Fern Logan Photography Feb 2010

Women's Caucus of Art Exhibition

People's Joy Parade!

We had a blast this past Saturday as we participated in the People's Joy Parade. Special thanks to Jackie, Simiya, Melissa, Derek, Jenny and all the GirlsCreate girls and parents! Dail and Simiya made a great-looking boat!

New Artist Featured: Frank D. Robinson, Jr.

We are excited to feature Frank D. Robinson at Gya!

....through life, love and struggle in his haunting, surreal work. Robinson demonstrates a strong sense of place in his work- whether a place in time, physical location or metaphorical place. With this focus on location, Robinson forces us to examine what is truly home and the different routes we take to arrive there. Each piece is a meditation on history, love and struggle. Look closely- what you find in his work is what you find in life. Robinson transforms the lowliest of objects-our invisibles- soda can tabs, broken mirrors, buttons, tokens, lost jewelry- and elevates them to urban artifacts. By elevating the everyday object, Robinson makes art that is both accessible and intricate. Robinson’s art defies the confines of staid canvases, showing up on bottles, guitars, rocking chairs or boards- wherever the spirit of the art demands. Robinson weaves together a vibrant tapestry of the varied expression of African American culture. His work reflects the many faces of the people of the African Diaspora. Even images designed to hurt such as the mammy or gold-toothed thug are subverted into images to be admired for their beauty and strength.

Check out this wonderful article by Live from Memphis.

*artist portrait from Live from Memphis

http://www.livefrommemphis.com/creativedirectory?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&sobi2Id=592

Spring Equinox Event

The Black Family RE-Education/Lecture and Conscious Hip-Hop for 2012 Showcase!!!
Included: Live Performances, Gift Cd's, Catered West African Cuisine, CD copy of the event (which will be aired on utube)!

Mother Earth Awakens

SUNDAY MARCH 20th, 2011 7:00 p.m. - 8:30p.m.

MOTHER EARTH AWAKENS ~ A Spring/Solstice Poetry Concert Celebrating Women's History Month

Gya Community Gallery & Fine Craft Shop

2700 Locust St. Louis Mo. 63103

http://www.yeyoarts-gya.blogspot.com/

POETRY CONCERT CELEBRATING WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH and Acknowledging the First Day of Spring

Featuring: Poet, Professor, Artist, Activist, Word Smith, Word Warrior & Word Weaver MS. SHIRLEY BRADLEY LeFLORE

accompanied by David A. N. Jackson and other guest musicians and artists. Additional poets include MANTRA, and the debut of works, writings, and poetry by Léna Oluwa Amia Jackson.

This evenings special event is a presentation and production of The HOTBOX Virtualclub.STL. "The World's First and Only Virtualclub" / David A. N. Jackson. For more information or to be added to the contact list for this or other events call 314 995 - 9570; or contact David A. N. Jackson, founder and Artistic Director 314 774 -2123

The Artist Portrait Series March 3rd - 31st

Yeyo Arts Collective warmly welcomes photographer Fern Logan to Gya community Gallery for the month of March.

Logan admits to a self-conciousness in her work that kept her early subject matter restricted primarily to landscape scenes. Her work as a documentary photographer, doing photojournalism throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and India, and as a graphic designer had reinforced this emphasis. In 1983, however, Logan resolved to put the human figure into her repertoire and created the photodocumentary “The Artist Portrait Series,” in which she photographed prominent black artists such as Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, and Romare Bearden. She began the series because of her philosophy of art as an educational tool and through a desire “to document the careers of highly accomplished black visual artists.” It was this work which was awarded a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts in 1985 and was published in a book by Southern Illinois University Press in 2001 with a grant from the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation. This work was presented in a solo exhibition in Amsterdam, Holland in March of 2002 at the International Institute for Social History. Always present in Logan’s photographs is an aesthetic of beauty, drama, and of mood. In 2001 Southern Illinois University Press published The Artist Portrait Series. The book features environmental portraits of 60 African American Artists, many of whom have subsequently passed away.

Logan’s work has been exhibited at The Smithsonian Institution, Just Above Midtown Gallery, The Studeo Museum in Harlem, Kenkeleba Gallery, Cinque Gallery, the National Urban League Gallery 62, the Clocktower, and the Jamaica Arts Center, among others. The Harlem State Office Building, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and the Bellevue Hospital Center, N.Y. City, have Logan’s work in their permanent collections.

During the closing reception, on Friday, March 25^th, Logan will give a lecture on the Artist Portrait Series and books will be available for purchase.

Logan recently opened a gallery in Carbondale, Illinois which provides exhibiting opportunities and photographic workshops to the Southern Illinois community. For more information on Fern Fair Gallery, visit: www.fernfair.com

Hey y'all! just to let you know, this past Friday night Thelonius Kryptonite (Corey Williams) and Prophetic Wizdom, were hands down awesome! This handsome duo came into Gya ready to put on a show and they did. Thank you both so much and you are always welcomed into "womb" of Gya. I really would like both of you to come back, don't forget.

Fannta
Peace and Love