Above: Ancestor from the Future regalia created with interdisciplinary artist Christy Chow, at Djerassi Resident Artist Program in 2017. Photo by Christy Chow. I was at Djerassi Resident Artist Program in 2017, with many artists from different disciplines. I was there as a writer, that was my sole focus. We would eat a collective meal together, each evening. One night, I performed music for all the other artists, after dinner, as an offering of my work. They had asked for it, as they were curious.
I had brought the sunshine plastic zip tie "ruff" pictured above, and utilized it for my performance of the song, "Ancestor from the Future". My fellow artists-in-residence loved the song, and were surprised that there was not a video of it online. Choreographer Tori Lawrence was in residence with dancer Elanor Goudie-Averill and they offered to film the video of the song, as they had brought equipment. Interdisciplinary artist Christy Chow offered to help sew the regalia, as she was extremely technically proficient at making patterns quickly, and I sat with her, showing her photos of traditional fancy parkas made with sunshine ruffs. I bought the materials, and the blue plastic for the details was provided by another artist. We filmed the music video in front of the outdoor sculpture at Djerassi entitled, "Contemplator" which was erected in 2004 by Japanese artist Yusuke Toda. The regalia pictured no longer exists. I took it apart to create a new one. I saved the plastic kupaq (trim) used on the design. The regalia traveled all over the world, and I was grateful for the regalia, the music videos and the photos (by Christy Chow) that came from this brief collaborative effort.
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Me and my Mom, on a visit to Missouri. I have been scanning my Mom's old photos, and included in them are photos when I traveled to the lands of my biological father. Different points of my young life, accentuated in a completely different climate.
One time, when I was around seven, my parents had since been divorced for several years, yet, my Mom took me to Missouri for a visit. I remember a few moments clearly. Like this one, depicted in the image above from this trip. My grandparents on my Dad's side were so different from my grandparents on my Mom's side. We went to my great-Uncle's home, and he spoke in such a thick Missourian accent, that it took me time to unpack and. understand what he said. Now, I can speak like he did, like a special tool on my swiss army knife. That is how deep it impressed upon my young subconscious mind. I remember them being tickled that they had an Eskimo for a granddaughter, but we did not bring our foods for them to try. My grandmother made a chicken and dumpling soup that I thought was amazing, and there were jars she would pop open of what she had pickled. In the basement of the house not pictured in this photo, my grandmother had her sewing studio, a place where she had this big machine to help her with her quilting process. It looked technical, imposing. At one point, my grandparents on my Dad's side were deep into a refinishing business for furniture. My grandma explained how they would strip, sand and stain, showed me the new handles. At night, she would sit in her Queen Anne chair and embroider. Today, I sew our traditional clothing. I draw, I paint, I sculpt, I write, I dance, I sing, I rap. I perform, I create. I dream. Now I realize that my technical talents came from both sides of my family. An attention to detail, a commitment to finish. above: AKU-MATU performance at the Great Northern Festival, 2024. photo by Jayme Halbritter. This performance had amazing sound for my 30 minute set.
Maybe it was because I understand and respect the sound engineering team, and I know what I need. I do have a one-year certificate in Audio Engineering after all, and it does help me to communicate my needs. The school I went to for audio engineering, I recently attempted to get a copy of my transcripts, and I found out the school closed eight years ago. I never became an audio engineer, yet something in me "clicks" when I am about to perform, and there is no one who understands what is going wrong, and there is no amazing professional engineer on-hand. In these moments, I am usually able to figure it out, but the extreme pressure has to be there for that knowledge to be pulled out, as I don't use it everyday, and it has been over 20 years since that schooling happened. During this soundcheck, I changed one of my songs. It became an improvised ode to the main sound engineer, and it was a funny, soulful ballad of what it must be like to be him, and to interact with artists, like me. It made him and his staff laugh, and after my set, one of the bouncers pulled me aside and said my set was great, but that he really enjoyed hearing his boss have his own serenade for the sound check. I hope that I will get to play at this venue again someday, in Minneapolis. A stage where Prince had performed, and many many other amazing artists. And I hope to make the amazing staff there laugh again, when I am placing props and explaining my preferences. You could feel the vibrations that had graced the stage beforehand, and even in the skinny greenroom. Next time, a longer set, and a full band behind me. That is the dream attached to this photo. |
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