Art & Black Joy: A Revolutionary Act

"It's a celebration of self, a celebration of family, a celebration of overcoming struggles. And, you know, some people would say that just being Black and alive in America is a revolutionary act. That to be Black and alive, and full of joy is a revolutionary act."—Anwar Floyd-Pruitt

Episode | Related Video | Transcript

Art & Black Joy: A Revolutionary Act

Clip: S2 Ep4 | 1m 8s

“Just being Black and alive in America is a revolutionary act.”

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GUEST

Anwar Floyd-Pruitt

Anwar Floyd-Pruitt is an artist, curator, and puppeteer from Milwaukee. A graduate of UW-Madison (MFA ’20), Floyd-Pruitt also earned a BFA from UW-Milwaukee (’16) and BA in Psychology from Harvard University (’99). The Chazen Museum of Art, Edgewood College, Mount Mary University and the Museum of Wisconsin Art have hosted solo exhibitions of his collages, paintings, and mixed-media self-portraits. In addition to leading puppet making workshops, Floyd-Pruitt writes and performs a family friendly singalong called Hip Hop Puppet Party. In 2021 he was awarded a grant from the Jane Henson Foundation to engage at-risk youth in puppetry. Floyd-Pruitt is Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend.

TRANSCRIPT

Anwar Floyd-Pruitt: You know, some people would say that just being Black and alive in America is a revolutionary act. You know, that to be Black and alive, and full of joy is a revolutionary act. And I don’t consider myself a revolutionary all the time. It’s not like a badge that I wear, but if I can contribute to. . . If I can contribute to sort of to positive feelings, as well as, you know, the deep conversations that are complicated and. . . and, you know, that hurt sometimes.

But I also want to see our people smile. I wanna see people smile at us.

Angela Fitzgerald (announcing): Watch more Why Race Matters online and on the PBS app on your phone, tablet, Roku, or any other streaming device.