SpeakOut with Staceyann Chin in Miami January 9, 2009

PERFORMANCE, WORKSHOPS & SLAM
FOR GAY, LESBIAN, BISEXUAL & TRANSGENDER YOUTH

JOIN us for a weeklong residency with nationally recognized Jamaican lesbian spoken word poet STACEYANN CHIN that includes workshops and an open mic for GLBT youth. Chin’s poetry is a bracing, no-holds-barred yet tender examination of her own life and the world around her that locates itself at the complex intersection of sexual, gender and racial identities. She co-wrote and performed in the Tony Award-nominated Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam and presented her own one-woman shows Off-Broadway.

SCHEDULE:

a whole new Wynwood August 1, 2008

This image appeared in the Biscayne Times, in the Community News section, in reference to the plans for the future Wynwood Arts District. What is particularly shady about this project is that apparently the “community” didn’t know about it. When they asked gallery owners, such as Brooke Dorsch, they said they were unaware of the redevelopment plan. So, who did know about the Wynwood Arts District Proposal? And, what will it mean for the future of the area? One of the goals, according to Tony Goldman, a real estate developer is to keep the “artistic aspect” of the community. But, the only mention of how that will be maintained is through the opening of bars and clubs.

The Biscayne Times also featured this nifty map which shows what they consider to be the Wynwood Arts District. Dorsch’s gallery, by the way, isn’t even included in this zone.

what makes an “artist”? July 25, 2008

Today, Roberta Smith published a harsh review of the show up at the Bronx Museum entitled, ‘How Soon is Now?’ I won’t copy the review here, but I will post some of the harsh highlights (ouch!). Here is one work, by Jeanne Verdoux called “Living Room” that she did actually think was worthy of being called “art.” I haven’t seen the show in person so I can’t really give you my own take on it.

Anyhow, on with the harsh highlights:

women’s work: art, race, and family July 17, 2008

Deborah Willis, Mother's Wit, 2008

From the press release of the current exhibition, Four Women, at Jackson Fine Art in Atlanta:

FOUR WOMEN
JULY 18TH, 2008 – AUGUST 30TH, 2008

In light of the recent Jackson Fine Art show celebrating the Civil Rights Movement with photographer Bruce Davidson and paying honor to the critically acclaimed exhibitions at The High Museum – Road to Freedom and After 1968 – Jackson Fine Art continues to consider race and relationships in the upcoming show Four Women curated by Charles Guice, owner and curator of Charles Guice Contemporary in Oakland, California. Asking the question – how has the dialogue about ethnicity, family, class, gender and sexuality changed in the last 50 years, Four Women showcases the work of Kianga Ford, Jessica Ingram, Carrie Mae Weems and Deborah Willis as it investigates their perspectives on the complex relationship between family and race – specifically its ongoing evolution in the South.

new short film: dreams (sueños) July 9, 2008

film still

Here’s a link to info about a new piece I’ve been working on: dreams (sueños). It’s a short film that I think of as a visual poem in three parts. It is about the negotiation of the neighboring cities of Miami and Havana, both physically and politically. It will be in the show, Space is the Place, this summer at Diaspora Vibe Gallery, in Miami.