Crosstown Arts

The Music of Phineas Newborn and Calvin Newborn: Memphis Legends
2017-11-10 12:30 - 15:00 (America/Chicago) | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Tickets – $15 (purchase on Eventbrite)
Doors at 6:30 pm | performance at 7 pm
Jazz performance celebrating the music of Phineas and Calvin Newborn, featuring Gerard Harris (guitar), Alvie Givhan (piano), Sylvester Sample (acoustic bass), and Renardo Ward (drums).
The Crosstown Jazz Series, presented by Strictly Jazz Entertainment in collaboration with Crosstown Arts, is designed to salute classic jazz music as contemporary musicians perform the work of the legends.

About Phineas Newborn:
Phineas Newborn’s life story is as dizzying as his unique style of piano playing. He was born in Whiteville, Tennessee, 60 miles east of Memphis, on December 14, 1931, but he was raised from infancy in Memphis among a musical family that included his equally talented brother, jazz guitarist Calvin Newborn. By his early teenage years at Booker T. Washington High School, he was not only adept at the piano, but several reed and brass instruments as well.
From the mid-1940s through the early 1950s, Newborn performed with his father, Calvin, Tuff Green, Ben Branch, and Willie Mitchell at the famed Plantation Inn in West Memphis, Arkansas, where dozens of musicians got their start. During that stint as the club’s house band, the three Newborns also played on B.B. King’s first album, recorded in 1949, and followed that as session players at Sam Phillips’ Sun Records. Shortly afterwards, Phineas enrolled as a music major at the Tennessee Agricultural and Industrial State University in Nashville. While there, he worked tirelessly on his classical repertoire and technique, developing a particular affinity for Franz Liszt, whose double and triple octave approach to linear melodies became characteristic of Newborn’s signature improvisations.
The 1950s proved to be the most productive and acclaimed years of Newborn’s life and career. He moved back to Memphis and continued studying at LeMoyne-Owen College, spent time performing with Lionel Hampton’s band, and then, at the urging of Count Basie, moved to the East Coast to be represented by the venerable Willard Alexander agency. His style was bold and percussive while also being spare and feathery. He could wow an audience playing at length with just his left hand; he could rip through speedy renditions like a bebop bomb exploding with both hands.
He recorded albums that drew both critical praise and stirring controversy. He was thought by many to be the only other jazz pianist in the world in the same virtuoso league as icons Art Tatum and Oscar Peterson. In 1957 he recorded “My Lady Sleeps” with a symphony orchestra for RCA Victor. It was reported in the liner notes that the orchestra cheered his playing at the end of each take. The following year he recorded with Charles Mingus and their version of “Nostalgia in Times Square” was featured in the early John Cassavetes film Shadows. That same year he toured Europe with a group of musicians in a production titled “Jazz From Carnegie Hall,” and such was his popularity that he also performed solo concerts in Stockholm and Rome.

About Calvin Newborn:
Calvin Newborn is the brother of pianist Phineas Newborn Jr. (1931–89), with whom he recorded between 1953 and 1958. They also formed an R&B band, with their father Phineas Newborn Sr. on drums and Tuff Green on bass.
The group was the house band at the Plantation Inn Club in West Memphis, Arkansas, from 1947 until 1951. The group recorded as B. B. King’s band on his first recordings in 1949, and also the Sun Records sessions in 1950.
Newborn gave guitars lessons to Howlin’ Wolf and was friends with Elvis Presley, who frequented his gig at the Plantation Inn Club two nights a week. Presley also used to eat at the Newborns’ house and browse their music store for gospel records.
The group left West Memphis in 1951 to tour with Jackie Brenston as the “Delta Cats” in support of the record “Rocket 88”. It was considered by many to be the first rock and roll record ever recorded, and was the first Billboard number one record for Chess Records.[3]
Following this, he played with Earl Hines starting in 1959. In the early 1960s, he toured with Lionel Hampton, Jimmy Forrest, Wild Bill Davis, Al Grey, and Freddie Roach, along with fellow Memphis jazz luminaries including Booker Little, George Coleman. Frank Strozier, and Louis Smith. Newborn also worked with Ray Charles, Count Basie, Hank Crawford, David “Fathead” Newman. Since the 1970s Newborn has remained mostly in Memphis, Tennessee, where he played regularly in local clubs well into the 1990s. His 1980 album Centerpiece hit No. 35 on the U.S. Billboard jazz albums chart, but much of his earlier material was not reissued on CD until 2005. He currently lives in Jacksonville, FL and continues to perform throughout Northeast Florida.

About Strictly Jazz Entertainment:
Strictly Jazz Entertainment is committed to cultivating a growing community in the knowledge and appreciation of jazz. We facilitate dialogue and collaboration between the devoted supporters of jazz and the brand new constituents – those new to the genre – for the furthering of the jazz community. We provide a bridge between leading artists and a community that typically does not embrace jazz by promoting concerts in various venues to generate an atmosphere that is viable for the absorption of pure jazz.

Memphis Flyer Crafts & Drafts
2017-11-11 04:00 - 10:00 | Crosstown Concourse Plaza, 1350 Concourse Ave., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
The third annual Memphis Flyer Crafts & Drafts festival will be held on the Crosstown Concourse plaza this year. This unique, free shopping opportunity showcases a curated group of 60+ local artists, crafters, and makers with a variety of food trucks, kids activities, and craft beers on tap.
The Crafts & Drafts Beer Garden will be serving Miller Lite, Meddlesome Brewing Company, Terrapin Beer Co., Southern Prohibition, and Green Flash Brewing Co. A portion of beer sales will benefit Crosstown Arts.
Knock out your holiday shopping in one fell swoop with 60+ local vendors, and enjoy a beautiful day at Crosstown with draft beer, food trucks, kids activities, and DJ Jordan Rogers spinning tunes. Special thanks to our sponsor FocalPoint at Crosstown Concourse, the future of eyecare in Memphis!

Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response
2017-11-11 - 2018-01-11 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Organized by Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and Richard A. Lou (from the University of Memphis) in collaboration with Crosstown Arts
Gallery Hours:
Monday-Friday 10 am-8 pm
Saturday 10 am-6 pm
Sunday noon-6 pm
Click here to read Artists’ Statements

Featuring work by artist teams:
Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia (with Special Design Work for American Heritage Lotto by Christian Westphal)
Andrea Morales and Terry Lynn
Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin
Yancy Villa-Calvo and Lawrence Matthews
Jamond Bullock and Cat Pena (video work by local artist Perry Kirkland and survivor profiles from #SurvivedAndPunished)
Karina Alvarez and Carl Moore
Jin Powell and Jesse Butcher
Agustin Diaz, Brittney Bullock and Brenda Joysmith
Opening reception will feature a curator talk at 3 pm followed by spoken word performances from Janay Kelly, Nadifah Rasheed, Tray Butler, Roberto Alfaro, and Jessica Taylor.

More events:
Art/Race/Violence: Artist+Community Conversation
Wednesday, Nov 29, 12-1 pm
Galleries
Conversation with artist teams Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia and Terry Lynn and Andrea Morales, led by Ladrica Menson-Furr and Richard Lou.
Art/Race/Violence: Artist+Community Conversation
Thursday, Dec 7, 12-1 pm
Galleries
Conversation with artist teams Yancy Villa-Calvo and Lawrence Matthews, Cat Pena and Jamond Bullock, led by Tami Sawyer.
Art/Race/Violence: Panel Discussion
Thursday, January 11, 6-8 pm
Theater Stair
Speakers as of November 7: Shahidah Jones, Antonio De Velasco, Tom Carlson

“There has never been a free people, a free country, a real democracy on the face of this Earth. In a city of some 300,000 slaves and 90,000 so called free men, Plato sat down and praised freedom in exquisitely elegant phrases.” -Lerone Bennett Jr.
“We are equidistant from utopia and Armageddon.” -Guillermo Gomez-Pena
Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response is a multidisciplinary project organized by visual culture historian Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and artist Richard Lou in collaboration with Crosstown Arts. Through this project, local artists collectively explore intersections of race and systemic violence through the lens of cultural expression. Conceived to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ell Persons’ very public murder by members of the Memphis community through the act of lynching, the project was further inspired by recent events to memorialize lynching sites in the broader Memphis community in an effort to bring about greater understanding of racial oppression and violence in the South.
The organizers aim for more challenging, candid and unvarnished representations of our city’s history through a range of educational programming, including panel discussions which began last spring, a collaborative exhibition (with performances and talks by the artists) opening this November, community conversations, and film screenings. On March 16th of 2017, the University of Memphis Art History and African-American Studies programs jointly hosted “Ida B. Wells: A Blues Woman.” Panelists Earnestine Jenkins, George Lipsitz, and Celeste Bernier looked at Ida B. Wells and the beginnings of resistance to lynching within the context of the late 19th century, linking it to modern social movements. Panelists addressed how the arts are linked to the culture of resistance, as Ida B. Wells was the first strategist to use visual images, specifically lynching photographs, as proof of the racial violence so endemic to the South.
Much as Wells did a century ago, the artists and cultural workers involved in this exhibition were invited to reflect upon the nature of Memphis’ past and present and use their creative work as a social instrument for change. One of the distinctive components of this collaborative process began with the curators selecting artist teams to conceive of and co-create new work to share with the public. The participants attended a series of workshops and panel discussions and were given access to a wide array of resources, articles, and media for their research. The artist teams — Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia; Andrea Morales and Terry Lynn; Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin; Yancy Villa and Lawrence Matthews; Jamond Bullock and Cat Pena; Karina Alvarez and Carl Moore; Jin Powell and Jesse Butcher; and Agustin Diaz, Brittney Bullock and Brenda Joysmith — have created 8 new installations in a range of media, including video, sound, sculpture, and performance, which will be on view in Crosstown Arts’ new galleries at Crosstown Concourse.
In Martha Stoudt’s book, The Sociopath Next Door, she states that it is natural for individuals to question their moral compass when surrounded by unethical attitudes and behaviors; the notion of “if you can’t beat them, join them” is an understandable inclination. However, Stoudt counters that when faced with that lack of consciousness, we do not need less consciousness; we need more. As artists, the search to make work that matters carries a greater significance since the last U.S. Presidential election cycle. The spectre of a divided nation (an inequality that marginalized and subjugated communities living in the U.S. are intimately familiar with and have endured for centuries) has re-inserted itself into the current national public discourse. The idea that there are large segments of the U.S. population, living side by side, in parallel universes — the haves and the have-nots, the subjected and the privileged — has become the rule, not the exception, in how we now imagine ourselves as citizens of the United States. Participating artists in this project are challenged to create work that speaks to and crosses these divides.
Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response will utilize the arts across diverse disciplines, media, and varied forms of cultural expression. The exhibition will challenge artists to use diverse media to reclaim cultural expression of humankind’s (or “this country’s”) history of racially motivated violence, as well to examine this history from multiple viewpoints. The project is designed to call on artists to reflect upon the nature of our past and present day in Memphis and to think of their creative work as a social instrument, or as Estella Conwill Majozo stated, “To search for the good and make it matter.”

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Compiled by Dr. Earnestine Jenkins
Lynching, the collective, systematic terrorism directed mostly toward African Americans by white mobs, arose following Reconstruction and persisted well into the 20th century. Most lynchings in Tennessee occurred in the western and middle parts of the state. Lynchings are documented in 70 Tennessee counties with Shelby County ranking first. According to Margaret Vandiver in Lethal Punishment: Lynchings and Legal Executions in the South, there were at least 15 lynchings in Shelby County. Ninety-nine percent of lynchers in the U.S. escaped arrest and punishment. Memphis is particularly significant in reference to two high-profile executions that attracted national attention and propelled individuals and organizations to act.
People’s Grocery Lynching & Ida B. Wells
In March of 1892, black business owner Thomas Moss and his employees, Calvin McDowell and Will Stewart, were arrested for defending themselves against an attack on their store, People’s Grocery, in an area just outside Memphis. The three were defending themselves from police officers and the white owner of a neighboring grocery. In the fray, several deputies were wounded but survived.
Moss, McDowell, and Stewart were booked into the downtown jail, but they were later pulled from the jail by a white mob. The three were dragged to a deserted rail yard in North Memphis and shot to death.
The murder of the young men enraged journalist Ida B. Wells, and this incident became a turning point in her life. She began traveling the south to investigate reports of white violence against blacks. She found middle-class black people were just as subject to murder by whites as poor blacks were. Wells discovered that black men were often being lynched not for rape but as punishment for having sexual relations with consenting white women. Wells asserted that the real reason for lynching was in retribution to black economic progress. She first published her findings in an 1892 pamphlet entitled “Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases.”
“Nobody in this section of the community believes that old threadbare lie that Negro men rape white women. If Southern men are not careful, a conclusion might be reached which will be very damaging to the moral reputation of their women,” wrote Wells.
In retaliation, Wells’ life was threatened in Memphis newspaper articles, the writers of which assumed she was a man. The Memphis Scimitar issued this warning: “It will be the duty of those whom he has attacked to tie the wretch to a stake, brand him in the forehead with a hot iron, and perform upon him a surgical operation with a pair of shears.”
White males destroyed Wells’ newspaper, which was housed in an office on historic Beale Street. Wells was out of town at the time, and she chose not to return. She went on to launch a national crusade against lynching in the U.S. and abroad.
The Ell Persons Lynching & the NAACP in Memphis
Ell Persons, accused of raping and murdering a 16-year-old white girl named Antoinette Rappel, was burned alive near the Macon Road Bridge at the Wolf River on May 22nd, 1917. Drawn by headlines in The Commercial Appeal, several thousand men, women, and children showed up to watch as Persons was decapitated, dismembered, and had his heart cut out. Rappel’s mother declared, “Let the Negro suffer as my little girl suffered, only 10 times worse.” The mob enjoyed the spectacle as they chewed gum, ate sandwiches, and enjoyed soft drinks.
Person’s head was later thrown into a crowd of African Americans on Beale Street. No one was ever charged with the crime. Persons’ death was one of the most vicious lynchings in American history. After the event, horrified African Americans in Memphis gathered to express their pain. When NAACP Field Secretary James Weldon Johnson arrived in Memphis to investigate the lynching, Robert R. Church, Jr. brought him to this site where an American flag marked the charred and blackened earth. Johnson found no evidence that Persons killed Rappel. He wrote that “the truth flashed over me that in large measure the race question involves the saving of black America’s body and white America’s soul.”
Johnson found a black community ready to take a stand in combating daily racism and violence in the South. With the help of Robert Church, Jr. and businessman Bert Roddy, the Memphis branch of the NAACP was organized with 53 members. It was the first NAACP branch in Tennessee and only the fourth branch in the South. The next year, when Johnson made his tour of NAACP branches, he returned to speak on April 14th to an audience of about 2,500 people crowded into Church Park and Auditorium. The meeting launched a vigorous campaign, growing the membership to 924.
Robert Church Jr. publicly denounced lynching and endorsed the work of the NAACP when it was dangerous to do so. At the first Lincoln Republican League meeting at Church Auditorium following the Ell Persons atrocity, Church spoke to over 3,000 people, proclaiming “I would be untrue to you as your elected leader if I should remain silent against shame and crime of lawlessness of any character, and I could not if I would hold my peace against the lynching or burning of a human being …”
By 1919, the Memphis NAACP was the largest branch in the South. Robert Church, Jr. was the first Southerner elected to the NAACP’s National Board of Directors, helping to launch 68 branches in 14 states. Together, the lynching of Ell Persons and the establishment of the Memphis NAACP in 1917 changed the political landscape of the South.

Lavender’s Landscape
2017-11-11 - 2018-01-14 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Anthony Lee

Latex and Urethane on Panel, Triptych, 2017

Composing a triptych, these works by artist Anthony Lee are a continuous, long-scale, lavender tonal gradient, equal in light value but demonstrating the effect of desaturation. Viewed from left to right, it begins as intense lavender, and then through gradation it finishes into its grey equivalent. This adds a fourth-dimensional sense of movement or transfer within the works, allowing the viewer’s eyes to calmly experience the space in the works as they seemlessly shift color.

A high-gloss reflective stripe appears at bottom 3/8 of triptych, to alter the color value. It is also the artist’s attempt to simulate the only straight line found in nature — the horizon. The purest horizons are a visual illusion created by the perceived meeting of only the sky and shimmering water.

About the Artist:
Lee’s initial body of works were mixed-media panels with heavy color saturation and symbolic narrative content. His work has been featured at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Powerhouse, Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis College of Art, Arkansas Arts Center, National Civil Rights Museum, Caribbean Museum Center for the Arts, and several galleries throughout the U.S. He has also created many public art projects and large-scale mural works, of which one was nationally recognized and awarded in 2009. His au courant mode of painting is geometric abstraction with neo-minimalist sensibilities that echo Ellsworth Kelly and Peter Halley.

Open Crit
2017-11-14 12:00 - 14:00 | TN
Facilitator: Carrie Rubinstein

Presenting Artists:
– Kendall Crouthers
– Erica Qualy
– Terri Phillips
– Adam Van Drimmelen

Crosstown Arts’ Open Crit series is a monthly critique event where visual artists are invited to bring new and/or in-progress studio work for critical feedback and group discussion particular to each artist’s practice.
A dedicated facilitator with experience in a group critique setting will guide discussion for each critique event, which will include up to 4 artists’ work, with 15-25 minutes devoted to the work of each.
All visual artists and anyone interested in joining the discussion are welcome to participate regardless of their level of expertise, prior professional art experience or background/education in fine art. Participation is free and open to the public. Input during the critiques from everyone in attendance is welcomed and encouraged.
No formal preparation is necessary for participating artists, who will have an opportunity to introduce and contextualize their work on view at the beginning of each critique. Participating artists are only asked to be open to (and interested in) considering reactions to their work by the group, which will always be done in a supportive, constructive and casual environment, but could at the same time be challenging.
Special thanks to Art Center for donating a $25 gift certificate for each participating artist.

To participate, artists can sign up here:
Open Crit Request form

Contact Mary Jo at maryjo@crosstownarts.org with any questions!
Artists are asked to bring no more than 8 individual pieces (in any medium). Maximum run time for time-based work(s) is 10 minutes.
Participating artists are encouraged to invite friends, peers and colleagues to the open crits, both to see their work in progress and to give constructive feedback.

MicroCinema Club
2017-11-15 12:30 - 15:00 | TN
Monthly short film screening series, presented by Indie Memphis & Crosstown Arts.
This month: Festival Departures Shorts
Encore of short films in this year’s Indie Memphis Film Festival Departures category that bend genres with experimental filmmaking and animation.
Doors at 6:30 pm | Screening at 7 pm. Admission is pay-what-you-can.
ANOTHER GIRL, ANOTHER PLANET
Director: Laura Jean Hocking (Memphis Filmmaker), Running Time: 7:10min
A young girl writes her own version of a classic Greek myth.
BWAKHAA!
Director: Jabriel E Woodall (Memphis Filmmaker), Running Time: 6:08min
Robin conceives her first gold trimmed egg but through strange events she has to fight wings and talons to reunite with it.
COLLAPSING
Director: Brian Ratigan, Running Time: 0:55min
An exquisite corpse about the end of the world, made with found 8mm footage.
DAILY COMMUTE
Director: Scott Palazzo, Running Time: 0:55min
Public transport sucks. Daily Commute is a traditionally done animation that shows the relationship between the grotesque public transport passengers and the complacent, passive riders among them.
EVOCATION OF A NIGHTMARE
Director: Wally Chung, Running Time: 1:20min
A nosy man finds trouble.
GIRL BECOMES SNOW
Director: Ryan and Tyler Betschart, Running Time: 7:19min
A VHS rendition of what happens when we die – an investigation into death induced dream ephemera or; a body (mind) dissolves into video signal memories.
HORSE DAD
Director: Anna Hudzik, Running Time: 2:17min
A playful, father-son story about a young horse named Charlie who grows increasingly frustrated by his dad’s his lame jokes.
I KARDIA
Director: Sarah Christine Bolton (Memphis Filmmaker), Running Time: 7:49min
Struggling to find synchronicity, two egos and shells come to terms with compromise and find respite in learning the secrets of each other’s internal time-keeping.
MOLASSES & LEMON
Director: Robert Sickels, Running Time: 4:06min
Love. Heartbreak. What’s the difference?
OK, CALL ME BACK
Director: Emily Ann Hoffman, Running Time: 4:47min
Craving companionship, a woman leaves a voicemail late at night. Objects take on new meaning in a lush world of gendered icons.
PATTERN FOR SURVIVAL
Director: Kelly Sears, Running Time: 6:30min
As you read the rest of this manual, keep in mind the need for a survival pattern.
PLICKER
Director: Byungjun Kim, Running Time: 2:44min
Introducing the concept of “time in figures,” a representation of time and space is visualized in this film. In this aesthetic attempt, time is no longer a linear or simple flow, but it dances in spatial form like a blooming flower.
RED VELVET CAKE
Director: Martina Boothes (Memphis Filmmaker), Running Time: 9:30min
Red Velvet Cake is about an artist and raver named Marcy. Marcy has a personality trait called fantasy prone personality. After confronting her deep secret to her best friend Tanie who is a hypnotherapist, Marcy is asked to dream and open her mind revealing a dark seeded secret which unfolds as a twisted freak show, sex cult…
SABINE
Director: Sissy Denkova (Memphis Filmmaker), Running Time: 2:15min
A young Parisian girl with a blue balloon wakes up in Central Park.
SESTINA
Director: Tom Varisco, Running Time: 1:42min
A story of a couple assessing and reassessing their relationship –which takes a surreal turn.
THIS IS YATES
Director: Josh Yates, Running Time: 12:10min
A home movie collage interrogates the ways in which we shape identity and confront trauma through fragmented media.
UGLY
Director: Nikita Diakur, Running Time: 11:54min
An ugly cat struggles to coexist in a fragmented and broken world, eventually finding a soulmate in a mystical chief. Inspired by the internet story ‘Ugly the Cat’.
UNWORLDLY
Director: Sarah El Bakkouri and Cross Li, Running Time: 6:08min
Unworldly – adj; not seeming to belong to this planet; strange.

The Poetic Murder Mystery
2017-11-16 11:30 - 13:30 | Rhodes McCoy Theater, 2000 N. Parkway, Memphis, TN, 38112, United States
Written and performed by the Crosstown Youth Theatre.
Free admission

Hustle: Critical Art Writing
2017-11-21 12:00 - 14:00 | TN
Why is critical art writing an important part of the thriving arts scene? What does relevant critical writing look like? Who does it? How can you do it? Professor Virginia Solomon will help us explore this important topic.
Program at 6 pm | Complimentary food & drink

Hustle: professional development for artists is a free program organized by ArtsMemphis, UrbanArt Commission, and Crosstown Arts. The series will provide visual artists with information, resources, and opportunities to support them in the development of their professional careers. Workshop topics will range from positive studio practices to pricing work and navigating gallery representation. Questions? Contact Mary Jo Karimnia at maryjo@crosstownarts.org.

Travel Talk: Ultimate Journeys for Two
2017-11-22 06:00 - 07:30 | TN
National Geographic authors, HoneyTrek bloggers, and the world’s longest honeymooners, Mike & Anne Howard, are coming to Memphis. Join them for an afternoon of travel inspiration, tips, and tricks as they chat about their highly acclaimed new book Ultimate Journeys for Two.
Drawing on their experience traveling together across seven continents for six years straight, they curate the globe and offer tested-and-approved recommendations for couples, bringing culture, adventure, and romance to any pair — no matter their age or budget.
Come hear about their inspiring journey and discover how to make travel more a part of your life. Refreshments and book signing to follow. Pick up a signed copy as a holiday gift for your sig other and favorite travel-loving couples.
Learn more about the book.

Art/Race/Violence: Artist+Community Conversation
2017-11-29 06:00 - 07:00 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Conversation with artist teams Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia and Terry Lynn and Andrea Morales, led by Ladrica Menson-Furr, Richard Lou, and Earnestine Jenkins.

Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response is a multidisciplinary project organized by visual culture historian Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and artist Richard Lou in collaboration with Crosstown Arts. Through this project, local artists collectively explore intersections of race and systemic violence through the lens of cultural expression. Conceived to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ell Persons’ very public murder by members of the Memphis community through the act of lynching, the project was further inspired by recent events to memorialize lynching sites in the broader Memphis community in an effort to bring about greater understanding of racial oppression and violence in the South.
The organizers aim for more challenging, candid and unvarnished representations of our city’s history through a range of educational programming, including panel discussions which began last spring, a collaborative exhibition (with performances and talks by the artists) opening this November, community conversations, and film screenings.
The exhibition features work by artist teams:
Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia (with Special Design Work for American Heritage Lotto by Christian Westphal)
Andrea Morales and Terry Lynn
Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin
Yancy Villa-Calvo and Lawrence Matthews
Jamond Bullock and Cat Pena (video work by local artist Perry Kirkland and survivor profiles from #SurvivedAndPunished)
Karina Alvarez and Carl Moore
Jin Powell and Jesse Butcher
Agustin Diaz, Brittney Bullock and Brenda Joysmith

Indie Wednesday Film Series
2017-11-29 13:00 - 15:00 | TN
Weekly film screenings hosted by Indie Memphis. Films will screen at Crosstown Arts, Malco’s Studio on the Square, and Ridgeway Theatre on a rotating basis.
This week: Rat Film — Across walls, fences, and alleys, rats not only expose our boundaries of separation but make homes in them. Rat Film is a feature-length documentary that uses the rat — as well as the humans who love them, live with them, and kill them — to explore the history of Baltimore.
The film will be followed with a Q&A with director Theo Anthony. Admission is pay-what-you-can.

The Moonpie Project presents Elloo
2017-12-01 11:00 - 13:00 | Crosstown Alley, 430 N. Cleveland
A new mural by Elloo
Location: Crosstown Arts alley between 430 & 438 N. Cleveland
Free food + drinks
The Moonpie Project is an ongoing, rotating mural series curated by Michael Roy in memory of muralist Brad Wells
Organized in collaboration with Crosstown Arts

About the artist:
Elloo (pronounced like “hello”) is an artist from Chicago known for her paintings of toothless, brightly colored, adorable monsters. She attended the University of Illinois at Chicago and graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design. Elloo painted her first wall in Back of the Yards in 2014, and she’s been creating murals ever since.

Up in Arms Collective presents Response 2
2017-12-01 13:00 - 16:00, 2017-12-02 13:00 - 16:00, 2017-12-03 13:00 - 16:00 | TN
So what now? Nine months after the inaugural RESPONSE show, it has become apparent that America’s new reality is here to stay. Even the nicest guy on late night TV, Jimmy Fallon, cannot escape it. So what now?
Resilience. We connect, organize, and keep going. Twenty-five artists converge at Crosstown Arts to create original works that explore today’s America. Up in Arms Collective was born out of the need for the dance community to respond to what is happening in America in an open and affirming environment. What originally began as a community of diverse Memphis dance artists has since grown to include local filmmakers, musicians, and artists.
Performing artists include Sheri Bancroft, Orixa Bowers, Travis Bradley, Burton Bridges, Katie Bug, Marie Dennan, EmiLy Dison, Jill Guyton-Nee, Stephanie Mei Hom, J Tbj Jones, Jenn King, Louisa Koeppel, Kristen Osborne Lucas, Daniel Stuart Nelson, Jade Primicias, Wayne Smith, Lauren Stallings, and Noelia Warnette along with musicians SJ Bennett, Steve Fox, and Kyle Statham, filmmakers Joel Rose and Laura Jean Hocking, and photographers Yasmine Omari and Stephanie Wexler.
“We are stronger when we come together—united,” says dancer and artist Marie Dennan. “Up in Arms provides an environment for artists of all kinds to share ideas and support one another.”
Through community collaboration, artists are empowered, and through RESPONSE 2, Up in Arms Collective hopes to leave others empowered. Art has the power to change us all and transform the world.
Our responses are candid, personal, and as diverse as the artists themselves and explore power, fear, truth, boldness, self-determination, activism, love, support, protection, humor, and revolution.
Up in Arms Collective presents RESPONSE 2 on Friday-Sunday, December 1-3, 2017, at Crosstown Arts, 430 N. Cleveland, in Memphis, TN. All performances begin at 7:00 pm. Each evening’s performance will be one-of-a kind and feature different performances. Tickets are $10 cash only and available at the door. Seating is general admission and on a first come, first serve basis.
To find out more about RESPONSE 2, like Up in Arms Collective on Facebook. Donations will be made to ACLU (Tennessee Chapter), Mid-South Peace and Justice Center, and Planned Parenthood – Greater Memphis Region.

"Cancer Is a Drag" St. Jude Marathon Spirit Station
2017-12-02 03:30 - 05:30 | story booth, 438 N. Cleveland St., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Cheer on the runners of the St. Jude Marathon and enjoy drag performances by Bella DuBalle and Freak Nasty. Vegan blueberry pancakes, bloody marys, and coffee (courtesy of French Truck Coffee) will be served. Please bring noisemakers and posters to cheer on the runners. Fun and playful clothing is encouraged.
Location: Parking lot in front of story booth (438 N. Cleveland)

Shoot & Splice: Cinema Trivia Party
2017-12-05 12:30 - 15:00 | TN
Throughout the year, Indie Memphis & Crosstown Arts brings cinematographers, directors, editors, writers, and technicians to Shoot & Splice, our monthly filmmaking forum. Come help us celebrate the end of another year with the Shoot & Splice FOURTH Annual Cinema Trivia blowout with trivia master John Beifuss! Test your filmmaker mettle! Win prizes! Did we say, FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC?
Doors open at 6:30pm | Trivia starts at 7:00pm

MicroCinema Club
2017-12-06 12:30 - 15:00 | TN
Monthly short film screening series, presented by Indie Memphis & Crosstown Arts.
This month: Documentary Shorts Festival Encore
Encore presentation of the documentary shorts program from the 2017 Indie Memphis Film Festival.
Doors at 6:30 pm | Screening at 7 pm. Admission is pay-what-you-can.

MICKEY’S PETS (Documentary Short – Special Jury Award)
Director: Ashley S. Brandon, Running Time: 13:01min
With a trusty peacock in tow a young taxidermist must overcome her insecurities to win first place at the U.S. National Taxidermy Championships.
JESSZILLA
Director: Emily Sheskin, Running Time: 7min
Jesselyn “Jesszilla” Silva is serious about boxing, and at 10 years old trains seriously with dreams of becoming a professional fighter. Her father, Pedro, finds himself caught in between supporting her dream and worrying about her future as she tries to master a combat sport.
COWGIRL UP
Director: Nathan Willis, Running Time: 5:17min
A cowgirl from Mississippi pursues her lifelong dream of becoming the first African-American female in the National Finals Rodeo.
SILO: EDGE OF THE REAL WORLD
Director: Marshall Burnette, Running Time: 10:43min
SILO: EDGE OF THE REAL WORLD is a meditation on life in a small midwest farm town. When a grain entrapment shocks their small community, Adam Fox, a young farmer, and Clay Althoff, a senior in high school, both consider the risks and rewards of a corn farmer’s life.
THE DUEL
Director: Sean David Christensen, Running Time: 5:50min
A sixteen-year-old girl struggles to reach her father in the midst of an unexpected and intense manic episode. Based on a true story from actress Lili Taylor.
ISIS HAIR SALON
Director: Nicholas Coles, Running Time: 4:52min
Los Angeles hair stylist Carrie Banks has unwittingly been thrust into the war on terror and she’s fighting back one braid, weave and extension at a time.
REBUILDING IN MINIATURE (Best Documentary Short)
Director: Veena Rao, Running Time: 7:12min
Ali Alamedy, an Iraqi artist living in Turkey, creates detailed miniature scenes of places he has imagined but has never been.
GAYS FOR TRUMP?
Director: Aaron Paul Lovett, Running Time: 16:44min
In the 2016 general election, 14% of LGBTQ Americans voted for Donald Trump. This film follows Peter Boykin and David Smith, an interracial gay couple, and their friend Scott Presler as the unlikely trio advocate for the polarizing businessman-turned-President.
ELECTION NIGHT
Director: Ryan Scafuro, Running Time: 7:40min
A crowd gathers until the early morning at a boozy London pub to watch the US presidential election. As dawn breaks, emotions escalate and the evening takes a turn for the worse.
LESSONS INJUSTICE
Director: Karen Chapman, Running Time: 8:57min
Danardo jones sets out on a car ride with his teenage son in hopes of having a conversation that some parents dread and others are unaware of. As a lawyer, Jones is well aware that the law can do little to protect his son against the anti-black racism and discrimination that has become a part of his complicated identity.

Art/Race/Violence: Artist+Community Conversation
2017-12-07 06:00 - 07:00 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Conversation with artist teams Yancy Villa-Calvo and Lawrence Matthews, Cat Pena and Jamond Bullock, as well as community activist Tami Sawyer.

Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response is a multidisciplinary project organized by visual culture historian Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and artist Richard Lou in collaboration with Crosstown Arts. Through this project, local artists collectively explore intersections of race and systemic violence through the lens of cultural expression. Conceived to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ell Persons’ very public murder by members of the Memphis community through the act of lynching, the project was further inspired by recent events to memorialize lynching sites in the broader Memphis community in an effort to bring about greater understanding of racial oppression and violence in the South.
The organizers aim for more challenging, candid and unvarnished representations of our city’s history through a range of educational programming, including panel discussions which began last spring, a collaborative exhibition (with performances and talks by the artists) opening this November, community conversations, and film screenings.
The exhibition features work by artist teams:
Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia (with Special Design Work for American Heritage Lotto by Christian Westphal)
Andrea Morales and Terry Lynn
Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin
Yancy Villa-Calvo and Lawrence Matthews
Jamond Bullock and Cat Pena (video work by local artist Perry Kirkland and survivor profiles from #SurvivedAndPunished)
Karina Alvarez and Carl Moore
Jin Powell and Jesse Butcher
Agustin Diaz, Brittney Bullock and Brenda Joysmith

Crosstown Getdown: Salsa!
2017-12-07 12:00 - 14:00 | Central Atrium, Crosstown Concourse, 1350 Concourse Ave., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Join us for Crosstown Getdown, a monthly dance series at Crosstown Concourse. Each month will feature a new dance theme with free lessons followed by music and dancing.
This month: Salsa Dancing!
Meet up in the Central Atrium by the staircase. Salsa Memphis and Madison Dance Studio will provide a FREE dance lesson from 6-7 pm. And then DJ Bori will spin tunes for a salsa dance party from 7-8 pm.

SOLD OUT The Music of Nina Simone
2017-12-09 12:30 - 15:00 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT! Stay turned to the Crosstown Arts Facebook page for details on the next Crosstown Jazz Series show.
Tickets – $15 (purchase on Eventbrite)
Doors at 6:30 pm | performance at 7 pm
Complimentary beverages
Jazz performance featuring Michaelyn Oby (vocalist), Alvie Givhan (piano), Sylvester Sample (acoustic bass), Michael Oby (saxophone), and Nygel Yancey (drums).
The Crosstown Jazz Series, presented by Strictly Jazz Entertainment in collaboration with Crosstown Arts, is designed to salute classic jazz music as contemporary musicians perform the work of the legends.
Facebook invite

Bob Grey Meet & Greet & Album Release
2017-12-09 13:00 - 16:00 | TN
Big BIZ da M.C. presents I’m Bob Grey with music by Great DJ X
Free entry. Donations of food, cash, or clothing will be accepted for Concerned Citizens of Memphis’ work in local communities.
Big BIZ da M.C., a local up-and-coming hip-hop spitter, is releasing his next project entitled “I’m Bob Grey.” The album title is a play on the phrase “I’m IT” and is shaping up to be a bass enthusiast Memphis classic. This will be his second EP release; his first “Toonami” was released last year and helped push him into the underground scene. Get to know more about him at www.mindofbiz.com and on Instagram at @mindofbiz. Music is available to stream and purchase at all streaming sites.
Facebook invite

Open Crit
2017-12-12 12:00 - 14:00 | TN
Facilitator: Carrie Rubinstein

Presenting Artist(s):
– Steve Taylor
– Ethan Taylor
– Maya Alston

Crosstown Arts’ Open Crit series is a monthly critique event where visual artists are invited to bring new and/or in-progress studio work for critical feedback and group discussion particular to each artist’s practice.
A dedicated facilitator with experience in a group critique setting will guide discussion for each critique event, which will include up to 4 artists’ work, with 15-25 minutes devoted to the work of each.
All visual artists and anyone interested in joining the discussion are welcome to participate regardless of their level of expertise, prior professional art experience or background/education in fine art. Participation is free and open to the public. Input during the critiques from everyone in attendance is welcomed and encouraged.
No formal preparation is necessary for participating artists, who will have an opportunity to introduce and contextualize their work on view at the beginning of each critique. Participating artists are only asked to be open to (and interested in) considering reactions to their work by the group, which will always be done in a supportive, constructive and casual environment, but could at the same time be challenging.
Special thanks to Art Center for donating a $25 gift certificate for each participating artist.

To participate, artists can sign up here:
Open Crit Request form

Contact Mary Jo at maryjo@crosstownarts.org with any questions!
Artists are asked to bring no more than 8 individual pieces (in any medium). Maximum run time for time-based work(s) is 10 minutes.
Participating artists are encouraged to invite friends, peers and colleagues to the open crits, both to see their work in progress and to give constructive feedback.

Indie Wednesday Film Series
2017-12-13 13:00 - 15:00 | TN
Weekly film screenings hosted by Indie Memphis. Films will screen at Crosstown Arts, Malco’s Studio on the Square, and Ridgeway Theatre on a rotating basis.
This week: Furry Lewis & the Bottleneck Guitar Story — The story of how the slide guitar got to the Memphis/Delta region from Hawaii and the role Furry Lewis played in the evolution from the Hawaiian style to the bottleneck sound.
Featuring Q&A with director David Brian Guinle. Admission is pay-what-you-can.

M.T.A. Art Show
2017-12-16 11:30 - 15:30 | TN
Live painting | poetry | artwork | food and wine
Hosted by Tosha the Artist

Impossible Language
2017-12-16 13:00 - 15:00 | story booth, 438 N. Cleveland St., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Impossible Language is ending its run. The final installment of the monthly poetry series will feature readings by Emma Bolden, Christian Anton Gerard, and Heather Dobbins.
Facebook invite

It's a Hustle Holiday 2
2017-12-19 12:00 - 14:00 | story booth, 438 N. Cleveland St., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
You know that networking is an important part of your arts practice. Hustle makes it fun to get to know your local community. Expect silly games and sillier prizes. Special host: Eso Tolson. Complimentary food & drink

Hustle: professional development for artists is a free program organized by ArtsMemphis, UrbanArt Commission, and Crosstown Arts. The series will provide visual artists with information, resources, and opportunities to support them in the development of their professional careers. Workshop topics will range from positive studio practices to pricing work and navigating gallery representation. Questions? Contact Mary Jo Karimnia at maryjo@crosstownarts.org.

Holiday Happy Hour at the Cleveland St. Flea Market
2017-12-21 09:00 - 12:00 | Cleveland Street Flea Market, 438 N. Cleveland St., Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Stop by the flea market for cookies and holiday punch! Then take care of your last-minute holiday shopping while you’re there.
Additionally, the flea market will be open SPECIAL HOLIDAY HOURS:
Tuesday, Dec. 19 – 10 am-6 pm
Wednesday, Dec. 20 – 10 am-6 pm
Thursday, Dec. 21 – 10 am-6 pm
Plus, the market will be open on its usual weekend days (Friday, Dec. 22, 10 am-6 pm; Saturday, Dec. 23, 9 am-6 pm). The market will be closed on Sunday, Dec. 24.

Shoot & Splice: Filmmaker Feedback
2018-01-02 12:30 - 15:00 | TN
Monthly filmmaking forum presented by Indie Memphis and Crosstown Arts.

Attention all Memphis filmmakers, actors, and crew members! We want to hear from you! As Indie Memphis enters the new year, they are seeking more opportunities to engage with the specific needs of our local filmmaking community. We will host an open discussion about what you would like to see from Indie Memphis, as well as the rest of the filmmaking community at large, over the next year.
Complimentary food and drinks will be available and, as always, this Shoot & Splice is FREE and open to the public.

Doors at 6:30 pm | Discussion at 7 pm

Art/Race/Violence: Artist + Community Conversation
2018-01-03 12:00 - 13:00 | Crosstown Arts Galleries, 1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 280, Memphis, TN, 38104, United States
Conversation with artist teams Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin; Carl Moore and Karina Alvarez; Brittney Bullock, Agustin Diaz, and Brenda Joysmith; co-curator Richard Lou, and Professor Holly Yu. Moderated by Dr. Earnestine Jenkins.
Art/Race/Violence: A Collaborative Response is a multidisciplinary project organized by visual culture historian Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and artist Richard Lou in collaboration with Crosstown Arts. Through this project, local artists collectively explore intersections of race and systemic violence through the lens of cultural expression. Conceived to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ell Persons’ very public murder by members of the Memphis community through the act of lynching, the project was further inspired by recent events to memorialize lynching sites in the broader Memphis community in an effort to bring about greater understanding of racial oppression and violence in the South.
The organizers aim for more challenging, candid and unvarnished representations of our city’s history through a range of educational programming, including panel discussions which began last spring, a collaborative exhibition (with performances and talks by the artists) opening this November, community conversations, and film screenings.
The exhibition features work by artist teams:
Jamin Carter and Mary Jo Karimnia (with Special Design Work for American Heritage Lotto by Christian Westphal)
Andrea Morales and Terry Lynn
Lisa Williamson and Lurlynn Franklin
Yancy Villa and Lawrence Matthews
Jamond Bullock and Cat Pena (video work by local artist Perry Kirkland and survivor profiles from #SurvivedAndPunished)
Karina Alvarez and Carl Moore
Jin Powell and Jesse Butcher
Agustin Diaz, Brittney Bullock and Brenda Joysmith
