Cauleen Smith facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cauleen Smith
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| Born | September 25, 1967 Riverside, CA
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| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Kelly Gabron |
| Occupation | Filmmaker, artist |
| Known for | Film |
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Notable work
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Drylongso |
| Awards | United States Artists Fellowship |
Cauleen Smith (born September 25, 1967) is an American filmmaker and artist who works with many types of media. She is famous for her movie Drylongso and for her art that explores the experiences of African-Americans, especially Black women. Smith is a professor in the Art Department at the University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA).
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Education
In 1991, Smith earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Cinema from San Francisco State University. As a student, she made several short films.
Later, in 1994, she started a Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) program at UCLA. While she was there, she decided to make a full-length movie called Drylongso. This was against the school's rules for students, but Smith worked hard to finish it. The movie received a lot of positive attention at the famous Sundance Film Festival. In 1998, she graduated from UCLA with her M.F.A. degree.
In 2007, she also attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine to continue learning and creating.
Famous Film: Drylongso
Drylongso was filmed while Smith was a student at UCLA. The story is set in Oakland, CA and is about a young African-American woman named Pica. Pica is on a mission to take photos of African-American men because she feels they are becoming an endangered group.
In the movie, Pica deals with challenges at home and with her friends. At the same time, a dangerous person is harming people in her neighborhood, including some of the men she has photographed. The film explores the serious issue of violence that affected many young Black men in Oakland. The title "Drylongso" is an old African-American expression that means "same old thing" or "everyday life."
The film was a big success at many film festivals. In 2000, it won Best Feature Film at the Urbanworld Festival, the Los Angeles Pan-African Film Festival, and the Philadelphia International Film Festival.
Art in Chicago
Smith spent time in Chicago creating art. In 2012, she had shows at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago and another gallery called ThreeWalls. She was also named an Outstanding Artist by the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture.
One of her famous projects in Chicago was an art installation called "17." It featured about 260 feet of wallpaper that she screen-printed by hand. The title was inspired by her research into the musician Sun Ra, who believed the number 17 had special spiritual meaning related to living on forever through art and culture.
In 2017, her work was part of a major art show called the Whitney Biennial. She created large, hand-stitched banners that hung from the ceiling. The banners were her response to seeing videos of police violence against Black people.
Art in Los Angeles
In 2018, Smith had an exhibit called "Give It or Leave It." The exhibit used films, objects, and installations to explore the ideas of four main inspirations:
- The musician Alice Coltrane and her spiritual community.
- A 1966 photoshoot at the Watts Towers in Los Angeles.
- The artist Noah Purifoy and his art in the desert.
- A Black spiritual leader named Rebecca Cox Jackson.
Through these inspirations, Smith created an art experience that imagined a world that was Black, feminist, and full of life. In 2019, her work was also shown at the LA Municipal Gallery in Barnsdall Art Park.
What is Afrofuturism?
Cauleen Smith is an important artist in a movement called Afrofuturism. Afrofuturism is a way of creating art that mixes science fiction, history, and fantasy. It uses these ideas to explore the lives of people of color.
Artists use Afrofuturism to think about difficult things from the past and to imagine hopeful futures. In an interview, Smith explained that she uses it to create stories about the past and future of the African diaspora (people of African descent living around the world). She said it helps her explore difficult memories and imagine what comes after them.
Selected Awards
Cauleen Smith has won many awards for her creative work. Here are a few of them:
- 2000: Independent Spirit Award, Someone to Watch Award
- 2001: Best Feature Film at Urbanworld Film Festival for Drylongso
- 2012: Outstanding Artist Award, National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture
- 2016: Herb Alpert Award in the Arts for Film and Video
- 2020: Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize from the Studio Museum in Harlem
- 2022: 27th Annual Heinz Award for the Arts
Film Preservation
In 2016, the Academy Film Archive preserved Smith's early film Chronicles of a Lying Spirit by Kelly Gabron. This means they took special steps to make sure the film will not be lost and can be watched by future generations.
