Expressions

Leeah Marie
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Hi y'all! Great to meet you—I'm Leeah Marie, a self-proclaimed storyteller OBSESSED with what makes culture tick. In this series, I’m sitting down with people at the heart of cultural expression—those shaping art, language, community, storytelling, and beyond—to explore what builds and celebrates our shared humanity. Join me and learn from the creators and curators of culture each and every one of us has the capacity to be.

  1. Oct 21

    On the Human Behind Art History and Blocking Like the Wind with Maralee Bell

    This week we welcome Maralee Bell, an  American art historian, cultural content creator, and writer based in Paris.  She became a content creator almost by accident after sharing her experience living in France (and low-key catching strays in a boulangerie). Since then, through her short-form videos & newsletter, The Art of Elsewhere on Substack, she’s shared the artistic & cultural stories of Paris for her international audience of nearly 300k across platforms.  In this week’s Expressions, we talk what it’s like to actually build that kind of platform across countries, and the importance of making art history accessible.  Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” MARALEE’s ONE THING: Maralee put a bit of her own spin on this question. Her answer? Your social media algorithm. But rather than saying to engage more, she says it’s something to really be intentional about. Why? You’ll have to tune in and find out. You can follow her on all platforms at @maraleebell or subscribe to her newsletter, The Art of Elsewhere, via Substack.

  2. Oct 14

    On Fulbright and Creating for the Sake of Creation

    CALLING ALL ARTISTS! Do what you love ANNDD get that bread?  This week’s Expression’s guest, says that is absolutely possible. Here’s how: A Fulbright!! You heard it here first: Fulbrights are not just for scientists and teachers; they need arts researchers! And that’s exactly how spatial designer and artist Katie Heaton spent a year in Berlin studying German Expressionist Film. In this episode, we talk through how exactly she made that happen, what the application process was like, and why it’s so important for artists to keep putting themselves out there.   Y’all know I’m the biggest Fulbright fan, so this episode was extra special to me.  Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” KATIE’S ONE THING: Art & Fear: Observations On the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking by David Bayles and Ted Orland

  3. Oct 7

    On Rebuilding the Structures of History with Malaika Newsome

    From cultural anthropologist to curatorial assistant, Malaika Newsome, now at the International Center of Photography, is no stranger to investigating and cultivating across arts and culture.  In this week’s conversation, we talked about what it means to explore cultural spaces as a Black person and the outdated structures of traditional art history studies. For those of you thinking of a career in the gallery space, we also dove deep into what the day-to-day of that actually looks like.  Read the intro to Malaika's thesis Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” MALAIKA’S ONE THING: Dahomey, a 2024 documentary following twenty-six royal treasures from the Kingdom of Dahomey but exhibited in Paris as they are returned to their home, Benin. Give it a watch and let me know what you think! https://www.documentary.org/screening/dahomey

  4. Sep 30

    On Creating Your Own Context with María Ruiz

    Y’all ever scroll through Substack and BOOM, there’s an article that rocks your world? That’s how I felt about Maria Ruiz’s Rants of Art Curator, and it’s why I’m so excited to have her on this episode. Maria is a writer and curator based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Together we talk starting over across countries, balancing the worlds of curation and writing, and the contexts we create by doing both. Read her Substack: https://substack.com/@mariercoles  Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” MARIA’S ONE THING: Ways Of Seeing by John Berger Read it and let me know what you think!

  5. Sep 23

    On the Dots That Make Humanity with Kelsey Zalimeni

    This week’s episode welcomes Kelsey Zalimeni, Deputy COO at blue-chip gallery Almine Rech and founder of ART.WORK, a mentorship initiative for emerging arts industry professionals. In this episode, Kelsey charts her path from small-town North Carolina, across London and Paris, from the sports world to the art world, and everywhere in between. She outlines the importance of learning from the challenges we face to pave the way for the people coming behind us. Connect with Kelsey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelsey-zalimeni-431aaa101/ Learn More about ART.WORK: https://www.artworkcollective.org/about  Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” KELSEY’S ONE THING: RuPaul’s Drag Race ( this might be my favorite answer yet) Watch the episode and find out why!

  6. Sep 16

    On What Makes a Practice and Who Makes an Artist with Stephane Calvin-Rosenberg

    Couldn’t have an arts season without speaking to artists now, could we :) Please welcome Stephane Calvin-Rosenberg, an incredible mixed-media artist and curator. In this episode, she speaks to the tension of tradition and rootedness that makes culture, what it is like to operate as both an opportunity creator and a seeker, as both a curator and an artist herself; and how an unexpected bout in Senegal led her to reignite a childhood passion for the arts and start her practice.  Stephane also leads JAM Ayiti, a nonprofit raising funds for Marmalade Music School, an entirely free music school serving the kids of Haiti.  When it comes to changing kids' lives with music, every donation counts. Support JAM Ayiti: jam-ayiti.org Learn about Stephane’s practice: https://www.instagram.com/stephanecalvin.art/  Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” STEPHANE’S ONE THING: Firelei Báez, “feet squelching on wet grass, nourished by uncertainty” Learn about this exhibition: https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/firelei-baez/

  7. Sep 9

    On Culture as Little Tidbits with Tanisha Gandhi

    Expressions is BACK and better than ever! Introducing Season 2: we’re still sitting down with the people at the heart of cultural expressions, except this season with a twist. We’re focusing all in on the thing that most people think of when you think of culture — the arts. To kick us off is Tanisha Gandhi, curator and founder of Artha, showcasing South Asian art across the world. Our conversation ranges from the arts’ place in our daily lives (the little tidbits, if you will), the relationship between diaspora and culture, and Tanisha’s latest exhibition, Topographies by the Still Other Collective, coming up September 16-20 2026 where she’s teamed up with chef Prerana Dash to put food and art in conversation with culture. Learn more and register for this incredible event at still-other.com (I know I’ll be there!!) Follow Artha Follow the Still Other Collective Take Expressions With You: At the end of each episode, we ask each guest, “If you had to recommend an aspiring culture creator engage with one piece of media, what would it be?” TANISHA’S ONE THING: Shilpa Gupta's For In Your Tongue, I Cannot Fit  Read about this exhibition: https://www.tanyabonakdargallery.com/exhibitions/615-shilpa-gupta-for-in-your-tongue-i-cannot-dallas-contemporary/ See it in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhZk1yo6pls

  8. 11/05/2025

    On Finding Your Unmuted Moments with Ehis Akhetuamhen [SPECIAL EDITION]

    When Ehis first arrived in the U.S., he stayed silent to belong. Now, he’s helping others speak up. An immigrant from Nigeria who is now crushing it at Google, his story is one of quiet strength and loud becoming. Weaving together the personal and the professional, together, we unpack his story of creating his identity in a new home across the world. We dive into how belonging shapes identity and what it means to carry culture forward. Connect with Ehis Listen to Unmuted Moments

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About

Hi y'all! Great to meet you—I'm Leeah Marie, a self-proclaimed storyteller OBSESSED with what makes culture tick. In this series, I’m sitting down with people at the heart of cultural expression—those shaping art, language, community, storytelling, and beyond—to explore what builds and celebrates our shared humanity. Join me and learn from the creators and curators of culture each and every one of us has the capacity to be.

Information

  • Creator
    Leeah Marie
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Leeah Marie
  • Show Website
    Expressions