Conversation with Artist Frank Buffalo Hyde

July 20, 2014 by Ginger Dunnill in Painting, Activism, Podcast

Frank Buffalo Hyde's approach to life and his work is refreshingly honest. In our interview he explains the multiple layers of his existence, growing up in two worlds, on and off the reservation, and how this opened his mind and amplified his awareness and reaction to American society and culture. This interview is truly a revealing and sincere look at the artist Frank Buffalo Hyde. I am proud to share his story with you.

"When working on a piece, I tap into the universal mind. The collective unconsciousness of the 21st century. Drawing images from advertisement, movies, television, music and politics. Expressing observation, as well as knowledge through experience. Overlapping imagery to mimic the way the mind holds information: non linear and without separation. I don't need permission to make what I make. Never have...no artist should." -Frank Buffalo Hyde

Here is the conversation with Frank Buffalo Hyde:

Subscribe to Art Beat Conversations on iTunes HERE and download this episode

Music featured on this podcast by the following artists: 2Pac, The Clash, DJ Krush, The Legendary Shack Shakers, Quannum MC's, Freddie Cruger and Guru.

Frank Buffalo Hyde at Modern West Fine Art Gallery 2014

More about the artist:

Frank Buffalo Hyde traces his heritage to the Nez Perce and Onondaga people, Hyde is recognized for breaking through the boundaries commonly placed around what is considered Native American art. His work confronts stereotyping of culture and informs the viewer that they are participants in the conversation. He is defining himself as a Native American without being a stereotype and dealing with what he calls the "fragmented contemporary life" of a Native U.S. citizen.

More about Frank Buffalo Hyde and his work on his Website.

Follow Frank Buffalo Hyde on his Fan Page.

I-WITNESS CULTURE. FBH 2014 acrylic on canvas — I-WITNESS CULTURE. FBH 2014 acrylic on canvas

Puck-Ficasso. FBH 2014 acrylic on canvas — Puck-Ficasso. FBH 2014 acrylic on canvas

Conversation with Artist Patrick 'Cloud Face' Burnham

June 09, 2014 by Ginger Dunnill in Podcast, Dance, Painting, DJ, Musician

Patrick Burnham, better known in the art continuum by the handle Cloud Face, is a Navajo/Hopi painter, musician, dancer, dj, producer and all around true expressionist.

Much like the constant evolution of form and direction we see in a cloud making it's way across the sky, Cloud Face the artist, possesses the ability to enter an environment and enhance every aspect of his surroundings, shape shifting seamlessly through his crafts to create an inspiration that is comparable to a modern day renaissance man, now often known as the B-Boy .

"A cloud, changing shape across the sky..."

Here is the conversation with Patrick 'Cloud Face' Burnham:

Subscribe to Art Beat Conversations on iTunes HERE and download this episode

All music featured on this podcast is from Cloud Face's own debut album Secrets of the Invisible.

More about the Artist:

Cloud Face representing indigenous art crew XFRX

From live painting, to dance, from Dj'ing to teaching, from composing, to collaboration, Cloud Face represents community and the true definition of a B-Boy. Obsessing until he feels he understands each fundamental aspect of Hip Hop, he then adds each piece carefully to his tool bag, to be incorporated with elegance and jaw dropping precision visible in all of his work. Cloud Face has a new and visionary approach to surviving and thriving as an artist, proving, with his shear will and skill, the ability to maintain self sufficiency and to survive as an artist is possible. By using his hustle, learned at a young age from growing up in an artisan family, mixed with his self determination, and a hit of what I like to consider 'soul', Cloud Face stands out in a crowd, or actually he doesn't stand at all, he is too busy getting down to stand around, but if he is involved in a project you will take notice, his style requires our attention. Cloud Face is currently an active creator in the indigenous hip hop scene in New Mexico, incorporating whichever element necessary to create his artistic dialogue. Always in motion, as a cloud floating through the heavens, inspiring us all to keep creating.

Follow Cloud Face on Tumblr

Follow Cloud Face on Facebook

Purchase work from Cloud Face

Conversation with Artist Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski

April 21, 2014 by Ginger Dunnill in 2-D, Performance, Painting, Activism, Podcast

Artist Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski, mural collaboration with Artist Rebekah Tarin in Penasco, NM.

I am so proud to present a conversation with artist Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski. A passionate activist and visionary, DeJesus Moleski possesses a positive, humble and gracious presence that is whole and rare. Her work is refreshing and unique, inviting the observer to engage further, to look deeper, to feel the warmth in the the color palate, and to further explore the integration of the various mediums she chooses. DeJesus Moleski invites collaboration and conversation through her art, asking the viewer into a complex dialogue threaded through her work. Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski focuses on futuristic femme myth as it relates to marginalized communities. She primarily works in 2-D media and performance, and is based out of Oakland, CA. In this conversation we are able to further understand DeJesus Moleski's inspirations and share her process, unfolding how she developed her ability to balance beauty and activated resistance in such a precise and elegant manner.

Here is the conversation with Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski:

Subscribe to Art Beat Conversations on iTunes and download this episode.

Music featured on this podcast, listed in order of appearance: Sylvio Rodriguez, Angel Haze, Immortal Technique, EDIT ft. The Grouch, REG ft. Medusa, Fernanadindo, Alice Russell, and ending track 'Revolution' by J-Boogie's Dubtronic Science/Lyrics Born/Mamaz.

'Instructions for a Storm'. Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski

More about the Artist:

Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski was born in France but spent her life moving around the East Coast, Down South, and Midwest of the US. DeJesus-Moleski has received awards and honors in the areas of visual art including the ArtLA Student Artist of the Year, All College Honors, and is an Alumni of the AICAD New York studio residency program. Her work explores the tensions between private tenderness and public defiance, specifically within communities that are typically depicted as stressed and vulnerable. She has been working with organizations such as the Brown Boi Project, Strong Families, Third Root Health Center, and the Estria Foundation among others. DeJesus-Moleski has exhibited work in New York, LA, and the Bay Area. She is currently working on a solo show called Thick Dig, which focuses on futuristic femme myth as it relates to marginalized communities. DeJesus-Moleski aims to practice the integration of multiple art forms as a way to make myth and tell the truth. She is an experienced muralist, performance poet, playwright, youth organizer, and visual artist. She is the co-founder (along with Cynthia Ruﬃn and Jessie Workman) of the B.R.E.A.T.H (Building a Revolution of Expression through Heartwork) program in Albuquerque, NM that teaches poetry and performance to incarcerated youth as a means to heal, resolve conflict, and uplift. Amaryllis has dedicated her life’s work to stand with countless others in the movement that intersects the arts with activism, using creativity and expression as the tools necessary for community liberation, and the means by which we may all realize our most potent dreams.

Learn more about Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski on her website.

"Thick Dig (Ghost Sighting)". Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski

"Weave (for spell)". Amaryllis DeJesus Moleski

Conversation with Artist Micah Wesley (The Werewulf)

April 15, 2014 by Ginger Dunnill in Painting, Podcast

Forgive Us Our Trespass, Pt. 2. Micah Wesley

Currently, there is a shift taking place in the work of Micah Wesley. If you look at Wesley's work over the past ten years, you know he has skill with the pen. His graphic work is precise and controlled. His content gives a perspective of the outsider, the underdog, it shows the stripped down truths that we tend to overlook. The humor in the pain, the hero in the ordinary, the Native in America. Wesley also has a handle to painting that not many artists can boast, able to really work in the simplest of medium and color to create an extensive palate and depth that is mind blowing. Yet currently, Wesley is focusing on discovering his work on a more conceptual level. 'White washing' over intricate lettering and dynamic forms and figures, leaving very little to the eye and forcing the viewer to imagine the story that has been covered. And the story has been washed over, many, many times, until the painting itself becomes a simple color swatch or 'buff', a byproduct of the process Wesley has gone through with the work. Wesley may have painted the finest of detail in his experience with a piece, then he will outline that, shift the color, add the details, and then wash it out and begin another masterpiece on top of it. Much like life, this process proves the impermanence of everything we think is perfect and beautiful. Nothing stays the same, nothing is forever.

Buffalo Gal Has Found Objection. Micah Wesley

When interviewing Wesley, it's clear that he is currently in the most sacred space an artist can achieve, the continuous process of creation. Wesley speaks with Art Beat Conversations about the uncomfortable yet necessary interaction he is currently in with his art. Tackling some very relevant and heavy issues in Native America, such as stereotyping and racism, his concept is what fuels his intense and consuming method. Wesley feels it is necessary to allow himself to push through his comfort zone, opening a space for thought to form, for the work to speak for him, through him, and in turn create a dialogue to other people. Wesley is not concerned however with how others may receive his latest works. He is in the middle of discovering how he feels about and reacts to them himself. This is inspiring and something that often gets lost in our 'instant' post and share world. This 'all in' approach is the part that intrigues, and has brought me personally to another level of respect for this artist.

Here is the conversation with Micah Wesley "The Werewulf".

Subscribe to Art Beat Conversations on iTunes and download this episode.

Music featured on this episode taken from a 'Werewulf' mix-tape. Artists listed in order of appearance: Motley Crue, The Beat, The Werewulf, Funkdoobiest, Bob Marley vs. Bill Laswell, Funkadelic, DJ Krush, and ending track 'Satan is Real' by Hank III.

More about the artist:

"The Werewulf" Micah Wesley (Creek/Kiowa) is a painter who works in Oil, Acrylic, and Graphite. Wesley is currently living in Norman, Oklahoma attending OU for his MFA. Wesley is also a DJ, and plays out at weekly residencies throughout Norman.

Find out more about Micah Wesley on his WEBSITE or follow his work and ways on TUMBLR

Selected works from Micah Wesley's latest series 'My Red Neck/ My Red Skin':