This project stems from Damon Locks's belief that artists should work in conversation with the world around them. That looks like working, amongst other things, with schools. For this project, Locks will work with Illinois Humanities' (IH) department of Teaching and Learning to create a new curriculum aligned with Chicago Public Schools (CPS) requirements for Civics, Art, and/or Music. Locks develops all my new work-visual and sonic-by digging into, sampling, and building on archival materials; for this, he has been invited by the Lomax Digital Archive to delve into their open-access audio/visual collections compiled across seven decades by folklorist Alan Lomax. This music will not be covers, remixes, nor re-interpretations of songs in the archive but-like all the music he creates for Black Monument Ensemble (BME)-sonically, culturally, emotionally, and narratively relevant layers of sound.
Anchored in these new works inspired by the Lomax archive and the existing BME repertoire, IH and Locks will work alongside educators to pull themes, stories, and concepts from the lyrics, instrumentations, inspirations, and genres to develop a new curriculum to be implemented at five CPS high schools, culminating in performances at each school. BME members will lead pre-performance workshops to introduce ideas around the project, engaging students (and teachers). Locks will also deepen existing relationships with dance company Move Me Soul and string quartet Decomposed to create world-class performances in neighborhood schools. BME performances do not fit squarely into any category, living somewhere between a theatrical experience and a concert, distinguished by dynamic choreography and costumes.
Damon Locks is a Chicago-based visual artist, educator, and touring vocalist/musician who has been working with the P+NAP organization at Stateville Correctional Center teaching art for a decade. Since 2014 he has been working with the Prison and Neighborhood Arts Project at Stateville Correctional Center teaching art. He spent 4 years as an artist in residence as a part of the Museum of Contemporary Arts’ SPACE Program, introducing civically engaged art into the curriculum at Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy High School. He currently teaches Improvisation in the Sound Department at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Damon leads the Black Monument Ensemble, is a member of New Future City Radio, Exploding Star Orchestra, and co-founded the band The Eternals.
