Kristine Schomaker Brings Radical Collaboration and Body Liberation to Startup Art Fair LA

Three hotel rooms, two major collaborative projects, and a public panel explore vulnerability, visibility, and the power of being seen

LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, February 3, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Artist and curator Kristine Schomaker will present two collaborative installation across three rooms at Startup Art Fair Los Angeles, taking place February 27–March 1, 2026, at The Kinney Hotel (737 W Washington Blvd, Venice, CA 90292).
The presentation spans Rooms 202, 203, and 204 and brings together Schomaker’s long-running collaborative projects Call and Response and Perceive Me, alongside live figure drawing sessions and a public panel discussion titled “Perceive Me—Body Image, Self-Worth, and the Radical Act of Being Seen,” scheduled for Sunday, March 1 at 2:00 PM. Schomaker’s practice is rooted in social collaboration and shared authorship, emphasizing direct artist-to-artist engagement and audience participation. The artist-led, hotel-room format of Startup Art Fair provides an intimate setting for projects that prioritize process, dialogue, and accessibility.

Call and Response, presented in Room 202, is a global collaborative project initiated by Schomaker in 2020 during the COVID-19 social distancing period. Over five years and 23 multi-week rounds, more than 500 artists across six continents have participated. Artists are randomly paired and exchange works digitally, responding directly to one another over an extended period.
For this iteration, 180 artists were paired to create collaborative artist books over several months. The resulting 90 books document sustained creative exchange and will be exhibited publicly for the first time in this format. The books will be available for viewing and purchase. An interactive “Exquisite Corpse” drawing table invites visitors to contribute collaboratively, referencing the Surrealist method Cadavre Exquis, in which multiple participants sequentially build a single work.

Room 203 features Perceive Me, an ongoing collaborative portrait project in which Schomaker poses nude for other artists. The project examines issues of body representation, aging, and agency through co-authored portraiture. Schomaker participates as an active collaborator, engaging in dialogue with each artist during the creation process.
Approximately 40 works are on view, including new paintings, drawings, mixed media works, and sculptures. Each piece offers an individual interpretation of the same subject, collectively addressing themes of body autonomy, vulnerability, and representation. Displayed together, the works form a collective portrait shaped by trust, consent, and shared authorship.

Room 204 functions as a working studio used for scheduled, private figure-drawing sessions conducted throughout the fair. These sessions are not open for public viewing and take place in a controlled, professional setting. Startup Art Fair attendees may opt in to model by advance sign-up, participating voluntarily in artist-led portrait sessions focused on representation, observation, and artistic process. Schomaker notes "For many participants, these experiences are described as profoundly liberating and emotionally impactful."
Participation is limited to the artist(s) and model, or small groups as appropriate. Models may choose to acquire the resulting artworks for a nominal fee. The sessions are structured to prioritize consent, privacy, and respectful engagement.

At the center of the presentation is the March 1 panel discussion moderated by Schomaker. The conversation brings together artists, writers, documentarians, and project participants to discuss body image, self-worth, and the role of attentive witnessing in creative practice.

Together, Call and Response and Perceive Me reflect Schomaker’s emphasis on collaboration, shared process, and accessibility, operating across both global and intimate scales.

EXHIBITION DETAILS

Startup Art Fair Los Angeles
The Kinney Hotel
737 W Washington Blvd, Venice, CA 90292
Rooms 202, 203, 204
February 27 – March 1, 2026

Hours:
Friday: 5:00–10:00 PM
Saturday: 12:00–9:00 PM
Sunday: 12:00–7:00 PM

Panel Discussion:
Sunday, March 1, 2026 | 2:00 PM

ABOUT KRISTINE SCHOMAKER
Kristine Schomaker is a Los Angeles–based artist and curator whose collaborative practice focuses on artist-to-artist engagement, body autonomy, and participatory process. Through projects including Perceive Me and Call and Response, she develops frameworks for collaboration outside traditional institutional model

Kristine Schomakeer
Shoebox Arts
shoeboxartsla@gmail.com
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