DRAWING THE LINE: Artists & Writers in Solidarity with Ferguson

Protesters autograph a sketch of Michael Brown during a protest on August 18, 2014, in Atlanta, Georgia. Image via voanews.com.

Artists and writers give unconditional support to protesters in Ferguson, MO

Editorial statement published August 19, 2014 on redwedgemagazine.com:

On Saturday, August 9th in Ferguson, Missouri (just outside St. Louis), Michael Brown, an unarmed eight-teen year old African American man, was shot and killed by the police. His body was left on the street for more than four hours as riot police were called to the scene.

In the following days thousands of people have protested the latest summary execution of an unarmed Black man. They have been met with police brutality and repression, resulting in dozens of arrests, including the arrests of two reporters and a police assault on one St. Louis city alderman.

The apologists for racism attempted to use the justified and understandable outrage of those who burned a local convenience store to obscure the real criminals in Ferguson: police and politicians who treat the town’s Black citizens like colonial subjects; occupied by military force.

The apologists for racism have aimed to obscure the ongoing wounds being inflicted on working-class and poor African Americans by pretending this is all a misunderstanding; a hangover from days long gone. It is not. These are not merely old wounds. These are new wounds. The wounding has never stopped.

We are artists and writers who, without equivocation of any kind, condemn the police murder of Michael Brown and unconditionally support all the protesters of Ferguson and the St. Louis metro area.

We believe that:

1. The reported murders of African Americans, Latinxs* and other people of color, as seen in the cases of Trayvon Martin and Israel Hernandez in Florida and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, are just the most shocking and visible signs of a campaign of systematic harassment and violence.

2. This is connected to wider ongoing official racism directed against African Americans, Latinxs and other people of color. This can be seen, for example, in the campaign of Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel to shut down public schools in Black and Latinx* neighborhoods.

3. It is connected to the institutional racism that permeates every aspect of society. African Americans experience higher unemployment, higher interest rates, higher incarceration rates, worse health care outcomes, etc. than whites. This is NOT due to personal or moral failures on the part of African Americans. It is the product of the racism of white Americans, politicians, and ruling elites.

4. The people of Ferguson have a right to resist police murder and repression by “any means necessary.”

5. Liberal calls for “peace and unity” in the St. Louis metro area are a mirage. There can be no peace without justice. The status quo is not peace. The status quo is a war on Black men and women.

Artists, musicians and writers have a responsibility to stand squarely with the protesters and rebels of Ferguson, Missouri. Art is an empathetic enterprise. We cannot, in good conscience, make art or write about art and ignore what is happening. We promise to stand, however we can, with the people of Ferguson. We encourage all others to do the same.

No justice, no peace.**

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir artist, professor of art, Southern Illinois University***, Carbondale, Illinois

Samuel Ace poet, Tucson, Arizona
Kelly Ahrens artist, Illinois

Mike Alewitz muralist, associate professor, Central Connecticut State University

Jessica Allee graduate student, art history, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Criage Althage transwoman artst and library specialist, Chicago, Illinois

Mike Anderson web developer and designer, Herndon, Virginia

Husni Ashiku artist and filmmaker, Chicago, Illinois

Aliki Barnstone poet, professor of English and Creative Writing, University of Missouri

Crystal Stella Becerril writer, editor, Red Wedge magazine, Chicago, Illinois

BESKONISTe’ art group, Dallas, Texas

Alexander Billet music journalist and editor at Red Wedge magazine, Chicago, Illinois

Robin Blackburn writer, musician, dancer, human, San Marcos, Texas

Lakeetha Blakeney actor, singer, writer, rebel, St. Louis, Missouri

Ken Boe artist and poet, Bisbee, Arizona

Benjamin Bormann poet and producer, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Jesaka Brooks-Ausler printmaker, Carbondale, Illinois

Madeline Burrows actor, Boston, Massachusetts

Edmond Caldwell writer, Boston, Massachusetts

J. Matthew Camp labor activist, writer, Chicago, Illinois

Terre Chartrand playwright, digital media artist, theatre, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada

David Cochran historian and professor, John A. Logan College, Illinois

Matthew Conley poet, arts administrator, Tucson, Arizona

Neil Davidson author and lecturer, University of Glasgow, Scotland

Domingo Dávila artist, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Ricardo De Lima artist, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Ian Deleón performance artist, Boston, Massachusetts

Najee Dorsey CEO, founder of Black Art In America, visual artist, Columbus, Georgia

Timothy R. Dougherty writer, teacher, songwriter, Phoenixville, PA

Hal Duncan Glasgow, Scotland

Laura Durkay writer and filmmaker, New York City

Chad Eagleton writer, editor, photographer, Bloomington, Indiana

Andrew Friend documentary filmmaker, Chicago, Illinois

Monica Hand poet, Columbia, Missouri

John Halle director of Studies in Music Theory and Practice, Bard Conservatory, New York

Joe Hassert poet and instructor, College of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada

Serena Himmelfarb artist, Chicago, Illinois

Danny Hoey writer and professor, Florida

Ernest Hogan artist and writer, Chicago, Illinois

Ron Jacobs writer and library worker, Burlington, Vermont

Lamar Jorden artist, educator, Chicago, Illinois

Trish Kahle writer and historian, Chicago, Illinois

Jyotsna Kapur professor, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Robin D.G. Kelley historian, professor of American History, UCLA, Los Angeles, California

Chintia Kirana artist, Illinois

Wago Kreider artist, professor, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Nicolas Lampert artist, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

John Landry poet, San José, California

Morgan Larson performance artist and educator, Dallas, Texas

Sarah Lewison artist, professor, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Matthew Limb art historian, writer, graduate student, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Mike Linaweaver poet, founder/editor, Strike magazine, Corpus Christi, Texas

Melanie Madden writer and editor, Tucson, Arizona

Brandon Meyers web-comic artist, Denver, Colorado

H.D. Motyl mediamaker, Carbondale, Illinois

Paul Mullan writer, Houston, Texas

Frances Madeson writer, Santa Fe, New Mexico

Nick Mamatas novelist, Berkeley, California

Nichole Nicholson performance artist, Puyallup, Washington

Boyd Nielson poet, Boston, Massachusetts

Robert Niemi professor of English and American Studies, St. Michael’s College, Vermont

Keegan O’Brien Boston, Massachusetts

Jerry Pendergast poet, Chicago, Illinois

Jason Pramas artist and assistant professor of Communications, Lesley University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Bob Quellos architect, Chicago, Illinois

Octavio Quintanilla poet and professor, Our Lady of the Lake University, San Antonio, Texas

Joseph G. Ramsey educator, scholar, & writer, Boston, MA

Rebel Diaz hip-hop artists, Bronx, New York and Chicago, Illinois

Angela Reinoehl art history instructor, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois

Boots Riley hip-hop artist and political organizer, Oakland, California

Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez theater artist, Chicago, Illinois

Dave Roediger professor, University of Kansas

Craig Ross artist, cartoonist, printmaker, maintenance worker, Herrin, Illinois

Katy Rubin director and facilitator, Theatre of the Oppressed, New York City

Van T. Rudd visual artist and social justice activist, Australia

Alexandra Rumsey artist, Louisville, Kentucky

Jacob Russell poet, novelist, & visual artist, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

J.D. Samson artist, Brooklyn, New York

Brit Schulte writer, editor at Red Wedge magazine, Chicago, Illinois

Eric Lyle Schultz artist, graduate student, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri

Matt Schultz artist and professor, Springfield, Illinois

Jase Short writer, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Nikeeta Slade writer, editor at Red Wedge magazine, Syracuse, New York

Damian “Slimm Goines” Smith hip-hop artist, Washington, DC

John Snowden filmmaker, Chicago, Illinois

Alan L. Stewart writer and activist, Bremerton, Washington

T.C. Tolbert poet, arts administrator, Tucson, Arizona

Joe Torrence artist, Omaha, Nebraska

Anna Maria Tucker artist, St. Louis, Missouri

Adam Turl artist, writer and editor at Red Wedge magazine, graduate student, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri

Bentley Utgaard artist, Kentucky

Richard Wallace a.k.a. Epic of BBU, Chicago, Illinois

Benjamin Whitmer writer, Denver Colorado

Danielle Williamson filmmaker and media artist, Santa Cruz, California

*the “x” in Latinxs indicates that we are inclusive of trans individuals and individuals of all gender expressions.

**to sign on e-mail info@redwedgemagazine.com

***organizations or institutions listed for identification only.

Source Link

ANNOUNCEMENT: Najjar Abdul-Musawwir Son of the Diaspora Journeying Home

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir. BlackArtistNews photo. All rights reserved.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Artist of the People, Najjar Abdul-Musawwir will be traveling abroad to two of the world’s largest continents from July 7th thru August 8th for a month long cultural exchange and artistic dialogue on the influence Islam has had on the African and African-American artistic process. Najjar believes these experiences will lead to the creation of a thematic body of work which will reflect an international experience.

Najjar will begin his sojourn in Morocco, North Africa where he will spend three days doing fieldwork. Here, Najjar will don the hat of archaeologist as he traverses the country looking for artifacts and at architectural structures that speak to the Moroccans Islamic faith and how this informs their artistic expression.

In Senegal, in addition to his field observations of artifacts and architecture, Najjar will lecture at the esteemed Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar. He will explicitly discuss the “Influence of Islam in African-American Art.” This dialogue will delve into the creative impact Islam has had on the works of Muslim and non-Muslim African-Americans.

Malaysia will conclude Najjar’s peregrinations. His Malaysian stay will include a three-week residency as a guest scholar and artist in residence at the Muzium and Galeri Tuanku Fauziah (MGTH) Universiti Sains Malaysia, where he will lecture on the “African-American Muslim Artist: Content and Survival.” During this residency, Najjar plans to look at the connection between art and science in Malaysia; how Islam and outside cultures have influenced indigenous Malaysian art.

Najjar will also debut a new body of work “Muhammad Speaks: Preserving an American Voice” this exhibition will reflect images from the 1969-1975 publications of Muhammad Speaks, founded by the late Nation of Islam leader Al Hajj Malik El Shabazz, better known as Malcolm X. These pieces were created to preserve a certain historical aspect of the African-American Islamic cultural experience in America. It is the artist's hope that this exhibition will be embraced by museums and universities in other countries throughout the globe.

Najjar looks forward to his travels and if time and opportunity permits an additional appearance at the National Gallery of Art in Malaysia.

RELATED LINK:

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir: The BlackArtistNews Interview

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir: The BlackArtistNews Interview

ON THE EVE OF HIS EXHIBIT VOICE FROM A CREATIVE SOUL AT THE AFRICA INTERNATIONAL HOUSE USA/CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART & CULTURE IN CHICAGO, ARTIST/EDUCATOR NAJJAR ABDUL-MUSAWWIR SPOKE CANDIDLY ABOUT ART, LIFE AND GOOD TIMES.

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir. Courtesy of the artist.

When internationally acclaimed artist, teacher and self-described “community cultural worker” Najjar Abdul-Musawwir speaks, he does so with jazzed dexterity. He rhythmically riffs off a question with perfect pitch and studied precision;  his tone gracefully responds to the moment by either accelerating in excitement or softening in seriousness. And even though his words, at times, expanded the perimeters of a question – not in a bad or confusing way – what the listener ultimately realizes is the artist’s unflinching devotion to his creative and spiritual practices.

BlackArtistNews: I recently came across a book by Debra N. Mancoff titled 50 American Artists You Should Know. Five of the artists listed in this book are African American. Would you like to take a stab at naming who they are?

Abdul-Musawwir: Are they contemporary or historical?

Both.

I would say Romy Bearden. Jacob Lawrence. They probably even have Aaron Douglas. Augusta Savage. Probably Jean-Michel Basquiat. I don’t know how many contemporaries they would have. They probably have Carrie Mae Weems or Howardina Pindell in there. Maybe even Kerry James Marshall.

I'll tell you who they are. Let me know if you agree with the choices.

Okay.

Henry Ossawa Tanner.

Okay. Definitely. Tanner.Yeah.

Romy Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Kara Walker.

Ah, Kara Walker. I wrote an essay on Kara Walker.

Yes, I know. And there’s a YouTube clip of you reading an excerpt from that essay and you eloquently discuss why you find her work problematic.

Yeah. I appreciate her technique and approach. I love her father and his work. But in all due respects  the work she was creating at that time and the people who were celebrating it—those individuals – if you look at their background – always reported [on] our work that empowered them and their agenda and their interpretation of history. Those are the ones who are putting the money behind it and showing it and so forth. I know saying that will prevent me from having opportunities with these individuals but that’s not my concern. My concern is as an artist and in our world we’re supposed to have this freedom to critique and assess each another. If the real world says those who are backing it up have a financial investment and you tamper with that financial investment [then] don’t get involved. So it’s very much problematic. Henry Ossawa Tanner is my favorite – in terms of the historical. Of contemporary artists – he just passed – was Al Loving. He was my favorite.

When did he die?

Al Loving passed away in 2005.

It seems like I should know that. But I didn’t.

They had a nice write up – a small write up in the New York Times. But not a lot of people are aware that he passed.

I just recently discovered that Ernie Barnes died [in 2009.]

Yeah, Ernie Barnes passed. In fact I was on the highway travelling and my wife called me and said “Listen, Ernie Barnes, passed today.” And I said, “What?” Ernie Barnes was definitely one of my favorites as well.

I’m sure there is a generation of artists that – whether they realize it or not – were influenced by the work of Ernie Barnes. Most people know his work indirectly as he was the true creator of the paintings attributed to the J.J. Evans character on the TV show Good Times. Did that show have any influence on your interest in art?  

Ah, well see, I liked J.J. – he was a kid who was tapped into his passion – but  actually my interest in art happened as a result of watching my father and cousin sit at the table drawing all the time. My father used to draw these cowboys and horses and I thought that was the coolest thing since Kool-Aid. And then my cousin would create grid drawings from photographs. When he was finished, I would go “How you do that?” That kind of stirred my energy and I found myself trying to imitate [their work]. Also, like most kids I [loved] to draw cartoon characters. I was so engaged in art as a child [it would] get me in trouble. I would be in the library reading art books instead of going to class. It’s just something that’s been stirred within me since I was a child.

I know you teach but have you mentored any artists?

Yeah, I’ve mentored a few artists. Actually I was thinking about one the other day by the name of Esteban. Matter of fact his father just ran for mayor of the city of Chicago. I’ve been very impressed with the things he’s involved in.

Was he a student of yours?

He was student of mine at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) and then they’re some others that I’ve mentored like Najee Dorsey, the founder of [web site] Black Art In America, who I’ve known a number of years. I met him like in the early ‘90’s and I’ve mentored him in terms of painting and drawing.

How long has Black Art in America been online?

Black Art in America – it’s been close to a year or so. And it has grown so fast that I don’t know exactly how to phrase it – they have articles on there for artists, curators, collectors, museum directors and commercial art galleries. It’s a who’s who of black [visual artists] and [it’s a] very active [site.] In fact one of their strong points is that they encourage and engage dialogue and group discussion. It’s really impressive.

So what can viewers expect to see in Chicago between April 15^th and May 15^th ?

Aw man. (laughs) They are going to see the “Muhammad Ali of the Art World.” The “Muhammad Ali of the Art World.” They gonna be [exposed to] what I call a “formal aesthetic” and [viewing it] from the black experience. And I say that because my work is abstract; not representational. I’m looking at African Art [which] and even though [I am] I’m still bringing me to the table. And so on the 15^th there will be some paintings, mixed media art and two pieces that I’m hoping people will enjoy are African stools. Back in 1999 I went to Ghana and had an exhibition [in conjunction] with a conference. I submitted some paintings that I did using African stools as symbols. For instance you have one stool that only a chief can sit on, or only a woman can sit on or only just a grieving person can sit on and I [took] these three dimensional objects and used the idea of them symbolically as inspiration. I’ve always [felt] that abstract painting is the most profound way to approach painting because in the real world we live in the abstract – we don’t really know everything. We only know part of everything. A woman can lie next to a man for fifty years and still not know him. It’s all an abstract: she doesn’t know about him and he doesn’t know about her. That’s why I love Al Loving – God rest his soul – he said its right there in front of our face. [People are] gonna see it’s the idea of preserving a particular part of the black experience. I consider myself as much a part of the African American community in bringing progressive ideas and progressive activities to the black experience as many members of my community who businesses I support. I [also] support their political and social economic interests you know what I’m sayin’? As long as they’re supporting us as a whole as a community, you know? I want my artwork to have a voice [that] hopefully reflects that of El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz better known as Malcolm X.  And I hope that it has the energy and the power and the craftsmanship that Muhammad Ali had. When I’m looking for African American Muslim artists there's not many of us in the art community. There are some out there but there aren’t many of us. There’s not a vertical movement. When I say vertical movement, I [mean] targeting universities, contemporary art galleries, museums, and more high-end institutions. Trying to extend [beyond] the commercial gallery and looking at a bigger audience. The show I’m having now at the African International House? That’s not a place you go shopping for art. (laughs) Okay?  You go there to be what? Informed.

Informed and enlightened.

You go there to  have an experience that you wouldn’t normally have anywhere else. It’s a place to be educated. It’s to be broadened. To enhance. Vertical artists who go after those particular venues wind up getting recognized or acknowledged by the historians, the critics and so forth and find themselves in museum collections and also in art history books. And so the reason I’m targeting this I know that’s the audience that’s going to be able to stand the test. Those individuals allow us [and] our artwork to stand the test of time. Meaning that other generations will be exposed to it.