Travesía Artística (Artistic Voyage)

Hi, my name is Lorie; I am a NYC-based artist and cultural advocate. I first created this blog in 2015 as a means of documenting my experience as a student of a community arts program in Puerto Rico with CCCADI. The blog has lived on, documenting my experiences in NYC and beyond, participating in artful events, and maintaining threads of community arts, social justice, EDI and the Puerto Rican diaspora. Thank you for your interest in my Travesía Artística! I hope to hear from you.

Showing posts with label Brooklyn. Show all posts

Saturday, July 30, 2016

Hotter Than July!

Me in front of some of my paintings at the New York Art Collective, group exhibit at the Living Gallery. Photo by Steve Booth.

We're in the midst of a heatwave in NYC. I absolutely love the summer, so I won't complain - but suffice to say, there's a reason why Stevie Wonder said it's, "Hotter than July"! What's wonderful about NYC in the summer is that there are multitudes of outdoor events - concerts, performances and parties - at all sorts of venues. And I try to go to as many as I can. Instead of writing about the artful events I've been to recently, I'm just going to post some photos and let the images speak for themselves (to see more photos, go to my Instagram: @Whippedhoney).

Additionally, a couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of being included in a group art exhibition called, the New York Art Collective. Martell Oliver is an artist and organizer who's been putting together his Philly Art Collective events for some time now, and decided to bring it up to NYC. There were over 20 of us involved in the exhibition at the Living Gallery in Brooklyn; it was jam-packed with art (and yes, you guessed it, very hot!). We had a great time.

Lastly, there were a series of events that I attended in May, which I neglected to post about, but want to make mention of before any more time passes. The Queens Museum Open A.I.R. Artists Services Program got together with M.A.K.U. Soundsystem to create a series meetings: "Gathering Spaces: Who Has a Right to This Space?" There were four meetings (of which I attended two) where anyone who was interested was invited to participate in group discussions (not panels, but real open conversations) about the state of the arts/community specifically in Queens. The event locations/themes were as follows: May 5th at Flushing Town Hall, "How do we make institutional spaces more open and accessible to artists?"; May 12th at IMI Corona, "How do we share a space to build a movement?; May 19th at Terraza 7, How can businesses be accountable to communities and the culture of the neighborhood?" and; May 25th at Local Project, "How do we create and sustain artist-run spaces?" Being a Queens-based artist myself, these discussions were definitely food for thought. Also, being a part of the newly-forming group, Queens Creative Solidarity (of which many of us were represented at the meetings), it was a great opportunity to hear community concerns that we can incorporate into our work, moving forward.

Terrraza 7 music venue

"Gathering Spaces" meeting at Terazza 7

BAM DanceAfrica annual African Bazaar

International African Arts Festival at Commodore Barry Park

Mermaid Parade, Coney Island

Cubanismo concert at Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park

New York Art Collective at the Living Gallery

Backyard live painting, New York Art Collective at the Living Gallery

New York Art Collective at the Living Gallery

To see more pics of these events, and many others, got o my Instagram: @Whippedhoney

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Arting Into the Afrofuture

1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair at Pioneer Works, Brooklyn.

It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog entry. Of course, I’ve gone to a bunch of art events in the meantime (because I just can't seem to stop arting!). So I decided to just do a bit of a roundup here…

On April 8th, I attended a workshop at the Queens Council on the Arts (QCA) for their LAB series, simply called Artist Solo Exhibition Preparation, given by multidisciplinary artist Shervone Neckles. The topic was of interest to me as an artist, because I had never really tried to wrap my head around what it would mean to prepare for an entire show of my own work (until now I have only participated in group exhibitions, or organized exhibits for other artists). Shervone gave a lovely presentation which touched on everything from research and preparation to organization and execution. What I liked most was that Shervone offered us a very close look at her art and process of creating a cohesive storyline which carries throughout her body of work. She even presented a work-in-progress (and asked us for feedback), a screening an animated film, “Give and Take.” Shervone was super personable, gave a well-organized presentation, and her work also happens to be fantastic (you can check it out at http://shervoneneckles.com/). On a side-note, I have been to a bunch of workshops offered by QCA (which are usually free for members and very affordable otherwise) and they have all been totally worth the while. I highly recommend (even if you don’t live in Queens!). http://www.queenscouncilarts.org/lab/

Next, on April 29th, I attended a sort-of experimental event at New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA). It was called Sharing Perspectives: Reporting the impact of art internationally presented jointly by NYFA, Flux Factory and the Node Center as they invited people from the arts community to come together to have some wine and then some conversation. From what I could tell, I believe that the circle was made up mainly of visual artists. There were two specific questions posed: “How do you believe art should function?” and “What is a moment when art challenged your idea of how it should function?” We all broke out into groups to discuss our ideas for a while – it was a smart and spirited conversation. After that, one person from each group got up and reported on what their group came up with. In the end, NYFA Director, David C. Terry thanked us all and said that this was the first of what they hope to be many, expansive, international conversations around art. I was very happy to have been a part of it.

Then, on April 30th, I attended the Afrofuturism Conference 2016 #BLACKISVIRAL, at the New School. I was really interested in this conference since the term Afrofuturism is something of a buzzword that’s been popping up in so many contemporary art spaces over the last couple of years (specifically those that feature art of the African Diaspora). I was curious to see how the organizers of this event (Students of the African Diaspora at the New School) would present (and in some ways also define) this narrative. They actually had a few days worth of events lined up, but unfortunately I was only able to attend one day. In a main lobby area, they had some visual art displayed, a live painter, and even a few vendors selling their wares. I thought that this was a very nice touch in that it created a gathering space for people attending the event to relax in between the presentations. I attended one of the panels, entitled “Screaming into the Void: A Conversation on Presence and Erasure in Black Contemporary Writing” moderated by Gabrielle Octavia Butler with panelists Muna Mire, Safia Elhillo, Zeba Blay and Derica Shields. I had originally wanted to attend something about visual art, but I was more than happy to have ended up here. Myself being a writer of an older generation with a background based in print publishing, I found it fascinating to listen to these women discuss the climate of (professional) contemporary writing for primarily internet-based outlets, with its various plusses and minuses.Here is a link to the whole lineup of events: https://afrofuturism2k16.squarespace.com/

Last but not least, on May 7th, I attended the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair at Pioneer Works in Red Hook. No offense to anyone who lives in Red Hook… but holy crap. Besides the fact that Red Hook is a far-removed area of Brooklyn, add to the equation that the MTA has been ruining all of our lives with constant (evil) weekend track-work and in the end (from Queens), it took me well over two hours to reach Pioneer Works. I digress! I thought the 1-54 fair was very nicely organized in a bright, not-too-big space, not to mention the lovely back yard with concessions. I must admit that I was expecting more of the galleries represented to have been located in Africa (I believe about five out of 17 were), however, most of them were based in Europe, and some in NYC. In any case, I saw some lovely work by African artists; a few of my personal favorite works were by Aida Muluneh, Beatrice Wanjiku and Omar Victor Diop. I regret that I was not able to make it to any of the Forum panel discussions that were offered. Maybe next year. The 1-54 fair takes place annually in London and in NYC: http://1-54.com/new-york/

Oh and one last thing, after the fair on May 7th, I stopped in to MoCADA in Fort Greene for the opening reception for, Being Here… in Memory, a multifaceted exhibit featuring visual art installation, video and live dance performance curated by Marjani Forté-Saunders. Unfortunately, I arrived too late (again, the MTA’s fault!) to actually see the performance, but I was able to see the art installations, videos and say hello to my favorite couple, the Illustrious Blacks (Manchild and Monstah Black) who were hosting/DJing the party, so it wasn’t all for naught. “Being here… in Memory” runs through July 10th: http://mocada.org/

(To see more art and photos taken at these events, check out my Instagram: @Whippedhoney)

Me, Ify Chiejina, Shervone Neckles and Molaundo Jones at QCA for LAB event.

Sharing Perspectives: Reporting the impact of art internationally at NYFA

Afrofuturism Conference 2016 #BLACKISVIRAL panel Screaming into the Void: A Conversation on Presence and Erasure in Black Contemporary Writing” moderated by Gabrielle Octavia Butler with panelists Muna Mire, Safia Elhillo, Zeba Blay and Derica Shields.

1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair

“Being Here… in Memory” opening at MoCADA

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Stumbling Upon EL GRAN TOUR

Curator, Gladys Peña-Acosta showing us the HOMENAJE: Jorge Soto Sánchez

exhibit at the Longwood Gallery at Hostos College, during El Gran Tour.

Recently I received a random email with some information that looked really interesting to me. It was an invitation that wrote:"In honor of Puerto Rican Heritage Month, The New York Regional Office of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration in collaboration with The Puerto Rican Creative Network, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer invite you to accompany us on the first annual 'El Gran Tour: Experiencing Puerto Rican Visual Artists' Artworks and Spaces.'" I didn't know exactly what to expect, but it sounded like it would be right up my alley, so I RSVP'd right away!El Gran Tour took place on Sunday, November 15th, starting out with a breakfast at the Metropolitan Museum at 9am. Having to wake up that early on a Sunday was certainly a test of my commitment to attending this event - I even arrived ten minutes early! Actually, lots of folks did; after waiting for a while in the lobby, we were ushered in to a room for a catered continental breakfast. It was a very welcoming environment, people mingled and it seemed to be a mix of arts and museum officials, artists, art-lovers, college students and local politicians. After a while Brenda Torres of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration addressed the room to explain what we were there for. As it turns out, this was the very first of El Gran Tours which they envision becoming an ongoing annual event - created by the Puerto Rican Creative Network, which is also just in the process of forming. So we were all in on the ground floor together. From there, we were addressed by a number of people who were involved in the creation of El Gran Tour, including Manhattan Borough President, Gale Brewer and Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez who said a few words about the impact of Puerto Rican art and culture in New York, and touched on the current economic crisis going on in Puerto Rico. Representatives of the arts organizations participating on El Gran Tour spoke: Liberdad Guerra from Loisaida Center, Miguel Trellis from the Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center, John MacElwee from the Hostos Center for Arts and Culture and Nitza Tufiño from Taller Boricua. As well, Richard Aste from Brooklyn Museum made a presentation on the current exhibition which he curated, Impressionism and the Caribbean: Francisco Oller and His Transatlantic World - being that we would not be visiting there on El Gran Tour, but this show is important/relevant nonetheless.

We participants had a choice, either to go on the Uptown and Bronx tour (featuring Taller Boricua, Longwood Gallery at Hostos and Wallworks Gallery) or on the Downtown and Brooklyn tour (featuring Loisaida Center, Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center and BRIC House). Being a native New Yorker myself, I thought it was a great opportunity to be like a tourist in my own city, to see some familiar things through new eyes, so to speak. I chose to go on the Uptown/Bronx tour (because quite frankly, I was already familiar with the downtown venues). As a special treat, some of us got to ride in a trolley (I thought it was pretty cute)! What was especially nice was that Gladys Peña-Acosta (who curated the show we were going to see at Hostos) stood at the helm of the trolley and used the microphone to give us even more background information. (I am a nerd, so this was like icing in the cake for me.)

Our first stop was at Taller Boricua in East Harlem where we met with Luis R Cancel, curator of their current photo exhibit, Paulo Fabre — Pé Direito. Then one of their resident artists, Marcos Dimas, showed us around his studio. Next, another resident artist, Nitza Tufiño, welcomed us in to her painting studio. She took the time to explain two of the large-scale pieces that she was in the process of working on - both of which I thought were lovely, her style really spoke to me. One was an endearing portrait of her mother and father the other, an image taken from a photo of Francisco Olller with his Parisian contemporaries, including Cezanne, called "The Conversation." After that we all ran across the road to the Raphael Tufiño Printmaking Workshop where artists demonstrated how they actually make linoleum-cut prints.

We boarded into our trolley again and headed up to the Bronx where we met with John MacElwee at the Longwood Gallery at Hostos College. Gladys Peña-Acosta gave us a heartfelt tour of the retrospective she curated there: HOMENAJE: Jorge Soto Sánchez. I was impressed by this vast array of work - from painting to prints and mixed media, which was pieced together by borrowing works from friends and family, which have not been displayed since his death in 1987. The centerpiece of the show is "El Velorio" which Soto made after Oller's classic painting of the same name. (Somehow Oller keeps popping up all over the place!) Considering that Soto was creating this art in the late 1960s and early 1970s, it would seem to me that he was one of the creators of neo-expressionism, however, unsung. After that, MacElwee showed us around the lobby where artist Antonio Martorell has done a colorful mixed-media installation. This was a treat for me to see, because I had the pleasure of meeting Martorell last summer in his studio in Puerto Rico, and seeing a great array of his work there.

After viewing all of that amazing art, we all seemed to be running out of steam. But the tour organizers were one step ahead of us - they provided boxed lunches on the trolley! (At this point I could not believe how well-organized this whole thing was, and oh - did I mention it was totally free?!) So we were off to our next location: WallWorks Gallery where we first viewed some murals outside, before going in to see their current show, Three the Hard Way: Joe Conzo, Joe Russo and Leanna Valente, featuring black and white photos from the heyday of hip-hop.

At this point it was getting late and even the trolley driver had gone home. Not to worry, we boarded on to the other bus that was waiting outside of WallWorks to bring us the the after-party at BRIC House in Brooklyn. Once there, we were very lucky to find the artist who's work is currently being featured there, Juan Sánchez, who along with curator Elizabeth Ferrer, introduced us to the show, ¿What’s The Meaning of This? I must say that I was blown away. I was not previously familiar with Sánchez's work, but I became an immediate fan. I even asked him to sign my exhibition catalog. (Did I mention that I am a nerd?) There were about 30 incredible multi-media paintings on display and a couple of video pieces, one of which I was completely hypnotized by, "Unknown Boriqua, a Nuyorican State of Mind."

After that, we all got to nibble on snacks, drink a little wine and mingle in the gallery at BRIC. El Gran Tour, indeed! Moral of the story: read those random email invitations - you never know where they may lead you.
(For more art photos, goto my Instagram: @whippedhoney.)