“ART IS FOOD,” proclaimed a flyer by Bread and Puppet Theater in 1984. “You cant EAT it BUT it FEEDS you. ART has to be CHEAP & available to EVERYBODY. It needs to be EVERYWHERE because it is INSIDE of the WORLD.” The Cheap Art Manifesto was a declaration of independence against corporate art. “ART SOOTHES PAIN!” The flyer exclaimed. Essentially, the company is saying that art itself fills a human need, one that cannot be commodified, and one that is as essential as food or shelter.
It’s a pretty daring thought to suggest that art is every bit as important as the basic necessities of life. The counter argument would be: “If someone is hungry, shouldn’t you just give them food? If someone is cold, shouldn’t you give them clothes? Why would they want to see a play or listen to a piece of music, if they are so thirsty they are falling over?”
Organizations like
zAmya Theatre Project, which creates plays about homelessness with both homeless and non-homeless actors, or
Kulture Klub, an arts organization that partners professional artists with homeless youth, would say that while it is true that filling basic needs such as food and shelter is essential, there is also a great amount of benefit that can be brought from artistic experiences.
Real estate and theater
zAmya aims to raise awareness about the homelessness issue, often presenting work in corporate settings. A couple of years ago, I attended a
performance at Edina Realty, which was fascinating in terms of the dialogue that was brought forth. It wasn’t a case of “preaching to the choir” as it would have been if people had come specifically to the performance and paid the admission price.
The show was brought directly to the offices of Edina Realty, and the group of realtors who saw the show and participated in the workshops had genuine insight into the foreclosure crisis (at its peak at the time). They also were incredibly moved by the performers telling their own stories. Right now, zAmya is working with a troupe of actors from the homeless shelter at St. Stephens Human Services, developing material for a show which will eventually tour.
I emailed Maren Ward, who directs zAmya's shows, the other day and asked her if she could explain what zAmya could do that couldn’t be done in another way. She wrote that while what zAmya does shouldn’t take the place of any other tactic, it adds to the awareness building in a unique and powerful way. “You can hand out pamphlets, you can demonstrate, make videos, write letters to congress people, volunteer at a shelter, give money to advocacy groups, and many other things to address homelessness,” Ward wrote. “What we do is create an opportunity for people who have experienced homelessness to have fun, build skills, make friends, make connections, and tell stories in a safe, respectful, and often joyous environment.”
Rachel Chaves, who works with and is writing her dissertation about zAmya, emailed to say that zAmya’s theater allows people to encounter each other in different way than they would in other social spaces. Thus, a realtor can really “see” a homeless person, through their story, through their humanity in a way that they could never do if they passed them on the street. “’Out there’ we often view our fellow humans as players in a market war,” Chaves wrote, “Even during the most personal kinds of experiences–somehow our capitalist economics infiltrates every corner of our lives.”
Inspired to survive. Survive to inspire.
Kulture Klub is another arts organization that works with the homeless. A drop-in center for homeless youth, the organization that provides the youth with workshops, open mics, cultural presentations, and “art views” in order for them to develop their creative expression, receive exposure to artistic excellence within a supportive environment, according to its website.
Under the guidance of professional artists, Kulture Klub offers experiences that provide kids with hope. Working with artists of such caliber as Wing Young Huie, Ta-Coumba Aiken, Michael Sommers and Wendy Knox, the young people have the opportunity to be immersed in expressing themselves and communicating their feelings and stories. For some youth, the art in itself is a way to cope with the struggles that inevitably arise from being homeless. For others, the ones that show extreme talent and interest, pursuing a career in the arts can be a way out.
I
interviewed the founder of Kulture Klub two years ago. Dorit Cypis said that artists by their trade are creative survivalists, and homeless youth have that same creative energy, that survival mode.
“Homeless youth are inspired to SURVIVE,” she wrote. “Artists survive to be INSPIRED. Crisis youth centers are great in providing survival skills for youth, but surviving is not enough. Inspiration can bring a youth to live a creative and responsive life.”
Indeed, perhaps survival isn’t enough. Yes, everyone needs a roof over their head. Yes, everyone needs to not go hungry. But perhaps, especially for those that struggle obtaining the very basic essentials of life, art becomes even more desperately important, because art provides hope.
