about the ddc
The Dirty Dishes Collective acknowledges that we are working + creating on the unceded territories of the Lekwungen peoples, now known as the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations.
The Dirty Dishes Collective is a collaborative curatorial project + small press co-founded by Dani Neira and Cassia Powell.
The DDC cherishes dirty dishes as the physical remnants of gathering + sharing meals. With an emphasis on supporting emerging artists, we embrace forms of care and connection that actively resist institutional art dynamics, and work toward alternative, relational ways of being together.
Queer theories and methodologies are at the core of the DDC’s practice, and as such, we prioritize artists working with/in these spheres.
Our curatorial queries often take the form of exhibitions, zines, community libraries & dinner parties.
who we are
Dani Neira
co-founder / curator
Cassia Powell
co-founder / curator
Cassia Powell (they/them) is an emerging contemporary artist and curator based in the unceded lands of Lekwungen-speaking peoples, otherwise known as Victoria, BC. Powell is a BFA Visual Arts honours graduate from the University of Victoria.
Between their personal artistic practice and their curatorial focus, Powell emphasizes the critique of institutional and academic dynamics, and champions the importance of vulnerability and space-making within contemporary art spheres. Each one of Powell’s projects signifies vast lifeworlds of queer relationality, encrypted sociality, and utopian potentiality.
Dani Neira (they/them) is a second-generation settler of mixed Colombian ancestry based in Victoria, BC, on the unceded territories of the Lekwungen peoples. Their interdisciplinary practice involves curatorial projects, independent publishing, writing and visual art. Exploring the structures of memory, language and built environments, their work embraces affective knowledge and the queer slippages which occur in everyday life.
Neira holds a BA in Art History and Visual Studies from the University of Victoria, and is the co-founder of collaborative curatorial project Dirty Dishes Collective. They have worked in a variety of curatorial and administrative roles within the cultural sector since 2016 and are currently a Program Coordinator at Open Space.