Artspeak Radio with Zhou B Art Center & Kansas City Artist Coalition

Artspeak Radio, Wednesday, February 26, 2025, 9am -10am CST, 90.1fm KKFI Kansas City Community Radio, streaming live audio www.kkfi.org

Producer/host Maria Vasquez Boyd welcomes Izzy Vivas Art Director Zhou B Art Center and Courtney Wasson Executive Director Kansas City Artist Coalition, Thayer Bray Exhibitions Coordinator with artists Char Shall & Christopher Leitch.

IZZY VIVAS, Art Director Zhou B Art Center KC- “ROCK IS BLACK” A ONE NIGHT EVENT THAT CELEBRATES THE VOICES OF KANSAS CITY’S BEST BLACK ROCK MUSICIANS

On February 28, 2025, join us for a groundbreaking concert event, “The Rock is Black,” dedicated to uplifting and showcasing underrepresented Black artists in the rock music genre. This unique occasion serves as the release concert for the highly anticipated indie rock EP by Malek, an artist committed to redefining the landscape of music through a Black lens.

“The Rock is Black” aims to celebrate the rich, yet often overlooked, contributions Black artists have made to rock music throughout history. From blues rock to pop punk, attendees can expect a vibrant showcase featuring a dynamic lineup of local talent, including:
Frankie Shorez and Mercy Fire, Jamogi and the Jammers, Stephonne, Malek Azrael and the Vibez
Event Details:
Date: Feb 28th 2025
Doors: 7 PM
Ticket Price: $15 Pre-sale; $20 Door
21+ Concert

Location: Zhou B Art Center KC (1801 E 18th Street Kansas City MO 64108)
Through this event, we will highlight the experiences of Black artists who have often felt like guests in spaces dominated by narratives focusing on non-Black artists. Malek, the event’s headliner, expresses the need for recognition and acceptance: “We’re more than the boxes that the media puts us in. We’re more than R&B and Hip-Hop, and what we do needs to be accepted.”

ZHOU B ART CENTER KC

Contact Details: Izzy Vivas
Position: Art Director
Email: [email protected]

The historical roots of rock music trace back to pioneering figures like Sister Rosetta Tharpe, a queer Black woman often credited as one of the creators of rock and roll. Despite this foundational history, mainstream media frequently overlooks the contributions of Black artists, leading to a critical gap in
visibility and acceptance. “The Rock is Black” aims to bridge this gap by bringing attention to the profound talents within Kansas City’s vibrant music scene and encouraging a broader recognition of diversity in all genres.

This event is not just a concert; it’s a movement. It seeks to inspire an unconscious acceptance of people of color across music genres, making it clear that Black artists belong in every musical space. The legacy of “The Rock is Black” will echo far beyond the stage, fostering an ongoing dialogue about representation and creativity in the arts.

Join us at The Zhou B Art Center KC (1801 E 18th Street KCMO 64108), on February 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM to celebrate the power of diversity in rock music and witness a landmark moment in the evolution of the genre. Together, let’s push boundaries, recognize true history, and pave the way for future generations of artists.

COURTNEY WASSON-Kansas City Artists Coalition Affirms Its Dedication to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with March Group Show Inside/Outside Voices: Queer Abstraction

The Kansas City Artists Coalition (KCAC) will host Inside/Outside Voices: Queer Abstraction, a dynamic exhibition featuring 11 regional and national queer sculptors and painters working in abstraction. The exhibition, curated by Joe Bussell, highlights queer voices while examining abstraction through an LGBTQIA+ lens.
From the curatorial statement:

“… Queer abstraction demands a retooling of older art historical methods that take forms and materials as fundamentally political, while also exposing the already present politics of these methods. Utilizing a process of formalism that is not opposed to matter or culture, my queer formalist approach takes the material and visual of artworks seriously as political and theoretical interventions. I conduct the kinds of comparative
analysis that are foundational in the field of art history, while also taking the lesson from queer theoretical approaches to history that can transform both.”
— Lex Morgan Lancaster, Dragging Away Queer Abstraction in Contemporary Art

Bussell elaborates, “Abstraction is the first visual language we all explore as children, so in that sense, we all are united by a similar visual foundation. Our hope is this exhibition will lead the audience to a basic level of understanding of this work and light a path to a deeper place.”

The exhibition will occupy both the Main Gallery and Snap Space at KCAC, featuring a diverse array of sculptures, paintings, photo collages, fiber pieces, and installations. Visitors will be immersed in a kaleidoscope of color and texture, surrounded by abstract sculptures and wall pieces that revel in form, material, and construction.

Participating artists include: Joe Bussell, Fred Tease, Mary Ann Coonrod, Christopher Leitch, Horatio Hung Yan-Law, Char Schwall, Marcus Cain, Craig Auge, Wolfe Brack, Justin Canja, and Robb Putnam.

By highlighting queer voices in abstraction and contemporary art, KCAC affirms its commitment to supporting and
promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion for all Kansas Citians and Americans. KCAC is also a proud member of the Safe Spaces Alliance.

Exhibition Details
● Opening Reception: First Friday, March 7, 2025, from 5:00 – 9:00 PM
● On View: March 7 – March 28, 2025
● Location: Kansas City Artists Coalition, 3200 Gillham Road, Kansas City, MO 64109
● Gallery Hours: Wednesday – Saturday, Noon – 5:00 PM
● More Information: Visit www.kansascityartistscoalition.org

About the Kansas City Artists Coalition: The Kansas City Artists Coalition (KCAC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting
visual arts awareness in Kansas City and the surrounding region while supporting the professional growth of artists.

Char Schwall (she/her)
Char Schwall is a fiber artist, a painter, and an early childhood arts educator. He
creative practice investigates concepts of surface, gendered space, fluidity, and overal
softness. Her most recent body of work uses sewing, appliqué, and crochet to
investigate the complex, and sometimes controversial, relationship between the
feminine and the fluid. She is represented by the Bruno David Gallery in St. Louis
Instagram
@charschwall
Website
www.charschwall.com

Inside/Outside Voices: Queer Abstraction
Group exhibition
Kansas City Artist Coalition
3200 Gillham Road
KC MO
Curated by Joe Bussell
Opening: March 7

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