Can Art Save Us?

Chile's Mother of Protest Songs and Folk Power.

Professor Ericka Verba, is the director of Latin American Studies at California State University. She's an author and a musician, recently reviewed as a rising star by the Los Angeles magazine voyage LA. She is notably the author of the first English language biography of Violeta Parra out now entitled Thanks to Life. The title translates Parra's iconic song, Gracias a la Vida, famously covered by Joan Baez and many more. Violeta Parra is one of Chile's most important women artists and Ericka's study of her life and work spans five decades. Her deep expertise translates into the reviews, describing it as a "stunning achievement" and "deeply moving." She both navigates and honors the life of a complex woman, an artist who shattered gender, racial and class barriers. Violeta Parra collected and preserved Chilean folk music as a personal mission, now of huge national significance and made an important contribution to Chile's protest music movement. New Song. Thanks to life, underscores the power of art as a force for change. Parra represented voices that were otherwise unheard in her songs, notably women workers and indigenous peoples. She broke extraordinary barriers as a recording and visual artist working across paintings, ceramics and tapestries. In 1964 she became the first self taught Latin American visual artist to hold a solo exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts, housed in the Louvre, Paris, tragically in 1967 and this biography documents her travels throughout Latin America and Europe at the height of the Cold War. It's intertwined with her conflicting identities and the meaning of authenticity. This biography is a legacy work of passion and compassion. 
 
Discover Ericka Verba https://erickaverba.com/
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 
 

Creative Destruction in a Globalised World

Tere Chad is a multidisciplinary artist and curator from Chile, currently based in London. She is fast rising as an international artist and to date she has held seven solo exhibitions, completed seven residencies participated in more than 50 collective exhibitions and has curated over 20 shows on four different continents. Her practice includes sculpture, painting, poetry, performance, textiles, installation and silversmithing. Promoting Latin American art and culture is core to her work and the Global South informs her response to the climate crisis, migration, sustainability and humanity. In 2020, she was granted a global talent visa for exceptional promise to continue her practice here in the UK. She graduated with a Masters of Art in sculpture from the Royal College of Art and in 2021, she was accepted as a member of the Royal Society of Sculptors. Tere observes modern life and the impact of fast-changing technologies, media sensationalism and digital distortion on human connections. She elevates what ancient civilisations and indigenous knowledge can teach us. A significant and current project that began in 2017 is Neo-Norte or New North, an artistic research initiative that turns the world map upside down to challenge dominant geopolitical narratives and the displacement of power. Neo-Norte has showcased internationally with more than 565,000 visitors fostering cross-cultural dialogues for an interconnected world. Tere Chad, is as a deeply thoughtful, international artist with a global identity and strong Chilean roots.
 
Images are subject to copyright, courtesy of Tere Chad, please see credit list below.
Discover Tere Chad https://www.terechad.com/
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
IMAGE CREDITS
COLUMN ONE
Woven Hug 2.0, Tere Chad, Cordelia Rizzo (Documentation: Kavod Films); Flowerfield Arts Centre, Linen Biennale, Portstewart, Northern Ireland (2023).
Abrazo Entramado 1.0 (Woven Hug 1.0), Tere Chad, Cordelia Rizzo (CC BY NC-SA CONARTE); LABNL Lab Cultural Ciudadano, Monterrey, México (2022).
COLUMN TWO
6 Neo Norte 5.0, Act of Relational Art, Collaborators: Tere Chad, Tere Chad, Asia Artom, Concepción García Sánchez, Cindy Lilen, Anastasia Marcelja, Giada Marchese, Lidia Maugeri, Debra Pollarino, Ines Rocques, Alessandro Rebesani (Documentation: Movies Move Us); Spazio Zelda, Venice, Italy (2024).
COLUMN 3
Zurciendo Vacíos (Mending Voids), Tere Chad, Cordelia Rizzo, UDEM CRGS, Centro Cultural Plaza Fátima (Documentation: CC BY SA LABNL); LABNL, Monterrey, México (2023).
Zurciendo Vacíos (Mending Voids), Tere Chad, Cordelia Rizzo, UDEM CRGS, LABNL (Documentation: Grecia Evangelina); Centro Cultural Plaza Fátima, San Pedro Garza García, México (2023).
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS.

"Superb and authentic," the best classical pianist of his generation.

Nicola Avramovich is not only considered one of Serbia's finest classical pianists, but one of the best of his generation.  He is a sought after performer giving numerous recitals and chamber music concerts worldwide, including prestigious festivals and leading concert halls here in the UK, Nicola Avramovich is the recipient of numerous prestigious scholarships and awards, including the Benjamin Britten Piano Fellowship at the Royal College of Music in London. This fellowship is only awarded every two years to an outstanding pianist preparing for a career as an international soloist. He is an exciting, incredibly disciplined talent. Nicola is recognized as an exceptional talent, and he also has a deep appreciation of folklore. He interpreted Serbian folk music that he grew up with from a very early age on the piano. As an accomplished classical pianist, he has also celebrated these musical roots in his forthcoming release, Origins, which brings together music by composers from Serbia, Hungary, Romania and other Eastern European countries. Nicola has composed and improvised folk melodies in this unique classical recording, which he has performed in several countries, including China, to a wonderful response and a European tour is to follow. His repertoire is described as “superb and authentic.” There is a beautiful message in his work that music has no boundaries. It is both transcending and unifying a common humanity that can be shared. In this episode you will also hear a performance extract, Nikola's own, stunning transcription of the Serbian folk dance, Vranje.
Discover Nikola Avramovich on Instagram @n_avramovic_
Nikola Avramovich performs Vranje https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQfrDQB8oTA
Genuin Record Label https://www.genuinclassics.com/_new/artist_1.php?k=848
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 

Indonesian Indigenous Arts & Culture IS Care

Gabriela Elisabeth Edawani Fernandez, known as Ina Leah, is a transdisciplinary artist and her work is rooted in the practices of the indigenous Lamaholot people of East Nusa Tengara, home of her cultural heritage. The Lamaholot people are indigenous to the southernmost province of Indonesia and the small islands around it. It's an area of natural beauty. Gabriela weaves together art and wellbeing practices, including improvisational music, expressive painting, collective dance, traditional crafts, and moving image. There's a deep level of integration between the different disciplines she works with, building a holistic knowledge and respect for cultural heritage.  She's deeply inspired by cultural traditions and collective participation that understands the interconnectedness of humans and the natural world. As a contemporary artist, you can also find Gabriela Fernandez on Spotify, along with well over 16,000 listeners. For a celebration of musical heritage, oral tradition and sound art. Ina is deeply sensitive to noise. She talks openly about her ADHD and autism and as a neuro-divergent creator she understands the need for calm in our lives. Gabriela is committed to the healing powers of art on our physical and mental wellbeing, and the name she has given herself as an artist reflects healing. Leah is an anagram of the word heal, and Ina means mother in the Lamaholic language. We talk about her mission in holistic health, grounded in cultural identity.
 
Discover Ina Leah https://www.artwithinaleah.com/
The Embodiment of Care https://www.artwithinaleah.com/embodimentofcare-improvisation
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 

Tiling Towns with Joy, Community HeART

Jane Wright is a ceramicist, violinist and champion of community arts. A West Yorkshire born musician and artist, Jane is now based in the iconic seaside town of Margate in Kent, famous for its art history. Margate was home to the renowned water colourist Turner, considered to be the best loved English Romantic artist, and it's currently home to Tracey Emin, famously known for her confessional art. Between world class artists and the Turner Contemporary Gallery. Margate has a thriving community art scene, and Jayne is the project founder of Tiles of Joy, a community arts, Happiness Project. Over 1000 hand crafted tiles have already been made in workshops and at least 4000 people have bought one of Jane's tiles. This trail of happiness is bringing people together from all walks of life, promoting creativity and community spirit. As a ceramicist, Jane is also known for her body positive, Mermaid Army, a collection of tiles and stoneware sculptures of people who wild swim. They represent stories of nostalgia and empowerment. One sculpture represents Gill Castle, who became the first person ever to swim the channel with a stoma, raising awareness of childbirth injuries. Currently, the mermaid sculptures are touring with the message words matter, part of the campaign This Ends Now, raising awareness of male violence against women and girls. Her work consistently shows solidarity and support for the causes she cares about, including the sewing resistance, a global textile project. Her current exhibition, Long, explores the cultural significance of long hair in relation to femininity, identity and power. Jane's art is about awareness, advocacy, activism, and championing joy.
Discover Jayne Wright at the Turner Contemporary Art Gallery, Margate.
https://shop.turnercontemporary.org/collections/jayne-wright
Current Exhibition, Long, at the Liminal Gallery, Margate.
https://liminal-gallery.com/collections/jayne-wright-long
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 
 

The Sensory Therapy of Art

David Emmanuel Noel, is a visual and interdisciplinary artist who often splits his time between New York and London. He collaborates with musicians and performers to explore race, identity and culture with an emphasis on public engagement. He's interested in promoting a fairer, kinder and inclusive society and he's worked with socially conscious organisations including New York's Groundswell Community Mural Project, the Powerhouse, a UK charity supporting women with learning difficulties, the National Network for Art and Health and the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. He's also worked with the Royal Institute of British Architects and David has a very clear interest in the social and therapeutic benefits of art in public spaces. He clearly states every artist should see their art form as a therapeutic tool above or beyond anything else. David is also a political science graduate and holds an MA in European Studies. How the arts can influence socio-economic and political trends is clearly on his radar. His broad interests across the creative industries have also culminated in David co-founding Occhi Arts and Entertainment, which includes consultancy and an online magazine to showcase artists and to promote arts advocacy. David's artwork has been featured at highly prestigious venues such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Kennedy Centre, Washington DC, along with galleries in London and festivals. His career is undoubtedly like a rich tapestry of work, a cloak for good. His paintings are full of movement and colour, sensory in intent and heightened in collaborations with musicians such as Grammy Award-nominated US band Cloud9 and Daryl Yokely's Sound Reformation. Everything speaks out.
The Art of PR is the first exhibition to collectively present the work of established and emerging artists from the UK public relations sector, including David Emmanuel Noel and Tonye Ekine, also in Season 7.
Visit the Coningsby Gallery: info@coningsbygallery.com / 07884 314361
18 November 2024–23 November 2024
www.coningsbygallery.com/exhibition/the-art-of-pr-november-2024
Discover David Emmanuel Noel: www.davidemmanuelnoelart.net/
Occhi Magazine (Part of Occhi Arts & Entertainment): www.occhimagazine.com/
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore, are available here: https://canartsaveus.com/
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 

Survivor. A Child's Holocaust. Unique Animation & Archival Accuracy.

Sometimes it seems people are just born gifted and Zoom Rockman started his working  artistic life from the age of eight, when he was self-publishing his own monthly comic, The Zoom, now considered a collector's item. Today Zoom is an award-winning political cartoonist, illustrator, puppet animator, and now the Director of his first animated one hour film, Survivor. This is the true story of Ivor Perl, who survived the Holocaust, age 12 with his brother. In stark contrast to Ivor’s life, at age 12, Zoom had become the youngest cartoonist for the world's longest running comic The Beano. At age 16, he became a regular contributor at Private Eye, the UK's number one best selling News and Current Affairs magazine. Zoom's humor and observation was already mature enough for this audience, but six years later, he quit after receiving an anti-Semitic death threat for one of his cartoons and lack of response he felt he had from the magazine. Many more accomplishments have since continued. One being in 2023, Zoom Rockman's, Jewish Hall of Fame, was billed as the ‘must see summer exhibition,’ where he created interactive life size automata of Jewish icons, including Lord sugar, Amy Winehouse and Sacha Baron Cohen. Suffice to say, the London Evening Standard newspaper has previously named Zoom as one of the most influential Londoners under 25, and he was included on Instagram's first ever 21 under 21 list within the art category. Zoom's gift of visual storytelling is ever more pronounced with his new film Survivor. This is a huge act of compassion, archival accuracy and artistic skill, telling the true story of Ivor Perl's survival. To do this, he has created an astonishing 150, hand animated paper puppets representing real people. The intricate detail of his sets accurately replicate locations, and the film is accompanied with music by the award-winning composer Erran Baron Cohen and vocals by Pini Brown, whose voice grips the emotional magnitude of this story. The film is based on Ivor Perl's book and testimony, Chicken Soup Under the Tree. We also talk about the importance of visual literacy, authenticity and telling the truth versus dis-information and failing education. Links are below to follow the film and for screening information.
Images courtesy of Zoom Rockman. Survivor images are reproduced with the permission of Lemon Soul.
Discover More:
FILM www.survivorfilm.com
IVOR PERL’S BOOK www.lemonsoul.com/products/chicken-soup-under-the-tree?srsltid=AfmBOopCsd-yBvpDEkXZaTjx_emAbzBBlZFiZnu5eC0nchFKyFTc0fQ5
MARCH OF THE LIVING www.marchoftheliving.org.uk/
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL DAY 2025 www.hmd.org.uk/what-is-holocaust-memorial-day/this-years-theme/
VOCALS BY PINNY BROWN www.linktr.ee/piniontheroof 
COMPOSER ERRAN BARON COHEN www.erranbaroncohen.com
Podcast Host - Paula Moore
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host are available here: www.canartsaveus.com
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 

Lessons from a Wounded Desert. Arts, Animal and Eco Justice.

Sunaura Taylor is an artist, writer, activist, academic and mother. Sunaura is the Assistant Professor in the Division of Society and Environment and the director of the Disabled Ecologies Lab at the University of California, Berkely. A skilled artist, her artworks have been exhibited at venues such as the CUE Art Foundation, a contemporary art space in New York City, the Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest museum, education, and research complex and they are a part of the Berkeley Art Museum collection. Sunaura is also the author of Beasts of Burden: Animal and Disability Liberation, which received the American Book Award. Her current book is, Disabled Ecologies: Lessons from a Wounded Desert and whilst it’s not a memoir, it is personal and political. She documents how residents organized one of the earliest and most successful environmental justice movements in the USA. Sunaura is a game changer, a global thinker, she brings together what environmental and disability movements can learn from one another. Her books reveal how disability and ableism shape our understanding of nature and environmental crisis. She uncovers networks of disability, both human and wild, that are created when ecosystems are corrupted and profoundly altered. Sunaura raises an important question we should all be asking in the name of shared justice, “What happened to us?” Not, what happened to you? This is someone with an incredible eye for detail, for whom painting is a love of seeing and whose political statements are also drawn from sharp observation, analysis and lived experience. Sunaura also has a critical understanding of curiosity cultivated in her alternative childhood education of being 'unschooled.' 
Sunaura Taylor
Aquifer Losing Reach, Speculative Aquifers Series
Pen and Watercolor on Paper, apx 11 x 8’’, 2017-2020
Sunaura Taylor
Animals With Arthrogryposis
Oil on Canvas,  6’ x 9’ (72“ x 108”), 2009
Author Photo © Julius Schlosberg
Discover Sunaura Taylor: www.sunaurataylor.net/
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore,  are available here: www.canartsaveus.com
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 

Seeing Beyond Masks; Ancient and Social.

Tonye Ekine is one of the top 40 British Rising Stars recognized by the Royal Society of British Artists. He is also recently back from the world renowned, Venice Biennale, where he was selected for a highly prestigious fellowship with the British Council. In its 60th anniversary year, the Venice Biennale attracted half a million visitors to celebrate ground breaking artists from around the world. Tonye has set himself apart from other contemporary African artists with his distinct use of the iconic, Ife Bronze masks in his paintings. Ife is the religious and royal center of the Yoruba people in Nigeria and the masks are exceptional works of art, dating back to the 12th century. Born in Nigeria, Tonye is now based in London and by foregrounding his Yoruba heritage in his contemporary art, he raises questions of identity, the legacy of colonialism, the social masks we wear in everyday life and he isn’t shy of uncomfortable paradox. Tonye’s role as an artist is set to move through the world in different ways taking his identity and roots with him. He says: “There is freedom in expression – and that’s where you find identity.” He’s interested in being part of design, fashion, marketing, brands in communication and education, his openness is refreshing. He prioritises knowledge as currency not economic status. We talk about identity and authenticity, connection as the most important form of validation and optimism. 
Discover Tonye Ekine: www.wherestonye.com/
The Art of PR is the first exhibition to collectively present the work of established and emerging artists from the UK public relations sector, including Tonye Ekine.
Visit the Coningsby Gallery: info@coningsbygallery.com / 07884 314361
18 November 2024–23 November 2024
www.coningsbygallery.com/exhibition/the-art-of-pr-november-2024
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore,  are available here: www.canartsaveus.com
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. PLEASE SHARE THIS FREE TO LISTEN SERIES AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS. 
 
 

Number One Albums, Nuns & Myths

What's it like to be the least likely artists to have two hit, number one albums on Decca Records, one of the world's most iconic labels? Decca Classics, discovered and pursued singing nuns, the Poor Clares of Arundel in West Sussex, to record with them. The debut album, 'Light for the World,' sold out of cds within 24 hours, had 60 million streams, topped the Amazon and Apple music charts internationally and topped the UK specialist chart for 19 weeks. The second album, 'My Peace I Give You,' is out now, led by popular demand. Sister Gabriel shares their experience; doubts, resistance, concerns, negotiating terms and how this all became a beautiful experience with world wide impact.
The Poor Clares have recorded an infusion of Latin hymns and medieval texts which have had a powerful, healing impact across the world, touching the lives of people, whether they are religious or not. A common response has been, “I don't believe in God, but there is something about your music that takes me somewhere that I had never experienced before.” From the debut album, they were inundated with letters of thanks, often speaking of healing and calm, religious or not.
The Poor Clares live a contemplative, cloistered life and rarely go out but the convent and their guest house are regularly populated with visitors from all walks of life. Their multiple responsibilities revolve around a disciplined structure of praying, seven times a day and staying in touch with World News. We dispel myths of a contemplative life being simply passive. We talk about courage, personal choices, recording albums, being of service but not self-serving and balancing novelty with health curiosity. “The scariest thing to do is to submit yourself to something other than oneself.” Sister Gabriel.
Before choosing a consecrated life, Sister Gabriel, had completed a degree in auto and mechanical engineering and worked in Czechoslovakia for a year helping to improve British safety standards in machinery. Art had been a significant part of her family life in the North East, including her admiration for Tisch, a significant social documentary photographer from Newcastle, and the Pittman painters northern miners that painted a unique historical record of their lives and mined literally through class barriers to do so.
As the sisters say themselves, "You don't have to be religious to enjoy their music." Published on September 21st, 2024, International Day of Peace, the episode includes the title track, "My Peace I Give You." The music is courtesy of Decca Classics.
 
Photos © Chris O'Donovan
Discover The Poor Clares: www.poorclaresarundel.org
Discover Decca Classics: www.deccaclassics.com/en
Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.
Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb
Closed Captions are added to all audio interviews in this series.
Read only, text transcripts of every interview, news, reviews and your host, Paula Moore,  are available here: www.canartsaveus.com
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. THIS IS A FREE TO LISTEN SERIES.
PLEASE SHARE, AND HELP MAKE THE ARTS ALL OF OURS.