Originally posted 4/14/2020
The residency of spring 2020 Interdisciplinary Artists-in-Residence Ben Barson and Gizelxanath Rodriguez was cut short after the coronavirus outbreak caused the university to cancel all in-person classes. However, they quickly adjusted their plans for teaching the “ARTIVISM” course online and have since been meeting digitally with their students to work towards their final project.
In lieu of the original staged jazz opera, students have taken a creative approach to accommodate social distancing and will distribute a digital work later this year. All of the students plus Barson, Rodriguez, lead faculty for the residency Peggy Choy, local dancer Lacouir Yancey, Nejma Nefertiti, Mama C, and local muralist Rodrigio Carapia, have come together, remotely, to combine music, dance, spoken word, and visual artwork into an “audio/visual module of the Migrant Liberation Movement Suite.” This digital work of video/animation will be assembled by multimedia artist Adam Cooper-Terán and an online, live premiere is scheduled for Tuesday, June 30! The exact time is to be determined.
The Division of the Arts as well as Barson and Rodriguez have been working quickly to respond with innovative solutions and adapt to this new reality we’re all living in. It hasn’t been an easy transition, but the end result will be thought provoking, inspiring, and a multimedia piece you don’t want to miss.
Click here for pictures from their residency!