0:00:00.000,0:00:18.663 ♪ethereal ambient music♪ 0:00:18.663,0:00:19.960 [interpreter VO] I've just been noticing 0:00:19.960,0:00:25.813 that my life is just one big echo. 0:00:25.813,0:00:27.200 ♪sparse ethereal music♪[br]Or, rather, maybe just small 0:00:27.200,0:00:29.240 echoes that become one big echo, 0:00:29.240,0:00:30.840 and that's something that's[br]been a part of my life 0:00:30.840,0:00:34.560 since I was born. 0:00:34.560,0:00:38.880 And it has to deal with repetition, 0:00:38.880,0:00:40.660 ♪♪♪ 0:00:40.660,0:00:42.440 patterns, 0:00:42.440,0:00:47.560 something that constantly comes up. 0:00:47.560,0:00:48.680 When I work with interpreters, 0:00:48.680,0:00:52.160 I experience repetition. 0:00:52.160,0:00:54.800 Like, whatever I sign, Beth repeats. 0:00:54.800,0:00:58.040 She's echoing me. 0:00:58.040,0:01:00.200 And sign language is full of echoes. 0:01:00.200,0:01:02.640 You can use one hand shape, 0:01:02.640,0:01:04.720 and echo that, repeat that, 0:01:04.720,0:01:06.920 and it just changes the entire 0:01:06.920,0:01:08.960 sign or the entire word based on 0:01:08.960,0:01:11.580 where you put it on your body. 0:01:11.580,0:01:13.400 ♪♪♪ 0:01:13.400,0:01:15.440 The shape of the sign for "future," 0:01:15.440,0:01:17.800 which is two semicircles[br]away from your face, 0:01:17.800,0:01:19.640 that's the sign for "future," 0:01:19.640,0:01:22.520 it has a line that you can follow, 0:01:22.520,0:01:26.240 so I drew that line. 0:01:26.240,0:01:29.840 And it's an echo in and of itself. 0:01:29.840,0:01:30.340 ♪♪♪ 0:01:35.800,0:01:37.360 And so since it's my ideas, 0:01:37.360,0:01:39.600 it's my work that's being presented, 0:01:39.600,0:01:40.920 and a lot of it does have to do 0:01:40.920,0:01:42.520 with repetition and a lot of it 0:01:42.520,0:01:44.560 is full of echoes, 0:01:44.560,0:01:46.200 I think that is why I want to be 0:01:46.200,0:01:59.818 as clear as possible. [chuckles] 0:01:59.818,0:02:05.280 ♪pulsating ethereal music♪[br]- [Interpreter] I'm DJ Kurs of Deaf West Theater. 0:02:05.280,0:02:06.160 At Deaf West Theater, 0:02:06.160,0:02:09.320 we bridge deaf and hearing[br]worlds through theater. 0:02:09.320,0:02:12.920 We're advancing visibility[br]and representation. 0:02:12.920,0:02:16.520 But I'm jealous of Christine Sun Kim, 0:02:16.520,0:02:19.880 because she does the same thing, 0:02:19.880,0:02:20.880 but on her own. 0:02:20.880,0:02:22.560 She can draw a pie chart on paper 0:02:22.560,0:02:25.640 and have a similar impact. 0:02:25.640,0:02:29.760 Please welcome artist Christine Sun Kim. 0:02:29.760,0:02:30.260 [applause] 0:02:30.260,0:02:38.400 - [Christine] So this[br]tweet here that says, 0:02:38.400,0:02:41.480 "I can 100 percent promise that you 0:02:41.480,0:02:43.200 "learning sign language is easier 0:02:43.200,0:02:45.680 "than a deaf person learning to hear" 0:02:45.680,0:02:48.200 is a tweet from a deaf writer, 0:02:48.200,0:02:51.800 and I think that this framing[br]...is it. [chuckles] 0:02:51.800,0:02:52.880 This is how I want you 0:02:52.880,0:02:54.960 to think about who I am. 0:02:54.960,0:02:56.480 This is my deaf identity, 0:02:56.480,0:02:59.760 and this is where I'm coming from. 0:02:59.760,0:03:01.320 ♪sparse piano music♪ 0:03:01.320,0:03:02.280 People love to always 0:03:02.280,0:03:04.320 ask why I don't read lips, 0:03:04.320,0:03:05.360 so this is a question I've 0:03:05.360,0:03:09.860 gotten over and over again. 0:03:09.860,0:03:12.880 ♪♪♪ 0:03:12.880,0:03:16.200 I love the use of infographics. 0:03:16.200,0:03:19.280 It's this idea, shown visually, 0:03:19.280,0:03:21.200 that can be communicated without barriers. 0:03:21.200,0:03:22.360 It can cross languages, 0:03:22.360,0:03:24.640 it can cross cultures. 0:03:24.640,0:03:26.520 So this is the same old [bleep] 0:03:26.520,0:03:28.080 hearing people say to me. 0:03:28.080,0:03:29.240 And as you can see, 0:03:29.240,0:03:31.280 this is equally distributed because 0:03:31.280,0:03:48.348 people say a lot of [bleep] to me. 0:03:48.348,0:03:48.384 [laughter][br]♪ethereal synth music♪ 0:03:48.384,0:03:56.112 - [Interpreter] They look so good! 0:03:56.112,0:03:56.546 - [Man] Cute![br]-[interpreter] [laughs] 0:03:56.546,0:03:58.120 - [Christine] Can you lift yours up more, 0:03:58.120,0:03:59.680 just a smidgen? 0:04:01.440,0:04:03.680 Yes. 0:04:03.680,0:04:07.720 Okay, that's what we want. 0:04:07.720,0:04:09.664 -That one up.[br]- [Man] This might be low. 0:04:09.664,0:04:12.888 - [Interpreter] She[br]hasn't mentioned yours. 0:04:12.888,0:04:12.901 - [Man] Okay. 0:04:12.901,0:04:15.220 - [interpreter VO] I am very[br]comfortable with collaboration. 0:04:15.220,0:04:18.063 [interpreter] I think that looks good. 0:04:18.063,0:04:20.160 [interpreter VO] I usually work with people, 0:04:20.160,0:04:21.360 whether that's interpreters that 0:04:21.360,0:04:23.320 I'm working with or people who 0:04:23.320,0:04:25.120 are speaking on my behalf. 0:04:25.120,0:04:29.600 I'm used to that. 0:04:29.600,0:04:30.040 ♪♪♪ 0:04:30.040,0:04:33.120 I collaborate with my[br]partner, Tom Mader, a lot 0:04:33.120,0:04:34.000 and this has been really 0:04:34.000,0:04:35.760 nice because I've been able 0:04:35.760,0:04:43.829 to kind of increase[br]who I collaborate with. 0:04:43.829,0:04:46.400 ♪♪♪[br]- So, we've all grown as artists, 0:04:46.400,0:04:48.240 and lecturers and performers, 0:04:48.240,0:04:49.880 so let's not do that, 0:04:49.880,0:04:51.080 but it's still very easy 0:04:51.080,0:04:52.061 to find online. 0:04:52.061,0:04:55.520 - [interpreter VO] Motherhood has[br]really impacted my practice. 0:04:55.520,0:04:57.600 It's impacted the way I envision 0:04:57.600,0:04:59.560 and the way I approach art. 0:04:59.560,0:05:00.060 ♪♪♪ 0:05:01.960,0:05:04.720 I allow my child to be a[br]part of the process at times. 0:05:04.720,0:05:08.580 Sometimes we collaborate on a project. 0:05:08.580,0:05:10.640 ♪♪♪ 0:05:10.640,0:05:15.040 Often, I work with musical notation. 0:05:15.040,0:05:19.680 I've really thought about the[br]emptiness of the staff lines. 0:05:19.680,0:05:22.040 It's not about the notes, necessarily, 0:05:22.040,0:05:26.560 but it's about the[br]foundation that's being laid. 0:05:26.560,0:05:29.600 And I decided to incorporate our family. 0:05:29.600,0:05:30.480 I've done one, 0:05:30.480,0:05:31.880 Tom has done one, 0:05:31.880,0:05:35.880 and Roux has done one. 0:05:35.880,0:05:36.920 When I sat down with Roux 0:05:36.920,0:05:38.400 and I explained the work, 0:05:38.400,0:05:39.880 she created this drawing, 0:05:39.880,0:05:46.600 and then she did another[br]one with notes on it. 0:05:46.600,0:05:48.480 And I asked her what it was, 0:05:48.480,0:05:49.880 and she said to me 0:05:49.880,0:05:54.920 it was a song about family. 0:05:54.920,0:05:59.040 [laughter] 0:05:59.040,0:05:59.960 I've lived in Berlin 0:05:59.960,0:06:02.480 now for almost 10 years. 0:06:02.480,0:06:05.920 As an artist, I'm having[br]a great life there, 0:06:05.920,0:06:07.440 because I feel like 0:06:07.440,0:06:16.736 there's so much less pressure. 0:06:16.736,0:06:18.240 ♪bubbly synth music♪[br]What I've noticed is that being 0:06:18.240,0:06:19.880 a parent doesn't have a dent 0:06:19.880,0:06:21.080 or an impact on my bank 0:06:21.080,0:06:22.720 account almost at all. 0:06:22.720,0:06:25.400 Daycare is free. 0:06:25.400,0:06:27.200 Everything in the city is affordable, 0:06:27.200,0:06:30.520 [chuckles] especially compared to[br]a place like New York 0:06:30.520,0:06:32.280 or Los Angeles. 0:06:32.280,0:06:35.640 And I also have space to create work. 0:06:35.640,0:06:37.160 ♪♪♪ 0:06:37.160,0:06:38.480 So, with all of that, 0:06:38.480,0:06:41.280 I've just found myself recognizing more 0:06:41.280,0:06:43.480 and more the benefits of a government 0:06:43.480,0:06:45.080 that supports their citizens. 0:06:45.080,0:06:49.040 Like, actually supports their people. 0:06:49.040,0:06:51.960 People in Germany aren't in debt. 0:06:51.960,0:06:52.920 But here in the US, 0:06:52.920,0:06:57.000 I see friends living here[br]who have more than one job 0:06:57.000,0:06:59.280 just to make ends meet, 0:06:59.280,0:07:01.680 and I realize that I'm angry about debt, 0:07:01.680,0:07:03.080 I'm angry that people are living 0:07:03.080,0:07:06.040 like this because I'm not. 0:07:06.040,0:07:07.680 I think about my family, my friends, 0:07:07.680,0:07:26.018 my future, and I'm worried. 0:07:26.018,0:07:26.038 [indistinct chatter] 0:07:26.038,0:07:27.840 - I was so[br]happy to hear from you. 0:07:27.840,0:07:29.040 Of course I had to call. 0:07:29.040,0:07:30.600 And I think all my friends 0:07:30.600,0:07:35.381 are coming in next week to see your work. 0:07:35.381,0:07:36.520 - [interpreter VO] A perk of being a member 0:07:36.520,0:07:37.920 of the deaf community is that you 0:07:37.920,0:07:39.040 have this shared culture, 0:07:39.040,0:07:40.560 this shared language. 0:07:40.560,0:07:43.160 And so people like to stay there. 0:07:43.160,0:07:44.280 They don't want to be oppressed 0:07:44.280,0:07:46.880 in the way that they are[br]in the hearing community. 0:07:46.880,0:07:48.680 But you kind of get trapped. 0:07:48.680,0:07:49.120 Sometimes you get 0:07:49.120,0:07:50.720 stuck in that echo, 0:07:50.720,0:07:52.160 and I was there for a while. 0:07:52.160,0:07:53.720 But then, I became an artist, 0:07:53.720,0:07:54.720 and I had to go into 0:07:54.720,0:07:59.320 the hearing world. 0:07:59.320,0:08:03.080 ♪uplifting synth music♪ 0:08:03.080,0:08:04.200 I'm always a little bit 0:08:04.200,0:08:05.640 jealous of artists who have 0:08:05.640,0:08:10.520 the privilege to be misunderstood. 0:08:10.520,0:08:12.440 For me, I automatically feel 0:08:12.440,0:08:14.760 like I need to explain what things mean. 0:08:14.760,0:08:19.480 I have to say, "No, it's[br]not this, it's that." 0:08:19.480,0:08:20.360 And I think that stems 0:08:20.360,0:08:21.840 from a place of how misunderstandings 0:08:21.840,0:08:23.600 can affect my rights, 0:08:23.600,0:08:25.920 all these little things in my daily life, 0:08:25.920,0:08:28.440 as well as navigating access, 0:08:28.440,0:08:34.800 education, entertainment, family. 0:08:34.800,0:08:39.000 Growing up, I loved art, 0:08:39.000,0:08:40.040 but I didn't really take 0:08:40.040,0:08:41.000 classes 'cause there weren't 0:08:41.000,0:08:45.342 interpreters available. 0:08:45.342,0:08:46.800 ♪tender music♪[br]I remember when I was in high school, 0:08:46.800,0:08:47.920 there was a sculpture class that 0:08:47.920,0:08:50.040 I wanted to take that[br]I thought was perfect. 0:08:50.040,0:08:51.760 I wanted to work with my hands. 0:08:51.760,0:08:54.160 They said no. 0:08:54.160,0:08:55.200 Then, as an undergrad 0:08:55.200,0:08:56.640 majoring in graphic design, 0:08:56.640,0:08:57.520 they had a night class 0:08:57.520,0:08:59.240 that I wanted to take. 0:08:59.240,0:09:00.680 They said no. 0:09:00.680,0:09:02.680 So it was interesting. 0:09:02.680,0:09:07.680 At that time, I kept getting told no. 0:09:07.680,0:09:08.560 And then when I grew up 0:09:08.560,0:09:09.400 and moved to New York, 0:09:09.400,0:09:11.080 it was super crowded, 0:09:11.080,0:09:12.680 and there was hearing people everywhere, 0:09:12.680,0:09:13.880 which wasn't my experience 0:09:13.880,0:09:16.680 growing up in California. 0:09:16.680,0:09:17.880 And so I had to figure out how 0:09:17.880,0:09:19.560 to constantly communicate with 0:09:19.560,0:09:20.920 these hearing people. 0:09:20.920,0:09:22.720 And people were just in my face, 0:09:22.720,0:09:24.880 and I was in people's faces. 0:09:24.880,0:09:29.120 Because of that, I just[br]had less fear around it. 0:09:29.120,0:09:31.000 ♪uplifting music♪ 0:09:31.000,0:09:32.480 And what I've realized is that 0:09:32.480,0:09:34.840 New York gave me the[br]skills to navigate through 0:09:34.840,0:09:58.299 the world fearlessly. 0:09:58.299,0:09:58.320 [mechanical whirring] 0:09:58.320,0:10:01.000 When Hitomi, the curator[br]here at Queens Museum, 0:10:01.000,0:10:02.400 reached out to me and we were 0:10:02.400,0:10:04.640 corresponding back and forth, 0:10:04.640,0:10:05.960 I thought, "How could I come up 0:10:05.960,0:10:07.680 "with an idea without actually 0:10:07.680,0:10:11.000 "physically visiting the Queens Museum?" 0:10:11.000,0:10:13.880 [indistinct chatter] 0:10:13.880,0:10:15.240 And in her correspondence, 0:10:15.240,0:10:16.560 she mentioned that Queens 0:10:16.560,0:10:19.480 was the epicenter of COVID for a while, 0:10:19.480,0:10:26.464 and that really struck[br]me and got me thinking. 0:10:26.464,0:10:26.480 [honking][br][siren] 0:10:26.480,0:10:28.800 I thought about rest. 0:10:28.800,0:10:30.320 I'm also seeing people being 0:10:30.320,0:10:31.920 overworked during the pandemic, 0:10:31.920,0:10:36.536 without maybe having health insurance. 0:10:36.536,0:10:39.920 ♪soft pensive music♪[br]Lately, I've been into motion lines. 0:10:39.920,0:10:41.520 ♪♪♪ 0:10:41.520,0:10:42.280 You can find those in 0:10:42.280,0:10:46.280 comic strips or comic books. 0:10:46.280,0:10:48.080 And I thought they were[br]a perfect reflection 0:10:48.080,0:10:50.040 of sign language, and how it carries 0:10:50.040,0:10:54.680 a lot of weight and emotion. 0:10:54.680,0:10:57.160 For example, the sign for "time." 0:10:57.160,0:10:59.040 I tap my wrist with my index finger. 0:10:59.880,0:11:01.080 I looked at a bunch of different 0:11:01.080,0:11:02.560 signs that come into contact 0:11:02.560,0:11:03.320 with the body, 0:11:03.320,0:11:05.600 and I came up with a one-line poem 0:11:05.600,0:11:08.400 to fit the current climate 0:11:08.400,0:11:13.480 and what was happening in this area. 0:11:13.480,0:11:19.141 "Time owes me rest again." 0:11:19.141,0:11:19.680 ♪♪♪[br]- [woman] Yeah, maybe you 0:11:19.680,0:11:22.160 can shave a little bit. 0:11:22.160,0:11:26.141 Yeah, bottom, bottom part. 0:11:26.141,0:11:28.360 - [interpreter VO] This experience[br]made me think I can 0:11:28.360,0:11:30.680 work with such a large scale. 0:11:30.680,0:11:32.840 I thought a lot about that. 0:11:32.840,0:11:34.680 And it felt right that maybe 0:11:34.680,0:11:37.200 this is the best way where we 0:11:37.200,0:11:41.200 can shove or force our deafness 0:11:41.200,0:11:42.840 or our existence 0:11:42.840,0:11:45.000 or our deaf voice, 0:11:45.000,0:11:47.240 and do that in their everyday lives, 0:11:47.240,0:11:53.280 in their everyday space. 0:11:53.280,0:11:56.360 And it happened that the[br]Manchester International Festival 0:11:56.360,0:11:58.600 reached out to me[br]wanting to work together, 0:11:58.600,0:11:59.320 saying that I could 0:11:59.320,0:12:00.720 show any work I wanted. 0:12:00.720,0:12:01.600 And I was like, "All right, 0:12:01.600,0:12:04.880 "let me aim for the[br]biggest thing I can do." 0:12:04.880,0:12:09.600 I said, "Let's caption the city." 0:12:09.600,0:12:13.000 ♪♪♪ 0:12:13.000,0:12:14.560 I want people to see captions, 0:12:14.560,0:12:15.880 to think about why they're there, 0:12:15.880,0:12:17.640 to think about who might want them. 0:12:17.640,0:12:18.120 "Oh, yeah! 0:12:18.120,0:12:21.240 "Deaf people." 0:12:21.240,0:12:22.120 My favorite one is this 0:12:22.120,0:12:24.280 'cause I wanted it all, I wanted more. 0:12:24.280,0:12:25.480 I was like, "Let's caption 0:12:25.480,0:12:28.880 "the sky and get a plane." 0:12:28.880,0:12:29.380 ♪♪♪ 0:12:30.640,0:12:33.200 And doing all that work has 0:12:33.200,0:12:34.600 given me the realization that 0:12:34.600,0:12:36.680 scale equals visibility, 0:12:36.680,0:12:39.560 and that has the ability 0:12:39.560,0:12:41.920 to shape social norms. 0:12:41.920,0:12:46.720 I want deaf lives to be in your mind, 0:12:46.720,0:12:50.440 and be part of what we[br]consider acceptable, 0:12:50.440,0:12:55.259 what's normal. 0:12:55.259,0:12:56.480 ♪uplifting music♪[br]If you don't see us, 0:12:56.480,0:12:58.440 we have no place to be, 0:12:58.440,0:12:59.360 and I think that's why 0:12:59.360,0:13:00.880 I've gotten into scale, 0:13:00.880,0:13:28.724 and also, I'm just greedy, too. 0:13:28.724,0:13:28.800 [crowd laughing][br]♪ethereal ambient music♪ 0:13:28.800,0:13:40.480 ♪♪♪ 0:13:40.480,0:13:43.440 Hello, my name is Azikiwe Mohammed. 0:13:43.440,0:13:49.640 I am happy to have been featured by [br]Art21 in their series New York Close Up. 0:13:49.640,0:13:54.280 As you may or may not have seen, [br]I do a lot of different stuff, 0:13:54.280,0:13:59.880 and trying to explain it to people [br]can be a little chewy sometimes. 0:13:59.880,0:14:03.200 Now, I can say I make a lot [br]of stuff and then point them 0:14:03.200,0:14:03.954 somewhere. 0:14:03.954,0:14:07.840 That is all thanks to Art21. 0:14:07.840,0:14:10.560 If you like watching people make some stuff, 0:14:10.560,0:14:18.160 Art21 is an unlimited 24/7 resource of all [br]kinds of stuff from all different people. 0:14:18.160,0:14:22.240 There's educational resources, [br]engaging public programs, 0:14:22.240,0:14:27.360 and workshops for teachers that can [br]help bring art into the classroom, 0:14:27.360,0:14:28.160 which, very often, 0:14:28.160,0:14:30.800 is a burden left on the teachers. 0:14:30.800,0:14:34.920 But Art21 helps lift that burden by letting us, 0:14:34.920,0:14:37.080 the people who make some of the stuff, 0:14:37.080,0:14:40.280 bring some of the stuff into the classroom 0:14:40.280,0:14:44.400 via the films and resources that Art21 provides 0:14:44.400,0:14:46.120 free of charge. 0:14:46.120,0:14:50.720 Art is limitless, and Art21 is for everyone. 0:14:50.720,0:14:54.640 Please consider giving to Art21 [br]to help make the stuff that 0:14:54.640,0:14:57.280 we make through Art21 0:14:57.280,0:15:02.600 available for free to everybody [br]for years and years to come. 0:15:02.600,0:15:04.457 Thank you.