Call and Response: Collaboration at a Distance Round 13
In March 2020 when we went on lockdown due to the pandemic, the Shoebox Arts team created “Call and Response: Collaboration at a Distance” as a way to stay connected and to check in with and support each other. We are just finishing up Round 13 and have enjoyed the process, experiences and friendships that we have made. The project draws on the tradition of Jazz and Exquisite Corpse as a way for the artists to ping pong creatively off of each other.
Please join us for the opening reception of the online exhibition via zoom Sunday April 18, 11am-1pm pst.
Featured Artists:
Adeola Davis-Aiyeloja/Aazam Iriliam, Adrienne Cole/Ashley Ehrhardt, Alice Quarterman/Rebecca Bennett Duke, Anda Marcu/Shloka Shankar, Angela Aiosa/Shirley Murphy, Angela Brooks/Vija Doks, Ashli Kingfisher-Sisk/Lyla Paakkanen, Beatrice Antonie Martino/Leslie Pierce, Blanca Daniela Ramírez/Sina Evans, Bree Diaz/Marta Feinstein, Brenda Oelbaum/Vidhi Ashar, Çağlar Tahiroğlu/Alexandra Boaru, Cázares Cortéz/Lidia Kaku, Conchi Sanford/Zhenya Muhina, Cynthia Cole/Serena Potter, Debbie Swanson Patrick/Candice Greathouse, Dellis Frank/Andrei Rodeanu, Donal O’Sullivan/Endika Basaguren , Elena Viktorovna Stromberger/Payal Chakraborty, Eliza Day-Green/Jody Zellen, Francisco Alvarado/Genie Davis, Galina Kovshilovsky/Eva Poulopoulou, Heather Arndt/Pradnya Kapshikar, Hope Ezcurra/Michelle Andrade, Ilke Ilter/Anne M Bray, June Stoddard/Sean-Michael Gettys, Kayla Cloonan/Breanna Martins, Kendra Larson/Amanda Champ, Kerrie Smith/Ashley Violet Hester, Kristine Augustyn/Leonardo Francisco, Lara Buffard/Stephanie Han, Larisa-Elena Stan/Matt Milligan, Leah Cupino/Theresa Francisco, Madara Tropa/Elisabeth Kelvin, Madeline Arnault/Sonji Art, Mahalia X. Smith/Devon Paulson, Marthe Aponte/K Muldoon, Mary Frances Christine, Ruffatto/Eva-Marie Amiya, Natasha Rudenko/Ameyalli Gutiérrez, Nino Khundadze/Dave Clark, Pau Gold/Zarnescu Andrei, Rachel Barnard/Marquise Grace, Rhiannon Barry/Michele Mekel, Sabene Rizvi/Iris Peretz, Sandra Mueller/Kamelyta, Sarah Soward/Adriana Zúñiga Velásquez, Skye Amber Sweet/Stacy Prihoda, Sue Cutler/Carla Pohl, Sue Jenkins/Julie O’Sullivan, Susan Dickman/Hannah Jeremiah, Taarn Scott/Aya Sabry, Victoria Martino/Debra Vodhanel
Call and Response: Collaboration at a Distance Round 1 can be seen here Round 2 can be seen here Round 3 can be seen here and Round #4 can be seen here Round 5 can be seen here Round 6 can be seen here Round 7 can be seen here Round 8 can be seen here Round 9 can be seen here Round 10 can be seen here Round 11 can be seen here Round 12 can be seen here
Cover photo by Mary Frances Ruffatto
Adeola Davies-Aiyeloja and Aazam Irilian
Adrienne Cole and Ashley Ehrhardt
Alice Quarterman and Rebecca Bennett Duke
Anda Marcu and Shloka Shankar
Angela Aiosa and Shirley Murphy
Angela Brooks and Vija Doks
Ashli Kingfisher and Lyla Paakkanen
Beatrice Antonie Martino and Leslie Pierce
Blanca Daniela Ramírez and Sina Evans
Bree Diaz and Marta Feinstein
Brenda Oelbaum and Vidhi Ashar
- Vidhi Ashar, Dark Amber
nine years have passed,
the dark amber paints a wistful picture.
it is the same sound every morning,
the echo of your laughter that draws me to these woods.
are you right here?
or,
have you faded into the space between these branches?
nine years have passed,
walking by these woods, i am still seeking an answer.
it is the same tree right here,
your touch still lingers,
the ache that gets through my bone!
are you right here?
or,
have you faded into the space between these branches?
i’ll never know…
- Vidhi Ashar, what mornings feel like
i was no one, in the middle of nowhere.
it is beautiful around here.
but me? i’m a wrecked mess!
the leaves rustle,
the chilly air bites my skin,
sucking every strength left in me.
i am not the devil,
i am tired of telling them!
my voice is frail,
the dry spell casts a curse upon me!
i was no one, in the middle of nowhere.
i do hear something though-
a sound that seems too familiar.
it is another night of agony.
i hear the rumbling sound of the engine.
ah, my fate is here!
here it comes crushing me over…
and here i am,
pieces of me scattered
amongst the foliage of leaves.
i am finally numb!
it is dim,
the wind can no longer knock me over,
laughing at this wreck.
until today, i never knew what mornings felt like.
as i lay here, something illuminates the dark space of my eyes.
my eyelids flutter,
i see a hue-
hope!
closer, at the touch of its radiance,
i become whole again.
- Vidhi Ashar- Becoming Her
december- that is when i met her.
to me, she happens to be quite an adventure!
her mind- a maze of countless stories.
her stories- the different blues of the ocean.
unlike her, i have been glued to one place.
i am nothing but all white!
it was another day in december,
hand in hand, we were going far away.
she nudged me,
i was elevated to where she belonged.
little did i know,
she was filling me with her blues.
little did i know that
i too, was becoming one of the stories…
- Vidhi Ashar- Pattern
golden lights, red umbrellas, the pastel sky!
my solace lies in this street.
everyone can be found here:
the content,
the shattered,
the hopeful,
and the clueless- like me.
i am a little bit like this street-
the peculiarity of impromptu patterns.
i catch a glimpse of a narrow trail,
deviate , and stroll towards the antique shop.
there was something oddly satisfying about being here.
dainty figures, rusted signboards, and vintage melodies!
whilst being spellbound, the old lady caught me by surprise.
like me, she had an element of curiosity.
far from the typical,
she did not ask me what my name was.
or where i came from.
she only smiled,
handed over a piece of broken china to me.
the odd yet gratifying gesture took me off guard.
that night, a cobweb of questions formed in my mind.
i needed an answer:
the broken piece – what did she mean?
i went by to see her again.
instead of letting her know my doubts,
out of the blue,
i confessed to her what my cobwebs were really made of.
in response ,
she uttered only one sentence
and give me another broken piece.
i may have found an answer.
the broken pieces?
a token of wisdom from her to me.
days went by,
my musings and the pieces became the pattern i treasured the most!
at dusk,
i looked at the pieces that were laid out.
i found another answer.
my expeditions will have pieces that do not fit.
i need not have straight lines,
i was perfectly content with uneven edges.
my pattern did not need to make sense
as long as the picture held my peculiarity.
- Vidhi Ashar- Black Stones
i, like the others, am a black stone.
to some we are ugly.
to some, fascinating.
we do not really belong anywhere,
other than just lying around on a couple of roads.
some keep us in their pockets.
some kick us when they wish to.
i , however, have been kicked again!
right now,
i am partly under the water.
like our colour,
what lies within us shall always remain concealed.
i see a figure coming towards this stream.
today, someone picks me up.
i was never chosen before.
into his pocket i go,
and i am not the only one.
i do not know who this man is,
or why he chose us.
i only know that, one by one,
he carves us.
we are now a clutter of
blue and white stones.
some of us are perplexed,
some, grateful
and some like me are overwhelmed!
i have been to different places,
but never been found.
i think that is what we black stones are about-
constant, aloof, like the shades of despair.
from different roads we have been picked up.
i am now blue.
in my expanse, you shall find yourself in different waters.
in chaos, the calm comes from me.
at times, i may also weigh you down.
i am now blue, swimming with my whites.
all we ever wanted was just to be found.
Çağlar Tahiroğlu and Alexandra Boaru
Conchi Sanford and Zhenya Mukhina
Cynthia Cole and Serena Potter
Debbie Swanson Patrick and Candice Greathouse
Dellis Frank and Andrei Rodeanu
Don Salvo and Endika Basaguren
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Elena Stromberger and Payal Chakraborty
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