/ TESTIMONIALS

Because OTS practices and ethos preceded the formation of OTS, the testimonials below come not only from past clients + co-learners, but also from people who have witnessed my facilitation, mentorship, and project design in a range of contexts. I am committed to only “getting the job done,” but to also nurture a sense of joy and curiosity that will exceed our time together.

“As the sole organizer of an emerging small press, I have been struggling for the past couple of years to identify sustainable working models. I knew I needed help, but seeking out support can feel vulnerable because there’s a fear that the ideal of clarity will be rushed at the expense of curiosity. When I started working with Orange Tangent Study, fear became overrun by joy.I have been working with OTS to help guide me as I focus my press’ offerings and develop a card deck for supporting critical photography studies. Kameelah carries a deeply generous curiosity in getting to know what a project can be—its potential, what worlds it could build, and what paths it could inscibe. And at the same time, Kameelah carries a commitment to clarity in grounding us in what a project is—its limits, the resources it needs, and the amount of time it asks us for. To go on a tangent with OTS is to ground a project’s support in the life of curiosity, and thus in the aliveness of ourselves.”

– Katie Giritlian (Publisher, Paper Camera Press)

“Kameelah thinks deeply about engagement and adult learning. This shows up in how she sequences a learning progression, designs the PowerPoint slides, or resources available to the learners. Her prior experience as an educator shines through in every interaction because she always wants to better understand the learning needs of the audience. She helps you shape big messy ideas into a crisp clear vision.”

– Erin Stark, Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund

“You are an incredibly resourceful person. Not just in the literal sense of knowing things but there is a deep inner grounding energy of being connected to something that sustains. This is inspiring to experience and calming to around in a whirlwind world of urgency. I have felt so understood, stabilized, and shored by my relation to you.”

– mukhtara ayọ̀tẹ́jú adékúnbi yusuf (Artist, Founder of Ilẹ̀ Lab +studio)

“People should know how thoughtful and deep you are; that you can talk about just about any topic under the sun, with surprising considerations and intricate views on the subject. There are few people I would rather spend a long afternoon with, over hot drinks, and one of our free form conversations that always feel like an essay that needs to be written. If an essay could exist in five dimensions.”

– Laura Raicovich (Writer, Curator, and Co-Founder of The Francis Kite Club)

“In your classes, newsletters and works - it’s like being given a magnifying glass to a very rare book, and then being told you’re allowed to touch it, taste it and interact with it. I don’t quite know how to summarize what it is you do with language with thinking with ideas with curiosity with learning! You reawakened my desire to learn from the first time I saw your exhibition in 2019. Something innate and something deeply precious unlocked. I think because you and your work mirror - care and curiosity. To chase an obsession. To be alive in the process. How slippery it all is. And how vulnerable your art is to share that, all the gaps all the unknowing. A friend recently said; bewilderment to describe the universe. And I think that’s what I feel when I think about all you offer; bewilderment. All possibility! I am grateful you exist, mashallah.”

– Asmaa Jama (Artist, Poet, Filmmaker)

“You are truly someone one can trust because of their genuine care and support you put into the space we shared. It’s been such a boost of iman to have this relationship between Safiyah, yourself, and I grow. It’s been very non-institutional, kind, and meaningful. When you work with collaborator/mentors sometimes it feels like a give and take but with the three of us it’s feels like we all want to see each other win and do fun shit in the meantime. That could of been more poetic but I think “fun shit” sums up the feeling of good community building. But in a better way to say our relationship feels like you truly care and believe in both of us when a lot of institutions haven’t or have only cared when they succeed. It’s a blessing to have you as a mentor, friend, and collaborator.”

– Daniel Flounder (Artist, Former Grantee, Co-Founder of Islam + Print)

“Kameelah contains multitudes, and I'm grateful for the opportunities I've had to sit with her and think together.”

– Alex Tronolone (Manager, Curriculum Development, Center for Educators and Schools, New York Public Library)