SWITCHING GEARS

PURSUITS | Spotlight
Left: Sofie & Jeff Mims,
“Untitled;” next page clockwise
from top: Sosena Solomon,
“Rain,” Amber Wiley,
“Untitled,” Ebony Iman
Dallas, “Butterfly Woman,”
Zena Allen, “Untitled,” Gay
Pasley, “Vendora”
CONTINENT
OF CREATIVITY
By Steve Gill
A BUILDING WHERE PAINTINGS ARE HUNG FOR VISITORS TO
OBSERVE AND PURCHASE is called an art gallery; so it’s indicative
that the logo of Paseo district locale The Project Box refers to
it as a community art space instead. Proprietor Lisa Jean Allswede
explains that the venue, which opened in May, isn’t a place to buy a
painting and leave; it’s for people to experience.
“I like to use it as a creative space,” she said, “to have an open
forum to teach people about the arts; use it as a vehicle to build community.
I see it as a language – art is a language – so this is about
exposing people to different ideas and themes through experiences.”
Previous exhibitions have asked visitors to sketch their own
visualizations and interpretations of freedom on the walls and
invited the community to participate in a potluck supper and recipe
sharing – the show for January combines painting, photography,
video and live musical performance in a
group exhibition inspired by the culture
and beauty found across a continent.
You’re invited to take part in “Wanderlust:
Nomadic Interpretations of Contemporary
Africa” January 2-31.
The show is an extension of a project
undertaken last year through the nonprofit
Afrikanation Artists Organization.
Curator Ebony Iman Dallas, an
OKC resident and UCO grad with family
in Somalia, explains that, “We had
a project called the International Art
Exchange that involved Somalian and
Ethiopian artists [in] a celebration of
art and culture. They participated over
the theme of family rituals and traditions,
and their art will be on display
here along with their interviews,” which
will be shown on video loops in the
Project Box space. It’s not just paintings
and photography; Dallas’ list of participants
includes Ethiopian singer Meklit
Hadero, international filmmaker Sosena Solomon, local guitarist
Jeff Mims and many more, including herself.
She continues, “There’s music, there’s poetry, we’ll have the International
Art Exchange artists as well as artists who live here in Oklahoma
that have a connection to Africa – some have lived there, some
have visited – I’ll have several pieces; it’s going to be a mixed show.”
The Project Box seems an ideal venue for a creative assembly like
this (Dallas and Allswede met when they were both participants in the
Oklahoma Arts Council’s Leadership Arts program) in part because
“Wanderlust” is meant to be about more than only aesthetics.
“It’s educational,” Dallas smiles. “The point behind the International
Art Exchange project is similar to the point behind having
the community here experience these artists: it’s about interaction;
it’s about creating a conversation. This is a chance to … hear from
people who either have some kind of experience with Africa or some
kind of connection that they want to share.
I’m most looking forward to seeing people’s reactions; being able
to talk to them and having them be able to interact with the artists.”
“It’s, I think, something new in Oklahoma City. I find it exciting.
And I love the idea of starting a conversation,” adds Allswede.
“There’s a lot of things happening in our world globally, and art is the
perfect vehicle to open the door for a conversation. I like that.”
76 SLICE // JANUARY 2015