Autumn 09 Miu-Miu ad

Pornography vs Art

The lines have been blurred and in some recent research for my fine arts class I found a quote that made me realize that pornography is art, therefore there is no versus.
Others may argue that pornography has no "grace" or "couth" therefore it is not art. I say once it is done out of an appreciation for the human form as opposed to exploitation, then there's no need to classify or pass judgement.

Sojourner Truth

Just a flashback in time... The Woman known as Sojourner Truth (born Isabella Baumfree) sat in the White House Library in 1863 with Abraham Lincoln. She was an activist for women's rights and the rights of Negroes in the 1800's. Her most famous speech, "Aint I a Woman?", still gives me a sense of empowerment in 2009.

In memory of Robert Colescott

Robert Colescott, a figurative painter who had a way of expressing racial and sexual stereotypes died last Thursday at his home in Tuscon.
In 1997, Colescott was the first African American painter to have a solo exhibit at the Venice Biennale in Italy. His work is in the permanent collections of many museums, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum, the Seattle Art Museum, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Oakland Museum. Colescott's work inspired the Neo-Expressionist painting of the 1980's. A man who is recognized for his contribution to the art community and also a great inspiration to me personally, deserves recognition in the minute scale that I can provide.
"The way to serve art is to be true to thyself" Robert Colescott

DAVID BAILEY

So I was looking at one of my dad's inspiration boards today and I saw an image that had me in awe, a photograph by David Bailey circa 1969. I don't think I've seen any of his earlier work and that inspired me to do some research, and here are some of the photos I found. Hope you enjoy.

Jaci Kessler

So this month's feature in Interview Magazine was a talent from Clinton Hill. She's an artist and student at Pratt, although her accomplishments aren't much, at the age of twenty getting a spread in Interview is a bit of a deal. I checked out "The Prattler",the monthly magazine from Pratt of which she's one of the art directors.

Who is John Hanson?

Some say he was the first Congressional President of the United States, some say he was black (a moor), some say he was a Swede. Some say the name was repeated so much during that era that there was a lot of confusion on where in history the acclaimed first President who was black fell. Was it John Hanson of Maryland: an activist trying to get Africans back to Liberia from the states? Was he a Swede? Was he a moor/black? So with three different images of John Hanson and three different stories and timelines, who is John Hanson? The picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence shows a black man who is now said to be a Robert Morris, who might or might not have been black, but was definitely one of the first 7 Presidents.

Music of yesterdays

For the past week or so I've been stuck in a Nina Simone dark blues room, with incessant cigarette smoke and cheap beer. The androgyny of her voice made my ears a bisexual, and the peak is orgasmic. Pirate Jenny is a sneaky bitch, and I've been in disguise but don't be fooled.

Rants

I'm at a point in my life where I'm trying to set things into motion, I mean life should be that way at all times. But I've gotten to a point where I'm hungry, and just the inkling has my stomach growling. My appetite is wide open, and the taste buds are watering for what's in clear view, but I haven't possessed yet.

Le Moment

Inspiration Board

When the trend dies...

...who's left standing? The thing about trends are, they come, they last for a while and then they fade. The truest of them all are the ones who aren't phased by the trends, but remain true to self regardless of whether or not it's "in".

I was in a writing mood

I wished I could write you into being
But somehow you never materialize
You feel like a dream
And every time I awake
You become a part of a memory
A memory that cannot be real
So best word for use is fantasy
I fantasize about you
In ways that should be written about in storybooks

So I guess this is of a fairy tale conjunction
A conjunction that makes no sense on its own
Because you make no sense when you stand alone

How can it be just a figment of a dream
When I feel you in a crowd
When I breathe you from a distance
When I'm mesmerized
Fixated to a point where the world becomes a blur

How can you just be a figment of an unimaginary being
Such as me?
I can't seem to gravitate that concept
And I'm livid because other's cant see
What I see
When I look beyond the obvious
And see the real

So if I have to write/type until my fingers bleed
I will write you into being
Because this can't be a figment of a dream
Because I don't sleep
For fear of drifting into death
I can't fantasize when I am tangible
And you are; every time I feel you near
Or see you in a distance
This must be real
Or else my whole existence is a figment of a book once read to me in my youth.
- Tishka DuPera

Man of the Week

Took a stroll down Nevins street and found Nirvana in the man they call the "Bearded Man". His style more or less blew my mind, just the essence of the 1950's gentleman with a Philadelphia urban swag. Words don't sum it up, so let's give some visual.

Black Fashion

Let's talk about the uproar in "Black Fashion", I discovered a magazine a couple months ago, completely dedicated to the lifestyle of us as a people. There's more concentration on fashionable black people who's consistently overlooked in the media as far as the positives are concerned. Arise has truly captured the essence of rising above the commercial appeal and broadcasting what's being done amongst our people.
Here's an image from this month's cover story.

AFROPUNK

The evening of Monday July 6,2009 started with bmx-ers and skaters showing off their talent. All that fell in between is just rants of my stroll around the park, looking at the unity of all these black people.
Zoe Kravitz hits the stage in an oversized shredded t-shirt and a bathing suit. Fingers laced with beautiful rings, her image the stamp of Lisa Bonet in the early 90's. Elevator Flight took me to new dimensions with her raunchy vulgarity disguised with the image of a sweet rebel.


The follow up was no stranger: Janelle Monae, she opened her act with "Many Moons". Let's just say she took my heart when she performed acapella in respect to the late and great Michael Jackson.


The closing act indeed closed the show, Saul Williams; the man who knows God personally, infact God let's him call him, me. He hit the stage with a scroll and as the words slipped off his tongue I felt my world slipping off it's own axis. His energy fueled me like the sun, and all I was left to do was place my fist to the sky.

The Black Woman

THE BREAKING PROCESS OF THE African WOMAN! Take the female and run a series of tests on her to see if she will submit to your desires willingly. Test her in every way, because she is the most important factor for good economic. If she shows any signs of resistance in submitting completely to your will, do not hesitate to use the bull whip on her to extract that last bit of bitch out of her. Take care not to kill her, for in doing so, you spoil good economics. When in complete submission, she will train her offspring in the early years to submit to labor when they become of age. Understanding is the best thing.

"Reflection of Glamour" by Steven Meisel

Saul Williams

"Never question who I am, God knows...and I know God personally, infact he lets me call him me." - Saul Williams
July 6, 2009, he comes to New York. Great minds are like finding gold in your backyard(nearly impossible to find). So when a man write masterpieces such as s/he(she is the square root of him), the seventh octaves, said the shotgun to the head and the emcee scrolls; it's definitely an event that needs to be attended. One man said, "sitting in a Brooklyn cafe listening to Saul Williams, it felt like a meteor fell from the sky." For me, I gravitate to his every word like the breath that sustains me.

Fact

T-shirts are an $18billion industry