DRZZL, Smithsonian Curator

After leaving Harlem last spring, DRZZL has found home in a myriad of settings – in Vienna, Austria – making music inspired by Cold War propaganda; in Oakland, California – coding websites for UC Berkeley; in Beijing, China – exploring neighboring countries and sharpening his tongue.

After a year of global hopscotch, Adriel Luis finally makes a nest in Washington, DC, as the digital and emerging media curator at the Smithsonian’s Asian Pacific American Center. Finding ways to blur the lines between digital and literal reality, DRZZL can be found sprinting across the National Mall – or casting artwork three stories high from projectors, like sideways UFOs.

Meanwhile, catch DRZZL moonlighting at DC venues like Busboys & Poets and the Kennedy Center, fine-tuning material from his musical project, BeastReality. Life at the museum is vastly different from globetrotting, but the goal remains to explore new terrain.

Current Exhibition – Art Intersections: Smithsonian Asian-Latino Pop-Up Museum