- [Announcer] Production of "Applause" on IdeaStream Public Media is made possible by the John P. Murphy Foundation, the Kulas Foundation and by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.

(energetic jazz music) (energetic jazz music continues) - [Kabir] Coming up, a Jamaican photographer leaves Brooklyn behind for the shores of Lake Erie.

- Cleveland afforded me a space that made me feel like I was a photographer again.

- [Kabir] Plus Akron Americana act, Easton Union rips through a song about a love gone wrong.

It's time again, my friends, for another healthy dose of "Applause, and I'm telling ya, it's gonna be good.

I'm IdeaStream Public Medias Kabir Bhatia.

Jamaican born photojournalist Ruddy Roye has worked for publications like "The New York Times", "The New Yorker", "Time Magazine" and ESPN.

After living in Brooklyn for more than 20 years, Roy moved with his family to Cleveland where he's found new inspiration for his photographs.

(quiet music) - Hi, my name is Ruddy Roye and I'm a Cleveland photographer.

We're actually at 55th and Marginal, it's a pier that I frequent, and just like the locals, I come here to find something different, to look at life differently.

(quiet music continues) It started off as a very curious space to come to and it has blossomed into this space where residents of Cleveland, of all nationality, come to to find a peaceful time fishing.

I usually come here and I walk around slowly with a camera and a lens.

It takes time to create connection, it takes time to make somebody feel comfortable with you being in their relaxation space, in their space of, "I want to get into my zen right now, I don't really need a camera shoved into my face" so I have no problems coming here and walking the length of, maybe we say a hundred yards, back and forth, just trying to find one or two images.

I am looking for a type of person who tells the story of coming here and fishing.

It could be a guy who is down here with his beer, he just leaves his rods, he doesn't even care, but he's here to just let it go, or the other guy who sits quietly by himself, he has his slow jams on, and he's just lost in connecting with his walleye and his music, or it's a woman who works in a factory, comes here from 3:00 to 9:00 just to unwind, just to leave the factory life.

I've never met anybody yet (quiet music continues) who has said to me, "Don't photograph me, don't come into this space."

I came down here only because it was an attraction, only because for me, it was about trying to figure out what the culture of fishing in Cleveland was, and the more I delved into each particular fisherman's story, the more I got its a place of peace away from Kinsman and East Cleveland.

This one kid said to me that he would spend sometimes nights here, he would sleep, not necessarily sleep, but he would spend the whole night here.

I ask him what does he catch, he said, "Walleye."

I said, "Do you eat walleye?

Do you love walleye?"

He said, "I don't eat fish but I'm not in Kinsman, I'm not at the 100th or 100, 130th?

In that area, and so the more I come here, the more I hear stories of people coming here as if it is a place of refuge away from the gunshots and the horrors that they see in their neighborhoods.

It's a sanctuary.

(jazz music) I think one of the things I saw me doing with my photography was speaking about situations, people, conditions, things that I did not see in mainstream media.

It gave my work purpose and so when I moved to the United States I found myself gravitating towards voices that were muted by the bright lights of, let's say, sports or the news that did not encapsulate the small man or the poorer communities.

I found myself gravitated toward these communities because I felt like with the platform that I was building, I could help to amplify their voices.

I came to Cleveland about four years ago (hands clapping) to do a story for The Cleveland Print Room in conjunction with The Cleveland Library, and they wanted an exhibition and they wanted to rejuvenate or restart their archives of Cleveland life.

I remember coming to Cleveland every other weekend, driving around, then I realized that there were things here that I could photograph.

I came here photographing the way I love to photograph, where I see an image, I introduce myself, I invite somebody or I invite people into a series that I'm working with.

We have a conversation, I get to know you within the 15 to half an hour that I'm with you and we make a picture.

(upbeat jazz music) Of all the States that I have worked in, lived in, (hand patting) Cleveland afforded me a space that made me feel like I was a photographer again.

New York, beautiful place to photograph in, it felt oversaturated, not just with imagery, but with stuff that did not feel like New York anymore.

Cleveland just felt like the place that I could dive into photography in the way that I've always felt like I wanted to photograph.

That is part and parcel the reason why I came here.

(upbeat jazz music continues) I want to be able to jump out of my car, photograph an image, (fist thumping) or make an image that I know will have impact a hundred years from now.

(upbeat jazz music continues) I've always felt like photography was the thing that I use to grow, to be a better person, to be a better man, to be a better seer, to be a better philosopher, to be a better father and this comes through the learning process and I think photography has been the vehicle that has pulled me through these processes.

Learning not to use the word shoot when referring to my camera places a sensitivity on the victims of gun violence.

Photography is something I hold dearly and I do appreciate the way it has allowed me to be a better person.

I've only ever caught one fish in my life, ever, and it was something this small, so, but I do understand fishing in terms of photography, the patience, actually whenever I talk to these guys, I say to them that me getting an image equates to you getting one fish.

Like I'm waiting, I'm waiting for that one fish to come into my frame.

That's kinda like the joke here.

When they see me coming, they go, "Oh, he's just fishing with his cameras."

(upbeat jazz music continues) - [Kabir] For more about Ruddy Roye, visit arts.ideastream.org.

(magical chiming) (upbeat music) Now to Cincinnati, where artist Nancy Hopkins shares her whimsical take on ceramics.

Hopkins has an unusual technique of melting marbles for these colorful creations that she calls Madge dishes.

(quiet music) - One of the reasons I got into clay is I really enjoy the feel of the clay.

There's something really satisfying about carving away parts of the clay to reveal the image beneath it.

(clay slab thumping) So, I'll usually throw out a slab if I'm making a tile (clay slab thumping) and I'll add some clay to that, maybe it'll be trees or birds or whatever, and then I'll subtract from that to kinda carve.

The way I got interested in working with clay is that I got a job at a local shop, just a part-time job, where they, it was just filled with handmade things.

I had gone to school for graphic design and illustration so I had never taken a single clay class in college but I was fascinated by it.

Oops.

Something about carving clay, I think until you've done it, it's hard to describe.

You know, there's just this, this really, you get a satisfaction of pulling the image out of the clay.

You know, whatever you had in your mind, you know, it's great in two dimensions, like, "Oh, that's nice", but to be able to realize it in three dimensions is probably the best part.

To take a knife and cut away at something is, you know, I'm sure wood carvers have the same feeling, you know, with their tools, but you can use a lotta different things to carve with.

You know, I've used chopsticks and, you know, you can press everyday items into things, and that's a really fun way to get, you know, interesting textures.

(quiet music) Well, pretty much everything that I do is inspired by nature and animals.

The thing I make the most, (upbeat music) and it's sort of my bread and butter item that I create, I call 'em Madge dishes.

"They're cute little dishes with big possibilities" is my corny, corny phrase, but really, they're just dishes that people use for jewelry, soap dishes, spoon rests, candle holders, just a little catchall, and they're just little colorful, some of them are heart shaped, flower shapes, pumpkins, owls.

The way I come up with those shapes, I just, you know, again, I'm inspired by nature.

I love color, so, you know, I like to think of, you know, "What would I want on my dresser?"

You know, those colorful thing to put my rings in.

(upbeat music continues) I glaze those with two, two colors and then I just literally set a child's marble in the center of the dish and then put that in with the glaze fire and it just melts with the glaze layer.

My favorite part of the process is really opening the kiln and seeing all the color.

You know, with the marble Madges, it's to see what happened, because the marbles interact with whatever glaze is underneath them, so there's an element of surprise.

Even if I've used those same color combinations over and over, just depending on what else is in the kiln, you know, the variations of the temperature, it's always a surprise.

(traffic humming) (laughing) C'mon!

C'mon.

(traffic humming) C'mon.

Hello.

- Hi, Nance!

- Got your order here.

- Nice.

- With my new studio assistant, Colin.

- Oh, hello, Colin.

- Cute name.

- He is really tired.

(laughing) - And tiny.

(upbeat music) - One of the things that I love about what I do, in addition to creating the art, I really enjoy the relationship that I have with my customers, whether they're online or in person, and here in town I have several stores that I sell to, so I'm able to hand deliver those to my customer.

- Tinies.

- Here, I can help you guys.

- Yeah, Nancy, these are perfectly packaged.

(Nancy laughing) It's too good!

- Oh, tiny kitties!

(wrapping rustling) - [Nancy] Tiny kitties.

- Tiny kitties!

- I didn't have any bigger kitties done just yet so I thought I'd bring you the tinies.

And it's just a, (upbeat music continues) it's just great to, you know, have that connection with people.

They see who created the art and then I see the environment that it's going to be sold in.

Yes, that's sounds good.

- It's fine?

- And it's just a really, really nice relationship.

I don't know, when you're an artist, you just have to create things.

It's just, it's a drive that is hard to explain sometimes and then I frankly love the lifestyle of, you know, being my own boss.

I mean, I literally can, you know, sell to, you know, almost anyone.

(upbeat music continues) You know, I'm not creating $10,000 paintings, you know, everyone can purchase my artwork, there's a range, and that's really rewarding to be able to share my art with everybody.

(energetic jazz music) - [Kabir] On the next "Applause", meet an artist who arrived in Cleveland as a refugee of war, yet today spreads her message of hope and peace.

Enter the studio of Kubra Alhilali whose art is inspired by the beauty of her Arab heritage, plus an Instagram artist expands her color palette almost by accident, and the Cleveland Orchestra (somber classical music) spotlights a masterpiece by 20th century composer, Dmitri Shostakovich.

All that and more on the next round of "Applause".

(somber classical music continues) Let's meet a Columbus based artist who loves to collaborate.

(upbeat music) Lance Johnson recently took his graffiti-inspired style to a high school in Hilliard where he left a lasting impression on the walls and the students.

(upbeat music) (school bell ringing) (dog leash jingling) - Welcome to the art studio, everybody.

My name is Lance Johnson, I'm an artist.

I have three rules when it comes to workshops.

One, there's no mistakes in art, it's all unique, creative expression, don't worry about making a quote-unquote mistake 'cause there are none.

Two, we have to support each other as artists.

You know, we're collaborating, the theme of this week is collaboration and it's important to support each other as artists, right?

So, no clowning somebody for what they've drawn or anything like that, right?

And three, have fun, just enjoy yourself.

It's like an art studio, you know, you guys can talk, you don't have to be quiet, you can have fun, all right?

And if you have any questions, I'm here.

(students murmuring) (upbeat music continues) Hilliard Darby High School reached out to me and they saw my work, they know I use a lot of words of inspiration and I like to collaborate a lot with artists, so they reached out to me and they were like, "Hey, we have this idea that we wanna create a piece that represents your style but also incorporates all the community of Darby."

I was like, "It's perfect, we can do a wall of inspiration where everyone in the building adds a piece to this collaboration" and it becomes a legacy piece for them in the school.

(upbeat music continues) (birds singing) So, I was born and raised in the Bronx, I grew up in New York, I was surrounded by graffiti and street art, you know, so I was immersed in it, right?

Didn't realize it was art (paint can hissing) but I was immersed in that (paint can rattling) and it resonated with me, right?

But when I was 14, same age as a lot of these kids we did the project with, my mom showed me this documentary about the Harlem Renaissance, and that was a game changer for me because it, I appreciated the fact that I saw artists that looked like me, right?

I had never seen that before, you know, I saw artists collaborating, musicians, dancers, writers, all types of performers coming together, collaborating and creating and then making magic, you know?

So, that resonated with me and that was like the spark that made me say, "Oh, I wanna be an artist, you know, and I wanna collaborate."

So I love collaborations (traffic humming) and then getting to Columbus, art brought me to Columbus.

I was working with this company that hired me to come paint and I discovered the city and I fell in love with the art community.

You know, the art community is so collaborative here and so vibrant that I was like, "Oh, this is amazing" and I decided to stay.

(upbeat music) I always think of canvases as walls, right, graffiti walls, and there's always these layers of the graffiti wall, right?

There's the old graffiti covered by the new, there's the urban decay with the paint chips and everything and the posters torn and it becomes a history of that wall, and that's what I wanted to create with this project, right?

A history of this piece, right?

So we started with layers, right?

We started with everybody adding one layer of markers, right?

We used a lotta Sharpies and each person added something to it.

Whenever I see a canvas I wanna activate it with markings, right?

So, I'll use words of inspiration, I'll maybe write my name, you can draw a picture on it and it becomes the soul of your piece, right?

(upbeat music) And then we would cover it with paint and then add another layer to it, so it becomes a history, that wall becomes a history of the school almost, and the legacy of that community.

This is the second part of my process, right?

(spatula scrapping) Once this paint dries, then I go over it again with spray paint or paint markers, we have a bunch of different colors, so we're gonna keep going, all right?

And it's just a process and by the end of the week, the piece will be completed.

(students murmuring) (upbeat music continues) For me, the most important work that I do is with kids, right?

I love collaborating with young artists and I'm always looking for opportunities to share my process with them, because a lot of young artists are very, like, worried about making mistakes and everything, and for me, creativity is about freedom and I want them to just enjoy the process and have fun.

Think about how it feels when you create, right?

How it makes you feel.

I don't think about the final project, I think about the process, you know, the journey to get there.

(lively music) The most amazing thing about being an artist is you can create something that someone that you may never meet can see and be inspired by.

You know, it's a powerful gift that we all have as artists.

Art connects, right?

Art connects us across cultures, across languages, across borders.

(lively music continues) I want them to be able to walk by it and see how the community came together and how all the community is represented, right?

It's sort of abstraction because there's so many different markings but you can sit there and the piece will evolve over time, right?

'Cause you can sit there and look at different like, "Oh, look at that", and, "Oh, I didn't notice that" and every time you walk by it you'll see something new, and to me, that's the beauty of it, right?

And then also to inspire the younger generation, right?

You think about how once these kids graduate, these pieces will still be there and the next generation will come in and be inspired by that project, as well.

(lively music continues) - [Kabir] Hey, we're looking for ideas about all arts and culture great and small in Northeast Ohio, so if you've got an idea to share with the IdeaStream Arts team, send an email to arts@ideastream.org.

(country-rock music) Okay, let's rock out a little bit as we say goodbye.

Thanks for watching "Applause", I'm IdeaStream Public Media's Kabir Bhatia.

Our ending note takes us to the Akron Recording Company where local Americana band, Easton Union, recently ripped through their original tune, "Talking In Your Sleep".

(country-rock music continues) ♪ Honey, when you're gone ♪ ♪ You're gone to long ♪ ♪ When you come back home ♪ ♪ It's like you're still gone ♪ ♪ Now you been ♪ ♪ Talking in your sleep ♪ ♪ But you ain't talking 'bout me ♪ ♪ And it's plan to see ♪ ♪ That you're in love ♪ ♪ But, Honey, it ain't me ♪ ♪ Baby, I ♪ ♪ Shoulda realized ♪ ♪ Something ain't right ♪ ♪ When I looked in your eyes ♪ ♪ And now you been ♪ ♪ Talking in your sleep ♪ ♪ But you ain't talking 'bout me ♪ ♪ Anyone could see ♪ ♪ That you're in love ♪ ♪ But, Honey, it ain't me ♪ ♪ Honey, it ain't me ♪ (country-rock music continues) (lead guitar music) (country-rock music continues) (bass guitar music) (country-rock music continues) (lead guitar music) (country-rock music continues) (country-rock music continues) (country-rock music continues) (upbeat music) - [Announcer] Production of "Applause" on IdeaStream Public Media is made possible by the John P. Murphy Foundation, the Kulas Foundation and by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.