ArtLoft is brought to you by the# friends of South Florida PBS.

ArtLoft.

It's the pulse of what's happening# in our own backyard as well as a taste of the arts across the United States.

In this# episode, art, memory, and belonging, artist Kristen Anbeck shares her exhibit, Before# I Forget, Commissioner brings us artist Diana Ubio and her quest for belonging.

At Locust# Projects, two poets in the sculptor offer a modern take on telephone.

And we head to an Ohio# prison for an unexpected take on classical music.

In Before I Forget, multidisciplinary# artist Kristen M. Beck asked the viewer, "Who am I when I can't remember?"

Her# show at the Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach centered on Beck's experiences# as a caregiver to her father with dementia.

The process of making these pieces has# really helped me process, rationalize, internalize, externalize all of the eyes# of of what it's like for him to to have this condition and also what it's like for# me as a caregiver to experience him now.

My name is Kristen Mbeck.

I'm an artist and a# writer.

The exhibit is called Before I Forget and the jumping off point is that my father has# dementia and I started to take on his care and be his person.

And there are a lot of things that# happen when you take on that role.

I began to realize that there has to be a way for me# to communicate as an artist and for me to process what's happening with him and what's# happening with me as a caregiver.

What it's like to have dementia.

How can I represent it# visually?

How could I represent it with sound?

How could I represent it with tactile things?# But also appreciate the time I had with him.

The time I have with him now is different, but# the time I had with him then, what that and the difference between the two, the memories that it# that are are resurfaced, if you will, because I've touched these ties or these or this shirt or# the or the pockets and the handkerchiefs and all the things that that belong to someone.

They# belong to him.

and the intrinsic um energy that's exchanged in that in that process is uh is what# I'm trying to communicate I think with some of these pieces emotion and love and laughter those# human things are if if I've captured it at all and and able to share it in any way the humanity and# all these pieces and all the different ways and all the different mediums and it just makes# it makes it a human show human exhibition.

The way I went about the whole exhibit is it's# truly like a set of many installations.

As an artist, I like to experience all mediums and# and all processes.

I find so much joy in that.

Pulling, you know, a paintbrush through paint# or threaded needle through fabric.

I I find that joyful.

And I thought, how could I, knowing how to# make all these things, tell this story, help tell this story?

All of these pieces, while at first# blush, are decorative.

Like a quilt is a quilt, but if it's a quilt of your dad's shirts that you# quilted together, takes on a different meaning.

I really want to be able to share all these stories# and all these ideas with as many, you know, mediums as I have at my fingertips.

Now, you're# part of it.

you are part of that piece because you touched it, you went through the view master,# you took a button, you wrote yourself a card, whatever it is, you're part of it now.

And I think# um it's almost like that same investment as the memory.

Whether it's a big or small investment,# you're invested now in the piece.

I wanted to be able to pay attention to old school methods# of making things, combine it with new school methods of describing them, and where it met# in the middle.

Besides, I like to make stuff.

They're all really personal things that they've# shared.

And what an honor to have received them all.

I had an opportunity at three different# museums to gather memories.

Quilts are functional pieces of art.

They're they mean comfort.

They# mean so many things.

Everybody can recognize a quilt when they see it.

There's something very# um accessible about them, too.

So to me, it's what a great way to include that as a storytelling# device is the quilt.

Some of them there's there's a few that will bring me to tears if I read them# again.

Then there's this one that's visceral and and you know exactly what this person means.

It's# amazing that all of those people share that and that they talked with me a little bit about it.# And just to be able to share those things again and again is amazing.

Working with communities for# me has um enriched the pieces like tenfold because my working practice, you know, I'm in like my# individual space working on my individual thing.

When I took it even further and went out out# to a community, so I'm out of my personal space making things and invite them to help me create a# piece that just it just broadened the whole thing.

It just creates this lovely space to be in and to# um to just the sharing and the social sharing and the fact that I could say, "Look, thank you for# helping me make this piece and come see it."

They now have invested meaning in the piece.

They've# invested themselves and they invested their story and I had in turn invested my time and love for# their stories into something that will last.

There's a video with pieces that mimic or# replicate neon because I really wanted to include that sound, the sound of neon flickering# and the idea of a thought flickering away that you can't quite capture or you just now you forgot# it.

And I wanted to be able to convey that what that would be like.

And I wanted to bring the# humor in too with those pieces.

So one of the neon signs in the video says put on pants.# Those are just glorious little moments that I have captured along the way.

Some of the thoughts# that people e either my father shared or people in memory care facilities or other people that# have u that know people that have dementia and Alzheimer's that shared these with me.

There's# one called now what because that's literally my dad and also literally what he would say you he'd# go now what you know and we were just supply the answer as to what was to happen next.

Um, but# it was just really funny the way he said it and and to me that's a moment now and and he doesn't# really do that anymore.

And so I feel like I've captured that that time.

The idea of like turn# off the lights that that's a neon sign.

I just like the idea of this tongue-in-cheek way of doing# that presenting some humorous thoughts capturing the idea of neon and the flickering thought and# the flickering moment.

And then some of them also captured those really tender truths that happened# along the way like specifically with my dad saying um I used to have purpose and that moment that# he told me that and it's in one of the memory nests and that I wanted to to to keep it keep it# safe more in depth look at the individual pieces which will allow you to get I would love for more# talks around the idea of neuro arts and and and and brain health and all of those things.

Let's# think now how we can build a better brain as we get older.

I think it is really important to have# it be a topic of conversation and to activate the space.

Sometimes gallery spaces and museums are# very quiet and that's a wonderful experience too.

But if you can also activate them with# language and sound and laughter or tears or any of those things, I think it's like lightning in# a bottle.

I wanted to to share the experience and um you know at the beginning as an artist I'm just# like I hope somebody gets it and not only did they get it but they responded in such a human level.# They shared stories and it's it's kind of a simple thing but it's those simple things that can lead# to bigger things and bigger stories and bigger ideas and I think things and textures and color# and people have human responses to those things.

Commissioner, the nonprofit bringing local# artists and those new to collecting together, shares this introduction to artist Diana,# whose work is centered on memory, migration, and belonging.

What a nailbiting now as Maggie# comes back and there's a line drive behind second base.

They said and the Marlins have# won it and they are crazy at co player park.

My practice is a combination of my family's# history of tradition and of my love for nature.

I use natural dyes to explore Afro, Dominican, and# indigenous Peruvian traditions around color and create pieces that combine color with digital# printed images in a way that symbolizes home for me and ties together these three different# cultures.

Miami DR approved.

For me, home isn't necessarily a specific place.

It's a feeling of# calm.

And I think in my work, I'm always thinking about how to represent home.

How can I make home# as a first generation American child of immigrants and the field kept coming up?

How do I round those# bases and come back to home?

How do I represent that for other people that are trying to get back# home or make their own home here in a different country?

In my work, there's a lot of love and# care for nature and the land and caring for traditions and preserving them.

These traditions# are sacred.

They've been practiced for centuries.

They're pre-Colombian.

They were developed# prior to colonization and they still somehow survived throughout these centuries.

They weren't# written down in history but they were practiced and shared across generations and families.

So# I feel that within the practice itself it has a soul.

There is something that needs to stay alive.# Currently I'm exploring how love is represented through material through this weighted blanket# or through images of family or sharing a meal.

I think that everybody has their way of connecting# with others.

Whether it's with friends or chosen family or your partner, there's always love to be# found in the world to share and I want that to be represented in my work.

I hope that feeling# of warmth, community, and love comes through.

WHRO Public Media takes us to Virginia# to meet artist Ariana Chowo Chang.

The ceramicist says she found what felt# like home the first time she touched clay.

I've been doing pottery for a few# years now.

I started I would say around the pandemic time.

For me, clay# is really healing and it was my way to dissect my emotions and really work# through a lot of difficult feelings.

Prior to this, I had your typical career# and being an artist is something that has always been a thought in my mind.

I# wasn't presented that opportunity until we became a military family and relocated to# Virginia.

Once I took my first pottery class, I instantly fell in love and knew# that this is what I was called to do.

I've always been a creative person.

So,# uh, no matter what career field I chose, it just never really settled within# my soul until I touched clay.

I get to be my authentic self and really be open# about what I'm going through on my own personal journey.

It's really helped me connect with# other people.

And so it's been really healing and wholesome in that manner in like a full# circle kind of moment.

It's a lot to soak in.

It's just been happening so quickly.

But# I am extremely thankful and grateful.

It's a good feeling, but a very foreign# um feeling, very reassuring as an artist, I suppose.

I didn't realize there was a shirt# and then it's pretty neat.

I plan to do this long term.

um it's just it's been sitting right# within me and um I feel it's it's my calling at Locust Projects the arts incubator.# Two poets and a sculpture hatch a project capturing sound and conversation in a way that# feels both old and new.

Here's Drawn Breath, exhaled frequencies, conceived by artists Michael# Webster in collaboration with writers Arsamer McCoy and Selena Nulu.

Hello.

Hello.

Hello.# Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

Selena, can you hear me?

Hello, Selena.

Can you# hear how you can hear me?

How are you doing?

I've been really interested in investigating# outdated or outmoded technology that shapes our experience of sound.

And so# I was reading a lot about sound mirrors.

They're a dish that take sound# that's really quiet and focus it into a single point.

What's happening over there?# What's happening for you over there?

So you can hear a really tiny sound from# a long way off.

Worlds are ending.

That became really fascinating as a way# to think about how that can heighten our experience of listening.

Bodies are disappearing.# I know.

I know you're spatially experiencing a recording.

As you move through the space,# you'll have areas where there's more tension, more increase in sound as a way to build this# monument to the poetry that Arsamer and Selena have each written.

A fierce blueprint.

Gather# your grit.

Remember your training.

You know, these sound mirrors were used to navigate ships.# Sound is signal.

Sound is warning.

When do we panic?

Panic.

Can we?

We talked at length about# what are the warnings that were given to us and how do we put that in a dialogue between two black# women on separate sides of the world.

The soft ash settles on cutthroat grass.

How do we hold# each other during times of panic?

This work is a reflection of those conversations that we're# having with each other on a day-to-day basis.

We need to be listening to each other for care and# support.

We need to be listening to what hurts us, what hurts each other, and making space# for active care, active restoration.

Now is the time to move it out of the# talk and into the body and into the world.

Locust Projects has played a huge role in# this project.

well beyond being the venue for the work.

Locust has had a lot of trust# in the process as it was a new work that had a lot of experiments along the way, a lot# of trials.

There were a lot of changes, a lot of adaptations with how to produce# everything.

There were a lot of unanswered questions and new things for me to figure# out as far as how to make all of these different kind of sound phenomena happen in# the space.

And so as those were happening, they really let the project evolve as it# needed to.

What's going on over there?

The future of this project is# responding to how the audience engages with the work and seeing how# it could continue to develop over time.

And finally, WVISZ public media# in Ohio introduces us to Renovar, a group bringing the restorative power# of music to those in need of community.

Pretty steady.

One of the things that Renavari# does each week is teach in two different prisons.

And we are teaching violin, viola,# and cello.

For most of these men and women, they've never touched a string instrument before.# Learning to read music is a new thing.

Learning to play in a group is a new thing for a lot of# them.

It's just a joy to be part of the musical communities that have formed as we are there for# more years and develop more of a community and a routine together.

I am someone that was always# into heavy metal, rock and roll.

You know, never in a million years would I have thought# that I'd be playing an instrument like this and actually liking that type of music and everything.# But within about three to five months into it, I got off my meds and I have stayed off my meds# and I really contribute that to this instrument.

It helps build my day with energy.

It helps# build my day with positivity.

And I'm able to share God's love through his music and that energy# that it brings me.

Under normal circumstances, you don't get opportunities like this to be able to# play a string instrument.

Renovar has really given us an opportunity that's truly once in a lifetime# and I am so grateful for all that they do.

Yeah.

subtle, right?

But it it does make a# difference.

Being part of Renavari, I think, really opened my eyes to how siloed we are.# There's all these communities and it's so easy to stay in your own bubble around people who think# and look just like you.

And I'm learning how much that is a bummer.

Like, we really need each other# and need to um be going to other communities and learning from one another.

So, first time I went# into prison, I was like, "How have I not been doing this?

How have I not gotten to meet some# of these amazing people?"

We're seeing all kinds of things I just didn't think about.

We're seeing# mental health benefits of women saying that it's changed the way that they maybe use medication# or not or find that they can manage their anger that they might have struggled with.

We're seeing# people connecting with their kids, whether it's their child was already taking some kind of music# class or learning an instrument and now they can bond over that.

Or we've even had kids of folks# in our program start an instrument because their parent was playing it in our program.

We've been# doing mostly classical, but we've also brought in some fiddle tunes just to kind of encourage a# little bit of improv and encouraging them to go ahead and think beyond that genre of I play violin# or viola or cello and it has to be classical.

Some of the ladies have made requests for um# things like pop music, heathens or movie music, Beauty and the Beast.

And so we'll make a little# transcription for them and simplify it a bit and bring that in so that they can play some of# the things that they listen to all the time.

I grew up playing the cello and I loved making# music and I knew from a pretty young age that I wanted music to be part of my life.

But I# started to feel this tension inside of myself as I continued on my musical journey because# I was spending so much time in fancy concert halls and in places that felt very removed# from most people's everyday lives.

And I felt for myself that I couldn't continue on# sort of the standard path for what chists are expected to do professionally.

Performing was# the original heart of Renavari's activities.

And as we've developed our teaching# programs and our songwriting programs, we have diversified our offerings, but# I would say performing is still a core piece of who we are as an ensemble and how# we're seeking to share our musical gifts.

communities like incarcerated communities often# get forgotten of like no one thinks to go there and bring the concert or bring um this new# experience and they don't have the option to go outside and go looking for it.

And so# they are always so excited to hear music that maybe they have heard before in some cases# and some of them they haven't heard before.

helps kind of humanize them a little bit that# they're like, "Oh, we're we're valuable enough as human beings that you think that we deserve# this experience just like anybody else out on the street would."

A lot of these women come in# broken.

They come in with with a lot of trauma in their lives.

And to have something like Renear# come in to provide them uh culturally something different that they've been accustomed to allows# them to really grow in in a different way.

I've noticed that the women have really grown as# individuals.

They're more confident.

They're able to do something that they thought they# would never be able to do.

And I think it's been a pretty amazing journey for a lot of the# women here that have participated in the program.

The name Renavar comes from words in Spanish and# Latin and other romance languages that means to renew or to restore.

And that's something# that we hope that we are part of as we use our music in different spaces, whether it's# our own restoration or those of people who we're getting the privilege of performing# for or writing songs with or teaching.

There it is.

Nice.

Nice.

ArtLoft is on Instagram# at artloftsfl.

Tag us on your arts adventures.

Find full episodes, segments, and more at# artlofts.org and on YouTube at South Florida PBS.

ArtLoft is brought to you by the# friends of South Florida PBS.