I didn't sell one piece of my artwork at the J-Town Arts monthly art sale. We only sold $10 for the whole day. There were hardly any people walking by on Sutter Street on a Sunday morning. Makes me begin to wonder if we should try another method to sell our art. I'm just trying to do good for J-Town Arts so that they can pay their rent.
Maybe we'll try a Saturday instead. We'll also try to sell online as well.
[Men_art_work] Here is a letter concerning my Men ArT Work workshop at J-Town Arts surprisingly from a J-Town Arts man (names withheld):
Leland,
If the shoe fits wear it. You keep putting yourself in that position by making polar opposites out of yourself and youth and women. YOU keep opposing THEM. It has NOTHING to do with that [community art group] model. The old people just left and the continuum between youth and community was lost. Let's face it. The new people in [community art group] have very different views of community. They were left on their own. Anyone who comes with US will meld with the past for the FUTURE. You can't keep living in the past. But if they come to us they will learn about history and the future also. We need their fresh technology and new experiences or we will just be like dead mummies. Our shit will fall by the wayside. We need them. They need us. And NEVER NEVER NEVER put down women. They have the most discipline and feeling for activism. They keep US awake. And you can see what happens when we are left by ourselves as men. We just cry about the old days and do nothing. When women come around we clean up and wake up. It is a big difference. Women are just as creative if not more than us. And young women have the technology to speak to a new time.
YOU are the one who makes OPPOSITES out of all these things. They don't put YOU down. You just have a guilt-complex and you put THEM down. I don't want to hear you cry about being put down and told to go away. You do it to yourself. Stop crying and face up to a new day. All right, Leland? No one is persecuting you. You are doing it to yourself. Wake up!!
[name withheld]
So...here I am...accused of hating woman and young people...wow. Makes me wonder why I should even continue to get involved with this community art groups. It's interesting that such criticism is coming from a man and not a woman.
Another man who listed the JTA workshops omitted the Men word from Men ArT Work I guess out of fear. It seems like the men at JTA has more of a problem with it than the women. The women have been very supportive of such a workshop.
Men ArT Work happens every second Monday at J-Town Arts, 1830 Sutter Street at 6pm. It's a workshop for Asian American men artists to get together and hopefully issues concerning the Asian American men artist will be naturally discussed in defining what art is to the Asian American man. We'll have food, refreshments (brewskies) and the wide screen TV in a relaxing and supportive environment. Come on by! No monku'ing.
