#rafa shepard

[icecreampizzer]

For pallette ideas- if all the world's a stage with Deja Vu maybe? or ice cold shoulder with Rafa??

As you can see from the dates, Deja's took me a bit to get to because I couldn't settle on a pose. Ended up using the last sketch I made before I gave up all those weeks ago LMAO!! This is definitely one of my favorite Deja faces I've made so far :] and Rafa's here too, she's just vibing. Mam the babygirl that you are

As always, color palettes [1] [2] are by @the-valiant-valkyrie !

#original character #oc #loatm #lamentations of a time machine #deja vu #tia #therefore i am #rafa shepard #gene art #gene ocs #gene answers #most-certainly-not-lennard #ty for the req!! i know it says 'or' but i wanted to do both of them

[just-a-pole-sir]

If the Mass Effect tv show staring Henry Cavill as Shepard rumor is true, who would you like to see play Kaidan? They likely wouldn’t make M!Shenko a thing on the show, but we can always dream.

My dream cast for Kaidan is Rafael Silva. Look, he already has the biotic aura thing!

And who wouldn't want to see Rafa and Henry having hot gay sex on a spaceship?

#rafael silva #henry cavill #mass effect #kaidan alenko #john shepard #mshenko #asks #anon

[artbookdap]

Spreads from 'Black American Portraits,' published to accompany the exhibition opening today at @spelman_college Museum of Art⁠ ⁠ Presenting more than 140 works from the LACMA collection, this is a celebratory, kaleidoscopic chronicle of the many ways in which Black Americans have used portraiture to envision themselves over the past two centuries—from the earliest aspects of the Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter. "Each time you return to this volume," Naima J. Keith writes, "we challenge you to interrogate the systems and injustices that have made—and continue to make—this work necessary and important. We hope the myriad of diverse and moving pieces allows you to imagine a future where Black excellence and joy are not simply responses to the brutal and needless murder of Black people, but standard features of our collective daily existence."⁠ ⁠ Artists include: Alvin Baltrop, Edward Biberman, Bisa Butler, Jordan Casteel, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Bruce Davidson, Stan Douglas, rafa esparza, Shepard Fairey, Charles Gaines, Sargent Claude Johnson, Deana Lawson, Kerry James Marshall, Alice Neel, Lorraine O'Grady, Catherine Opie, Amy Sherald, Ming Smith, Henry Taylor, Tourmaline, Mickalene Thomas, James Van Der Zee, Carrie Mae Weems, Charles White, Kehinde Wiley and Deborah Willis.⁠ ⁠ Published by @delmonico_books & @lacma⁠ ⁠ Edited with text by Christine Y. Kim and Myrtle Elizabeth Andrews. Forewords by Mary Schmidt Campbell and Michael Govan. Text by Hilton Als, Bridget R. Cooks, Ilene Susan Fort, Dhyandra Lawson, Jeffrey C. Stewart. Afterword by Naima J. Keith.⁠ ⁠ Read more via linkibio.⁠ ⁠ #blackamericanportraits @cyknycla @lazyt4road @hilton.als @dhyandra @jeffreycstewart @naimajoy⁠ ⁠ https://www.instagram.com/p/CoZ7YzFO18E/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#blackamericanportraits

[blackhermionegrangers]

anyway here are my thoughts on the final table after finishing it the other day

I’m not the first person to point this out but the fact that the show boasted about being a “global” competition but focused heavily on western cuisines was kinda annoying. And on top of that the final four ended up being 4 white men. It’s just like..... ok den. It is what it is but I just wish the show hadn’t gone on and on about how “global” it was when it really wasn’t *that* different from many other cooking shows in terms of cuisines shown lol

also that almost the majority of the last half of the show had no women in it...... I know the culinary world is still very sexist so I guess it’s not all on the show in terms of gender disparities but also considering that there were tons of arguments between the men on the show that never got shown but the one time there was tension between the only female team they gave it lots of airtime and played it up leads me to believe the show may have also had a misogyny problem 🤷🏿‍♀️

the judging on the show seemed so weird and inconsistent to me. Sometimes being traditional was a good thing that was praised, other times it was critiqued. Sometimes going outside the box and not being traditional was praised, sometimes it was critiqued. It just seemed like there weren’t consistent standards between the sets of judges (or even within a single episode!). I guess u could say it reflects real life or whatever bc every person who sits at ur restaurant is going to have different standards or ideas for what the meal should be but idk man.... there was just no standardization or consistent set of criteria which made it feel like u never knew what the judges were going to want or like or dislike

also the celeb “ambassador” judges thing was kinda iffy to me. Like, no disrespect to hasan minhaj or dax shepard or whoever but what the fuck do these people know about fine cuisine that I, as a professional chef on this show with possibly decades of experience, have to listen to your opinion 💀

but I guess u could argue the celeb’s provided an Everyman™️ perspective on it, as in how would the average person feel and react to the dishes the chefs were making because maybe the perspectives and thoughts and comments of a professional chef or food critic might not be super relatable to the average person so that’s what the celebs are for? Idk I’m of 2 minds on this

also speaking of inconsistent judging, when the French chef taste-tested Rafa and esdras’ food, she said she found it spicy, but then during the judging the reason she gave for eliminating them was that the food wasn’t spicy enough???????? My brother was so pissed about this lol

also the fact that the reason Shin and Ronald left was because the British chef didn’t like their presentation...... I get that all the dishes were good enough that nitty gritty details start to matter and someone had to go home, but come on bro 😭 was it really bad enough to justify kicking them off the show? Especially since the presentation that she didn’t like/get was them using a Japanese technique/style

in general with the judging being the way it was I always felt really bad when a team went home because it usually just felt like it was out of their hands bc it came down to whatever the judges felt like doing basically lol

also the way they decided who the winner was was so weird to me. They all talked about how Timothy doing a dish that he was familiar with and had done multiple times put him at a disadvantage but then the American chef just went “but is that a disadvantage tho???????? 🤔🤔🤔” and because they didn’t show the conversation that happened after that or how they came to a consensus in the end it just seemed like they all just went along with the American chef??? And we also didn’t hear enough from all of the chefs either. Idk the discussion was cut so short and was so rushed which is annoying and doesn’t make sense bc the whole season was leading to that moment.... they could’ve afforded to have a slightly longer episode (literally just an extra minute or two) if it meant giving us more of the decision making process.

it was an enjoyable watch but I found it to so be garish and melodramatic and over the top lol... also again going on about being a “global” competition while still being quite euro/western-centric was just.... the show came across as being a bit more proud of itself than it really deserved to be

i cannot BELIEVE those chefs were cooking in front of a live audience omg I would’ve been so nervous

I liked Darren but the amount of times he went on and on about “I’m a white guy making Japanese food, I had to fight to prove myself” was just..... it’s clear he had a lot of love and respect for the cuisine and acknowledged that he was just a student of it and didn’t delude himself into thinking he was doing something new or reinventing the wheel or whatever which was nice but just the amount of times he went on about the whole “I’m a white guy” thing was a bit much lol. it might’ve been the editing tho so idk

I know Charles and Rodrigo are probably a bit too pretentious for some people but I loved them sm 😭 I was so sad when they left

I also loved the Australian chefs so much 😭

hey Alex i am free on Thursday if you want to hang out please call me about hanging out on Thursday which is when I am free

In general I loved all the chefs tbh, the highlight of the show is getting attached to each contestant. I was always genuinely sad for each team that left

If they ever do any more seasons I will watch but it’s really not as groundbreaking or original or as fresh as they really tried to play it up as. It was definitely a bigger scale which was interesting to watch I guess but that’s really it lol

#the final table #shows

[rebelsofshield]

Star Wars: The Clone Wars: “Gone with a Trace”-Review

Ahsoka Tano finally returns in a fun, if unremarkable, episode of The Clone Wars.

(Review contains episode spoilers. Also sorry for the delay. Global pandemics be time sucks.)

It’s been some time since Ahsoka Tano walked away from the Jedi Order. In the months since her trial and abandonment, Ahsoka has been eking out a living in the lower levels of Coruscant. When her speeder unexpectedly breaks down, Ahsoka meets another young woman named Trace. Together the two strike up a working relationship and tentative friendship, but Trace’s hustling sister, Rafa, may throw a wrench in all of this.

I think it’s fair to say that next to the climactic events of the Siege of Mandalore, the return of Ahsoka Tano is one of the most anticipated elements of this final season of The Clone Wars. Although it has been two years since we last saw an older and wiser Ahsoka in the finale of Star Wars Rebels, it’s been over half a decade since we’ve seen the version of this character that we all came to love. Just seeing her speed across the Coruscant skyline is a wonderfully surreal feeling and even more so than “The Bad Batch” storyline, it feels like returning to something like home.

It’s interesting then that much of “Gone With a Trace” feels like a direct sequel to Ahsoka’s last major arc in the series. Sure, Ahsoka hasn’t been framed for murder again, but like climactic finale story to The Clone Wars’ fifth season, writers Dave Filoni and Charles Murray are interested in putting Ahsoka out of her element and forcing her to confront her former reality. Perhaps the most telling callback to Clone Wars past is the return of Coruscant level 1313. The seedy and forgotten underbelly of the galactic capital comes back in a big way.

While it works as a familiar but also alien environment for Ahsoka to experience in this mostly aimless period of her life, Filoni and Murray utilize 1313 to continue themes of class that originally appeared in “Sabotage.” Ahsoka is forced to confront the fact that despite the hardships she has experienced, her understanding of the galaxy is still an incomplete one and that the Jedi have truly failed many of the citizens that live right beneath their feet. It not only works as a nice, if simple, political commentary and a smart in universe criticism of the Republic and the Knights that serve it, but it also places Ahsoka in complex emotional position. When her new friend, Trace, calls out the Jedi for their passivity, Ahsoka feels compelled to defend them despite the fact that they also very dramatically failed her as well. It makes the general set up for the penultimate arc for this series make more sense. It may not be the most explosive or dramatic concept, but emotionally it’s probably the best thing for us to see Ahsoka experience right now.

Ashley Eckstein does a phenomenal job here at slipping into a younger version of a character she has sheparded for well over a decade now. She spoke at length at Star Wars Celebration about how it was odd for her to return to this confused and reckless version of Ahsoka after spending time with her more mature Rebels counterpart. Any difficulty Eckstein may have experienced though isn’t evident. Ahsoka couldn’t feel more Ahsoka, and Eckstein’s continue prowess as a voice actress is apparent as well. I’m pretty sure we all got a little choked up when she referred to Anakin as her “older brother.”

In terms of episodic plot, “Gone with a Trace” is fairly unremarkable. Outside of the interesting work done with Ahsoka, there just isn’t a whole lot to write home about. Trace and Rafa are interestingly designed characters and their voice actors, Elizabeth Rodriguez, bring their characters to life with emotion and energy, but there isn’t enough to them to make them feel like more than archetypes as of the moment. They show a dynamic that is well worn for this sort of narrative and so far neither sister has yet to jump out of this. With three more episodes in this arc, there is plenty of opportunity for them to do so, but as of now each sister feels more like they are there to test different aspects of Ahsoka’s personality rather than to fully function as characters in their own right.

A chase sequence involving an out of control demolition droid is the episode’s sole action sequence and while it’s fun it does go on for a tad too long. The droid itself is an enjoyable wrecking ball and I very much the way it scuttles about like a sort of mechanized King Kong. It also allows us to see a bit more of 1313 which is an interesting location even if I can’t help but wish it was a bit grimier. It overstays its welcome though as the visuals of it all aren’t really enough to sustain such a prolonged set piece that doesn’t do enough to raise the stakes for the characters at hand.

All in all, it’s a joy to have Ahsoka back on screen and hopefully “Gone with a Trace” is setting us up for something exciting and surprising down the road.

 Score: B

#Star Wars #Star Wars: The Clone Wars #Clone Wars #The Clone Wars #review #reviews #Ahsoka Tano

[anderfels]

All I can think about is my Shepard exiting the Normandy and Kaidan being like, “Rafa... did you feed the fish?” and Rafael nearly breaks his own damn neck as he swivels his head around and stares into blank space with the dawning realization that he hasn’t fed his fish in like 3 days. 

#Rafael: GOD I'M GONNA HAVE TO CLEAN THE FISH TANK AGAIN. #Kaidan: AGAIN????????????????????????????????? #codex: rafael shepard

[wiremagazine]

MIAMI BEACH PRIDE ALLY GRAND MARSHALS

By Rafa Carvajal

JUDY AND DENNIS SHEPARD: A MISSION OF LOVE, UNDERSTANDING, COMPASSION AND ACCEPTANCE

Miami Beach Pride Ally Grand Marshals Judy and Dennis Shepard, parents of Matthew Shepard and founders of the Matthew Shepard Foundation, will be helping kick off this year’s 11th annual Pride celebration. The Matthew Shepard Foundation empowers individuals to embrace human dignity and diversity through outreach, advocacy and resource programs. According to Bruce Horwich, Chairman of Miami Beach Pride, “We are incredibly honored to have Judy and Dennis Shepard be our Miami Beach Pride Ally Marshals this year, and to honor them for their unwavering support and tireless work in the LGBTQ community,” while adding that “Their dedication to increasing safety, visibility, and inclusiveness for the LGBTQ community has affected positive change and improved the lives of many LGBTQ youth.”

Wire Magazine sat down with Judy and Dennis Shepard to discuss their advocacy work on behalf of the LGBTQ community, and how they feel about being this year’s Miami Beach Pride Ally Grand Marshals.

Rafa Carvajal: How do you feel about being this year’s Miami Beach Pride Ally Grand Marshals? Judy & Dennis Shepard: We are always grateful and feel honored to be invited to participate in Pride festivals and events. The LGBTQ community has come a long way since these events were originally protests against unequal treatment, so we are always mindful that it took a long time for them to become celebrations. Even now, marching for equality is a dangerous and worrisome act of bravery in many parts of the world we’ve visited – frankly, in parts of our country, too. It’s never far from our minds how much Matt would have appreciated the progress to this point and how far there is still to go.

RC: What would you say to a young person being bullied for being gay? J&DS: First and foremost, do what you can to stay safe and not get hurt by others or by yourself. Find someone you can trust to share what you are going through, whether that’s a friend, a teacher, a counselor, a parent, or someone else caring in the community who can offer a safe space. Explore what services and support are available in your community, or nationally, such as hotlines, websites and LGBTQ and school safety nonprofits. Remember you are loved, you are valuable, and you are not alone.

RC: What is the mission of the Matthew Shepard Foundation? J&DS: The Foundation’s mission is to erase hate and ignorance and replace them with understanding, compassion, and acceptance. We do that through outreach to schools, workplaces and community groups, through hate crime prevention, training police and prosecutors, and members of minority communities, through resources for young people on matthewsplace.com, and by supporting productions of The Laramie Project and other performances and works of art that tell Matt’s story and provoke dialogue.

RC: What can parents do to protect LGBTQ children and young adults from discrimination and violence? J&DS: Most importantly of all, parents need to provide safe spaces for their kids (and their friends’ kids, sometimes) to be open and authentic as their true selves. Too many parents throw their LGBTQ kids away, literally, and that needs to stop, and loving support needs to be provided for those young people independently of their families. Second, be involved in your kids’ schools and activities, whether that’s through the PTA, through coaching sports, or by communicating with their teachers and administrators and school districts. Finally: vote. Vote as if your kids’ well-being depends on it because it very much does.

RC: Tell our readers about your advocacy work on behalf of the LGBTQ community. J&DS: We have spoken at just under 1,000 schools, community organizations, workplaces, legislative hearings, and media outlets since the work began in earnest 20 years ago. We’ve been on Ellen and Oprah, but also a lot of Channel 5s and Channel 12s around the country. We’ve visited close to 30 countries and met with community members, government officials and civil rights advocates, a lot of them in places like Russia, Jamaica or El Salvador, where being LGBTQ is extremely challenging and even frightening. We’ve kind of lost count, but the Foundation staff figures we must have had at least three to four million people hear our message at some point along the way, if not more. It’s a lot of time in airports, it’s a lot of nights in hotels, but we have met the most extraordinary, brave, dedicated people in that time, and we are so humbled and grateful that we have played some small part in making their journeys more positive and hopeful.

RC: Tell our readers about the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. J&DS: The Shepard-Byrd Act is literally the first piece of federal legislation that identified LGBTQ people for some kind of protection instead of some kind of inequality, so it sent a message 10 years ago when it passed that things might be about to change for the better. And they did. It has allowed charges to be brought and justice obtained in almost 50 cases where local authorities couldn’t, or wouldn’t, obtain an appropriate legal outcome in hate crimes against lesbian, gay, and trans people, as well as disabled people. It’s literally changing lives for victims, survivors and their loved ones. It needs to be strengthened, and there needs to be better law enforcement transparency and reporting, and more states need to follow the federal lead in their own state laws, but it has provided a platform from which we can try to make those improvements.

RC: How would you like people to remember your son Matthew? J&DS: It’s important to us that people remember Matt as a whole person, someone who in a fair and just world would be alive today and doing all the normal things -- being in love, doing great work, not experiencing discrimination or violence, who knows, maybe being married, maybe having a kid or two. Certainly, we think he would have been doing work in support of human rights and he would be as upset and driven as we are to change this climate of hate and division we seem to be living in. He can’t do those things because somewhere along the way, two young men who learned how to hate and hurt people fell through the cracks of our society. We want people to be inspired by what Matt could have been, to do some of the work we do and that Matt would be doing.

RC: Is there anything else you’d like to share with Wire Magazine readers? J&DS: Every day of your lives you have a chance sometime during that day to stand up for love, acceptance and understanding, and against hate, discrimination and ignorance. Use those moments. Don’t let them just pass you by. We each have a lot of power to inspire the people close to us to live better, more constructive lives, but a lot of the time we don’t use it. Please use it.

MIAMI BEACH PRIDE ADVOCATE GRAND MARSHAL JUAN SANCHEZ: A CAREER ADVOCATING FOR THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY

One of the best things about being the owner and publisher of Wire Magazine is that I have the opportunity to meet many interesting people from all walks of life. One of those people is Juan Sanchez, this year’s Miami Beach Pride Advocate Grand Marshal. I thought I knew a lot about Juan, but it turns out that I learned much more about him and his career with the Miami Beach Police Department when we sat down for a chat. I strongly encourage everyone to read this interview, so you can learn all about what Juan has done for the LGBTQ community over his 31-year career with the Miami Beach Police Department, what being a gay police officer was like at the beginning of Juan’s career and how it evolved over time.

Rafa Carvajal: How does it feel to be this year’s Miami Beach Pride Advocate Grand Marshal? Juan Sanchez: To say that I am honored is not enough. I have been part of this parade in one way or another since the beginning. It never crossed my mind that one day I would be a Grand Marshal. I am truly blessed to be able to be part of this event. I can’t wait to have fun with my family and friends, and truly partake in my first Miami Beach Pride as a regular Joe.

RC: Tell our readers about your local advocacy work for the LGBTQ community in Miami Beach. JS: In 2010, I was appointed as the LGBTQ liaison between the police department and the LGBTQ community. This position serves as a key advisor to the chief of police and his staff on LGBTQ needs. I identified a potential conflict between the police department and the LGBTQ community, bringing it to the attention of the Chief and his staff. It was my job to conciliate, mediate, facilitate, train and/or refer services, depending on the needs of the department. I built partnerships to address tension and offer suggestions for resolution. I also served as an unofficial hate crimes coordinator, helping where I could with these types of crimes. This was aside from my day to day job, which was as a special victims detective.

RC: What were your most important duties and top 3 accomplishments as the Miami Beach Police Department’s LGBTQ liaison? JS: I believe my most important duty was fostering a positive relationship between the community and the police department. My top 3 accomplishments are:

a) I developed the department’s hate crimes reporting training module, which was taught to all members of the organization. This training was crucial because the proper reporting process assists the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office in filing the proper charges related to hate crimes.

b) I was very fortunate to serve as the department’s ambassador in a series of meetings at the Department of Justice (DOJ) in Washington, D.C. I had the opportunity to help develop their law enforcement and the transgender community training. This training led me to develop the department's transgender interactions standard operating procedure. I was also asked to assist the DOJ in presenting their training throughout Florida and Atlanta, GA.

c) An email written by a 17-year-old male was referred to me. This young man, who was openly gay, was in a panic because his family was threatening to “kick him out of the house” upon graduating from school because of his sexuality. I was able to put him into contact with Pridelines and get him much necessary assistance. I remember thinking how incredibly sad and how courageous this young man really was.

RC: Tell us about your work with the Department of Justice to help develop a transgender training program that was rolled out to police departments across the U.S. JS: This was a once in a lifetime opportunity. To be able to come together with police agencies and LGBTQ organizations from across the country with one common goal was surreal to me. So much was accomplished to help out my law enforcement brothers and sisters better understand the transgender community and vice versa. When I was asked to help roll out the training, I admit I was a little apprehensive. I didn’t know how the training would be accepted by my peers. I was very pleased to see how many officers were receptive to the information presented and how many really did not want to offend anyone in the transgender community. It was a clear sign that times were changing for the better, that the transgender community should no longer fear the police and, instead, see them as allies. It paved the way for the department to be one of the first in Florida to have a standard operating procedure detailing how to interact with the transgender community. This same policy was used by many departments across the U.S. as a model policy for their own agencies. I would be remiss if I didn’t give credit to the Center for Transgender Equality in Washington, D.C. for their help and guidance with the creation of the Miami Beach policy.

RC: What has been your involvement with Miami Beach Pride since its inception? JS: At the beginning, I was simply an officer, who signed up to work a traffic post during the parade. In 2012, I transitioned into what we refer to as the job coordinator. I was responsible for the police response and the security of the event. This was my first event of this caliber. I had to learn a lot very quickly. However, I’d like to think I did a good job. I met many impressive people who taught me a lot and inspired me on a daily basis. I refer to them as my Pride family (they know who they are). They have become such a presence in my life and I’m grateful for the experience we have shared. Even though I retired in January of this year, I am helping the new job coordinator, Sergeant Bobby Hernandez transition into the role. Sergeant Hernandez has been involved since the beginning as well. Although he is not a member of the LGBTQ community, he is an exceptional ally. Isn’t that what Pride is really about, everyone, from all walks of life, coming together for a great event?

RC: How has Miami Beach Pride evolved over the years? JS: It has become bigger and better every year, and 2019 is no different. Everyone associated with Pride is working really hard to make it the fun, family-oriented event it should be. I have been privy to some really new ideas that are going to be unveiled this year. Everyone is going to have to come out and see it for themselves.

RC: How did being a gay man in the Miami Beach Police Department change over your 31-year career? JS: I was terrified of anyone finding out. I struggled with how to fit in. I wanted to be me, but I also loved being a police officer. I remember being at TWIST with friends and asking them to go outside ahead of me, when leaving, to make sure no one from the police department was outside. I finally became brave enough and came out to two colleagues, Officer Robert Silvagni and Howard Bennett. Their reactions gave me the courage to come out to everyone else. After the fact, I realized I had nothing to worry about. All my law enforcement family cared about was that I was there when they needed me and that I did my part. When I retired, I received a beautiful email from Lieutenant Steve Feldman, a great police officer and an equally great friend. He closed out his email with, “I thought about a good saying to briefly describe you and what came to mind was the military’s ‘Don't ask, don't tell’ policy and, in my opinion, you single-handedly made our department and our city embrace a policy of ‘Ask, tell, accept, and move on!’” It still brings tears to my eyes. It has sort of become my mantra. This is a prime example as to how far police departments have come. And yes, Steve, we need to put this on a shirt.

RC: What advice would you give to a young gay man considering becoming a police officer? JS: It’s a great profession unlike any other. Remember that you will have to run towards something when everyone is running away from it. You will be under a microscope at all times. Everyone wants to be a lion until it’s time to be a lion. Lastly, and most importantly, never do anything that will embarrass your chosen profession or tarnish the badge you will earn the right to wear.

RC: Is there anything else you’d like to share with Wire Magazine readers? JS: Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and thank you to the good people in Miami Beach for allowing me to serve with respect and dignity in the community I grew up in.

This was originally published in Wire Magazine Issue Special Issue 2.2019

#wire magazine #wiremag.com #wire #miami #miami beach #south beach #sobe #fort lauderdale #wynwood #wilton manors #gay #lgbt #glbt #miami beach pride

[nofomoartworld]

How Political Art Heats Up a Divided Arizona | #50StatesofArt

As part of 50 States of Art, Creators is inviting artists to contribute first person accounts of what it is like to live and create in their communities. By deploying a range of media and visual strategies, Julio César Morales investigates issues of migration, underground economies, and labor on the personal and global scales. 

In 2011 I drove with my wife and 2-year old child for the first time to Arizona from California. It was a beautiful drive, but once we crossed state lines, the climate started to change—not just the weather, but the culture as well. I noticed politically aggressive bumper stickers on huge pick-up trucks; the most memorable was one of President Barack Obama that altered Shepard Fairey's iconic image, rendering Obama in blackface, with a shooting target over his body.

The memory of this graphic agitation was awakened two weeks ago when artist Karen Fiorito unveiled her latest political billboard art project in downtown Phoenix during the Annual Art Detour art walk in downtown. The billboard features Donald Trump's face on a background of nuclear mushroom clouds and bookmarked by (Capitalist Right) dollar signs—now it's the other side of the coin to Obama's blackface. The artist has received nationwide coverage and some inevitable backlash, such as death threats by Trump's right-wing followers. The opposite side of the billboard is an uplifting graphic image with the slogan "Unite." Beatrice Moore, a longtime patron of the Phoenix arts scene, commissioned the billboard, which she owns, and she has vowed to keep it up as long as Trump remains in office. Most complaints have centered on the supposed "swastikas" next to Trump's image, yet this only reflects the media illiteracy of Arizonans who don't recognize that the imagery is a play on Nazi symbolism. 

Julio Cesar Morales, Undocumented Intervention #7, 9"x12", Watercolor and Ink on Paper, 2007-17. Courtesy of the artist and Gallery Wendi Norris

Politically, Arizona is a complicated state full of contradictions. From middle school kids marching in the street to protest immigration laws to "Fuck Islam" bumper stickers, there is a diverse population, and Arizona is reaching a turning point as a swing state. Artists in Arizona face similar challenges to other cities, in that there are not enough venues to support the work. While the burgeoning arts community comes together every third Friday for open studios and gallery receptions or public programing, is it enough to bring attention to the issues central to the artists's work?

Postcommodity, Repellent Fence, Inflatable Balloons, 10'x10' each, Variable installation dimensions, 2015. Courtesy of the artists

In my own art practice, I work with whatever medium lends itself to a particular project, from watercolors about failed human trafficking attempts, to dinners about California's history, to the experiences of Mexican migrants coming into Arizona. In my work as a curator at the ASU Art Museum, I have been working with international artists such as Superflex, Tania Candiani, Yoshua Okon, and Faivovich & Goldberg, while at the same time supporting local artists, such as the Native-American collective Postcommodity. 

Gabriela Muñoz and M. Jenea Sanchez, Labor, Serigraph on bricks made with Mexican soil, 36 x 264 x 6 inches, 2016. Courtesy of the artists

Working with them to realize the astonishing public art project Repellent Fence epitomizes the energy, courage, and resilience of the arts scene here. The two-mile installation consisted of symbolic "Scary Eye" ten-foot wide balloons floating north and south across the US-Mexico border between the cities of Douglas, AZ and Agua Prieta. Recently, I spoke with the Mayor of Douglas, Robert Uribe, who ran for mayor on the heels of the Postcommodity project and the bi-cultural relationship sparked by city governments on both sides of the border. Trained as an artist, he is committed to continuing the momentum of using art as a form of social change by bringing artists to the region. When asked about Trump's idea for a new wall, he said he would rather spend the energy developing new creative economic models that feature art and culture to attract tourism.

M. Jenea Sanchez, Untitled 1-5, Printed on handmade cholla paper. Photo credit: Joe Trevino  

Rafa Esparza, Reading Performance for Crossfade Lab, 2017. Courtesy of the artist and CALA Alliance. Photo credit: Chandra Narcia

Michael Lundren, The Algaeic Fox, 2006, 32"x40", pigment print. Courtesy of the artist

Check out more work by Julio César Morales at Gallery Wendi Norris in Phoenix, AZ.

All year, we're highlighting 50 States of Art projects around the United States. This month, we're covering Arizona, Mississippi, Nebraska, Maine, and Virginia. To learn more, click here.

Related:

Essay: Growing Up in the Mississippi Delta Made Me a Musician | #50StatesofArt

Essay: New Mexico Is a Haven for Indigenous and Xicano Artists | #50StatesofArt

Essay: A Hawaiian Artist Confronts the Lasting Legacy of Colonialism | #50StatesofArt

from creators http://ift.tt/2o6ukMW via IFTTT

#IFTTT #creators

[fulvius]

Conforme prometido, hoje tem episódio especial do PodQuest sobre a melhor franquia sci-fi dos games: Mass Effect! Rafa, Fernando e Gilliard recebem os patronos Thiago Lopes e Rafael Morais para um quiz sobre a trilogia original do Comandante Shepard, num episódio recheado de memórias e - claro! - hype para o novo episódio da série, Mass Effect: Andromeda! Links: Adicione o feed e tenha todos os episódios quando quiser! http://feeds.feedburner.com/doublejump/podquest Ouça e comente! Se preferir,

via: http://eexponews.com/podquest-193-quem-sabe-mais-sobre-mass-effect_4903127602429952

#tech #eexponews

[icecreampizzer]

Finished some more reference sheets for Therefore I Am! I'd love to link stuff on here but...I'm lazy HDJDKD if you're interested in learning more about this universe, check out my pinned!

Yes these guys also have Will Wood songs as their themes. Feel free to figure them out >:)

Ozzy's original creator is CyanCybershock on TH! Mika's original creator is thetechnicolorphase on tumblr!

#therefore i am #tia #original character #oc #will wood #will wood oc #will wood and the tapeworms #ozzy #rafa shepard #mika shepard #montero emim #gene art #gene ocs

[icecreampizzer]

once again i am putting my ocs into things I enjoy. They are in the therapy trainn

I have a lot more ideas but I need to work on attacks soon GRAHHGGRH

#original character #oc #therefore i am #tia #capgras and cotard #scarlet selena #ozzy #rafa shepard #dr. sunshine #gene art #gene ocs #infinity train au #LMAO. YOU DIDNT SEE THAT #some NERD posted this shit on the WRONG blog couldnt imagine

[icecreampizzer]

SO GIVE ME THAT OLD TIME RELIGION, GIVE ME THAT OLD TIME RELIGION, GIVE ME THAT OLD TIME RELIGION--IT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME!

Another old piece that involved me playing around with painty styles, featuring another character in that one project I'm working on! Her name is Rafa Shepard, and she's a pastor of my own fictional religion.

#will wood #will wood oc #will wood and the tapeworms #wwatt #original character #oc #technically not made for will wood specifically #im just reusing an old character..but whatever #rafa shepard #tia #therefore i am #gene art #gene ocs

[artbookdap]

'Bird,' Rico Gatson's 2015 work on paper, is reproduced from 'Black American Portraits,' published by @delmonico_books and @lacma ⁠ ⁠ Spanning over two centuries from around 1800 to the present day, 'Black American Portraits' chronicles the ways in which Black Americans have used portraiture to envision themselves in their own eyes. Remembering 'Two Centuries of Black American Art,' curated by David C. Driskell at LACMA 45 years ago, this book is a companion to the exhibition of the same name that reframes portraiture to center Black American subjects, sitters and spaces. This selection of approximately 140 works from LACMA’s permanent collection highlights emancipation, scenes from the Harlem Renaissance, portraits from the Civil Rights and Black Power eras, multiculturalism of the 1990s and the spirit of Black Lives Matter.⁠ ⁠ Artists include: Alvin Baltrop, Edward Biberman, Bisa Butler, Jordan Casteel, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Bruce Davidson, Stan Douglas, rafa esparza, Shepard Fairey, Charles Gaines, Sargent Claude Johnson, Deana Lawson, Kerry James Marshall, Alice Neel, Lorraine O'Grady, Catherine Opie, Amy Sherald, Ming Smith, Henry Taylor, Tourmaline, Mickalene Thomas, James Van Der Zee, Carrie Mae Weems, Charles White, Kehinde Wiley and Deborah Willis.⁠ ⁠ Edited with text by Christine Y. Kim and Myrtle Elizabeth Andrews. Forewords by Mary Schmidt Campbell and Michael Govan. Text by Hilton Als, Bridget R. Cooks, Ilene Susan Fort, Dhyandra Lawson, Jeffrey C. Stewart. Afterword by Naima J. Keith.⁠ ⁠ Read more via linkibio.⁠ ⁠ #blackamericanportraits @cyknycla @lazyt4road @hilton.als @dhyandra @jeffreycstewart @naimajoy⁠ ⁠@rico_gatson #ricogatson https://www.instagram.com/p/CnChcYrOO-8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#blackamericanportraits #ricogatson

[anderfels]

"Drunk Sorority Girl" Rafa: You're hair is so nice Kaidan, what's your routine? Kaidan: I...uh wash it and then style it. Rafa: oh my god I have to try that!

KDJFBSK BASICALLY.

Miranda: You know, Tali showed Shepard a vid of a varren playing with a teddy bear, and now they’re both crying.

Kaidan, firmly in the “this might as well happen” phase of dealing with a drunk Rafael: Make sense.

#codex: rafael shepard #cw alcohol #heroofshield

[anderfels]

I know you said we didn't have to submit questions, but I would like to know more about Rafael Shepard pls (3, 6, 17, 39, & 90).

Ah! :D Thank you for taking an interest, Hero! 

3. What do they wear to bed?

Rafa is a simple man with simple tastes. A black t-shirt and whatever boxers he had on serves him just fine. 

6. What do they look like? 

I’m not the best at describing people, so I decided to make a little doodle instead.

If I ever decide to actually use words, I’ll come back and update this! 

Random fun fact regarding appearance: he bleached his hair blond back when he was 14 (without his parents’ permission) but he does not talk about it and any attempts to get him to talk about it are only met with stone-cold silence. 

17. Do they have a best friend? If so, who, and what makes them their best friend?

Rafa’s best friend is Kaidan! 

When they first met, they bonded over being human biotics. Their personalities ended up meshing well together--they’re both rather soft-spoken and reserved--although they can come to a head occasionally as Rafa is more logic-driven and Kaidan is more emotion-driven. 

But, simply put, Rafa prefers the company of Kaidan to that of the others. Not that he doesn’t like the others but with Kaidan, he feels like he’s not pressured to be Shepard, you know? Kaidan has this calming effect on him, and he always feels more comfortable with Kaidan by his side. 

39. Do they have any tattoos? 

He has a tattoo of a solid black box underneath his right ear. It’s not the easiest to see, what with his earlobe covering a good half of it and it being small enough that you could probably mistake it for a large mole, but if you were to see it and ask about it, he’d say that it’s in remembrance of Mindoir, the colony where he grew up. 

90. What is a joke they would find funny?

“Don’t trust atoms; they make up everything!” 

#long post #codex: rafael shepard #heroofshield