This teach-in & creative workshop dives into the history, symbolism, and the cultural importance of Palestinian art in resistance movements. The first session, led by Studio Artist Ren Allathkani, covers the traditional art form of tatreez, protest symbolism, and influential Palestinian artists to note. She shares her own journey of deepening cultural roots and understanding the Palestinian identity through art-making, a life-long process that continues to unfold with her creative practice and research. The second session focuses on deconstructing "propaganda", understanding its history and tactics, while learning how to use "counter-propaganda" as a grass-roots people's method of resistance. You'll be led through a creative exercise that can be done at your own pace, and will end with a resource-share and special mission for those wanting to take action.  Facilitators: Ren Allathkani, Studio Artist Felicitas Fischer, AFJ Co-Founder 🎥 Recorded March 2024 by Artists For Justice

A short film by Tara Ani Baghdassarian weaving together fragments of memory, loss, and land. Lines of thought and territory collide in a visual poem of handheld footage from Armenia and the 2020 Artsakh War. On September 27, 2020, Azerbaijani military forces launched a full scale war in the autonomous region of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) with the support of Turkey and Israel. Approximately 90,000 Armenians in Artsakh lost their homes that fall. As of early January 2023, 120,000 remaining residents of Artsakh have been blockaded from the rest of the world by Azerbaijani military posing as “protesting environmentalists” for almost a month. Genocide Watch has condemned Azerbaijan as thousands of families currently face the winter cold and impending famine while all natural gas, food, and medical supplies have been blocked. WORDS FROM THE ARTIST As South African artist William Kentridge stated, “the idea of being an artist is that all the different mediums are open to you in which to explore the world. Which is to say to explore your relationship to the world.” Since the 2020 Artsakh War, my relationship to the world changed drastically. I bore witness to the continued ethnic cleansing of Armenians from their indigenous lands, eastern colonial expansionism (it’s not only the west who colonize), western- backed silence, gaslighting by “enemy” states pumped with anti-Armenian propaganda — all while our collective cries for justice drowned into an abyss of darkness. I had never felt so hopeless in my life. The Lines of Your Face is an attempt to dismantle, process, and recalibrate my perspective toward this planet — a globular map of ever-shifting territory lines. In the process, I revisited footage of mourning families that I couldn’t bear to watch for over two years. Through my art, I hope to engage, educate, and kindle collective healing for Armenians and other oppressed minorities. ___________________________ In dedication to All for Armenia (https://allforarmenia.org/) Film by Tara Ani Baghdassarian

Behind every great piece of work is an artist who has spent immeasurable time, energy, resources (and possibly mental breakdowns) to make it happen. We know there is much more behind the public-facing “finished product” that we don’t often talk about and brings us to ask: what is the unseen labor that independent artists go through to bring their vision to life? What is the mental, emotional, and financial toll we take on in order to bring our art to fruition? Producer, Dancer, and Filmmaker Conni McKenzie shares her in depth experience of putting together a two-week exhibition gallery & performance project, FLOW, which debuted as part of a residency at Paul Dresher Ensemble Studios in Oakland, California. She answers important questions around logistics of directing a large-scale production, the learning curves, obstacles, tireless hours and moments of growth that kept her going. We break down why artists are expected to wear so many hats, how to reconcile with the unseen labor, and define our own metrics of success when social pressures tell us otherwise. This episode is full of genuine wisdom and advice that we recommend any independent artists out there to give a listen to. 🗣️ Speakers: Conni McKenzie (@lady_dancelot) 🎙️ Host: Felicitas Fischer (@felicidances) ______________
 🎵 Music Credits: "Bounce" by Coma-Media from Pixabay "Lofi Background" by Ashot Danielyan from Pixabay

A hybrid exploration of movement, sound, and film capturing the social-political inferno and environmental crisis consuming the Amazon region of Brazil and its Indigenous communities. Concept & Choreography | Felicitas Fischer Director & Editor | Conni McKenzie Sound Design | Jaime Serra dos Santos Commissioned by the University of San Francisco Performing Arts & Social Justice Department for the 20th Anniversary Festival "Breathing Room" Featured in USF's Thacher Art Gallery Fall 2021 Exhibition "All That You Touch"

"Iran, In My Dreams" is a short film aiming to capture Iranian dreams of freedom. Whether small or large, common or particular, the people of Iran all have their own hopes and dreams. However, through years of domination, our visions and aspirations have collected dust. Locked away, no longer considered possible. With the current uprising, many people have found the key to their dreams once again. I want to know what they look like for everyone. I want to capture those dreams; and with the help of talented artists, illustrate them into life. Iranians come in many shapes, forms, and identities. Kurd, Lor, Persian, Jewish, Christian, straight, gay, black, brown, and many more. I want to showcase ALL of us. Not just the majority. I want my participants to allow themselves to dream. Allow themselves limitless inspiration and wonder. What will freedom look like to you? __________________________________ In dedication to The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims “On 8 January 2020, Flight PS752 was tragically shot down with two missiles only three minutes after takeoff from Tehran’s IKA airport. After three days of denial and under mounting international pressure, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) finally admitted that the Boeing 737-800 was brought down by its missiles, but the true circumstances of the downing has not since been revealed. This heinous operation claimed the lives of all 176 innocent passengers and crew of the flight.” Learn more at: https://www.ps752justice.com

Community-centered art-making. What is it? What can it look like? What are the effects of it long-term? Research supports the use of participatory art-making as way to strengthen community pride, resilience, and collective ownership over re-creating public narratives. This can be seen in collaborative art-making done with the public, which Painter & Sculptor Paola Reyes-Melendez, a first-generation Mexican-Puerto Rican artist, has a lot of experience with. As a Muralist and Arts Education Director with Precita Eyes, she works with various communities and neighborhoods to create murals within urban environments made in collaboration with the people, keeping it culturally representative, inclusive, and open to the desires of the collective vision. Since starting her work in public art, Paola’s involvement with the community has grown over the years, bringing deep insight into why collaborative art-making is so important and how it can change a community over time. 
 Special shout out to Precita Eyes Muralists for inspiring us with your work!
 🗣️ Speakers: Paola Reyes-Melendez 🎙️ Host: Felicitas Fischer  🔗 Links to articles: 1. Community-Based Art Making: Creating Spaces for Changing the Story - Shauna Butterwick, Jan Selman (https://www.academia.edu/71362385/Community_Based_Art_Making_Creating_Spaces_for_Changing_the_Story) 2. How the Arts Impact Communities - Joshua Guetzkow (https://ds.amu.edu.et/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/13189/Art-%20its%20impact%20on%20communitiesA9R3718.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y) ______________
 🎵 Music Credits: "Bounce" by Coma-Media from Pixabay "Lofi Background" by Ashot Danielyan from Pixabay