to anti-racism and social justice. Drawing on areas of
core expertise, we are focused on building Black leadership within our organization and beyond,
identifying solutions through data-based research, and investing in social change within the wider
community. McKinsey is proud to support the leaders, businesses and communities working for a more
just and equitable society.