Ranting about healthcare

I've been wondering if I have been obsessed lately with reading the news about the healthcare debate possibly because i'm displacing my responsibility about what really needs to happen with MY health. I've lowered my standards from even just reading the news to reading the comments about the news. To be honest about the health care bill, I want something that perhaps I don't understand in its entirety to happen because I feel like it'll make a lot of things ok. Maybe I'll worry less if it passes, maybe I'll go to the dentist more or the doctor more and be overall more preventative about a natural disaster that could happen to my body.

But there could be something sinister about it all too, would this give me less pause to consider the conditions of another person's life who has less than me? Would I pronounce that someone who doesn't take care of themselves is more proven to be ignorant because the healthcare is free and they could just as easily as me go and get help, but they won't, and they can only blame themselves?

Today I was having conversations with Rachel and Corrie about things seemingly unrelated, but related in that we were questioning what is at the core of the issues of our day that we rally behind? Stemming from how recycling and yoga is the beginning of creating a sense of community and slowing down we began to talk about what is environmentalism today really about (the conversation we had was about can we really curb consumption or are we doomed to employ some kind of overall band-aid). The conversations kept going between Rachel and Corrie and I stepped away for a second to watch a TED talk since Corrie had never ventured into that amazingly quick inspiring online world. I stumbled upon one about how does one nurture creativity. Elizabeth Gilbert's talk had this kind of tension throughout that was either because she had to cram pearls of wisdom into 18 minutes or because she really was in the moment struggling with trying to fend off the feelings of expectations from other people and herself of not being able to out do herself from her last 'freakishly popular book'. Her talk reminded me of how sometimes I displace my moments of 'genius' to reconciling it as being part of instinct, but not instinct from within, but instinct as a state of being that is in flux, one that can be nurtured as she said.

"Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work." - Rita Mae Brown

As we teach in education, you can practice to be able to do genius things more often but you won't always be a genius without practicing new challenging tasks that are just difficult enough, oh yeah, and doing so makes you happy. It's called flow.

Which brings me to the matter at hand. Flow is considered the psychological definition of happiness. (See: Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi) And that's what missing from all debates that wrings it away from what I believe could be real change.

At least once each season each year, I would preach the importance of happiness. Even before I went to therapy and thought about other lessons I had to learn about myself, about how what is possibly most important is to know how to gain perspective, how to let go so you no longer judge yourself and remind yourself of how lucky you are that you have close people in your life that will never judge you because they like you who you are, regardless of what happens. I used to tell everyone that what was most important was happiness, and that if everyone had to go through some form of therapy with someone that they could trust and could just talk and talk and talk, there would be a new kind of normalcy, a healthy one, where people remember to work on being happier, and knowing how they are important and reflect on what has been good to them and what really bothers them, and where does that come from.

Can you imagine a world where everyone goes to therapy as if it's as normal as going to church and they get something out of it that they don't think twice about, because everyone goes to therapy.

And so back to the health debate. I get so caught up in the idea that there are two sides that I remember that everything has an issue that really does bother me in the mix, and the solution to it is usually the most difficult task that must be adopted on such a wide scale and on a personal level that it has more to do with a change in philosophy than a change in power. I want mental health for all, and doing what makes me happy is what I can do to promote what I believe is the most necessary change. It's something within my means, and at times is more difficult than I can describe to someone who believes that being an artist is exactly as it looks. Today, for probably about 8 hours I sat on a computer, surfing the internet, and now I feel like I figured out why.


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Other debates that can be boiled down to more important matters:
Pro-choice vs. pro-life, why are there so many unwanted pregnancies in the first place? Maybe abstinence isn't exactly the answer but why do we stress that we can change the world by deciding for others how they should deal with a personal nature that is in my mind an afterthought. We argue about something that has already happened, of course the debate will be heated, the point where you could keep a debate from happening is over. So there's that instead of stressing the importance of having sex with people you really care about, which I think it comes down to a matter of happiness again.

Oh man that episode when Lindsey tutors Daniel...

I don't have cable, but I still love TV...

Freaks and Geeks was probably the best thing on tv when it was on. It could have gone on for much longer, it was brilliant, but sometimes these kinds of projects are meant to be looked back on with pride as your first ideas in some of its purest forms. Even the actors who were on that short lived show had careers that seemed so fresh. Seth Rogen could not act, but look at him now! Some of these people after the show ended really took off and some we didn't hear much back from them again afterwards. What's amazing is that that idea of what happened to these actresses and actors in real life hits home, I think, with the politics of high school. If you were a 'minor character' in the high school popularity contests, you may have gone on to do some great things, maybe it was the new friends, maybe it was that you were finally challenged on your grounds. If you were at the top of your life when you were in high school, well then… that's kindof unfortunate to peak so early and for such a short period of time. Perhaps high school is meant to be seen as something that sucks but it's short and necessary, necessary in that you realize what you will never want to deal with ever again in adulthood. True blossoming happens once you get the hell out, because that's when you go from thinking about more than the light at the end of the tunnel.

(This is one of the few times I was interested in the 'where are they now' crap, but I mean, the cheerleader in F & G is going to be a stripper in an upcoming movie, doesn't that remind you of the moment when you realized that the girl being double penetrated in Requiem for a Dream was also in Labyrinth! I guess that's what happens when you grow up along with the people who are kids in those movies, one day both you and that actor/actress think to themselves, I bet someone would pay to see (insert actor/actress) in a sex tape. And then it happens.)

Thoughts before going to Hawaii

My list of priorities when I travel:

1. read on the beach
2. exercise / explore
3. journal/reflect
4. eat and/or cook amazing food.
5. find places / galleries that may want to show my work


New priorities for the next 4 months: (my 'should do' list)

1. Read more, on the list TO FINISH, 'what we want is free', essays/interviews/etc from Judy Pfaff, Mikhail Bakhtin and 'work ethic' from a show at the Baltimore museum of art.
2. Don't do any personal art shows, but work in the studio every day for at least 2 hours.
3. Learn to listen for the upcoming collaborations, think about the concept of sharing skills and the creation and authenticity of trust.
4. Fail at least 5 times in creating something, which means, make the damn thing, and then talk yourself out of showing it, as opposed to talking yourself out of making it.
5. Make mock ups for locations for the guerrilla art project.

Things not on a to-do list that are upcoming (my 'would do' list):
a. taxes
b. artist webpages for: Wiley Macdowell, Mary Fortuna, Mario Moore and Andrew Thompsons
c. 'I don't believe in art, I believe in artists' show at Whitdel Arts in April
d. finish laser cut commission

For the sake of having a 'could do' list:
a. Find possible art shows for 2011 out of state
b. Find more people (interns?) to hand off my thedetroiter.com projects to
c. Fund raise for gradschool: make a series of postcards to sell? a book? posters/prints?

Past priorities from the last 4 months, how did I do?

Well... I lost where I put it, so... I guess I may have failed. I wrote it in September...

I think one of the propositions was to make 3 really large paintings... I may have failed at doing that one... oops.

If you would like to get postcard art from Hawaii, let me know.

Band Names, because Rach and I are starting a band

I don't care what anyone says, these are sweet band names that me and friends have come up with

Bakhtin
Tokyo O'keefe
Arizona Drug Summer
The Overdraft Fees
Murphy's Law School
Chorus of Aahs
Secret and Racial
Andy Malone
The Hot Glue Guns
Literally
Everyday Language
You know what

The name we liked: Chorus of Aahs, pronounced (kor-us of oz) you know, like when the crowd goes wild. aahhhh.

Did you know about THIS community program? Have you seen it? Be involved.

UPDATES courtesy Sioux Trujillo

So where were you tonight? There was a meeting about being on the Artist Roster for CPAD, Community and Public Arts: Detroit, so that people can contact you about helping creating artwork. Um, meaning, that you would have the opportunity for people to contact you so that you could be paid to make artwork. I understand if you haven't heard that there was a meeting, but you better be more keen with what's going on because they've been giving up to 40,000 dollars to community arts projects, 6 a year.

What I kindof like the best about the program is that these artists also work with an experienced artist as a mentor for creating meaningful public art as well as paired up with an emerging artist of their choice so that that person will be even more qualified for applying for the next round and can get an idea of what they would be getting themselves into if they were interested in public art.

Even though he was the backup speaker, Mikel Bresee filled in for Sioux Trujillo and I enjoyed a lot of what he had to say (keep in mind this is paraphrased):

"Who would you call in the city of Detroit if you wanted to do a public art project? A local foundation for public works? A department of cultural affairs or a non-profit devoted to it? We don't have one. If you had 1,000,000 dollars for the public arts, do you know what I mean? There is no one. We are stepping into the void."

"Once you are listed in the Artist Roster, a city official from Southfield can scan our files and pick you out because they'll see your experience and your work listed and they'll call you up. So Folks in Korea can look at the amazing project that you did! For example people from Japan are reading an article about  Katie Craig's mural."

"We do it the opposite way, usually it starts with a funder connected to an artist then comes the project and then the location. [The way we do it] the community first figures out what their goals are, start with the people that are there and go to the community. It's about the partnerships."

"Out of nowhere these city officials tear down the abandoned building next to our project, and next thing you know greening of Detroit shows up. It's a catalyst for other organizations to tag along."

"Kresge artists get 25 grand and they get to play in the studio, if you get chosen, you'll work your butt off!"

"The best public art is generative, the same as all art" Good art moves us, so true. "Public art is really about scale and scale means money... ...money covers design fees, travel, participation in meetings, production costs, delivery, installation..."

His advice if you want to apply for the 20-30K?: "You better like to work with youth and have the desire to work with and learn from the community... ...Mix it up and be flexible."
Find more here: http://www.cpadetroit.org/

I'm not sure when CPAD's website will be up of the past projects but here are some great news tidbits about past projects (25,000 - 40,000) some of this stuff you can find on google maps!:

1. Trumpet Vines grew beautifully up a public sculpture by Vito Valdez, and for some reason the only reference to it I could find on the internet (besides being semi-unlabeled on Flickr) is here. Anyone know the school where it's located or where to find pictures of the finished installed sculpture?

UPDATE: (DIA) Detroit International Academy Located on woodward just north of east grad blvd. We are rworking hard to get C+PAD website up and running. We have a flickr page that is updated on a regular basis. http://www.flickr.com/photos/cpadetroit/

2. Realistic mural works by Lester Jordan & Wilbert Riser transformed an abandoned facility to go from drug activity to having a Jazz Festival held there A YEAR LATER!

3. Hubert Massey's work on Grand Blvd. and Warren has a plaque on the pedestal that will honor a different resident each year! The work year after year will bring the Chadsey/Condon area together to  celebrate the great people that live there! He said that it took a while to get all the right permits but it all came through!

4. Mary Laredo Herbeck made wrought iron & ceramic benches that was praised by the seniors for having a place to sit while waiting for the bus. (Wait I know that face, Anahli! Her mom promised that she'd cook for Faina and I if we ever stopped by, we still need to take her up on that offer...)

5. Chazz Miller in Brightmoore made work with the community that stops traffic! Greening of Detroit comes in, plants some stuff, they just happen to show up.

6. Soh Suzuki's work on the Glory Supermarket was a great feat of showing how the best instructors really know how to let the community make the work. It's no easy feat because most artists probably find out that they're control freaks, also there are plans to continue to expand the murals, and then another and then another... (I believe Faina Lerman has one made...)

7. Donald Calloway's work is on a methadone clinic but you wouldn't know it! (Also Ben Wright is mentioned in this article! I worked with him when he attended a workshop at MOCAD with Jamel Shabazz)

8. Talking Fence by Design 99 is still in the works but so far it's inspired landscape artists from Germany to deck out the garden, U of M is buying up three of the homes across the street to be turned into green houses. Just try to keep up. I personally really enjoyed hearing Johannes Matthiessen (landscape artist from Austria) talk about the project, he's very inspirational and wise, if I call correctly, I may have asked annoying questions that kindof put off Mitch at the time. There's a cool photo somewhere of Wiley Macdowell working w/ Mitch Cope too...

9. Speaking of organizations that start to have bigger an bigger opportunities hopping on like a snowball effect, Faina Lerman and Graem Whyte's Calimera Park idea may be expanding into a line item that is going to be voted on to give the project a boost in the hundreds of thousands. Including orchards and something else... and their crazy-cool-ripple-land-art thing. See item number 86.

10. There's a photo mosaic of Cesar Chavez going up somewhere in Southwest... anyone have any more specific info?

UPDATE: Its going up on LA SED on Vernor this spring. Lisa Luevanos is the artist. SWAN is hosting a meeting in southwest detroit. COMPAS Center for the Performing Arts, 8701 Vernor at Lawndale Saturday, January 23, 2010, 11:30am

11. Another bench but in Clark Park as well as a bandstand are going to be mosacially tiled. Anyone know who's doing it... Something mentioned the Luevanoses (it was going by pretty quick, I couldn't jot down all the projects and the people who did them... eep)

UPDATE: it’s already installed on Vernor across from cafe con leche. She held workshops at Patton Park all summer that were free and open to the public. People came and made tiles for the bench. Patton Park art studio was closed and it was the first time the kilns were used.!! Right now they have alot more tiles and are thinking of ways they can be used in the community. Maybe tiling around the bench....

12. What! It's soooo bright, Katie Craig's mural on the north end got some press from Washington Post, but also I heard that she's managing a studio on the first floor after she got permission to do the large work from the same people that own the Russell Industrial Center.

UPDATE: Katie is still working out the mural. There is a whole horizontal component that will made of layer plexi-glass. She has some small scale demos of the project in the studio. Go check it out. Katie worked with young people all summer at Vanguard and the arts place. She is also turned the space itself into a community space. She is planning a fundraiser to help pay for heat in the building for a few months. Info below:

On Saturday January 30, 2009 North End Studios, located in the cavernous shell of what was once the largest insurance agency in Detroit, will host a fundraiser for the space. It is a project run collectively by a small group of artists and musicians to provide studio space and community arts center to the impoverished area.

The fundraiser will be a dance party with the dubious and topical theme of "air traffic disasterz." The event will be kicked off with a live performance by the eccentric nerd-rockers Kirtybird [myspace.com/kurtybirdboogeymen]. The beats will be provided by Tour Detroit DJs Steven Robert, Erno the Infrerno, and Joe Vargas and accompanied with videography by projectionist Anthony Cholag [anthonysdrivein.com].
Admission for the event is $5 at the door and donations to support North End Studios will be accepted throughout the evening. North End Studios is located at 2937 East Grand Boulevard, Detroit. Doors are at 9 PM.

13. Juan-Carlos Hern (who was talked about as skipping school to work under Diego Rivera to help make the mural in the DIA) with Nivek Monet to do the side of Prince Valley's Market on Mich. Avenue.

14. Larry Halbert did a 13' piece out of the same marble that adorns the DIA, here's a video of the unveiling.  But there's also an official dedication ceremony to take place on June 5th.

Wait, that's 14... 6 artists each year... uh... I mis-counted somewhere. Actually, the thing that kept popping into my head was that after everything was said, "e-mail Sioux Trujillo at strujillo@collegeforcreativestudies.edu" followed it. I don't envy being her e-mail inbox right now, because I'm totally going to e-mail her again to get involved.

UPDATE: Actually there is even more project that were not mentioned like when you were at he meeting did you notice the bricolage when you came through the door. That is also a C+PAD project. Also we worked with community and a designer to create light pole banners for each neighborhood. They are up in all the N’hoods now.

Here are some facts about the C+PAD

Outcomes
2 Neighborhood Organizations have contributed financially

to the projects totaling 20,000.00 so far

19 public artworks will be created.

31 artists are creating the neighborhood public artworks

63 Youth Mentors are being engaged and given a stipend

153 youth in all were involved in the projects

190 meetings took place across the six neighborhoods

specifically in implementing the projects

16 public programs were held

(lectures, banner unveilings, events related to the projects)

9 articles and radio and tv spots occurred

Banner projects: 100 designs were created. 690 banners

were installed; 6 CCS students and one professional

graphic artist were involved

Artists received 148,833.00 in payment to create public

artworks

artists spent 122,727.00 in supplies, equipment, and

expertise in local businesses.

218 neighborhood people and 32 different organizations

participated in the projects (site and artist selection, creation,

organizing dedications) 46 partner organizations

participated in the projects

Aaron Timlin was mentioned as someone brought up the legitimacy of Graffiti as art for the CAID's work with the Dequindre Cut, as well as some other organizations doing good things like Kresge Arts in Detroit.

UPDATE: When the riverfront first started to talk about how graffitti and the Cut were interrelated they came to C+PAD

And as always, members of the audience were so filled with optimistic spirit that many had kind words to say to the Skillman Foundation, CCS, Kresge and everyone else involved. After spending the day watching over the Neighborhood Project and listening to volunteer's memories of Detroit at the DIA it has been a very good day. BTW I have brought in some of my own books for the public to peruse through, if you think you might have a good book to lend that has to deal with art/education/the public sphere or anything of the like, let me know and you can add to this amazing temporary library.

I love that tonight I'm thinking of things that are bigger than myself, like trying to put artist webpages up for local artists' favorite artists or having every art space in Detroit to have a comprehensive listing so that you can see what the space looks like, the kind of work that it shows and how you can contact them about having your work there... I met an energetic guy named Rodney who may be helping me with that very big project so I'm so grateful to think that in thinking positive thoughts about getting a collaborator, one showed up, someone who just wanted to volunteer to help out the arts.

Oh and by the way, if you're not listed here, e-mail me.

(Addendum: But when all is said and done, I believe that change in Detroit won't necessarily happen because we stop clinging to the auto industry and change to a creative industry with the arts funding to model after artsy places renewed like Pittsburgh/Berlin, but I think that shrinking the city proper first and then having the rest turning into farms and then investing again in the schools will really be what turns this city around. But! Not to put a damper on the power of arts, it still has a powerful role as it will be the catalyst that begins that processssss!)