The Journey, Artist statement

Artist Statement

The information I have gathered throughout my journey has been very useful. The people I have met are invaluable! Some of my most memorable experiences are documented in this blog. I approached this blog in an informational manner and also a visual manner. You will notice this as you read many Hyperlinks to further extend your knowledge of the information that is listed. 

I would like to express the change that has come over me during this blogging experience. I have always known that we are all unique people here on earth. We are all just regular people living our lives choosing our paths. Everybody is different, some people chase the money, others are satisfied with life as it is, and lots of people have not crossed the bridge of finding themselves. There are however, some very special people in this world! People who want to make a change, people who will sacrifice for others, so that they can bring joy and enrich the lives of people less fortunate. Now that my friend, is profound!  These people are few and far between. 

During my trips into the JPNA area I met the receiving end of these good hands and they were extremely grateful. I remember one Tuesday night that I was in the  Amaranth Bakery & Cafe  and a young women walked in and said “ Is this where I can pay what I can for a bowl of soup?” and David Boucher said “Yes this is the place”. When I saw the look of relief on her face I was very moved! She proceeded to give David a hug and with tears in her eyes she said thank you. It is moments like these that change lives. 

I know that in class I try to be funny and always have something to say. I want to say that I can be serious and the stories I have told and will tell are from my heart.   With that said, I would like to focus on another experience.  

The Jacob's Family are an older couple that has lived in the area for thirty plus years. They were one of the first families to receive a home and two lots of land for two dollars. The Jacob's family lived through a lot of persecution from jealous neighbors. This family is strong and they stick together with there two daughters. They taught them in a manner that secured good decision making. They now are blessed with grand kids and there daughters live right down the street. They love their home now and their neighbors have changed and so many new houses have been built. They feel safe here in the Johnson park neighborhood. The Jacob's family said they may not have ever owned a home if was not for the city’s efforts to rejuvenate the area. 

In closing I would like to thank everyone that has helped me through this journey. I hope you enjoy my blog and really read into the subjects at which I have blogged about. I chose them because they were important to me and they were very interesting. 

If we as a people can live our lives unselfishly, always trying to find the good in others we can change the world one smile at a time. I truly believe this! I have really been trying to make a conches effort to acknowledge people on the street, in the hall and anywhere. Life becomes more interesting when you strike up a conversation with a perfect stranger. This experience has helped open my eyes to a very sweet and powerful new beginning.

Sincerely, 

        Joshua Lynch 

         April 30th 2009   

Muneer Bahauddeen, The Artist!

Muneer Bahauddeen is Chicago born. When we arrived we were introduced to some sweet pottery and the opportunity to come back and learn how to design and make a  ceramic bowl

  

This bowl would be entirely hand made and we would even create a footing on the bottom. The bowls just like the art for Alice’s Garden would be related to the land or the garden. The main art that is created for the community are tiles. These tiles will be imbedded in the concrete posts to identify each plot. This artistic opportunity will be trying to involve the community and especially the children. Muneer makes a lot of beautiful art! He descends from a long line of African Americans that descend from the African continent. 

He uses Adinkra Symbol from Gana and West Africa. He also works with troubled youth from St. Charles. He helps them pick an Adinkra Symbol that best represent themselves. This program through St. Charles gives the youth in the community something new to believe in. Think about it, they are creating something with their hands, possibly opening up an entirely new avenue of life. They put these murals on the wall. The ones the class votes to be the best will be made into a giant copy and used as a table surface.  Muneer takes all his tools to the class room and in turn the youth can make their own pieces of art using professional tools.

 Muneer likes to involve the students and community in every step of the process.  When a student completes the object he frames them and the students then can put their art on display.

At Alice’s Garden there is an entrance way and many artists will compete to have their art displayed in the entrance and around Alice’s Garden.  

 They are suggesting for  Alice’s Garden to inset the tiles into the posts to use as markers to identify each individual lot. Like the youth at St. Charles the members of the community can pick their Adinkra Symbol or design and make there tile and have it mark their plot at Alice’s Garden. 

Just a fun F.Y.I. at Alice’s Garden a man by the name Regi Butler plants in the garden at the same spot where his old house used to be. His plot will say Butlers plot and it will be set into the concrete post identifying his old house and his new 

garden. All of this is  to create unity in the community. 

  They are also talking about having an art shed on site at Alice’s Garden. This way the workshops can be conducted on sight. They then could introduce different themes and have everyone put there artist caps on, intern, using these creations to decorate the garden. 

Muneer has worked on many other projects in the community. He also has done art for many other private and corporate locations like the YMCA on 1350 W North Ave Milwaukee Wi.

&  Froedtert Hospital. At the Crane Outpatient Center and on the 3rd floor of the Strain Conference Center.  He has done artistic pieces up to 500 square feet. Feel free to stop by and check them out. 

If interested in contacting Muneer Bahauddeen his phone number is (414)-241-666. He is located across the street from the Amaranth Bakery located on 3329 W Lisbon Ave Milwaukee, WI.

Amaranth Bakery & David. A real Change!

Amaranth Bakery & David

David Boucher was born in Binghamton New York & Graduated from UWM Urban studies Masters Program. He bought an old summer home that belonged to the Gettelman family at one time. He lives on 1727 N 34 St. He has lived there for 20 plus years. He has seen Milwaukee change. Soon after he bought his home he bought a bakery and named it Amaranth Bakery. The word Amaranth is the name of a high protein grain plant that grows in community gardens here in Milwaukee. 

The plant seeds are harvested like wheat. David says   “Our mission is to provide healthy food for everyone”. On Tuesdays it is pay what you can soup night. The Amaranth Bakery located on 3329 W Lisbon Ave had trouble when they first opened because the house in front was a drug house.

But soon, David helped with getting the drug house taken care of. He wanted it torn down but their  was so much red tape. The opportunity to purchase it at an extremely low price arose and David took it. Now he rents it out to an artist who is also very much involved in the community. 

Before the Amaranth Bakery was a bakery it was a Pub and had been for some thirty years. When David and his team went in to restore it, they ripped 6  layers of alcohol infected and rotting carpet plus the floor joyces. David said “I couldn't believe it.” 

  David shared with us about his house. A couple of years ago he 

gave a Gettleman a tour of his house. This same Gettleman was born and raised in the house.  Gettleman was a big brewing name in the early days. They went on to create Washington Hights. When David’s house was originally built it was in the township of Wawautosa. There are many beautiful houses in this area! On the 1700 block of 32nd there is a beautiful home that has been in many magazines including but not limited too Home and Garden and various Milwaukee books. The house is fully restored, crown molding and all. 

  David told us this community used to be prominently German. “The Old Guard Wasps”, Irish Catholics, went one direction and Prespeterians went up the North Shore. 

Lisbon road was built in 1846.  They put a sewer in a couple of years ago and tore up the old track lines that were still there. 

  Every generation there has been some kind of seismic change concerning race in this area. Through the 60’s they spoke german in this area. 

David asked this question when he arrived here. How did we get here, to this current situation? People said, “well there is nothing her in the inner-city.” David said “it all comes down to the business decisions, suggesting that if minorities settled in this area, the real-estate values are lower.”  

Lisbon/Walnut Way is one of the sights that was affected by the neglect of city officials. Because they had intended to widen the street. The Amaranth Bakery is in the middle  of the hour glass spot of Lisbon Ave And Walnut Way. What happens is, if you do not invest in something nothing will happen and things will naturally fall apart. That is what the city wanted, so they could widen the road. People wanted to invest but the city had so much red tape that they just couldn't. Eventually, the city ran out of money for their pet projects of widening roads and highways. Years of neglect left the inner-city in shambles. This is evident in many parts of the inner-city. 

  The most touching conversation that David has had concerning all of this was with a city official named Alderman Pratt. He said “Im here as an Alderman and when I was a young boy I grew up in the south bound lane of I 43 and I new that wasn’t right.”

The current layering here are African American home owners. A lot f Habitat for Humanity and ACTS (Alied Church Teaching Self Improvement corp) they have assisted more then 1000 people in obtaining homes. 

The greatest concentration  of south asian Hmong/Laotian was here in 1996.

These days  a large somalian refugee culture live here in these homes. Still the largest amount of home owners are African American . These neighborhoods are not static, they change fast. 

If interested in contacting David Boucher you can reach him at Amaranth Bakery & Cafe, 3329 W. Lisbon Avenue Milwaukee WI. His phone number is (414) 934-0587 Email- amaranthbc@gmail.com.  Amaranth Bakery & Cafe Hours are Tuesday - Saturday 7:00 am- 2:00 Tuesday nights are open late for "Pay what you can soup night"

I went to a meeting at a local bakery for Alice's Garden (part of JPNA)

Alice's Garden

Permaculture style

I went to a meeting at local bakery for Alice's Garden (part of JPNA). 

Ann talked to us about permaculture, you might be asking “What is permaculture?” ”It is an agricultural system that mimics a natural ecology.  Bill Mollison an Australian field biologist is said to be the “Father of permaculture”.

  Through the birth of the green movement in the 70’s pesticides started to take over and poor farmers could not compete. The average field needs 10 times more water to dissolve pesticides then a sustainable garden system/designs  or permaculture. 

Protecting the soil is key.

The 3 sister method for planting is a good way to start and uses corn, beens and squash. Plant corn and once it sprouts plant pole beans and then they can use the corn as its stock . By making a list of your plants you can plant them in groups so that two or more can complement each other. Curved planting rows makes micro climates. Something good to know is that planting squash acts as a natural ground cover. Note: You need to keep the ground covered  

A Plant guild Example.

Apple tree- Plant your fruit tree in the center. Around the drip line plant bulbs like daffodils chives. You do not want the grass to compete so arrange a  barrier around the drip line of the tree. Doing so you can then they attract pollinators for your fruit. Inside this ring plant comfrey a plant that grows quickly and can be cut back and used as a natural mulch, it is a nitro fixing plant. When leaves decompose it feeds the micro organisms in the soil. 

trellis back and run this plan .. 

Plant dill and fennel in the center circle and/or other herbs, creating different textures. The sents can be  deterring and attracting for different pollinators. 

Chickerr and Dandy lion have deep penetrating roots. In a system like this they are controlled. Once they pulled up enough nutrients you can lift them and the guild will take care of its self. Multi function and self sustaining. White clover is great also. Permaculture is a design science. Always leave the area better then you found it. 

With your own garden, observation is key, working and cooperating with nature is very important. Research about your area/garden then brainstorm to see what you can plant in your yard. Two methods to try and make it work is first zoning. Looking at the way the sun hits, is zone zero is your home. Think about what you need closest to your home. Fruit? Herbs? Hanging tomato? With in thirty to forty feet! 

There  are about 5 different zones more or less the boundaries are permeable, they change based on soil. Its common sense type of stuff. Zone 2 -fruit trees . Zone 3- Nut trees (by a tool shed).

 Sectors consist of soil, wind, wildlife and views, herbs in a sunny spot! 

Note: Gaias Garden is a good book for  getting started.

  Using free resources like sun, wind and plants to block the wind. Leaving the amount of soil open. No tilling is involved, healthy soil should never be disturbed. If you do, its a short term fix. The bugs, worms and  micro organisms are creating its own little ecosystem, further more  micro organisms are keeping the soil in good shape.

White clover - is a nitrogen fixing plant and serves as living mulch, just scatter the seeds and let it take over. When you are ready to plant, cut back the white clover and make some room for your desired seeds. The white clover won’t compete too aggressively. 

Something really interesting is if you have soil that is really tuff just plant a bunch of Sunflowers, they will break up the hard soil because they root deep into the earth .

Venues is an enthusiast who works with Alice's Garden, she used this same method to break up some tuff soil there and used  many of the technics we have talked about. 

Permaculture is using traditional beliefs with well thought out designs  and always having a back up plan. Permaculture also offers natural ways of filtering water. You can do this by recycling your own rainfall and then filtering your water. The keyhole garden design is elaborate and beautiful. Reeds are great filtrations.

To see Permaculture in action check out Mr. Geoff and his teem  Greening The Desert of Israel 

JPNA Slide Show

Artist Statement

Artist Statement 

03/25/09

My JPNA tour was awesome. I was able to talk with a young lady about her home business as a day care center. She has 17 kids that she takes care of in the 

neighborhood. Inside her home office I saw many cool things for kids to do and learn. She introduced me to the children and they looked so happy. She was one of the people who benefited from the housing program. She has lived in her home for five years. She allowed me to tour her home and it was very nice. I really liked her home it had a comfy feel and it was very nicely decorated with art from her heritage. She also showed me some of the surrounding neighborhood.
I noticed that there were many houses that still needed help; they were falling apart at the seems. It was very surprising to see this, one house was all re-done and the house next door had a tarp on the roof or the porch was about to fall off. The bird fountain I found was very cool and unique, it was in a part of the nebiorhood that was redone to the max. Every house on the street looked very nice and clean.
During my tour I talked to a few people, everyone seamed to be nice and helpful. I talked to an older gentlemen that had lived in the area for ten years he had bought his lot for one dollar. He said that was the best dollar he ever spent.
Overall my experience was great, it was nice to talk with so many great people.
Joshua Lynch

Note: Part of this image was used from google satellite imagery

I am going to conduct my research on a variety of areas (subject to change). I have been thinking of incorporating a little of everything. All the topics have something interesting. I have chosen a couple things I would like to research about like Block Watch, Home building, renovation and improvement, Green Initiatives, Community business development, Brown Street Academy, Alice’s Garden, Cultural and Recreational initiatives, and I was thinking about doing some research on the Underground Railroad in that area.
I just want to take a different approach then everyone and see if I can come out with a solid / well rounded presentation of the johnson park area.

The Change of Clay

Joshua Lynch
Instructor Shelleen Greene
Film 150: Multicultural America
February 23 2009
The Change of Clay
I will be referencing two photos in this essay the first is “As We Found Them , Taken by Peregrine F. Cooper,1864. Carte-de-viste,” and the second is titled “At the Time of the Louisville Flood, taken by Margaret Bourke-White,1937. Gelatin silver print. These two photos have much in common. Let us compare the two.
“As We Found Them”