Cultural organizing and arts activism have continued to weave themselves into Levana’s entire life – mostly in the form of community based cheap art. Cheap Art ( inspired by Bread and Puppet Theater’s Manifesto) uses other peoples’ waste and life around us, like mud, to make art with groups of people. Here are some snippets:
Cast of puppets for El Teatro Campesino’s Popul Vuh
POPOL VUH In 2010-2011 Levana worked as the Puppet Designer and Puppet Director for El Teatro Campesino’s Popul Vuh – Puppet construction included the Mayan gods: Heart of Sky, Xpiyococ, Xmucane, Gucumatz, 7 Macaw (Vucub Caquix), Cabracan, Zipacna, Gukumatz (Quetzalcoatl), Hunahpu and Xbalanque – as well as Parrots, Deer, Mud people, Corn people and Wood people.
- Watch the video here
Zipacna, 7 Macaw, and Cabrakan Masks made of paper mache, using a mold sculpted from clay
Xmucane & Xpiyococ. Paper mache over molded sculpted in clay
One of the corn people! Head made of paper mache over wire and clay mold
Grandmother – Xmucane, unpainted. paper mache over clay mold
OCCUPY OAKLAND – GENERAL STRIKE FLASHMOB “I WILL SURVIVE CAPITALISM” Created with “What Rhymes with Capitalism Flash Mob Collective
DETROIT – US SOCIAL FORUM – INCINERATOR PROTEST & ROC FLASHMOB Levana helped manage the art build space at both the US Social Forum building as well as off site. She coreographed and wrote the lyrics to a flashmob for the ROC, supported the development of many a sunflower, and created the Mayor Bing Mask for the pageant, pictured below
Theater performed near the incinerator, as a prefigurative intervention – our Mayor publicly announced that he would shut it down. Mask made from paper mache over a mold made from sculpting dirt in someone’s lawn.
Detroit Mayor mask mold. Supplies – shovel, water, someone’s lawn
Rehearsing for the ROC flashmob – “Bad Restaurant” sung to the tune of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance”. Cops came undercover to the rehearsal and thwarted our epic performance plans.
JEWISH MUSEUM EXHIBIT
Levana supported a group of anti-zionist Jewish activists in developing this bulldozer that includes flyers about greening occupied territories and donation cans for planting trees.
demonstration mask mold sculpting in dirt for the “It takes HeArt” community-led arts training for the People’s Climate March