Dear Readers,

 

During these pandemic times, we need Art more than ever. The Art Section is continuing our series of dialogues between artists and writers. TAS has fostered such exchanges and dialogues since its inception; the sharing of ideas matters so much now, more than ever.

 

We so appreciate the support of the Fulton County Arts Council (Georgia) and of the individuals and foundations that help make these dialogues possible. The eyes of the world are now on Georgia. I hope Georgia will be a place of meaningful dialogue and claim a significant place in the arts.

 

It has been my great pleasure to initiate these conversations for The Art Section. All of the conversations were done via email; the works and ideas were exchanged virtually.

 

I want to thank all these artists, musicians, and writers for connecting during this moment.

 

The Artists:

 

Klimchak, a percussionist from Atlanta, and Giuseppe Gavazza, a composer from Turin, Italy had a wonderful dialogue about Klimchak’s work as an experimental musician. Gavazza, an experimental composer using very different tools, found much to discuss with Klimchak. It has made me so happy to read this transatlantic exchange between these two noteworthy artists.

 

Atlanta artists Maria Artemis and Susan Cofer have known each other for many decades. It is of great interest to think about how each of these artists has responded to nature through her work.

 

Atlantans Shanequa Gay, artist, and curator Karen Comer Lowe worked together on a significant exhibition of Shanequa’s work, ini-she-ation, 2019, at Chastain Art Center. In her work, Shanequa embraces performance, sculpture and installation—sometimes all within the same work. Her installations have a relationship to Matisse’s cutouts, though her content is significantly different and of this time and place.

 

Cynthia Farnell and Shannon Morris, two curators from Georgia, have known each other for a long time. Their dialogue about being curators and the shows they have worked on is fascinating, and gives new insight into the curatorial process.

 

Eddie Barbash, who grew up in Atlanta, is an eclectic and fabulous saxophonist who is ready to play everything from Jazz to Bluegrass to Swing to Classical on his alto sax. TAS features many recordings and videos of Barbash’s music, as well as his conversation with Philip Auslander about his journey as a musician.

 

Alicia Ostriker is the State Poet of New York. She dialogued for TAS with artist and poet Nicolette Reim, who divides her time between Atlanta and New York City. In this issue, you can read Alicia’s poems, and hear and watch her read poems via a Zoom video made especially for The Art Section.

 

Sue Coe is an activist artist whose solo exhibition, It Can Happen Here, is on view until December 20, 2020 at Galerie St. Etienne in New York City. Coe’s politically charged visual works speak exactly to this moment. Amy Laik, a feminist and activist artist who was my studio apprentice in 2018, found her dialogue with Coe to be inspirational.

 

Melissa Fougler and Phil Auslander dialogue about the directorial process. Melissa is a well-known theater director in Atlanta. Her work is stunningly visual, with an interesting take on text and theatre.

 

Lynn Marshall-Linnemeier, a distinguished Atlanta artist, converses with poet Opal Moore about her recent exhibitions. Though they work in different media, these artists have much in common in their desire for storytelling and narrative.

 

Michi Meko, an artist from Atlanta, talks with Cinqué Hicks about the pandemic and the effect it has had on his work.

 

Looking forward to connecting with you all in the near future.

 

Many many thanks,

 

Deanna

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Deanna Sirlin

Editor in Chief

The Art Section