CAGED/UnCAGED:
LIVE BLACK WOMEN!!!
Nothing went as planned. Nothing at all. We had all been preparing for TheForceFieldProject since early January. 45 artists, from 7 different states, I represented Baltimore. And then June 3rd happened….
The day of OOH’s homegoing my paperwork and final installation descriptions were due. So I walked up North Ave and talked to God. A bull escaped slaughter and ran passed me. I heard a whisper within the trees, “CAGED: LIVE Black WOMEN”. I submitted my final copy with minutes to spare.
I assembled my team. Actually, The #BaltimoreGirls assembled themselves. Delirious, drunken, and mournful, we traveled to Philly for the roof install of our dreams. I was designing a space specific secret garden within a caged structure on the roof of Philadelphia’s historic Jomar Building. I asked Safi and Dream to collect foliage from the community. They returned with palm trees and together we built a rooftop decaying garden.
By the 5th day of install, the day before the event, I received an email from the organizers stating the show has been cancelled and the building had been shut down and chain locked until further notice. How does your heart break when it’s already in 7 million pieces? So we cried. Yelled. Hugged. Cursed out management. Broke things. Sang. Chain smoked weed and cigarettes. Drank lots of vodka. And cried some more.
I decided to transform the girls. They had been looking forward to it and I wanted to replace their emptiness with a different sensation. We were all drained. Running on fumes, liquor, art and sadness. ½ of the team was already in Philly...I had a choice to make, and women to lead. Either cash out, or rock out. I chose the latter.
I painted Safi’s face while she slept. She never woke. Zayaan experienced peculiar physical/nervous reactions during her transformation….and was visited by several of her ancestors. By the time Dway was ready, we all added to hers.
The next day we drove up. 4 cars and 12 Black Girls deep. Instead of blue lips collectively, we rocked black. Since CAGED was at the top of building we decided to visit the other artists on each floor. Within 24 hrs the Jomar building had morphed from a fantasy multi-layered cavern of creations to an asbestos ridden crypt of destroyed and dismantled installations.
Creatives. We build. We destroy. We build, again.
We arrived to the rooftop and found that other artists had used my spray paint to tag the open walls. We joined the vandals. This was our space...so we sprayed our names. The police department and fire marshals surrounded the building while we were packing up my massive gold and decaying installation. So we ran. boxes, bins, and art in hands. Management was missing in action.
After getting separated in the chase, we all finally made it to the hotel and developed a new plan. We’re crashing the after party. The IceBox allowed the pre-booked musical acts to perform in their space that night. Other artists were invited to dismantle their installs and re-install them in the IceBox. No one accepted this invitation….except us. Enter CAGED/UnCaged.
By stepping out of the cage and into the club, LIVE BLACK WOMEN gave a new definition to a Human Zoo. Laced with elements of gold, overgrown weeds, Black Shesus and The Disciples, we interacted and interviewed spectators as they bowed at our feet. The conversations were particularly interesting. Luckily, I captured a few of them....The video is below. Check it out. Love, B
Thank you OOH. I love you.
Wanna see more? Check out the photo gallery