(Carson, CA) — “Portals,” the global public art initiative created by Shared Studios, has chosen California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) as its new Los Angeles location, starting Nov. 14 through the end of the fall 2017 semester. “Portals” are mobile art installations housed in gold painted shipping containers equipped with immersive audio-visual technology, which enables participants to engage in live and full-bodied Criminal Justice Dialogues and other conversations with people in identical shipping containers across the globe.
WHEN: The portal will be open Nov. 14 through the end of the fall 2017 semester, Monday-Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (please check the website for schedule changes and updates).
WHERE: The portal is adjacent to the University Theatre at CSUDH. The university is located at 1000 E Victoria Street, Carson, CA 90747. Click here for directions and a printable campus map.
TO RSVP: To reserve a 20-minute time slot in the portal visit www.sharedstudios.com/losangeles. Email la@sharedstudios.com for information regarding specific programming, individuals, classes and groups. Walk-in participants are also encouraged, and must be 18 years of age or older.
The goal of “Portals” is to amplify the voices of individuals and communities directly affected by police violence, and whose perspectives are too often missing from conversations on this critical issue. Open to the general public and the campus community, the Los Angeles Portal will connect visitors with participants across the globe to engage in conversations, primarily as part of Criminal Justice Dialogues. Individuals and groups may also reserve time in the portal to discuss social issues not related to criminal justice.
“Portals” dialogues were initiated and funded by Yale University’s Justice Collaboratory and the MacArthur Foundation, and make up a growing collection of conversations between persons in highly policed communities–including Newark, Milwaukee, Baltimore, South Chicago, and Mexico City. Portal conversations are recorded, anonymized, and analyzed by noted scholars and professors Tracey Meares and Vesla Weaver at Yale University. Weaver co-authored “Arresting Citizenship: The Democratic Consequences of American Crime Control.” Meares was a member of the Task Force on 21st Century Policing, founded by former President Barack Obama.
The Los Angeles Portal is hosted by PRAXIS and its founder Devon Tsuno, assistant professor of Art and Design at CSUDH. PRAXIS is an extracurricular, cross-disciplinary art engagement program, which brings artists, designers, students, and community members together to explore the history, social conditions, neighborhoods, and storylines of South Los Angeles.
