The 6th Annual New Orleans Loving Festival is seeking original cartoons that address topics related to diversity, multiculturalism and social justice for a group art exhibition, A Loving Judgement from June 4th to July 2nd at the Arts Council of New Orleans’ Exchange Centre Gallery. The exhibition is curated by the Master of Arts in Museum Studies Program, Southern University at New Orleans.

About the New Orleans Loving Festival: The "Loving Festival" is modeled after Loving Day multicultural celebrations across the country that organize people to stand against racial prejudice through education and community outreach. The Loving Festival also honors the legacy of Richard and Mildred Loving, the interracial couple whose 1967 landmark civil rights lawsuit “Loving v. Virginia” ended all race-based legal restrictions on marriage in the United States.
The Loving Festival is an important community platform for showcasing films and other creative works that explore racial stereotypes and inspire people to work together for social justice.
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About the Exhibition: Nearly 50 years after the Loving decision, communities in the United States and around the world are still facing social and cultural challenges. Although the new technological revolution in communication and the growing interest in citizen journalism as alternatives to mainstream media have brought people closer together more than ever, they have also uncovered the depth and complexity of some social and cultural provocation. This exhibition explores the themes of diversity, multiculturalism and social justice, and how cartoons and comic strips may reflect the social landscape in the community.

Submissions: We invite cartoon artists to submit their original work related to the exhibition themes. Please use our online application to submit your work. You will be asked to submit the following:
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1. Artist contact information
2. High resolution photo(s) of cartoon submission(s)
3. High resolution photo of artist (for the exhibition catalog and website)
4. Artist statement (between 300 to 400 words)
5. Artist biography (between 300 to 400 words)
6. $35.00 Application Fee

You will need to create a Submittable User Account to submit your application. The submission deadline is March 15, 2016 at 11:30pm CST. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered. Successful submissions will be notified by March 29, 2016.  For more information contact heid@suno.edu.

TO APPLY VISIT: www.charitablefilmnetwork.submittable.com/submit 

Accepted artwork must be exhibit ready - with a white mat, black frame and hanging wire. Participating artists will be responsible for shipping costs. If resources are available artists will receive a full or partial reimbursement for shipping.
The New Orleans Loving Festival is an initiative of Charitable Film Network.

‪#‎NOLF‬ ‪#‎LovingFestival‬ ‪#‎LoveYall‬ ‪#‎cfnNOLA‬ ‪#‎CharitableFilmNetwork‬

community, insisting that there’s another, more inclusive world to occupy.  There’s a mythic heroism to artists who truly believe that art is a tool that can effect social change and that they have a responsibility to serve. Elizabeth Catlett is one of the grand warriors in the tradition whose work continues to sing, “Forge on! Do not falter! You are not alone.” 

- Elizabeth Underwood

(A note regarding Stella Jones Gallery: they’ve done a fantastic job organizing and hanging this powerful exhibition. I’m grateful for their hard work and devotion to representing artists that continue to be ignored by mainstream institutions. I cannot think of a better environment to get to know Elizabeth Catlett’s work in, or a staff better equipped to insure that her legacy lives on.)

http://stellajonesgallery.com
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Catlett
www.banderasnews.com/0512/art-elizabethcatlett.htm

So my interest in Racial Reconciliation / Healing is about the same: Repairing the damage, Removing evil doers power, De-constructing institutionalized racism, and Preparing children to survive and thrive regardless.

To attack these we really only need agreement that the disproportionate poverty and incarceration of black people is the wound and a willingness of people to use their personal power and influence to change laws and policies that contribute to the injury (Ineffective, underfunded schools and the war on drugs), and use their time energy and resources to help children avoid the pitfalls that maintain poverty and incarceration rates.

Political power is being driven by bigoted people who believe that black poverty and incarceration are because something is innately wrong with people with melanized skin. They are not necessarily evil but suffer from ignorance, traditional beliefs and media's focus on the outcomes rather than the causes. These folk are not very likely to participate in discussions with those of us who know better. Public media are the best hope for shedding light into their dark places.

Healing the Wound: The conversation that led Pastor Wardsworth and I to begin the Silverback Society was about repairing the damage. This takes boots on the ground and overcoming the internalized racist beliefs that black men are helpless to change their communities and that the children are “lost”. We are healing those concepts in the hearts and minds on hundreds of boys and soon to be hundreds of men.

I write to express that addressing the pain cause by racism may soothe the injured but does nothing to heal the injury, reduce the political power of bigots and racists, change how real estate values work, or prepare the next generation to deal with it while becoming people who will break the cycles put in motion generations earlier. Healers have to do something to change something.

LLOYD DENNIS, a.k.a. the "Love Doctor" is a motivator, trainer and the author of HIS WAY WORKS: A Primer For Modern Living. For more information visit: wwwlloyddennis.com or www.facebook.com/lloyd.dennis.

Originally published on June 11, 2015 by lloyddennis.com.

Sculptor and printmaker, ELIZABETH CATLETT (1915 – 2012) is one of the greatest American artists of our time, whose successful career spanned over 60 years. Throughout these years, New Orleans played an important role in her life and work. After teaching at Dillard University and heading its Art Department, CATLETT continued to return, to hold exhibitions, lectures, visit friends (especially Leah Chase) and create monumental works of public art, until her death at the age of 97.

This centennial exhibition consists of several bronze and marble sculptures; prints in woodcut, screenprint, lithography and linoleum cut, a technique she learned at El Taller de Gráfica Popular (People’s Graphic Workshop) and original works in pencil, ink, pastels and collage, spanning the years 1952 through 2009. It is significant to note that CATLETT was creating superior prints and a ten-foot public bronze sculpture up until shortly before her death.

Also, included in the exhibition are husband, Mexican painter, FRANCISCO MORA (1922 – 2002) and youngest son, painter, DAVID MORA CATLETT, who was CATLETT’s assistant, regularly creating works of art together. An accompanying catalogue will highlight CATLETT’s life and significant events in New Orleans, will be available in May, 2015. 

Presented by STELLA JONES GALLERY with support from the New Orleans Loving Festival, Joan Mitchell Center, New Orleans Mexican Consulate, Southern Eagle, The Cupcake Fairies, Iconographx and the Links, Inc.  Crescent City Chapter. 

Other National Centennial Exhibitions Celebrating ELIZABETH CATLETT: 
Elizabeth Catlett: A Celebration of 100 Years at the Hampton University Museum, January 30, 2015 - November 14, 2015 
The Art of Elizabeth Catlett at the Museum of Contemporary African Diaspora Art, San Francisco, January 16 - April 5 , 2015

Multidisciplinary Artist ANGELA FAMA travels the continent in a Pop-up Photography Studio questioning WHAT IS LOVE and CONNECTING COMMUNITIES

The concept of love has been the driving force behind the creation of some of our greatest works of art, our philosophies, and our most severe behaviors.  Now artist Angela Fama is traveling across North America with her project WHAT IS LOVE, opening her traveling pop-up photo studio at community events and random spots along the way to question definitions of love. With WHAT IS LOVE, Fama will be unifying communities athwart the continent using collaborative performance and comparative photography.

“WHAT IS LOVE came to me over a year ago as a natural progression from projects I have previously worked on. It started with a small group of peers and then extended to our surrounding communities. I began to see the links between the people and communities involved in the projects and am excited to take it further and see this style of connection span the continent,” says Fama. From April through July in 2015, Fama will be stopping in Canadian cities like Vancouver, Edmonton, Regina, Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Montreal, as well as US spots such as Detroit, Summertown, Athens, NEW ORLEANS and Portland in a motor home that has been refurbished as a mobile studio. Fama will be inviting interested passersby to join her individually in the studio to converse on the word "love" and photographically capture the micro expressions shared in the process.

“WHAT IS LOVE is inclusive of everything that I have learned in life so far, it takes my entire being to be present in order to capture these images. It is fulfilling. I'm always hoping to take collaborators and viewers one step further within themselves and their own understanding. I like it when they share and compare their new understanding with others, either at the viewing of the work or within their lives.  When this happens I know the WHAT IS LOVE process and artwork is cultivating individual and communal growth. WHAT IS LOVE is a worthwhile journey and I consider my work and efforts a success,” says Fama.  

The 5th Annual Loving Festival is collaborating with Fama to present her WHAT IS LOVE Pop-up Photo Studio to the New Orleans community in June.  For more information visit www.wabisabibutterfly.com, www.angelafama.com or email info@wabisabibutterfly.com. Please follow WHAT IS LOVE on Facebook at www.facebook.com/wabisabibutterfly

Photo courtesy of Angela Fama. #lovingfestival 

11am to 4pm for more information visit www.exhibitbe.com

"Mobile In Black And White" (MIBAW), the collaborative documentary film of Robert Gray and Joe'l Lewis, is a strong primer for anyone who wants a straight-up education on the cause and effects of institutionalized racism in America. The film smartly outlines the economic, educational, and legal systems that produce white privilege and in the process, proves that race as white supremacists have constructed it creates a limited and limiting place for black Americans. After watching "MIBAW", one would be hard pressed to claim that opportunities for non-white Americans are equivalent to those of whites - and a fundamental theme of "MIBAW" is that, "not talking about it hasn't taken us to a place where it doesn't matter." That's a potent argument against current claims that a post-Obama nation is a "post-race" nation. Constructive dialog is the driving hope of this film: we can't change something unless we understand what that something is. I'm greatly encouraged that the filmmakers collected such a diverse group of people to so articulately illustrate these graphic truths.

And though I understand the desire to make this material as objective as possible (as a way to pre-empt one's critics), the filmmakers' tactic of focusing the entire film on fact-based statements from a mostly academic p.o.v. left me wishing for more personal stories. A few folks were given the space to do so, and they were the most compelling parts of the film for me. Karlos Finley's moving articulation of what it feels like to be told he's, "not like other blacks" and April Dupree Taylor's account of being excluded from her co-workers' white/racist Carnival events were powerful testimonies. Additionally, the poetry woven throughout the film was beautifully potent - Bama, Audre Lorde, Robert Gray - all spoke passionately and compellingly on racism and our collective responsibility in dismantling it. If the directors had followed Tim Wise's theory that, "systemic injustice only makes an impact when we connect it to human stories", "MIBAW" would have resonated with me more deeply. Despite this aesthetic/conceptual issue, this film can serve a great purpose by opening dialogs in many arenas: within academic contexts, for parents wanting an accessible tool to educate teens, and for anyone needing an ABC's refresher course on the institutionalized racism that so many are suffering from - and fighting against - today. 

- EAU

http://mobileinblackandwhite.org/2012/10/10/mobile-in-black-white/
MOBILE IN BLACK AND WHITE, Spectral Grey Production (2014, 92 minutes)

Curator/artist Brandan Odums' amazing, site-specific Prospect 3 collaborative installation "ExhibitBe" is closing onJan 17th! As it's only open to the public on Saturdays, opportunities to check it out are diminishing quickly. This Saturday (Jan 10th/12-4pm) Hot Cars TV will be holding their first car meet of 2015 on-site, so it's worth bundling up and heading out to Algiers. This is a terrific example of public art as a tool to effect social change - it's truly, gorgeously inspired. Visit their website and facebook page for more history and details: 
http://brandanodums.com/be/
https://www.facebook.com/exhibitbe?ref=br_tf

I began my New Year's Day with "The Loving Story", the award-winning HBO documentary on Mildred and Richard Loving's fight against the anti-miscegenation laws that prevented them from living as husband and wife in their home state of Virginia. What a powerful, historical event in the ongoing fight for civil rights in America - what a deeply inspiring reminder of what is possible with true love - and what a terrific film. 

Does it need saying that the fundamental issues we as a species are currently and graphically struggling with remain to be institutionalized racism and white supremacy? Laws can change, as the Lovings bravely proved, and still these horrific social constructs oppress and kill human beings. What will it take to unravel the system that produces such injustices? The story of the Lovings, who won their Supreme Court case in 1967, and hence "The Loving Story" documentary, screened in 2012, present answers that remain culturally relevant and crucially inspiring.

First and foremost, director Nancy Buirski gets the facts right, which probably everyone reading this blog well knows: the Lovings grew up in a rural Virginia community, fell in love and got married in 1958 in Washington DC. Upon returning home, they were arrested by Virginia police who were upholding then-current laws against inter-racial married couples living together in that state. The Lovings lived in forced exile, or constant fear of imprisonment when they dared return to Virginia, for the many years that the ACLU pursued the Lovings' lawsuit against the State of Virginia, which won in the Supreme Court in 1967, thereby striking down similar laws in the 28 states that still held them at that time. This was a gigantic step forward in our country's civil rights movement and set the precedent for the present-day legal battles regarding same-sex marriage. 

The facts in this film, however, are secondary to the palpable chemistry and integrity of Mildred and Richard Loving. "The Loving Story" smartly grounds its narrative by putting this wonderfully warm and entirely relatable family at the forefront - theirs was a normal life rich with community, work, play, struggle and joy. And how great to see a director willing to let her subjects tell their own story; how reflective of the underlying message of their struggle and eventual victory.  Weaving intimate, vintage film footage around first-person monologues, Buirski enabled me to connect so directly with them by personalizing their historic journey. What's more endearing than the obvious adoration Mildred and Richard felt for each other? Their love resonated like something out of an archetypal myth. By getting out of the way and letting the Lovings' own experiences function as her framing structure,  Buirski essentially says, "These two are destined to be together; laws against love are destined to crumble." The simple fact of the Lovings demands that we as a culture dismantle racist (sexist/homophoboic/classist) constructs and the criminally repressive culture they produce. If only it were that simple. 

What luck that Mildred's random letter appealing to Attorney General Robert Kennedy led the Lovings to the young ACLU lawyers that had the intelligence and stamina to see this case to its rightful end! The archival footage of lawyers Bernard Cohen and Philip Hirschkop brainstorming, advising and finally arguing their case in the Supreme Court is thrilling - to see the inner workings of change in action is rare and a great reminder that these battles are fought on many playing fields, by many people, in big and little ways. The lawyers' clear-sighted understanding that laws prohibiting 'race mixing' were inherently designed to maintain white supremacy via segregation, and thereby unconstitutional, is refreshingly smart juxtaposed with the irrational hysteria of the racist white community who raged against them. I've a great affection for lawyers who use their skills and power to fight the system from within - these guys represent the best of that. 

I can honestly say that the Lovings inspire me to remain willing to look directly at the dark side of our culture with courage and perseverance and, yes, love. The temptation to "close up" in this violent world can be strong - it can feel like the safest route to take, given the brutality of what's happening on the streets of America today. Yet I'm happy that I remain teachable about how I can live in this world without perpetuating racism; I remain teachable about how to disengage from the system of white privilege that I myself have benefitted from; I remain teachable about how to cultivate love. Additionally, that there is such a gorgeous archive of personal and public documentation of the Lovings reminds me of how absolutely necessary it is to tell our stories of daily life and resistance against injustice and victories. The creative process is a powerful tool that I unequivocally believe can be used to effect social change. Photography, film, art, dance, music, writing, cooking, reading, listening, questioning - these are revolutionary acts that sustain my hope for the future. So here's to those who have gone so bravely before us and given us the blueprint for a life wholly, bravely lived! My New Year's wish is that we can all be as true to ourselves and the stories our lives are meant to tell as Mildred and Richard Loving. 

- Elizabeth Underwood 

(I rented "The Loving Story" from my library and it's available on Netflix - visit http://lovingfilm.com/ #lovingfestival