Create:Fixate Presents
“AMP (Art.Music.Politics)”
A political art show with intention.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
LOS ANGELES, CA – Arts organization Create:Fixate presents “A.M.P. (Art.Music.Politics) A Political Art Show with Intention,”its first exhibition of self-evident political art with co-curation by Michelle Berc and Janice Markham. On Saturday, September 20, 2008, the eve of International Peace Day, the new downtown LA location known as Premiere Events Center will play host to AMP with two warehouses filled with politically charged and social-conscious artwork along with a live musical soundtrack provided by top local DJs and musicians. The address is 613 Imperial St, Los Angeles, CA 90013. Visit our next event page for more detailed information.
“AMP (Art.Music.Politics.) A Political Art Show with Intention.” is presented as an “artist as activist” event to promote free speech, progressive thought, and peace. On the eve of International Peace Day, Create:Fixate brings together leaders in the Political Art and Music Community, Activist Groups, and over 40 individual artists, musicians, and DJs. As our country embarks on the upcoming presidential election we are faced with the opportunity to actively utilize the powers to choose, voice, and influence the path we will take. Since the beginning of time, artists have been at the forefront of political consciousness, reflecting and altering societal perceptions and voicing a call to action. Participating activist groups and partners include: The Onion, Code Pink, Young Progressive Majority, Press for Democracy, Giveback, NextAid, and Healthcare for All.
The event will exhibit over 40 political artists including live painting by well-known graffiti artist Mear One who sees himself as a messenger as well a spiritual warrior using his imagination as a communication device. Robbie Conal’s artwork includes images of politics, power, and the abuses of both. Conal realizes that art institutions are a severely limited arena of reception for ideas about public issues, so he makes posters of his paintings and runs around the streets, spattering glue in every major city he can get to on his no-budget poster tours. Influenced by Pop Art and the inherent manipulation found in advertising, Nikki Nash enjoys shining a light on our attachments: currently the connection between commerce and terrorism as represented in her recent paintings of front page horror mashed-up with happy Pg. 7 Macy’s underwear ads. Feel anxious about terrorism? Buy some new underwear. The exhibit also includes the work of AkoEyong aka ‘the painter of the white dove’ who is a political refugee from Cameroon – one of the countries within the Congo Basin. His paintings are influenced by the ancient “griot story telling,” an oral tradition which is an integral part of the African culture.
Political art collective Yo! What Happened to Peace? is committed to highlighting the beauty of hand-crafted printmaking techniques as a method of visual protest, the show has traveled the globe continuously adding new artist’s work and has just published a book in 2007 that features over 200 prints. MARK OF THE BEAST is a traveling art exhibit that serves as a conscious happening in each city it reaches, aimed directly at the issues of consumerism and alternative globalization. Curated by Los Angeles-based artist Brandy Flower, the show exposes, in a tongue-in-cheek fashion, current issues of corporate manipulation in our society. With over 50,000 posters, the Center for the Study of Political Graphics’ (CSPG) archive is the largest collection of Post World War II graphics in the United States. The CSPG collects, preserves, and exhibits posters relating to historical and contemporary movements for social change. Through its varied programs, CSPG is reclaiming the power of art to inspire people to action.
The Audio Lab portion of the evening includes an important fixture in the Los Angeles House Music scene the BodyRockDJs who have become widely known for spinning some of the best that house music has to offer. Jeremy Sole’s Musaics juxtaposes elements of Afrobeat, Cumbia, Highlife, Jazz, Dub and experimental beats. As a true music lover Sole’s has always found a way to blend them all together and can be found every Wednesday night on KCRW 89.9 FM and at his weekly night club Afro-Funké where he is a co-founder and resident DJ. Drawing on the passion and soul instilled in him growing up in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Los Angeles breaks DJ Patricio will make you get off your ass and dance. He has blessed the turntables across the states, internationally, and is a regular at large summer festivals.
Create:Fixate is dedicated to showcasing the work of emerging and mid-career artists in a unique environment. Usually, every three months, Create:Fixate founder Michelle Berc curates, produces and hosts these stunning group art shows that present creative people from around the globe with an emphasis on the local talent of Los Angeles. Janice Markham joins Berc as guest co-curator for the A.M.P. exhibit. Markham is the Artistic Director of VOX BOX Arts Collective as well as co-writer and host on a progressive TV interview show entitled “Press for Democracy” which airs on the satellite channel FreeSpeechTV. The production team also includes music coordinator Andrea Giardina and technical producer Andre Freimann. Awe-inspiring painters, photographers, sculptors, and multi-media artists exhibit alongside an equally impressive array of Los Angeles’ finest DJs and musicians. Each event’s aural artists are poised to create a soundtrack for the night that transforms this from a simple ‘art show’ into the city’s most anticipated Art Event.