Making Lemonade

“Hands of Power,” photos by Lauren Castellana

By Vincent E. Thomas

As I sit to write this blog entry, I wanted to consider the meaning of the silver lining? Traced back to the writings of John Milton about a cloud’s silver lining, I admit I had no real knowledge of him nor his writing. But I did have a memory of my grandmother teaching me the power of making the best out of the ‘not so best’. In other words, ‘making a way out of no way’, as they would often say in the Southern Baptist church. Big Ma (the late Mariah Brown) was a spiritual soul from the south, who always saw good in others. I am reminded of Big Ma and me making lemonade and sweet tea in the cozy kitchen. This memory of (as a child) taking sour lemons and making something sweet and delicious out of it, is what has stayed with me during these times.

This pandemic has been, truthfully, troubling, and challenging on so many levels. Since March 13th, the pivot dance has been my Electric Slide, my Cupid Shuffle, and my Wobble. And this dance continued into the fall semester, as we pivoted into all online/virtual classes (teaching and learning). So in true Big Ma fashion, I decided to make some lemonade.

A huge pitcher of lemonade has been the Modern Repertory class. In early August, I decided to create a piece inspired by the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment, Women’s Suffrage Movement, March on Washington 1963/2020, and Voting. It has been a thirst-quenching journey. The virtual platform challenges, the diminished individual moving spaces, the lack of in-person physical community and tactile connections were the lemons, and the research, creative processes, personal investigations of subject matter, new ways to connect with a larger university community, and the students were the cups of sugar. The result is the dance piece “Hands of Power”. The work has five sections: My first vote…, I am…, In my hands…, In my feet…, and In our Rights. For the section In my feet…, I reached across and within the university community to engage collaborative partnerships with others in an organized “artful” march. I work in the pageantry marching arts so I am very familiar with aspects of marching, but I wanted to bridge and fold social justice and social movement marches into this creative process for art. It was really important to share with the dancers, in practice, how life and art reflects each other. One of my favorite quotes is “Life imitates art far more than art imitates life” by Oscar Wilde. 

What initially was going to be nine dancers ended up being over thirty participants, two videographers, and one photographer. The participants were asked to create signage for the march and to consider what would be a platform they would march about. What would/do they stand up for? What cause do they value and want to add their voice? What issues would/do they vote for? It was an amazing gathering of folks across a spectrum, coming together for a common goal of common good. In my feet… is performed by Modern Repertory, TU Dance Company, Assistant Professor Alison Seidenstricker (Dept. of Dance), Assistant Professor Michelle Humphreys (Dept. of Music), Bria Bennett (Athletic Dept.- Community Partners Coordinator), Luis Sierra (Office of Civic Engagement), three members of the Women’s Track & Field, members of Towson AIDE, and several other Towson University students. Videographers: Rebecca Wolf (Dept. of Dance- Production Coordinator) and Ben Rosenbaum (Athletic Dept.- Director of Digital Media), and Alex Wright (TU Photographer).

At the beginning of the semester, I had no idea it would turn out this way. Throughout the creative process, I continued to listen to the art and allow it to blossom, stir, and evolve into a tall pitcher of lemonade.

About

Vincent E. Thomas, professor in the Department of Dance, is a dancer, choreographer and educator. Thomas received his MFA in Dance from Florida State University and a BME in Music from the University of South Carolina. His multi-dimensional company VTDance builds on the use of contemporary dance, improvisation, text/ movement, a variety of sound sources, and collaborations with other artists, including dancers, musicians, poets, visual artists, and others [to be discovered]. These ideas coupled with witty, poignant, athletic and gestural movement are the rich palette for VTDance. Vincent was awarded the 2019 Board of Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Scholarship, Research, Creative Activity. More recently he received the MDEA’s 2020 Living Legacy award by the Maryland Dance Education Association.

Gastronaut: Exploring Science Fiction & American Domesticity through Culinary Art History

Jackie Andrews ’20, is set to graduate this fall with a BFA in Art + Design and a concentration in sculpture and a minor in art history. She recently became the recipient of the very competitive Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry grant from TU. Check out what Jackie will be doing this summer.

Gastronaut is a continuation of and elaboration upon a semester-long independent study from the fall 2019 semester. The project arose from a burgeoning interest in culinary anthropology and its relationship to the arts after I attended a lecture by guest-speaker Anna Fitzgibbon, founder of OutGrowth, an agricultural/cultural collaborative business. This lecture inspired me to study connections between my art historical interests and my culinary interests.  I cast a wide net and explored a diverse range of topics within culinary history as it related to art and art history, including, but not limited to: domesticity and feminism as it relates to food; food sustainability as it relates to food equity and security; and the cultural impact of technological innovation on the food industry from the mid-twentieth century forward.

As these culinary art historical inquiries consumed my academic study, these topics also found their way into my studio work. With such broad-ranging interests in food and the sociopolitical issues related to it, in addition to my increasingly conceptually relevant studio work, it became more difficult to distill my myriad sources and excitement into one concise thesis. It became clear that a more creative and less conventional solution was needed. In seeking this creative solution, an idea for a research-and-studio hybrid, organized to reference the form of a “menu”, sprang forth. The “menu” format provided a concise and impactful format through which to present and synthesize cursory investigation of a myriad of research inquiries and sources, supplemented with artworks of my own creation, inspired by my findings.

“Zarathustra” 2020 by Jackie Andrews

With a summer research grant, I will explore themes of kitsch, nostalgia, collection, and gender roles in the pieces I create. My works are meant to evoke memories and subtly engage the art historical canon with a touch of wit. This body of work (originating during this initial period of research) will consist of a series of material interventions on vintage ephemera, adorned with beading, found objects, textile embellishments, and collage. These interventions serve to re-contextualize the found images and create dialogue and narrative with the other images in the series, as well as with the viewer.

The paper ephemera I plan to use in my work is primarily mined from vintage books, the majority of which were published in the 1950s and 1960s. Most of the images I will work with reference science, technological innovation, and domestic life of this period. The cultural history of these publications is central to the thematic elements of the work. Technological developments of the 50s like the vacuum and culinary staples such as Jello befit an America daydreaming of space travel. An ultimately small, but important, cultural element of this period was the rise of science fiction. Born from the political climate of mid-century America, science fiction was subliminally propagandistic: the cookie-cutter domestic American life was the quintessential setting, perpetually being threatened by an alien (read: foreign) invader. The subsequent artworks I will create with the ephemera I acquire explores this idea, featuring themes of decadence, superfluity, the paranormal, and the unknown. As I create these initial science fiction inspired artworks, the images I gravitate toward and the objects I will create from them help to elucidate my core interests from my culinary art historical research, and the final ingredient of my hybrid “menu.” Gastronaut explores the intersection among science fiction, art history, and culinary history. Utilizing an anthropological study of American culture through historical, aesthetic, and culture materials, the resulting artworks will serve to reveal the xenophobic underpinnings of mid-century America, that are a common thread between the art and design, food and advertising, and domestic trends of the time.

My primary goal, for the purposes of this application, is a holistic expansion of the Gastronaut project. My research inquiries during my independent study have whet my appetite for these topics, rather than satiated my hunger; the ability to dedicate three additional months of time and funding to my combined culinary art historical research and studio work on Gastronaut would be an unparalleled opportunity for my career as art history scholar and studio artist.

“Space Invader” 2020 by Jackie Andrews

Over the 12-week grant period, I plan to split my time equally between research inquiry and studio work in my home studio, completing roughly 10-12 hours of each per week. I aim to complete a series of between 25 and 40 artworks, varying in size and taking the form of both paper collage and sculpture. The research portion of the project will be divided over the course of the grant period as well, with the first half of the grant period (roughly June through mid or late July) consisting primarily of gathering of additional sources and extensive research and note-taking, followed by a period of devoted analysis, synthesis and writing for the remainder of the summer. I plan for the resultant artworks to be displayed in the Center for the Arts Storage Space Gallery, following the completion of the grant period in the fall. The research essay will serve as a companion to the artworks, and will remain in the format of a menu, with additional sections to accommodate expanded research.

The dedicated initial funding of $3,500 will be utilized for the purchase of materials for both the studio and research portions of the project. Such expenditures will include: purchase of historically relevant ephemera, found objects, and raw material (i.e. textiles, beads, etc) for artworks; purchase of books, other media, and/or any associated fees for consumption of digital media (i.e. documentaries) for research; and any additional associated costs as needed. The remaining funds ($1,500) will be dedicated to the necessary completion of the project including: professional design and printing of the research essay; professional photography of artworks; exhibition installation supplies; and/or costs for the creation of a digital exhibition and website, in the event that campus remains closed due to the COVID-19 crisis.