Photographs and more

Photography has become an important part of my work. I started to use photography for quick compositions but never mastered the darkroom. Later, I used it to document murals and to incorporate subjects into mural designs, but always struggled with exposure. Ray Patlán taught me to use slides to transfer mural designs (scaled drawings) on to walls at night, the innovation of David Alfaro Siqiueros. Siqiueros taught the inherent documentary power of photography and film. Because my end result was painted, I didn’t focus on developing the skills to master the medium. However while working as a museum educator, I learned more about the practice – a product of SFMOMA’s strong interest in photography. Returning to art making, I recognized a love for taking pictures and through digital photography, easier access into the medium. I’m still working on exposure, post-production, composition, etc. but with a dedication to mastery that wasn’t important in the past.

In April I completed a set of photographs about the newly restored art deco Alameda Theatre for an engaging exhibition, Alameda On Camera, April 3-25, 2009, at the Frank Bette Center for the Arts on Alameda Island. The concept of the exhibition is to assign 48 artists to take photographs of the island in 48 hours by dividing the island into 48 geographic areas. We drew lots for random assignments. I drew the Wildcard and was assigned the theater, February 27-March 1, 2009! In June I finished a set of five photographs, called Collections, for Alameda County Arts Commission ’s Small Scale Artwork Commission program. I want to spark the imagination of viewers by posing dancers with artwork and objects in galleries at The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the Oakland Museum of California. It was a great ego boost to have the Arts Commission invest in my photographic vision!

In between the photo projects, Joaquin Newman and I completed two murals for the Fox Courts Apartments. This was an art education and public art project in Oakland’s Uptown neighborhood. There is a photo-centric quality in these walls too. Thanks to Deni Adaniya at Resources for Community Development the project sponsor, Mike Pyatok, principal Pyatok Architects, Inc., Jordan Rose, AIA, teachers Andrew Junge and Heidi Cregg, and executive director Donn Harris at the Oakland School for the Arts, and Chris Edenborough, Operations Manager, California Group.

This month, I produced a mural for the Museum of the African Diaspora, in conjunction with The Art of Richard Mayhew exhibition. This mural uses passages from The Street (Composition for Richard Wright), c. 1977, an original drawing by Romare Bearden. I cut up The Street and rearranged the figures the way Bearden cut up magazines for his collages. I changed the clothing, hair, and adornments of the figures to reflect the multicultural Bay Area and added plants, ants and birds to suggest the changing relationship between humans and nature. Check it out in the second floor Salon of the Museum!

Stay creative! Stay engaged!

In January I completed the mural for Association Sante Communautaire Mekin Sikoro and Centre D'Espoir, a community health clinic in Mekin Sikoro, a village community in Bamako, Mali. The theme of the mural is prevention and good health.

I used my community mural training to involve Sikoro residents in the creative process. Thanks to the community approach of Dr. Annie De Groot, the founder of project sponsor Global Alliance to Immunize Against AIDS (GAIA) Vaccine Foundation we got hooked up in Sikoro! Annie and I went to high school together. Her impressive work and love of the arts brought me into the clinic.

Clinic director Dr. Karamoko Tounkara and the village leadership identified important themes for the mural. The design was approved by the village chief, referred to as “Dugutigi” in Bamana, the most widely spoken indigenous language in Mali. My daughter Teresa Pineda co-directed the project, drawing and painting, and gaining the respect of villagers. Dugutigi blessed her at the dedication of the mural, calling attention to the significance of family involvement in the project. Sikoro artist Hamidou Maiga organized teens from Club des Amis de Mekin Sikoro to help prep the wall and recruited European volunteers to assist with the painting. Look for more murals by Hamidou! Miriam “Mamou” Thiam, an elementary school teacher and Moritz Brandenberger translated for us. Mamou helps GAIA VF guests with communication. Moritz, from Germany, works with Hamidou at a village children’s center and is creating an internet café for Sikoro.

Bay Area musician Yasine Kouyate introduced me to Mali ten years ago, when I worked for SFMOMA on education programs for an exhibition of Malian photographer Seydou Keita. Yasine grew up in Bamako. His childhood friends and university colleagues welcomed us in Bamako, providing personal perspectives on the culture. David Domoison, an internationally recognized photographer from Martinique connected us to Bamako’s artistic community. Last year his master class in conjunction with the 2007 Bamako Biennale of African Photography involved local artists. David’s introductions provided our project with technical help, cultural nuance, and a broader reception! I received expert advice about materials from Abdoulaye Konaté, an accomplished visual artist and director of the Conservatoire des Arts et Métiers Multimédia Balla Fasséké Kouyaté de Bamako. The Conservatoire offers graduate study in visual and performing arts, and digital media. Bamako photographer Amadou Keita expanded our understanding of traditions and the complexities of life in Mali. A visit to Musée Nationale du Mali grounded us in Mali’s rich history. Director Samuel Sidibi welcomed me to the museum. The two directors honored our project by attending the mural dedication and the mural project introduced them to Sikoro!

Portland filmmaker Dan Viens joined the mural project and traveled alongside Teresa and I. His Bamako, Mali film project encompasses artistic exchange, a family journey, the African AIDS epidemic and the effort to find a worldwide HIV vaccine. Dan posted daily progress reports on his blog and he continues to add content since our return. He is an incredible source of documentation and creative vision. Check out Dan’s blog!