SatinDollDC: November 2010

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

The Louisville Lip

For the second year in a row, I won't be home for the Holidays. So, since I can't be in Louisville, I figured I'd think fondly of home and honor it with a post with some images I've found of the Louisville Lip himself, Cassius Clay who came to be known far and wide as Muhammad Ali. Ali Bomaye.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Eastern Market

Cutest Little Lady Bug in Eastern Market

Dutch Wax Cloth: Fabric of the Past, Present & Future

In a sort of extension of yesterday's shoutout to the diaspora, today's post is about Dutch Wax Cloth.

It's everywhere I look as of late in the art of--Ituen Basi, Artaya, Boxing Kitten & Yinka Shonibare. If you say you don't think you know what Dutch Wax Cloth is...you do. It's the OTHER stereotypical African fabric that ISN'T Kente Cloth---it's the OTHER fabric you probably see everywhere... I guess you could probably call it very M.I.A. if wanted to. As in, Maya Arulpragasam. To me it's Hotness. Roots. Color, Movement. Pride. all in one. If you've never heard of Ituen Basi, Dana Ayanna Greaves, a local DC artist (aka ArtisticAya or Artaya) the Boxing Kitten or Yinka Shonibare I would encourage you to check them out---they're all awesome.

Ituen Basi, http://www.ituenbasi.co.uk/

Boxing Kitten, http://boxingkitten.com

ArtAya, http://artisticaya.com

Yinka Shonibare, MBE, http://www.yinkashonibarembe.com/

Maya Arulpragasam, aka M.I.A.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Beauty from Across the Diaspora

Fumadoras en Habana (?), AP image courtesy of BBC

I attended a Happy Hour at 21C, the museum hotel at home in Louisville and this image was on the front of a flyer. I LOVE it. It's so, what's the word I'm looking for? GANGSTA? In fact, it's downright, OG at that. I wish I knew the name of the photographer because it's art. It is beautiful and somewhat shocking but nonetheless awesome. What is also impressive and provoking is the 21C hotel and museum in Louisville. If you're ever in town for Derby (I'll be jealous ;-) ) or at any other time, even if you don't stay there just drop by. http://www.21cmuseum.org/museum/Default.aspx The rooms are or can be bananas, the bar is fabulous, the exhibitions are impressive and the bathrooms are VERY interesting. I once had a friend ask me "HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE MEN'S RESTROOMS LOOK LIKE?!" I replied that I had been with my art history class while taking Renaissance through Modern Art at JCTC (where Papadoc is a professor). A special shout out goes out to my professors, Amy Stewart and Jo Anne Triplett! :-) Long story short, I LOVE this image and hope you do too!

The second image I wanted to share is a form of public art if you will. Brasil has resurfaced again for the second day in a row. I think I probably dreamt about it last night, so it's still fresh on my mind. While visiting Brasil in 2006 we visited two Federal Universities, one in Salvador do Bahia (the second Blackest place in the world outside of Nigeria, real talk) and the other in Rio Grade do Sul, Porto Alegre in the south ( a MUCH whiter place in comparison). While on campus in Porto Alegre we bought a few snacks in the student lounge, I was STRUCK when I saw this candy. At first I thought it was a joke, and then I noticed how beautiful the silhouettes were. Very much like my preferred artistic style and medium as of late. The name Beijos Africano means, African Kiss. Also known as pieces of chocolate. I thought it was both adorable and a perfect memento from my time in Brasil. A trip of mixed emotions and social interactions, etc.,etc. I lost the pieces of chocolate I bought that afternoon :( so imagine how ecstatic I was to have found these images online. Enjoy!

In the spirit of celebrating Brasil, I wanted to share some pictures from my visit in 2006

Photo Credit, Marshelle Brooks

Student health advocacy graffiti emblazoned on the walls of the Federal University Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre

Photo Credit, Marshelle Brooks

Poster outside of a Community Agricultural Co-Op in Porto Alegre, which we were told ON OUR WAY OUT was being kept under especially close surveillance O_O << our faces were like this. Anyhoo, an interesting take on foreign relations and affairs in Brasil.

This could have been anywhere in the world but I shot it on our way to visit some condomble priestesses to get a blessing. The only luggage to arrive with our flight was mine. Everyone else on the trip had to find clothes on the street (very difficult) and stores for the time being. Everything there is cut so much smaller than we Americans are used to. So, instead of sitting around and waiting for the luggage, we decided to pay a visit to a church where condomble priestesses would bless you in exchange for a few reais (their currency). Whatever was in the popcorn definitely worked because by the time we got back to our hotel, the luggage had been safely delivered to our rooms.

Dr. Peters receiving her popcorn shower.

Why popcorn? It is honor of a condomble god who had terrible sores all over his body that most closely resemble popcorn. Eww! Yuck! Gross, right? But beliefs are beliefs and like I said, whatever they said, it worked and the luggage was waiting!

Friday, November 19, 2010

Favela Paintings in Rio

Rio slum transformed into canvas bursting with color
by Shasta Darlington
Above link via CNN and The Smithian Tumblr

The color and movement is stirring. Such a far cry from what I saw in Bahia and Porto Alegre, Brasil when I visited in 2006. The poverty depressed me to the point that I couldn't even bring my camera out for the last half of our trip---that and I didn't want to risk getting mugged. Real talk. But this.is.GORGEOUS. It is powerful. It is humanity at its best, even amongst the worst of conditions. Rio slum transformed into canvas bursting with color

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Themes

I have culled old jump drives, external hard drives and CDs in search of work to add to my page and I began to notice patterns, themes, artistic leanings if you will. Nature, people: especially children (although I'm hardly ever around them) and architecture. I prefer magnifying the minute, unnoticed details over the larger picture. I will write more and fill in my gaps as the ideas come to me.