YURR! Can you believe it? FEBRUARY is here! As we all know, in America, this month is dedicated to Black History. Kind of funny this also happens to be the shortest month of the year, hm! Anyway, I personally believe Black Culture, Heritage, and Art should be celebrated all year round BUT I love that we can be just a little bit more annoying to the racists out there. Now, more than ever, it is integral that we honor and uplift not only our history but our future as well. There is a near insurmountable number of Black artists and creators out there who deserve a mountain of love and support. From the mainstream to the independent. I recently uploaded a video discussing the erasure of Black Media here in the US and I feel it’s quite telling how easy it is for our work to just be tossed aside like a Raggedy-Ann Doll.
Often, I hear conversations from our own kinfolk saying that we need more positive roles, we need more heroes that look like us, we need more stories that represent the full spectrum of the diaspora. The irony is that a lot of the things we’re asking for already exist, all across the arts & entertainment industry. The problem is that many of us don’t want to look or if something is presented that isn’t Oprah, Tyler Perry, etc — it’s deemed as less than or even corny. From sci-fi romps like They Cloned Tyrone to poignant commentaries on modern-day racism like American Fiction, we HAVE what we need. It just needs to be loved just as much as the generic swill that gets more attention. That’s a harsh word but did we really need ANOTHER adaptation of The Color Purple? NO.
”I thought you said we had to support each other, why you calling The Color Purple that?!” - I absolutely love and support all the artists who dedicated their time and craft to the musical, I love that for us. However, we also need to be critical of the more problematic aspects of our art. We don’t need any more Black Trauma Stories. Give me Black Horror, give me Black Sci-Fi, give me Black Romance — we’re done with the slave narratives, the drug empires, and basic ass gang war stories.
2024 is the year where we will be on top and it will be through GOOD art, GOOD tv, GOOD film. Support your local artists, filmmakers, writers. Show them that they are loved and even if you think their work may be corny, offer feedback. We love feedback. I don’t want to see another show like RAP SHIT or Raising Dion getting canceled. I don’t want to see phenomenal artists like Chuck Collins (Bounce Comic) or Sheena Rose being overlooked or undervalued. Not trying to be preachy but I want us to do better! If we don’t, nobody else is going to look out for us.
So, let’s make this Black Future Month count!
HEROES: REAL & IMAGINED @ RIVAA GALLERY
In case you live in an alternate dimension, you know I recently had the opening reception to my latest art exhibition at RIVAA Gallery titled: HEROES REAL AND IMAGINED; curated by artist Micheline Hess. It couldn’t have gone any better and I definitely felt like I was on cloud-9 the entire night. I even made a vlog on the whole experience that you can watch, below. Make sure to leave a comment!
There’s also an album of photos I took throughout the night that you can check out over on Facebook. And, if you’re sad you missed out, don’t worry! The duration of the exhibition runs through to February 11th, and I will absolutely be there on the final day!
REDRWN RETURNS
Emani, reDRWN Candid, 2023
The reDRWN Portrait Project is back for the month of February. Each week, you’ll be greeted with a new collection of faces in glorious, vibrant animations. Inspired by the intro sequence of the hit comedy series In Living Color, I’ve become rather fond of the CANDID iteration of the project. So, we’ll live in this space for quite some time. The faces have already been chosen and I can’t wait to share them all with you!
UNIT 333: REVERIES PROGESS
The Approach, 2024
During the month of February, the focus of the Unit 333 project will be on character development and design. I want to make sure each character, even ones in the background, have a distinct visual personality. Additionally, I’ll spend time bringing Sweaty Minds into the fold, as it always lived as the sister series to Unit 333. Fortunately, a lot of this development process can be seen on my YouTube Channel Livestreams!
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