Diaspora People’s Month 2020
Week 3: Diaspora DC, Migration & Displacement
On July 15, 2020, SAMASAMA x SCL will hold a discussion featuring filmmaker Mignotae Kebede and photographer Mansa Johnson of What Happened 2 Chocolate City, visual artist and founder of Filipinix Artists of Houston Matt Manalo, interdisciplinary artist working in figurative painting, textile design and fashion, Jamilla Okubo, and Peruvian-American artist, filmmaker and native of Washington, D.C, Antonio Hernandez.
Read about the artists and their reflections on diaspora below, and browse works for sale as part of the Diaspora People’s Month series.
Mignotae Kebede
A native Californian and graduate of The George Washington University (GWU), Mignotae Kebede is dedicated to exploring the intersections between creative expression and social change. After graduating with a Bachelors of Arts in International Affairs and Anthropology with a concentration in International Development, Mignotae served as the Development Manager at Life Pieces To Masterpieces (LPTM) in Northeast, Washington, DC. It was through her work at LPTM, an organization serving Black boys and young men east of the Anacostia River, that she developed the concept for the forthcoming feature film What Happened 2 Chocolate City.
She conducted ethnographic research on the evolution of the district and its relations with native Black Washingtonians through an intergenerational lens. It is at the very intersection of creative expression and social change that Mignotae brought to life her findings and explorative journey using film and varying mediums of visual and fine arts.
Mignotae has since written, produced and directed the feature length documentary What Happened 2 Chocolate City, landing regional and national coverage, including PBS’ docu-series “No Passport Required”. Mignotae continues to write, produce and direct both short and long form film and video projects.
Matt Manalo creates work which involves elements of painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and printmaking. He uses raw materials, found objects sometimes collected and often times donated... By doing this, he is making his practice environmentally conscious as well as understanding the idea of scarcity and abundance. He uses the grid as a foundation for most of his work to tackle geography, cartography, borders, and the idea of displacement while having a constant conversation of how “home” should be defined. Being a first generation immigrant, Manalo discusses his experiences navigating around the physical and social structures of society through his work. As he explores this, home becomes a two-part environment where the artist is split between the Philippines and Texas. The latter sits on the southern border of the US. It is also important to mention that colonization of the Philippines by Spain, Japan and the United States resulted in erasure, colorism and colonial mentality; a frequent topic in Manalo’s work. Manalo is the founder of Filipinix Artists of Houston, a collective of visual, performing, literary, culinary, and multidisciplinary artists. He also runs an alternative art space: Alief Art House.
Diaspora People’s Month being celebrated on July brings the idea of freedom back to where it rightly belongs: to the people. It will be a time to celebrate the community’s efforts to uphold justice and have authorities accountable for their actions.
Jamilla Okubo is an interdisciplinary artist exploring the intricacies of belonging to an American, Kenyan, and Trinidadian identity. Combining figurative painting, pattern/textile design, fashion, and storytelling, she celebrates the Black body in relation to movement, expression, ideology, and culture. Inspired by kanga cloth, which communicate messages derived from Swahili proverbs, quotes from the Qur’an, African folklore and popular culture, Okubo creates her own patterns in reference to the history, mythology, and vernacular of the African diaspora. She prints these original patterns on paper as collage material for her paintings or on fabric for fashion and performance-based work. The gestural strength of her imagery and symbolism is a platform for restoring agency and reclaiming the oppositional gaze. Style, embraced for sociopolitical impact, woven with ancestral and contemporary wisdom invites the viewer to reflect on old and new mythologies, alternative realities, and self-love.
“Electric Llama” is the visual and audio storytelling platform created by Antonio Hernandez, a native Washingtonian and longtime resident of Prince George’s County, Maryland. Through interviews, event recaps, and the award-winning series “Garnish,” Antonio continues to tell unique, and sometimes untold, stories from artists, entrepreneurs and community leaders around the world.
I believe that Diaspora People's Month is an opportunity to actively celebrate the diversity within our own cultures, and not in a way that centers whiteness as the standard. In my own experience, the house music and club culture of the area was my first exposure to sanctuary that wasn't the church. My mother, as well as her friends and peers, created spaces to express themselves and support through music, and those bonds have remained even off the dancefloor. Through my living documentary project "INDELIBLE," I highlight artists across different genres who are doing the same thing, and using their platform to empower their communities, especially women and LGBTQ+ artists who have been historically marginalized.
Please consider donating directly to Antonio to support Indelible and his cultural projects.