Nazeer Sabree Unveils “The Event Phase” at Paradigm

Nazeer Sabree: A Rising Voice in Contemporary Art

Philadelphia-born artist Nazeer Sabree is emerging as one of the most compelling storytellers in today’s contemporary art world. Known for his emotionally charged figure paintings and mixed media collages, Sabree creates work that both confronts and comforts—exploring the often-overlooked emotional interiors of Black manhood. His latest solo exhibition, “The Event Phase,” curated by Ginger Rudolph, opens October 3, 2025, at Paradigm Gallery + Studio and runs through October 26, 2025. The public is invited to the opening reception on October 3 from 6 PM to 8 PM, held at the Paradigm Arts Building, 12 North 3rd Street, Philadelphia.

Curator Ginger Rudolph brings a refined critical lens to the curation, framing Sabree’s visual lexicon as both poetic and confrontational. The title, The Event Phase, suggests not only a moment of rupture but also transformation—echoing the themes that reverberate through Sabree’s evolving body of work. This show marks a new chapter in the artist’s practice and provides a vital platform for a deeper conversation about identity, masculinity, and mental health within Black communities.

Nazeer Sabree: Painting as Ceremony and Resurrection

Nazeer Sabree’s work is ritual. His practice, rooted in familial memory and personal testimony, is both an act of love and a call to reckon with inherited trauma. “Painting my family, I carry their histories, joys, and traumas into the work, sometimes as heavy as rage, sometimes as tender as love,” Sabree explains. “The process is both ceremony and battle.”

This fusion of ancestral homage and radical vulnerability is on full display in The Event Phase. His paintings—layered in brushwork that ranges from the explosive to the meditative—offer viewers a rare glimpse into the contradictions of contemporary Black life: grief and delight, struggle and serenity, the sacred and the profane. Sabree captures what so many cultural narratives erase—the fullness of Black humanity—and hands it back to the audience not as a spectacle, but as an invitation to witness.

It’s this powerful sincerity that positions Nazeer Sabree not just as a painter, but as a cultural cartographer. His works map the inner landscapes of men often taught to suppress their feelings, instead illuminating them with color, movement, and undeniable presence.

“The Event Phase” Exhibition

As Philadelphia’s art community gears up for the fall season, “The Event Phase” stands out as a must-see for collectors, critics, and casual admirers alike. With its thoughtful curation, emotionally raw storytelling, and visually arresting canvases, the exhibition promises to elevate Nazeer Sabree to even greater heights within the national conversation.

Set against the dynamic backdrop of Paradigm Gallery + Studio—long known for championing emerging voices in contemporary art—this exhibition provides a platform for Sabree to break new ground as he paints futures, using the canvas to rewrite what Black masculinity can look and feel like.