Salon Souvenirs

"Salon" as defined by Merriam Websters Online:

“a fashionable assemblage of notables (as literary figures, artists, or statesmen) held by custom at the home of a prominent person.” ) Okay so I ain’t a prominent person, but there were a lot of fab artists in attendance.

Now, here is some history about our place of residence, Astor Row.

"Comprising the southern part of West 130th Street between Fifth and Lenox, Astor Row, built by architect Charles Buek between 1880 and 1883, features an extreme rarity in Manhattan: houses with porches! Built on land owned by William Astor (great grandson of fur entrepreneur John Jacob Astor and scion of his real estate empire), Astor Row is made up of 28 brick houses, some attached, some not. Though not all the Astor Row houses are in the terrific shape this one is in, since 1992 great strides have been made toward rehabilitating them. In that year, the NYC Landmarks Conservancy in association with the Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Abyssinian Development Corporation began the ongoing project to reverse the deterioration and restore Astor Row."

Now back to our regularly scheduled blog about the Salon.
Jeez, what a great time.

Saturday night we (the folks at the space) held a Salon. With a head nod toward the Harlem Renaissance folks, and a call among the fellow artists to gather in a space to share work, the Salon was created. The Salon is simply a collective of writers, poets, singers, painters, web designers, photographers, and dancers, etc., and supporters of the arts, who gather to share their work, their struggles and who offer their support for other artists. Often we labor in silence without support of any kind. What we hoped to offer in the space was an of exchange ideas, the opportunity to listen to good poets and musicians and talk up all the good work that we do as artists, writers and performers. Folks brought books, poems, artwork, and their wonderful selves. It was great night that exceeded our expectations.

Of the writers in attendance were Colin Robinson, Mingus, Larry Lyons II, G. Winston James, Philippe, Keith Boykin, Bernie Tarver, Dennis Green, only the first three read their work, which was received well by the folks in attendance. Al Cunningham, a longtime activist in various capacities in the black LGBT/SGL/Q/Q/inthelife community, shared his desire to connect with other like-minded people who are contributing to the development of a healthy community. There were many others in attendance including filmmaker Michelle Ledden, photographer and web designer Donald Andrew Agarrat, and dancer Lawrence Harding, artist and Dj Shuji Nakamura, musicians Ian and Jill, and several art supporters. About 30 people stopped through from 6-12 a.m.

Mounds of food (mostly chicken, baked, fried and in a casserole of sorts) and wine, soda and juice, alongside cookies and cakes lined the table while folks listened and responded to artists and writers who presented their work.

Now for some personal commentary about the event and the folks who came:

Salons are less work than I thought. Call up a bunch of arty friends, tell ‘em to bring food and BAM!, you got a Salon.

Niki took photographs of everyone in attendance. Will post once they are available.

Although Colin is probably best known for his work in the black LGBT/SGL/Q/Q/inthelife community as an activist, he’s a hellava writer. Think Again was his brainchild. I am hoping he writes a book very, very soon. He read two poems, two of my favorites, “The Mechanic” and “My Mother Laughs in Her Sleep.”

Mingus read from his novel (in draft stage). He’s also a poet, and I have a manuscript of his work. He read slowly, carefully with a deliberate hush that kept me rapt. After he finished a particularly provocative passage (where a man knowingly infects another man with HIV) we all needed a break!

Moses, a 29-year old illustrator living in Harlem, showed some richly textured prints of a children’s book that he’s currently writing. Set in and inspired by Angola, the tale is a coming of age story where a boy finds out who and what he is. Interesting commentary from folks. Jill suggested it could be a video game, while others suggested that if he did use Angola as a backdrop for the story, perhaps he should integrate their folklore, as folks might expect it—or create a fictional African country to avoid potential confusion altogether.

Larry read “Busy Sinews.” Although I recently read a dozen of his poems just last week, I wasn’t ready for his performance. He quietly introduced the poem and then launched into a frenetic performance that left me speechless. An interesting pastiche of experiences of young boy grappling with growing up and having to manage multiple roles of being the best in school, the man of the house (even though he was only boy) when his parent’s divorce, being big brother to his older sister, being a sissy, letting down the race… It was a heartening performance. Folks responded in a variety of ways to his work and a lively discussion ensued. I think he was affirmed.

Although Jill and Ian didn’t perform they were quite engaging. I’ve seen their band The Grand Royals perform in different incarnations in lower Manhattan. Great music, wonderful lyrics, powerful vocals. You heard it here first cuz when they hit they will hit big. I had the opportunity to interview Jill back in 2001 (and review her latest album, TWO, with Chris Bruce) and getting to know her is a pleasure. She’s my kind of thinker—frank, aware, knowledgeable and humble. She’s particularly candid about her long and varied music career. I am planning a piece on her in February so you can luxuriate in a swatch of her genius then.

And of course there’s Donald. What can’t he do? He’s got personality and talent up the yin yang. We were gonna live blog last night but the event was too busy for it. Donald, Mingus, Jill, Ian, Niki and I closed out the party discussing religion, Prince, accountability and being of and doing the work that is art. I am constantly affirmed as a cultural worker in these environments. Being around a plethora of artists in various stages of their careers is inspiring. I can take my shit that much further because of their stellar work. I so appreciate these events. I feel like the luckiest man in the world.

More to come.

Monday, February 02, 2004 @ 05:02 PM