Art Lounge

Cynthia Weitzel is a Deaf visual artist and resident artist of the Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in Red Wing, Minnesota. Her work spans visual art media with primary focus on themes relating to the Deaf life experience. She attended Gallaudet University and University of Minnesota, before obtaining her degree in business management and studio fine art from Austin Peay State University. Prior to making the transition to full-time artist, she worked 25 years in the nonprofit field, most recently as public policy coordinator and human right lobbyist with the Commission of Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing Minnesotans. Recipient of Minnesotan of the Year Award by Minnesota Association of Deaf Citizens in 2009 and Robert M. Greenmun Memorial Award for leadership excellence by National Association of the Deaf in 2010, she exhibits a long history in life and career devoted to the human, linguistic, and cultural rights of all citizens. She founded and twice co-chaired the first and second National Juried De’VIA (Deaf View / Image Art) Competition & Exhibit and played a key role in obtaining multiple Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants supporting the preservation of historical landmarks and archives important to Minnesota and national Deaf history. Her most recent collaboration with the Anderson Center led to support from the National Endowment for the Arts to host the first Deaf artist residency program in the US in 2014.

Rachel Kolb is a writer whose work explores communication,
language, and disability as central components of human experience. A graduate of Stanford University, she was the first signing deaf Rhodes scholar at Oxford before receiving her PhD in English literature from Emory University and then completing a junior fellowship in the Society of Fellows at Harvard University. Her work has been published in the New York Times and The Atlantic, among other publications, and she is the
author of the recent memoir Articulate (Ecco, 2025).

Ebony R. Gooden is a filmmaker, artist, and community builder dedicated to creating what BIPOC Deaf communities need to thrive. As a serial entrepreneur and advocate, she founded Deafinitely Digital and cofounded multiple initiatives including Survivance Collective and Silent Soul Studio, building platforms that amplify marginalized voices. Working across Calgary’s arts ecosystem with organizations like Inside Out Theatre, QuickDraw Animation Society, and Ghost River Theatre, Gooden transforms spaces through bold storytelling and accessibility innovation. Her recent films Running Through Her Past and Expression Unmasked continue her mission of reimagining representation in media. Supported by the Canada Council for the Arts and Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Gooden’s work challenges traditional forms while creating safe spaces for BIPOC Deaf artists to be seen, heard, and celebrated. As a Black Deaf artist in Calgary, her intersectional lens bridges communities and drives systemic change in the arts landscape.

Kah Mendoza is a filmmaker, media specialist, and multidisciplinary artist based in Los Angeles. Their work is rooted in creativity, authenticity, and a deep commitment to amplifying Deaf voices, culture, and lived experiences through storytelling, art, and advocacy. Working across film, photography, and media production, Mendoza takes on roles as a cinematographer, video editor, and film photographer. Their practice centers on capturing individuality and cultural narratives, creating work that is both intimate and socially conscious. For Mendoza, art is both a tool and a weapon: it can heal, disrupt, unite, and challenge. Their work creates space for stories often put aside, while also reminding us of our shared humanity. That’s the kind of art that can spark movements and that’s why they are committed to it.

Rowan O’Bryan is a Los Angeles–based fine artist working in photography and sculpture. She earned her BA from UCLA in 2023 in Fine Arts and Disability Studies, graduating with honors. Born with cystic fibrosis, O’Bryan became hard of hearing at 18 as a result of aminoglycoside antibiotics used to treat her CF and has since found community through ASL and connection with other Deaf people. Her practice centers on her identity as a chronically ill and Disabled person, repurposing medical materials such as oxygen tubing, IV bags, feeding tube supplies, and other items into sculptures, installations, and self-portraits. Her photography is deeply rooted in memory and nostalgia. Living with a shorter life expectancy, she is drawn to memory as a way of cherishing the time she has and honoring significant moments, places, and relationships in her life. Her work challenges the clinical lens through which illness is viewed, offering human-centered perspectives that celebrate disability as a site of resilience, beauty, and complexity.

Daniel Katz-Hernandez is a Washington, DC–based multidisciplinary artist and educator committed to Deaf-led spaces, accessibility, and artist support. Katz-Hernandez is also the new Deaf Artists Residency Coordinator at the Anderson Center at Tower View in Red Wing, Minnesota, as of 2026. The artist’s work employs a vibrant and metaphorical visual language to explore the lived experiences of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community, translating the seen, the felt, and the unspoken into form.

This program will have ASL interpretation.

For more information about accessibility at the Walker, visit our Access page.

For questions about accessibility or to request additional accommodations, call 612-375-7564 or email access@walkerart.org.

Find us at 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis, MN 55403.

Paid underground parking is available on-site. Enter the ramp on Vineland Place at Bryant Avenue. Biking or taking Metro Transit? Learn more.

Visiting the galleries? Enhance your experience by joining a public tour or with self-guided resources accessible for free on Bloomberg Connects.

Personal photography is permitted throughout the Walker and the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, but please turn off the flash when visiting the galleries.

To help us promote future events and programs, this event may be photographed or recorded. By attending, you consent to appear in this documentation and its future use by the museum. Please let staff know upon arrival if you prefer not to be photographed.