LUmkA was founded in 2020 by Cortney Connolly with the release of LUmkA 1.0. The series of paintings, photography, and poems aimed to explore living in LUmkA. Since, it has grown into an interdisciplinary brand that combines fine art, film, fashion, Zines, and photography into one experience. LUmkA organizes art events made up of different artists and curators. It is a multimedia experience, a place where our senses are ignited to think about the topic of inquiry.
"LUmkA is when an individual consciously questions how the world around them came to be. Where does culture apply value? Why?"
LUmkA was inspired by Connolly's youth-- growing up in the age of the internet, where all information is accessible at any time, any hour, yet moves quickly and changes as the real world progress. The hours of looking at the early years of Youtube while sporting the bright colors of childhood nostalgia inspired growing into one’s own edge and authenticity.
In 2022 for the second anniversary Connolly standardized the meaning and motives of LUmkA in the LUmkA Manifesto. LUmkA utilizes artistic inquiry to generate a new perspective about the world around.