ALUMNI PROFILES NIKEYU CALLAWAY ’10 ART OUTLETS

An overarching love of art has always guided Nikeyu Callaway’s life trajectory: from drawing and painting as a little girl, through her formative studio art practice at Millbrook, to her current position as an events associate at Pace Gallery in New York City. Her journey after Millbrook has been an ongoing exploration of artistic milieus. On a career path with great variety, Nikeyu knows she is happiest when surrounded by creative people.

After Millbrook, Nikeyu attended Connecticut College and majored in fine arts, but she missed the personal attention she had received as an artist and student at Millbrook and felt uninspired by the Conn College arts curriculum. When recalling her high school experience in Honors Drawing and Painting with Bill Hardy, she says, “I was really at home in that studio in Holbrook—it felt cozy and creative. In the moment, you don’t always realize how fortunate you are. Looking back, I realize how special it was. I so appreciated having Mr. Hardy’s guidance.” After only one year at Conn College, she transferred to the University of Miami in search of the personal attention she felt was missing.

Nikeyu took summer classes at Fordham and doubled up on her required art credits. The added course load in her senior year had a silver lining: she got to know her UMiami teachers better one-on-one. She earned a degree in fine arts, with a minor in classics and architecture, and graduated early, eager to find her place in the art world.

Her first job out of college was with Jim Kempner Fine Arts as a gallery assistant, and it was eye-opening. Though she loved being in the gallery space, she found the work of a gallery assistant tedious. Setting her sights on something more dynamic, she landed at RadicalMedia as a production assistant in their brand engagement division. Nikeyu worked collaboratively with major brands such as American Express to organize sponsored musical performances and large-scale concerts. While being in production gave her invaluable experience, Nikeyu was determined to apply her creative skills in the fine arts world.

Through a Millbrook friend, Rachel (Kanegis) Ahdut ’11, Nikeyu joined the start-up WeGrow, an affiliate of WeWork. She became their first art teacher in a pilot program housed in a Montessori school in TriBeCa, and, inspired by her own education and love of the arts, she built their arts curriculum. Seeking to explore teaching even further, she founded a start-up, Callaway Creative House, a summer program for New York City kids with special emphasis on fostering creativity while caring for nature and the environment.

Nikeyu rented a house in the Hamptons with an expansive lawn and a cozy barn that recalled her Millbrook studio. As a start-up entrepreneur and teacher, she took on everything—she renovated the space, devised the curriculum, bought the art materials, marketed and advertised the program, and taught students. She believes, “You can apply creative thinking to any career or any aspect of life. It helps you think outside the box, and it celebrates being different and unique. Creative thinking as a way of life was the foundation of my curriculum.” Nikeyu has aspirations to continue the pilot program and expand it into an after-school program.

In 2019 Nikeyu secured her current position at Pace Gallery, and in this role, she applies all of the expertise gained from her past jobs. Her work is multi-faceted and includes event planning, production, marketing, and communications. Pace opened their new flagship gallery in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan last fall, allowing them to grow their artistic offerings. They now mount simultaneous exhibits of painting, sculpture, live performance, and immersive experiences. Nikeyu is involved with all of it and marvels at how her Millbrook experience has come full circle. She says, “I took Mr. Hardy’s art history course my senior year. That was the first year the course was offered, and it focused on Willem de Kooning. My senior project was to curate and mount a de Kooning prints exhibition with the artist’s estate. Now at Pace, we represent the de Kooning Foundation! I fully appreciate what an incredible opportunity Millbrook gave me to lay the foundation for a lifetime career.”

Having already explored so many different artistic realms, Nikeyu is very happy in her current position. One of her next projects at Pace is to found a Young Collector’s Circle, introducing her contemporaries to the joy of learning about and collecting art. “I love what I am doing at Pace and want to grow there. At the same time, I must admit that being surrounded by some of the world’s greatest artworks makes me want to return to making my own art. I have always known that on my journey I want to be surrounded by creative people. That’s the great privilege of being at Pace— I’m in an amazing environment, seeing great art every day, and learning from brilliant artists and the people who support them. A part of me loves producing, a part of me loves teaching, and another part of me loves making art.”