About

Ellen Hackl Fagan

Founder/Director, ODETTA

www.ehfaganstudio.com · [email protected] · @ehfaganstudiowww.odettagallery.com · [email protected] · @odettagallery

Education

1979–80

Saint Mary's College Rome Program, Extension Campus

Rome, Italy

1982

Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, IN

Notre Dame, IN

Bachelor of Fine Arts — Painting, Photography

2001

Yale University Summer Program

New Haven, CT

Sculpture

2005

Hartford Art School

Hartford, CT

Master of Fine Arts — Painting/Interdisciplinary

2006

Harvestworks

New York, NY

Certified, Max/MSP Jitter — Interactive Digital Media

2007–2010

Clay Art Center

Port Chester, NY

Explorations in Surface, Liz Surbeck Biddle, Instructor

Curatorial Experience

2026

COLOR'S HEALING FORCE, By Any Means Necessary! Aqua Miami Art Fair, Miami, Florida and Imagoars, Cannaregio — Associazione Culturale ImagoArs, Venice, Italy.

2025

BLUE VIBRATIONS, Artisan Lofts, NYC. Co-curated with Elizabeth Garvey/Garvey Simon Fine Art.

NIGHT SHADES, daphne:art, Bantam, CT.

LUST FOR RUST, Atlantic Gallery, NYC.

2024

POSTCARDS TO VENICE, ODETTA Digital/SHIM Art Network — #Hashtag Gallery, Mexico City; Palazzo Pisani Revedin, Venice; Aqua Miami Art Fair.

WHO'S AFRAID OF RED, YELLOW, AND BLUE? Long Island City Artists, Queens, NY.

GHOST TOWN, Richard Klein, Patrick Sansone, Equity Gallery, NYC.

2024–2020

ODETTA Digital — curatorial and professional affiliations in an online global network. Exhibitions: Sea Change, Pandemic Proof, Essential Works, Page-Turner, Refresh!, Flow, Spinning Plates, Serious Play, Entry Point, Exquisite Codes, Exquisite AI, Nature's Way.

ODETTA Petite — hybrid gallery alternative space featuring solo exhibitions at model scale. Artists: Seth Callander, Suzanne Benton, Andra Samelson, Audrey Stone.

2014–Present

ODETTA, Owner and Director, New York NY. Over 75 exhibitions since opening in 2014. Reviews in Artillery, The New Criterion, Hyperallergic, Wag Mag, and Arts in Bushwick.

2013–2014

ASAP URGENT HEALTH CARE, Art Curator for emerging health care facilities throughout Connecticut.

SPEAKING IN TONGUES, Art in Flux Harlem, New York, NY. Curator. Reviewed.

2013

THE NATURE OF THINGS, Garden Education Center, Greenwich, CT. Curator.

2010

EINSTEIN, EPHEMERA & CRANK, Casa Frela Gallery, New York, NY. Curator.

2001

MOREAU GALLERY, Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, IN. Visiting artist and guest juror.

1999

EVOLUTION, Women's Caucus for Art/CT Chapter, Gallery 53, Meriden, CT. Exhibition Organizer.

1996

BIRTH ART, MIRACLE AND MYSTERY, Gallery 53, Meriden, CT. Judy Chicago, Featured Artist. Exhibition Organizer.

1995

ART & TEXT, Stamford Museum & Nature Center and Gallery 53, Meriden, CT. Curator. Designed exhibition catalog. Reviewed.

1992

WOMAN VISION, GALLERY 53, Meriden, CT. Exhibition Organizer.

Selected Solo Exhibitions & Interactive Performances

2023

BLUE IMMERSION, Artsy exclusive solo exhibition. SHIM Art Network, curated by Peter Hopkins.

2020

HELPLESS. Five Points Gallery, Torrington, CT. Judith McElhone, Director.

2019

IMMERSED IN BLUE, SOLOS 2019. Ely Center for Contemporary Art, New Haven, CT. Juried Invitational.

2018

AQUA MIAMI ART FAIR, Peter Hopkins, Curator, Miami, FL.

SEEKING THE SOUND OF COBALT BLUE_LEMONADE, ODETTA, Brooklyn, NY. Open Studio.

2017

WHAT DOES BLUE SOUND LIKE? New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Library, New York, NY. Arezoo Mohseni, Curator.

2016

INTO THE BLUE AGAIN, Real Art Ways, Hartford, CT. David Borawski, Curator.

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Marcus Garvey Park, New York, NY. FLUX Art Fair. Leanne Stella, Director.

2013

CABINET OF WONDERS, Goffe Street Armory, New Haven, CT.

2012

SOUND COLOR SPACE, Laura Barton Gallery, Westport, CT.

COLORSOUNDGRAMMAR_3, Round Hill Community Center, Greenwich, CT. Mirella Hajjar, Curator.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE, Connecticut Hospice, Branford, CT. Katherine Blossom, Curator.

2011

IF PAINTINGS COULD SING, Orchard Windows Gallery, New York, NY.

COLORSOUNDGRAMMAR, New Art Center, New York, NY. Serge Gregorian, Director.

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, New Art Center, New York, NY. Premiered live orchestral interactive performance with 8 classically trained musicians.

2009

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Harlem Open Studios, New York, NY.

COLORSOUNDTHEORY, Leever Center for the Performing Arts, Naugatuck Valley Community College, Waterbury, CT.

2006

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, second version. SYNTHESIZE, E G Arts Conservatory, Ridgefield, CT.

EMBRACING CHAOS and THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Duke University, Durham, NC.

2005

THE LISTENING EYE, ORGANIZING CHAOS and THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Mercer County Community College, West Windsor, NJ.

EMBRACING CHAOS AND THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Stamford Museum & Nature Center, Stamford, CT. Exhibition awarded.

2004

ECSTATIC PAINT, MFA Thesis Exhibition, Silpe Gallery, Hartford Art School, Hartford, CT.

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, MFA Thesis Exhibition, Silpe Gallery, Hartford Art School. First version, Michael Feldman, Collaborator and composer.

2003

ARTISTIC COLLABORATIONS, CONTEMPORARY PLAYERS, THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford. First version premiered, Michael Feldman, Collaborator and composer.

2001

GRAFITTI, Art-X Gallery, Stamford Museum & Nature Center, Stamford, CT.

1999

OBLITERATED PHRASES, 4-Star Gallery, Indianapolis, IN.

1998

LIVING THROUGH COLOR, 4-Star Gallery, Indianapolis, IN.

1993

CONVERGENCES, Jamaica Arts Center, Jamaica, NY.

1982

HYPER-X-TENDED SOUNDS, Senior Thesis Exhibition, BFA, Moreau Gallery, Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame IN.

Selected Group & Two-Person Exhibitions

2025

100 WOMEN OF SPIRIT, 33rd Edition, Part 3, New York, NY, Gwenolee Zurcher, Curator.

ROUND, ROUNDISH, Olive Free Library, West Shokan, NY.

THE SKY STILL LINGERS, @fluidmedia.art, SHIM Art Network. Artsy. John Cox, Alison Cuomo, Curators.

THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THE LOVING, MAPSpace, Port Chester, NY.

2024

POSTCARDS TO VENICE, SHIM Art Network and ODETTA. Touring: Mexico City, Venice, Miami.

BEYOND LANGUAGE, Fluid Media, SHIM Art Network. Artsy.

RADIAL SYMMETRY, HARMONICALLY, Equity Gallery, NYC.

BALLOT SHOW, Front Room Gallery, Hudson, NY.

AMONG FRIENDS IV, Metaphor Project Space, Brooklyn, NY.

PRACTICE OF EVERYDAY LIFE, Fluid Media, SHIM Art Network. Artsy.

2023

EXQUISITE CODES and EXQUISITE AI, SHIM Art Network and ODETTA Digital. Traveled to Berlin, Miami, and Bridgeport.

NATURE'S WAY, ODETTA Digital and SHIM Art Network.

ENTRY POINT, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital and SHIM Art Network.

THE CALL AWAY, Artsy exclusive, Fluid Media.

HIDDEN GLIMMERING, Artsy exclusive, Fluid Media.

2022

CONVERSATIONAL, Art on the Lake, Carmel, NY.

PARTY LINE, The Exchange, Something Projects. Connecticut.

PAINTING BY PROXY, Project: ARTspace, New York, NY.

AMONG FRIENDS III, Equity Gallery, New York, NY.

CRITICAL WATERCOLOR: FLUID MEDIA, Artsy exclusive, SHIM Art Network.

2021

PAINTING BY PROXY, Project: ARTspace, New York, NY.

CRITICAL WATERCOLOR: FLUID MEDIA, Artsy exclusive, SHIM Art Network.

REFRESH!, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital, SHIM Art Network.

DRAWING CHALLENGE XX and XVIII, Jason McCoy Gallery (Digital).

PAGE-TURNER, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital, SHIM Art Network.

ESSENTIAL WORKS, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital, SHIM Art Network.

2020

PANDEMIC PROOF, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital, SHIM Art Network.

WITH THE GRAIN, Equity Gallery, NYC.

RADICAL WOMEN: SEEING RED, ODETTA, NYC.

HEALING AND COMMUNITY: PHYSICAL TO VIRTUAL, NoMAA.

SEA CHANGE, Artsy exclusive, ODETTA Digital, SHIM Art Network.

PAINT VS COLOUR @ FIVE WALLS, Five Walls Gallery, Melbourne, AU.

2019

FEVER SONGS, Bronx Art Space, Bronx, NY.

AMONG FRIENDS, ENTRE AMIGOS, Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center, New York, NY.

WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH INVITATIONAL, Van Deb Gallery, Long Island City, NY.

2018

CREATIVE WOMEN, Bendheim Gallery, Greenwich, CT.

CT CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR, Silvermine Guild of Art.

FEVER SONGS, WHAT DOES ROYGBIV SOUND LIKE?, Creative Tech Week, ODETTA, Brooklyn, NY.

SIDESHOW NATION 17, Sideshow Gallery, Brooklyn, NY.

2017

MANIAC: Manic Episode 5, John Slade Ely Center for Contemporary Art, New Haven, CT.

MUSIC TO MY EYES, Ellie Murphy's studio, Bushwick Open Studios.

SPACE/CRAFT, A.I.R., Brooklyn, NY.

2016

THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, FLUX Art Fair, Marcus Garvey Park, New York, NY. Launch of web based app.

LAZULI, Ground Floor Gallery, Brooklyn, NY.

DISORDER and BLISS, Space B, Brooklyn, NY.

2015

INDUSTRIAL COMFORTS, Space B, Brooklyn, NY.

CHECKERED HISTORY, OUTPOST, Ridgewood, NY.

COLOR RULES, The Drawing Rooms at Victory Hall, Jersey City, NJ.

VOLUME 1, Schema Projects, Brooklyn, NY.

FLUX ART FAIR, Corn Exchange Building, Harlem, NYC.

2014

BIG SMALL PAINTING SHOW, The Drawing Rooms at Victory Hall, Jersey City, NJ.

FAR AND WIDE, Woodstock Art Museum, Woodstock, NY. Ian Berry, Juror.

AFFORDABLE ART FAIR, New York, NY.

THE SKETCHBOOK PROJECT, Brooklyn Art Library.

2012

THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT, Art in Flux Harlem, New York, NY.

SOLOS 2012, Westport Arts Center Gallery, Westport, CT. Ian Berry, Juror. Exhibition awarded.

THE ABSTRACT TRADITION, Greenwich Historical Society, Storehouse Gallery. Exhibition awarded.

2011

THE ABSTRACT TRADITION, Greenwich Historical Society. Exhibition awarded.

SPLASH! Housatonic Museum of Art, Bridgeport, CT.

AN EXCHANGE WITH SOL LEWITT, MASS MOCA and Cabinet Magazine.

2010

SQUARDI SONORI, THE REVERSE COLOR ORGAN, Planetario, Museo della Civita, Rome, Italy. Ennio Morricone, Curator.

THE WESTCHESTER BIENNIAL, Castle Gallery, College of New Rochelle. Exhibition awarded.

2009

THE COLORSOUNDGRAMMAR GAME, FIGMENT: INTERACTIVE ART, Governor's Island, New York, NY.

LEFT BRAIN/RIGHT BRAIN, Flinn Gallery, Greenwich, CT.

2008

ALDRICH UNDERCOVER, Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, CT.

WHY NOT?, Housatonic Art Museum, Bridgeport, CT.

2005

INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA CULTURE EXPOSITION, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, NY.

2004

RADIUS, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum and the Ridgefield Guild of Art. Awarded exhibition and mentorship.

1999

SMALL WORKS, BIG IDEAS, Discovery Museum of Art, Bridgeport, CT.

PERSONAL HEROES, LOCAL AND LEGENDARY, Keeney Memorial Cultural Center, Wethersfield, CT.

1997

COLORS, CONTRASTS AND CULTURES, Discovery Museum, Bridgeport, CT. Reviewed.

1995

ART & TEXT, Stamford Museum & Nature Center, Stamford, CT. Exhibition traveled. Reviewed.

EXPLORING THE FIGURE, Gertrude White Gallery, Greenwich, CT. Reviewed.

1994

ART IN MOTION, Kinetics, Movement and Change. Farmington Valley Arts Center, Farmington, CT. Grand Prize.

Recent Art Fairs

2024

Aqua Art Miami, SHIM Art Network, Postcards to Miami, Exquisite Codes, Miami, FL. Peter Hopkins, Curator.

2023

Aqua Art Miami, SHIM Art Network, Exquisite Codes, Miami, FL. Peter Hopkins, Curator.

2022

14-C, Fluid Media, Jersey City, NJ.

Aqua Art Miami, SHIM Art Network, Exquisite Codes, Miami, FL.

Honors & Awards

2020

Owl Award, National League of American Pen Women, Greenwich, CT Chapter.

2014

Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, Art in Public Spaces, Finalist selected for Percent for Art Public Commission.

2011

Greenwich Historical Society Community Artists Series, Greenwich, CT. Exhibition awarded.

2004

Creative Contraptions, Homage to Rube Goldberg, Stamford Museum & Nature Center. $2,500 grant award and exhibition.

2004

RADIUS, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum and the Ridgefield Guild of Art. Awarded exhibition and mentorship.

2001

Moreau Gallery, Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, IN. Visiting artist and guest juror.

1994

Art in Motion, Kinetics, Movement and Change, Farmington Valley Art Center, Farmington, CT. Grand Prize.

Selected Collections

Swan HotelOrlando, FL
Peter TrippiNew York, NY
Private CollectionRhode Island
Julio ValdezNew York, NY
James BrainardIndianapolis, IN
Morgan HoddesBoulder, CO
Dr. David ZadikGreenwich, CT
Indianapolis Museum of ArtIndianapolis, IN
Dana Farber InstituteBoston, MA
Diagnostic Chemicals Ltd.Oxford, CT

Representation

SHIM Art Network, Art Helix GalleryBrooklyn, NY
PIEROGI Gallery, Flat FilesBrooklyn, NY
The Sketchbook ProjectBrooklyn, NY

Professional Affiliations

National Arts Club

National League of American Pen Women, Greenwich Chapter — Owl Award, Co-Chair Fine Arts

New York Artists Equity

ODETTA Digital/SHIM Art Network — Director of Development, Director ODETTA Digital

International Listening Association

Publications

2025

Garvey | Simon, Meer Magazine, "Blue Vibrations," November 3, 2025.

2025

Kristen Armstrong, Canvas Rebel, "Meet Ellen Hackl Fagan," May 14, 2025.

2025

Etty Yaniv, Art Spiel, "Night Shades, Art in a State of Dissonance," April 22, 2025.

2021

Margo Moore, New York Public Library, "Artist Interview: Ellen Hackl Fagan," May 18, 2021.

2020

Post Road Magazine, Issue #37, Ellen Hackl Fagan, "Seeking the Sound of Cobalt Blue — Paintings: 2016–2018," December 15, 2020.

2020

Inka Juslin, First Indigo and Lifestyle, "Color Comes With Music for Ellen Hackl Fagan," October 4, 2020.

2020

Laurie Fendrich, Two Coats of Paint, "Summertime blues," July 31, 2020.

2019

Brian Slattery, The New Haven Independent, "For Four Artists, It's A Matter Of Perception," December 18, 2019.

2017

Arts in Bushwick, Etty Yaniv, "Ellen Hackl Fagan is Immersed in Blue," February 10, 2017.

2016

Hearst Media, CT Post, Christina Hennessy, "Sound and Color Shape Artist's Aural Aspirations," June 25, 2016. Cover Feature.

2015

Hearst Media, Greenwich Time, S Magazine, Christina Hennessy, "Her Evergreen Just Had To Be Blue," December 13, 2015. Cover Feature.

2011

Regine Basha, Cabinet Magazine, "An Exchange With Sol LeWitt," p.50, 2011.

2010

Susan Hodara, The New York Times, "Visions of the Eerie, the Wacky and the Whimsical," April 30, 2010.

1997

William Zimmer, The New York Times, "Color, So Much the Essence of What's Happening in Painting," December 21, 1997.

1995

Vivien Raynor, The New York Times, "Words and Images, the Works of 15 Connecticut Artists," June 4, 1995.

Other Interests

Prehistoric Art and Burial Sites — Indian Mounds, Effigy Mounds, Petroglyphs, Passage Tombs, and Cave Art. Global.

Guitar, Private Instruction. Chris Fox, Instructor.

Classical Guitar, Private Instruction. Late Walter Kaye Bauer, Instructor.

Fluent in Italian language and conversation.

James Joyce, Ulysses and Finnegan's Wake — organizes and facilitates a read-aloud group.

Herman Melville, Moby Dick — organizes and facilitates a read-aloud group.

Jack Kerouac, On the Road — organizes and facilitates a read-aloud group.

Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland — organizes and facilitates a read-aloud group.