1 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:06,139 ♪ Opening theme music ♪ 2 00:00:14,047 --> 00:00:18,852 Hello, and welcome to this episode of ArtsAbly in Conversation. 3 00:00:18,852 --> 00:00:20,754 My name is Diane Kolin. 4 00:00:21,221 --> 00:00:26,960 The series presents artists, academics, and project leaders who dedicate their 5 00:00:26,993 --> 00:00:33,199 time and energy to a better accessibility for people with disabilities in the arts. 6 00:00:33,233 --> 00:00:38,204 You can find more of these conversations on our website, artsably.com, 7 00:00:38,204 --> 00:00:43,843 which is spelled A-R-T-S-A-B-L-Y dot com. 8 00:00:44,411 --> 00:00:49,549 ♪ Theme music ♪ 9 00:00:56,790 --> 00:01:02,429 Today, ArtsAbly is in conversation with Laura Brody, an artist who sculpts 10 00:01:02,462 --> 00:01:05,398 the human body and its vehicles. 11 00:01:05,432 --> 00:01:10,970 She is the founder of Opulent Mobility, a series of exhibits that reimagine 12 00:01:11,004 --> 00:01:15,141 disability as opulent and powerful. 13 00:01:15,175 --> 00:01:20,313 You can find the resources mentioned by Laura Brody during this episode 14 00:01:20,346 --> 00:01:24,451 on ArtsAbly's website in the blog section. 15 00:01:25,084 --> 00:01:26,419 Hello, everybody. 16 00:01:26,453 --> 00:01:28,054 Welcome to this new episode. 17 00:01:28,054 --> 00:01:30,824 I am today with Laura Brody. 18 00:01:30,857 --> 00:01:33,593 Thank you, Laura, for being here. 19 00:01:33,626 --> 00:01:34,894 Thank you. 20 00:01:34,894 --> 00:01:41,468 Laura is someone who does a lot of work in sculpting 21 00:01:41,468 --> 00:01:45,505 for the human body and its vehicle, which I really love. 22 00:01:45,538 --> 00:01:50,944 You're the founder of an organization called Opulence Mobility, 23 00:01:50,977 --> 00:01:53,346 which is actually a series of exhibits. 24 00:01:53,379 --> 00:01:55,982 You're going to talk about that, I guess. 25 00:01:55,982 --> 00:01:57,283 Absolutely. 26 00:01:57,517 --> 00:01:59,385 And thank you so much for inviting me. 27 00:01:59,419 --> 00:02:00,854 This is wonderful. 28 00:02:00,887 --> 00:02:04,958 I'm hailing from Monrovia, California, which is - 29 00:02:04,958 --> 00:02:09,562 if you know California at all, it's east of Pasadena. 30 00:02:09,596 --> 00:02:11,898 Thank you very much. 31 00:02:11,931 --> 00:02:13,066 Thank you. 32 00:02:13,099 --> 00:02:14,300 This is wonderful. 33 00:02:14,334 --> 00:02:17,871 I'm so excited that you've been setting up these talks with people. 34 00:02:17,904 --> 00:02:19,806 What a great idea. 35 00:02:19,839 --> 00:02:24,043 It's a great journey, and it's very interesting to be able to talk about 36 00:02:24,077 --> 00:02:30,550 arts and accessibility in the arts with so many people all over the world. 37 00:02:31,284 --> 00:02:32,385 It's great. 38 00:02:32,418 --> 00:02:35,822 Thank you for taking the time to chat with us. 39 00:02:35,855 --> 00:02:36,856 Absolutely. 40 00:02:36,890 --> 00:02:38,224 No, that's wonderful. 41 00:02:38,258 --> 00:02:41,661 It's such an exciting thing to talk about, too. 42 00:02:41,694 --> 00:02:45,932 Something that I think we need more conversations about it. 43 00:02:45,965 --> 00:02:47,534 Absolutely, yes. 44 00:02:47,567 --> 00:02:52,605 Can you tell a little bit about your background, where it all 45 00:02:52,605 --> 00:02:55,842 started, your studies, everything? 46 00:02:55,875 --> 00:02:57,477 Absolutely. 47 00:02:58,244 --> 00:03:02,782 What I am, and have been anyway, professionally, is a costume person. 48 00:03:02,815 --> 00:03:06,920 So I have made and designed costumes and worked on them 49 00:03:06,920 --> 00:03:08,521 for many, many, many years. 50 00:03:08,555 --> 00:03:13,059 And that's for film and television and dance and theater 51 00:03:13,059 --> 00:03:16,462 and anybody who needs a costume. 52 00:03:16,629 --> 00:03:24,737 But I got excited and interested in doing work with disability art. 53 00:03:24,771 --> 00:03:27,540 That came from a different place. 54 00:03:27,574 --> 00:03:33,780 I I'd always worked with people who had certain forms of disabilities, 55 00:03:33,813 --> 00:03:39,018 but it didn't spend as much time with it until a former partner had a stroke, and 56 00:03:39,052 --> 00:03:43,323 I got much closer to adaptive equipment. 57 00:03:44,023 --> 00:03:47,694 He was going through physical therapy for a stroke. 58 00:03:47,727 --> 00:03:53,533 And I saw at the same time when I was dropping him off, an 85-year-old man and 59 00:03:53,566 --> 00:03:58,404 a four-year-old girl who are doing the same type of therapy for the same reason. 60 00:03:58,438 --> 00:04:03,643 And you don't have to hit me with a head - over the head. I get it. 61 00:04:03,643 --> 00:04:08,448 Look, it can happen to anybody at any time for any reason. 62 00:04:08,481 --> 00:04:14,554 But it just didn't seem right that the equipment looked as terrible as it did. 63 00:04:14,587 --> 00:04:18,458 And it really just seemed insultingly ugly. 64 00:04:18,491 --> 00:04:22,462 It was like the cheapest, most awful aluminum stuff, and it didn't 65 00:04:22,495 --> 00:04:25,131 seem to even work that well. 66 00:04:25,164 --> 00:04:30,103 The crutches and the walkers and the rest of it were - There has to be a better way. 67 00:04:30,136 --> 00:04:33,006 We can figure something else out. 68 00:04:33,273 --> 00:04:37,910 And didn't do anything with that for a while until much later, a friend 69 00:04:37,944 --> 00:04:42,081 of mine and really big changes of life. 70 00:04:42,115 --> 00:04:46,286 But a friend of mine had a wheelchair that he wasn't using 71 00:04:46,286 --> 00:04:50,757 and offered it to me to redo as a throne. 72 00:04:50,757 --> 00:04:54,927 And I did it like an Edwardian throne and potted it up, 73 00:04:54,927 --> 00:04:59,599 and it was glorious and beautiful, and almost threw him out on the floor 74 00:04:59,632 --> 00:05:03,703 because I didn't understand about the padding that I needed to put in, 75 00:05:03,703 --> 00:05:06,039 that it threw off his balance too much. 76 00:05:06,406 --> 00:05:09,542 And that was not my intention at all. 77 00:05:09,575 --> 00:05:13,813 But okay, there's so much more I need to learn about this. 78 00:05:13,846 --> 00:05:17,250 Maybe I don't start with redesigning people's equipment 79 00:05:17,283 --> 00:05:20,153 before I learn a lot more. 80 00:05:21,321 --> 00:05:25,324 But I also started trying to find places to share the work. 81 00:05:25,358 --> 00:05:30,697 And it was so tricky and hard find places that were accessible. 82 00:05:30,697 --> 00:05:32,365 So to even bring... 83 00:05:32,398 --> 00:05:35,268 It didn't feel right to bring a wheelchair 84 00:05:35,268 --> 00:05:39,939 to a place where somebody in a wheelchair can't get to. 85 00:05:39,939 --> 00:05:46,179 I started researching it and realizing there were a lot of designs for equipment 86 00:05:46,212 --> 00:05:50,516 that were interesting, and none of them were going out on the market. 87 00:05:50,550 --> 00:05:52,452 So I'm like, What is happening? 88 00:05:52,485 --> 00:05:54,153 There is so much more. 89 00:05:54,187 --> 00:05:58,291 It just felt like I just scratch the surface. 90 00:05:58,324 --> 00:06:04,197 And I thought, okay, I can't be the only one thinking about it. 91 00:06:04,230 --> 00:06:09,936 And maybe I can put on a show because I'm a collaborative artist at heart, 92 00:06:09,936 --> 00:06:13,706 spent a lot of time working in theater, and thought, Okay, I'll find 93 00:06:13,740 --> 00:06:19,846 some other artists who are interested in this topic about reimagining disability. 94 00:06:19,879 --> 00:06:27,920 And I tried to put on a show, and I figured, how hard could it be? 95 00:06:27,954 --> 00:06:31,858 Which was the understatement of the century. 96 00:06:31,891 --> 00:06:37,463 But over the years, Opulent Mobility, which is what I've called this series 97 00:06:37,497 --> 00:06:44,170 of exhibits, asks artists to re-imagine disability as opulent and powerful. 98 00:06:44,203 --> 00:06:48,674 And because I didn't ever specify what type of disability when people got 99 00:06:48,708 --> 00:06:56,015 involved, it's covered everything, really, from mental health issues, 100 00:06:56,048 --> 00:07:01,954 mobility issues, eyesight, hearing, you name it, 101 00:07:02,121 --> 00:07:07,693 and just looking at it in new ways or approaching it in new ways. 102 00:07:07,727 --> 00:07:13,566 And my own artwork has changed, certainly as I've been working more 103 00:07:13,566 --> 00:07:19,872 on my own chronic health issues and invisible disabilities. 104 00:07:20,439 --> 00:07:23,075 It's almost 10 years now. 105 00:07:23,109 --> 00:07:26,479 It's almost amazing to me that that's happened. 106 00:07:26,512 --> 00:07:29,382 I've been doing it for 10 years. 107 00:07:29,682 --> 00:07:31,484 When did it start exactly? 108 00:07:31,517 --> 00:07:33,486 I thought it was 2013. 109 00:07:33,519 --> 00:07:35,755 2013 was the first exhibit. 110 00:07:35,788 --> 00:07:40,827 I actually did the very first piece. 111 00:07:40,827 --> 00:07:46,299 I started in 2009, but I didn't really start putting things together. 112 00:07:46,332 --> 00:07:52,638 It took about a year to get the first show because I just wanted a space 113 00:07:52,638 --> 00:07:55,842 that was really accessible, and I had my heart set on the space, 114 00:07:55,875 --> 00:07:58,077 and they didn't want to talk to me. 115 00:07:58,110 --> 00:08:02,014 So I had to bug them so much. 116 00:08:02,048 --> 00:08:06,018 And eventually, I found out that they were upset because of all the money they 117 00:08:06,052 --> 00:08:08,487 had spent making the place accessible. 118 00:08:08,521 --> 00:08:13,359 Okay, fine. 119 00:08:13,392 --> 00:08:15,862 But eventually, they let me in. 120 00:08:15,895 --> 00:08:21,601 And then through the years, I've been finding other places to share the work 121 00:08:21,634 --> 00:08:27,106 and really finding wonderful artists and such exciting work, but also finding 122 00:08:27,139 --> 00:08:31,143 yet more places that are not accessible. 123 00:08:31,177 --> 00:08:32,879 It's a real challenge. 124 00:08:32,945 --> 00:08:38,184 Would it be possible for you to share these places with us 125 00:08:38,751 --> 00:08:46,125 where you did actually these shows that were accessible to the audience, but also 126 00:08:46,125 --> 00:08:48,961 the artist, so that they can exhibit? 127 00:08:48,995 --> 00:08:50,229 Yes. 128 00:08:51,664 --> 00:08:57,770 I've done that, making it accessible to the audience and the artist by starting 129 00:08:57,803 --> 00:09:02,542 and doing things online actually made an enormous amount of difference. 130 00:09:02,542 --> 00:09:06,946 And by adding in art descriptions. 131 00:09:07,079 --> 00:09:13,185 The second exhibit I did was in 2015, and that was at Cal State (California State University), Northbridge, 132 00:09:13,185 --> 00:09:18,791 and most community colleges are mandated to be accessible. 133 00:09:20,526 --> 00:09:23,262 It's a good space if you can get it. 134 00:09:23,296 --> 00:09:27,900 That is frequently a challenge to get into the gallery spaces unless you know a lot 135 00:09:27,934 --> 00:09:31,170 of people or already work at the school. 136 00:09:31,203 --> 00:09:36,075 But that was one of the first places where I ran into a really fine 137 00:09:36,108 --> 00:09:42,081 art describer who was excited by the show that I was doing and offered to... 138 00:09:42,081 --> 00:09:43,849 Because I was writing my own art descriptions, 139 00:09:43,883 --> 00:09:46,185 but I didn't really know how to do it. 140 00:09:46,185 --> 00:09:50,823 And she offered to look over what I had done and make corrections. 141 00:09:50,856 --> 00:09:56,195 It was so gracious and wonderful, but to make things more accessible 142 00:09:56,228 --> 00:10:02,335 for blind and low vision people. And ever since then, I've been working with her. 143 00:10:02,368 --> 00:10:05,004 She's amazing. Kari Grossman, thank you. 144 00:10:05,004 --> 00:10:06,138 That's awesome. 145 00:10:06,405 --> 00:10:09,709 She works out of a place called Audio Eyes. 146 00:10:11,110 --> 00:10:15,114 So one of the things that I've been doing each time is trying to find other ways 147 00:10:15,147 --> 00:10:17,116 to make it more accessible. 148 00:10:17,516 --> 00:10:22,054 Doing them and putting everything up online has made a big difference. 149 00:10:22,088 --> 00:10:28,628 I also started to add in a voiceover of some of the descriptions as well. 150 00:10:28,661 --> 00:10:32,331 so you get another element and much more detailed art descriptions. 151 00:10:32,365 --> 00:10:37,703 So you hopefully get the experience of really looking at the art 152 00:10:37,737 --> 00:10:41,540 and getting more involved with it. 153 00:10:42,475 --> 00:10:51,517 2017, that was the next one after that, and that one was online. 154 00:10:51,550 --> 00:10:57,657 2018, I did a place called Fimula Arts in Hollywood, and one of the few rental 155 00:10:57,690 --> 00:11:03,062 spaces that you find that had some accessibility that I could afford. 156 00:11:03,095 --> 00:11:06,365 That is also a challenge. 157 00:11:06,365 --> 00:11:11,704 Accessibility in terms of funding is always a challenge, too. 158 00:11:11,737 --> 00:11:18,978 Other places, I have done one at a brewery in 2021. 159 00:11:19,011 --> 00:11:22,982 2020 was online like everything was. 160 00:11:23,215 --> 00:11:31,724 2022 was also at a community college This one was over in Antelope Valley. 161 00:11:31,757 --> 00:11:37,596 And this last one was at my studio space downtown of Los Angeles, and that's where 162 00:11:37,630 --> 00:11:40,766 the upcoming one will be as well. 163 00:11:40,800 --> 00:11:48,007 So I just start keeping my eyes and ears filled 164 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:51,911 for accessible spaces wherever I can. 165 00:11:52,044 --> 00:11:56,182 And hopefully for people that you can partner with. 166 00:11:56,215 --> 00:12:02,688 I did one in 2019 with a disability arts day program 167 00:12:02,721 --> 00:12:04,790 called Arts Unbound in New Jersey. 168 00:12:04,824 --> 00:12:08,260 But sadly, that is no more. 169 00:12:09,261 --> 00:12:15,201 I guess with ADA and the laws that are voted, there will be more 170 00:12:15,234 --> 00:12:20,406 and more spaces where we can physically welcome some people. 171 00:12:20,439 --> 00:12:24,577 But also the importance of continuing to do it hybrid 172 00:12:24,610 --> 00:12:29,482 with the online possibilities, like you said, captions and transcripts 173 00:12:29,515 --> 00:12:35,588 and visual descriptions, things like that, that are very important and that are not 174 00:12:35,588 --> 00:12:38,858 always feasible in physical exhibitions. 175 00:12:38,858 --> 00:12:42,128 Absolutely. It has made an enormous difference. 176 00:12:42,161 --> 00:12:45,598 Over the past three years, what I've been doing, 177 00:12:45,631 --> 00:12:50,803 because I started working with a deaf artist, I've been incorporating ASL, 178 00:12:50,836 --> 00:12:55,074 making sure more things are captioned and correctly captioned, 179 00:12:55,074 --> 00:12:59,745 which is a real issue because automatic captioning is terrible. 180 00:12:59,745 --> 00:13:02,014 I mean, of course it is. 181 00:13:02,047 --> 00:13:05,284 That's almost impossible for that to do well. 182 00:13:05,317 --> 00:13:10,523 I'm impressed that it does as well as it can, but correcting that, 183 00:13:10,523 --> 00:13:13,759 trying to make sure that there's more information. 184 00:13:13,793 --> 00:13:18,731 The most recent exhibit, I did individual artist interviews 185 00:13:18,764 --> 00:13:23,102 because all of the artists were saying, We need a little more time. 186 00:13:23,135 --> 00:13:29,842 It was lovely to be able to take that time and then have those recorded 187 00:13:29,875 --> 00:13:33,112 and add ASL to them as well. 188 00:13:33,145 --> 00:13:34,880 I'm assuming... 189 00:13:35,147 --> 00:13:39,718 I'd love to be able to make it more accessible in so many ways 190 00:13:39,752 --> 00:13:45,724 and to do it in so many different languages, and I'm doing it bit by bit. 191 00:13:46,392 --> 00:13:50,462 I would like to come back to your own work. 192 00:13:50,462 --> 00:13:51,130 Yes. 193 00:13:51,163 --> 00:13:58,671 Is it possible to tell us about your artistic process when you create a piece, 194 00:13:58,671 --> 00:14:05,144 the material that you're using, the ideas that come to you when you see 195 00:14:05,177 --> 00:14:08,180 a mobility aid or a mobility device? 196 00:14:08,214 --> 00:14:09,782 Can you talk about that? 197 00:14:09,815 --> 00:14:12,818 Absolutely. 198 00:14:13,018 --> 00:14:16,989 I can talk about both some of the ones that I just started with 199 00:14:17,022 --> 00:14:20,626 and then also the thing that I'm most recently working on. 200 00:14:20,626 --> 00:14:26,665 But the ones that were more about specifically the devices 201 00:14:26,665 --> 00:14:31,804 that started with, okay, I want to make this walker into something. 202 00:14:31,837 --> 00:14:36,008 There's a piece I have called Le Flâneur, which is... 203 00:14:36,041 --> 00:14:40,512 It's like a mobile Victorian bath house, really, with a parasol 204 00:14:40,512 --> 00:14:46,719 and a gramophone horn that you could also use as an ear horn, and cowhorns in the front, 205 00:14:46,752 --> 00:14:48,854 and drapery is in a silver platter. 206 00:14:48,888 --> 00:14:54,760 But I'll start taking these pieces and collecting the bits. 207 00:14:54,793 --> 00:15:01,600 Easily, 85 % of the material that I use is repurposed or found objects, 208 00:15:01,634 --> 00:15:08,007 old stuff, and then redressed, I guess you could say. 209 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:14,079 I will take old materials, a lot of old tablecloths and drapery materials, 210 00:15:14,113 --> 00:15:20,219 and then turn them into the new pieces. 211 00:15:20,886 --> 00:15:25,324 The Jazzy Peacock scooter was from a mobility scooter that was found 212 00:15:25,324 --> 00:15:26,525 on the side of the road. 213 00:15:26,558 --> 00:15:31,397 We refurbished it, and I I turned it essentially into an Art Nouveau Peacock. 214 00:15:33,098 --> 00:15:36,302 But the thing that I find really delightful 215 00:15:36,335 --> 00:15:41,440 about doing these that is so different from what I had been doing professionally 216 00:15:41,473 --> 00:15:43,809 is that I can take my time. 217 00:15:43,842 --> 00:15:47,846 I can really devote time to them. 218 00:15:47,880 --> 00:15:51,317 Most recent piece took three years. 219 00:15:51,350 --> 00:15:57,890 It, of course, not the only thing I was doing, but to really let it grow 220 00:15:57,923 --> 00:16:02,528 and to let that process happen each time. 221 00:16:02,561 --> 00:16:08,367 When I'm doing costumes for stage and screen, there is not that luxury. 222 00:16:08,400 --> 00:16:11,837 The deadline is now, now, now, now, now. 223 00:16:11,870 --> 00:16:14,139 So that happens really quickly. 224 00:16:14,173 --> 00:16:19,178 These I really get to take time, and that is a lovely thing to do. 225 00:16:19,678 --> 00:16:26,318 The most recent pieces I've been doing are really focusing a little bit more 226 00:16:26,318 --> 00:16:28,120 on some of my own chronic health issues. 227 00:16:28,153 --> 00:16:32,291 So the Fairy Melusine, which is a more recent one, 228 00:16:32,324 --> 00:16:36,929 that was the one that took three years, has a spine made out of all the supplement 229 00:16:36,962 --> 00:16:41,133 bottles that I've been using to help keep myself healthy with 230 00:16:41,166 --> 00:16:45,804 thyroid issues and menopause and many other things, 231 00:16:45,838 --> 00:16:49,375 and is stuffed with clean plastic waste. 232 00:16:49,375 --> 00:16:56,115 And I've built portals into it so you can actually see portions of the innards. 233 00:16:56,148 --> 00:17:01,653 And a lot of her is also made with old prom dresses. 234 00:17:01,687 --> 00:17:10,195 I try to pick things that are not only what I like or what works 235 00:17:10,229 --> 00:17:15,067 pretty wise, but something that has meaning for the work as well. 236 00:17:16,435 --> 00:17:24,877 You also created a podcast about lectures that is called Genius Teatime? 237 00:17:24,910 --> 00:17:29,348 Yes, that has been so fun and such a delight. 238 00:17:29,348 --> 00:17:33,085 That was something that I originally started with a friend 239 00:17:33,085 --> 00:17:36,588 and colleague, Pamela Samuelson. 240 00:17:36,622 --> 00:17:39,558 She runs something called Embody Work LA. 241 00:17:39,591 --> 00:17:42,895 But since then, it's become mine. 242 00:17:42,895 --> 00:17:46,698 What we found is that we knew a lot of people who 243 00:17:46,732 --> 00:17:53,038 had really fascinating stories and were very knowledgeable and passionate 244 00:17:53,071 --> 00:17:55,007 about many different topics. 245 00:17:55,040 --> 00:17:59,912 Well, how about we bring you in and let's talk about that. 246 00:17:59,945 --> 00:18:05,117 So it's done with a suggested donation each time, and that's - 247 00:18:05,117 --> 00:18:07,219 any donations are split into thirds. 248 00:18:07,252 --> 00:18:11,657 So a third will go to the speaker, a third will go to their charity or mutual aid 249 00:18:11,690 --> 00:18:16,095 of choice, and then the rest of it will go to Opulent Mobility, 250 00:18:16,095 --> 00:18:19,631 hopefully to get more ASL interpretations. 251 00:18:20,165 --> 00:18:24,203 So sometimes that brings in money, sometimes it doesn't. 252 00:18:24,236 --> 00:18:25,237 That just happens. 253 00:18:25,270 --> 00:18:28,974 But I'm finding just wonderful people. 254 00:18:29,007 --> 00:18:37,082 A couple of the talks have been ASL interpreted, and try to go through and 255 00:18:37,115 --> 00:18:42,721 caption them, and I'm now going through and putting them all up on Substack. 256 00:18:42,754 --> 00:18:48,227 I don't know if you know of that, and doing transcripts, edited transcripts, 257 00:18:48,527 --> 00:18:51,563 slowly, because I'm one person. 258 00:18:51,897 --> 00:18:56,335 I'm trying to find funding to get to pay me to do that. 259 00:18:56,368 --> 00:19:02,040 And that's a very important point is that when you create something that needs to 260 00:19:02,074 --> 00:19:08,413 be active and lively and maintained, you also have to open it to all audiences. 261 00:19:08,447 --> 00:19:12,117 This takes time, energy... 262 00:19:12,151 --> 00:19:15,787 So much, as you know. 263 00:19:15,787 --> 00:19:21,927 And that's because there's so many different topics, literally ranging 264 00:19:21,927 --> 00:19:29,635 from occultist ritual theater in the 1900s to today to BDSM in 265 00:19:29,668 --> 00:19:36,375 the disability community and the history of beatboxing and real estate. 266 00:19:36,375 --> 00:19:42,447 It's not like there's one audience for all of it, but there probably 267 00:19:42,447 --> 00:19:44,883 will be people for each thing. 268 00:19:44,917 --> 00:19:47,786 So I've been archiving the talks. 269 00:19:47,786 --> 00:19:52,024 I really also wanted to create accessible programming. 270 00:19:52,057 --> 00:19:55,093 There's a lot up on YouTube. 271 00:19:55,127 --> 00:19:58,564 A lot of the captions are terrible, as you know. 272 00:19:58,597 --> 00:20:06,171 And so putting up things that you could actually follow along is great. 273 00:20:06,204 --> 00:20:08,307 And they're fascinating people. 274 00:20:08,307 --> 00:20:16,582 The first speaker we had, an Indigenous woman talking about the regenerative 275 00:20:16,615 --> 00:20:21,520 farming techniques of the Chumash and how it could help with climate catastrophy. 276 00:20:21,553 --> 00:20:25,223 Just fascinating person. 277 00:20:25,857 --> 00:20:28,560 I'm looking forward to more. 278 00:20:28,594 --> 00:20:33,865 Do you get to invite some of the people you find with Opulent Mobility? 279 00:20:33,899 --> 00:20:34,366 Yes. 280 00:20:34,399 --> 00:20:39,104 Just recently, I brought in Andrea Jennings, who is somebody 281 00:20:39,137 --> 00:20:46,478 that I'd met through a couple of Disability Arts Programmings, but 282 00:20:46,511 --> 00:20:51,516 she's just recently started a YouTube... 283 00:20:51,550 --> 00:20:57,990 No, it's a Pasadena Media TV show about embracing accessibility 284 00:20:57,990 --> 00:21:00,392 all over, which is very cool. 285 00:21:00,425 --> 00:21:04,596 I'll share the link with you later because I don't remember the name right offhand. 286 00:21:04,830 --> 00:21:10,869 And also Ellice Patterson, who is the founder of Abilities Dance Boston, 287 00:21:10,902 --> 00:21:15,073 who I know because she reached out to me about designing costumes for 288 00:21:15,107 --> 00:21:19,278 her dancers and their devices, their wheelchairs, walkers, and crutches. 289 00:21:19,311 --> 00:21:22,981 So very neat. 290 00:21:23,181 --> 00:21:31,023 Anthony Tessler, who is my co-curator, has also given a spot. 291 00:21:31,056 --> 00:21:35,160 I'm bringing people pretty regularly. 292 00:21:35,727 --> 00:21:40,866 I'm interested in, hopefully more people will be, and people will learn about 293 00:21:40,899 --> 00:21:46,505 disability access and disability arts as well, along with the rest of things. 294 00:21:46,505 --> 00:21:53,245 Do you continue doing costumes in TV and films and theater? 295 00:21:53,245 --> 00:21:55,247 Right now, I've not been. 296 00:21:55,247 --> 00:21:59,117 For the past year, because the entertainment industry's been having some 297 00:21:59,151 --> 00:22:03,088 major strikes, and those are now over. 298 00:22:03,121 --> 00:22:06,958 But all of the, what they call the below the line people, 299 00:22:06,992 --> 00:22:11,563 which is what I am part of, the people who actually make everything happen, 300 00:22:11,596 --> 00:22:14,166 are negotiating their contracts. 301 00:22:14,199 --> 00:22:18,070 And I'm not expecting very much. 302 00:22:18,103 --> 00:22:21,640 I've essentially been out of that type of work for a year. 303 00:22:21,673 --> 00:22:26,912 What I chose to do during this time was really focus on finding grants 304 00:22:26,945 --> 00:22:32,784 and funding and making Opulent Mobility more of a going concern, because 305 00:22:32,818 --> 00:22:36,521 in order for this to really grow, it needs to be more funded. 306 00:22:36,555 --> 00:22:41,193 So first off, because it's a full-time job, and there are so many 307 00:22:41,226 --> 00:22:46,798 full-time jobs I could do, And I want to be able to pay people. 308 00:22:46,832 --> 00:22:50,335 I've been hiring some of the disabled artists to work with me. 309 00:22:50,335 --> 00:22:53,305 I would like to continue to do that. Thank you. 310 00:22:53,305 --> 00:23:01,580 I would like to make sure that I can bring in interpreters - bring in deaf artists 311 00:23:01,613 --> 00:23:06,651 and have interpretation that is suited to them so that they can really 312 00:23:06,685 --> 00:23:08,887 be part of the show. 313 00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:10,756 And that costs. 314 00:23:10,789 --> 00:23:12,524 Each thing costs. 315 00:23:12,624 --> 00:23:16,695 So I'm finding things, and I'm crossing my fingers for more. 316 00:23:17,195 --> 00:23:21,967 And I'm also working on some proposals for different forms of social practice art, 317 00:23:21,967 --> 00:23:25,871 setting up, mending circles with different communities, and making 318 00:23:25,904 --> 00:23:29,541 those as accessible as I can as as well. 319 00:23:31,977 --> 00:23:35,080 Let's see if it will work. 320 00:23:35,113 --> 00:23:36,748 We got to try. 321 00:23:36,915 --> 00:23:42,187 Do you have any future opportunities 322 00:23:42,187 --> 00:23:45,357 that will happen with Opulent Mobility to share with us? 323 00:23:45,390 --> 00:23:47,025 Yes, absolutely. 324 00:23:47,025 --> 00:23:51,997 There are two retrospective shows that are coming up. 325 00:23:52,030 --> 00:23:55,433 Those are already have people chosen for them. 326 00:23:55,467 --> 00:24:02,507 One of those will be in September at University of Southern California at their Hoyt Gallery. 327 00:24:02,507 --> 00:24:08,213 The other one will be at Brand Library in spring of next year. 328 00:24:08,246 --> 00:24:14,920 But this year, the deadline is August 31st. 329 00:24:14,953 --> 00:24:20,125 Please submit your work that reimagines disability as opulent and powerful. 330 00:24:20,158 --> 00:24:22,861 We want your art that celebrates disability instead 331 00:24:22,894 --> 00:24:28,366 of looking at it as something to fear or ignore or look away from. 332 00:24:28,366 --> 00:24:32,938 That's awesome. We will post all these links to ArtsAbly's website. 333 00:24:32,938 --> 00:24:34,906 Yes, that will be awesome. 334 00:24:34,906 --> 00:24:40,779 And encourage everybody to publish - to submit, sorry, to submit somewhere. 335 00:24:40,779 --> 00:24:41,746 Do it, do it. 336 00:24:41,746 --> 00:24:47,185 I would love to see - One of the things that people should know that we work regularly 337 00:24:47,219 --> 00:24:53,124 with international artists, and it is always possible to send digital files. 338 00:24:53,158 --> 00:24:54,793 So you don't have to worry. 339 00:24:54,826 --> 00:24:59,731 That's another accessibility feature I like to add, that if you 340 00:24:59,764 --> 00:25:05,270 send us the file, I can have it printed and framed, or we can show 341 00:25:05,303 --> 00:25:07,239 the video or whatever it is. 342 00:25:07,272 --> 00:25:09,608 And that is a way that you can share your work without 343 00:25:09,608 --> 00:25:11,676 having to deal with shipping costs. 344 00:25:11,710 --> 00:25:15,280 Because that can be very expensive. 345 00:25:15,313 --> 00:25:20,485 If you are, say, coming from France or coming from England or India was one 346 00:25:20,485 --> 00:25:27,359 of the artists more recently, these are ways you can join. 347 00:25:27,392 --> 00:25:28,293 Thank you. 348 00:25:28,326 --> 00:25:33,999 This is a good segue to my next question, which is really about what it 349 00:25:34,032 --> 00:25:39,337 means for you to work in a field that promotes and that encourages 350 00:25:39,371 --> 00:25:41,106 accessibility in the arts. 351 00:25:41,106 --> 00:25:44,142 I just feel it's necessary. 352 00:25:44,175 --> 00:25:47,579 Absolutely, without a doubt, necessary. 353 00:25:47,612 --> 00:25:57,455 I'm also constantly surprised at how little attention is paid to it. 354 00:25:57,455 --> 00:26:02,460 This literally benefits all of us. 355 00:26:02,594 --> 00:26:07,198 How many people are benefiting from captions all the time now? 356 00:26:07,232 --> 00:26:08,433 Why not have more of that? 357 00:26:08,466 --> 00:26:11,403 Why not have them work better? 358 00:26:12,837 --> 00:26:17,008 It feels to me like when you're doing things, 359 00:26:17,042 --> 00:26:21,379 it may not be possible to make it accessible perfectly to everyone, 360 00:26:21,413 --> 00:26:25,417 but there are ways to try, and there are ways to really make 361 00:26:25,450 --> 00:26:30,822 an effort to make sure that everybody gets to experience it or 362 00:26:30,855 --> 00:26:32,657 that more people get to. 363 00:26:32,657 --> 00:26:38,596 So as best as I can, hopefully doing a little better each time. 364 00:26:38,763 --> 00:26:45,637 And that it means a great deal to me that other people really care about this, too, 365 00:26:45,670 --> 00:26:50,742 that this is important, because it is. 366 00:26:52,077 --> 00:26:55,580 Especially today where we have this notion of universal design 367 00:26:55,614 --> 00:27:01,219 that can be applied to everything, like buildings, arts, creation, design 368 00:27:01,252 --> 00:27:04,389 of objects, design of devices. 369 00:27:04,789 --> 00:27:08,393 Yeah, I have mixed feelings about universal design. 370 00:27:08,426 --> 00:27:13,064 Certainly, that can be incredibly important and helpful in, say, 371 00:27:13,098 --> 00:27:18,837 your building designs or making things more accessible in other ways, but also 372 00:27:18,870 --> 00:27:23,508 acknowledging we're individuals and that we all have different needs 373 00:27:23,541 --> 00:27:26,845 and wants and desires and style. 374 00:27:27,379 --> 00:27:36,454 I don't expect you to have - somebody who, say, really, really likes jazz music 375 00:27:36,488 --> 00:27:41,059 is going to necessarily love Norwegian death metal, for example. 376 00:27:41,059 --> 00:27:43,061 So why would you have the same wheelchair? 377 00:27:43,094 --> 00:27:47,966 Why would you have the same design for everything? 378 00:27:47,999 --> 00:27:50,301 That doesn't make sense. 379 00:27:50,335 --> 00:27:55,106 But I think there are also ways that we can do things more sustainably. 380 00:27:55,106 --> 00:28:01,980 I think there's so much we can work on that also acknowledges real need. 381 00:28:02,981 --> 00:28:08,720 Yes, but I also think that this universal design concept is not always about 382 00:28:08,753 --> 00:28:11,589 seeing or hearing things in the same way. 383 00:28:11,623 --> 00:28:17,796 It's about a variety - For example, in arts, I can see it when 384 00:28:17,829 --> 00:28:22,500 there is someone who sees the piece of art, can experience it, 385 00:28:22,534 --> 00:28:25,770 but someone who can touch it, can experience it, 386 00:28:25,804 --> 00:28:29,474 and someone who can benefit from visual description can experience it. 387 00:28:29,507 --> 00:28:30,608 Absolutely. 388 00:28:30,642 --> 00:28:32,343 That is so important. 389 00:28:32,377 --> 00:28:37,348 This is a universal design thinking in the way that everybody could experience it, 390 00:28:37,382 --> 00:28:44,255 not necessarily appreciate it the same way because we all have different needs 391 00:28:44,289 --> 00:28:52,363 and likes, but there are options, and that's what I like in that concept. 392 00:28:52,397 --> 00:28:53,565 I love that. 393 00:28:53,598 --> 00:28:59,137 I think that's so important, and that I would love to do more tactile work. 394 00:28:59,170 --> 00:29:06,544 I've actually been hearing more about people who are doing olfactory designs. 395 00:29:06,578 --> 00:29:07,812 That's amazing. 396 00:29:07,846 --> 00:29:12,784 So, scent. And having that - although for some people, that would be terrible. 397 00:29:12,817 --> 00:29:15,653 It will be really... 398 00:29:15,687 --> 00:29:19,758 Figuring out your audiences is always tricky. 399 00:29:21,059 --> 00:29:24,762 But I think there are really great possibilities. 400 00:29:24,863 --> 00:29:25,897 Yes. 401 00:29:25,930 --> 00:29:31,002 It's also an artistic exploration of all these possibilities that can be fun. 402 00:29:31,035 --> 00:29:32,570 Absolutely. 403 00:29:32,604 --> 00:29:34,105 How neat is that? 404 00:29:34,105 --> 00:29:39,043 Because those things will affect your mood and they will affect just, 405 00:29:39,043 --> 00:29:42,480 I don't know, so many aspects of it. It's wonderful. 406 00:29:42,514 --> 00:29:45,550 Why wouldn't you want to play? 407 00:29:46,417 --> 00:29:48,052 Yes. Wow. 408 00:29:48,086 --> 00:29:50,155 There are so many possibilities right now. 409 00:29:50,188 --> 00:29:54,492 It's like, Okay, what should we do in the next exhibition? 410 00:29:54,526 --> 00:29:55,927 I know it was some things. 411 00:29:55,927 --> 00:30:00,331 I was actually pretty excited in the year before last, 412 00:30:00,365 --> 00:30:07,105 I put the Fairy Melusine in a show, and a friend of mine who's a perfumer 413 00:30:07,105 --> 00:30:09,407 created a custom scent for her. 414 00:30:09,440 --> 00:30:11,643 That was the coolest thing. 415 00:30:11,676 --> 00:30:13,845 How neat, right? 416 00:30:13,878 --> 00:30:22,387 Because she is based on a real mythical figure who might also have been a queen. 417 00:30:22,620 --> 00:30:25,824 Definitions are squishy, but she might have been the person 418 00:30:25,857 --> 00:30:31,863 who first brought the green bean the "haricot vert" to France. 419 00:30:31,896 --> 00:30:39,504 She came up with this lilies of the valley and green pea scent, which is amazing. 420 00:30:39,537 --> 00:30:43,074 Wow, that's very good. That's a good idea. 421 00:30:43,074 --> 00:30:50,949 Just what a neat way to incorporate different senses into the design. 422 00:30:51,916 --> 00:30:53,484 Absolutely. That's great. 423 00:30:53,518 --> 00:30:56,087 I would like to do that again. 424 00:30:57,555 --> 00:31:01,726 Maybe you will I have an artist who will submit at the next call, 425 00:31:01,726 --> 00:31:04,762 and you will have a surprise. 426 00:31:04,796 --> 00:31:06,564 Yes, I might. 427 00:31:06,764 --> 00:31:08,967 Submit your custom scent. 428 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:12,103 That'll be so interesting. 429 00:31:12,470 --> 00:31:16,708 I will have to come and see that in person and smell that in person. 430 00:31:16,741 --> 00:31:20,812 I don't think that there's a way to do that virtually. 431 00:31:20,845 --> 00:31:26,117 That would be very interesting, but I think you'd have to send samples 432 00:31:26,150 --> 00:31:28,253 through the mail or something. 433 00:31:29,087 --> 00:31:31,456 There are always ways. 434 00:31:31,489 --> 00:31:36,160 That's the one thing I found that has kept me doing this 435 00:31:36,160 --> 00:31:40,665 over and over again, because both with my own artwork and with Opulent Mobility 436 00:31:40,698 --> 00:31:46,504 and the associated programming, because There is always another arena to explore. 437 00:31:46,537 --> 00:31:52,477 There's more around each corner, and there's so much more to learn each time. 438 00:31:52,510 --> 00:31:54,379 And I really love that. 439 00:31:55,146 --> 00:31:57,115 Thank you for sharing that. That's great. 440 00:31:57,115 --> 00:31:59,150 You're welcome. That's exciting. 441 00:31:59,150 --> 00:32:01,219 Yes. 442 00:32:01,219 --> 00:32:09,127 I have a last question for you, which is about collaborations and meeting people 443 00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:17,869 and maybe having someone in mind or someone close to your work who really 444 00:32:17,902 --> 00:32:23,174 pushed you or really encouraged you to do whatever you're doing right now. 445 00:32:23,207 --> 00:32:28,279 If you had one or two people in mind, who would it be and why? 446 00:32:28,980 --> 00:32:35,620 When I very, very first started doing this, I kept trying to find other people 447 00:32:35,653 --> 00:32:38,489 who were doing anything similar at all. 448 00:32:38,523 --> 00:32:43,328 And I was not finding a lot of people, certainly not in 2009. 449 00:32:43,561 --> 00:32:47,065 But when I first heard about the Alternative Limb Project, 450 00:32:47,065 --> 00:32:54,372 it was like, this might be somebody who has a kindred spirit. 451 00:32:54,405 --> 00:32:56,941 So I'm sure I'm getting this wrong. 452 00:32:56,974 --> 00:33:03,648 Sophie de Oliveira Barata, I think, who's been developing not only incredibly 453 00:33:03,648 --> 00:33:08,319 realistic prosthetics that look like real feet, 454 00:33:08,353 --> 00:33:14,359 but also ones that have arms with snakes crawling in and out and around 455 00:33:14,392 --> 00:33:18,162 that are crystallized with light poking through them. 456 00:33:18,196 --> 00:33:21,099 One of them was just an enormous spike. 457 00:33:21,132 --> 00:33:25,169 They're astonishing and works of art in and of themselves. 458 00:33:25,203 --> 00:33:30,208 I'm looking at it like, Okay, Okay. 459 00:33:31,843 --> 00:33:33,845 Somebody else is thinking about this. 460 00:33:33,878 --> 00:33:38,082 I reached out to her, and she got back to me, which was amazing. 461 00:33:38,116 --> 00:33:42,120 I think she had been on a bunch of different news medias, 462 00:33:42,153 --> 00:33:46,457 and I had no expectations of hearing back from this person. 463 00:33:46,491 --> 00:33:50,728 She got back to me and suggested that I get in touch with Priscilla Sutton 464 00:33:50,762 --> 00:33:55,566 out in Australia, who was doing Spare Parts, which was a series 465 00:33:55,566 --> 00:34:02,740 of exhibits that had people take, use prosthetic limbs and turn them into art. 466 00:34:03,207 --> 00:34:08,513 And I worked with Priscilla for a couple of exhibits, which was amazing. 467 00:34:08,546 --> 00:34:15,486 It was a really wonderful leap into it and recognizing that maybe 468 00:34:15,486 --> 00:34:20,024 this was really odd and original, but I wasn't the only one. 469 00:34:20,792 --> 00:34:27,031 Of course, there's also Anthony Tusler, who's my co-curator, who helped keep me 470 00:34:27,065 --> 00:34:35,006 in the loop on all things disability history and keeps it honest. 471 00:34:35,039 --> 00:34:42,747 I'm not always as up on some of the tropes that might seem a little more offensive. 472 00:34:42,747 --> 00:34:48,052 I tried to be very conscious of it, but I don't always know. 473 00:34:48,085 --> 00:34:54,492 So he is really good at making sure that everything is on the up and up. 474 00:34:54,525 --> 00:34:58,362 And he's a star in the disability world. 475 00:34:58,396 --> 00:35:02,700 And he's so fun to curate with. 476 00:35:03,468 --> 00:35:10,475 So we'll have a lot of talks and he's just really fun and goofy about it. 477 00:35:10,508 --> 00:35:15,046 But we're also very uncensored 478 00:35:15,079 --> 00:35:17,281 when we talk together. 479 00:35:17,315 --> 00:35:19,450 So it's nice to have that. 480 00:35:19,484 --> 00:35:20,952 And it's really fun. 481 00:35:20,985 --> 00:35:24,489 We also don't have the same taste in art at all. 482 00:35:24,522 --> 00:35:28,559 So sometimes it's like, really? 483 00:35:28,593 --> 00:35:31,162 You want that one? 484 00:35:31,195 --> 00:35:32,930 How did you meet? 485 00:35:32,964 --> 00:35:37,902 He reached out to me after the 2013 one. 486 00:35:37,935 --> 00:35:45,943 He put in a couple of pieces or submitted a piece, and he was a month after 487 00:35:45,943 --> 00:35:47,712 the deadline or something like that. 488 00:35:47,745 --> 00:35:52,216 I'm like, Oh, I've already published everything, but maybe 489 00:35:52,250 --> 00:35:53,417 we can work together. 490 00:35:53,451 --> 00:35:56,621 And then just kept keeping in touch. 491 00:35:56,654 --> 00:36:00,424 I asked him to co-curate the next one in 2015, 492 00:36:00,458 --> 00:36:02,760 and we've been working together since. 493 00:36:02,793 --> 00:36:06,664 So that's been really cool. Very nice. 494 00:36:06,664 --> 00:36:09,033 Yeah. He's a great guy. 495 00:36:09,066 --> 00:36:11,469 Thank you so much for this conversation. 496 00:36:11,502 --> 00:36:12,537 Thank you. 497 00:36:12,570 --> 00:36:13,971 I'm so happy to do this. 498 00:36:14,005 --> 00:36:16,474 Thank you for reaching out. 499 00:36:16,507 --> 00:36:17,508 You're very welcome. 500 00:36:17,542 --> 00:36:20,177 It has been a pleasure to share that. 501 00:36:20,211 --> 00:36:26,350 Maybe you have a last word of advice to all the artists who are listening 502 00:36:26,384 --> 00:36:31,289 to us and who are like, Maybe I should submit a piece, maybe not. 503 00:36:31,322 --> 00:36:34,158 I'm going to absolutely say yes. 504 00:36:34,192 --> 00:36:39,030 One of the things I really like to do with artists, if it doesn't 505 00:36:39,063 --> 00:36:42,099 work with a theme, I will tell you. 506 00:36:42,133 --> 00:36:47,104 I will also maybe suggest other places where you could try to submit your work. 507 00:36:47,138 --> 00:36:54,679 I won't bite, I promise, but it's absolutely worth trying. 508 00:36:54,712 --> 00:36:59,483 And you may have ideas that I've never thought of. 509 00:36:59,517 --> 00:37:02,320 That happens for me every single year. 510 00:37:02,353 --> 00:37:07,959 I am wonderfully surprised about some of the work that comes in. 511 00:37:08,226 --> 00:37:10,995 And please, please share it. 512 00:37:11,028 --> 00:37:12,863 We want to share your work with the world. 513 00:37:12,863 --> 00:37:14,198 Come on. 514 00:37:15,299 --> 00:37:16,834 Well, all the best for everything. 515 00:37:16,867 --> 00:37:18,402 And to you. Thank you. 516 00:37:18,436 --> 00:37:20,037 Thank you very much. 517 00:37:20,071 --> 00:37:21,072 Thank you. 518 00:37:21,105 --> 00:37:25,343 And I hope I can come in person one day and really see 519 00:37:25,376 --> 00:37:27,645 the great work you're doing live. 520 00:37:27,678 --> 00:37:30,081 That would be wonderful. 521 00:37:30,081 --> 00:37:32,617 Thank you. Have a good day. And to you. 522 00:37:32,650 --> 00:37:34,218 Bye. 523 00:37:35,853 --> 00:37:40,992 ♪ Closing theme music ♪ 524 00:37:58,776 --> 00:38:01,045 Bye.