I went to art school below the Mason-Dixon Line

• While eating brunch with my roommate we had a discussion about grits

  • She asked if she was a bad southern girl because she hates grits

  • I responded with my Mom is more southern and she can’t stand grits

  • She yelled back “Richmond was the center of the Confederation!”

    • She is from Richmond, Virginia

    • Mom is from Monroe, Georgia

My first African American Criticism class below the Mason-Dixon Line

• The teacher asked if I had ever been to Africa, if I had any black friends, and when filling out paperwork did, I check black or white.

  • I am Black, American Indian, Irish and Scottish

Took Dad to see a Kara Walker show in New York for another class

• He hated it, called her a gimmick artist, made a huge scene.

• He could care less about the Pipilotti Rist show the month after.

In 2010, I drove cross country and ate apple pie at every diner I stopped at

• In Chicago I went french apple

  • side Americano

• Denver served way too much ice cream

• Los Angeles had rather tiny slices

  • Told a man there I was an artist

  • He said I should contact Barbara Streisand, she was looking to build a public monument to herself.

    • Not sure how I described my work

• South Carolina, bite specifics

  • It was the last time I smoked a cigarette in a restaurant

  • Felt incredibly relaxed inside

  • Absolutely terrified walking back to the car

    • Waffle House

I was bussed into an inner city to go to school.

• On a field trip to the Franklin Institute we passed my house.

  • Look there’s my house!

  • You live all the way out here

  • That explains why you talk so white

• I bullied and was bullied on the bus

  • You think you’re so hard because your Dad’s a cop

  • You don’t need to be worried about my Dad, you should be worried about my Mom, cause she’ll kick your ass

• Elementary school was a shorter commute

  • When Miss Deb wasn’t looking, we crawled under the seats to the front of the bus. I got caught when I rolled into the stairs.

    • You are some hooligans!

    • Get back in your seat!

I went into the hairdresser by myself when I was 13.

• She told me my hair was extremely dry

• I needed a keratin treatment

• I did a terrible job taking care of myself

  • This was predominately a white salon

• I responded with my hair has always been very fluffy

• Dad came in to give me money to pay while she was still trimming.

  • Thanks Dad

    • Dad is a 6’3 Black man

  • Oh my goodness your hair is so beautiful.

  • I would love to have that much texture in my hair.

  • I know, I’ll use a flat iron after your blow out.