OKLAHOMA CITY – One of Oklahoma’s most beloved and foundational showcases for rising young artists is set to celebrate its 25th year this weekend, once again spotlighting the most exciting creative minds of the present and future, but this year, paying tribute to the past as well.
MOMENTUM, the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition’s annual spotlight exhibition of boundary-pushing visual artists under the age of 30, is once again taking over Capitol Hill’s historic Yale Theatre Friday, March 27th and Saturday, March 28th with dozens of showcasing artists and more than a few nods back to its quarter-century history.
“The main focus is still on the younger artists this year, of course,” OVAC marketing manager Karis Chambers told Free Press by phone Tuesday. “But we have been trying to do a lot of storytelling about the history of the event and thinking of ways to integrate that back into it this year.”
That’s meant inviting a host of former MOMENTUM artists to serve on this year’s committee, rolling out social media memories and personal stories of the past 25 years in the run up to the big weekend, and even incorporating past projects into the décor for this year’s bash.
“We’ll actually be bringing out a ‘time capsule’ that was made at the very first MOMENTUM,” Chambers said. “It was made by the artist Molly O’Connor and it’s essentially a large piece of fabric that a lot of folks at the first MOMENTUM wrote on and sewed pieces of themselves into. Like there somebody’s dreadlock and pieces of people’s clothing. And so they’re bringing that back to share as like our photo backdrop, along with some archival displays of past works.”
It’s all a part of celebrating the legacy and longevity of MOMENTUM, an OKC arts institution that has been a springboard for future arts leaders, business owners, community organizers, and even State government officials.
Oklahoma Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt (D-District 30) served as OVAC’s executive director from 1999 to 2014, and oversaw the very first MOMENTUM and its growth into one of the most anticipated annual events on the OKC calendar.
“We knew we need to make the event fun to attract new audiences to see the art,” Kirt told OVAC’s quarterly magazine Art Focus about launching the first MOMENTUM in 2001. “And we knew young artists needed a place to be recognized.”
Artist/photographer Chase Spivey, co-owner of Norman’s Uncanny Art House, is a 2026 committee member for MOMENTUM, and he also remembers those early years, frequently performing during the events with bands like Ghost of Monkshood and Penny Hill and getting a firsthand look at how the showcase has developed alongside the arts scene.
“It’s really great to see how it has evolved and grown over the years,” Spivey told Free Press. “I think that it’s a really important time to be a young artist and I’m excited to see how this generation of artists will explore the challenges of our time.”
With the primary focus of MOMENTUM always on the excitements and energies of new, rising artists and the sentiments driving their work, those challenges will be on blunt, powerful display in a lot of the featured art this year.
“It does feel this year like there’s a lot more aggressive work,” Chambers said. “A lot of people are distressed, for very good reason. It’s a sign of the times, you know, that especially young artists are really experimenting and kind of absorbing the climate, maybe for the first time, and navigating it. You can feel that in some of the work.”
Championing and supporting that kind of electric, youthful arts energy is the whole aim of MOMENTUM, as much this year as ever.
Even when they’re celebrating 25 years past, the focus is still on spotlighting the works that we might be talking about 25 years from now.
“This show is always more provoking or alternative, for sure,” Chambers said. “Especially compared to the more traditional art shows you might see in Oklahoma.”
MOMENTUM 25, presented by the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition, takes place Friday, March 27th and Saturday, March 28th at the Yale Theatre in Capitol Hill.
For more tickets, schedules, and more information, visit ovac-ok.org/MOMENTUM.
Brett Fieldcamp is the owner and Editor in Chief of Oklahoma City Free Press. He has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly two decades and served as Arts & Entertainment Editor before purchasing the company from founder Brett Dickerson in 2026.
He is also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
