Halim Flowers

Halim Flowers was born in Washington, DC in1980 and raised in one of the city’s most challenging neighborhoods. At just 16 years old,he was arrested and charged as an accomplice toa felony murder—despite not being present at the scene. Halim was sentenced as an adult, receiving two life sentences. His experience as a child in the prison system was later chronicled in Kim Kardashian’s The Justice Project and Emmy Award-winning Thug Life in DC. Even in confinement, Halim had a deep love for language. He began with freestyle rap, but overtime his expression evolved into poetry. Writing became his way of processing and articulating the trauma of growing up in DC during the crack epidemic and surviving prison.
In 2016, DC legislators passed the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act, which allowed individuals convicted as minors who had served at least 20 years to petition for resentencing and potential release. In 2019, after more than two decades behind bars, Halim was granted his freedom. Just one week later, Halim shared his poetry at an American University and Deloitte event—and he knew he had found his voice. Halim used the spoken word to advance his mission to promote love among all humans and to express his ardent support for human rights.
His passion for words soon expanded to visual art. Inspired by the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Halim began translating his experiences onto canvas. His vibrant, textured pieces are layered with color and raw life experience.
Halim has been recognized with several prestigious honors, including the Halcyon Arts Lab Fellowship and the Echoing Green Fellowship. He has delivered a TEDx Talk on criminal justice reform and is a beneficiary of Georgetown University’s Prison and Justice Initiative, where he has studied Government, Philosophy, Reparations, and English. He was part of the Museum of Modern Art’s Exhibit Marking Time— Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration. He received a grant from Agnes Gund’s Art for Justice Fund and was featured as a Justice Ambassador in the 2020 film Halim’s Hope. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Frederick Douglass Project for Justice and Cultural DC and was just selected to be an Obama Foundation 2025-2026 Leader.
Today Halim’s works are exhibited around the world including Paris, Dubai, Liechtenstein, Ibiza, Columbus, Cleveland,, New York, Washington, DC, Palm Beach and Boston.

Persona Shadow 48 x 36

Beings 18 x 18

Faces of the Deep 48 x 36

Dichotomy 36 x 48

Breing 24 x 18

 

About Elena

Elena Osterwalder’s new work is experimental and consists of naturally dyed paper and organic dyes. The dyes are made from plants (indigo, turmeric, tea), insects (cochinille)and vegetables (beets, onions. Minerals (clay and mica) are mixed into the dyes to give them texture.

The process of dyeing is similar to the one used by Pre-Hispanic natives to dye their wool, silk and cotton and is still in use in Mexico today.

Elena says, “My objective is to fuse old methods used by artisan with contemporary thought processes, by making installations of very natural and environmentally safe elements. The fusion of the two cultures – American and Hispanic – has been present throughout my work. It is always apparent either in subject matter or below the surface of my abstract paintings where a tropical color, flower or a sensuous line reminds me of my homeland.”

Video about Elena

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS

Elena Osterwalder is showing her work in two international shows during September 2010:

“La Barca de Oro” is exhibited at the 21st IAPMA Congress 2010 in Gangwon-do, South Korea through -14th of September 14. Afterwards it will be installed at the HANJI THEME PARK in Gangwon-do, South Korea.

“City Scene” and “The Tower” are exhibited at Dreams-Vision-Creations Athens Art 2010, Technopolis, Athens, Greece through September 15. The event has been organized by Takis Alexiou and CA4S.

Selected Exhibitions

2013 “Color Is”, Otterbein University, Miller Gallery, Westerville, OH                                                                                    2012 “Elena Osterwalder – 41 Years of Creativity”, Art Access Gallery, Bexley, OH                                                              2008 “Osterwalder” The Works, Newark, Ohio                                                                                                                                    2007 From The Earth: Modern Art from Traditional Hispanic Paper Making Roots
2007 NALAC Fine Arts Grant
The Rhodes Tower, Columbus, Ohio                                                                                                                                                   2004 “Rojo-Espiritu de Vida,” Art Access Gallery
2002 “Lazos Culturales,” BK Smith Gallery, Lake Erie College, OH
2001 “Color,” Lanning Gallery, Columbus, OH
Pomerene Center for the Arts, Coshocton, OH
1999 “Variations on a Square,” Lanning Gallery, Columbus, OH
1996 “Poetry and Painting,” Lanning Gallery, Columbus, OH
1993 “Osterwalder,” Nicolae Gallery, Columbus, OH
1987 Spangler Cummins Gallery, Columbus, OH
CORPORATE AND PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Barromex, Mexico City, Mexico
Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH
Borden Corporation, Columbus, OH
Coopers & Lybrand, Columbus, OH
Hyatt Regency on Capital Square, Columbus, OH
Imtrex Corporation, Columbus, OH
Ronald McDonald House, Columbus, OH
Signer Werkzungmaschinen, Zurich, Switzerland
The Huntington National Bank, Toledo, OH
The Watson Architectural Firm, Cleveland, OH