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Hello
Introducing D.R.E.A.M. Affect Foundation, a charitable art organization dedicated to using the power of art to empower and inspire! Our dynamic team is made up of Bisong Art Gallery owner, Carla Bisong, and professional artist, Lauren Luna, who work hard to ensure that we are making a positive impact in our community.
Carla Bisong
Carla Bisong, owner of Bisong Art Gallery is a fine art dealer located in downtown Houston's historic Warehouse District. The longest-running black woman-owned for-profit art gallery in Houston Texas. Founded in December 2012, Carla has always had a passion for the arts. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance and Marketing but pursued art externally as a well-needed balance.
Born in Detroit Michigan and migrated to Houston Texas as a young girl with her family in the early 1980s. From 2007 to 2013, she worked for Merrill Lynch Commodities on the origination desk as business support and transitioned to working for Goldman Sachs in the Natural Resources division before following her dream of being a Gallerist.
While working in corporate America she never lost her zeal for the arts.
Operating an art gallery in Houston Texas has allowed her to place beautiful & unique original artwork in the homes of art collectors, small businesses, public art, retail, and large corporations. Artists affiliated with Bisong Art Gallery have participated in global art exhibitions, museums, universities, public art displays, and murals locally and internationally.
Carla is currently the President of the Houston Art Gallery Association. The Houston Art Gallery Association (HAGA) consists of member fine art galleries, mutually supportive, with recognized integrity, expertise, specialized knowledge, and reputation supporting a culturally and ethnically diverse blend of local, national, and international artists at all levels of experience and art mediums.
Our vision is to promote Houston as a destination for the arts. HAGA is a 501(c)(6) organization.
Carla enjoys giving back by sharing her wisdom and experience in business and art through speaking engagements, online courses, and workshops.
Lauren Luna
Master painter Lauren Luna was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. She holds a
bachelor and master degree in Fine Arts, focusing in painting. Commencing her professional
artist career in New York City, and now living in Houston, she is “Your City Painter”, specializing
in iconic city architecture and urban landscapes.
Luna was named a Top 50 Entrepreneur by Scion Car Company, participated in Austin and Houston Fashion Weeks, was featured in British Vogue and Glamour Magazines, and included an exhibit in the Grassi Museum in Germany. She received the Margot Siegel Award for Design by the Goldstein Museum of which her hand painted shoes are a part of the museum’s permanent collection. She was also commended by the Alvin Independent School District
School Board, and was placed into Congressional Record by the District's State Representative. She has shown in the Hunter, Texas State University, and National Afro-American Museums. She currently has two paintings in Houston's City Hall.
As a public school and community college instructor in the Houston area, Lauren Luna has helped thousands of students deepen their love and appreciation for the fine arts, nurtured and mentored hundreds more, and set countless individuals on the path to artful endeavors themselves. Her passion for art has been transmitted to every student whom she has taught in a transformative way and she continues to train, inspire, and cultivate those creative souls.
Outside of the classroom, Lauren Luna has dedicated herself to the art community of the city of Houston and beyond,endeavoring to raise awareness of the need for more formally trained artists of color through the creation of the D.R.E.A.M. Affect Foundation, raising thousands of dollars to support young artists of color in their pursuit of a college education terminating in a degree in Fine Arts. Lauren participates in every major art event in Houston, to spread her vision of creating opportunities and a future in art for aspiring artists of color. Lauren has worked tirelessly to promote art across the city of Houston as a means to improve the lives of the city’s residents, resulting in the proclamation of Lauren Luna Day, on July 11, 2020.