School of Latitudes - Residency program at labotanica

My proposal was accepted to the "School of Latitudes", a new residency program launched by labotanica.  During this 6 week residency, I will be working on my project, "Uncharted" (working title).  This is my first residency and I am very excited!

The program officially started August 17th and will run through the end of September.

My proposal  for "Uncharted" can be viewed on the School of Latitudes page.

Project Proposal: I propose establishing a headquarters for a fictitious agency/org that deconstructs existing maps of neighborhoods, such as transit maps, street maps, and satellite maps, and conducts experiments in new maps made through recording sound and exploring movement and text, in addition to drawings and marks. Such experiments will be conducted as part of the residency. My intention with this project is to move beyond the 2-D map and to question the authoritative nature of mapmaking and historical assumptions about what content is important for maps, and what sorts of power or information imbalances are inherent in mapmaking systems and the societies/agencies that control them. This organization will focus on 1) neighborhoods and cities in transition, such as Third Ward Houston or Detroit and 2) chaotic megacities such as Lagos, Nigeria. I feel that The School of Latitudes is the ideal opportunity to launch this project.

I first began exploring mapmaking through some drawings I produced in 2008 based on my journals from living in Congo, and I continued to explore migratory movement of people and ideology through my recent collages. I want to start with the immediate location of the space, Dowling Street and the Third Ward area. The neighborhood offers a rich history and area to study physical and cultural transition, the tension between old and new development, and interactions between art, green spaces, and the public.

About the School of Latitudes residency:

Session 1: Artists as Activators

Artists in Residence: Regina Agu, Vonetta Berry, Aisen Caro Chacin, James Ciosek, Jade Cooper, Inge Hoonte, Melanie Jemison, Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud, Heather Korb, Robert McShan, Rebecca Novak, Jennifer Overfield, Irene Ruiz, Stephanie Saint Sanchez, Emily Sloan, Carrie Schneider, Tyson Urich
School of Latitudes is an artist residency that takes place August to September 2010, conceived, curated and presented by labotanica. School of Latitudes explores new approaches to creating and presenting art that are artist-driven, DIY, and that locate creativity in all sorts of environments and places. The residency is not about completing these projects, but simply exploring, launching and testing out these ideas, all the while using labotanica as a hub to do this.  The residency will culminate in an exhibition and publication documenting the start of these new projects. The theme of the first session of School of Latitudes is “artists as activators”. The residency locates artists as active agents of change and explores integrative approaches to making art in our community.
“The world changes with each passing day, and art is just one tiny segment. Art has to open itself up, go beyond its fixed boundaries and absorb more nutrients from other sources, perhaps even deconstruct itself into something else.” Hou Hanru
labotanica is a resource and a laboratory. labotanica uses flexible, open-ended formats to frame new art forms and dialogues that are often independent, experimental and developing. labotanica key words: reciprocity, exploration, freedom, latitudes, magical thinking, open-ended, flexibility, de-center, soulfulness, processes. http://labotanica.org