Imani is still thinking about her trip to Volta last month. In particular, she reflects on “The Aesthetics of Matter” — this year’s curated section by Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont, which featured artists Tomashi Jackson, Troy Michie, Devin N. Morris, Christie Neptune, Kameelah Janan Rasheed, David Shrobe, Didier William, and Kennedy Yanko. While their work mines the political potential of collage across a variety of media, the surrounding context of the fair raises important questions about the political labor that African American artists and curators perform in the global contemporary art market. Volta NY 2018 was on view March 7th-11th at Pier 90 in Manhattan, NY.
Read MoreFor years, multidisciplinary performer Martha Stuckey has commanded stages in a brightly-colored wig and stilettos as the lead singer of Red 40 and the Last Groovement, Philadelphia’s premier clown-funk-cabaret band. Now she is preparing to strike a more personal note in her upcoming commissioned show, Due to Sensitive Nature, on view April 12th-14th at the Kimmel Center’s SEI Innovation Studio. She speaks with Imani Roach about taking risks, growing up singing in Lutheran church, and what it means to be a woman in charge. How did kettle corn and Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit help to shape her performance trajectory? Listen to find out. Imani interviewed Martha at Moore College of Art and Design’s TGMR radio station on April 3rd, 2018; the podcast is 51 minutes long.
Read MoreThough still in her early-30s, local renaissance woman Lauren NeFesha has already lived many lives. Now this former fashion student (and nationally-ranked boxing champion) is making a name for herself as a songwriter and mosaic artist. She chats with Artblog’s Imani Roach about speaking up for the most marginalized among us and allowing curiosity to be her guide without judgement. What do a mosaic and a boxing match have in common? Listen to find out. Imani interviewed Lauren at Moore College of Art and Design’s TGMR radio station on March 16th, 2018; the podcast is 33 minutes long.
Read MoreImani Roach ponders “Went Looking for Beauty: Refashioning Self,” an exhibition of photographs by Deborah Willis currently at the African American Museum in Philadelphia. On view through April 29th 2018, this partial retrospective shows thematic highlights from Willis’s decades-long journey documenting the richness of black aesthetic and cultural practices, and demonstrates her continuing evolution as an artist.
Read MoreKara Springer works at the intersection of sculpture, photography and language to activate bodies in space. Born in Barbados and raised in Ontario, Canada, this former industrial designer grounds her minimalist aesthetic with careful attention to history and geography. Springer speaks with Artblog’s Imani Roach about diaspora, legibility and her current installation at The Galleries at Moore — Ten Days Before Freedom, a Hymnal. What can perilous landscapes teach us about the nature of built space? Listen to find out. Imani interviewed Kara at Moore College of Art and Design’s TGMR radio station on February 26th, 2018; the podcast is 34 minutes long.
Read MoreThe Fabric Workshop and Museum, founded in 1977 by arts visionary Marion “Kippy” Boulton Stroud, is celebrating its 40th birthday with a major retrospective exhibit. Process and Practice: 40 Years of Experimentation hilights archived ephemera from the institution’s famed artist-in-residence program that has been preserved for decades in “artist boxes.” Artblog’s Imani Roach spoke with Susan Lubowsky Talbott, the Museum’s Executive Director, about exhibiting “failures,” engaging the public, and her legacy. What was the most surprising thing she discovered in those artist boxes? Listen to find out. Imani interviewed Susan at the Fabric Workshop and Museum on January 9th, 2018; the podcast is 30 minutes long.
Read MoreYou’ve probably seen Kelli Morgan around town, presenting her research, working with students, moderating conversations with artists, and generally staying busy as PAFA’s first Winston & Carolyn Lowe Curatorial Fellow for Diversity in the Fine Arts. Now she’s heading off on a new adventure as Associate Curator of American Art at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields. Artblog’s Imani Roach spoke with the Detroit native on the eve of her departure about her unconventional path to museum work and her fresh vision for curating the American canon. Listen to hear her advice for aspiring young curators and much more. Imani interviewed Kelli at Moore College of Art and Design’s TGMR radio station on January 3rd, 2018; the podcast is 39 minutes long.
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