RACC Blog

New Faces at RACC

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Fall is a time of transition, and while for some it signals a movement into winter dormancy, for us at the Regional Arts & Culture Council, this transition signals a time of cultivation and growth. In the past few months, we welcomed a crew of new faces to RACC, and already they are making connections, creating pathways, and building ground with artists, teachers, arts organizations, students, and many others in the creative community.

Join us in welcoming this talented group of folks, and say hello!

Mariam Higgins

Mariam’s motto is ‘practice what you teach’, it keeps her honest and empathetic. As an Arts Integration Specialist she adores the challenge and joy of making Arts connections, in everything! A medical illustrator, working artist, former school board member and parent volunteer, veteran classroom teacher and professor, Mariam is a lifelong learner of the arts and sciences. She believes that integrating Arts inclusively is a vital necessity to honor culture, encourage critical thinking, develop resilience, and hone an appreciation of beauty. Taking risks, experimenting, observing deeply, problem-solving, while simply making is a priceless experience that encourages the development of much-needed communicators who are well-balanced, creative, innovative citizens. Access and exposure to the Arts is authentic and relevant equity work, another passion of Mariam’s.

When she’s not cracking up with students, drawing with adults, or editing for run-on sentences, she’s looking for adventure. Mariam thrives being outdoors, kayaking, hiking, foraging, skiing, or playing Bananagrams with friends. When you see her, please share one of your favorite podcasts, artists, or architects!

What do you do at RACC?                         

I get to work with educators and artists to develop sustainable, creative ways to integrates arts into teaching, year long. I assist in ensuring each student has regular exposure to make, move, and express themselves – deepening their understanding and expanding their imaginations.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

Hey Jude

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

Parallel parking skillz, stage-diving aficionado, and kayaktivist

How is art a part of your life?

As a trained professional medical illustrator, departing from hyper-realism and painting and drawing abstractly the last five years has rocked my world.  It has helped me grow, and express. It excites me wildly to expand by ‘breaking’ rather than ‘fixing’.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture is _____________”

necessary to know and appreciate our world.  They encourage seeing, listening, and thinking, and righteously replenishes our souls.

Shannon McClure

Shannon McClure is enthusiastic about working with The Right Brain Initiative and the RACC team. They began their love for art integration as a K-12 art teacher, classroom teacher, and most recently assistant principal in Portland Public schools. Their commitment to racial equity and LGBTQIA+ youth advocacy has led Shannon to specifically develop leadership skills in organizational climate and policy. Shannon has a background as a curator and visual artist as well, most recently focusing on clay as a medium in their home studio. They are also a proud parent of a Jefferson High School student who has been raised with Right Brain experiences in North Portland. Adventures outdoors are a favorite hobby, and Shannon can be found on the trails rain or shine (…or more rain)!  Shannon looks forward to creating equitable pathways to experiential learning for youth, school staff, and the greater community

What do you do at RACC?

As one of three Art Integration Specialists, I am specifically focused on supporting classroom teachers in developing skills that foster experiential learning via the arts. The process of learning from an experience is proven to be more impactful than academic study alone, particularly for students of color, English Language Learners, and neuro-diverse youth.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

I prefer playing my backpacker guitar over Karaoke. “Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye” by Bettye Swann is my favorite cover on my Martin.

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I grew up on a farm and my favorite chore was “mucking the stalls” and “curry combing” my horse. Y’all city folk might have to google that!

How is art a part of your life?

I was one of those kids that was constantly moving, creating, and learning through my soul and senses rather than just my intellect. This is still true for me, and has driven me to dedicate my life as a youth advocate and educator. Being a QTPOC artist has influenced my approach to education and parenting, and, in turn, being an educator and parent has influenced my artistic practice.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture have _____________”

been commodified through colonialism, falsely leading contemporary society to believe that “The Arts” is reserved for the privileged, wealthy, or simply for enrichment only. Yet, the arts have always been an integral piece of indigenous learning and cultural preservation. Learning through the arts, experiential and placed-based, connects the learner to the human experience and reminds us of the significance of culture in every aspect of life

Ashley Renfrew

Ashley is an advocate for arts integration and believes it is a tool for students to empower their own learning. With a background in both art and science, she brings knowledge of project based learning, studio habits of mind, design thinking, and classroom documentation to this new position. Last year Ashley was on the Right Brain team at Young Audiences supporting residencies, and prior to that she was a middle school science teacher. Ashley received a BS in Art Education from Penn State University and is currently working on her Master in Curriculum and Instruction at Portland State University. The last few summers Ashley has worked at OMSI teaching animation classes, weaving science and art making together for youth. You can find her in her off hours eating snacks, knitting blankets, or climbing rocks.

What do you do at RACC?                                                                     

Working as an arts integration specialist we get to spend most of our days out in our community’s schools. We are looking at a holistic approach to arts integration and helping teachers think about how arts learning strategies could be used in their classrooms on a routine basis to make the arts more accessible. We also get to connect local artists with schools to do arts integrative residencies.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

Anything that doesn’t have words.

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

My first job out of school was as a physics teacher and I really enjoy folding origami out of gum wrappers.

How is art a part of your life?

My background and true love is in functional pottery but I try and engage in some form of making every day.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture are  _____________”

a way to celebrate the beauty and hardship in ourselves and others.

Estela Robinson

Estela comes to RACC as the new Office Coordinator after spending 7 years at Milagro as Production Manager. Estela has a long history in the arts, even going so far as to study acting at Cornish College of the Arts.  She went on to participate in a directing program at Vassar but ultimately discovered her love for arts administration. Part of her duties at Milagro included creative engagement workshops which kept her passion for crafting at peak frenzy and hopes to similarly infect her friends at RACC with her zeal for it.

What do you do at RACC?                                                                     

As the Office Coordinator, I’m the first face you see upon entering RACC’s offices. I greet guests and answer questions the public may have about the organization, as well as offer general support for staff in all departments.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

I have never done karaoke.

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I have never done karaoke.

How is art a part of your life?

I love crafting. I love supporting creativity however I can.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture are  _____________”

So fun and enriching

Ian Sterry

Ian has worked for many years as a science communicator and STEM educator and loves exploring the world through science. He has traveled all across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest sharing science and engaging communities. However after 10+ years on the road he decided a change was needed. Ian is now excited to be serving his other love, the arts!

He is a New Jersey native but after living in the PNW since age 8 he considers Oregon his home. Ian grew up in a family full of performers, signers, poets, writers and musicians. Between his family life and being a self-described “band geek” in high school  Ian feels blessed to have been raised and educated with the arts front and center in his life. They have brought him much joy, insight and inspiration and he believes everyone deserves the same!

When not at work you can find him exploring our amazing state via cycling, hiking and backpacking, out at live music events dancing and celebrating or curled up at home lost in a science fiction novel.

What do you do at RACC?

As the Workplace Giving Associate I support RACC’s fundraising efforts within local workplaces, represent RACC at public and private events, help inform our advocacy efforts in the community and steward relationships with donors through in person and online engagement.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

Everybody Wants to Rule the World-Tears for Fears or 50 Way to Leave Your Lover-Paul Simon.

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I still have my wisdom teeth but they haven’t made me smarter, yet….

How is art (in whatever form it takes) a part of your life?

I grew up in a family where music, poetry, storytelling and performance were part of daily life. It continues to be so for me through a ravenous appetite for music and literature. I also dabble with percussion as a self-taught amateur drummer.

Complete the sentence: ““Arts and culture is ________”

Everywhere and for everyone!

 

Get to know the other RACC staff and board by visiting our staff page

Essex Park Gets New ‘Mindfulness’ Mural

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If you’re around the Foster Powell Neighborhood in Portland, you may have caught a new mural going up at Essex Park on SE 76th and Center St. during the weekend of September 22 and 23. Artist team Rather Severe (Travis Czekalski and Jon Stommel) is heading the mural painting, with design and painting help provided by the Foster Powell Neighborhood Association and Marysville School students.

After some public safety issues in the past, neighbors of Essex Park came together to find ways to “re-establish positive and uplifting energy and encourage more positive and healthy interactions between community members who use the park space”. They started a GoFundMe campaign earlier this year, reaching their original goal, and later received matching funds from RACC to support the project.

Rather Severe artist standing in front of the side of the public restroom building. The wall has been primed and shapes are laid out for painting.

Mural in progress. Photo courtesy of Essex Park Mindful Mural Project

While the original plan was for the mural to be painted on one wall of the public restroom building, the financial success of the campaign meant enough funds were available to paint all four walls. The design consists of a vibrant Sun on the front facing wall, Moon on the back wall, and imaginative landscapes with characters in between. The landscape design elements move consistently in a clockwise, upward spiraling motion, symbolizing growth, movement, and uplifting energy. The characters in the mural aim to communicate and encourage the idea of mindfulness, the practice of meditative drawing, feelings of interconnection, and the concept of an ever present and infinite ‘now’.

For those interested in the progress and status of the mural, you can follow the project Facebook page. You can see the mural-in-progress or the finished design by next week at Essex Park (7730 SE Center St, Portland, OR 97206)

Learn about other public art projects happening around town or RACC’s Public Art program here

Meet the artists showcasing their work for 2018-19 Night Lights!

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Night Lights, RACC’s outdoor public art event series, is back for five months with local artists/collectives projecting their digital media works onto RACC’s building for several hours starting at dusk. Now in its fourth year, Night Lights is a unique event series that celebrates and highlights the intersections of digital technology, art, and place.

Laura Medina, the first artist to kick off Night Lights on October 4th this year, will be presenting work that bodies the exact intersections Night Lights aims to celebrate. Medina’s projected work, titled Flying, will use different animation methods to convey movement and change of setting to discuss migration as a human right. The location of the projection, as Medina notes, is across the street from Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA), formerly a US Citizenship and Immigration Services and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement building. For Medina, we cannot ignore the proximity of the projection to what used to be a distinctly hostile environment, and re-contextualizing this space into an environment that fosters and nourishes acts of solidarity is key.

Following Medina, Roesing Ape and Beth Whelan will show their work on November 1st. Titled Windows 11, their work involves a minimalist dance piece inside an architectural projection of the building itself. This interactive piece will use both prerecorded and live dance.

All works will take place at the north wall of the Regional Arts & Culture Council office at 411 NW Park Ave, Portland OR (on the corner of NW Glisan St and NW Park Ave). The schedule of events for Night Lights is as follows:

Still image from Laura Medina's work, Flying.

Still image from Laura Medina’s work, Flying.

October 4, 6:45pm
Laura Medina
Flying

November 1, 6pm
Roesing Ape and Beth Whelan
Windows 11

December 6, 5pm
Roland Dahwen and Stephanie Adams-Santos
Three Moons/Tres Lunas/3つの月

February 7, 5:30pm
Megan McKissack
Untitled

March 7, 6pm
Midnight Variety Hour
Night Lights Edition

—-

Night Lights is a monthly public art event that celebrates the intersection of digital technology, art, and place. Happening outdoors on the First Thursdays of fall and winter months, this multimedia art series presents local artists’ new works, combining large-scale video projection with other art forms such as movement and sound. Works are projected for several hours starting at dusk on the north wall of Regional Arts and Culture Council’s office at 411 NW Park Ave, Portland, OR.

Laura Camila Medina is an interdisciplinary artist born in Bogota, Colombia and raised in Orlando, Florida. She bases her practice around uprooting and migration as a response to personal, cultural, and historical research. Medina is constantly inspired by her memories of home, her mother’s arepas, and her father’s soundtracks. Her work has shown at the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture, PLANETA New York, and through the Nat Turner Project. She earned a BFA from the Pacific Northwest College of Art and is currently based in Portland, OR.

Beth Whelan is a movement based artist with training in modern, ballet, improvisation, and choreography. Her work is based upon creating shapes within the body that fluidly disperse and rearrange in synchronicity with the breath. 

Roesing Ape is a multidisciplinary artist with a focus on the deconstruction of cognitive frameworks in sound, language, and sight. This results in a mostly unmarketable catalog of site specific video, improvised soundscapes, and nonlinear performance pieces.

Chloe Eudaly tapped to be Portland’s new Arts Commissioner

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Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has shuffled some of the City of Portland’s bureau and liaison assignments, and on September 4 Commissioner Chloe Eudaly will become the RACC liaison and arts commissioner.

A strong advocate for culture and creativity, Commissioner Eudaly is no stranger to the arts. She has owned and operated an independent bookstore featuring dozens of emerging and established authors, zinesters, comic book creators and printmakers; and she received a RACC professional development grant in 1997 to attend the 4th annual Alternative Press Expo in San Jose. She also helped establish the Independent Publishing Resource Center and has supported numerous arts nonprofits over the years, including co-chairing RACC’s Battle of the Bands fundraiser in 2017. Earlier this year, Commissioner Eudaly worked closely with Commissioner Fish on the City’s Arts Affordability Plan, which was adopted by City Council in February.

Commissioner Eudaly’s policy advisor for arts and culture issues is Pollyanne Faith Birge, known to many in the arts community because of role with former Portland Mayor Sam Adams. In that role, Pollyanne conceived and launched Art Spark as a networking opportunity for local artists (since adopted by RACC), and was instrumental in the development of Act for Art, a creative action plan for the Portland metro region published in 2009. While in Commissioner Eudaly’s office, Pollyanne has supported a number of RACC initiatives including the RACC executive director search committee.  She can be reached at 503.823.3056 or by email at pollyanne.birge@portlandoregon.gov.

RACC is very much looking forward to working with Commissioner Eudaly and her talented staff. We are grateful for the past and continued support of Commissioner Nick Fish, who will take on a new assignment with Portland Parks and Recreation, opening up new opportunities to explore the powerful and unique intersection of arts and parks. Asena Lawrence remains Commissioner Fish’s policy advisor on arts and culture issues.

 

Photo of Chloe Eudaly at Battle of the Bands, by Erica Ann Photography.

RACC board elects new members and officers

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On July 1, Linda McGeady became RACC’s new board chair, succeeding Mike Golub who will serve as Chair Emeritus until June 30, 2019. McGeady is originally from Belfast, Ireland, and became a US Citizen 18 years ago; being involved in Portland’s arts community has been an important part of her life here.  She serves on the Art Committee of the Randall Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel, and is active in The International School alumni community. She also serves on the board of The Circus Project.

“I am honored to be RACC’s new board chair. I consider RACC to be – among many other things – an engine of civic engagement and an outstanding resource for the community. I look forward to working even more closely with the talented staff, including – soon – a new Executive Director, and with all of our dedicated board members who give their time and expertise to ensure that the arts not only thrive but help every sector in the region be more creative and more successful.”

Joining McGeady and Golub on the Executive Committee in FY2018-19 are Vice Chair Osvaldo “Ozzie” Gonzalez, Treasurer Eileen L. Day, Secretary Angela Hult, Eve Connell, Katherine Durham,  Parker Lee and Frances Portillo.

The RACC board also elected Amy Kutzkey to the board. Kutzkey is a certified public accountant and shareholder at Perkins & Co.  

All board and staff profiles are available online at racc.org/about/staff-board.

 

Linda McGeady Photo credit: Dodge and Burn Studios

Latinidades: Redefining Art Spaces to Support Latinx Creatives

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How do a regional arts and culture organization and a Latinx economic and community development organization intersect? Months ago, RACC and the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber (HMC) first met to discuss partnering and what that would look like. Together, we asked this question, and the answer was right there: our commitment to the creative and entrepreneurial Latinx community.

We turned this commitment tangible through Latinidades: An Art Show Celebrating Latinx Artists, a first-of-its kind First Thursday art show that opened on August 2nd. Mercedes Orozco, Director of UNA Gallery, led the show curation. Once a contemporary art space, UNA Gallery is now a non-localized visibility project that supports the creativity of people of color (POC), queer, femme, and gender non-conforming artists through exhibit curation and events throughout Portland.

Show attendee viewing the feature artist artwork in the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber

Together, we transformed the HMC office into an art gallery with an opening reception that welcomed over 60 community members. The range of artwork and artist experience, thanks to Mercedes’ curatorial direction, is truly the soul of Latinidades. Just like the Latinx identity,  these artists’ work are not homogenous – and Latinidades is just a taste of what the creative Latinx community looks like.

 

 

Eleven local Portland Latinx artists were featured in the exhibit, ranging from sculptors, painters, to printmakers:

Daniela del Mar and Camila Araya of Letra Chueca Press standing and speaking to Latinidades attendees

Latinidades attendees listening to Latinx artists featured introduce themselves and their work

The night was filled with live music, appetizers from Latinx vendors, and vodka tasting sponsored by Parlae vodka, a local Latinx vodka distillery. By night’s end, 5 pieces of artwork were sold, and we’re expecting several more as the show remains up on the Chamber’s walls.

As organizations with the resources not often afforded to artists of color, we understand the importance of finding ways to make those resources or opportunities more widely available, more often. These all matter, since it is shows and exhibit opportunities like Latinidades that have the potential to propel artists into bigger and more opportunities. Ultimately, the warm reception for Latinidades serves as both a reminder and encouragement for more creative, non-traditional collaborations to address the needs of many communities often left out of the traditional arts scene.

Latinidades attendees walk down the HMC office hall to view featured artworkFor those who missed the opening reception, we invite you to stop by the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber office (333 SW 5th Avenue Suite 100, Portland, OR 97204) Monday thru Friday between 9am – 5pm. The works will be up until September 30th, 2018. As for future collaborative shows, RACC will continue finding opportunities to create spaces for the many communities facing similar challenges of representation and inclusion, and we hope you will join us as these take place.

Reflections, Lessons, and Projections

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by Jeff Hawthorne
Interim Executive Director

June is coming to an end, and so too is RACC’s 2017-2018 fiscal year. Now is a good moment, before a new fiscal year begins on July 1, to ruminate on RACC’s past and present, and what that means for our future.

A year ago this week, we celebrated the accomplishments of our retiring executive director, and prepared to launch a national search for her replacement. Even as this transition phase continues, RACC has shown that it is leader-full, confidently moving forward as the search goes on. Throughout this shift, I have been impressed time and again with the board’s profound dedication to the organization, and the staff’s drive to lead innovations that make our work more effective, accessible, and impactful than ever before.

Some of the staff-led accomplishments of the past year that I’m particularly proud of include:

  • Our grantmaking program launched two new initiatives: a Capacity Building Program for culturally specific organizations, and additional Equity Investments for General Operating Support organizations that are making real progress diversifying their staff, board, and audiences.
  • RACC revamped the Art of Leadership program to better align with the needs of small and midsize arts and culture organizations, resulting in the program’s highest attendance ever – with 63 graduates this past spring.
  • We continue to facilitate public art projects, including three collaborations with Portland Parks this past year – two of which were in East Portland. Big projects are also getting underway at the Multnomah County Health Department and with the renovation of the Portland Building… stay tuned!
  • Our Fresh Paint temporary mural program invited its first three muralists of color to paint Open Signal’s wall facing the highly visible Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., and we collaborated with Prosper Portland to install murals by Eatcho and Arvie Smith at the new Natural Grocers store on NE Alberta St depicting Northeast Portland’s African American history, present, and future – check out the video.
  • RACC’s arts integration program, The Right Brain Initiative, continues to expand but with a new focus on serving schools where the achievement gaps are greatest – specifically schools where 30 percent or more of the population are students of color, English language learners, low-income and/or in neighborhoods with limited arts resources nearby.
  • RACC continues working to build better relationships with marginalized communities, and our community engagement team has been listening to shape RACC’s program delivery model as a result. This past year, staff launched the Art & Power conversation series that centers the experiences of artists from historically marginalized communities with topics ranging from cultural appropriation to the healing power of the arts.

We’ve also had learning moments. As an organization advocating for and supporting artists, we take continuous feedback and improvement seriously. This past year, we’ve done some new things or made changes based on feedback we received from community members, artists, and arts institutions. Some highlights include: conducting a survey with all General Operating Support organizations and restructuring how organizations are funded; adding more project grant application cycles per year to address artists’ needs; modifying our executive director search process based on community feedback; and developing policies and programs aligned with our equity lens.

RACC is stronger and more committed than ever as we continue working to enrich our communities through arts and culture. In a region that is ever-changing and growing, we keep the community’s arts and cultural needs first and foremost in our mind as we move through changes of our own.

Going forward, we have work to do to build deeper relationships with our government partners, and will be rolling out a new grantmaking framework for General Operating Support organizations in the months ahead. We are also in the process of revamping our fundraising programs in response to funding cuts, and pledge to reinvigorate RACC’s role in building a strong arts and culture advocacy network.

This September, RACC will present its annual State of the Arts report to Portland City Council. Some of our report will focus on these accomplishments, but it is also incumbent upon us to remind City Council of the real and persistent challenges we face as artists and arts workers. I’d love to hear about your success stories from the past year, and your perception of what’s working and what’s not. Please help us inventory the unmet needs that you experience or observe in our local arts community by dropping me a line at jhawthorne@racc.org with your thoughts.

From myself and all of us at the Regional Arts & Culture Council, thank you for supporting our work and holding RACC and our government partners accountable for more equitable investments in our community of artists, arts educators, and nonprofit organizations. We look forward to building even more with you in the year ahead.

Welcome New RACC Staff

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School’s out and summer’s here! While you’re getting ready to attend the countless arts and cultural events happening these warmer months, we’ve got some new faces at RACC we’d like to introduce you to. Meet the newest RACC staff: Jae, Lokyee, and Yessica:

Jae Yeun Choi

Jae received her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and has taught poetry at Reed College, Portland State University, and the University of Iowa. Her poems have been published in The Volta, A Plume Annual, Tin House, The Iowa Review, and Flying Object’s It’s My Decision series and in exhibitions at 356 S. Mission, 3 Days Awake Gallery, PMoMA, and Good Press Glasgow. Jae thinks of herself as an old hermit, but loves to hit up pretty much any road that ends at a lake, volcano, or hoodoo.

What do you do at RACC?                         

I program artists’ workshops and develop resources aimed at supporting artists in our community with foundational tools and skill-building. I also administer a grant program specific to advancing an artist’s creative practice or business–the Professional Development grant gives up to $2,000 of support to cover costs like travel or registrations costs for artist residencies, workshops, or professional consulting services.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

In karaoke bars, I’m more of a back-up dancer than a singer. But I used to rent karaoke rooms by myself in Little Tokyo to the point of having a punch card, and I’d have a solid time with Kate Bush, Joni Mitchell, and Rihanna.

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I’m a super intuitive person, I think I can predict the future sometimes.

How is art a part of your life?

I feel happy that almost element of my day has been totally affected or effected by artists. I’m a poet in my practice and within my communities, but ultimately I don’t believe that art is all that separable from life, regardless of what you do for work or fun. I’m interested in grappling with the question of who is coming up with those definitions or restrictions, and I love when those definitions get messier and are forced to evolve because they can’t be contained. Rules for me are the most helpful tool in giving me something to spring away from.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture are  _____________”

I fully believe that “arts and culture” is a patterning, a way for one person to address their least diminished self, then look at another person and see their least diminished self looking back.

Photo of Yessica AvilaYessica Avila

Yessica is a Los Angeles native from Huntington Park. She graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona where she received a BFA in Graphic Design. After graduating in 2012, she began her advocacy work as a volunteer for the local chapter, the Pomona Valley Bicycle Coalition.

Yessica’s family and personal story as first generation immigrants from Mexico is the motivation for her advocacy work for the undocumented and immigrant community. Her work centers on equity for people of color and underrepresented communities. Her professional experience is grounded in community grassroots for anti-gentrification and anti-displacement.

What do you do at RACC?

I am an Arts Education Coordinator for RACC. I manage the communication and outreach of its program The Right Brain Initiative.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

Selena- Dreaming of You/ Selena Como la Flor (sorry Selena is just too good to pick one)

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I can stipple forever.

How is art a part of your life?

I was very fortunate to grow up in a city like LA where murals narrate the stories of first generation-immigrants (Chicanos). Today, poetry has become my guide to listening to the people of color outside the Mexican hegemony.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture are  _____________”

stories and survival of our history.

Photo of Lokyee AuLokyee Au

Originally from Los Angeles, California, Lokyee is second generation Chinese American, whose roots go back to Hong Kong. Coming from a family of cooks and bankers, she is a first-generation college graduate, and recently completed two master’s degrees from the University of Oregon: Environmental Studies and Community and Regional Planning. A creative of color herself, Lokyee is a firm believer in the critical role arts and culture plays in social movements. Much of her professional and personal work intersects with her background in environmental justice, racial justice, policy, and communications.

What do you do at RACC?                                                                     

As the Communications Manager, I keep a pulse on a number of moving parts. Collaborating closely with the Communications and Community Engagement team, we work to strategically communicate RACC’s work, events, opportunities, and more to the many communities we work with and serve.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

I Want You Back by Jackson 5

What’s a secret talent you have, or little-known fact about you?

I can beatbox.

How is art a part of your life?

I grew up playing the piano and singing in choirs, so music is a big part of my life. I’m also a self-taught illustrator (I call myself an amateur doodler), inspired by plants and whimsy.

Complete the sentence: “Arts and culture are  _____________”

A reflection of our realities, a tangible imagination of what’s possible, and catalysts for social change.

 

Get to know the other RACC staff and board by visiting our staff page