Art Share L.A.
December 2024-February 2025
“Soil Incarnation” by Rashonda T. “Zoe Blaq" Bartney
Propeller Gallery /18th St. Gallery
Santa Monica, ca
March-July 2022
Mixed media, natural materials, recycled materials. Video.
Soil Incarnations is a visual story inspired by urban gardeners that are tending to the soil in food deserts on Tongva land (South L.A). It is also a story of dust storms, lavender sunsets, and growing trees on Chemehuevi land west of the Morongo Basin. A food desert may seem chaotic while the high desert may appear barren. Both hold duality to be transformed. Soil restoration refers to actions to regenerate natural soil cycles through revegetation. The aim is to stabilize the soil and increase the supply of organic matter, which promotes restoration and biodiversity.
Soil Incarnations is a visual story inspired by urban gardeners that are tending to the soil in food deserts on Tongva land (South L.A). It is also a story of dust storms, lavender sunsets, and growing trees on Chemehuevi land west of the Morongo Basin. A food desert may seem chaotic while the high desert may appear barren. Both hold duality to be transformed. Soil restoration refers to actions to regenerate natural soil cycles through revegetation. The aim is to stabilize the soil and increase the supply of organic matter, which promotes restoration and biodiversity.
Migration of African Indigenous Foods to South Central LA
by Zoe Blaq
The installation is a visual of the Afro indigenous food migration and our resilience in preserving culture and community right here in South Central LA.
Decolonizing our relationship with how and why we grow food is a form of resistance and provides historic contact to current conversations around the resurgence of food justice and sustainability in urban spaces.
In some cases generational trauma can be linked to agriculture because it can be seen as a place of oppression and exploitation of Black and Brown people. This is a place to heal and take our power back. Growing food is a way to honor the agricultural ingenuity of our ancestors. Let's sit on the porch and share our relatedness of recipes, tradition and family!
Decolonizing our relationship with how and why we grow food is a form of resistance and provides historic contact to current conversations around the resurgence of food justice and sustainability in urban spaces.
In some cases generational trauma can be linked to agriculture because it can be seen as a place of oppression and exploitation of Black and Brown people. This is a place to heal and take our power back. Growing food is a way to honor the agricultural ingenuity of our ancestors. Let's sit on the porch and share our relatedness of recipes, tradition and family!
Afro Latinx Innervisions Festival
Mercado la Paloma
South LA, CA
July 2021
Mercado la Paloma
South LA, CA
July 2021
Abolitionist Garden Pod at the MOCA - Museum of Contemporary Art
Museum of Contemporary Art, May 2021
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"Abolitionist pod (prototype) is supported, in part, by Art Rise, a project of WERISE.LA, an initiative of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, with generous support from Environmental Council of The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA). Participating urban gardeners and farmers include the WOW Flower Project, CSU, Ambiguous Digz, Urban Soul Farmer (Rashonda Bartney), Hereticgardener, The plant plug LA, Farm for a future, Sylmar HS -Agriculture Class, and Te'Amir Sweeney.
Art Rise is a series of over fifteen outdoor art installations in and around Downtown Los Angeles, commissioned especially for WE RISE, that encourages wellbeing and healing through art, connection, community engagement, and creative expression." - moca.org |