art collective

Firebrands: Portraits from the Americas

priyanka — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:00:00 +0000

I was initially unimpressed by Firebrands, but that was because I approached it wrong. I tried to sit down in my living room and read it cover-to-cover, and that's not what this book is for. It's a pocket-sized compendium of amazing people—people "left out of the schoolbooks because they were too brown, too female, too poor, too queer, too uneducated, too disabled, or because they daydreamed too much." Each firebrand gets a page-long description, a lovely illustration, and a number of suggestions for further reading.

Firebrands reads somewhat like a reference book, and it could function that way—one could keep it on the shelf in case one heard the name of a lesser-known abolitionist, revolutionary, or what-have-you; then one could simply look that person up. As a blogger, though, I see it as much like a themed blog. It's best opened at random pages, read in fits and starts. It might have been interesting to include some kind of decentralized theme-organization within the book—something along the lines of a blog's tags. A few blog-inspired books have done things like that in recent years, such as the sex-positive anthology Yes Means Yes, which attaches a number of tags at the end of each essay, then lists all tags and their associated entries at the beginning of the book. (Firebrands does have a very nice index, however, so it's possible to navigate the book by themes in that way.)

Once I started reading the book at random and in small chunks, I started liking it a lot. The authors have done a great job of digging up pithy quotations and interesting anecdotes. A few entries lack vividness (it's hard to be enthralled by vague sentences like "She did a lot of community organizing"), but for the most part, these firebrands really sound inspiring. One of my favorite quotations came from the description of Latino baseball player Roberto Clemente: "Clemente's motto was, 'If you have the chance to help others and fail to do so, you are wasting your time on this earth.'" And I was charmed by an anecdote about the singer Nina Simone: "During a recital when she was twelve years old, Nina's parents were asked to relinquish their front row seats to a white family, and Simone refused to perform until her parents were returned to their original seats."

I was also impressed by the book's genuine inclusiveness—it covered a wide array of warriors, artists, leaders, and it did so while pushing beyond the typical "inclusive" boundaries. For example, as a sex-positive activist I was thrilled to note that the painter Frida Kahlo was acknowledged to be both bisexual and polyamorous.

The illustrations add a lot to Firebrands. I particularly love the images by Roger Peet. It goes with the last biography in the book, Zumbi dos Palmares, a Portuguese slave in Brazil who led an insurrection in the 1600s. Firebrands was produced by an artists' cooperative called Justseeds, and it's clear that the whole group pitched in for this book and thought carefully about each element. So you could benefit a bunch of artists by giving this charming collection as a gift! What’s not to love?

Written by: Clarisse Thorn, January 28th 2011

Experiments In A Jazz Aesthetic: Art, Activism, Academia, and the Austin Project

admin — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 16:05:00 +0000

Edited by Omi Osun Joni L. Jones, Lisa L. Moore, Sharon Bridgforth

University of Texas Press

In June 2009, I participated in a writing workshop with Sharon Bridgforth, not knowing what to expect and not knowing what I was expected to give. I only knew that I loved music, having already pledged my undying love for jazz at a young age, and that I loved writing; but I never intended to leave with a blueprint for the foundation of how I would put pen to paper from that point on. Since then, my writing has been centered in being present in the here and now, a soulful, deep listening, improvisation (which brings together both the aforementioned), and an integrity that refuses to deviate from what makes up what is known as the jazz aesthetic. It is always a work in progress, as it should be.

According to Austin Project founder Omi Osun Joni L. Jones, director of the John L. Warfield Center for African and African American Studies and Associate Professor of Performance Studies in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Texas at Austin, the Jazz Aesthetic Manifesto “is a way to forestall the erosion of human connection by bringing to voice women of color and those white women who are able to learn the role of allies.” Jazz has always been about being in the moment, listening to oneself and to one’s surroundings, improvisation, and continuous change. Those precepts are among the few that shaped themselves into the manifesto that would become the Austin Project.

The Austin Project (tAP) was started in 2002 with a stone etching that “all women-all people-are inherently creative, are artists in their own right, and that claiming this identity can be transformative for individuals and communities.” It provides a space for women of color and their allies to write and perform in a jazz aesthetic as a strategy for social change, be they writers, performers, doctors, or social workers. It consists of collaborators Lisa L. Moore, Associate Professor of English and Women’s and Gender Studies at University of Texas at Austin, and Sharon Bridgforth, Lambda Literary Award-winning author of the bull-jean stories and love conjure/blues. Mentors and teachers of the women of tAP have included artistic nobility such as Laurie Carlos, Carl Hancock Rux, Virginia Grise, and Daniel Alexander Jones, to name a few.

Not often do I find it difficult to summarize the works of a collective into several hundred words; however, this is one of those times. Experiments in a Jazz Aesthetic includes the works of some of the previously mentioned collaborative artists, as well as a veritable who’s who in all things to do with art, activism, and the academics. Jones wrote that in conceiving the Austin Project, she was trying to save her own life; consequently, many births seem to have taken place, for many artists have birthed a way of creating, organizing, and performing. Whether it is art, activism, or academia—being present, listening, body- centered, true to the both/and instead of the either/or all on an inclusive level all serve as the foundation with which to maintain the integrity of the jazz aesthetic. It is always a work in progress, as it should be.

Written by: Olupero R. Aiyenimelo, August 4th 2010

The Heretics

admin — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 17:08:00 +0000

Directed by Joan Braderman

Crescent Diamond

The Heretics: Stories from a Feminist Collective premiered at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) during the first two weeks of October, 2009. Written and directed by Hampshire college professor, Joan Braderman, the documentary chronicles the creation and life of the feminist art collective, the Heresies, and their homegrown publication, HERESIES: A Feminist Publication on Art and Politics, which was in print from 1977-1992.

Braderman circles the globe in search of her former colleagues—painters, writers, filmmakers, among other artists—in an effort to document the history of the Heresies Collective and their publication within the larger context of the feminist movement of the 1970s. Braderman is successful in capturing the spirit of the heretics through her many interviews. HERESIES was a seminal publication in and for the feminist movement, and, throughout the course of the film, each interviewer details the love and dedication poured into the publication, from all night meetings to open sessions for readers to critique the most recent issue.

As a contributor to this publication, which advocates the same spirit of global feminism of its precursor, I felt a kinship with the feminism embodied by the interviewees. Each interviewee emphasized the collective’s success in promoting feminism and feminist dialogue through the conduit of their journal. “Success” is a fraught word for feminists, who have worked for large-scale change, but for whom change has yet to come on an equivalent scale. Indeed, it was heartbreaking to hear various members of the collective lament the current state of feminism, particularly in the United States. They spoke of the fact that very few people are feminists, or even desire to appropriate the identity of feminist. These women, commonly known as the second wave feminists, along with women around the world, have dedicated their lives to achieving political and social equality for women—and yet, women today spit on both the appellation of “feminist” and the philosophy of feminism. The film therefore not only documents the past, but issues a challenge to the future: do you—you feminists, you women—dare to be heretical?

Written by: Marcie Bianco, November 15th 2009

Like It Or Not

admin — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 01:01:00 +0000

By Architecture In Helsinki

Polyvinyl Records

If the latest slate of indie bands are to be believed, feigned disinterest and irony worship are so not cool anymore. It seems as though the hipsters think they've totally moved beyond all that. This season's must-have emotional response to your surroundings? Cutesy glee, couched within a three-word (preferably multi-syllabic) band name. Problem is, it still feels like an affectation, a pose that comes off just as hollow as those other two. Therein lies my biggest issue with Australian group Architecture in Helsinki.

They're fun and funky. They're danceable enough. They have crammed more instruments than I care to count into each song. Their videos are appropriately colorful and clever, and they seem to me about as genuine as those store-bought smiles Donny and Marie Osmond trot out whenever a camera is aimed at them.

Pretension, another unfortunate characteristic this "musical collective" seems to have in spades, does not sit well with me. I have listened to both "versions" of the song "Like It Or Not." Back to back, over and over and over again. I put the word versions in quotes just now because I listened to the song from their 2007 release Places Like This, and also to the song billed as "Version 2" on the Like It Or Not EP released last summer. Either my ears are broken, or there is absolutely no difference between the two "versions" of this same song. This leaves me to wonder why the band would go through the effort of tacking on that "Version 2" addendum to the song on the EP.

"One Heavy February (2008)" is an updated version of a song originally released by AiH in 2004 as the first cut on their debut album Fingers Crossed. The original track was a charming instrumental piece that went on for a little under a minute. It's a pleasant enough way to start a record, and it should have been left the hell alone. The original serves as a core around which the group has built this overblown cocoon. It clocks in at two minutes and thirty seconds, a full ninety seconds longer than the original tune. This "2008" incarnation seems like they were fooling around with a Casio keyboard one afternoon and decided to tinker with something they already had until they turned it into something new. Now it's become... filler.

Based on his inflated vocal delivery and comfortable co-opting of "world music," I think it's safe to assume that Beirut's Zach Condon thinks Talking Heads founder David Byrne is the bee's knees. The same goes for AiH front man Cameron Bird who, along with his fellow band members, also seems to adore Talking Heads side project Tom Tom Club. Nowhere is this more apparent than on their cover of "Beef In Box," a song originally performed by British neo-prog band I.Q. From the twittering synths and the random tweaks to the ever-so-slightly off-kilter rhythm and the repetition of "You don't stop/You don't stop/You don't stop/Till the beef's in the box," it is painfully clear that Architecture in Helsinki have made it their mission to dredge up the sounds of the early-to-mid-1980s. You know, again. Goody.

Written by: M. Brianna Stallings, February 25th 2009

Destroy Me I’m Yours

admin — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 01:00:00 +0000

By Shellshag

Starcleaner Records

Move over Sid and Nancy. Free form rock is the new black and Brooklyn, New York do-gooders Jen and Johnny from Shellshag are the ultimate musical couple. Years ago while performing in separate bands, they were involved with a public arts warehouse and living experiment in San Francisco called Starcleaners. Fast forward to present day, where Starcleaners has become a haven for the artistic community, releasing limited edition music including Shellshag’s first full-length album, Destroy Me I’m Yours. For a band that has performed at buzz-festivals like CMJ and SxSW and boasts a high-energy live show, there really isn’t anything lost in translation on this recording.

Released on 12” vinyl with a CD included for those who refuse to part with their iTunes, Destroy Me I’m Yours encompasses all of the garage-rock glory of the duo’s influences, Sonic Youth and Pavement. For what this release lacks in instrumental complexity due to the pair’s duo status (think White Stripes and Jucifer), they make up in personality and execution. Guitarist, Johnny tends to take the microphone on the album’s grinding sludge-punk tracks like “Shut Up” and “123,” while drummer Jen steps forward on minimal, pubescent sloppy-pop numbers like “Magnet” and “Make Love.” Charmingly off-key and occasionally spastic, Destroy Me I’m Yours will motivate you to drop by your local indie dive bar to see Shellshag in action.

Written by: Claire Ashton, July 1st 2007

One Score and Four

admin — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 03:10:00 +0000

By The Good Players

The Good Players coalesce around the refined songcraft of one Stephen Nichols, equal parts weak-in-the-knees crooner and twisted studio-as-instrumentalist. Their most recent EP, One Score and Four, channels Jeff Lynne’s aesthetics of orchestral rock excess into the 21st century, absorbing the aleatory dissonance prevalent in contemporary electronic/art music while somehow leaving pretension to us music critics.

This is itself an impressive aural feat, but how he and his dirty dozen manifest this meticulous multi-dimensionality live has to be seen to be believed. The Good Players have the uncanny ability to put the kitchen sink center stage without ever breaking the pop magic spell. Nichols and company’s polished studies in polarity brandish more analog bloops and unexpected segues than you can shake a theremin at while masterfully evoking a full spectrum of human emotion, from regret to exuberance. Listen and learn.

Written by: Arthur Briggs, February 27th 2007