We Players’ first 2011 exhibition opening on Alcatraz focused on aesthetically presenting factual information about our current prison system in the United States. On Saturday, January 29th, We Players and the National Park Service presented live music and a talk with artist Paul Rucker, as well as screenings of his video Proliferation, in our gallery space inside the Alcatraz Cell House.
On display in the Alcatraz Cell House Gallery January 29 – April 2
- Hamlet route map and journey summary
- Hamlet rehearsal and performance images
- Puppets and banners created by Anna Martine Whitehead and artists on probation and parole at the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department
PROLIFERATION
In May of 2009 Paul Rucker was honored to be part of a Prison Issues residency at the Blue Mountain Center. Amazing artists and activists from around the world provided over two weeks of inspiration, knowledge, and camaraderie. While doing individual research, he happened upon some maps created by Rose Heyer that showed the growth of the US Prison system. With that information, he was inspired to create Proliferation, an animated mapping of the US Prison system set to original music.
View Proliferation on YouTube
If you would like to receive a free copy of the Proliferation DVD, email your name and address to paulrucker@gmail.com.
Paul Rucker is an interdisciplinary artist (cellist-bassist-composer-visual artist-creator of interactive sound/ video installations). Rucker has released two critically acclaimed CDs of his compositions, and he composes new music presented in a way that allows the viewer-listener the opportunity to interact with the work (participants can trigger sounds with the wave of a hand, touch of a finger, or press of a button). Paul’ s pieces have been on display at high-profile galleries and conventions, and he has received numerous grants and has been awarded residencies to several prestigious arts centers worldwide. As a musician and director, Rucker plays in various situations from solo cellist to leading his LARGE ENSEMBLE of twenty-two musicians. Visit www.paulrucker.com for more information.
Hamlet Outreach
Anna Martine Whitehead and artists on probation and parole at the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department created puppets and banners in three months of collaborative workshops in summer 2010. Anna is a movement and media artists who uses puppets to engage forgotten histories and ignored realities. In this collaboration with We Players, Anna brought the Alcatraz project themes of incarceration, isolation, justice and redemption to the amazing artists from the Sheriff’s Department. These poignant themes from Alcatraz history and the Hamlet story are central in the daily lives of these artists living on probation and parole. Creating these pieces allowed the artists to express their personal connection with the themes, and continue their own journey towards freedom. This project was made possible through generous support from the Student Grant Program of the California College of the Arts Center for Art and Public Life.
