May 18-June 12, 2021 | #LCACdenver #PopulArte
Denver, Colo (04/20/2021)--More people identify as organizers and activists than ever before, with good reason. The world faces structural and mutually intensifying crises—ecological, social, cultural, political, economic, and perhaps even spiritual—which urgently demand unprecedented consciousness and creative action.
In response, the Latino Cultural Arts Center (LCAC) is launching an innovative residence program, Popul/Arte that merges art and research. Our mission is to bring higher education to the public at no cost and through the creative arts.
Academia can give people the tools to lift their communities through knowledge, creativity, art, and innovation. However, it is inaccessible financially and mostly reluctant to communicate clearly with non-specialist audiences. Popul/Arte seeks to change that by bringing theory back to the people.
Inaugural Artists + Scholar
Activist-Scholar, Dr. Michael Becerril Wilson, Ph.D. & Brazilian Artist Collective, NegrÁfrica
The LCAC is proud to announce Michael Wilson-Becerril, Ph.D. as the inaugural scholar. Michael is an activist-scholar from Mexico City, Mexico, who specializes in political ecologies of violence, resistance, and peace, with an emphasis on Latin America. The mission behind his organizing and academic work is to synthesize, practice, and disseminate what is needed to dismantle injustice and build meaningful peace.
We are likewise pleased to announce Mayara Smith, Camila Parreiras, Daiely Gonçalves, Jéssica Goés, Leticia Moreno from Negráfrica, as the inaugural artists. Negráfrica is a Brazilian artist collective specializing in different mediums such as comics, photography, painting, drawing and poetry. Their art is focused on investigating identity, race, and their experiences as Black women.
Together, Michael and Negráfrica will focus on the themes of “Peace and Conflict in Latin America: Violence, Resistance, and Social Justice”—creating eight workshops this Spring on how to make change, from everyday artivism and grassroots organizing to institutional and international advocacy.
The world needs answers now more than ever: how do we transform violence and build peace? Popul/Arte will take an interdisciplinary approach while centering Latin American arts, cultures, and histories in pursuit of this question. The materials from this artist-scholar residency will be available online to the widest audience possible through free and engaging multimedia. Michael and Negráfrica will be available to provide technical assistance and resources to artists and educators interested in these topics.
Popul/Arte will culminate in the public presentation of a co-created art project that lives in the LCAC Library and is accessible to all.
Popul/Arte Workshop Schedule
Popul/Arte will offer two weekly virtual workshops over four weeks, launching May 18th, 2021, at 6 PM, that are free to all. On Tuesdays, at 6pm, lectures will explore decolonial approaches to peace, conflict and environmental justice. In conjunction with the weekly topics, on Saturdays, at 1pm, art workshops will introduce the audience to Brazlian concepts of making art with resources around you to amplify your creative expression and voice. Popul/Arte registration is now open at http://bit.ly/popul-arte Week 1
Tue., May 18, from 6 PM to 7:30 PM, Imagining Latin America
Sat., May 22, from 1 PM to 2:30 PM, Seeing Through Your Window // O que você vê da sua janela?
Week 2
Tue., May 25, from 6 PM to 7:30 PM, Violence,
Colonialism, and Militarism
Sat., May 29, from 1 PM to 2:30 PM, Fanzine //
Produção de zine
Week 3
Tue., Jun. 01, from 6 PM to 7:30 PM, Resisting Violence
and Organizing Peace
Sat., Jun. 05, from 1 PM to 2:30 PM, Improvised Art Collage // Arte da Gambiarra and Fotografia pelo telefone
Week 4
Tue., Jun. 08, from 6 PM to 7:30 PM, Environmental Crisis and Decolonial Futures
Sat., Jun. 12, from 1 PM to 2:30 PM, Eco-Painting //
Terra Como Pintura
Meet the Scholar in Residence>>
Meet the Artist in Residence>>
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About the LCAC
The mission of the Latino Cultural Arts Center (LCAC) is to elevate and advance the artistic and intellectual contributions of Latinos. Our vision holds that art can inspire justice if it is driven by imaginative excellence, cultural courage, and collective impact. We are building a cultural campus across central Denver, within the Mile High Stadium District, and are home to one of the largest collections of Chicano, Mexican-American and Mexican folk and fine art in the region. Visit LCAC-Denver.org to learn more about arte, cultura, and historia.
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