Starting in the summer of 2012, twenty artists were selected by curatorial fellow Kalia Brooks. These artists committed to studio visits with Kalia, which were videotaped by A Blade of Grass. A Blade of Grass created and presented online dossiers for each artist that consist of images, clear descriptions of the artists’ work, links to websites and excerpts of the artists’ own words. These materials generated an online discussion that engaged the artists as well as the general public. This open discourse shaped the criteria for determining grantees and aspects of the form of the grant.

This discussion necessarily engaged our prospective grantees, who gave us a great deal of feedback about the form of the grant and how A Blade of Grass could be most relevant to their work. Based on artist feedback, A Blade of Grass resolved to:

Change the allocation for Artist Files to:

• $15,000 in ...

A Blade of Grass is thrilled to announce the recipients of the Artist Files grants for individual artists: Nobutaka Aozaki, Kambui Olujimi and Housing Is A Human Right. Artist Files was initiated as a one-time grant cycle focused on generating and harnessing public discourse as a way to define socially engaged art and the selection criteria. The recipients were selected from a group of twenty finalists, and will each receive an unrestricted grant of $10,000. These grantees, including finalists Daniel Bejar, Tracy Candido, Nicky Enright, Sean Fader, Alicia Grullon, Heather Hart, Kendal Henry, Nate Hill, LuLu LoLo, Matthew Morrocco, Leon Reid IV, Shane Aslan Selzer, Sin Kabeza Productions, Bayeté Ross Smith & Will Sylvester, Thomas Allen Harris, Ed Woodham, Risë Wilson, have all been officially named A Blade of Grass Artist Fellows for 2013. They will each receive an honorarium and institutional support and professional development training from A Blade ...

Nicky Enright is an artist whose practice is informed by his activity as a world music DJ. He takes on the persona of DJ Lightbolt, a sound artist who incorporates music from all over the world. He has traveled extensively to gather his sounds, learning languages to communicate more effectively with his musical resources. In the US he applies his research by performing for audiences in nightclubs and lounges, as well as in an art context in galleries and museums. He applies his technique of researching and bringing it to people, in an attempt to reach as many people as possible in his performances and interventions. Check out Nicky's profile.

• How can artists relate their subjectivities to a larger audience?
• Is art a useful tool in getting the public to reflect on everyday life?  
• How does art relate to forming and understanding identity?

Join the conversation in the Comments ...

 Nicky Enright is an artist whose practice is informed by his activity as a world music DJ. He takes on the persona of DJ Lightbolt, a sound artist who incorporates music from all over the world. He has traveled extensively to gather his sounds, learning languages to communicate more effectively with his musical resources. In the US he applies his research by performing for audiences in nightclubs and lounges, as well as in an art context in galleries and museums. He applies his technique of researching and bringing it to people, in an attempt to reach as many people as possible in his performances and interventions. Check out Nicky's profile.

• Does art have communal roots?  
• Is the role of art and the artist in a state of change or shift?
• How does art play a role in inspiring change?

Join the conversation in the Comments section below!

Click here ...

Nicky Enright is an artist whose practice is informed by his activity as a world music DJ. He takes on the persona of DJ Lightbolt, a sound artist who incorporates music from all over the world. He has traveled extensively to gather his sounds, learning languages to communicate more effectively with his musical resources. In the US he applies his research by performing for audiences in nightclubs and lounges, as well as in an art context in galleries and museums. He applies his technique of researching and bringing it to people, in an attempt to reach as many people as possible in his performances and interventions.  Check out Nicky's profile.

• Should artists be specialized?  
• Does mastering a medium or skill improve the way art is experienced?  
• How does the act of being a "master" affect the value of art?

Join the conversation in the Comments section below!

Click here ...

Nicky Enright is an artist whose practice is informed by his activity as a world music DJ. He takes on the persona of DJ Lightbolt, a sound artist who incorporates music from all over the world. He has traveled extensively to gather his sounds, learning languages to communicate more effectively with his musical resources. In the U.S. he applies his research by performing for audiences in nightclubs and lounges, as well as in contexts like galleries and museums. He shares his research with people in an attempt to reach as many people as possible in his performances and interventions. He invented a universal currency named The Globo. It is devised from a fusion of legal tender from over twenty-five countries to suggest a vision of world unity, and by contrast, the ever increasing reach of globalization. He often walks around with the currency, handing it out freely to pedestrians ...

Rachel Falcone and Michael Premo are the co-founders of Housing is a Human Right, an art project that acts as an ongoing documentary portrait of the struggle for home. Falcone and Premo interview people about their community and experiences trying to obtain or maintain a home, and collect these oral histories as well as photographs and multimedia.Check out Housing is a Human Right's profile.

• How important is language when working in socially-engaged art?  
• How does calling a project art affect how it is experienced?
• Is creativity a language in itself?

Join the conversation in the Comments section below!

Click here to see the un-edited footage of Housing is a Human Right.

Rachel Falcone and Michael Premo are the co-founders of Housing is a Human Right, an art project that acts as an ongoing documentary portrait of the struggle for home. Falcone and Premo interview people about their community and experiences trying to obtain or maintain a home, and collect these oral histories as well as photographs and multimedia. Check out Housing is a Human Right's profile.

• How can art help to analyze and encourage revolutions?
• Is art unique in potentially facilitating change?
• What is the role of artists in periods of social change?

Join the conversation in the Comments section below!

Click here to see the un-edited footage of Housing is a Human Right.