Artwork IS ACTIVISM: Documenting record with neighborhood artist Robbie Lee Harris

This is the 3rd and closing installment of Selena Kuikahi’s “Art IS ACTIVISM” sequence. Read portion a single and two on the Every day Wildcat web page.

The decay of a work’s relevancy is a common worry amongst fashionable-working day creatives. Soon after all, it’s the buzz that fuels longevity, at the very least in the common feeling. Our third and remaining artist of the mini-sequence, however, hopes that his operate is left as a blip in our socio-political timeline. Robbie Lee Harris explained that his “[U]ltimate objective is that we get to a position the place my mural does not make sense.” 

Harris putting the ending touches on his mural. Photo courtesy of Robbie Lee Harris (@blame_it_on_robb)

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From Anchorage, Alaska to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Harris’ inventive qualities are just as adaptive as his people skills. Starting up his resourceful journey at the age of 5, he started drawing with his childhood good friend Chris and hasn’t place the pen down considering that. Pyrography, graphic style and design and painting are just a handful of of his fortes. Not to point out that this is a family members work, as he regards his daughters as design and style professionals — and conditioning coordinators.

Harris recalled final May and the recurrence of social and political tension encompassing recent accounts of law enforcement brutality. That thirty day period, and many pursuing, identified as people today from all walks of everyday living to phase up in any way they could. For Harris, this intended placing his items to function.

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Thoughtfully brushed on the facet of the Rialto Theater is Harris’ mural. Humbly, the artist thanked fellow Tucson artist Joe Pagac for the possibility, as effectively as Hard cash Lansky  for relaying the original information to him. 

“[Pagac] felt compelled to do one thing for the Black Life Issue motion,” stated Harris. “He required to give local artists a prospect to do some thing large so they could express themselves, and that he would assistance out in any way that they required.” 

The timing of this prospect was best for Harris, as if his internal call to motion had manifested alone. 

“It was pretty significantly heaven-sent,” Harris stated. “I was torn up emotionally. I was angry and annoyed. It’s weird becoming in that position where you want to help but you really do not know what you can do.” 

In hours of observing the article, Harris contacted Pagac and the collaboration was underway.

“I promptly drafted a layout but my daughter didn’t like it so we scrapped it,” joked Harris. “In the center of the evening, I bought the plan of the younger girl blowing out the dandelion and sent the rough draft above to [Pagac].”

The following day Harris and Pagac set up store on the side of the Rialto. 

“I did the important component of the younger woman and her blowing out the dandelion,” discussed Rob. “[Pagac] went forward and sketched out the lettering for me and we very considerably met in the center of the afro.” 

Engrossed in teamwork and artistic enthusiasm, the two didn’t move absent from the wall until finally the last hour. 

“The perform flew by,” Harris recalled. “We have been just hauling away acquiring a superior discussion and laughing. Right before we understood it a few several hours experienced absent by and we lastly took a move back again to seem at it.” 

Tucson. Ariz. — Closeup picture of Robbie Lee Harris’s mural found at 318 E Congress Street. Photo courtesy of Selena Kuikahi.  

“Seeing my drawing on this big wall was awesome,” Harris explained. 

Harris expressed the amount of gratitude he felt in that minute that came from a spot of both of those relief and honor. 

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“Ultimately, I preferred to do a little something for the community that was optimistic,” Harris mentioned. “Being equipped to attain that was a substantial pounds off of my shoulders.” 

The muralist expanded on this experience by referring to a quote by comedian Richard Pryor. 

“Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolfman, the Invisible Man, and Hercules never scare me … . What scares me is that one particular day my son will question me, ‘What did you do, daddy, when the sh*t was heading down?’”

It’s that closing question that motivated Harris to advocate applying his talents. 

“Now I have my minimal claim in historical past to show my daughters. I can convey to them that when almost everything started out finding silly yet again, this is the place your dad stood. This is what father did. I can firmly say that I stood up for anything proper,” Harris claimed.

On the original Instagram write-up of the mural, Harris’ caption expressed the socio-political intention driving the piece. Thoughtfully said, it reads, “I hope the image provokes expansion in our environment and working day to day life.” 

Collage of the Tucson community displaying their aid of Harris’s mural. Photo courtesy of Robbie Lee Harris (@blame_it_on_robb)

Harris wished it to be recognised that there is even now a lot of work to be done. 

“We never ever get any place without having talking very first — my mural is there to provoke discussion,” Harris claimed. 

The structure of the mural was also extremely intentional. 

“I desired to place up something innocent sufficient that most men and women would question what the problem is in the first put,” Harris explained. “I want any individual to wander all around the corner and inquire ‘Why is this youthful woman crying about equality? We have equality. We have justice.’ The over-all purpose that I want to attain is for that impression to not make sense.” 

In the situation of activism art, the intention is eventual inapplicability relatively than timelessness. 

Our artist puts it most effective, stating that “Art has always been a component of record, and it is an artist’s task is to replicate our time interval. More men and women are heading to appear at the photos rather than read the e book,” Harris joked. “Our position as artists is to convey what’s likely on and give a stage of perspective.”

Harris reported that he desires the group to remember that the get the job done is not done. 

“Black Lives Subject is not just a Black person’s problem,” Harris explained. “[Racial injustice and inequality] are rooted much further than one particular man or woman, 1 function, a single calendar year.” 

Harris stated that he hopes that this is the life span in which we refuse to repeat the long heritage of violence and oppression that is engrained in our culture. 

Considering that the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, the fatalities that sparked the resurgence of BLM protests, a lot of have taken it on themselves to get much more included in local community outreach, schooling and other initiatives. Sadly, there have been quite a few scenarios of law enforcement brutality pursuing the summertime. Jonathan Rate, Marcellis Stinnette, Honest Pierce, Angelo Crooms and Casey Goodson are just a few men and women that have had their lives taken by legislation enforcement officers because Oct. Development is development, but as Harris mentioned, there is even now operate to be accomplished. 

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“We’re also sensible,” Harris stated. 

Harris remaining us with some text of encouragement: “We have way too numerous applications and much too much skill for things to retain going like this. To anybody that feels compelled by something they’ve found, the work’s not completed. Retain going.”

Writer’s be aware: In a current webinar with the UA’s Global Experiential Learning (GEL), Harris shared that he is currently waiting around for approval on two probable murals and is doing work on his particular jobs. 


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Selena Kuikahi (she/her) is a senior researching each movie and tv and regulation.