Week Two: the ART of it all

Hi Friends and Family, 

 

Many of you have thought that Camerin did all of the writing for our various dispatches.   While it is true she has done a lot of the writing, we have collaborated on the ideas and the info to include and I am the Editor.   So it really and truly has been a collaborative effort and a blessing at that.  ; ) 

 

Today, however I am writing and you will soon understand why.  Beyond writing emails and engaging in hard conversations around race and privilege, Camerin uses her art and producing prowess to “speak” on the subject.   Last weekend she performed in one virtual event and collaborated on the production of another.  I watched both events virtually Saturday night when I was back home.   I hated that I wasn’t with her.   I was so motivated by the artists that presented in these events, I found myself wanting to do more myself in this realm.   Of course I absolutely love the piece that Camerin performed herself but the work and earnest commitment of the other artists was also very inspiring. 

 

This week we’re both thinking about how artists inspire change in troubling times,   How they inspire themselves and they inspire others.  We are thinking about our next things to do to inspire hearts to change and grow, things to actually DO as many of us have asked each other, other white friends and friends of color.   What creative things can we do? How can we support Black creatives (there are links within the Chat of the BOOM event to donate to the artists)?  I hope that these events will rejuvenate you as they have me. 

 

So we’d love for you to watch these two events  to discover what inspires you.   Each event includes a variety of art forms – music, dance, storytelling, visual art,  spoken word, etc.  Though these events happen to be in Charlotte because our resident artist lives in Cornelius, a bedroom community of metro Charlotte, the subject matter is nationally relevant.  I am now inspired to look for such events in the greater Atlanta – Decatur area, I don’t know of those right away and am going to research them.  How does it strike you.?  We’d love to hear what you think from this experience.  If you’ve already seen these event perhaps there are other artistic experiences around the Black Lives Matter movement that you’ve found and would like to share with us. 

 

Pour yourself a nice glass of wine or a cup of tea and set aside some focused time to ENJOY!!!  Make it a great evening, it was for me on Saturday…..maybe a date night with your significant or a ZOOM watch party with friends.  It’s not something to have in the background but something to really focus on for an evening or spread out over a couple of different sessions. ACT II of BOOM’s ACT: NOW Series will go live this Saturday at 4pm. Charlotte which used to be an artistic dessert is now teaming with great art and a vibrant artistic community (which is still under-funded and under-appreciated).    


Peace,
Beth 


If you missed Week 1’s email you can find it on the blog. 

 

1.   “BE THE CHANGE:  A Virtual Benefit Show for the Campaign Zero and NAACP Charlotte/Mecklenburg”   

 

2.  ACT: NOW: 3 part series from BOOM:   Join BOOM, BLKMRKTCLT,  Charlotte is Creative and the Roll UP CLT at 4p for the net three Saturdays as Art changes minds, bodies and souls, moving us all to ACT: NOW. 

Act I: Catch it here  

Act II:   Saturday July 18, 4:00pm EST: Join here.

Act III:  Saturday July 25, 4:00pm EST. Join here. 


3. Camerin in collaboration with visual artist Andrea Downs will be performing a new work exploring white privilege as part of the Asheville Fringe Festival’s virtual summer offerings next Wednesday at 7:30pm. More info in next week’s email. 



MORE INSPIRATION:  

  1.    Dr. Maya Angelou - I Am Human   Maya Angelou is always inspiring.   This some of her ideas and some of her wonderful poetry.  Inspiring. 

  2.    Voces, Oraciones y Canciones de la Frontera / Voices, Prayers and Songs from the Border  Voices from the Border comes to us from the United Church of Christ an old small denomination with a commitment to diversity and understanding.  Their “Tuesdays for the Soul” series, of which this is one episode, is inspiring and includes several artists of the Latinx cultures. 



MORE UNDERSTANDING OF RACISM:  

  1.  George Floyd, Minneapolis Protests, Ahmaud Arbery & Amy Cooper : The Dominoes of Racism.| The Daily Social Distancing Show with  Trevor Noah.

Trevor has a gift for breaking things down, putting them together in new ways and creating a big space for understanding.  He is far more than a comedian.  He is an instrument of peace and understanding.  I try to watch his show as often as possible.   He’s a bearable source for the news.  

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