About: These days when I stop before a mirror, it’s not to assess the length or increasing number of grey follicles of my “COVID” hair, but it is to consider whether or not it is the right time to sit down and draw a selfie, or self-portrait.
I have been drawing selfies since June 2019, inspired by the intriguing drawings I saw of an online art group. Each week members of this group post drawings of themselves by following two basic rules — each drawing has to be from a reflective image like a mirror — no drawing from photos are allowed — and the images have to be posted on a Sunday.
I have enjoyed these weekly drawing sessions with myself. It has brought a focus to my life when at times I have been distracted and rudderless. Despite the endless battles with my inner critic I tell myself that what matters is that I show up in front of this mirror.
Some weeks showing up at the mirror was hard, like the week I was laid off from my job. I was so disheartened that I did not feel like drawing. But when I picked up a handheld mirror and pencil, I drew the sadness that I saw on my face. Months later I found relief in that same face that I drew after picking up some freelance work.
Thanks to these regular sessions with my reliable model, I have noticed a big improvement in my drawing skills. Now I use an assortment of art tools, from graphite pencils to watercolors to an iPad to capture the light, curves and emotions that I see reflected in my face. Still, I have so much more to learn, which I plan to address one selfie at a time.
Artist bio: In addition to her ongoing series of self-portraits, Carrie McClish, a freelance writer, has illustrated a book of poetry, drawn newspaper illustrations, participated in group exhibitions with local urban sketchers and has created chalk art on the streets of Oakland and San Francisco to draw awareness to endangered bird species in the Bay Area.
About: James Knox has been photographing the Bay Area jazz scene since 2002. His photographs have been featured in SF Chronicle, Wall Street Journal, Sotheby’s Realty, Visiting Oakland Tourist Guide and album covers/websites for local and national artists. He is contributing photographer for Cuisine Noir Magazine, SFJAZZ, Monterey Jazz Festival and San Jose Jazz Festival where he was a official staff photographer for the 2015 Summer Fest. His photo of Kurt Elling was published in SFJAZZ: The First 30 Years: Setting the Stage.
His photography has been exhibited at the San Francisco Main Public Library, California Jazz Conservatory, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library for Jazz Appreciation Month (San Jose), San Leandro Public Library, Berkeley Public Library, Cigar Factory Lofts, The Jazz Heritage Center SF, The Sound Room, Joyce Gordon Gallery, The Art of Living Black, Richmond Art Center, American Steel Studios and Warehouse 416.
James received awards for his photo submissions in the Visiting Oakland Photo Contest in 2010 and 2011.
James is a Chicago native and the first live jazz concert he attended was Ella Fitzgerald at the Chicago Jazz Festival at 18 years old. He credits his love for jazz and photography to his parents, Ritson and Elizabeth Knox.
More info: De’Ana Brownfield is an artist and educator that currently resides in Oakland, California. She utilizes natural material, dyes, and painting to inquire about healing and reconnecting with Afro-Indigenous traditional ways of being. Through the use of personal, collective narratives and mythology, she unearths stories that have been washed out in the framework of America—visualizing a Black future that honors ancestral ways of being, prioritizing revolution that is deeply rooted in healing collectively, and with the earth. She holds a B.A. degree from Mills College and is a Root Division fellow for the Black Artist Fellowship.
The series is called: “A Panther in Africa: From St. Louis, Missouri to Ghana, West Africa” (1-3).
We are on the elder’s property where he is holding court with the younger warriors. All Diaspora men — there are four men, one Ghanaian, one from the Caribbean and the third black American. All arrived in Ghana 20-25 years ago looking for the bush and found it here.
The younger man with Brother Muhammad stopped in Ethiopia first for a few years.
These Diaspora men were looking to get away from the complications of structural racism, noisy capitalism and modernity. They stepped off the grid, yet when I arrived in the conversation, they spoke of how the precious bush was being chopped down, land gone, cultural treasures leased and discarded, sold to the highest bidder.
So these men sell or rent out their houses when the road gets too close. . . hoping for a spot where they will be left alone. Off the grid, they use solar power, rainwater irrigation. They make small small carbon footprints. They live sustainable and over their time in Ghana have tried to share this way of life with the Ghanaian people; however, the west is a more attractive option to most of the youth who weld chainsaws like the cowboys of the wild wild west slang pistols. The boys chop down trees — clearing the land of their ancestors for European, Indian, Asian, American, outsiders to develop.
It had been storming, we walked carefully around muddy places on the hillside where the three houses stood. A garden flourished, covered the landscape with edible and decorative plants–many medicine for ailments.
The outdoor porch where Brother Muhammad sat was like a classroom, all of us eager to listen to his stories about the movement and his first time in Ghana and his return for good 30 years ago. When I went into his home, I was surprised to see the lovely marble floors and walls– spacious and open, with beautiful art in each room.
The other house further down was round, its walls tiled with beautiful seashells and tiled glass.
About: My degree is in engineering. Figuring things out and problem-solving is not what I do, it’s who I am. I constantly ask myself how and why something works. This same inquisition is part of the reason I love photography. As a self-taught photographer, I have found that photography among other things is a simply a balance of light, time, and subject.
My goal as a photographer is to continuously mix these three elements together to create an image that is truly sui-generis; An image of expression, focus, and substance. My passion is still capturing the moments that matter the most; however, I have grown in my photography.
I am in love with the smile and the expression that lovers make when they say I do. I embrace the notion that all women are beautiful and strive to make that a constant visual reality in my work. The diverse way I view the world is influenced by my experiences in living in many places (Compton CA, Carson CA, Cotton Plant AR, Los Angeles CA, Houston TX, Dallas TX, Atlanta GA, Long Beach CA and Oakland, CA).
‘It is in the living and the experiencing that you will find the light…my job is to capture those special moments in between.’ Gregory Worsham
About: Kumi Rauf grew up in a loving Pan-African household filled with music, art, activism, travel and photography. His inspiration for photography stemmed from his father, uncle & brother who are all established photographers. His inspiration for art & travel come from his mother.
After leaving corporate America, Kumi took his first international trip. They say once your mind is stretched by a new idea, it never regains its original dimensions. Kumi traveled extensively throughout Africa and other parts of the world soaking up culture and using his camera as a conduit for telling forgotten stories and forbidden tales of Blackness.
Recently Kumi has begun to document more stories in his own backyard. Oakland has so many beautiful and resilient stories to tell, these must never be forgotten.
In addition to being a photographer Kumi is also a drone pilot. Capturing images and video from an aerial perspective allows more encompassing ideas to take flight in his art (pun intended). Kumi blends his passion for Black cultures, storytelling and traveling in his artwork. He also leads tours to many different places around the world. Because of his love for travel & art he is known as the Escape Artist.
More info: The double exposure piece shown here showcases Huey P. Newton (co-founder of the Black Panther Party) and a nighttime scene in Oakland. Embedded in the image are different themes encompassing various aspects of Blackness.
About: Welcome! I’m an Oakland, California based photographer, artist and writer. I love capturing a diverse range of subjects, some that tell a story, create a somber mood, simple beauty or form. I’ve been involved with Art of the African Diaspora group since its inception in the late 90s. My focus is on fine arts and photojournalistic work, capturing people, places, things, abstracts and portraiture.
More info: I’m proud to be an Artistic Achievement Award winner of Art of the African Diaspora in 2000, for “Parade”, (above), my portrayal of youth at a Black Cowboy parade. I sell handmade greeting cards at my online store https://www.patpatcreates.com/collections The cards depict my larger pieces, sold at exhibits, fairs, online and my studio. I love connecting with art supporters, customers, other artists, to encourage and swap stories.
I love hearing from you! Follow me on Instagram: patpatcreates, Facebook: @patpattersoncreative. My art is available for purchase at www.patpatcreates.com or by viewing my virtual gallery. Thank You for your support and for visiting my page!
About: I design, fabricate and custom-make wearable art and small sculpture in my studio in Oakland, CA. My primary mediums are sterling and fine silver; I also work with 14K and 18K white and yellow gold., primarily sterling silver (and sometimes 14k gold elements to my designs) and often add high quality gemstones. My methods include, but are not limited to fold forming, forging, soldering, stone setting and more.
I am a self-taught artist though I recently had a short study with a master goldsmith in Dakar, Senegal; I am also an arts educator and have created a program to teach this artistry/vocation to young women and girls of African descent who might not otherwise have access or opportunity. I was inspired my time in West Africa and the isolation of being the only woman metalsmith around, and by the incredulous faces of girls and women who would look, awestruck, at me as I worked. The program, We Wield the Hammer, debuted in 2019 in Oakland and is headed to Dakar, where the saying goes “women don’t wield the hammer”.
I work with hammers and fire and files and saws; living and working as an artist is the best job I’ve ever had. My work, like my life, can be minimalist or maximalist; elements of my Buddhist practice can be seen in my ZenSpin ring; as well, my cultural heritage as African-American in informs mud cloth inspired pieces and masks that I create. My work is informed and infused by my woman-self, my black-self, my Buddhist self, my aging self. I express gratitude and joy through my work; and most importantly, I imbue the work with the spirits of women who were never able to “wield the hammer”. I make circles and curves and textures that represent the power and light and the feminine.
Zoe Boston was born in Southern California, raised in upstate New York, and has now lived in the Oakland Bay Area for 6 years. She is an artist in almost every sense of the word, as she paints, sings, and writes. she uses her gifts to show God to this world and give glances into a world unseen. Her inspirations come from God, life, love, music, and everything in between. She has been drawing all her life, however, didn’t start painting until She came back to the west coast.
In 2019, Zoë Boston received the Jan Hart Schuyers Artistic Achievement Award through The Art of Living Black, establishing her as one of The Art of African Diaspora’s 2020 Spotlight Artist and featured speakers. She has exhibited at the Richmond Art Gallery in conjunction with The Art of Living Black, Jingletown Art Studios, American Steel Studios, Abrams Claghorn Gallery, The Grove salon, and Joyce Gordon Gallery.
The motif of the pieces she is exhibiting is the process of a journey. Everyone’s journey has similar phases; The ups, the downs, the importance to keep going, and to trust God. At the same time, everyone’s journey is wildly different, and that is part of what makes us who we are. Through the viewing windows into her world, That she calls art pieces, you can see how her journey has shaped and prepared her.
She calls it art to simplify the means of expression. These pieces were birthed from the revelations of her life experiences so far. She grows with each new piece. You are not just witnessing art but, portions of her life’s journey.
About: Diamela Cutiño is a photographer from Havana, Cuba. She is most known for her work documenting Black culture in Cuba including the Lukumi religion, hip hop, jazz, and street culture. She currently lives in the Bay Area.
