New York Close Up

Art21’s award-winning digital film series, New York Close Up, is devoted to capturing early-career artists living and working in New York City. Providing a unique window into the next wave of art-making in the city, Art21 collaborates with artists to tell stories about their creative processes, diverse backgrounds, and daily realities.

New York Close Up is made possible with support from Every Page Foundation, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, and the Henry Nias Foundation.

Jordan Strafer’s True Stories

August 19, 2026

11:04

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An improbable combination of surrealist humor, cultural homage, and critical engagement, Jordan Strafer’s video artworks are deeply researched and elaborately art-directed reenactments of personal experiences and historical events.

News
Director’s Notes with Andrea Yu-Chieh Chung |
“Jordan Strafer’s True Stories”
Art21 Producer Andrea Yu-Chieh Chung sits down with Associate Curator Jurrell Lewis to discuss the Art21 New York Close Up film “Jordan Strafer’s True Stories.” Documenting Strafer at work on her latest film, TALK SHOW (2026), before it’s premiere at the 81st Whitney Biennial, Chung describes the careful approach to “capital ‘T’ truth” that both […]
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News
Director’s Notes with Haimy Assefa |
“Precious Okoyomon’s Creative Destruction”
Precious’s work is so vast. They have the ability to express themselves through so many different mediums, and I love that their work communicates a level of freedom. At a glance, it can feel like the various mediums are in their own worlds, but I see them as layers that have a throughline. In sections […]
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