OLORI
Adeleke Sijuwade, a Nigerian born designer and former model also known as Leke, knows that women’s bodies are a work of art. That’s why he is branching out from his already fabulous clothing line for men, ADELKE, to explore how his vibrant and unique designs can flatter women’s curves to make her feel gorgeous.
OLORI, which means Princess in Yoruba, is the name of his newest collection of forty unique pieces for women only. “I’m into the body expressing the clothes, not the clothes expressing the body”, Leke claims. If you want to rock Leke’s designs like Erykah Badu and Tyra Banks do, showcase your style with OLORI.
Tonight, from 7-10pm, catch the designer unveiling OLORI at Pieces Boutique in Brooklyn. You can also view his designs here.
Jump and Wave
One of the most culturally diverse cities on the planet, Toronto, Canada hosts its 41st Caribana, one of the biggest and baddest Caribbean Festivals in North America.
Three weeks of partying Carnival style draws in a million festival visitors each year and at least a hundred thousand American tourists come to celebrate culture. Along the festival route vendors line up to serve you food as diverse as the people in attendance so if you like food as much as I do, be sure to go with an empty stomach.
Caribana’s night scene is time to really get live because each night provides another party or three to attend. Machal Montana, a soca artist from Trinidad (the Holy Grail of Carnival) will make an appearance along with Kevin Lyttle, Akon, Estelle, Ludacris, and Kardinall Offishall who will all host parties over the duration of the festival to give you a reason to dance until the next days celebration begins.
Toronto’s Caribana is as close as you’ll get to a Trinidad and Tobago Carnival without having to leave North America to do it.
Caribana kicked off Sunday June 15 and ends August 5.
More event information is available here and here.
World Stage: Lagos-Dakar
Primarily focused on blurring the traditional and contemporary representations of class boundaries, Kehinde Wiley’s subjects have primarily tended to be young African-American men, straight from the streets of Harlem. But World Stage: Africa, Lagos - Dakar at Studio Museum Harlem is moving beyond the boundaries of the urban New York landscape. Taking Wiley’s well-known style and transplanting it to a global spectrum, the new series of 10 paintings were conceived in temporary studios set up along his travels through Nigeria and Senegal. Consequently, traces of regional architecture and textiles have found their way into his new works.
Although his stylistic signature has always been juxtaposing the elements of traditional renaissance portraiture with that of urban African–American culture, this new exhibit gave Wiley the freedom to represent the historical dynamics between power and privilege in an entirely new setting. Suffusing his works with a hint of the post-colonial, Wiley paints his subjects in poses replicated straight from independence–era statues scattered around Lagos and Dakar.
Whilst these new paintings retain a powerful vibrancy, there is arguably a loss of the familiar garnered in Wiley’s earlier works. The instant identification garnered by the Harlem-based settings of his earlier portraits is somehow lost when transferred to the African landscape. But this new dimension in Wiley’s artistic realm is producing iconic results that are sure to resonate with a bigger crowd than ever.
Digital Badu
In the dark recesses of the late 90s and early 2000s, a tremor ran through the music industry as more material made its way to the web. Amidst the uncertainty, people questioned what would happen to the music and if creativity would die along this new avenue.
What could not be foreseen was the way the internet and the digitization of media would open the door to a more democratic way of making and experiencing music. Through its floodgates have come (sometimes questionably) talented stars such as Souljah Boy and venues such as MySpace and iTunes.
Fast-forward to 2008 and the ever-talented, ever-ingenious, self-acclaimed analog girl Erykah Badu, has also appropriated the digital world to her own ends. Looking for a remix to her latest non-album single, “Real Thang,” Badu has launched an internet-based remix contest open to any creative body with beats on the mind.
Proving the fast-pace of the web and the ability of its plethora of users to turn out a quick download, you can find a number of remixes to the track already up on the paean to self-promotion, YouTube. The remixes are diverse with sounds that range from dub with 80s Barrington Levy samples, to spacey electronic tracks to a mellowed out Madlib groove (remixers, breathe — Madlib produced the original track and cannot be a part of the contest). Don’t feel limited to “urban” types of sounds either — creativity is key so if you think you can make “Real Thang” rock, literally, go for it.
Sound good? Then plug in and get it poppin’.
For “Real Thang” vocals, grand- and runner-up prizes and more information on the contest, click here.
Deadline for entry: July 31.
Frank Gehry’s Serpentine
A whimsical fantasyland of wooden beams and hanging glass canopies, Frank Gehry’s first project in the UK is about to become reality. Having been selected by the Serpentine Gallery to participate in an innovative architectural program, Gehry was given 6 months to design, construct and erect a temporary summer Pavilion in London’s Hyde Park. Following in the footsteps of Rem Koolhaas and Oscar Niemeyer, Gehry’s Pavilion is ninth in the Serpentine’s series as well as being his first UK project.
To describe the structure as conceptual is somewhat of an understatement. Held up by 4 steel columns, the pavilion is a scintillating labyrinth of overlapping glass panes and protruding wooden beams. But despite the convoluted aesthetic of the Pavilion, there is an undeniable functionality embedded in Gehry’s concoction. Described as an “urban street”, the pavilion will serve as a promenade linking the park to the Serpentine Gallery itself.
And whilst the placement of timber catapults and steel planks may seem to some absurd, wooden benches are scattered around the pavilion making it an attractive space for aimless wandering and self-reflection.
Quincy Jones
If you’re a big enough fan of Quincy Jones, you’d know that his middle name is ‘Delight’. You’d also know that the maverick is getting ready to celebrate his 75th birthday. But leave it to Uncle Q to celebrate in musical style: supported by the Swiss Army Big Band, over 20 artists will be gathered on stage at the 42nd Montreux Jazz festival, to perform a fitting tribute to the great man himself.
Billed as the highlight of this year’s festival, the tribute concert will feature a variety of artists from the legendary Chaka Khan and Herbie Hancock to relative newcomers James Morrison and Paolo Nutini. The performer’s list reads like a who’s who of musical talent. But this should hardly come as a surprise, considering the expanse of Jones’ influence in the musical realm.
Having co-produced the Festival from 1991 – 1993, Jones oversaw a sizeable portion of its expansion and had a considerable stake in evolving the festival from a purely jazz-centric festival into a world music extravaganza.
All proceeds from ticket sales go to the Quincy Jones Listen Ip foundation
The Roma Fest
Celebration, remembrance and cultural exploration are the prevailing themes of NYC’s second annual Roma Film Festival. The socially conscious fest — also known as the Gypsy Human Rights Film Festival — is set to screen over 25 films from all over the world that explore the conditions, lives and history of the Roma peoples.
One such film, “Searching for the 4th Nail“, engrosses the viewer by seeking to answer the question of what it means to be a gypsy. The film details the journey of filmmaker George Eli as he treks across America in search of the meaning of his people’s traditions so that he may teach his sons what it means to be a gypsy.
The Roma Film Festival runs from July 8th to the 15th. For more on location and screenings, check them out here.
Good Music. Honest.
Take your average front man during a band’s period of creative hiatus. Damon Albarn is not that guy. Instead of focusing the pursuits of his off-time on reality variety shows or eco-friendly clothing labels, this lead vocalist of the legendary Britpop band Blur has worked as main man behind the Gorillaz, and the Danger Mouse collaboration The Good, the Bad, and the Queen.
In 2002, he co-founded the Honest Jons Record label which Entertainment Weekly refers to as “the hippest world-music label going.” Their Lincoln Center musical revue promises a swift education in contemporary black music with Cadi Staton performing (remember “Young Hearts Run Free”?) alongside Simone White, Tony Allen, the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, and many others.
Saturday, July 12th
8PM
Avery Fisher Hall
Part of the Lincoln Center Festival 2008
Heavy Light
The International Center of Photography’s most recent exhibit is bringing Japan back to New York City. Heavy Light, featuring photography and film from 13 of Japan’s most talented artists show that there is more rising from this island nation than just the sun. From Hiroh Kikai’s stunning black and white street portraits to Miwa Yanagi’s eerie theatrical re-creation of childhood fairy tales, the exhibition represents a link between traditional culture and emerging elements of Japanese society.
Asako Narahashi’s series Half Awake and Half Asleep in the Water blends the turbulence of nature with the futuristic urban architecture that lines Japan’s coast. Asako’s images evoke an isolation that could only result from floating just out of reach from the safety of land.
Masayuki Yoshinaga’s video installation showcases the modern rituals of Japan’s infamous motorcycle gangs. His light screen display of Lolita Gothic fashion is also a must-see. Photographed in some of the most famous trend-setting districts in Japan, such as Harajuku and Shibuya, Yoshinaga’s collection explores bizarre and daring Japanese street style.
Don’t miss out on this illuminating display, running now until September 7th. More info here.
Hollyweerd
Have you ever made love to a weirdo? Odds are, you probably have but won’t admit it. Well, 2008 is the year to start fessing up because being as out there as possible seems to be everyone’s new goal.
A music group bringing new flavor to hip hop, Hollyweerd, is also raising the question of whether or not you’d make love to a weirdo, and gaining much attention from the online community. Self proclaimed as the New Wave/Rap/Ghetto Tech Music genre, Hollyweerd brings a hip new swag to the south. Dreamer, The Love Crusader, Tuki and Stago Lee came together in mid-November of 2007 and have since worked to produce a fresh sound to Hip Hop with and electronic/alternative vibe.
To experience their flavor for yourself visit Hollyweerd here.