blogs, links, events and art from the teens behind ►

As mentioned in a previous post, the Graffiti Research Lab will be in Minneapolis giving a talk at the U of M at 12:30 PM on Wednesday.

On the less academic side, the GRL will be hosting an “outing.” Not much info listed aside from “Bring your bicycle, take a riding tour with Brooklyn-based GRL, and project art onto buildings.” The meeting time is at 5:00pm on Wednesday in the Regis Center for the Arts East Lobby. The image above is from a previous GRL projection bike ride.

Bre did a post about the Girls in the Director’s Chair already, but here’s the info with a nice little flyer to boot.

Saturday, March 1

11 am and 1:30 pm: Program One

3 pm: Program Two

Part of the Women with Vision film festival, this annual showcase highlights films created by Minnesota girls ages 18 and under. After the screening, join us for a day-long celebration of women and filmmaking. Click the image below for the flyer.

AUGOR and REVOK recently went over a billboard advertising Murakami’s MOCA LA exhibition. I guess Murakami saw the photos and liked what they did to the sign because he had it mailed to his studio. Wooster Collective and LA Weekly has articles posted on their sites.

WHEN: Sunday, Feb. 24, 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM (Grades 9-12)

LOCATION: Guthrie Theater (818 South 2nd St.), Minneapolis, MN 55415.

TO REGISTER: (612) 215-2549

DESCRIPTION: Learn the tricks and tools of zine and comic book making in these workshops for middle school and high school students. Local writers and comic book artists will lead the sessions, demonstrating the writing and illustrative processes used for these fun and easy do-it-yourself publications. Students will create and make copies of their own zine and swap with others during a pizza dinner. Free books and give-aways. Availability is limited. To reserve a spot please call 612-215-2549.

A Socially Conscious Conversation with the Legendary Activist & Author

Wednesday, February 13, 5 pm

Macalester College, Alexander G. Hill Ballroom (Saint Paul)

Angela Davis, a renowned social activist for over 30 years who is deeply involved in our nation’s quest for social justice, is the first speaker in a new Lealtad-Suzuki Center initiative entitled “SPEAK! A Series of Conscious Conversations.”

IMPORTANT NOTE: This event is free, but they have about 40 tickets for non-Macalesters student/general public. They are available at the Macalester Campus Center Information Desk beginning on February 6.

Tha legend lays em down. Its a undoubtedly a stacked list. But hey, where’s the Common? Blu and Exile? Percee P? Black Milk’s Popular Demand? YOU DECIDE.

1. Ghostface Killah, Big Doe Rehab (DEF JAM)

2. EVIDENCE, The Weatherman (ABB)

3. Redman, RED GONE WILD (Def Jam)

4. Kanye West, Graduation (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)

5. Statik Selektah, Spell My Name Right (Brick/Traffic)

6. Little Brother, Getback (ABB)

7. NYGz, Welcome 2 G-dom (Year Round)

8. Marco Polo, Port Authority (Rawkus)

9. Big Shug, Street Champ (Babygrande)

10. KRS-ONE & Marley Marl, Hip Hop Lives (Koch)

11. WC, Guilty By Affiliation (Lench Mob)

12. Scarface, MADE (Rap A Lot/Asylum)

13. UGK, Underground Kings (JIVE)

14. Jay-Z, American Gangster (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)

15. Killer Mike, I Pledge Allegiance To The Grind (Grind Time Official)

16. Black Milk & Bishop Lamont, CALTROIT, (Music House)

17. Devin The Dude, Waiting To Inhale (Rap A Lot/Asylum)

18. Styles P, Super Gangster,Extraordinary Gentleman (D Block/KOCH)

19. Special Teamz, Stereotypes (Duck Down)

20. Smif N Wessun, The Album (Duck Down)

HONORABLE MENTION: (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

1. J.Dilla(Ruff Draft)

2. Percee P(Perseverance)

3. Planet Asia(Jewelry Box Sessions)

4. Soopafly(Bangin West Coast)

5. Freeway(Free At Last)

6. Havoc(The Kush)

7. Beanie Sigel(The Solution)

8. Strong Arm Steady(Deephearted)

9. Talib Kweli(Eardrum)

10. Snoop Dogg presents The Big Squeeze

11. Jedi Mind Tricks presents the Army Of Pharoahes

12. Public Enemy (How Do you Sell Soul To A Souless People Who Sold Their Soul ?)

Thanks FatBeats for the link.

Hey there internet family. I decided to start a new feature, where I will try and compile links to this weeks all ages events. I know that this will not be a full list, but hopefully if you happened to stumble upon this and have free time, BAM! problem sovled. (That bam was accompanied by me pouring bourbon into my creole chicken).

City Pages All Ages Events

Upcoming.org

My personal favorite was the workshop on learning about the ducks that migrate on the Mississippi. You’ll see me there, I’ll be the one dressed in a screen printed replica T-shirt of this year’s duck stamp, and a hat where the bill is a duck bill, and it has eyes.Enjoy your week.

The Chambers Hotel (hey Ralph Burnet, I was at your house!) is holding Juxtaposition Arts’ show, “Constructive Criticism” at the Burnet Gallery. The show features works by instructors and accomplished students reflecting on social issues important to them. It also features two former WACTAC members, Basanti Miller and Emmanuel Mauleon. (In the interest of full disclosure I’ll let you know that I am in fact Emmanuel Mauleon).

The show opens this Saturday, the 23rd of February at 6:00pm at the Chambers Hotel. Check it out, it looks like it should be a good show, good art, good discussion, all-around good time.

Former WACTAC member Alex Smith is doing big things in the world. By big things I of course do not mean solving crimes or helping to feed the children of the world, but rather creating hot designs for clothing companies such as Minnesota Nice and MECCA.

Alex was known as the tardiest member of the TAC, always making yours truly look bad in front of the prestigous group. He also is known for his love of techno music and Chipotle burritos. You may know him as the public nuisance responsible for the guerilla campaign of “Minnesota Nice” posters that appeared across Minneapolis and Saint Paul, as well as a low talking giant.

Anyway, check out what he’s up to and remember, WACTAC always leads to better, more interesting lives.

Here are two events at the U of M if you are interested in street art and graffiti.

Graffiti Research Lab

Wednesday, February 27, 12:30pm

Location: Regis Center for Art, Influx Space

Brookyn-based artists’ collective discuss their guerilla-style approach to creating and showing work. Here’s a video of a LED “train bombing” that they organized.

BOMB IT

Friday, February 15, 1 pm

University of Minnesota, West Bank, Anderson 350

Screening of the new documentary on global graffiti. directed by Jon Reiss. Free, all are welcome, informal showing. For information contact Stefano Bloch, Department of Geography, Space&Place, bloch@umn.edu

The documentary has one of the few video interviews with the legendary REVS. This makes alone makes it well worth the trip.

For those of you who don’t know, JUXTAPOSITION ARTS is a community based organization that involves youth from the Twin Cities in art making classes, mural projects, and gives them resources to be heard in their community. Juxta has even given me a break, and I can vouch for them being great.

All of their programs are FREE for youth ages 8-21!

This spring/summer, the programs will consist of:
Read the rest »

Saturday, February 9, 7 PM

Intermedia Arts

FREE

INVENTOS: HIP HOP CUBANO, a film by Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi, follows some of the pioneers of Cuban Hip Hop into their homes, the stage and as they travel abroad for the first time. Also join Melisa Rivière for Hip Hop Habana From The Real, a special performance exploring Hip Hop in Puerto Rico and Cuba. Following the film and performance, join us for a conversation moderated by Rachel Raimist, director of Nobody Knows My Name.

I know what you’re saying to yourself… community center, psssh. Well, I would like to challenge that notion. Hope Community offers some really good, and I mean REAAAALLY GOOD classes to youth, and those who take them then have a life crises when they realize that community centers can be a good thing. HOPE is offering quite a few this March, and I’m going to give you all the info.

Articulating Our Voices Now is a FREE Class offered to young women [ages 16-22] at Hope Community Center. The class will focus on the artistic and creative expression of women, especially those in our community. We will listen to music, write poetry/spoken word, dance, take photographs, freestyle, tell our stories and learn to channel our visions in a variety of ways. We will also work with guest artists [poets, dancers, spoken word artists, writers, musicians] from the Twin Cities. No artistic experience is necessary! All you need is the energy, ideas, and interest to join this class! ENROLL TODAY!

Read the rest »

In case you missed The Violin by Francisco Vargas the first time at the Walker, it is now playing at The Parkway Theater in Minneapolis. From Today until March 1st it plays everyday at 3:00 and 7:30.

And in case you don’t remember this was the best film of 2007 besides No Country for Old Men.

Writer-director Francisco Vargas’s first feature, an evocation of the 1970s Guerrero peasant revolt, is a solemn, suspenseful, extremely well-shot political drama. The movie opens…

Read the rest »

The Minnesota Museum of American Art is hosting a poetry slam this Thursday that features WACTAC member Chantz Erolin. Click on the flyer for details

Women accounted for only 7 percent of directors in 2005. In the history of the Academy Awards only three women have been nominated and none have won. The Walker Art Center is having their 15th Women With Vision International Film Festival throughout March.

Next time you are at the Walker for FREE Thursdays (wink wink nudge nudge) pick up their booklet on the International Festival, or check out their website for possible films you would want to check out. A few are free if not films are only $8. But if you want to see 4 you can order tickets for 3 and the get the 4th free for $24.

Also March 1st is the Girls in the Directors Chair Curated by Whitney Garner and Erica Hungerford. (At the Walker)This showcase is in its 13th year the goal is to provide a community of young female directors with a quality screening room and connections to professional women filmmakers.

The event starts at 11am on March 1st with the first program which will be played twice again at 1:30,the second program is for 13 years and older and will be shown at 3pm.

Be sure to come out and support women filmmakers in March.

KAPOW!

thats Kick Ass People (showing) Original Work!

Its the up and coming talent of the Twin Cities showing off the work they’ve been doing in an after school class, and outside the class.

its FRIDAY 7-10 PM.

@ 1905 3rd Avenue aka Stevens Square Center for the Arts. Thats at 3rd Avenue and Franklin Ave.

Come check it out! Free food!

One of the ideas for WACTAC’s “big project” this year was to use shipping containers for a traveling exhibition. Due to budget constraints, we won’t be able to use the containers, but in London it looks like they have taken this idea to a new level.