Art
“Circle of Light” director Amir Aziz was born in Iran the week the Iran-Iraq War began 1980 and immigrated to Canada with his family when he was 3 years old. He remembers the land of his ancestors portrayed through images of conflict and political turmoil. Even as a child, he understood that human connection wasn’t built through wartime policies, negotiated treaties or diplomatic embassies but in the way cultures have always found common ground, through art. Informed by that experience…
This story was co-published with The Oaklandside. Before it was a puppet show, “Hummingbird Saves Fire” was a memory. For Deja Gould, historical preservation officer and language keeper for the Lisjan Nation, it was a ritual of her childhood — falling asleep to her mother’s voice explaining how fire came into this world. She recalled her mother using different voices to distinguish each character, and how the detail was so vivid, it felt like she was really there. Now Gould…
Oakland City Council approved the sale of the city’s stake in the 112-acre Coliseum complex Monday for $125 million and an amendment that will give the city a percentage of ticket sales. The Oakland City Council approved the sale of the city’s 50% stake in the 112-acre Coliseum complex Monday for $125 million and an amendment that will give the city a percentage of ticket sales. The property will be acquired by the Oakland Acquisition Co., an entity formed by…
At 7 years old, Roux Stunna went viral after a video of him performing the Brookfield, an iconic Bay Area dance move, was uploaded to Instagram. The clip amassed over 1.2 million views and marked his entry into the turf dancing scene. Now 9, Roux is one of the youngest dancers competing and performing in Oakland. This year, Roux is set to perform at “The Night of Main Events,” a showcase hosted by World Wide Dance Association in Oakland. He…
Oakland has taken the first step toward building entertainment zones similar to San Francisco’s to boost foot traffic and support night life in commercial corridors. Oakland City Council last week unanimously approved investing $1 million in an economic revitalization package that will create two types of entertainment zones, including an artificial intelligence hub to advance workforce development and technological innovation. The funding, which was approved in the 2025 budget, will be administered over two years, through a grant to the…
Misty Rose sat in concentration, threading, measuring, and cutting as she re-soled an old pair of Chuck Taylor Converse by hand. She was transforming the worn-out sneakers, which her niece had nearly thrown into the trash, into something brand new with a leather toe cap and chunky Vibram sole. Rose is a leatherworker and designer in Oakland. Her business, MzzTrzz, specializes in locally based shoemaking material and tool distribution for home crafters and artists. Rose demonstrated her sneaker refurbishing, or…
Enveloped in vibrant drips of red and green paint sits a child with bound feet feeding her brother rice, the latter’s gaze piercing and vivid. Standing at 80 inches, Hung Liu’s “White Rice Bowl” is one of the first paintings audiences see when entering “100 Years of Creative Visions.” This exhibition, which opened in September and runs through April 26, celebrates the centennial anniversary of the Mills College Art Museum, and with it, a long history of uplifting the diverse…
Whoever broke into an off-site Oakland Museum storage facility earlier this month probably had no idea they were stealing historic artifacts, the museum said in a statement issued Friday. “There is no indication that the perpetrators specifically identified the facility as museum storage or sought particular artworks or artifacts. Instead, it appears they gained access and took items that were most easily available,” the statement said. No arrests have been made in what the museum is calling “a crime of…
Visitors coming into Oakland’s Chinatown now will meet a staggering dragon watching over the intersection of Jackson and 10th streets. Its mythical presence is a reminder to stand against hate, according to the community groups and team of artists who christened the dragon mural “Together, We Rise” last week. Its unveiling served as a kickoff to United Against Hate Week, which runs nationwide through Saturday. United Against Hate began in Berkeley in 2017 as a poster campaign responding to white…