Artists on Artists at SMoCA Grapples with SB 1070 (Among Other Things)

. Like it or not, the legislative act has become an integral part of our state's identity.

As Arizonans have taken sides and hotly debated the issue, our identity -- on an individual and collective basis -- has been shaken up.

A situation like this will, of course, influence local artists, thinkers, and creative types. And you can see five of them explore this controversy at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art's Artists on Artists program called "Insider/Outsider: Identity Crossings." The presented concepts and ideas aim to reach beyond SB 1070 as artists find ways to express the tensions associated with being and insider or outsider.

The program is curated and moderated by

, the Associate Director of Modified Arts and

, a Tucson-based artist, educator, and playwright. The pair chose

,

,

,

, and

as the night's line-up.

The participants represent a diverse sampling of background, artistic expertise, and lifestyle. Twist is a Native American artist and poet; Coleman is a choreographer, composer, and performer from New York; Lerman is a composer and multi-media installation artist; Jordá is a Venezuelan-born interdisciplinary artist, and Velez is a painter from Tucson.

The free presentation features five-minute performances by each participant and the night promises some pretty hefty audience participation. We're told that audience members will be "inspected" upon arrival and segregated in particular seating areas, depending on to which artist they are assigned. Identity labels will also be handed out that will have titles like "Foreign," "Native," "Enemy Alien," "Hedonist," and more.

Check it out Thursday, October 14, at 7 p.m. at Stage 2 Theater in the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. Click here for details.

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