Statement

The purposeful goal of Emily Denlinger's practice is to bring communities of people together in conversation. This is achieved through workshops, cross disciplinary actions, and discussions that take place alongside exhibitions. Cross disciplinary programing welcomes communities of people into exhibition spaces who may be less familiar with art. These collaborative events and workshops create a pathway to understanding.

Gain of Function: New Mutations is an ongoing project, started in 2020. The series is created in response to research surrounding the intersections of power dynamics, military industrial complex, community & identity, ecology, simulations, mutations, and surrealism. Gain of Function: New Mutation tries to digest the most dystopian aspects of contemporary life and offer the viewer a path to understanding the complex forces that shape our present day and future. Created from fashion magazines and vintage National Geographic, these magazines are sources of visual information that is known to be biased and not a reflection of reality for many people. Denlinger works to subvert the imagery into something more universal referencing contemporary society, human interactions, and attempts to understand and control the world around us.

Outreach

Denlinger lead a multi-day workshop "Resilience & Welcoming in Hope: Collage, Installation, & Photography" during Kolaj Fest 2025. Participants were asked to consider how different people and communities remained resilient through the recent pandemic and global events. How do we retain and grow hope? How do the people we surround ourselves with help facilitate that in our lives? Participants were told, communities all over the world perform similar rituals to ward off evil and welcome positive energies into their lives. It is interesting to how ubiquitous these folk traditions are, they seem to be a result of simultaneous invention. These events build community resilience. Participants created figurative collages for locative collage photographs and stop-motion animation. The resulting collaborative images create "Gain of Function...Collective Effervescence." These images have become a zine published by Published by Kolaj Institute & Kasini House, a folio of images, and a stop-motion animation"Gain of Function: HOPE."

Select images from "Gain of Function...Collective Effervescence." These figures were create and photographed by Denlinger. Click HERE for more information about the zine.

"Gain of Function: HOPE," was included in the screening Collage on Screen and the Inquisitor" at Kolaj Fest 2026. Click HERE to view the animation.

Artwork

Gain of Function...Folklore Locative collages artwork was created during Denlinger's artist residence at Kolaj Institute January, 2026. Denlinger says, "Most of my personal experience with collective effervescence has happened during political rallies. I greatly appreciate Kolaj Institute having me on site during Carnival to broaden my experience with collective effervescence and participate in the folklore, customs and rituals, surrounding these events." The images created are in response to research and conversations with New Orlean's community members about their personal experiences.
Photographs in the “Gain of Function… Folklore” series pay homage to the krewes and communities responsible for creating, maintaining, and evolving the traditions and experience of New Orleans Carnival and Mardi Gras. My goal for the landscapes in “Gain of Function…Folklore” was to create scenes from items left behind after Carnival and Mardi Gras celebrations. Objects used in collective effervescence events transform into sacred or nostalgic items for people who participate in those events. Beaded necklaces from the 1940s-contemporary era, used as parade throws, are an important signifier of time and longevity of these traditions. The beaded necklaces have evolved based on availability of materials, trends, cost, and environmental concerns. Contemporary beads are showing up at fewer parades due to the trend of some krewes preferring to incorporate throws that are greener or have more functionality in recipients’ lives.

Select from this series.