Illuminating Legacies
Telling our stories from South Minneapolis
Illuminating Legacies works at the intersection of multiple community efforts to use public art created by South Minneapolis African American artists to connect neighborhood residents to each other; to the rich, untold history of their community; and to Pillsbury House + Theatre. In 2020, 4 projects will be embedded and presented in the neighborhood so that people encounter them as they move through their daily lives.
Illuminating Legacies knits together several initiatives that Pillsbury House + Theatre has been part of over many years, including: Arts on Chicago, Art Blocks, the 38th and Chicago Small Area Plan, and the Future of East 38th Street, and the future of George Floyd Square. It presents a unique opportunity for expanded engagement among the stakeholders in these initiatives through the realization of a long term shared goal: making the important history of the area known by inscribing it artistically on the physical landscape. It will draw our diverse community into the conversation, artistically connecting the story of the present to the story of the past.
Pillsbury House Theatre’s mission is to create challenging theatre that inspires enduring change towards a just society. Through the Mainstage season and other community engagement programs, Pillsbury House Theatre (PHT) illuminates the differences that make each person unique and the similarities that bring people together, within an artistic environment that promotes understanding and leads to positive action. Housed within an urban community center in the most diverse neighborhood in Minnesota, the theatre is a company of artists working in partnership with diverse audiences to create transformational arts experiences.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Artists
Daniel Pierce Bergin is a filmmaker whose work focuses on people, place and the past through restorative narratives. The filmmaker’s independent films have screened at the American Film Institute, The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival, The Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, and the Hollywood Black Film Festival.
The Twin Cities PBS Executive Producer is a winner of 15 regional Emmy Awards. His notable productions include Jim Crow of the North and North Star: Minnesota’s Black Pioneers. In the 1990s, Daniel Bergin co-produced the ground breaking ‘Don’t Believe the Hype,’ tpt’s award winning youth media program. Daniel Bergin has been recognized as a MN State Arts Board Fellow, a City Pages Artist of the Year, and was awarded a Bush Leadership Fellowship for his work in community media.
Valérie Déus is a poet, film programmer and radio show host. Her work has been featured in Minnesota Women’s Press, The Brooklyn Rail, Midway, the St. Paul Almanac, The BeZine and most recently in A Garden of Black Joy anthology and Under Purple Skies: A Minneapolis Anthology.
When she’s not writing, she is the host of Project 35, a local low-fi radio show featuring music from all over the diaspora and poetry on KRSM radio. She curates Film North’s Cinema Lounge and is the Shorts Programmer for the Provincetown International Film Festival.
Esther Osayande is a visual artist based out of Minneapolis and the greater Twin Cities metro area. She was born in St. Paul, and attended the University of Minnesota, where she studied Sociology.
“I’m pretty much a late bloomer. I didn’t start my public art career until 1996 when I had the opportunity to work on a city commissioned art project (Celebration of Life Mural) designed by renown muralist Dr. John Biggers, directed by art leads Seitu Jones and Tacoumba Aitkin.
Working with these incredible seasoned artists was the beginning of many experiences, lessons and learning -which I call my art training in the field, since I am self- taught.
The knowledge I have gained over the years from these creatives has been invaluable – with given insight that has sharpened by creative intelligence along with learned transferable skills and the confidence needed to participate in the arena of Public Art. I have worked with numerous artists through a variety of venues on community projects and commissions -publicly and in the private sector. Painting is my first love, in which I use bright colors and interesting shapes but as of these last few years most of my work has been commissioned by the city of Minneapolis and Park Board working on design concepts: My most current work is a 15 ft Purple Rain Drop statute (14g steel) in honor of ‘ PRINCE’ located in North Minneapolis. I am trained in enamel on metal with works soon to be completed in Minneapolis. I am currently a member of ROHO art collective made up of artist of color located in Minneapolis. I continue to work collaboratively with other artist one of my favorite things to do because there is always so much to learn from one another and to share ideas that enrich us all.”
Don’t get hung up on perfection, Instead! Paint/express perfectly what you feel inside. – Esther Osayande
