Iona Rozeal Brown at MOCA Cleveland

There are two exhibits at MOCA Cleveland until about May 9, 2010.   From Then To Now: Masterworks of Contemporary African American Art features many well known artists like Kara Walker, Faith Ringgold, Alison Saar, Richard Hunt, Willie Cole, Kehinde Wiley and Alma W. Thomas.  It was fabulous.

The other exhibit is Iona Rozeal Brown's All Falls Down.   This exhibit is fabulous!   This exhibit is based on a mythology which features a warrior, yoshi and villains, E.I.N. (everything i'm not) and the hoochie puti.  Brown uses a mix of Japanese Ukiyo-e prints and hip-hip imagery in her vivid works. 

I was beyond impressed.  I was thrilled.  The mythology was indepth, the heroines looked like me--curvy with natural hair.  This art made me feel fantabulous.  This is what art is supposed to do for one's spirit.

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why

The beauty of a sonnet.  I just wanted to share 

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why       by Edna St. Vincent Millay

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why,

I have forgotten, and what arms have lain

Under my head till morning; but the rain

Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh

Upon the glass and listen for reply,

And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain

For unremembered lads that not again

Will turn to me at midnight with a cry.

Thus in the winter stands the lonely tree,

Nor knows what birds have vanished one by one,

Yet knows its boughs more silent than before:

I cannot say what loves have come and gone,

I only know that summer sang in me

A little while, that in me sings no more.

an old attempt at haiku

Sensual kisses
Hidden from the light of day
Overwhelm the night

Just A Question

If I tell you that thunderstorms turn me on......

and you sit outside...to wait it out....

...

...

Are you waiting out the storm or this Storm?

I Am The Pin-Up Queen Of My Own Universe

I watched The Notorious Bettie Page for my favorite class. Yes, it was for school! Really!

Anyway.  I have a very different aesthetic when it comes to certain things.  That being said, I adore Bettie Page. I don't look at her photos and judge her harshly, I laugh and enjoy her as it seems she enjoyed herself. I view Anna Nicole Smith and Marilyn Monroe in much the same light.  But Bettie is different. The director, Mary Harron described Bettie as innocent, like a playful, little girl playing dress-up.  She had no agenda.  She would never fit the role of feminist. Though she clearly enjoyed the attention of the camera, as well as various states of undress, there was still a genuine sensuality and enjoyment that never reached the point of vulgarity.  (I know, what I find adorable is another person's vulgar, and viva la difference!)

In the film, a female photographer Bunny Yeager says there is something about Bettie.  It's like she's nude but not naked.  It just seems that she's comfortable with her sexuality.  There was no sex in her movies or photos and compared to today's porn, hers is just fluff.  The thing about her is that innocence and that openness.

I think there is a little bit of Bettie Page's spirit in me.  Wait a minute, I know I am NO ONE'S idea of a Pin-Up, but if you read Last Night I Decolonized My Thighs maybe you will understand what I mean. Though, I am a bit vulgar in that post, there is a bit of unabashedness to it that I love about myself. I love being able to be myself. I enjoy being able to be open and playful.  I love for my love to be receptive and safe so that I may open up even more.  Within a loving, receptive relationship should there be a limit? Need there be?  Yes, of course there are limits to every person's comfort level, but I hope to find the limit of mine. This part of me, however, is not very agressive. It's actually pretty shy, and though I will try to let this side show, if it is pushed away, then it's something that doesn't come back easily. And what I end up wondering is why can't I be fully ME.

What would that look like? Where would that leave me? Is there anyone out there who can handle that? Anyone who wants to? When I am happy and open, I am creative and playful, more outgoing and just better. When I feel loved for who I am it is the most awesome thing ever. If I am able to find what I love to do, should I have to hold back?  It doesn't make sense. It has been a while since I tapped into my inner Bettie-- I may be more Ugly Bettie than Bettie Page, but you get my drift.  What matters is being able to be who we are, being able to be freely ourselves, and being loved just as we are. The real question is what am I willing to do to be fully open?