REAL COOL

“ONcE uPON A TImE BlAck mAlE “cOOl” WAS DEfINED BY THE WAYS IN WHIcH BlAck mEN cONfRONTED HARDSHIPS Of lIfE WITHOuT AllOWING THEIR SPIRITS TO BE RAVAGED THEY TOOk THE PAIN Of IT AND uSED IT AlcHEmIcAllY TO TuRN THE PAIN INTO GOlD. THAT BuRNING PROcESS REquIRED HIGH HEAT. BlAck mAlE cOOl WAS DEfINED BY THE ABIlITY TO WITHSTAND THE HEAT AND REmAIN cENTERED. IT WAS DEfINED BY BlAck mAlE WIllINGNESS TO cONfRONT REAlITY, TO fAcE THE TRuTH, AND BEAR IT NOT BY ADOPTING A fAlSE POSE Of cOOl WHIlE fEEDING ON fANTASY; NOT BY BlAck mAlE DENIAl OR BY ASSumING A “POOR mE” VIcTIm IDENTITY. IT WAS DEfINED BY INDIVIDuAl BlAck mAlES DARING TO SElf-DEfINE RATHER THAN BE DEfINED BY OTHERS.”

BEll HOOkS

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROD PORTER cO-STARRING SImONTTE WHITE

THE ECSTATIC 59 Instagram.com/sIImoblanco

As Dead Wrong by the Notorious B.I.G. plays in the background, Maya Nicole, an abstract and intuitive artist, walks me through one of her pieces I Am Good Ground. An art piece she manifested from a dream of a woman with the tree of life forming over her stomach and growing from her womb, that also glows in the dark. She gushes over The Dollar Bin, “I think it’s beautiful to see so many types of artists come together and show case. There’s no ‘I’m better than you’. We all come together and just create.”

By: Simonette White

The Dollar Bin, curated by artist Damian Dickson, Owner of Kurve Studio, is a cultural artistic movement for new and established artists to display their work, network and ultimately vibe with other like-minded folks. As I observed from the beginning of the event with artist set-up, all the way towards the end of the night with a packed house of close to two hundred people, Damian was on site, involved and in charge of the entire flow. “A lot of the artists that are showing here, they’ve never shown before, so I try to put them in a professional situation where I can cater to them as best as I can as a curator and give them a platform where they can show their art with their friends, family and fans. Potentially make new ones [fans].” The Dollar Bin once started out as an experiment in 2017 to promote a local salon business. To garner more audience engagement, Damian showed artwork at the salon’s basement and had a turnout of 145 people. Ever since, The Dollar Bin has been expanding and gaining more traction each year.

This event fully embraced the support of small black businesses and displayed each artist with care. The venue in Flatbush, Brooklyn gave the community something fun and cultural to attend. I loved seeing all the family, the young faces and friends continuously flow in. The Dollar Bin provided young dreamers with a vision of what their future can entail as an artist. I witnessed an aspirational young man approach our table for the ECSTATIC with his mother, and keenly inquire on the designs displayed before him. He, among many others, were captivated by the room full of visionaries and always stopped to ask and even purchase some of the work. The love and genuine interest in the room was palpable. The community gathered for support enjoying Caribbean food, indulging in drinks, and the DJ playing all the hip-hop classics had the room buzzing in discussion and admiration for one another.

The level of artistry I came across talking to people of all walks of life brought on such a sense of inspiration and exploratory newness for me. It quickly became apparent to me how meaningful of an event The Dollar Bin was for people and how necessary it is to build these types of platforms. “It means the world to me that there’s a platform for me to go to and have people meet my art in person. The most important thing is that I can talk to people about my art and get a sense of relatability within another person, open up their perspectives and get that human connection.” Joelle Cipriotti, a spiritual sub-realistic abstract artist stated, after having an intense but real-world conversation about our self-images as humans and the significance of an introspective self-journey to self-love.

A podcast was also being recorded live at The Dollar Bin. The Art School Podcast created by Mighty Math. His love for the arts inspired this podcast to fruition where he talks to artists of all disciplines.

Mighty Math’s infectious energy coupled with his ambition and busy involvement in the arts is just the kind of artist that is featured at the Dollar Bin. The rest of the night entailed performances from versatile entertainers which encompassed all genres of music. The crowd was engaged and dancing supporting each act. I’m sure each performer left the stage feeling larger than life.

Such a wondrous feeling of being in a room full of avantgarde thinkers who throw their emotions and survival stories of the human experience into their work, is a feeling and a room more people need to experience. The Dollar Bin has provided such an opportunity to expand the audience’s scope on life, just by making different artists accessible and available to reach new eyes and new thinkers. A beautiful plethora of black people enjoying just what it is to be human, to be artists, to be embraced and honored with so much grace.

The Dollar Bin is exactly $1 for entry. Feel free to donate more at next year’s Dollar Bin.

Peace before anything, God before everything

Love before anything, real before everything Home before anyplace, shoot before anything

Style and state radiate, love power slay the hate Priority!

JS: Going through your portfolio is a real treat because I didn’t realize you also have digital art in the chamber. Which is your preferred weapon of choice? Paint brush or the pen?

AM: No way I can choose. They Are both so dear to my heart. Digital is my first love, it was the tool that helped me get back into creating art, so I am forever thankful for the pen. Painting is also special to me ..in the beginning of the year 22’ I received a sign from God in my dream, he gave me visions of me painting, I was so fulfilled in that dream. I knew nothing about painting nor have I ever picked up a brush 9 months ago, now I can’t imagine Life without it.