Today we’d like to introduce you to Queen Muhammad Ali & Hakeem Khaaliq.
Queen & Hakeem, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
My Great Grandfather is Paramount Chief (King) Tuli Le’iato of American Samoa and my husband Hakeem is the great-nephew to prominent photographer Addison N. Scurlock. We merge conceptual art practices steeped in Activism, Edutainment, and Visual Anthropology. Hakeem and I operate as both an artist collective and a television/film production company, (Nation19), our projects are frequently anchored in Hip Hop Culture and our own ethnographic research.
We have filmed in 7 countries and lectured in universities and organizations around the world, including the Confucius Institute in Beijing China, MoMA, Tiapapata Art Centre in Apia Samoa, ASU and the Glasgow Short Film Festival, among others. Our work has been featured on Univision Television (Mexico), Radio New Zealand, CNN, BET, MTV, Samoa News, and Ebony Magazine, to name a few.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
We are filmmakers, multidisciplinary artists, and visual anthropologists. The core of our work is to demystify preconceived notions about Indigenous and Black communities around the globe.
What do you think it takes to be successful as an artist?
There are so many opportunities for artists not only locally, but nationally and internationally. The Arizona Commission on the Arts is a great resource for artists that can help an obtain funding for their work. Our award-winning exhibit “Invisible Mexico” became a reality because of them.
As visual anthropologists and artists, we realize the importance of images and how they affect the worlds view and understanding of people. Artists represent and sometimes set the tone of a culture. Artists are one of the most important elements of a culture besides women and economics. My advice to artists is to study your history for inspiration and don’t try to keep up with what’s popular. Be original, and you will stand out.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Currently our augmented reality installation exhibit “Invisible Mexico” is exhibiting at the Arizona Community Foundation (https://twitter.com/AZFoundation/status/1050546101265154048) as a solo six month long exhibition it runs there till April 2019.
#Bars4Justice is available in several Universities and Libraries across the country.
Our online store supports our research and work. Check it out and buy something at shop.nation19.com
Contact Info:
- Website: shop.nation19.com
- Phone: 6026425864
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nation19/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/19apdta/
Image Credit:
queen_and_hakeem_med.jpg : Khaliq Muhammad (Temple of Inscriptions, Palenque Mexico.
IMG_6552.jpg : Celeste Smith (Bogota, Columbia )
IMG_0863-2_ASU_tempe.jpg : Kershon Muhammad (ASU Tempe)
IMG_0142_us.jpg : Kershon Muhammad (ASU West )
bars4justice_poster_NIGHT : Hakeem Khaaliq ( Ferguson, Missouri)
bars4justice_poster_DAY.jpg : (Ferguson, Missouri )
Getting in touch: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
