Girls Speak: Decriminalizing Youth with Art and Digital Media Making Opening at Stormwater Studios January 18th

 
 

Girls Speak features art and other digital creative media made by adolescent girls at Lexington County Juvenile Arbitration Center. This exhibition challenges what it means to be a “criminal offender,” as well as sheds light upon the experiences of adolescent criminality. There is a motif of joy and resiliency, and not losing hope, which pervades the artwork shown in Girls Speak.

This exhibition is coordinated by the UofSC Diversity and Inclusion Pilot Grant and the Women’s Well-Being Initiative, a part of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program. 

The opening reception will be January 19th from 5:30 to 6:30, and will be followed by a public forum from 6:30 to 8:00. However, the exhibition can be viewed from January 18th at 11:00 am to January 22nd at 3:00 pm. Stormwater Studios is located at 413 Pendleton Street.

All artist’s identities have been concealed for protection.

Announcing Jasper Galleries at the Koger Center Featuring New Work by Thomas Crouch, January - February

We are excited to announce the newest location in our Jasper Galleries series: Jasper Galleries at the Koger Center. As part of our effort to promote local artists and support local art endeavors, Jasper has teamed up with the Koger Center to craft this gallery space with hopes to draw more visitors to the Center and to create a new stop in the Vista’s existing Third Thursday.

Presently, Thomas Crouch is scheduled for January, Lindsay R. Wiggins is scheduled for February, and Quincy Pugh is scheduled for March. Each show will have an Opening Reception and Artist Talk on the Third Thursday of their respective month, and the work will remain up for the remainder of the 4-week period separating shows.

 
 

Thomas Crouch is a visual artist in Columbia SC. After studying at The Lorenzo De Medici School of Art 1990-92 in Florence, Italy he graduated from the University of South Carolina Bachelor of Arts in 1997. He was accepted into the inaugural Sedona Summer Colony Artist Residency 2016 in Sedona, Arizona as well as the Con Artist Collective Winter Residency 2017 in Manhattan NY. He is a member of Solas Studio NYC and has work in private collections nationally and internationally.

On Thursday, January 19th from 6:00pm – 8:00pm, Crouch’s Opening Reception will initiate the new gallery with a showing of his new work entitled Process Abandon. He will hold an Artist Talk at 7:00pm, and art will be available to purchase during the reception as well as throughout the month via QR codes on each individual label.

According to the artist, “This group of paintings focuses on the process. Composition, texture, and value become the subject matter. I’ve wanted to do large abstract nonrepresentational pieces where the viewer can interpret the paintings rather than the artist dictate their experience. This departure from the animal portraiture I’ve done in the past is refreshing to me. Incorporating the two has been both frustrating and rewarding. Painting this way is interesting to me because the end result changes from day to day. The final image is not known to me. There are no blueprints to work on top of and no animals to envelope the canvas. Instead, thick brush strokes create linear texture and wheat pasted prints demand attention from the rest of the canvas. The images shown here that serve as a subject are merely vehicles for the piece. My work has continually changed over the years. This recent change is a return to early form as well as a new direction. Every new piece builds on the last while exposing something new. This group of paintings are the most recent examples of an ongoing process of layering looking and leaving.”

 The work will hang in Koger’s Hallway Gallery, which is located on the 2nd floor of their main lobby. Many thanks to Nate Terracio (Director), Chip Wade (Marketing Director), and Emily Moffitt (Marketing and Administrative Assistant) at the Koger Center for their shared vision and their work in making this new location a possibility.

For more information about our spaces visit the Jasper Galleries page.

The Supper Table Visits the Myrtle Beach Art Museum

After a 6-month-long residency at the Morris Center for Low Country Heritage in Ridgeland, South Carolina, Jasper’s multidisciplinary, collaborative arts project, The Supper Table is moving to Myrtle Beach. The table, place settings, portraits, tiles and films about the project will be exhibited at the Franklin G. Burroughs—Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum from January 26th until April 16th. Exhibit details are on their website.

More about The Supper Table

Welcome to 2023! Cola-based Artists Share Their New Year’s Resolutions


We often struggled with creating our own New Year’s Resolutions, so this year, Jasper turned to creators themselves to see what they hoped for their 2023s. Hoping you take as much inspiration from these as we as did! 

Artists shared the simple but deep desire to create more, from the general to the specific:

“To sketch everyday” – Laura Garner Hine

“To create more art, see more art and share more art” – Keith Tolen

“To create a fresh collection of meaningful works to show by the end of the year.” – Ashley Herring Warthen

“To be more consistent and spend time in the studio every day.” – Olga Yuhkno

“To sketch a few times each week even though I am working a regular job and still in school.” – Heather Lynn Endicott

“To complete my translation of Havamal, and put together the video where I tell the story.” – Price Lassahn-Worrell

Some artists addressed the desire to return to unfinished projects – with both earnest desire and humor:

“To finish a few of the many unfinished works sitting in my studio. To find creative inspiration and spurs.” – B.A. Hohman

“My 2023 New Year's resolution is to finish all the craft projects from 2022 that I should have done in 2021, since I started them in 2020 after buying the supplies for them in 2019.” – Valerie Lamott

 

A recurrent theme was the desire to stop listening to the nagging voice in the back of our minds that tries to scare us or quiet us:

“To be less critical of my art and to be more open to ideas flowing in and reconnect with my inner voice.” Renee Rouillier

“To override my inner critic and follow my intuition.” – Ginny Meret

 

Similarly, artists shared a desire for understanding of themselves and the space they occupy:

“To respect the fact that life brings changes and art sometimes has to occupy a different position on the list of priorities.” – Mary Ann Haven

“To paint more of what I WANT to paint.” – Sean Madden

“To paint and write (about my daily experiences, culture, and cooking) on a daily basis in 2023. I could not manage to paint or write regularly in 2022 although I realize and internalize how painting and writing are effectively helpful to my inner peace and well-being (my mental health) and nurture my inner child.” – Khin Myat

 

The desire for self-exploration came up again and again:

“To explore new mediums, to be more vulnerable, to be more generous.” – Lucy Bailey

“To delve deeper into the world of sound & rhythm by availing myself of educational opportunities. The goal being to broaden and enhance my understanding of how sound affects us and to incorporate that knowledge into my craft.” – Dick Moons

“To play with more mix media, experiment more with oils, delve into interchangeable art with my business partner Barry wheeler who always pushes me to keep exploring.” – Michael Krajewski

“To allow Artist-Self more Exploration of Shadow Self//privately (perhaps publicly) …let those kids merge—dissolve some things and mend some others, all the while being colorful, honest and vulnerable through visual & written prophetic blabber!” – Emily Wright

 

And, artists expressed a desire to grow within a community, with goals for unity and collaboration:

“1. Listen to people more and work on humility as well as developing healthy, in person relationship that encourage aggressive kindness. 2. Help cultivate and create a culture of collaboration with “Columbia-Centric" artists from all mediums in order to reinforce a positive art infrastructure. 3. Finish writing and producing three original albums. 4. Stay clean and sober. 5. Serve the city.” – Saul Seibert

“To see, and be a part of, more collaboration with artists and our communities. Utilizing our talents and materials to create and unify....” – Gina Langston Brewer

The common message among these various goals is this: create what you want to create, create whenever you can, and create in constellations. The act of making something, of there now being something where there once was nothing, may often be simple, but it is magical. Go into 2023 treating yourself with grace and with the open-mind and willingness to create something where there wasn’t something before.

And Happy New Year—from all of us!

A Playground in Kyiv

The year is ending and the war in Ukraine has been going now for more than 10 months. As we reflect on the blessings and losses of the past year, we think about the hardships of those suffering still from war, violence, and the struggle over national borders. As we reflect on the state of the world, we offer here a poem by USC student Alexander Seyfried.

Alexander writes, “I have been living in South Carolina ever since 2000. Part of my family on my mother’s side comes from Ukraine in the capital of Kyiv. Before 2014, when Putin annexed Crimea away from Ukraine, which was the starting point of the Russo-Ukrainian War, my mother and I would travel to Kyiv every summer to visit our family and friends since I was around four or five years old. Over those two or three summer months, I would make many precious memories with my family and friends and would travel visiting different parts of Ukraine. Today, some of my family members are still alive during the current war, as well as some of my friends who I still have contact with. I wish I could say I knew where the rest of my childhood friends are and how well they are doing right now. I would like to share a poem from memories of how each day I would be with my friends at the playground before these nightmarish events even happened.”

A Playground in Kyiv 

Overseas apartment in Kyiv
every summer when I was kid
two small playgrounds with old childhood memories.
Green and blue wooden benches
old broken wooden sandboxes under trees.
Jumping off blue metal color swings
flying high through the air
landing on soft sand underneath.

Climbing on big and small trees
eating chips while drinking bottles of Pepsi
acting like monkeys sitting on tree branches.
Having peach, pear, and spikey green chestnut trees
with thin paper birches and thick oak trees.

Red paint chipping from two tall metal slides
sliding down not with our butts,
but standing on our feet like surfers
riding down ten times in a row.
The only American kid from the friend group
wishing to reunite with my old Ukrainian friends once more.

Columbia Artists Share Their Christmas Wishes for the Art Community

It’s that time of year again, where we deck our halls and trim our trees, scoot closer on our couches to those we love, and curl up tight in our blankets as we sip hot chocolate (which South Carolinians can actually do this year—brr!). It’s in these moments of peace and joy we often close our eyes to make our Christmas wish. This year, here at Jasper, we asked a handful of our local artists their wish, specifically: “If you could make one Christmas wish for the Columbia arts community, what would it be?”



Artists wished for more space—places old and new alike where they can freely share their creative gifts with the city they love.

“Main St. Back…”
—Michael Krajewski, visual artist

“More places to show (and make) art!”
—Lucas Sams, visual artist

“An artist’s alley in a public space where anyone can contribute however/whenever they want!”
—Cait Maloney, visual artist

“As a member of the Cola arts community, if I had one present for Christmas, it would be to have more spaces like CMFA (or to expand CMFA), where community members can rehearse and perform and support each other (for free)!! CMFA has been invaluable to Bonnie [Boiter-Jolley] and I’s company, the Columbia Repertory Dance Company!” 
—Stephanie Wilkins, dancer and Artistic Director of Columbia Repertory Dance Company


Artists wished for an expansion of funds for local artists so that they can express themselves fully and without burden.

“I think the community could give back to the artists—no strings attached guaranteed income for those who pour into the community with their creative gifts and talents. This would help artists have the opportunity to at least cover living expenses due to the increase of the cost of living and still have the opportunity to pursue a creative career.”
—Maya Smith, visual artist

I’d wish for sufficient financing for artists to present their art to the community. There are many costs involved in producing a play, a concert, a ballet, and other art events that ticket prices alone cannot cover. To have the financial support from the public and private sectors to present our art in the best way possible would be an amazing Christmas present.
— Becky Hunter, performer


Artists wished to spend more time with each other, to acknowledge each other and create inter-community support.

“More togetherness throughout the arts community where everyone mutually supports each other, meets together quarterly, and promotes each other.” 
—Arischa Conner Frierson, actor

“A 3-Day retreat filled with Skill Shares and Improv and Games so that we can learn to love each other even more. Like Family <3”
—Monifa Lemons, poet and actor


And, finally, artists wished for the chance to grow as humans and creators, not just within themselves but within a community as a whole where each person can better the other.

“My holiday wish (mostly for myself but also) for the Columbia arts community is for the courage to be open. I know I can seem insular because of my own internal obstacles, but I think collaboration can elevate our art beyond our skillsets and help us fulfill and even exceed our creative concepts. Collaboration builds our artistic support systems and creates informed testing audiences. While I believe it’s important for one to make the art one needs to make without regard to how others may receive it, I believe it’s also nice to be able to ask for constructive criticism and maybe be given encouragement along the way to a project’s completion. I don’t know if I’ll personally gain this kind of courage by the time January rolls around (or ever), but I’m always hopeful I will and that others might, too!”
— Desirée Richardson (Death Ray Robin), musician

“As a social worker, I was trained to practice from a ‘strengths perspective.’ This perspective acknowledges challenges while encouraging us to identify and work with whatever resources we have access to within ourselves and the community. So, the gift I’m hopeful for this year is our collective vision to see the strengths that exist within the Columbia arts community and to employ those resources in fostering expressive projects that bring meaning to people’s lives.”
—Lang Owen, musician

“My Christmas wish for Columbia is…more people of skill and intellect and intuition and caring go see more shows and performances and exhibitions. These people would then share their thoughts and impressions with the rest of us. Helping to strengthen and spur the conversations between art and artists and patrons. CRITICS! I want more critics of every size, shape, gender, sex, color and perspective to do good work in Columbia.”
—Darion McCloud, performer and storyteller

“I want all the artists and soon-to-be artists in Columbia to find, embrace, and share their gift. I hope that even when it’s dark they see they are loved and supported.”
—Adam Corbett, musician and visual artist


From our family of artists and art supporters, we thank everyone for the love they have shown this community this year, and our Christmas wish for you today and always is that you have all the joy and support there is to offer. Merriest of Christmases—and have an extra boozy eggnog on us!



Announcing Tiny Gallery’s 2022 Ornament Show

Last year, Jasper had its first Tiny Gallery Ornament Show, and this year we’re doing it again with five artists across disciplines. From ceramics to acrylic to trolls, these handmade works make a perfect gift or addition to your own holiday decorations.

Check out our lineup and mark your calendars for when their work goes on sale December 1st!

Adam Corbett

Photo by David Russell Stringer

Adam Corbett is a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and visual artist from Lexington, South Carolina. After releasing numerous records, helping to produce a musical, and taking a break from his career as a music teacher, Adam branched out into visual art as a way to cope with the COVID-19 lockdown. Throughout that period, he has experimented with various mediums in a variety of formats focusing always on exploration, play, and following his muse.

Tennyson Corley

Tennyson Corley is a contemporary artist from the heart of South Carolina. Her current work is what she describes as "ceramic illustration." Sculptural story-book creatures with a healthy dose of Beatrice Potter and Orwellian Animal Farm influence, each with their own, at times, humorous back story.

You can check out her work on Instagram @tennyson_corley_art and on her website: https://www.tennysoncorleyart.com/

Michael Krajewski

Michael Krajewski is a self-taught artist who has shown in numerous galleries, collaborated on large, commissioned pieces for museums, painted live at art events and been the subject of magazine and newspaper profiles. He was Jasper Magazine’s first centerfold in 2011. His style has been called neo-expressionist and compared to Jean-Michel Basquiat's, though Krajewski says he is less interested in defining, more interested in producing. He’s had solo shows at the HoFP Gallery, Frame of Mind, and Anastasia & Friends in Columbia, SC, and participated in a two-person show at the Waterfront Gallery in Charleston and in a group show at 701 Whaley.

Holly Rauch

Holly has always had a creative streak, starting as a child sketching characters from the Sunday comics, and enjoying cross-stitch needlework and paper crafts as an adult. Her recent interest in acrylic painting began by attending “paint parties” with friends. With no formal art education but wanting to learn more, she used online tutorials to teach herself dot art, palette knife work, fluid acrylics, one-stroke, and other acrylic techniques. She’s most enthusiastic about abstract designs, but also enjoys painting landscapes, scenes of nature, flora, and fauna. In 2006, Holly lost her only child, Lyssa, to cancer. Lyssa was 20 years old and a sophomore at Winthrop University in Rock Hill SC, studying technical theater when she passed away. The Lyssa Rauch Memorial Scholarship was established in Winthrop’s Department of Theater and Dance, funded entirely by private donations. But when the scholarship experienced financial difficulties, Holly decided to start selling her art and use her hobby to benefit a worthy cause. Now the proceeds from the sale of Holly’s art directly funds this scholarship. A $1,000 award is presented each spring to a rising 4th or 5th year student, keeping Lyssa’s memory alive, and helping future artists follow their own passions in the arts. Holly is a member of the Cayce Arts Guild. She lives in Lexington SC with her husband Todd Leger, Alexandra the Golden Retriever, and three crazy cats: Jaime, Tyrion, and Cercei. You can view Holly’s entire body of work at her Facebook page “Heartisan Love”: htps://www.facebook.com/HeartisanLove

Lucas Sams

Lucas Sams is an award-winning Columbia, SC multi-media artist working in painting, sculpture, film, digital/multimedia, and installation art. Sams works have been exhibited locally and regionally in major art festivals, galleries, and alternative spaces, and featured in Jasper Magazine, the SC State Newspaper, Garnet and Black Magazine, and the Timber Journal of the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Opus and the Frequencies Want to Bring People and Good Vibes Together

“Be yourself and do what you love. It might not take you to the moon, but at least you’ll find your people and where you belong.”

Photo by Kati Baldwin

Opus & the Frequencies is genre-bending band lead by Tony “Opus” Williams on vocals, piano and guitar with Steven Tapia-Macias on bass, Jesse Tortorella on drums and Kirk Barnes on guitar. Their fun high energy live shows, and eclectic set list that is the perfect mix of originals and covers, has positioned them to be a Columbia favorite.

JASPER: How did Opus & the Frequencies come to be?

O&TF: Tony describes it as a heist movie, when the lead thief has to assemble a team, each brings something unique to the table. He first met Steven, bassist and social media guru, and Joud, our future sound man and equipment extraordinaire, at jams in his off-campus apartment while they were students at South Carolina. Tony had known Jesse, the drummer man, from some other gigs around town and he was the next to be collected. Then when he was working at Campus IT, he had a co-worker whose boyfriend played guitar. He went to meet him, and check if he was really worth a damn since everybody plays guitar, so Kirk was the last of the Frequencies to be brought into the fold.  

Since Tony briefly thought he was a Pokemon trainer, and he set out to catch ‘em all, with the group originally having several different members and line-ups before finally settling into Opus and The Frequencies. 

 

JASPER: What does your writing process look like?

O&TF: Everyone in the group is different, but we’ll focus on Tony since he writes the majority of the lyrics. First, he’ll have an idea that basically starts worming its way into his ear. Then settling into humming and singing melodies and different instrumental ideas before going to the piano, or occasionally guitar, to play around with it until something more occurs to him. Once settled on things like melody and chord progression, he’ll usually use fill-in, “dummy,” lyrics until he can sit and have some time to flesh out the lyrics seriously. For F.A.M., we have a very early recording, probably the first day we had been messing with it so all it was a guitar riff so Tony starts to sing “I’ll Make a Man out of You” from the movie Mulan, for whatever reason that was what spoke to him the most in that moment. As for the whole group if we’re doing group writing day or something to that effect, we all bring our own individual ideas, but just jamming on something, liking it, and then running with it is our usual M.O.

 

JASPER: You guys, Tony specifically is all about conveying honest emotions on stage. Can you talk a little more about that and how emotion fits into your music.

O&FT: Honestly, it’s mostly about being human, and being accepted for that. Things in life are rarely easy, but doing what you love and having people not only accept that, but really vibe with it as well, is incredibly fulfilling. For “Jesse’s Song” specifically, Kirk wrote the music years ago on his own, and he didn’t even realize or set out to give the song the vibe it has, but for whatever reason I (Tony) picked up on that immediately. I really bonded with the feelings it produced, and combined with things my own personal life, everything just fit together perfectly. When I sat down to write the lyrics, they turned out to not only fit the tune, but some of the feelings he had when he was originally writing it. 

 

JASPER: When do you know if something is done?

O&FT: Nothing’s ever done! Or at least it doesn’t feel like we’re ever finished with anything that we’re doing. Things percolate and get refined and eventually settle into the established order. We usually either run out of time or we’ve got nothing left, and then we’re “done” until our next great idea. 

 

JASPER: Who inspires you?

O&FT: We’re a pretty eclectic group, and we pride ourselves on being diverse musically and personality-wise. Some specific artists who inspire us would be Bruno Mars, George Daniel (The 1975), Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Fela Kuti, as well as the musical community here in Columbia. There are so many artists and friends doing so many incredible things that it’s hard not to be inspired.  

 

JASPER: What motivates you?

O&FT: As cliche as it sounds, it's all about having fun and a good time, for us and hopefully the audience. There are all these different energies and “frequencies” coming together, not just between the guys, but also between us and the crowd. When that comes together it’s really an incredible feeling. The band is a melting pot, and Columbia is too, so you get this really crazy, beautiful mix of music people and experiences. 

 

JASPER: What gets in your way?

O&FT: What gets in anyone’s way?  The usual stuff: someone’s having a bad day or in a bad mood, we forgot some piece of equipment and we’re 2 hours from home and an hour from the venue, Jesse losing his glasses.  Having fun is essential, but it can also distract you. The usual stuff.  

 

JASPER: What is your favorite or least favorite show you’ve played and why?

O&FT: We’ve had a lot of great ones, including one last year with Kirk proposing with a song he wrote.  We had a lot of friends and family there so that was a special one. But overall, we’d have to say our show this past summer at Music at Midsummer, a festival hosted by Valley Bear Collective. We really swung for the fences by adding in 5 other musicians, including horns and background vocalists, in addition to our core four. It was almost too much, but somehow, we pulled it off with the great people at VBC and our honorary Freq’s.  

We got to see the glory of “The Tentapolis at OpusCity” which was our campground set up.  You really can’t beat spending a weekend up in the mountains with a couple hundred awesome people and just rocking out for 3 straight days. Especially when there’s great music and company all around you.  

 

JASPER: Do you have any kind of pre-show rituals or traditions?

O&FT: As we get closer to showtime Tony will start to do his vocal warm ups and meditation, to really get in the zone. Then we get the group together and have a stretching session just like back in gym class. Some hype-up stuff goes on, a little bit of light ragging each other and joking around, and then we’re off. Occasionally Kirk and Tony sing “Ironic” by Alanis Morisette, but not for anything other than fun and because that song rocks.  

 

JASPER: What do you like and or dislike about the Columbia music scene?

O&FT: We've briefly touched on this previously, but you can boil it down to the community and camaraderie you get with other artists here in town. There is a ton of cross-pollination happening with genres, bands and community. People show up and support each other! There are just so many people out here trying to take Columbia’s scene to the next level. You see it in sharing news of friend’s upcoming gigs, and raising money for local causes and you can’t help but be in awe of it.

 

JASPER: What advice do you have for other artists?

O&FT: Be yourself and do what you love. It might not take you to the moon, but at least you’ll find your people and where you belong. You’ll probably learn a lot about yourself along the way.  

                       

JASPER: Anything else you want readers to know?

JASPER: We’ve got a saying we like to live by: “All Frequencies (Freq’s) Welcome!” It means that you are welcome in our community, and we want to bring people and good vibes together  

 

Opus & the Frequencies are releasing their new single “Jesse’s Song” and a music video for “Survivor” on October 20th. They also have an EP on the way soon. Come see them play live October 21st at Jasper Project’s House Show with Death Ray Robin and Joseph Hunter Duncan at

You can also check our their website for upcoming shows at opusfrequencies.com and follow them on instagram and facebook

PATx Dressing For The Fight and Getting “Naked” for His Fans

“We’re always at war with something. If those things were tangible, how would you dress?”

 
 

Patrick Rutledge, PATx, is a self-produced recording artist, performer, filmmaker, and visual artist, and his music is just as multifaceted as he is. Each of his albums presents a new surface, but with a solid unmistakable core that is his sound. A sound that is its own unique creature– furious, complex, emotionally raw and pieced together from all the best parts of hardcore, metal, and hip-hop. With this sound, his talent for writing, mixing, producing, and rapping, along with a strong visual aesthetic PATx is definitely impressive.

 

JASPER: First off, is there anything you aren't good at? Videos, music, and visual art –Is it difficult to juggle all of that, and how do you decide what gets focus? 

RUTLEDGE: I can’t whistle, so that’s definitely something I’m not good at. But yeah, I always find myself prioritizing ideas: some have to live in fantasy world for a bit because the resources needed are just unrealistic at this stage, others get placed in a list based on various factors like time-sensitivity, how long it would take to make, how excited I am about it, etc. etc. It gets tough to juggle sometimes, but I’d rather have a lot of ideas than a lack of.

 

JASPER: You say tactical gear and masks are part of your aesthetic because they are a “physical representation of raging against internal struggles and fighting adversity”. Can you talk more about this and how you’ve built your visual identity?

RUTLEDGE: I think my aesthetic has been built by my self-actualization. I didn’t really find/establish my brand until 2019, but many of its factors were cursory long before…just not fully explored or developed. Everything is representative of battling self-and/or other: the tactical gear, the masks worn, the content in the songs, the visuals. I think my brand works because it’s an attention grabber. For those who are experiencing it for face-value: great, it’s interesting enough to click. For those that stick around and really dissect it, there’s even more there for you. I reflect on the human experience like anyone else, but maybe it’s harder to push those thoughts to the periphery when I do it…it’s too loud.

I take a lot of inspiration from techwear, military gear, grunge, goth, and streetwear fashion. We’re always at war with something. If those things were tangible, how would you dress?

 

JASPER: What is your creative process like?

RUTLEDGE: My creative process is pretty formless in its initial stages. It can be a voice recording of me humming into my phone a melody or concept (I have countless recordings like that), a instrumental I made, or lyrics I thought of. Of course, as you continue to build on an idea, you have to introduce structure, but I always try to keep an open mental pocket for impromptu decisions and spontaneity…my best work always come from that element.

 

JASPER: Which of your songs is your favorite or least favorite and why? 

RUTLEDGE: I don’t think I have a favorite or a least-favorite. My favorite (I guess) is typically the most-recent for a bit, and my least-favorite (I guess) is the one I listen to at a later date and realize all the things I could’ve done to make it better.

 

JASPER: Is there a particular verse or line you've written that you really love? 

RUTLEDGE:  My second verse on Lanc III (feat. H3RO) is a favorite because I think it does such a good job of encapsulating my entire experience pursuing music. A couple of other one-liners (or whatever) that mean a ton to me are, “how do you describe the feeling that you’ve been feeling? How to make it rhyme and fit it inside a sentence,” and “On my mama Heaven aint a place and we create our Hell, on my mama God and Satan both exist within ourselves.”

 

JASPER: What motivates you?

RUTLEDGE:  I’m very motivated by my own potential. That sounds narcissistic, but I’ve always felt like just that…potential. To see the actualization of all that potential and the value it can provide is a big driver for me.

 

JASPER: What gets in your way? 

RUTLEDGE:  Of course, I can say all the external things: money, time, location, things I didn’t have a say in, blah blah blah. But really, I’m the only thing in my way. Everything is my fault…and it may seem counter-intuitive, but I find solace in that. Giving myself that full accountability returns the leverage and control (or the mirage thereof) back to me.

 

JASPER: How do you know when something is done? 

RUTLEDGE: Something in my head just says “yeah, we’re done here.” Rarely do I finish songs in one session though. There’s song that sat halfway done for years even before revisiting and finishing them. Divine timing, laziness, scatterbrain, who knows.

 

JASPER: Who are your biggest influences and why? 

RUTLEDGE: I don’t know. I’m inspired by everything…examples of what I wanna do, what I definitely DON’T wanna do. If you’d rather have names: J.Cole is like a big brother to me. Eminem took my innocence. Kanye West’s contribution to both fashion, public discord (good and bad), and music is inspiring, XXXTENTACION, Mac Miller, System of a Down, Ghostemane, Rise Against, Gorillaz. I’m going to look back and hate myself for the names I missed, but here we are.

 

JASPER: Out of all the videos you've made, which is your favorite and why?

RUTLEDGE:  Crazytown is my favorite music video thus far. It is VERY close to what I envisioned in my head. I also like the theme: it is a large metaphor for protecting your heart from temptation, doubt, etc. etc.

I watched it again recently and decided that Werewolf is also another favorite. When I made it, it wasn’t quite what I envisioned, but there are some parts in there that I think are great, particularly the scene where I’m fighting myself from turning into a werewolf.

I think both visuals have the grit and aesthetic I’m going for with my imagery.

 

JASPER: If three of your songs were a location, place or physical space what would they be?

RUTLEDGE:  “Breach” would be a sold out show where I jump into the crowd from the stage and mosh with them.

Someone listened to “Foolish” and told me it felt like Los Angeles and walking the beach, which is amazing because I created the Moving Still project in LA…much of it being conceptualized either in Hollywood, Santa Monica Beach, or Hermosa Beach.

I didn’t release this album under my name, but Crew (2014) feels like my hometown. It is a love letter to it and my friends, my “crew.” It’s under artist name TCAP803, which has its own explanation as well.

  

JASPER: What do you like and or dislike about the Columbia music scene? 

RUTLEDGE:  I love that there are so many artists and opportunities to build here. I dislike the lack of platform. Many people are doing great things, very few are doing these things at scale (whether that “scale” be profitability or audience).

 

JASPER: Do you have any advice for other artists? 

RUTLEDGE:  You’re a business, operate like it. Learn marketing, it is the answer

 

JASPER: Anything else you want us to know? 

RUTLEDGE:  I have a show and you should come. If enough people come, I’m gonna take my clothes off so…

You can see PATx, potentially without clothes on, at New Brookland Tavern on October 15th from 7-11pm for a zombie-themed experience featuring Crazy Karl, H3RO & The Villians.
Learn more about THE ExPERIENCE: OUTBREAK.

Gotta Catch ‘Em All – Artist Trading Cards with Jasper

There’s no better grouping than free live music, free art, and Jasper!

The Jasper Project will be hosting a tent at the Jam Room Music Festival on October 1! At our table, we will be participating in the artist trading card movement! The artist trading cards have been around since the late 1990s but has recently hit a cultural renaissance. With the return of something so great as Jam Room, we’re doing a test run of the artist trading card project at our tent!

This project is targeted towards audiences of all ages who want to make and collect both their own art and art from others around them. The trading cards are 2.5”x3.5”. After creating your piece of art, you can keep your card or trade it in with another artist’s card from our display wall of completed trading cards. Not feeling artistic? Are you short on time? Do you still want to take home some art? In an exchange for a donation to the Jasper Project, you can choose a trading card from the display to keep; several artists from around Columbia will have made trading cards prior to the festival for us to include in the display and make available for trading.

For the Jam Room table, we will provide alcohol markers and potentially pastels for visitors to use on their trading cards. In the future, we aim to feature different media for everyone to use and keep making art with. This is a project we also intend to bring to other events like happy hours or other low-key happenings.

Jasper Project board members and volunteers will be present throughout the day to talk with interested audiences about our upcoming projects and to answer any lingering questions you may have. Stop by, make some art, grab a Jasper magazine, and listen to the music!

People making cards at Artists Showing Artists (May 2023)

Cards made at the Jam Room Music Festival (October 2022)

Cards made at the Jam Room Music Festival (October 2022)

Desirée Richardson: “Say [Her] Entire Name”—and Remember It!

 

Photo by Lola Scott (@lolascottart) in Atlanta, GA

 

Vocalist, pianist, and writer Desirée Richardson—a member of local bands Say Femme, Flower Shopping and Pandercakes—has been performing and releasing music solo as Death Ray Robin since 2020. Classically trained, Richardson has an impressive vocal range and command as well as a writing style that is both refreshing and yet still comfortably familiar. She presents frustration, angst, and vulnerability in a beautifully melodic package that is a pleasure to listen to.

 

JASPER: How did Death Ray Robin come to be and what has it been like branching out on your own?

RICHARDSON: I started this project partially because of my ego and communication problems, and mostly because of the 2020 lockdown. I’ve been singing back-up for other musicians since 2010, and I was (and am!) sitting on a collection of songs that I had written in 2019. I decided that since I couldn’t attend any rehearsals or recording sessions, I could try doing my own thing. I’m someone who bottles my feelings until I can’t anymore, so I thought that singing through my problems could help me, whether or not I decide to actually tell people how I’m feeling. I was also tired of feeling nameless and faceless. There are people who have seen Flower Shopping and have never realized I was on stage.

 

JASPER: What does your writing process look like?

RICHARDSON: I approach songwriting by first identifying the mood or sentiment I’m trying to evoke. Next, I start with a single lyric and sing it to a melody. When I’ve sung whatever the melody is, I figure out what key it’s in. I like to work at the piano, so if it’s a key that’s too annoying (I’m lazy!!) to play, I transpose it to the closest, easiest key. After I’m done with the song, I decide whether or not I wanna transpose it back to the “original” key. I usually don’t!! When I’ve figured out what (sometimes temporary) key I’m gonna write in, I choose chord progressions that sound “right”. Luckily for me, I suck at music theory, so I kinda disregard some of what we learned in school. I build the song melodically/lyrically from there!!

 

JASPER: What inspires you?

RICHARDSON: I’m inspired by poetic, flowery language. I love words with more than one meaning, and I love subtext and just about all literary devices. I enjoy books with footnotes so I can understand whatever obsolete word or reference an author might choose to use. I’m inspired by melancholy, the day-to-day, things I don’t express but wish I would, my lived experiences, the concepts of revenge and forgiveness, and by hope.

 

JASPER: What gets in your way?

RICHARDSON: Depression and feeling like a fraud are my biggest obstacles. I know some of my peers can release an album every year or are able to write a song every day or are able to sing circles around me. I don’t know if I can truly improve on my songwriting and practice habits or if I have a whole album in me. On top of not always believing in myself, I feel terrible all the time, so I don’t do the things I “should” do, and that makes me feel worse. It creates an unending cycle of “could’ve, didn’t, hate-myself; hate-myself, can’t, won’t.” I wonder why I even bother to write songs or sing because I don’t feel like a “real” musician. Kermit the Frog once sang, “Why wonder?” I guess I do it because I’m drawn to it, so I try to be okay with that and hope it’s reason enough to sing or write.

 

JASPER:  How do you know if something is done?

RICHARDSON: I usually stop the writing process when I don’t have a “better” way of saying what I’d like to, or if I feel like I’m trying to cram too much into a single song. When this happens, I just remove the “extra part” and save it for something else. Another good stopping point is when I’m tired of writing. I choose to look at this as knowing my limits.

 

JASPER:  Tell us more about "You can have it (Boss Babe Pt. II )" and “Boss Babe (You Can Have It)”. Was there a specific event that inspired this, and what made you decide to do two versions ?

RICHARDSON: I wrote the song because of my experience with being both an office worker and a freelancer. I thought that if I worked as hard as I could, everyone would see that I was a good person, but I ended up burning out and resenting the folks who told me that hard work was a virtue. I was uninspired by my bosses, I felt overlooked, I was too depressed to come to work on time, and the workplace was really weird: some employees were treated poorly and others were treated well, and it wasn’t a secret. Some were paid to merely show up. I never want to judge anyone who chooses to hustle and grind, and I am someone who believes that capitalism doesn’t really give us a choice between working or starving, but I personally am only going to do what I have the mental and physical capacity to do. I’m not interested in the grind. I’m not interested in doing more than I want to do, so I simply won’t anymore.

I was working on a track for Comfort Monk’s Pursuance, Vol. I around February or March of 2021. I decided that I wanted to shelf the recording and save it for another project. I wrote Boss Babe (You Can Have It) soon after, but I was new to recording with Ableton and couldn’t figure out a workflow. I ended up missing the deadline. Coincidentally, SceneSC opened submissions for their 2021 compilation the same week. I decided to ditch Ableton and go back to GarageBand to re-record the song. This is going to sound silly, but I used predominantly Asian instruments because I was feeling full from noodles, fried rice, and steamed bao I made for dinner. I had some help using some effects pedals, compressors, and “stuff like that” to finish it off and submitted it.

Comfort Monk reached out to me to ask me to contribute a track to Pursuance, Vol. II. I went back to the recording of Boss Babe that I had originally intended to send to them and started re-working it I recorded my vocals with Uzoma Udogwu at Orpheus Sounds. It sounded completely different from the SceneSC version of the song, and I wanted to separate the two while keeping them somewhat related.

 

JASPER:  If one of your songs was a TV show what would it be?

RICHARDSON: If my song “Say My Entire Name” was a TV program, it would be “Snapped” because while I’d never cause harm to anyone who did so, when people misspell or pronounce my name incorrectly, it makes me wanna scream. I imagine myself flipping tables, throwing papers across the room, breaking a coffee mug or two.

 

JASPER:  What is the ideal listening experience for your music? Like pie in the sky anything is possible.

RICHARDSON: My dream is to have all my songs mixed for Dolby Atmos, and I’d like the listener to be completely enveloped in the sound of an Atmos room. I think the listener could benefit from having some snacks and drinks nearby for maximum comfort. Perhaps a barf bag could be handy for if they don’t vibe with the tracks.

 

JASPER:   What’s your favorite and least favorite show you’ve played and why?

RICHARDSON: I have two favorite shows. My first was an Emo Night gig at the Charleston Music Farm in April 2022. We did a My Chemical Romance set to a crowd of about 600 people. The energy was wild, and the attendees were so sweet and made me feel like Gerard Way! Many Black and brown emo kids and adults hugged me and told me it meant so much to them to see someone like me on stage. I was moved and definitely cried a bunch that night. My other favorite show was with the Black Nerd Mafia at Curiosity Coffee in July 2022. I got to perform full-band in Columbia for the first time with my friends and felt so supported by all my friends in the audience.

 

Maybe it’s because it was two nights after our electrifying Music Farm gig

but my least favorite show was in Greenville, SC. We did another MyChem set as part of the ongoing SC Emo Night festivities, and I thought we as a band played very well and had good energy, but the crowd seemed so bored. I think a reason why there wasn’t as much life in the crowd was because no one under 18 was allowed to enter the Radio Room. Kids under 18 are some of the most avid MCR listeners!

 

JASPER:  Do you have any favorite artists? What about locally?

RICHARDSON: My favorite vocalists are Beyoncé, Björk, and Regina Spektor, my favorite band is My Chemical Romance, and my favorite local band is Flower Shopping. Ross’s songs are so thoughtful and beautiful. Does Toro y Moi count as a local band? Chaz is a real artist. His music, his artwork, his fashion sense; he has a distinct style and curated taste. I have a weird and annoying crush on him, and anytime I’ve crossed paths with him, I’ve been unable to act like a normal person. I apologize, sir!!!

I love Opus & the Frequencies. They sound great and their energy is sky-high. They know their worth. I also admire Stagbriar for their musicianship, songwriting, and their ambition. I look up to them, and I believe they’ll “make it”!

 

JASPER:  What are your thoughts on the Columbia music scene? What has it been like navigating a predominantly white male space as a Black-Korean woman?

RICHARDSON: I think that a lot of local bands are doing cool and exciting things, and I love how the younger musicians aren’t shy when it comes to putting themselves out there. I’m impressed by how revitalized New Brookland Tavern feels, thanks to the work that Carlin Thompson and the rest of the staff are putting into the venue. It feels like a special place to perform, and I’m grateful to be part of that.

Thankfully, no one in the scene has ever tried to make me feel less-than because of my racial and ethnic identity, but I sometimes wonder whether there are things I’m missing out on because I’m not checking certain boxes. I know I can always do more with promo and actually putting out recordings, but am I being overlooked by potential listeners or members of the music community because I don’t look or sound a certain way? Are people not interested in my music because I don’t play guitar? Is it because I said I play R&B? Should I call myself a pop songwriter instead? Would that even help? Should I drop some pounds? Do people not want to work with me because they don’t find me relatable? While I don’t question my identity, I think it’s clear to see that I question whether it affects how people interact with me or my music.

 

JASPER:  What do you want other musicians to know? Do you have any advice?

RICHARDSON: There will never be a time where you’ll be 100% ready or perfect, nor do I believe there’s a reason you’ll need to be those things when it comes to sharing your art. My advice is to do the things you’d like to do, even if you’re scared or if you think you’re not good enough. You ARE good enough and someone’s gonna love you. There’s enough sun for everyone.

 

JASPER:  What are you looking forward to in the near future?

RICHARDSON: I’m looking forward to the visuals from Beyoncé’s Renaissance album being released. It’s been almost two months, and we still have not received even a single music video! I’m also looking forward to the new Björk album at the end of the month.

 I’m also hoping to release some recordings next year. If I don’t, please forgive me and please keep coming to the live shows. I work more slowly than everyone else for several reasons, and I know it inhibits my potential growth, but I mostly care about being able to sing with y’all in the room! Thank you for giving me a chance, and I hope I make you proud!!!!

 

You can see Death Ray Robin at New Brookland Tavern Friday September 30th with Leone & the Ascension, Outerego.
Check out more info at the Facebook Event.

Socially Engaged Ceramics Reckons with the Immensity of the Everyday

“Clay/ceramics is not a single story—and neither are women” — Lydia Thompson

In the newest show at McMaster Gallery, University of South Carolina professor Virginia Scotchie has curated an exhibit rooted in femininity and race, in movement and stillness. Motivated to “highlight two women in ceramic sculpture whose work exemplifies that social engagement of the present and past in America,” Scotchie brought together Julie Schnell-Madden and Lydia Thompson to create Socially Engaged Ceramics.

“I curated the exhibition and defined the title because I believe these artists create work that is socially engaged,” she shares. “The work allows the viewer to look at the work created and see the importance and significance of today's issues through art.”

The women’s work appears vastly different at first glance. Schnell-Madden’s Rosettes are individually sculpted roses and rose-shaped objects of various colors and sizes, while Thompson’s Relic series features ceramic houses with individual features filled with figurine shards inherited from her grandmother.

In a closer look, however, these works are distinctly political and cultural, reckoning with the individual and collective histories surrounding each woman’s identity.

Schnell-Madden recalls when the pandemic first hit and what it felt like to have to reevaluate our everyday, basic needs. This “fear, frustration, and loss” started a spiral that she had no choice but to physically manifest.

“I started making spiral disks that expressed my level of fear and frustration and loss. I used a luscious dark brown clay that resembled chocolate (a comfort food?),” she recalls,” It was only after I made several that I saw the resemblance to a rose. The strips became petals. There was no doubt that these contained feminine imagery.”

Though the strips in Rose, the first part of the series which features pink petals with clear reference to the female anatomy, would loosen over time as we all leaned into our new normal, they also began to take on fear and rage. What began as a general observation of the feminine in relation to the ever-changing everyday became resilience in light of the overturning of Roe v. Wade in the second part of the series, Resistance: Under Attack.

“Having lived at a time where this was an option for all those years, the idea of going back, letting men make decisions regarding my body is simply beyond,” Schnell-Madden says. “These pieces manifest the back-alley abortions some of our grandmothers had to endure.”

This resilience, this rumination on what stays and what moves, is where her and Thompson’s work converges. While Schnell-Madden thinks about how people’s every day is forced to change, Thompson thinks about how past change has now become our everyday. When traveling shortly after starting graduate school, Thompson began noticing the abandoned structures that stood out even as urban, suburban, and rural communities shifted in the landscape.

These structures made Thompson think about what remains when people leave, who has the freedom to move, and what happens when this movement is not desired, is rife with tension.

“The pieces on wheels symbolize the decision to move often for a better environment and opportunities (to migrate). There is also the notion of unpredictability or uncertainty of one’s future,” Thompson says. “The structures on pallets may have represented a stable life, but it is not promised, by generations of unemployment, discrimination, and multi-generational usage.” 

The inner shards, the pieces of her grandmother’s found relics from the Salvation Army, exist as the remnants of what proof of existence is left behind after people are forced to leave their homes. As Thompson says, “Relics usually have associations with objects, or heirlooms, or parts of a body. I see a direct relationship with the rubble/shards of objects with what once held value and/or importance to a group of people”

And there is an importance, a hope, and yet still a trepidation in these pieces. Schnell-Madden created her third set in the series, Renewal to emphasize a hopeful “resurgence,” with the pieces being “more tentative but regardless are solid and express my fervent hope that one day the reversal of the court decision will take place.”

Thompson has to balance how much personal she can explicitly share within her own desire and experience. “I’ve faced racism and gender discrimination in many of the institutions in my career. Some of those experiences are blatant and others are microaggressions,” she shares. “Unfortunately, history has repeated itself, and I feel several of the works serve as metaphors of what I’m feeling and experiencing as well as others in our daily lives.”

These women blur the boundaries between individual and collective, making art with their personal fears and hopes (and even heirlooms) that are shaped by events changing the everyday landscape of our country. They are putting their hands directly into these moments in time and using them to tell a story about what it means to be alive, to migrate, to resist.

If you’d like to see these pieces, the show will be up until September 29th and will conclude that day with a Closing Reception, from 5:00 – 7:00pm, featuring light refreshments and a gallery talk with both artists.

 

Saul Seibert invites Columbia’s artists to trade in their cool kid membership.

“Don't let the bastards get you down. Imposter syndrome is real. Keep healing, growing, and fighting regardless.” 

 
 

Saul Seibert, frontman of former band Boo Hag, and creator of the four-part artistic experience, Zion, has become a surprisingly positive and encouraging force in Columbia art’s scene. His newest band, King Saul and The Heretics, released their first single “Grow”, on September 2nd along with a video that features a number of well-known Columbia faces. Read what Saul had to say about his new band, playing music sober and the Columbia arts scene. 

JASPER: What spurred King Saul and The Heretics? How did the band come together? 

SEIBERT: King Saul and The Heretics is basically a catch all for anything I have written to date, or I am currently writing… outside of Zion. I asked players I've worked with in the past and a few I have respected and wanted to work with to help fill out the songs and contribute their creativity to the arrangements.

I am cataloging notebooks of songs and writing new material a little here and there.

 

JASPER: Who all is in the band and how do y'all work together?

SEIBERT: Sean Thomson is on keys and is a multi-instrumentalist. He is producing and recording the music. Andrew Collins is on guitar, Hot Tub John is on bass, Kevin Brewer is on drums, and Adam Colbert is on sax and a contributing visual artist. I sing and play guitar. 

Everyone is given freedom to build structure around the songs and write their own parts. I'm very fortunate to be welcomed into such a talented group of creators.

 

JASPER: How would you describe your sound?

SEIBERT: It's a mess. I honestly don't know.

 

JASPER: What inspired your single "Grow"? 

SEIBERT: Grow was written about two years ago. It was directed at my brother. I had recently gotten clean from cocaine and heroin and was looking at kicking booze. I went out into the woods for a few weeks alone and wrote the song. It sat in a notebook until recently. Its meaning is on the surface and remains the same: 

Don't let the bastards get you down. Imposter syndrome is real. Keep healing, growing, and fighting regardless. 

Zach and Darren Woodlief sat with me and brought me back to life. I owe them everything.

 

JASPER: What about the video for “Grow”?

SEIBERT: The video is an invitation to the broader community to leave the scene and cool kid culture, turn in your membership and start building real relationships that are healthy mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Don't posture. Produce growth.

 

JASPER: What do you want most for Columbia, and what changes would you like to see?

SEIBERT: I want Columbia to be known for its artistic infrastructure. Columbia has some of the best bands and performing artists in the south… period. Let's throw some light on them and let them shine! I use the term Cola Centric when talking about the city because we are unique.

You have more diversity than a lot of cities in SC. We could always do a better job at highlighting our cultural diversity and celebrating the variations of this.

My personal take is simple. The NY and LA art and music "scene" didn't just happen. It was built very intentionally …and not with a lot of the advantages of technology that we have today. Seattle in the 90s didn't just accidentally happen. We build the art culture we want and in turn get the art culture we deserve.

 

JASPER: What does your writing process look like? 

SEIBERT: It looks and feels like fucking hell.

 

JASPER: How has your sobriety impacted your music and creative process?

SEIBERT: I don't remember much about the previous decade. I don't know how it's impacted my process. I think it's possible I'm a better player and more honest of a writer. I would assume I'm easier to work with. Sobriety has only improved my production.

 

JASPER: When do you know something is done?

SEIBERT: I have never experienced this feeling. I imagine it must feel good.

 

JASPER: What advice would you like to give other creatives?

SEIBERT: Fuck pride. You are not famous or special. When you truly don't care what people think, you become a dangerous creator. It's my hope they are blessed enough to be truly cursed so that something absolutely beautiful can be brought into existence and speak and maybe even benefit the larger community. Fuck pride. Break rules.

 

JASPER: If each project you've been a part of was a living thing what would they be and why?

SEIBERT: They would all be buffalo.

You can see King Saul and the Heretics play their first show, Thursday, September 15th from 8-11pm at Uncle Festers with The Water Kickers, and Free Weed. See the Facebook event for more details.

Small Artists, Big Creativity: Lillian Hauck and NoMa Flea Jr.

“Don't throw the canvas away; change with the mistakes and make it something new”

 
 

For those who haven’t already heard, NoMa Flea is going to be a bit different this Friday— all the vendors at this weekly funky and fun evening artisan market will be under 18! Noma Flea Jr. is September 9th, and Jasper got to sit down with one of the featured artists, Lillian Hauck (11), and her mother, Marnnie Hauck, about Lillian’s art, entrepreneurial spirit, and what inspires her. 

Lillian started painting regularly at 8 years old, but it was last year when her identity as an artist really began to blossom. “Lillian’s first public debut was March 2021 and she made content for weeks beforehand, was involved in every detail that day, and has had the bug ever since,” Marnnie says, “This event at NoMa Warehouse will be her 4th.”

Beyond the fun and pizazz of making art for events, Lillian’s mother says that the process calms her, and painting colorful pieces brings her joy: “I like making things I see as colorful as possible,” Lillian shares.

Mother and daughter say that the girl’s paternal grandfathers, all the artists who come to Noma, to the Soda City Market, and their neighbors are Lillian’s greatest inspiration, with a particular emphasis on their community.

“I would honestly say one of the biggest influences for Lillian is the neighborhood that we live in. We moved here in 2017. The overall sense of community that is created here I think, combined with how the kids are intentionally being raised, has been a game changer. Kitty corner to where we live is Flavia Lovatelli, a sustainable materials artist, and she is like our adopted fairy godmother. For years now she would make little trinkets for them, and in turn the kids would make art for her,” Marnnie details, “and then the Art Crawl started here in our neighborhood in 2019. Lily was so blown away. It made a huge impression on her. Then NOMA Warehouse opened in 2021, and even more community and art came into her life.”

As her mother, Marnnie is dedicated to supporting Lillian in her endeavors, emphasizing the hard work her daughter puts into her art: “This, in every way, is all Lillian, a quiet human, though not a wallflower, who doesn't generally like to draw attention to herself, putting herself out there for the world!!!”

Even when Lillian isn’t painting, her activities and hobbies are still rooted in creativity and making. Marnnie shares that, “Outside of painting Lily is at all times crafting fashion wear for everyone, and thing, in the house; her room always looks like confetti fabric land and no one can EVER find scissors.” 

When reflecting on her role, Marnnie thinks about her own childhood and the future ahead. “My influence here is that I believe it is super important to teach kids that they don't have to follow a traditional path to support themselves and be happy in their adulthood,” she intimates, “My generation was rarely taught that we had options. I'm a huge fan of entrepreneurs and self-sourcing in general and the kids getting exposure to that in all forms is invaluable to me.”  

And what advice could a young, creative entrepreneur give to young and old artists alike?

“Don't throw the canvas away; change with the mistakes and make it something new,” Lillian effuses, “And don't worry about what other people might want—paint what you want!”  

You can see more of, and purchase, Lillian’s work at NoMa Flea Jr. this Friday, September 9th at 6pm.



Steven White Premieres Original, Stark Pieces Ahead of Purple Xperience Show at Harbison Theatre

Are you looking to get your fill of great art and fantastic music back to back? Mark your calendars for September 2nd, 2022. Preceding the Purple Xperience performance at 7:30pm, The Jasper Project is proud to help present the opening night for Steven White’s new exhibition at Harbison Theatre. 

When planning out which artist to feature at Harbison, particularly alongside the new season, Jasper’s own Christina Xan knew that White would be a perfect choice. “I’ve been following Steven’s work since sometime during the pandemic when Cindi [Boiter] put him on my radar,” Xan said,. “His stark images that play and imprint in the viewer’s mind I thought would be perfect for this upcoming Harbison show. In fact, when Kristin [Cobb] reached out to me about selecting an artist, Steven was the first to come to mind.” 

White is often inclined to create images of cultural icons and immortalized figures. Considering how the Purple Xperience show is dedicated to celebrating the cultural impact of Prince’s legacy, the juxtaposition of the two shows makes perfect sense. 

White’s latest body of work explores the presence of negative space in a work of art, and how those spaces can be manipulated into something bigger. “What draws me to a piece painted with the use of negative and positive space is the strange possibility that you will be able to see things that aren’t there,” White said, “The space in question, which is the area of shared edges, engages the viewer in an unexpected and fun way. I like the fact that it’s interactive.” 

White emphasizes the mysteries and intrigue that present themselves throughout his artist statement and masterfully captures everything he aims to. White stated, “I hope that many viewers of my work will begin to see that the positive and negative can come together in many ways to bring balance to a composition.” This eye-bending technique of White’s works excellently to keep the viewer engaged with his work, looking from corner to corner for something they may have missed, causing them to want to come back for seconds.  

The amount of conversation between the Prince show and the opening of White’s exhibition is truly up to the viewer themself. This particular body of work did not come to fruition specifically for the Purple Xperience opening; it just so happened that there was plenty of natural conversation to garner between the two. 

“I will let other people decide if my body of work is in conversation. I consider my participation in the Purple Xperience Tribute Show to be a fortuitous event,” White said, “Sometimes a bit of luck comes your way when you put your work out there.” White emphasizes how important viewer reception and opinion are to him, and hopes that everyone who views his art leaves with new thoughts and perceptions of art to take with them. 

There will be an opening ceremony for White’s show prior to the Purple Xperience performance, at 7pm on September 2nd. White’s work will be up for viewing until the end of October. More info can be found on our event page.

Terrance Henderson: Storyteller, Worldbuilder, Artist-in-Residence

“I am trying to walk in my fullness these days, embracing my evolution and still churning my complexities into my complexion”

If you have been to any performing arts show in Columbia, especially a dance or theater show, chances are you are extremely familiar with Terrance Henderson. Known for his contributions to the dance scene of Columbia through the Midlands Arts Conservatory, the Southeastern School of Ballet, and Trustus Theatre. In July, Henderson was named Artist in Residence at the Richland Library on Assembly Street. 

While no stranger to residency, Henderson still aims to learn from every experience he can as he offers workshops and office hours at the library. “I’m specifically looking to do more artist residencies like this as I move forward in my career,” Henderson said. “I am in a bit of an evolution as an artist and seeing my work and my place in my community with new understanding.” He knows just how valuable these opportunities to showcase his skills really are in a city with a much larger dance scene than some give credit to. 

The first month of residency has been a period of excitement for Henderson, and the amount of support for Henderson and what he does is extremely evident amongst the staff and visitors of the library. “Onboarding to Richland Library has been so exciting. I feel so supported here, and I have also already begun to make connections and have direct conversations with members of the community, which is part of what I’m most excited about for the residency,” he said. 

Henderson looks forward to hearing the stories of those who come to his workshops or visit him in residency, in order to build that extra connection that he aims for. This connection with the audience is what Henderson hopes will help them understand how and why he does what he does that much more. 

One of Henderson’s upcoming projects throughout his residency is a kind of performance museum: an immersive installation and experience that focuses on the concepts of legacy and renewal, and the conversation that can ensue between the two. As this project progresses, Henderson will host several workshops for audiences of differing ages as well as panels of artist talks with invited guests. These events coincide with another goal that Henderson has for his residency: elevating the discussion of art. 

“One thing I’d like to do is be very intentional about raising the frequency of our discussion of art and the process and viewing of the performing arts,” he said, “I think we can widen our conversation and center some new and different voices about access, value, and collaboration.” Everyone views and reacts to the various fields of art in differing ways, but Henderson hopes to turn the idea that everything exists separately from each other under the umbrella of art on top of its head. 

A key aspect of Henderson’s residency is the desire for him to overcome any challenges that stand in the way of him being seen: as a performer, a Black man, an artist, and everything in between. Visibility is integral to the work that Henderson aims to create and showcase. He is no stranger to shifting between interests and focuses within the realm of dance. “People make assumptions about you based on when or how they were introduced to your work and it’s hard to change minds,” he said. “And when you’re a Black artist, that’s even more true. Many people make assumptions about your work based on that alone.” 

Social justice and the push for equity is extremely important to Henderson, who has also recently been reintroduced as an Equity Advisor at Trustus Theatre. Through his own work and efforts at the library, Henderson aims to amplify marginalized voices within the performing arts world and the Columbia arts community altogether. Many of the workshops he plans to host are oriented towards these goals, allowing for communities themselves to aid in making these differences happen. 

Henderson’s residency focuses on the openness to conversation he has. He is open to conversations about art, personal experiences, opportunity, and so much more in order to fine tune what he wants to showcase in his work. His body of work functions as a diary for his own experiences and how he views himself. 

“I am a storyteller and a world builder, and now more than ever, all of me goes into it. The good, the bad, the sure, the uncertain. I am trying to walk in my fullness these days, embracing my evolution and still churning my complexities into my complexion.” You can be a part of this journey too—and perhaps Henderson is the key to helping anyone on their own journey of self reflection.

Henderson remains as the Richland Library Artist in Residence until December 16, 2022. He has several workshops upcoming in September, including some oriented towards younger audiences and children.