Malik DOPE, Anna Divinagracia, and More Gathered to Launch NUNAR’s Issue 7
photos by TINA CARZON, KATELYN KING
Last month, NUNAR's Act Up: Unruled Issue kicked off with a print exhibition and a champagne toast to five years of the magazine. The seventh issue stars Verde Madera, Malik DOPE, and Anna Divinagracia, and features stories on Father Sokka, Daryle Locko, Ketu, Indapond, Kotic Couture, and Jireh.
Hosted at Chela Mitchell Gallery in Union Market, which recently opened Shy Glizzy's curatorial debut, the evening gathered guests for a night in D.C.'s go-to locale for creatives.
Since it wouldn't be 2025 without climate change-induced flooding, torrential rains triggered a flash flood emergency in the city just in time for the bash. Still, over 100 attendees who had evaded the floodwaters mingled intimately with our cover stars, editors, and a who's who crowd of creatives from around the region. Tina Carzon and Katelyn King were there, capturing the night as it unfolded.
The night kicked off around 4:00 pm, with it-boy yenga on the turntable. Cover stars Malik DOPE and Anna Divinagracia were in attendance, as well as featured artists Father Sokka and Daryle Locko, while LA-based cover star Verde Madera sent energy from across the coast. Lafayette Barnes IV, Natalie Hopkinson (Museum of Go-Go), Ashley Jaye Williams, John Tyler, L.E.A.N., Za Starring, and Coco Paylor were there, as were Gigi Salkic and Mastermold, and other tastemakers of the regional culture. Cover photographers Raba Abro and Tobi Oluremi were also in attendance, plus NUNAR cohort Bolupe Olaseinde, Caleb Simpson, Brandon Battle, Eyewuh, Bria Jones, and NUNAR's Board of Directors.
The night culminated in a toast honoring five years of coverage of the creative scene led by Editor-in-Chief Damon J. Barnes, followed by remarks from Jeremy Collins, James Arnold, and the cover stars. Right after, attendees were treated to a world-class, audio-immersive drum performance by Malik DOPE.
If you were there, you felt it. If you weren’t? Well, you’ll just have to catch the next one. And trust us—you won’t want to miss it.