An artist's 'Healing Project,' focused on incarceration and violence, wins $1 million

 

An artist's 'Healing Project,' focused on incarceration¹ and violence, wins $1 million

Transcript²

There's a multidisciplinary artist who is so remarkable³ that although he is just 31 years old, he's just been awarded a rare $1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to fund his work: Samora Pinderhughes.

Pinderhughes does many things. He's a vocalist, pianist, composer and filmmaker. He's also very much an activist⁴ against mass incarceration. For the past eight years, he's been working on something called The Healing Project. As the name suggests, it's about healing and leaving yourself emotionally open — to your own feelings, to the experiences of others, to generosity⁵. That openness to vulnerability is also clear in Pinderhughes' sweet, warm voice and in his wide vision for his work.

He was inspired by the plays of one of his mentors⁶, the playwright⁷ and actress Anna Deavere Smith, who often bases her work on documentary interviews she's conducted; she asked him if he was interested in exploring something similar. It led Pinderhughes — originally from the Bay Area, and now based in New York City — on a journey to conduct conversations with people across the U.S. about incarceration and structural⁸ violence.

Pinderhughes has always been involved in activism: his parents are professors and community activists⁹. "It was very natural for me to start creating things that had a message," he observes.

He later attended Juilliard as a jazz student. "I was there for piano performance," he says. "I think off the top it was probably not the right place for me — but I just didn't know that at the time that composing was a job! I wasn't like, 'Oh, OK, I could be like my own artist and make my own work.' I found amazing teachers there — Frank Kimbrough, Kendall Briggs and Kenny Barron in particular — who allowed me to be myself." At the same time, he says, he felt he was surrounded by fellow students who were more interested in being the strongest possible technical players.

"Meanwhile," he adds, "I was very concerned with what was happening in the world, and how to say something about that through the music, and how to collaborate¹⁰ with different disciplines. I wanted to make things with the actors and make things with the string players. I was a little bit lost in the sauce there."Jazz Night in America YouTube

One particular inflection point sparked Pinderhughes into using his music to address racial violence directly. "I think what really happened was the Ferguson uprising and Mike Brown's murder, it just really charged something," he observes. Ultimately, that led to the creation of Pinderhughes' ambitious 2016 work The Transformations¹¹ Suite¹², which melded jazz, spoken-word poetry and visuals into a plea for social justice.

"That ended up being the question of healing from structural violence," he says. "By structural violence, I mean just basically any type of trauma¹³ that could come from violences that are created by the society. So that could be imprisonment¹⁴, that could be police brutality¹⁵. It could even just be something like poverty and just like the circumstances of one's upbringing and environment. It brought me on a journey of talking to hundreds of people around the country about their experiences and their ideas, most importantly, about healing and what they've been through, how they've come through it."Those hundreds of conversations included people who are currently incarcerated¹⁶; many of them contributed their own art to the project. Pinderhughes worked with a constellation¹⁷ of professional artists and musicians to make meditations¹⁸ on those conversations, including the album Grief. Other parts of the project include live performances and a visual art exhibition on display last year at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

"I didn't really want to limit it," Pinderhughes says. "So I basically did everything that each person asked me to do. If they wanted to send me pieces that they had drawn¹⁹ through the mail if they were incarcerated, those go up in the exhibition. If they wanted to talk about the realities and experiences of loss and grieving, we would make a film about that. If they wanted to talk about the process of healing from long periods of incarceration, we're going to make a composition about that."NPR Music YouTube

The expansiveness of The Healing Project — part creative vessel²⁰, part catalyst²¹ for activism and part new collaborative model — is so dynamic that it attracted the attention of the Mellon Foundation. Emil Kang directs its arts and culture program. He was blown away by Pinderhughes' vision.

"I started asking him about his own artistic²² practice and he started to in some ways bifurcate²³ his work: to talk about his music over here, his lived experience over here and his commitment to abolition²⁴ work over there. And how he longed for the day of a time when he could actually bring all of this together.""To be frank," Kang continues, "I was saddened by what he was saying to me, but yet I understood exactly what he was saying — that the ecosystem²⁵ that we have now, especially in the performing arts, still exists in a transactional way, where an artist just puts out their work and hopes people get it somehow. At the Mellon Foundation, as we are trying to push forward our own work and what the future of the performing arts looks like, we really do believe it's in the guise²⁶ of contemporary performance — in a way that allows artists to be able to show the totality of their humanity in their work, and not just the virtuosity²⁷ of their skill."Sponsor Message

It is extremely rare for a single performer to get a million dollars from a grant; that's about the same sum as a Nobel Prize. That money is going to allow The Healing Project to be manifested into even more forms, Pinderhughes says. He also avers²⁸ that this is very much a collaborative effort: "Everybody that was a part of the project had a stake in the project, so everybody that has ever been a part of this project co-owns this project with me. Everybody that has been a part of the project has just as much say over what is in it as I do.""I'm really honored and humbled²⁹ to receive this opportunity to just take this project into the stratosphere," Pinderhughes continues. "It's only the beginning, really, of what we have planned. I am an artist and I believe deeply in the power of art, but I also want to materially create change in the lives of the people that are a part of it and also in the communities that it wants to serve."For example, Pinderhughes plans to make a printed book version of The Healing Project, because so many participants are incarcerated. They're not able to access the collaboration³⁰ otherwise.

When he asked participants what they would need to create a space for their healing, spiritually or materially, some interviewees said that they needed things as basic as access to healthy food and jobs — which, for those formerly³¹ incarcerated, can be very hard to secure.

"We're also starting an initiative called The Healing Project Transformative Impact Fund," Pinderhughes notes, "where we're going to be using the project as a container to actually start to support the dreams and hopes and projects of the actual people who participated in the project — folks particularly who are formerly and currently incarcerated."At the same time, he says, "We're going to continue to do that art, that narrative³² work, we're going to make the book, we're going to make more albums, we're going to make more exhibitions, we're going to make more films."Sponsor Message

In the meantime, he hopes that the music of The Healing Project, and the power of its art, helps both creators and audiences chart their own paths to healing. He recalls a man coming up to him after a recent performance.

"He was like, I feel like you should make a shirt that says, 'I make grown men cry,' " Pinderhughes recounts. "And I was like, 'That's not a bad idea.' So now, just kind of jokingly, that's the tagline of what the energy is."Friday evening, Pinderhughes and some of his musical collaborators will be performing a concert version of The Healing Project at New York's Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall. Almost inevitably³³, people will cry. And that's a big part of healing.

1 incarceration   

n.监禁，禁闭；钳闭

参考例句：

• He hadn't changed much in his nearly three years of incarceration. 在将近三年的监狱生活中，他变化不大。 来自辞典例句
• Please, please set it free before it bursts from its long incarceration! 请你，请你将这颗心释放出来吧！否则它会因长期的禁闭而爆裂。 来自辞典例句

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

5 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

6 mentors   

n.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的名词复数 )v.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Beacham and McNamara, my two mentors, had both warned me. 我的两位忠实朋友，比彻姆和麦克纳马拉都曾经警告过我。 来自辞典例句
• These are the kinds of contacts that could evolve into mentors. 这些人是可能会成为你导师。 来自互联网

7 playwright   

n.剧作家，编写剧本的人

参考例句：

• Gwyn Thomas was a famous playwright.格温·托马斯是著名的剧作家。
• The playwright was slaughtered by the press.这位剧作家受到新闻界的无情批判。

8 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 collaborate   

vi.协作，合作；协调

参考例句：

• The work gets done more quickly when we collaborate.我们一旦合作，工作做起来就更快了。
• I would ask you to collaborate with us in this work.我们愿意请你们在这项工作中和我们合作。

11 transformations   

n.变化( transformation的名词复数 )；转换；转换；变换

参考例句：

• Energy transformations go on constantly, all about us. 在我们周围，能量始终在不停地转换着。 来自辞典例句
• On the average, such transformations balance out. 平均起来，这种转化可以互相抵消。 来自辞典例句

12 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

13 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

14 imprisonment   

n.关押，监禁，坐牢

参考例句：

• His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment.他的判决由死刑减为无期徒刑。
• He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for committing bigamy.他因为犯重婚罪被判入狱一年。

15 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

16 incarcerated   

钳闭的

参考例句：

• They were incarcerated for the duration of the war. 战争期间，他们被关在狱中。 来自辞典例句
• I don't want to worry them by being incarcerated. 我不想让他们知道我被拘禁的事情。 来自电影对白

17 constellation   

n.星座n.灿烂的一群

参考例句：

• A constellation is a pattern of stars as seen from the earth. 一个星座只是从地球上看到的某些恒星的一种样子。
• The Big Dipper is not by itself a constellation. 北斗七星本身不是一个星座。

18 meditations   

默想( meditation的名词复数 )； 默念； 沉思； 冥想

参考例句：

• Each sentence seems a quarry of rich meditations. 每一句话似乎都给人以许多冥思默想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditations. 我很抱歉，打断你思考问题了。

19 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

20 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

21 catalyst   

n.催化剂，造成变化的人或事

参考例句：

• A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction.催化剂是一种能加速化学反应的物质。
• The workers'demand for better conditions was a catalyst for social change.工人们要求改善工作条件促进了社会变革。

22 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

23 bifurcate   

adj.二叉的，双峰的

参考例句：

• Drainage was to the north and individual channels bifurcate in that direction.整个水系向北排水,各个河道朝该方向分叉。
• Communicative and semantive translation bifurcate at a later stage of analytical or cognitive translation.交际翻译和语义翻译在认知翻译的后阶段分道扬镳。

24 abolition   

n.废除，取消

参考例句：

• They declared for the abolition of slavery.他们声明赞成废除奴隶制度。
• The abolition of the monarchy was part of their price.废除君主制是他们的其中一部分条件。

25 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

26 guise   

n.外表，伪装的姿态

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors.他们假装成视察员进了学校。
• The thief came into the house under the guise of a repairman.那小偷扮成个修理匠进了屋子。

27 virtuosity   

n.精湛技巧

参考例句：

• At that time,his virtuosity on the trumpet had no parallel in jazz.那时，他高超的小号吹奏技巧在爵士乐界无人能比。
• As chemists began to pry out my secret they discovered my virtuosity.化学家开始探讨我的秘密，他们发现了我的精湛技巧。

28 avers   

v.断言( aver的第三人称单数 )；证实；证明…属实；作为事实提出

参考例句：

• He avers that chaos will erupt if he loses. 他断言，如果他失败将会爆发动乱。 来自辞典例句
• He avers he will not attend the meeting. 他断言不会参加那个会议。 来自互联网

29 humbled   

adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低

参考例句：

• The examination results humbled him. 考试成绩挫了他的傲气。
• I am sure millions of viewers were humbled by this story. 我相信数百万观众看了这个故事后都会感到自己的渺小。

30 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

31 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

32 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

33 inevitably   

adv.不可避免地；必然发生地

参考例句：

• In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
• Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。