The folks at LargeUp have posted a great feature with Belizian artist Hubert Neal, Jr. discussing his 26-piece show The Dudus Chronicles which is currently showing at the Grosvenor Galleries in Kingston, JA. Check out the details below…

When Belizean artist Hubert Neal, Jr. arrived in Kingston, Jamaica on May 20, 2010 to start a residency at Melinda Brown’s Roktowa studio, he had plans to paint Jamaica. Three days later, the military and police invaded Tivoli Gardens in hot pursuit of Christopher “Dudus” Coke, a man who had been, for months, wanted for extradition by the United States of America. The hunt for Coke and its accompanying media coverage was impossible to ignore, and Neal began to paint. The results of this process was a series of twenty-six works titled The Dudus Chronicles, on display now at the Grosvenor Galleries in Kingston. It’s colorful and varied–but also quite disturbing, never shying away from depicting the violence that accompanied the search for Dudus. Largeup caught up with Neal during his last few days in Jamaica to talk about his process, his work, and his position as an outsider looking in.

Images of a few of his paintings are below…

Read the full interview here: Large Up » Drawing Dudus: Exclusive Interview with Hubert Neal, Jr..

The Daily Mail has put together a great photo essay on the weekend’s activities in London town. Check a few of their shots below…

Hundreds of thousands of revellers descended on the capital today for Europe’s biggest street festival - the Notting Hill Carnival.

Dancers wearing vibrant costumes paraded along the packed three-and-a-half-mile route in west London from 9am today to the sounds of traditional steel drums.

The lines of colourful floats were accompanied by more than 40 static sound systems and scores of Caribbean food stalls….

Check out the full set here: Notting Hill Carnival 2010: Thousands descend on capital for weekend of partying
| Mail Online.

….I also came across this great set on Flickr.

Check out a video of Kardinal Offishall throwing down during carnival after the jump…

(more…)

Running through these photos really took me back to my times in Havana. Check out a sampling of the set below, shot by Cuban photographer Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo.

Race in Cuba: Images of Cuban Life
Scenes from the lives led by black people on the island, shot by native son Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo.

Check out the full set here: TheRoot.com: Photos of Black Cuban Life.

The above image is a peek into the new online portfolio of Jamaican photographer, writer and filmmaker Peter Dean Rickards.

Check out a few more sample images below…

For more, check out the full website by clicking here: Peter Dean Rickards | Photography, Cinematography, Direction.

It goes down in Brooklyn today with our peoples from F.O.K.U.S. and a whole lot of their friends as they celebrate the 3rd annual ‘The Stoop’ event. Check out the details below…

The Stoop 2010
Hosted by Circa ‘95 | Music by DJ Synapse
August 14, 2010
1:00pm
Performances starting at 1:20pm
Fort Greene Park (Myrtle Ave and N. Portland)
Brooklyn, NY

Sponsored by:
Fusicology; Fresh Industries; Brooklyn Arts Council; New York State Council on the Arts; Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; NY Kings; riceworks and Ogo Sport

FREE Arts Celebration with
-performances by: Si*Se, Pattern Is Movement, Kagero, XV, Ayodele Alli, and Ishmael Islam
-live art by Convoluted Construct, Alice Mizrachi and Free5.
-games, face painting and much more!

Presented by F.O.K.U.S.

For more info, click here: Fusicology Events - F.O.K.U.S. presents The Stoop.

London-based Photographer Leah Gordon comes through with come amazing black and white imagery. If you’re in London be sure to check out the exhibit, which run through next month. Check out the details below…

Since the earthquake in January 2010, a proliferation of horrific media images have reinforced an ongoing narrative of Haitians as victims – of disaster, of poverty, of corruption. Rarely is Haiti’s incredibly potent colonial history mentioned. Between 1791 and 1804 Haitians led the only successful slave revolt in history which resulted in the abolition of French colonial rule, and in Haiti becoming the first black-led republic. Photographer Leah Gordon’s stunning images of Haiti tell the story of a country intimately in tune with its past. We caught up with her at Riflemaker Gallery where her current exhibition, The Invisibles, is showing until September 10, to find out more.

Check out her interview with Don’t Panic here: LEAH GORDON | Photographer’s Kanaval of Haiti hits Riflemaker.

I’m a big fan of HWV8’s work and a big fan of the recent Distant Relatives collabo by Nas & Junior Gong, so sharing this was really a no-brainer.

Check out the footage below…

‘Nas and Jr. Gong’ Painting, Animation, Photography - Gene Pendon
Videography, Animation, Additional Artwork - Brain Armstrong
Additional Photography - Pablo Aravena

Produced by HVW8 Inc

661 N. Spaulding Ave. Los Angeles 90036
323 655 4898

contact info@hvw8.com

www.hvw8.com

…via.

Don Letts is an unsung hero of British music. “Superstonic Sound: The Rebel Dread” is a documentary about the Letts family legacy that mirrors the history of BASS in the UK from Dub, Reggae and Punk to 80s pop, Hip Hop and Dubstep; a musical, cultural and personal link between past and present.

Don’s father was amongst the first Jamaican immigrants to Britain and he brought his sound system with him, introducing London to Jamaican Dub with its heavy BASS accent.

Don grew up in Brixton, immersed in Dub and Reggae. In the context of Enoch Powell’s Rivers of Blood speech and KBW – Keep Britain White - grafitied across the walls of London, Don became the lone Rebel Dread crossing musical and cultural boundaries between black and white. He became DJ at the first Punk club, the legendary “Roxy” where in between live Punk sets, he played hard core Dub-Reggae and fortunately for him…

More info on the film can be found here: S U P E R S T O N I C S O U N D: The Rebel Dread Documentary.

Come out to Fresthetic today for good time, good food, and 30% off all clothing, including their Burden Inventory.

Check out the details below…

MAKOSSA
Brooklyn Cookout
Saturday, june 26

BAY AREA’s own
DJ WONWAY POSIBUL

2-9pm • WELCOME To B.Y.O.B.B.
$10 table & 30% off all clothing

Come celebrate teh Summer solstice with us and vibe out to the tunes of DJ Wonway Posibul all the way for the BAY AREA!

We will be grilling Burgers, Hot dogs, Veggie Burgers, vegetables, Arroz Con Grandules and much more. You are welcome to bring your own dish also!

We’ll see you there? Yep, we’ll see you there. Click here for more info.

Just a quick note that after their premiere at BAM last week, Wah Do Dem will be screening in NY and LA, at Cinema Village and The Egyptian, respectively, through this Friday and in Boston, at the Somerville Theater, through next week.

For more info on upcoming screening, check out their official site.