On Saturday, Taurean Washington hosted the highly anticipated ART-HOP: Project 2025 exhibition reception at Frederick Community College, drawing a crowd of art enthusiasts, community members, and local leaders.
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The event ran from 5–7 p.m., featuring refreshments, a live DJ, and an immersive experience of 16 thought-provoking artworks that confront the social and political realities of our times.
Frederick’s Mayor Michael O’Connor opened the evening with remarks, highlighting the importance of creative spaces that amplify underrepresented voices. Guests moved through the exhibition, engaging with pieces that directly challenge the whitewashed narratives of history and the racial hierarchies still pervasive in the art world. Each work, as the exhibition statement notes, “caters to the White Male Gaze” while shining a light on those historically marginalized or exploited.
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ART-HOP: Project 2025 serves as both a mirror and a challenge. It questions power structures, celebrates hidden figures, and invites curators, galleries, and museums to rethink what it means to recognize greatness in art. Washington’s vision was clear: artists of color must claim visibility and demand space in a system that has too often ignored them.
photo credit: Artspiration