Police brutality. A global pandemic. Why we need art — and freedom — now more than ever

Editor’s note: This commentary is part an ongoing series of journalism produced as part a collaboration between The Sacramento Bee, Sol Collective and other community organizations called the “Community to Newsroom Pipeline.” To learn more or to contribute, email us at voices@sacbee.com.

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Art. Why is art, in all of its assorted forms, so important? Why is it that through centuries and lifetimes of human evolution, that art has made a heavily valued appearance through it all?

Is it because art allows us to communicate with one another across time, space and language? Is it because art gives us something to distract ourselves within moments of need? All of these are possible. Yet when looking to the crux of why art holds such a special place in the lexicon of humanity, there is a word that comes to mind.

Freedom.

From a worldwide pandemic (COVID-19) that has cost thousands of lives, to a worldwide pandemic (police brutality) that has also cost thousands of lives. From a lengthy lockdown to a citywide curfew - the idea of freedom has never felt so relevant to so many.

Art is one of the most powerful tools we have to work out uninhibited expression. Art is a visual, physical, audible or sentient representation of the human mind as it melds with the senses to create a story told in a new form. One that if done powerfully enough, will leave a lasting imprint upon the viewer.

Which explains why in the last few months, art of all shapes and sizes has cropped up virtually and in reality, all around the Sacramento area. In whatever form the art exists, it exists to collectively capture and encapsulate a moment in time that will be remembered as one that changed the course of human history.

The revolution will not be televised. It will be memorialized in spray paint

After many businesses in Sacramento boarded up their windows and doors, the streets became a tapestry of free wall space - and it wasn’t long after the boards went up that the murals followed.

Though most of the murals you see along the city’s newly blank walls have been commissioned by business owners, there are a few that went up full guerilla style. Whatever version of mural they were, each piece seems to come with a message.

“The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that’s power. Because they control the minds of the masses.” -- Malcolm X.

That quote is now painted as a triptych across the western wall of Rodney’s Cigar and Liquors on 10th and J st; a mural kitty corner to the peaceful and powerful actions that have taken place over the past two weeks at Cesar Chavez Plaza in dedication to George Floyd. A collaborative effort of local artists Brandon Alexander, Aliyah Sidqe, Franceska Gamez, Chris Baxter, Shaun Burner, the monochromatic mural manages to silently speak volumes to the current narrative of recent protests being portrayed in mainstream media.

“We are never assured of justice without a fight.” -- Angela Davis

Wheatpasted across the boarded windows of Andy’s Candy Apothecary, a technicolor tableau of alternating images of Angela Davis and Malcolm X create a quilt of color as Xico Gonzalez’s screenprinted images remind you to “Stand for Justice and Equality for All.”

“When you wipe your eyes, see it clearly. There’s no need for you to fear me. If you take your time and hear me, maybe you can learn to cheer me. It ain’t about black or white cause we human, I hope we see the light before it’s ruined.” -- Tupac Amaru Shakur.

A pop art Black Panther by local artist Norman Ayles adorns the front windows of Oblivion Comics and Coffee across from the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. The coffee shop, recently lauded as heroes for sheltering peaceful protesters during a time when tear gas canisters were flying, now has Marvel’s Black Panther melding with the words of Tupac Shakur to create a statement of finding connection and understanding of each other before it’s too late.

Our community artists are using their collective voice to speak their piece, in whatever form that may take. Messages of hope and love in a time of quarantine. Reminding us that we are in this together. These murals often stand close, if not next to, messages of support for Black Lives Matter, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, Stephon Clark and the full breadth of political unrest that is gripping our country.

It takes a village to raise a child

With schools being forced to close months earlier than ever thought possible, and classrooms being relegated to Zoom calls and email chains, many of our youth have found themselves having to grow through social isolation, rapid shifts in environment and general disruption of their daily routine. Adults are holding on by a thread. But for children who were removed from a major part of their evolutionary experience, the time has been even more challenging. Anxiety, fear and worry all become heightened during a time when your survival brain has kicked into overdrive.

Which is why a wide range of artists and organizations in Sacramento are doing their part to ensure there is no child left behind. Leading the charge is the Sojourner Truth African American Heritage Museum with their Sojo Virtual Youth Pop Ups. Each week the museum puts together themed art bags, each with a different project. Parents are able to pick up art bags, free of charge, and then students connect with instructors virtually.

For the youth who are willing (with social distancing in place of course) to get a little more hands on, we see Markos Egure leading the charge with his project Mural Xpressions, a collaborative effort that creates space for youth to help form the idea and design, then inevitably paint a large scale mural to spread messages of light in times of darkness. The newest work, “Tolerance”, located in the Twin Rivers School district, was one that was actually in the planning stages two weeks before the killing of George Floyd rocked our nation.

For the teens and young adults looking for a creative outlet, Sol Collective offers a wide range of virtual events, film screenings, workshops and live interactive open mics that allow kids from 9 to 99 to find their next hobby (like Codex making with the artist Lurac), find a healthy outlet to vent their fears and frustrations or talk about their triumphs (like their Real Men Talk series with host Russell Cummings)

The Unsung Heroes

And finally, we need to recognize and honor a work of art that often gets overlooked or unnoticed: Humanity.

Humanity has been coming through in a major way and creating beauty for all of us. It’s in the friends dropping care packages on each other’s doorsteps to remind them that they are loved and thought of in harsh times. It’s in the local businesses drawing lines in the sand to stand on the right side of history. It beams through the nurses and teachers and grocery clerks and delivery drivers who have reminded us just how essential they are by making sure that we as a society are able to function.

Humanity is creating one of the biggest pieces of art right now, by pouring love into each other.

“The responsibility of the artist is to transcend the human ego.” -- Hubert Selby.

The artists (and citizens) of Sacramento seem to be taking that quote to heart. It is our ego that allows us to assume that because we understand our own story, we must understand the story of human experience. It is often that same ego that prevents us from being able to open ourselves up to the experience of others.

Through the course of the last few months, we have seen so many egos collide as our city, state, nation and world has been forced to come to grips with two viruses. While many of us have become trapped in our own experience as the moments have progressed, Sacramento artists are stepping outside of that to give each of us something we need.

A moment.

To stop.

To reflect.

To see the times through a different lens, from another perspective, from an alternate point of view.

Sacramento artists are taking the chaos of the now and transforming it into images of hope for the future.

And we are grateful.

We definitely need any chance we can get, to take a moment.

This story was originally published June 17, 2020 at 7:30 PM.