3 internationally renowned artists to come together at Detroit's Carr Center
A trio of internationally renowned artists will converge at Detroit’s Carr Center this weekend with the continuation of four-time Grammy winner Terri Lyne Carrington’s “Shifting the Narrative,” a multidisciplinary exploration of jazz without the lens of gender bias.
On Friday, May 5, The Carr Center and The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) will present “SEEN / UNSEEN,” which will feature a 15-member band led by drummer Carrington and “video DJ” work by acclaimed visual artist Mickalene Thomas, one of the hottest names in the art world. Two performances, at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., will be held at MOCAD, 4454 Woodward Ave.
Sunday, May 7, The Carr Center’s performance studio at 15 E. Kirby St. will host Carrie Mae Weems, one of the world’s most influential contemporary artists, as she premieres her new film project, “The Road to Carrington.” Commissioned by the Carr Center, the film is a multi-screen/panel video project that centers on the life and work of Carrington, the Center’s artistic director.
“We have three internationally renowned, African American artists who are going to be in Detroit and have created work specifically for us and for this project,” said Oliver Ragsdale, Jr., president and CEO of The Carr Center. “They’ve all been overseas doing their work in the last month, and they’re coming to our neighborhood. As one of the few African American presenting venues in this country doing this level of work, being able to bring them to our community is really exciting and important.”
“SEEN / UNSEEN” was commissioned from Carrington by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a work for a 100-piece orchestra. Conductor and arranger Edmar Colón scaled the piece down for 15 band members for Detroit’s presentation.
“I made the suggestion to MIT to add Mickalene to do some visuals, because she and I have done this kind of thing before,” said Carrington. “She serves as a VJ, a video DJ improvising with stills and videos while the music is playing. So she’s responding to the music like a DJ would do, but with visuals.”
The piece was inspired by the police killing of George Floyd and the civil unrest that sprawled out across the pandemic pressure cooker that was summer 2020.
“I’m bringing forth very profound and politically charged images that resonate with the movement as a reminder of what’s past and present,” said Thomas. “A loose narrative that may be sort of fragmented in our minds, because it’s not so ‘on our sleeves’ at the moment.’ I know I want particular images for certain particular chapters of the compositions, so I have a set of images that I’ve curated because I have an idea of what’s being played. But also, there’s improvisation: I might think of an image or video and go, ‘Yeah, I can add that to it.’
“I’m excited to just collectively come together and jam. As an artist, I feel such freedom and have such respect for musicians on this level. I’ve learned to be me and let go and allow for this process to just get in the groove and take its course. I’m excited to explore this aspect of myself with an incredible group of talent.”
A stellar ensemble of world-class musicians have been assembled for this performance including Linda May Han Oh (bass), Simon Moullier (marimba and vibraphone), Etienne Charles (trumpet), Elena Pinderhughes (flute) and Val Jeanty (DJ). The ensemble will be joined by Colón as well as a dancer.
Tickets are available at thecarrcenter.org.
Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at dbeddingfield@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Terri Lyne Carrington brings jazz, video art to Detroit's Carr Center
