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The Let Down: Netflix’s Ambitious Take on the Birth of Hip Hop Falls Flat
The 2015 Netflix trailer for the Get Down gave us a glimpse of 1970’s New York and the birth of hip hop with the fire and drama you would expect from a Baz Luhrmann production. When the show launched August 12, they managed to deliver on lush cinematography, stunning style and familiar hip hop samples, but well after an…
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Camilo Jose Vergara’s “Old New York”
Camilo Jose Vergara’s work takes a historical photographic look at the dramatic evolution and dissolution of New York’s neighborhoods over decades. I really love his early early 1970’s work. For me, the most captivating series is “Old New York”, a body of photos that exposed the neglected, desolated, apocalyptic cultural landscape existing in the South Bronx. In these pictures you…
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What I’m Listening To: the Proto Disco Edition
Here’s some music for your Saturday. Love this mix of amazing songs from the early days of disco, Proto Disco. If this doesn’t get your day off on the right foot I don’t know what will. 🙂 Enjoy!
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The Fire and the Lotus: Proto Disco in New York
When I think about disco in New York in the 1970’s I think of the lotus flower. You can get so lost in the complexitiy of its beauty that it’s easy to overlook the murky waters the flower emerged from. We are entranced by a mythoized notion of disco marked by flashing neon lights and ribald…
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SUPERNOVA: The Rebirth of Disco
I have a slight obsession with disco. I honestly don’t know where it began but I’ve loved it since I was a little girl. Because of my love for disco, I get very defensive when it is routinely dragged as a vapid musical art form. WHY DO PEOPLE HATE DISCO? My quest to answer this…
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Behind the Walls: The Art of the Favelas
After Rio’s shiny, spectacular Opening Ceremony on Friday I came across this sobering picture that quickly brought me back to reality and filtered my view of the Olympic games. Brazil’s honest portrayal of the slave trade and the upbeat, energetic favela portion of the ceremony obscured some of the horrific present day realities behind the historical and…
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The Legacy of Larry Levan, the Soul of Paradise Garage
Legendary producer/ DJ Larry Levan’s birthday is today, so I thought I would pay tribute to the musical master by giving you a sneak peek of a project I’m launching on TONDI soon. This piece is best read by listening to Levan’s music and this 1979 live recorded set at the Paradise Garage is about as good as it…
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Feature in Arts.Black: The Provocation of Agency and Ambiguity
Last month, one of my reviews on MoAD’s latest exhibitions was featured on Arts.Black. Please click on the link below to learn more about The Grace Jones Project and Dandy Lion. The Provocation of Agency and Ambiguity I truly appreciate the efforts of Taylor and Jessica to amplify the voices of black arts writers. Check…
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Bullets to Hashtags
In the absence of words there are just images. Here are some of the more thought provoking photographs that have helped me think about, process and grieve the tragedies of this week. Alton Sterling, Philandro Castile. “There is no contradiction between supporting law enforcement…and also saying there are problems, biases to be rooted out.” ~…
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Fred Martins Transforms Cultural Symbols into Historical Icons
A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.”- Marcus Garvey Fred Martins, a Nigerian visual artist based in the Ukraine has recently completed a new series of images called “Orange, Black and Freedom”. His work combines vibrant graphic design with photography through his use of digitally created hair picks that are transformed into African and…
Colony Little, Culture Shock Art 