In this episode we welcome Nyamuon Machar 19’, Maya Williams, Brian J. Evans 23’, and Samuel James 20’, were all participants in ECHOES. This is part 2 and a continuation from season 1 finale. Echoes, Led by Black Haitian American composer, violinist and activist Daniel Bernard Romain, ECHOES was a site-responsive composition project that aims to reflect the breath, sorrow and beauty of Portland, Maine’s complex history and relationship to its Black community, utilizing live performance to mark, reclaim and celebrate a site of significance and enduring legacy. With the Abyssinian Meeting House as inspiration, Daniel Bernard Romain created an original score, to which local artists across disciplines are invited to remix and respond. In their interview, these artists reflect on the collaborative project that took place in May 2024 and their contributions.

In this episode we welcome Nyamuon Machar 19’, Maya Williams, Brian J. Evans 23’, and Samuel James 20’, were all participants in ECHOES. Led by Black Haitian American composer, violinist and activist Daniel Bernard Romain, ECHOES was a site-responsive composition project that aims to reflect the breath, sorrow and beauty of Portland, Maine’s complex history and relationship to its Black community, utilizing live performance to mark, reclaim and celebrate a site of significance and enduring legacy. With the Abyssinian Meeting House as inspiration, Daniel Bernard Romain created an original score, to which local artists across disciplines are invited to remix and respond. In their interview, these artists reflect on the collaborative project that took place in May 2024 and their contributions.

In this episode we welcome Shane Charles, who was an artist in Indigo Arts Alliance's Mentorship Residency Program in April of 2023. Shane Charles was born in Maine and creates paintings, sculptures and photographs within a process of abstraction and poetics. Charles is a direct descendent of the Penobscot Nation and is also of (colonial) British ancestry. His grandfather was a mapmaker and his father was the Penobscot tribal surveyor after the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980. Charles received his Master of Fine Arts degree from UNC at Chapel Hill, where he focused on sculpture and performance. He previously studied painting at the University of Maine through the indigenous Wabanaki program. Charles utilizes raw and sourced material, body prints and open compositional spaces, to engage with themes of artifact, presence and continuity.

In this episode Ashley Page, Studio and Program Manager, interviews Rachel Gloria Adams. Adams was an Indigo Arts Alliance Black Seed Studio resident in May 2022. Adams is a textile designer, muralist, and painter in Portland, Maine. She has a BFA from Maine College of Art. Her ongoing business venture TACHEE utilizes her graphic visual language with references from the natural world.

In this episode we welcome Renata Felinto + Liza May who were artists in Indigo Arts Alliance's Mentorship Residency Program in September-October 2022. Felinto has been working for decades in the visual arts as an artist, researcher, and educator. Her production focuses on the issue of black female identity, displacement and connections such as globalization in dialogue with ancient history. May is a dance powerhouse, choreographer and fire artist. May's recent exploration is into group choreography in nontraditional spaces and solo work with lighting manipulation.

In this episode we welcome Aina Sullivan + Tanya Crane who were artists in Indigo Arts Alliance's Mentorship Residency Program in April 2022. Sullivan has been exploring various styles of jewelry-making and multi-media art for over ten years. Her collection of handcrafted wire-wrapped natural gemstone jewelry is called Black Stone Alchemy. Crane is a professor of the Practice in Metals at the School Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts. Crane's work embodies the many layers of human existence, to include history, race, class and culture.

In this episode we welcome Meghna Singh + Deepanjan who were artists in Indigo Arts Alliance's Mentorship Residency Program in May 2023. Deepanjan Mukhopadhyay works investigate shifting meanings within post and neocolonialism while still reflecting his background in photography and object and image based practices. Deepanjan is originally from Kolkata, India and received his MFA in photography from the University of Georgia and currently teaches at Bowdoin College. Meghna Singh is a visual artist with a PhD in visual anthropology from the University of Cape Town. She works with video installation and XR, blurring the boundaries between documentary and fiction. She highlights issues of humanism through the tool of the imaginary.

In this episode we welcome Alexandra Bell + CC Paschal who were artists in Indigo Arts Alliance Mentorship Residency Program in May 2022. "CC" Paschal (she/they) is an award-winning audio journalist and experimental documentary artist. They are currently developing a new season of their own show Spark, a podcast about the perils and paradoxes of creativity. Bell is a multidisciplinary artist who investigates the complexities of narrative, information consumption and perception. Utilizing various media, she deconstructs language and imagery to explore tension between marginal experiences and dominant histories.