Fresh Performance: Contemporary Performance Art in New York City and the Caribbean

March 28, 2014June 9, 2015Leave a comment

The full documentary Fresh Performance: Contemporary Performance Art in New York City and the Caribbean, the culmination of a collaborative project between Fresh Milk and New York-based, Guyanese artist damali abrams is now available for viewing online.

The Fresh Performance Project was an experimental, six-chapter documentary series which saw damali interviewing 12 performance artists, 6 from the Caribbean and 6 from NYC, and pairing them under particular themes to investigate performance art from the perspectives of those working in these different locations and contexts.

This video, which was screened at FRESH MILK XIII in October, 2013 saw footage from all of the interviews edited into one video, which flows almost as if the artists are in conversation with one another as they speak out their practices and the larger contexts they work in, revealing a number of linkages that can be drawn despite differing settings and the variety of concepts addressed.

…Fresh Performance: Contemporary Performance Art in NYC & the Caribbean, the documentary that I came to this residency to complete, came out very differently from what I expected (but I expected that as well)… I began to leave in only the portions of the interviews that clearly explained the importance of performance to these particular artists. I wound up cutting about two-thirds of the piece. It went from about 90 minutes to roughly 30 minutes. Then I had to rearrange the clips so that the words of all of the artists I interviewed flowed together. It wasn’t until I got back to New York that I realized that the project had taken shape based on the conversations and experiences I had during the residency (which I think must be the entire point of a residency anyway)…

– damali abrams in her blog post on her residency with Fresh Milk and Groundation Grenada

…Entitled Fresh Performance: Contemporary Performance Art in New York City and the Caribbean, damali’s documentary is less about the specific performance works of the twelve artists that she interviewed but is instead more about the artists’ conceptions of performance art as a practice within the context of their work. In the first few minutes of the film we are introduced to differing considerations of what performance art is from the twelve artists, which for the viewer emphasizes the interpretive nature of performance art and its malleability as an art form. damali has paired the video interviews with still images of the live performances of each artist, which creates an intriguing juxtaposition of interview as performance, and performance as documentary…

– Jessica Taylor in her review of FRESH MILK XIII

FRESH MILK XV – The Age of Infobesity with McLean Greaves

March 25, 2014May 20, 20151 Comment

On the heels of our last public event, FRESH MILK is pleased to invite you to FRESH MILK XV, which will be held on Thursday, April 10^th 2014 from 6:30 – 8:00 pm at the Fresh Milk Art Platform Inc., St. George, Barbados. The evening will feature a talk by our visiting speaker McLean Greaves, a Barbadian-born, Toronto-based expert in digital media and Vice-President of the Interactive division at ZoomerMedia.

The Age of Infobesity:

90 percent of the world’s data has been created in the past two years. With the rise of social media, mobile devices and the latest buzz – the Internet Of Things – humans are facing an unprecedented amount of data to consume. The result: a rapidly shrinking attention span.

Presented by veteran digital media executive McLean Greaves, this talk explains how we got here, the role of digital marketeers in monetizing reduced attention spans, and solutions for future generations where the average North American student now owns 6.7 devices but is increasingly forgetful.

The event is free and open to the public. See our About page for directions.

About McLean Greaves:

McLean Greaves is Vice-President of the Interactive division at ZoomerMedia, based in Toronto Canada. A renowned cross platform veteran, McLean is responsible for leading an integrated digital strategy of the Boomer-targeted company including mobile, social media, SEO and IT infrastructure covering television, radio and print media lines.

Prior to ZoomerMedia, McLean served as the executive producer of the network television series, ZeD, a cutting-edge cross-platform format that landed five Gemini nominations in its inaugural season as well as selection in the prestigious INPUT TV conference (Denmark) and two Leo Awards, including Best Variety Show. His second season followed up with more critical acclaim including Gemini, Webby and a prestigious Emmy® nomination for Advanced Media. Season three landed four Gemini nominations and a Media Person Of The Year nomination at the Western Canadian Music Awards. During this same time, McLean also created and produced Burning To Shine, an intimate documentary on the popular Canadian rapper K-OS collaborating with the CBC Radio Orchestra.

Prior to his foray in television, McLean ran an “afrosomething” start up in New York City where, as founder of the urban dotcom company VMI, he was twice selected as a Silicon Alley “cyber star” by the Village Voice and Virtual City magazines. His new media and television projects have drawn positive reviews from the likes of The New Yorker, Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wired and Crain’s Business Weekly. Former clients include filmmaker Spike Lee, music mogul Sean “P-Diddy” Combs and media giant Time Warner. McLean’s NYC days also included stints as Vice President of Content at HBO’s Volume.com, Associate New Media Editor at PAPER magazine and frequent contributor to Essence, Vibe, BET Weekend and The Source magazines. As a guest lecturer, McLean has presented at the PBS Technology Conference, Western Canadian Music Awards, New York University, Columbia University School of Business, Pratt Institute and others.

In addition to broadcast and digital media, McLean has written for several magazines including Paper, Globe & Mail Newspaper, Vibe, Essence, The Source and Zoomer.

McLean is a graduate of the British Columbia Institute Of Technology and has served on various boards including NewMedia BC and NextMedia.

Announcing the FRESH MILK ‘My Time’ Local Resident Artist 2014 – Cherise Ward

March 25, 2014May 20, 2015Leave a comment

FRESH MILK is very pleased to announce Barbadian artist Cherise Ward as the winner of the Fresh Milk ‘My Time’ Local Residency prize for 2014. Congratulations Cherise!

Cherise’s one-month residency will begin on Monday April 14, 2014, and she will use her time to explore new ideas and directions in her practice, with an aim of producing a small book project and expanding on aspects of this book in various forms of sculpture, specifically puppetry, and designer toys.

About Cherise Ward:

Cherise Ward is an Illustrator living in Barbados. After completing her Associate Degree in Visual Arts at the Barbados Community College, Cherise received her BFA in Illustration from the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Cherise’s work has been shown in exhibitions in America; including New York City, California, and Chicago, as well as in Barbados. Her illustrations have been published on the covers of graphic novels and the pages of children’s books. Cherise’s work is often inspired by nature and her love of fantasy and storytelling.

Artist Statement:

As an Illustrator, my work is often based on my interest in storytelling. This then takes many forms, from single narrative illustrations, to sequential (picture books or graphic novels), to sculpture. Whatever form it takes, at the core, my work is greatly inspired by an interest in telling stories, which has been my passion since childhood.

In my most recent body of personal work, my intent was to create narrative illustrations of original fairy tales, based on the flora and fauna of the Caribbean; that had the feel of the classic fairy tales I enjoy. Each illustration tells a story, but also invites the viewer to imagine a story of their own.

I build puppets, from sketching the character on paper, to sculpting, and putting together the parts so they can function. So along with illustration, I also use sculpture to bring my stories to life.

FRESH MILK XIV

March 7, 2014May 20, 20151 Comment

FRESH MILK is pleased to invite you to our first public event of 2014, FRESH MILK XIV, which will be held on Thursday, March 20^th 2014 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the Fresh Milk Art Platform Inc., St. George, Barbados. See our About page for directions.

The Value of Artist Residencies

FRESH MILK XIV welcomes Nick Whittle, Mark King and Versia Harris to give artist talks, all of whom took part in a number of artist residencies locally, regionally and internationally last year at Fresh Milk, the Instituto Buena Bista (Curacao), Alice Yard (Trinidad), Ateliers ’89 (Aruba) and the Vermont Studio Center (USA). The artists will share the work they created while in residence and talk about the overarching impact of these experiences on their practice, framing residencies as free spaces for artistic growth, experimentation and cultural mobility and exchange. We are also excited to announce at this event, the chosen recipient of the Fresh Milk ‘My Time’ Local Residency 2014 selected from our recent open call. This Barbadian artist will be awarded a one-month residency on the platform and a $1,000.00 stipend towards artistic production.

A New Regional Museum

We are very pleased to feature visiting Chief Curator at the Pérez Art Museum Miami, Tobias Ostrander, who will speak to the new Miami museum’s design and program with the Barbadian audience. He will discuss from a curatorial perspective the opening exhibitions and projects currently on view, and the museum’s current research and programming related to the Caribbean, including the upcoming presentation of the exhibition “Caribbean: Crossroads of the World.” Tobias will also discuss his interests in developing future collaborations with art institutions across the Caribbean region as part of his thinking on a “Strategic Regionalism” which seeks to create increased dialogue between the Southern United States, Caribbean basin and Central and South America.

The event is free and open to the public. RSVP on Facebook here.

About the Presenters

Nick Whittle, Queen Emma Bridge, Curacao, 2013

Nick Whittle:

Nick Whittle is a Barbadian/British artist. His work is that of a diarist: regardless of scale or medium his practice explores geographical and historical encounters. Through a stream of consciousness process, he reveals feelings of alienation and connectedness. Much of his work is inspired by what was once described as “an ongoing interest in the narrow strip of land between high and low water.” His practice is interdisciplinary and encompasses sculpture, poetry, video, installation, painting and printmaking. He has recently concluded a residency program at the Instituto Buena Bista in Curaçao.

Mark King in collaboration with Elena Branker, Vestige, 2013

Mark King:

Mark King is a multidisciplinary Barbadian visual artist who explores archetypes and social norms. Interested in notions of topography and megalography, Mark makes coded, often satirical work, that highlight social phenomena. The son of a former diplomat, Mark has called several places home. Growing up in The Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, and the United States has left Mark with a unique perspective that directly influences his artistic practice.

Mark holds a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Photography from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, California. In 2011 the Lucie Foundation handpicked Mark for their apprenticeship program. During the same year he participated in a screen-printing residency at the Frans Masereel Centrum in Kasterlee, Belgium. In 2012 he took part in an artist residency at Alice Yard in Port of Spain, Trinidad. In 2013, he participated in two residencies; Fresh Milk in Saint George, Barbados, and most recently Ateliers ’89 in Aruba for the Mondriaan Foundation’s Caribbean Linked ll. Last year he released his first monograph Plastic through MOSSLESS publishing at The Newsstand in New York. Plastic has gone on to The 2013 New York Art Book Fair at MoMA PS1, The 8Ball Zine Fair, the 2013 I Never Read Art Book Fair in Basel, Switzerland, and The 2014 LA Art Book Fair in the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA.

Versia Harris, Fantasy Land Seperation, 2013

Versia Harris:

Versia Harris is a Barbadian artist living and working in Weston, St. James. She graduated from the Barbados Community College with a BFA in the Studio Art programme in 2012, with an award from The Leslie’s Legacy Foundation. She participated in her first local residency with Projects and Space in 2011. Within the past year she has completed four residencies, beginning with a local residency at Fresh Milk, followed by her first international residency at the Vermont Studio Center, and two regional residencies at the Instituto Buena Bista, Curacao and Alice Yard, Trinidad in late 2013. In her work, Versia tackles perceptions of fantasy in contrast to the reality of her original character. She uses Adobe Photoshop to manipulate her pen drawings to create the animations.

Tobias Ostrander:

Tobias Ostrander has served as Chief Curator and Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs at the Miami Art Museum since 2011 (now the Pérez Art Museum Miami), where he oversees the program for the institution’s new Herzog and De Mueron designed building, which opened in December 2013. Prior to working in Miami, from 2009 to 2011 he was the director of El Museo Experimental El Eco in Mexico City. From 2001 to July of 2009 he served as the Curator of Contemporary Art at the Museo Tamayo in Mexico City. During his eight years at the Museo Tamayo, Ostrander developed an extensive program of international exhibitions. Prior to his work in Mexico City Ostrander was the Associate Curator for inSITE2000/01 in San Diego and Tijuana. He served as an assistant curator on the XXIV Bienal de São Paulo. He has a Masters in Curatorial Studies from the Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College.