Join bespoken and the International Contemporary Ensemble for a free, four-part online series focusing on the intersection of technology and art. Each session will have different speakers discussing their artistry and practice across four disciplines – moving image, audio engineering, live-sound, and video – and how their work intersects within each area. How does technology and art come together in performance? How do we begin to work across disciplines? The series is not only educational but also a platform for empowerment, breaking down the barriers to using technology in an artist’s practice, & specifically for women & gender non-conforming artists.
After hearing from each artist about their artistic journey, we will go into two topic-specific breakout rooms - sound and video - spaces for more detailed questions related to each area and getting to know each other better. Please feel free to bring questions related to your own work/projects you are working on!
Presented by bespoken and the International Contemporary Ensemble
Speakers: Merve Kayan, Filmmaker; Elizabeth A. Baker, New Renaissance Artist; Dion McKenzie aka TYGAPAW, Artist
letsbespoken.org (Gina Izzo & Eunbi Kim, Co-founders)
Elizabeth A. Baker, Merve Kayan, and Dion McKenzie aka TYGAPAW
ELIZABETH A. BAKER, New Renaissance Artist
She/Her/Hers
https://elizabethabaker.com/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/ebakermusic | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ebakermusic/
Eschewing the collection of traditional titles that describe single elements of her body of work, Elizabeth refers to herself as a “New Renaissance Artist” that embraces a constant stream of change and rebirth in practice, which expands into a variety of media, chiefly an exploration of how sonic and spatial worlds can be manipulated to personify a variety of philosophies and principles both tangible as well as intangible. Elizabeth has received international recognition from press, scholars, and the public for her conceptual compositions and commitment to inclusive programming. Fanfare Magazine proclaimed in Fall 2019 “Perhaps Baker will be the Pauline Oliveros of her generation, and perhaps she will be more than that.”
MERVE KAYAN, Filmmaker
She/Her/Hers
https://vimeo.com/mervekayan
Born in Turkey in 1981, Merve Kayan received her MFA in Visual Arts at University of California, San Diego and also taught film classes there. She has been making films since 1999, which have been screened at International Film Festival Rotterdam, AFI Fest, San Francisco International Film Festival, and Jeonju International Film Festival. Her first feature film The Blue Wave which she co-wrote and directed with Zeynep Dadak made its world premiere at the Berlinale after winning “Best First Feature”, “Best Screenplay” and “Best Editing” awards in Turkey. Kayan, currently lives and works in New York.
DION MCKENZIE - TYGAPAW, Artist
She/They
TYGAPAW is a multi-disciplined musician, producer and dj, born and raised in Mandeville, Jamaica, based in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Tygapaw infuses her Jamaican ancestry into a lush and aggressive musical styling perfect for the inclusive spaces she so often curates. Her versatile production is a clear representation of her individuality: queer, black, and fearless. She's the founder of Fake Accent, which started in 2014 as a monthly queer club night based in Brooklyn and has been developed into a record label in 2019 centering black electronic music artists. Paper Magazine listed her as one of the "50 LGBTQ Artists you should prioritize" in 2018 and she is one of shesaid.so Alternative Power 100 Music List 2019 honorees. Tygapaw sets the bar high for the first release on her Fake Accent imprint with her latest EP "Handle With Care". Visceral noise, relentless club rhythms, and intimate vocal samples collide across five tracks of uncompromising body music. A searingly bold statement from one of NYC's and Jamaica's finest.
Social Media Handles Instagram: @tygapaw Facebook: @tygapawmusic Twitter: @mebetygapaw
Performances and commissioning activities during the 2019-20 concert season are made possible by the generous support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, A.N. and Pearl G. Barnett Family Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Aaron Copland Fund for Music Inc., Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, Amphion Foundation, Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Pacific Harmony Foundation, Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation, Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, mediaThe foundation inc., The Casement Fund, BMI Foundation, as well as public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, the New York State Council for the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and the Illinois Arts Council Agency. The International Contemporary Ensemble is the Ensemble in Residence of the Nokia Bell Labs Experiments in Art and Technology. Yamaha Artist Services New York is the exclusive piano provider for ICE.