““Zo, li mache, li mache, li mache... Kouran li mache, li mache, li mache.”
”The bone, it walks, it walks, it walks... How it walks, it walks, it walks.” ”
Overview:
After being inspired by the Champlain College Core class, “Shaking the Spirit –Sacred Arts of the Afro-Atlantic World” with Professor Stephen Wehmeyer. This course dove into depths of the 16th century of the Caribbean- a zone of powerful intersection – where Africa, the New World, and Europe encounter one another in world-shattering ways. These encounters –frequently violent, disruptive, and revolutionary – challenge hegemonic world-views, transform economic and social landscapes, and give birth to both profoundly beautiful and deeply unsettling examples of creative and expressive culture. Through a extensive examination of the material, ritual, and performative arts associated with the cultures of Haiti and other Afro-Atlantic “hot-zones,” we explored the ways these arts embody and communicate sophisticated ideologies at the core of Caribbean / Afro-Atlantic cultural identities and even our own. Inspired by the diverse phenomena as the flamboyant arts and the passionate teachings of Stephan Wehmeyer, I created a few pieces to celebrate and pay tribute to these traditions, spirits and ideologies.
Goals:
Death has always intrigued me and the teachings of Stephen Wehmeyer allowed me to immerse myself into the lens and perspectives of the Northside Skull and Bone Gang. Inspired by the message they carry on throughout traditions and rituals, I created this series.
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For nearly 200 years Mardi Gras in New Orleans has started the same way: the Northside Skull and Bone Gang make their way into the streets at the break of dawn, “Mardi Gras Morning. Wake up! Too late! Bone Gang coming!” as they gather to begin their annual walk about in the surrounding neighborhood. Deep rooted ancestral ties to Haiti, we find reflections of Gede- the beloved Vodou trickers and Iwa (divinity) of the cemetery, of sex, of death, of the ultimate beginnings and ultimate of ending things. A group founded on the spirit of resistance, both now and the history of their ancestors. The Northside Skull and bone gang embody the dead and serve their community by educating the youth about both modern day issues while using ancient traditions. Embedded deeply with spirituality the Northside Skull and Bone Gang share and remind their community the truths of life and death.
“Everyone will eventually be a skeleton, so anyone can mask skeleton with or without a great deal of money. Death is community property, and the inevitable ownership of this state is one privilege that cannot be said to belong to a favored few”
