Check this out!

Okay, in my attempt to keep you informed about the latest in the world of Urban Art, I came across a website that is filled with artwork, articles and interesting artists. What makes it even more interesting is that is deals with "Black Art in America". It proclims to be the leading global network focused on African American Visual Arts. I encourage you to check it out and let me know what you think.

http://blackartinamerica.com

Slam This Friday

I’ve seen some impressive spoken word poets over the last 12 years.  When you are a part of a weekly poetry open mic, it’s not surprising when powerful performances happen but such occurrences tend to be by chance. Yet, I’ve found that poets that slam are usually remarkable in their work because they tend to be in tuned with the audience.  Being able to recite or spit from memory is good but having it resonate with the audience is better.  Given that there is no shortage of slam venues in the city, why aren’t more St. Louis based poets slamming?

There are many reasons why slam has yet to take hold in St. Louis as in other cities, which I’ll explore at a later time. So that will have to remain an open question for now.  This Friday at Legacy Books and Café Urb Poetry will host its first slam of the year. The will receive $100. Also featured this Friday is the art of Billy Williams. Doors open at 8:30 and its free until 9:30.  Hopefully, we’ll see some poets perform in a game that requires multiple skill sets.  Perhaps it will be the start of something.  For now, check out the short video I found on the rules for slamming.

Artist Spotlight: Dail Chambers

St. Louis is full of women on the move. Writers are writing, singers are singing, artists are painting and Dail Chambers is in alignment with the movement and is coming into her greatness as an artist and activist.

Almost 4 years ago in Memphis, she started the Aids project, where she served as founder and co-curator. The Aids project is an annual exhibition and fundraiser to raise awareness of the needs of those infected with HIV /AIDS. A percentage of the proceeds goes to Hope House, an organization that gives free meds to their low income community members.

Last year (2010), Dail was the exhibitions chair for the Women's Caucus of Art local chapter and the Vice President of Development on the National board. She was also juried into an exhibition at Woman Made Gallery in Chicago by Lucy Lippard, a world known feminist art critic. She is one of the collaborators who organized a new structure of Bread & Roses, where they lead youth through the arts on the topic of family, home and work. The program serves Riverview Gardens High School and was funded by Rac, Mac and the Kreskge Foundation.

Dail founded GYA and Yeyo Arts Collective. She collaborated with another artist, Chinyere Oteh, in starting the Girls Create program and Sixpence Cinema. Dail is a member of the Organization for Black Struggle, Women's Caucus of Art, Justice Institute and in the leadership team for Literacy for Social Justice... and a CAT Fellow.

She has her own art studio is in the middle of North St. Louis less than a block from the former Blewett Middle School, now the alternative school, Innovative Concept Academy. She serves as a mentor and arts instructor out of her personal art studio to neighborhood youth.

She is one of the inaugural artists for Earthdance F.A.r.M.s Artist in Residence, & an organic farms apprentice for the 2011 season. Lastly,she is the volunteer art teacher for City Garden School.

Dail Chambers' current exhibition is with Memphis artist Carl Moore and will be held at Urban League, called the The Great Migration Back, dealing with the topics of being two or three generations removed from the great migration and recounting our experiences while revisiting the south.

Dail feels her goal as an artist is to promote creative, socially just, healthy living practices to youth and families who reside in underserved communities.

Concert Review: Lauryn Hill at the Pageant (STL)

Pic by Santiago Felipe (VillageVoice.com)

Fresh.   

This is the word I would use to describe the Lauryn Hill concert in St. Louis over the MLK Day weekend.  Although she broke no new material, Hill created new arrangements for classic songs.  Not everyone in my section of the Pageant appreciated her musical choices but I did.

I overheard one concert-goer say, “I’m confused.”  Confusion may be a sentiment that everyone not standing at Hill’s concert felt as she infused rock and removed R&B in a set dominated by reggae riddims and hip hop percussion. But after releasing the classic album, Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, and without new material available what else could she do? 

Sure, she could have gone the has-been route of leading the audience in a sing-along version of her signature songs.  Songs that I prefer to remember than replay because I played them so often back in 1998 and ’99.  Perhaps she could have performed some unreleased tracks that floated online or music from her unplugged album but why? Those works are largely untested, unknown or uncelebrated; leaving Hill to wade into familiar territory, lyrically, while breaking new ground sonically.

Much of the audience stared at the stage as Hill launched into the second song of the 90 minute set, Lost Ones.  Gone was the sparse, drum-centered familiarity with well-time guitar riffs. It was guitar-gone-wild with upbeat riddims that reminded me of the third wave of ska minus the lightness (and horns).  The songs that followed were increasingly rock oriented as the guitar cut the neo soul memories of Hill’s audience into indiscernible pieces. Still, the remixes had an undeniable hip hop edge that rendered the music harder and more energetic than the songs featured on her album.

It was Hill’s third song, Ex-Factor that engaged the audience. She encouraged concert-goers to sing along and they did. At this point, I glanced at my phone to look at the set list published by Village Voice’s Rob Harvilla.  She did not deviate much except for cutting “To Zion” from her set.  I looked forward to hear what she’d do with Final Hour, since it was my least favorite track from her album.  She rocked it. It was a fuller sonic experience and quicker tempo than the original laid-back vibe of the original.

Not all of Hill’s material was rock-reggae re-imaginings.  As the set drew to a close, Hill stayed true to the original arrangements; particularly, her Fugee work.  From “Fu-Gee-La” on, the audience found a comfort zone with her set.   The only moments that seemed jarring was Hill’s constant admonishment of her band. It was as though she was checking her kids on that stage but there was no mutiny from the players. They followed her lead, which prompted a thought.  Perhaps all the recent reviews about Hill missed something her: she’s an artist who has been roughed up by the industry.

In 2001, Hill settled a $5 million dollar lawsuit with four musicians with whom she collaborated on Miseducation.  They claimed to have more input on the album and were not properly recognized for their contribution.   For good or bad, Hill made clear at the concert that she controls her music.  That’s a very different experience than in 1999 when Hill graced the Fox Theater.  She was not the hard-driving band leader that dominated the stage at the Pageant. She was the full articulation of neo-soul in 1999. But that was a different Hill and era of music. Artists like L-Boogie hardly stand still for that long.

THE DEADLINE

Greetings,
I was mandated by the chief to post by Thursday so here it goes:
I watched Sydney Lumet's classic, "Network", the other night and was mesmerized, as I am every time I watch it. However, I noticed within myself a distance from it, could it be that time had watered the impact of such an cinematic opus? For the first time the seemingly archaic technology and and the biting wit of the leads such as, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Duvall and of course Peter Finch, "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!!", seemed....wow...corny and dated. The memorable scene where the citizens of New York fly open their windows and scream that infamous line gave me a feeling of such hopelessness and a sense of dread and social impotence so intense that I turned it off and started watching 50 cent's "Before I Self Destruct." oh oh. The pervading sadness of Curtis Jackson's directorial debut matched my mood as I pondered the cinematic silence of the day...In this age of a technological deluge-the camera warriors of our time seem to re-hash the common themes of self-reality pontificating, bathroom mirror shots that scream of me...me....me! It's not Network's fault that the culture of 1976- 34years ago, does not hold the attention of this aging filmmaker....You know where this is going....peace...falaq

What role does art play in your life

I have heard many people say that life is what you make it. I agree. The events of your life impact you based upon the way in which you perceive them. Art is the same way. Art is sometimes not about the definitive work that went into each piece, it is about the excitment that comes from people's perception of it and because art has the ability to be interpreted at such a level, it plays a very pertinent role in our lives, our communties and in the development of our children.
The critically important role of art has been said to enable us to see the world and the human condition differently, and in seeing the world through a particular work of art, is to see a truth that we might not have understood before.
Artists have the ability to lay before us a truth that invites us to think. That thought process can create a charge that sparks movements. Take for instance, hip-hop. The unapologetic lyrics that the emcees spit into their mics sparked a desire for the common man to either “Stop the Violence” or “Get his Swag On”. Nonetheless, it provoked movement and a desire to be or become.
The power of art is limitless. Most art has some sort of reason or purpose behind it. It might be religious, symbolic, literal, traditional, customary, or just a preference by the artist.
Use African art as an example. Most African art has a symbolic reason. Masks, pottery, figures, portraits, jewelry, baskets and clothing reflect the religious belief of the different tribes. Africans believed that everything in nature is alive such as rocks, grass, plants, trees, rivers and mountains.
Expert Advisor Alec Colchico expressed that Art is important because it encompasses all the developmental domains in child development. Art lends itself to physical development and the enhancement of fine and gross motor skills. I include that it helps to develop their critical thinking skills as well.
Art brings beauty into our world. It brings a sense of enjoyment and pleasure. It is an important tool in causing us to examine our beliefs in light of an artists' rendition or perception of truth. Art has the ability to transport us to a different time and place and it serves as healer, educator, lover and friend.
Art has many roles in this world, what role does it play in your life?

The Art of Billy Williams

In early December of 2010, Billy Williams set up his table with prints of his original art work at the Missouri History Museum. On easels, Williams displayed paintings of African Americans with green tones and letters scrawled in the background that almost spell out beatiful. One piece caught the eye of the assistant director of community education and events, Alex Detrick. It was a portrait of Coretta Scott King with her husband’s image faintly present. She quickly approached Williams about showcasing his piece at a Martin Luther King celebration at the Museum on January 16th.

On Williams’ work, Detrick said that “it’s colorful, with energy that reflects spirit and an understanding of people.”

Williams describes his work as contemporary figurative. “I like to play with contour lines” Williams says. He prefers making images flat and using “shading to give it depth”

Raised in Kansas, Williams refined his skills at Kansas State University before moving to St. Louis and developing into the artist he is today. His first delved into contemporary figurative work around 2001.

“It started with sketches of faces that I morphed to together then grew into paintings” Williams said before adding “It’s been a nice journey.”

Admittedly, the journey began long before settling down in St. Louis. His first grade teacher nurtured his interest in art by giving him extra paper with which to draw. Teachers played a critical role with Williams’ development. They supported his interest and bought him extra materials for art class. In ninth grade, Williams experienced painting for the first time, and had been committed ever since.

Williams finds inspiration for his art in everyday people. “I may see someone with nice lips or an afro” he said when explaining his creative process. At times, Williams surprises himself with art that he thinks is conceived in his mind before its born out on canvass. Yet, like his inspiration, his art might walk past him on the street.

“I think that I made these images up but then I’m out at a store and see that person. I’ve never met them before but I painted them,” he said.

Another inspiration of Williams is C’Babi Bayoc. He recounts his first encounter with the artist.

“I went to an exhibition where C’Babi work was featured and I saw these pieces. They were images of African Americans but they were blue. I had been doing similar work and I hadn’t met him before then. I found it refreshing,” Williams said.

In addition to his work at the Missouri History Museum at their Martin Luther King Celebration at 2 pm, Williams is featuring his work at Legacy Books and Café at “Slam + Art,” an exhibition and poetry slam on Friday, January 28th from 8:30pm to 11:30pm.

New year of Friday Night Poetry Starts Tonight.

After a two week hiatus, Friday night poetry is back with a new name... Urb Poetry. Proceeds still go to UAACD. Check us out.

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