About BICA

About BICA

At the Buffalo Institute for Contemporary Art, we believe that contemporary art matters most when it’s woven into everyday life—when it reflects the complexity of our world, responds to its challenges, and brings people together across difference.

We are an artist-run nonprofit cultural organization located on Buffalo’s West Side in the Essex Street Arts Center, a former ice house that once housed the early studios of Cindy Sherman, Robert Longo, and Charles Clough, and was the original home of Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center.

BICA was founded in 2018 in a converted mechanic’s garage with a simple idea: that Buffalo deserves a space for contemporary art that is ambitious, welcoming, and deeply connected to its place. Just a few blocks from that original garage, our current home continues that legacy—supporting artistic risk and civic imagination through exhibitions, a free alternative art school, a regional print magazine, and a regranting program that puts funding directly into artists’ hands.

All of our programs are free or pay-what-you-can, and each one is designed to make contemporary art accessible while strengthening Buffalo’s creative infrastructure for the long term.

There are several core programmatic components to BICA’s mission:

We produce innovative exhibitions featuring locally and internationally recognized artists whose projects enter into critical dialogue with the city of Buffalo

We publish Cornelia magazine, bringing visibility to the work of artists, curators, and writers in Buffalo and the Southern Ontario region

We’re home to BICA School, a free contemporary art school for artists, curators, researchers, and organizers who wish to learn together and grow their practice through weekly critiques, reading groups, and collaborative projects 

We support artists in the production of new work, the creation of new platforms through quarterly microgrants, and administering the Generator Fund – awarding more than $60,000 to artists annually

All of these programs are free to access by the public and have been built from the ground up through conversations with our audiences and wider community. Together they aim at making Buffalo a better city for its residents, one where art and artists are at the center of reimagining civic and institutional possibility.

Staff

Staff

  • Co-Founder and Co-Director, Programs & Publications

    Nando Alvarez-Perez is a photographer, educator, and co-founder of the Buffalo Institute for Contemporary Art (BICA), where he serves as Co-Director of Programs & Publications. He oversees BICA’s exhibition program, working closely with artists to develop ambitious new projects, and guides the editorial direction of Cornelia, BICA’s triannual print magazine. He is also deeply involved in shaping the pedagogy of BICA School, contributing to its curriculum, critiques, and collaborative learning ethos.

    Nando’s photographic work has been exhibited across North America and Europe. He holds an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and a BA in Film Studies from Hunter College. In addition to his work at BICA, Nando is a freelance photographer and educator who has taught at Alfred University, the University of Rochester, and California College of the Arts, and formerly worked as a Creative Lead at Airbnb.

  • Gallery Assistant & Generator Grant Coordinator

    wavy is an artist and musician living and working in Buffalo. They joined BICA first as a gallery sitter, then as an intern, and now serve as Gallery Assistant and Generator Fund Coordinator. They are the primary contact for BICA’s Generator Fund, help coordinate installations and events, and support the publication and distribution of Cornelia. They also assist with day-to-day communications, photography, and exhibition logistics.

    wavy is a member of BICA School and has exhibited their work at Hunt Gallery, Trimania, the Burchfield Penney Art Center, and BICA. They make music under the names Way2WavyBaby and C4W2.

  • Co-Founder and Co-Director, Strategy & Engagement

    Emily Ebba Reynolds is the co-founder of the Buffalo Institute for Contemporary Art (BICA), where she serves as Co-Director of Strategy & Engagement. She leads BICA’s fundraising, communications, strategic planning, and organizational development, and co-curates the exhibition program. She also oversees advertising for Cornelia, helping connect regional artists and audiences across platforms.

    In addition to her work at BICA, Emily is the Marketing and Communications Manager at the University at Buffalo Art Galleries and the Community Curator at Starlight Studio and Art Gallery, a progressive studio supporting adults with disabilities in their artistic and professional growth. She previously held positions at the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and was a founding partner of Bass & Reiner, a curatorial platform in San Francisco from 2014 to 2017. She holds a master’s degree in Exhibition and Museum Studies from the San Francisco Art Institute and a BA in Art History from the University of Colorado Boulder.

  • Gallery Dog

    Twinka isn’t much help around the gallery, but she’s a consistent presence at BICA and an enthusiastic greeter for visitors of all kinds. During installations, her tail does more than its fair share of sweeping, and during BICA School critiques and reading groups, she can usually be found napping or collecting pets from artists. She hasn’t always done the reading, but that doesn’t stop her from chiming in when she feels strongly.

Board

Board

Rachel Adams, Chief Curator and Director of Programs, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts

Andrea Alvarez, Associate Curator, Buffalo AKG Art Museum

H Boone, Artist

Julia Dzwonkoski, Artist

Kyla Kegler, Artist & Teacher

Olivia McManus, Director, Rivalry Projects

Chris Ryan, In-House Counsel, US Bank

Sam Savarino, President & CEO, Savarino Companies