The World of Mallory Michelle Dover

Mallory Michelle Dover is a Kentucky-based artist who addresses themes ranging from black women's relationships with their hair to domestic violence with vibrant color and texture. Dover, who is currently an M.F.A. candidate at the University of Kentucky, says her work "is rooted in cultural acceptance, perceptions and identity. " Mallory has literally created her own universe, a language of elaborate shapes and symbols that are both eye-catching and thought-provoking. When she isn't teaching, Dover spends just about every waking moment hard at work in her studio, as she gears up for her M.F.A. Thesis exhibition, Strange Malaise, on April 2nd.

What was the inspiration behind your most recent body of work, The Angry Hair Series? What did you discover in the process of making and exhibiting this work?
My inspiration behind The Angry Hair Series came from personal experiences with relaxed and natural hair, along with the experiences of other women of African decent. At age 21, after 14 years of relaxing my naturally thick, curly hair, I cut it all off and began wearing it natural. I was angry with all the women in my life that encouraged relaxed hair and discouraged natural hair. After awhile, I realized that even with my hair in its natural state, I felt that similar need to always do something to it. In the Angry Hair Series, I include women with natural and relaxed hair. I also include expressions that don't look so angry at all to comment on how we often mask our true emotions because of social constructs.
While making and exhibiting this work, I discovered that the issue of Black hair is multi-layered. When older women see these paintings (i.e. my Gramma), there is a completely different discussion that occurs than when people in younger generations view them. With them, there is a stance that has been taking against natural hair that runs deeper than vanity, it is a means of protection. With these works, I leave traces of my actual thought process because of my desire to get people to talk about what is actually driving the need to permanently alter the natural state of their hair.
What was the inspiration for your extensive crocheted installations? What has the process of creating them been like?
My crochet installations are inspired by issues of domestic violence and family dynamics. The process is monotonous, yet comforting. Tedious and uncomfortable, yet familiar and necessary. Crochet for this project is ideal, to me, because it serves as an umbrella for emotions that run deep within the dynamics of family.
The wigs you create are colorful and very tactile. What inspired you to create wigs "no one would actually wear in real life"?
The Wigs are a direct result of the Angry Hair Series, haha. I was doing public projects and interviewing so many people about hair--people of all races, both male and female and realized that no one was satisfied with the hair they were born with. I had people draw their favorite hairstyle and not one person ever drew something the resembled what they already had. So these wigs were created by drawing from the imagination and asking the question, "How would you like to see yourself?"


What artist has been particularly influential to you and why?
There are so many artists that I enjoy, but I would say Chakaia Booker has been one of the most influential. I admired and met her when I was in undergrad and she is just amazing. The way she dresses is uniquely and is unapologetically her. I am also always drawn to artists that think outside of the box. I love materials that are clever, so automatically I am wooed by what she does with tires. Her sculptures have such presence. You have to see them in person-photos just don't do justice.You explore various aspects of African American culture in your work. What places and people have you drawn inspiration from?
I am very interested in African American history and varying family dynamics within this and other cultures. I draw inspiration from my grandmother and the older people in my family. I love listening to old stories-it's like a free history course. I also observe my own relationships with people-not limited to people of African decent-and am very much inspired.


You are currently working towards your MFA in Arts Education. Has working on art with young people influence your practice in any way? And what made you want to go into arts education?
I am currently a MFA candidate in studio art, although there was a period of time that I was going to get an additional degree (Masters in Arts Education). I am no longer pursuing that at this time but working with young people is still very important to me because these people need someone to help nourish their dreams. Working with young people has inevitably influenced my practice--I want to create work that inspires, encourages, informs, and transforms.

What is the legacy you hope to leave as an artist?
I want to make great art that opens the minds and hearts of all people. I want to make art that touches lives. That's the legacy I intend to leave as an artist.

Mallory Michelle Dover's MFA Thesis exhibition, Strange Malaise, opens April 2nd, 2010 at the Tuska Center of Contemporary Art on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington. The reception is from 5-7:30 pm

For more on Mallory's work, check out her blog: http://mallorydover.blogspot.com/

The World of Mallory Michelle Dover

Mallory Michelle Dover is a Kentucky-based artist who addresses themes ranging from black women's relationships with their hair to domestic violence with vibrant color and texture. Dover, who is currently an M.F.A. candidate at the University of Kentucky, says her work "is rooted in cultural acceptance, perceptions and identity. " Mallory has literally created her own universe, a language of elaborate shapes and symbols that are both eye-catching and thought-provoking. When she isn't teaching, Dover spends just about every waking moment hard at work in her studio, as she gears up for her M.F.A. Thesis exhibition, Strange Malaise, on April 2nd.

What was the inspiration behind your most recent body of work, The Angry Hair Series? What did you discover in the process of making and exhibiting this work?
My inspiration behind The Angry Hair Series came from personal experiences with relaxed and natural hair, along with the experiences of other women of African decent. At age 21, after 14 years of relaxing my naturally thick, curly hair, I cut it all off and began wearing it natural. I was angry with all the women in my life that encouraged relaxed hair and discouraged natural hair. After awhile, I realized that even with my hair in its natural state, I felt that similar need to always do something to it. In the Angry Hair Series, I include women with natural and relaxed hair. I also include expressions that don't look so angry at all to comment on how we often mask our true emotions because of social constructs.
While making and exhibiting this work, I discovered that the issue of Black hair is multi-layered. When older women see these paintings (i.e. my Gramma), there is a completely different discussion that occurs than when people in younger generations view them. With them, there is a stance that has been taking against natural hair that runs deeper than vanity, it is a means of protection. With these works, I leave traces of my actual thought process because of my desire to get people to talk about what is actually driving the need to permanently alter the natural state of their hair.
What was the inspiration for your extensive crocheted installations? What has the process of creating them been like?
My crochet installations are inspired by issues of domestic violence and family dynamics. The process is monotonous, yet comforting. Tedious and uncomfortable, yet familiar and necessary. Crochet for this project is ideal, to me, because it serves as an umbrella for emotions that run deep within the dynamics of family.
The wigs you create are colorful and very tactile. What inspired you to create wigs "no one would actually wear in real life"?
The Wigs are a direct result of the Angry Hair Series, haha. I was doing public projects and interviewing so many people about hair--people of all races, both male and female and realized that no one was satisfied with the hair they were born with. I had people draw their favorite hairstyle and not one person ever drew something the resembled what they already had. So these wigs were created by drawing from the imagination and asking the question, "How would you like to see yourself?"


What artist has been particularly influential to you and why?
There are so many artists that I enjoy, but I would say Chakaia Booker has been one of the most influential. I admired and met her when I was in undergrad and she is just amazing. The way she dresses is uniquely and is unapologetically her. I am also always drawn to artists that think outside of the box. I love materials that are clever, so automatically I am wooed by what she does with tires. Her sculptures have such presence. You have to see them in person-photos just don't do justice.You explore various aspects of African American culture in your work. What places and people have you drawn inspiration from?
I am very interested in African American history and varying family dynamics within this and other cultures. I draw inspiration from my grandmother and the older people in my family. I love listening to old stories-it's like a free history course. I also observe my own relationships with people-not limited to people of African decent-and am very much inspired.


You are currently working towards your MFA in Arts Education. Has working on art with young people influence your practice in any way? And what made you want to go into arts education?
I am currently a MFA candidate in studio art, although there was a period of time that I was going to get an additional degree (Masters in Arts Education). I am no longer pursuing that at this time but working with young people is still very important to me because these people need someone to help nourish their dreams. Working with young people has inevitably influenced my practice--I want to create work that inspires, encourages, informs, and transforms.

What is the legacy you hope to leave as an artist?
I want to make great art that opens the minds and hearts of all people. I want to make art that touches lives. That's the legacy I intend to leave as an artist.

Mallory Michelle Dover's MFA Thesis exhibition, Strange Malaise, opens April 2nd, 2010 at the Tuska Center of Contemporary Art on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington. The reception is from 5-7:30 pm

For more on Mallory's work, check out her blog: http://mallorydover.blogspot.com/

Karen Seneferu Presents: Techno-Kisi

A few months ago I shared an interview with artist Karen Seneferu, who was then installing her latest work Techno-kisi, at the Skirball Museum in Los Angeles, California. Seneferu's piece got a lot of positive feedback, and was recently the subject of an interview for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art's Open Space blog, which you can read here:
http://blog.sfmoma.org/2010/02/techno-kisi-interview-with-artist-karen-seneferu/#more-9489

Check out some video of the installation here:


And here is the artist's statement on Techno-kisi

Karen Seneferu – Techno-kisi, 2009
http://anideacalledtomorrow.wordpress.com/category/karen-seneferu-and-kwahuumba/
Technology has become the primary vehicle to navigate multiple discourses. But to some cultures, a future embedded in technology alone is not possible without engaging multiple mediums of communication for a sustainable future. Thus, collaboration will be at the center of inclusive change.

The ancient force and form of the Nkisi is to protect. Out of the Congo Basin in Central Africa, the Nkisi literally means sacred medicine; the Nkisi takes a variety of forms from sculpture to container to a charm. Seneferu’s piece Techno-kisi is the first of its kind for the entire piece is made up of charms symbolic of individual community members in need of healing while multi-media, the center of the power force, protects the community.

The technology symbolizes the belly. In this case, the console created by Buglabs shows a slide presentation of people Kwahuumba and Seneferu interviewed on film, named after the exhibition: An Idea Called Tomorrow. In collaborating with Buglabs, Seneferu attempts to unhook the seat of power, by enclosing the images of those who are often times outside of it.

In a third element of the project, Kwahuumba and Seneferu recorded interviews of people from a broad cross-section of society to answer the questions “what is a sustainable future” and “who and how is it determined?” They were interested in looking at historically excluded communities who have been deterred from participating in the dialogue and the actions needed for change. They interviewed a wide range of activists both prominent to the world of the Green Movement, such as Majora Carter, an environmental justice advocate, who promotes green-collar jobs as a route out of poverty to Tyrone Stevenson, aka “Scraper Bike King,” a youth from East Oakland California who created a mobility craze that has gained worldwide fame by incorporating art and an eco-green philosophy to change his community. There are other diverse individuals who are just as relevant. What they all have in common is that they point out that in order for us to have a sustainable future, that “everyone on the planet must be seen as having a particular value that should be shared with the world.”

Techno-Kisi is on display as part of the exhibition An Idea Called Tomorrow until March 7th, 2010. http://www.skirball.org

Karen Seneferu Presents: Techno-Kisi

A few months ago I shared an interview with artist Karen Seneferu, who was then installing her latest work Techno-kisi, at the Skirball Museum in Los Angeles, California. Seneferu's piece got a lot of positive feedback, and was recently the subject of an interview for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art's Open Space blog, which you can read here:
http://blog.sfmoma.org/2010/02/techno-kisi-interview-with-artist-karen-seneferu/#more-9489

Check out some video of the installation here:


And here is the artist's statement on Techno-kisi

Karen Seneferu – Techno-kisi, 2009
http://anideacalledtomorrow.wordpress.com/category/karen-seneferu-and-kwahuumba/
Technology has become the primary vehicle to navigate multiple discourses. But to some cultures, a future embedded in technology alone is not possible without engaging multiple mediums of communication for a sustainable future. Thus, collaboration will be at the center of inclusive change.

The ancient force and form of the Nkisi is to protect. Out of the Congo Basin in Central Africa, the Nkisi literally means sacred medicine; the Nkisi takes a variety of forms from sculpture to container to a charm. Seneferu’s piece Techno-kisi is the first of its kind for the entire piece is made up of charms symbolic of individual community members in need of healing while multi-media, the center of the power force, protects the community.

The technology symbolizes the belly. In this case, the console created by Buglabs shows a slide presentation of people Kwahuumba and Seneferu interviewed on film, named after the exhibition: An Idea Called Tomorrow. In collaborating with Buglabs, Seneferu attempts to unhook the seat of power, by enclosing the images of those who are often times outside of it.

In a third element of the project, Kwahuumba and Seneferu recorded interviews of people from a broad cross-section of society to answer the questions “what is a sustainable future” and “who and how is it determined?” They were interested in looking at historically excluded communities who have been deterred from participating in the dialogue and the actions needed for change. They interviewed a wide range of activists both prominent to the world of the Green Movement, such as Majora Carter, an environmental justice advocate, who promotes green-collar jobs as a route out of poverty to Tyrone Stevenson, aka “Scraper Bike King,” a youth from East Oakland California who created a mobility craze that has gained worldwide fame by incorporating art and an eco-green philosophy to change his community. There are other diverse individuals who are just as relevant. What they all have in common is that they point out that in order for us to have a sustainable future, that “everyone on the planet must be seen as having a particular value that should be shared with the world.”

Techno-Kisi is on display as part of the exhibition An Idea Called Tomorrow until March 7th, 2010. http://www.skirball.org

Performance: grunge*quest movement 10

The atmosphere in Jon Delorme's playspace one cold February night was one of hushed awe. Audience members descended the staircase into a darkened room to find the floor scattered with "Kellyisms": purple glitter, a mirror framed in gold, candles, safety pins, honey, panties. A technicolor image of gumballs was projected on the back wall, casting a soft glow over a host of instruments: a drum set, an accordion, a keyboard, guitars. Tonight would be a special performance for many reasons: it was the 10th movement in Kelly Shaw Willman's remarkable grunge*quest series, her first live collaboration with avant-garde musician Jon Delorme, and the end of her New York residency. Willman will return home to Iowa for some quiet and space, along with a lot more bang for her buck.
The 10th installment of grunge*quest was delicate and magical in sound and imagery. Kelly utilized her voice, chanting her desire for "a quiet year." Delorme moved between a tabletop steel guitar and a Turkish banjo, building a sound that went from pixie dust to a thrashing crescendo. Kelly moved ritualistically through the space, cutting apples, placing panties at the feet of an audience member, spreading glitter. grunge*quest 10 was a perfect finale to the Brooklyn-based phase of this series of movements. It was the work of a woman coming into her own, and sharing that transformational journey. Her creative presence will truly be missed here, but I'm certain we'll be seeing much more of this energetically rising artist. Here is the full video of Kelly and Jon's performance:

grunge*quest movement 10 from Marissa Arterberry on Vimeo.

photos by Arhia Kohlmoos
Kelly Shaw Willman's blog:http://www.kellyshawwillman.blogspot.com
Jon Delorme's blog: http://www.jondelorme.blogspot.com

Performance: grunge*quest movement 10

The atmosphere in Jon Delorme's playspace one cold February night was one of hushed awe. Audience members descended the staircase into a darkened room to find the floor scattered with "Kellyisms": purple glitter, a mirror framed in gold, candles, safety pins, honey, panties. A technicolor image of gumballs was projected on the back wall, casting a soft glow over a host of instruments: a drum set, an accordion, a keyboard, guitars. Tonight would be a special performance for many reasons: it was the 10th movement in Kelly Shaw Willman's remarkable grunge*quest series, her first live collaboration with avant-garde musician Jon Delorme, and the end of her New York residency. Willman will return home to Iowa for some quiet and space, along with a lot more bang for her buck.
The 10th installment of grunge*quest was delicate and magical in sound and imagery. Kelly utilized her voice, chanting her desire for "a quiet year." Delorme moved between a tabletop steel guitar and a Turkish banjo, building a sound that went from pixie dust to a thrashing crescendo. Kelly moved ritualistically through the space, cutting apples, placing panties at the feet of an audience member, spreading glitter. grunge*quest 10 was a perfect finale to the Brooklyn-based phase of this series of movements. It was the work of a woman coming into her own, and sharing that transformational journey. Her creative presence will truly be missed here, but I'm certain we'll be seeing much more of this energetically rising artist. Here is the full video of Kelly and Jon's performance:

grunge*quest movement 10 from Marissa Arterberry on Vimeo.

photos by Arhia Kohlmoos
Kelly Shaw Willman's blog:http://www.kellyshawwillman.blogspot.com
Jon Delorme's blog: http://www.jondelorme.blogspot.com

Marissa's Visual Diary: African Inspiration

Africa is the root of so much creativity which has spread throughout the world. Whether it's music, visual art, or fashion, you can find the presence of African aesthetics. I study a lot of images to feed my own creativity, and I wanted to share some of what I have in my "visual diary" that comes from Africa. The majority of these images were taken in two locations: The main library in Philadelphia had a wonderful exhibit of photography and sculpture over the summer that I was fortunate to get a look at, along with the Brooklyn Museum's permanent collection of African art. My work is heavily influenced by African imagery and sculpture, and I create facial markings, jewelry, and symbols for the characters I paint based on images such as these. Often it's not easy for African Americans to pinpoint what country in Africa they came from (although we do know that most descendants of those brought to the US during slavery have roots in West Africa), and my response to this has been to draw on the continent's rich cultural history and use my imagination to tell the story of my ancestors, powerful survivors and creators. My purpose is also to infuse the current phase of our journey with magic. Because as Mos Def says, we are living "life in marvelous times." I also must give honorable mention to Harlem's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. What a resource! They have a photo archive where you can go in and request photos from a particular group, era, or topic, and they'll bring out boxes and boxes of archived material. You can lierally spend a day there just looking and soaking up visual information. I recently spent time there viewing photos from Bahia in the 1800s.