Photo courtesy Danielle Smith
MEMFOLK founders Coresa Hogan (left) and Ebony Archie.
When Coresa Hogan and Ebony Archie met two years ago, they had no plans of starting a business together.
“We were both working together at the time and had a similar love of art and beauty,” says Hogan. “That shared interest ended up leading to the two of us traveling throughout the United States and abroad together experiencing the things we love.”
MEMFOLK is centered around creating experiences of joy and beauty for visitors through art. The artistic duo picks recognizable household objects and creates exhibits that highlight the often overlooked aspects of the items. The first exhibit, FLOWERBOX, was centered around different kinds of flowers and nature.
“A large driving force for the two of us was the want to bring more creative and joyful spaces to Memphis. We wanted a place in which all people, especially African-American women, can explore art.” — Coresa Hogan
Visitors sign up for 15-minute timed slots. They are then allowed to interact with the exhibit how they see fit. Due to COVID-19, much of the interaction has been limited to photos, but the pair acknowledges that Memphians continue to find ways to be creative.
“We initially wanted the experiences here to test all of the senses. We wanted to have things that people could touch and interact with, but we had to scale it back due to the pandemic," says Hogan. "Our goal was to bring joy and beauty to the people around us. A large driving force for the two of us was the want to bring more creative and joyful spaces to Memphis. We wanted a place in which all people, especially African-American women, can explore art."
By nature, the business is small, with Archie and Hogan the only employees. All the marketing, promotion, and exhibit building is done by them. Despite this, the duo has not slowed down. Even with restrictions in place due to COVID-19, they make it clear that MEMFOLK is just the beginning.
“When people think of the arts, its often lumped into a group with nonprofit organizations. A large part of starting MEMFOLK was showing Memphians that artists can bring money to Memphis,” says Archie. “It is a passion project but also a way for us to test the market. We have made a lot of contacts and are looking forward to working with more people in the future.”
MEMFOLK wrapped up their FLOWERBOX exhibit this weekend. You can preorder tickets for their next exhibit on their website. They will be at the Boxlot until October.
