Artistic Lifeyness: Exploring Place, Body, Art and Identity Across Cultures In this conversation, three artists based in the Jacksonville area, Jennifer, Shameera, and Thorne, share their unique perspectives on place, embodiment, and art. Based in Jacksonville, Florida, these women discuss how their work is influenced by their identities and their sense of location, both in a physical and spiritual sense. They talk about the dual experiences of feeling embodied and disembodied as artists, referring to the process of bringing ideas from the abstract world of imagination into the physical reality through their art. The artists also touch upon the idea of home and the importance of creating cultural bridges through art. What are the pros and cons of living in Jacksonville as a creative soul? And how do you become more embodied as an artist? Listen up and find out! _________________________________________________________________________________________________ Connect with host Professor Sarah @book_of_lifeyness on TikTok and Instagram Thorn works in graphic design, jewelry making, theater and screen acting, origami and more. See her work and connect with her here: The Urban Atelier Shameera Din Wiest is a digital artist, poet, sculptor, weaver, former diplomat and political analyst. See her work here on Instagram: @shameerawt Jennifer Chase is a storyteller, musician, professor, producer, and playwright. See more here: jennchase.com A special thanks to the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida whose Ignite program first brought these artists together! https://www.jaxcf.org/ Episode Outline: Part I: Introduction inspired by birds, Jacksonville, and the words of Rick Rubin Part II: Art and Place--We can smell you from here, Jax. Part III: Embodiment--Make a body for your idea! Part IV: Take from the spirit world and bring it down to Jacksonville Part V: Identity--How your own prism informs your work...and pajama party :-) Part VI: Disembodiment and Embodied Art Part VII: Taking up space in Northeast FL And here's an AI-created Timestamp Outline: 00:00 Introduction: The Search for Self 00:21 The Power of Acceptance 00:55 Finding Home in Unfamiliar Places 02:34 Exploring Northeast Florida 03:23 The Role of Artists in Society 03:59 The Struggles of Living in Jacksonville, Florida 04:55 The Journey of Self-Discovery 05:33 The Power of Art and Creativity 06:07 The Connection Between Place and Art 07:01 The Importance of Being Present 07:06 Art as a Form of Self-Expression 07:34 Interview with Three Talented Women Artists 10:54 The Influence of Geography on Art 11:46 The Role of Motherhood and Womanhood in Art 12:45 The Power of Listening and Being Present 16:54 The Impact of Jacksonville on Personal Growth 18:18 The Role of Spirituality in Art 20:02 The Importance of Nurturing in Art 25:36 The Connection Between Art and Embodiment 33:51 The Power of Conversation in Art 35:07 The Power of Listening and Connecting 35:43 The Journey of Self-Reflection 36:17 Shamaya's Artistic Journey and Cultural Heritage 38:19 The Struggles and Triumphs of Shamaya's Life 39:21 The Intersection of Femininity and Art 40:53 The Power of Personal Stories 42:57 The Influence of Identity on Art 46:34 The Power of Art in Public Spaces 49:51 The Role of Art in Society 56:46 The Importance of Embracing Failure 01:06:20 The Power of Art in Building Cultural Bridges Full script below, generated by Descript What I've been learning is that everywhere I go, there I am, I am a home, you know, you're, we're always looking outside of ourselves. I think it was Wayne Dyer that, um, said something along the lines of, we're always looking, we've lost our keys and we're looking for our keys outside the house when the keys were sitting there at the front door. You know, you have to decide that you're going to leave this behind and say just no to it, or you have to kind of change your space. Or, you know, you. Acceptance. You, you have to accept it. Yeah. You have to fully accept it. Mm-Hmm. . And once you do that, then all of that energy that you, that took up your spirit saying, well, I don't really like this town. Like this isn't, you know, where are all the people, and all of that. Yeah. The people, it goes to another place and you start building it yourself. Yeah. I definitely feel that, like I'm going through that whole. I don't belong here. There's no one that looks like me there. I can't find my food Like I mean, it's just yeah, it's hard But I am trying to find ways to and no one's telling me to leave this time. So that's also hard Yeah And this will be your place in some way, you know, because it was the place where you decided to take care of your people. It feels like comfortable skin, not just confident, but also pain free, healthy. Think about the most robust version of your own childhood. This is what Lifeyness feels like, a joyful spirit and a vibrant physical state of being. I'm your guide professor, Sarah storyteller, teacher and wellness enthusiast. Reach into the vitality of your own to supercharge your grownup life. So I think I'm being kind when I say I live in a slightly dysfunctional city, marked with a lot of cultural blanks. It's this place where. We all just kind of landed somehow or another. It's not really even designed like a typical American city. They say it's a city of neighborhoods, which really means it's a giant, sprawling suburb. But stay with me. I love this place. And today, on this episode of Lifeyness, I'm going to be exploring Northeast Florida. It is a home for many of us, and we've made it sacred by filling it with our children, artwork, our classes, our educations. Our activities. Like any body, we adorn it and try to keep it healthy, but more than anything, we live inside of it day in and day out, and that is what makes a city a city. It's what makes a human life have meaning. So welcome back to Lifeyness. This is Professor Sarah, and I'm super excited about this episode and the next, which will conclude the first season. Today, we're talking about place, body, and art. Specifically, how do artists find embodiment both in their work and in their geography? If you've listened to any of this podcast, you know that staying grounded in your body, staying playful in your space and in your work, and accepting the moment in front of you with a whole heart, these are some of the keys to living the good life and to finding joy. So I'm going to give you a little bit of insight into the place that I live. I always thought that Jacksonville, Florida lacked a sense of the sacred. And I think to a certain degree, it still kind of does. It doesn't have that ritualized admiration that you see in cities like New York and Toronto and San Francisco, like where tourists go, they know where to go, they know what to love and how to dress. Northeast Florida in general can feel like a cultural wasteland at first. In fact, not long after moving here in 2007, I wrote a short story about a young woman who had gone mad from the cultural void. Flintstoning her way through the same desolate strip mall freeways, the backdrop always the same tire shop, Best Buy, Walmart, Michaels, and Winn Dixie. It was not far off from how I was actually feeling about this weird town. To be clear, I hated it. And yet, I managed well enough to get permanently stuck here by way of marriage, children, divorce. Later, I would learn that many of my friends and colleagues have had similar experiences. Jacksonville, the present place, is a liminal space for some, an in between. Perhaps what we're feeling is that we haven't yet made Jacksonville as sacred as we could. We haven't worshipped it enough, or worked our fingers over it like a sculptor works clay. Rick Rubin, the producer of countless music artists, says that the reason we're alive is to express ourselves in the world, and that creating art might be the most effective way of doing so. So the quote I'm about to share with you from his book, which is called The Creative Act, it makes me think of the artists that are on the show today. He says, the artwork is the point where all the elements come together, the universe, the prism of self, the magic and discipline of transmuting idea to flesh. What I didn't expect to hear from these artists today is how a sense of place and their particular sense of place is so entangled with their art and also with this feeling of embodiment or disembodiment. Years ago, I remember a veterinarian who specializes in birds told me that when they are singing or calling to one another, that the gist of what they're saying is simply, I am here. And then calling to others, asking, are you there? And then of course the reply is, I am here. Are you there? And so on and so forth. And to some degree, I feel like this is what humans are doing all the time. This is all we're saying to one another. Whether it's through a book or a TikTok video or, or whether you're just reaching across the couch to your loved one, it can all be boiled down to this. I'm here. Look at me. Are you there? Art is the embodiment of a moment in our energetic human experience. It is that emotion and energy of life that's captured in an artwork, whether it's a collection of words, a pattern of music, or a painting. It's basically the artist saying, I am here, just like the birds do, but they're saying it through paint or piano or an arrangement of flowers. To discuss this idea of art as embodiment and self expression, I'm speaking with three talented women from northeast Florida. Thorne is a passionate activist. She's a graphic designer by training. She's a jewelry maker. She's a community organizer. My name is Tracy and I work under the moniker Thorne.
