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Hosted by Jack Pavia & Romney Donald, Community Ties dives into conversations with people who have vision, drive, and passion, and choose to invest it in Norwalk. Presented by Nancy on Norwalk, the podcast looks to highlight the stories of people, businesses, and organizations in Norwalk.
Welcome to Community Ties, a
Nancy on Norwalk podcast.
I'm your host, Romney Donald, a
parent, community advocate, and
licensed therapist serving
marginalized communities.
Through this podcast, I want to
elevate diverse perspectives and
voices within Norwalk, voices
that too often go unheard, and
createspace for authentic
conversations about our shared
experiences, challenges, and
hopes for the future.
My goal is to build stronger
connections across our city by
highlighting the people and
stories that make Norwalk
unique.
And before we begin, I want to
thank the team at Nancy on
Norwalk for supporting this
initiative and helping bring
these conversations to life.
With that being said, let's
begin.
One of the things I love most
about Norwalk is how creativity
shows up in everyday life.
From the Visual Arts Pathway at
Norwalk High School to the art
classes offered at the Triangle
Community Center, and even to
the Norwalk Art Space, these
programs make art accessible to
young people and neighbors all
across town.
In October 2024, Norwalk
received official recognition
from the State of Connecticut as
an Arts and Cultural District, a
designation granted by the
Connecticut Office of the Arts
and the Department of Economic
and Community Development.
This recognition highlights the
city's vibrant creative
ecosystem, encompassing public
art installations, galleries,
theaters, and performance
spaces.
The district aims to promote
local artists, foster community
engagement, and drive economic
growth through cultural
initiatives.
A notable feature of this
designation was the
establishment of an Arts and
Culture Commission to manage and
oversee the district's
activities, ensuring its
continued development and
success.
In this episode, I'm joined by
Norwalk native and artist
Jemaine.
His work spans painting,
photography, fashion, and large
scale murals, weaving together
themes of spirituality,
mythology, and social awareness.
You might remember his name from
the recent Eli Ave.
Mural project, where he was
among the artists being
considered.
While the process raised
questions about fairness and
community voice, today's
conversation explores that
moment.
We'll also get into Jermaine's
artistic journey, what inspires
him, and how art can strengthen
communities.
With all of that in mind, I'm
excited to share my very first
podcast recording with you.
I'm grateful to Jermaine for
being my first guest, and I hope
you enjoy this conversation as
much as I did.
So, Jermaine, yes, thank you for
joining me today.
Thank you for having me.
This is again, my very first
podcast recording, and I can't
think of a better way of
starting than by speaking with
someone who has been creating
art in Norwalk for years.
Jemaine, can you share a little
bit about your journey, your
background, where you're from
and what first drew you into
making art?
Well, my journey as an artist
started at a very young age.
I guess some of my background
and where I'm from, I was born
in Norwalk.
I grew up in rooting a court,
which is 261 Ely Ave.
coincidentally, that this is
where, you know, the mural that
you spoke about is happening on
that street.
And I got, I got into art, you
know, early as, as a, a young
sort of up and coming hip hop
appreciator of the time.
Do you know, as hip hop was
developing early in the late
70s, early 80s, being so close
to like the Bronx in New York,
we got a lot of the developments
as it was happening coming out
of the Bronx.
You know, a lot of the, the
music, the dance, the style of
dress, all of that as it was
developing, us being so close,
we were getting a lot of the
trends as it was happening.
So that inspired me at A, at an
early age to, to want to explore
more street art culture and, and
St. culture.
So I got bit by the graffiti
bug, you know, at a, at a young
age, at a time when when, you
know, graffiti was still
graffiti, it was still like an
outlaw culture and you shouldn't
be doing it.
And, you know, you're out late
at night, you know, but it was
all, you know, under the, you
know, or for the sake of
expressing yourself and being a
part of this, like I said, this
developing culture that, you
know, all, all of your your
peers and everybody was involved
in.
So from, you know, being
inspired by graffiti, that got
me into doing art and sort of
exploring different styles of
art.
You know, as a graffiti artist,
one of the things you want to do
is be unique.
You know, you don't want to, you
know, unlike now, a lot of
people trying to be the same,
look the same and dress the
same.
But during those times, it was
about being unique and having
different styles that nobody
else was doing.
So that sets you apart from the
other artists that was putting
stuff up on the walls.
Because once again, this is
almost like the Wild West of
street art, you know, like when
you put your stuff up on a wall,
you wanted to get respect.
You wanted people to like your
art so much that they didn't go
over it, you know, So the better
your style was, the more, you
know, respect you got and the
longer your art would stay up.
So it caused me to start
studying other farm forms of art
at an early age, you know, so
being inspired by graffiti, but
then still going to the library
and picking out books on like
modern art and like, you know,
Picasso and, and Andy Warhol
and, you know, a lot of pop art
and studying art, you know,
almost as a student that that
wasn't in the art class, but we
almost created our own art
classes to try to educate
ourselves about different styles
of art.
So that that really sparked, you
know, just my interest in in
developing even beyond graffiti,
you know, to getting into, you
know, what people might call
more fine art and, you know,
doing work on canvases and, you
know, different stuff that
wasn't necessarily street art.
And then there was a cross sort
of pollination of taking the
graffiti and stuff that we were
doing and then put it on clothes
and creating like Jean jackets
and pants and stuff like that
that were popular in the early
80s.
So that sort of, you know,
sparked just my interest in
wanting to do fashion and being
a part of fashion.
So it was just, you know, just a
whole, the hodgepodge of
different, you know, just art,
music, fashion that was
happening and developing in
those times.
And I just been running with it
ever since.
OK, wow, that is pretty
inspirational.
And Speaking of like themes of
inspiration, what, what would
you say inspires because I saw,
you know, the theme of
spirituality, mythology, social
awareness in your work.
Are there any specific like
stories or experiences or
artists that shape that style
for you?
It will will once again like
being being in that that time
of, of the the early development
of of of hip hop culture.
There was also like, you know,
the infusion of information that
happened.
You know, it was, you know, you
came from, you know, just, you
know, studying our history, you,
you know, come from like, you
know, the civil rights era and
then, you know, people marching
and people, you know, standing
up and, you know, demanding
their rights and then using art
and music.
You know, from James Brown to
Aretha Franklin to, you know,
Marvin Gaye, you know,
everything that we do as a
people, we sort of find a way to
to use every aspect.
So from, you know, from music to
writing to, you know, everything
to feed into what we want to
achieve as a people.
So in getting involved in in art
and music at the time, it was
sort of like a renaissance.
You know, you had the public
enemies, the KRS ones, you had
consciousness was coming through
music, coming back to music at
that time.
And that really sparked, you
know, just the interest in
wanting to know what these
people were talking about.
You know, when Chuck D talked
about, you know, Joanne Chester
martyr, you know, you know,
which is a side of Shakur,
which, you know, rest in peace
and side of she just passed
away, you know, So when people
said certain things and certain
songs, it made you want to go
and study and figure out what
they're talking about.
You know, even he would get
stuff in history books.
So, you know, there was common
knowledge.
But at that time, it was more
like about finding out more
about what these people were
talking about and then putting
it in, in your daily lives, you
know, So when people talking
about, you know, Elijah Muhammad
and how to eat to live and, and
you took these things and it's
like, OK, well, I want to make
this a part of my life, you
know, so it made you want to
study, made you want to eat
different.
We started studying, you know,
like Rastafarian culture, you
know, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh.
It made us, you know, stop
wanting to eat certain foods,
you know, So all of this is
happening in conjunction with
becoming an artist.
So a lot of that stuff filtered
into the art that I was
creating, you know, so it wasn't
just about doing graffiti is
about OK creating a peace that
might spark some consciousness
that another artist might see
and, and getting inspired from.
So, you know, inspiration really
came from, from, you know, from
the music, from the music, you
know, spurring us to go and
study and find out more about
who we were as people.
Well, that that's pretty
revealing.
That's I appreciate you
providing that context because
as we sit here and in the times
that we're in, art has a special
way of coming and, you know,
providing an expression that
maybe people might not have the
proper words, but the vision to
share.
And so that's really important
and considering vision and how
people process art.
When people are encountering
your work specifically, whether
it's like in a gallery or on a
wall somewhere on or on the
clothing you mentioned, what do
you hope they walk away feeling
or or thinking?
I mean, to be honest, it depends
on the mood I'm in when I'm
creating.
I mean, I off the top, I, I like
people to be stimulated.
You know, I don't necessarily do
stuff just to get a knee jerk
reaction or just to, you know,
go over the top just so people
can have something to talk
about.
I mean, most of the stuff,
everything I create is really a
part of me.
So I, I use that as a baseline.
Is that like the work that
creates represents me as a
person.
So even if I'm not in the room,
that work is going to speak from
for me.
Now, now that I have this
platform, like, what do I want
to say?
You know, I mean, sometimes, you
know, I have a lot of different
collections.
So sometimes, you know, I may,
you know, create a piece of art
that's that's abstracts more
shapes and colors.
But even within that, you know,
there's a thought of like, you
know, what colors do I want to
use or what shapes do I want to
use to sort of, you know, draw
people into the piece.
Or there's something that's just
more pronounced where there's a
face or something and somebody's
doing something that, you know,
it's more representational that,
you know, you get the obvious
piece when you see it, But then
there might be deeper layers in
the piece, you know, once you've
studied the piece.
But I mean, overall, I like
people to be stimulated.
You know, like, like I always
say, like art is really for
people's eyes and minds.
Like after you see a nice piece
of art, you have that that
ability to then have a
conversation with a person like,
you know, visually and with
their mind.
So why waste it, you know, to
just make a piece of art but
then not really say anything.
It's like, OK, you have that
potential to take it deeper.
OK.
That makes a lot of sense.
And kind of segueing from that,
as far as like art in public
spaces, recently there was the
Eli Ave. mural process in your
artwork was in the top two of
the running.
Can you talk a little bit about
what drew you to submit your art
or your work for the Eli Ave.
Mural project here in Norwalk?
Well, like I said, once again,
for me, it was a no brainer.
I mean, it was, it's a, a mural
that's going up on the street
that I, I grew up on that
particular part of the street.
I, you know, where I grew up was
sort of further up the street,
but we used to make Pilgrim
pilgrimages down to that part of
the street because you had
Burton Brothers, which was like
a corner store.
And it's a, you know, well known
family, black-owned business,
you know, from way back in the
days, I used to sell penny
candies and all types of stuff.
And then, you know, you had the
floor Rios, which was like the
fruit spot.
So, you know, we had a little
corner store by by where we grew
up.
But when once you got down
there, it was just like a
plethora of different, you know,
little stores and things going
on in that part of the street.
So for me, when, when I saw the
call, you know, it was a no
brainer.
I had to submit because I
already had things in mind that
I want to capture and reflect,
you know, on the mural that
would go in that area.
Because to me, it's more than
just once again, putting up a, a
pretty piece of art or just
putting up art.
It's more about capturing, you
know, the, the cultural currency
that exists within these
neighborhoods.
You know, and especially in, in
this day and time with so much
being erased, excuse me, so much
being erased and so much, you
know, for lack of a better term,
whitewashing going on.
It's like we need to really, you
know, protect what happens in
our neighborhoods and and for
the future, protect our stories,
protect our legacies.
You know, so with public art, I
mean, especially stuff that goes
in particular neighborhoods.
I mean, if it's just sort of a
random, you know, open space,
then you know, have at it.
You can pull whatever.
But I think once you start to
interact within certain
neighborhoods where there's a
history of culture that happens
in the in those neighborhoods,
you need to be more sensitive
with the artwork that that goes
up.
So, so yeah, so like I said,
when when I saw it was a call,
you know, for a mural for that
space or like definitely because
I already have something that I
would want to put up anyway, so.
Yeah, and, you know, obviously,
you know, the recently the mural
process itself sparked some
frustration with residents in
the city calling the city's
voting system flawed.
As an artist who was part of the
process, what's your perspective
on how that played out?
I'm, I'm sort of, I'm, I'm not
torn because I mean, 11 I'm an
artist 2, you know, I'm also a
curator.
I'm also somebody that has, you
know, curated and, you know,
I've owned the gallery and I
understand the process of, of
picking art and, and trying to
find the best fit for certain
things.
However, that this process just
just seemed a little bit
different.
I mean, even from the, the AI
controversy that happened and
then now the voting thing, it
still just seems like, you know,
there there should be a, a, a
system in place that could be,
like I said, a lot more
sensitive to particular art that
goes in particular areas,
especially when, you know, you
do a lot of the, the pre
curation as far as like picking
art that you think will go in
this space.
But then you sort of open it up
to just sort of unguided, you
know, voting and then the
decision becomes that.
So it's like, you know, how are
you trusted to make sure the
right thing happens?
But then you just leave it open
for whoever.
And then that becomes the final
word, you know.
So I mean, just as an artist, I
feel like that that is something
that that should really be
reviewed and and considered, you
know?
Absolutely.
And you know, speaking to that,
if Norwalk or any city truly
wants public art to reflect
community voices, what would a
more equitable process look
like?
And I mean, you just kind of
talked about it a little bit,
but if you could elaborate what
you feel like in your view, what
would that process look like if
it was more equitable?
I think it's just the the the
pre due diligence, you know, I
mean, especially, you know, once
again, going back to particular
neighborhoods, whether you have,
you know, neighborhood
ambassadors or people that you
could more so discuss with
directly, maybe even before
picking like the final three.
In this case, it was like a
final three, but you know, we
don't know how many people, you
know, piece were were submitted.
But then, you know, those final
three might even or or before
you pick those final three, like
all the artwork may be vetted
through certain community
ambassadors.
So have that discussion
beforehand before you sort of
get the artist involved that
submit some stuff that might not
even work, but then it still
gets picked to possibly go into
the final.
And then, you know, then just
the the general community or, or
just the general public can vote
on it.
But a lot of this public don't
even, you know, they don't
understand the importance of
having that match up with the
communities.
They're just liking it because,
hey, I like it.
But you could like something
that doesn't necessarily fit in
a certain community, you know,
you know, if you want to
consider that now, if you just
want to go around putting a
public or anywhere, then then
have at it.
But you can't do this.
And then when the public comes
back and says, you know, we
don't like it, then it's like,
you know, what are you going to
do about that?
Yeah, definitely.
Would you.
So first, thank you for sharing
that.
And you know, we'll, we'll keep
monitoring how the city responds
and certain art commissions and
common council members, how
people get involved in, in
making sure that this process is
more equitable going forward.
From a bigger picture
perspective, how has being from
Norwalk shaped your perspective
as an artist and community
member?
It's interesting because I
travel a lot.
I mean, I'm, I definitely claim
Norwalk and I, I've done a lot
of work and all, but you know,
like I travel, you know, around
the world, around the country,
you know, I do a lot of
Commission work in other places,
you know, so it's sort of
interesting to see how, you
know, sometimes other places,
you know, sometimes you get more
love from where you're not from
type of thing, you know, or it
just seems like things might
work a little bit smoother, you
know, in other places.
And then in your hometown,
sometimes a lot of red tape, you
know, more involvement when it's
time to do with what you want to
do for your hometown.
You know, So, I mean, so you, so
you get a lot of that.
But I think also a, a great town
is a great place to, to, to rest
in, you know, nice proximity to
New York and Boston if you want
to go anywhere.
So it's a great place for that.
But, you know, you know, I think
it's still, we're still
developing even as far as, you
know, the, the public art thing,
which I'll always have sort of a
conversation with artists about
how public art develops in
certain places.
It seems like a lot of places
where you have public art that
runs wild, you have a lot of
graffiti and a lot of just, you
know, unfiltered street art.
Like sometimes you sort of need
that in order for the public to
understand how quote, UN quote,
public art should be something
that is just it's presented to
the public, but it's not
controlled by the public
sometimes.
And then sometimes the public
sort of has a digesting grow
with work and then it starts to
create, you know, the fabric of
the arts culture in those areas
because it had to grow on you.
It wasn't something that was was
totally, you know, sanctioned by
arts Commission or, you know,
because sometimes when you get
that, then it's like, well,
who's controlling what
creativity is, You know, as
opposed to artists just being
like, hey, this is what I feel.
I'm gonna go put it on the wall.
And y'all deal with it, how you
deal with it, you know, and, you
know, a lot of cities,
especially like sort of suburban
cities, they, they clean it or
buff it a little bit too quick.
Whereas in, you know, when you
go to certain places, you see a
lot of art and some you may
like, some may you may not, but
it still contributes to the
fabric of, of that, you know,
creative society or whatever.
But so I don't think NOG has
really had a chance to really go
through that.
I mean, even like back in my
early days when we were, you
know, tagging and doing a lot of
graffiti, it was still in
certain parts, Like we would tag
the train area, tag certain
stuff, but it wasn't like all
over the city to where as it was
like, OK, well, this is just
it's just a mass amount of
public art.
So we have to deal with it.
It was just like it grew in
little, little parts.
But now it's sort of like
everything is sanctioned.
So it's hard to understand like,
you know, who's deciding what
goes up and the public itself,
you know, if, if it's all sort
of, you know, sort of
streamlined and the public
itself doesn't have like a
breath of different types of
art.
It's just what comes through
different opinions, you know
what I'm saying?
But I think it's still it's
still great potential.
I mean, especially now, you
know, with with a lot of
different people moving to the
area and and the face of the ark
is changing now.
So you know you have that
potential for it to grow.
Yeah.
Do you mind sharing like a
project or a piece you've
created that feels especially
meaningful to you and why?
Well, I, I have like this, this
collection of work that I've
been doing.
It's called, you know, it's sort
of overarching title.
It's called fabric of the city
and it's the whole, the
direction of of the park.
The public art installations is
inspired by G's band, you know,
quilts and quilt making and just
the history of of G's band, you
know, quilters that, you know,
started as you know, you know,
sharecroppers or ex slaves turn
to sharecroppers that that lived
in in G's band Alabama.
And a lot of what they did was
more so, you know, it was quilt
making, but it was about taking,
you know, used fabrics and stuff
like that, creating stuff that
was really designed for
survival.
But just in whether it was
conscious or subconscious, they
created these abstract,
modernist, big bold graphic, you
know, quilts that then became
recognized by, you know, MoMA
and, and all these other places,
especially now it's getting a
lot of attention.
But, but I've always been
inspired by the concept of, you
know, taking something that was
sort of scraps and really used
for survival, But then just
everything in your spirit and
just from, you know, what you
were creating a masterful piece
of art, you know, And a lot of
times I sort of sort of parallel
it with graffiti with like, you
know, kids just taking a spray
can or taking markers and stuff
like that and stuff that was
sort of like utilitarian and
then creating art with it, you
know, and those two worlds sort
of inspired me to create this,
this particular art installation
concept.
That is so profound.
Thank you.
That's very, very profound.
I love the connection with the
history.
I mean, there's always
connections with history.
Yeah.
Who cannot let that stuff go.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Got to preserve it, yeah.
And, and, and I think, you know,
just being able to do that or
just doing a couple different
installations, you know, in
Bridgeport particularly, it just
gave me the platform to sort of
explore, you know, like how that
would look in, in public art
spaces, You know, 'cause you
know, at a time where, you know,
a lot of people are sort of
doing, you know, faces and
things that, you know, big stuff
that people can just
automatically identify with.
You know, I, I want to do
something that was like
installations that may not, you
know, that's more abstract that
you may not just get it off the
top, but once you learn the
history about it, like you would
appreciate it more.
Absolutely, absolutely.
So Jermaine, what's next for
you?
Any projects shows collaboration
that you're excited about?
It's always something next.
I don't, I don't know what's
what's not not next.
I mean, I'm constantly working
on on, you know, collections for
my own studio practice a couple
different, you know, Commission.
I'm always working on like, you
know, commissions and working
with interior designers.
So there's always stuff, stuff
coming up.
I would just say, you know, just
check out my my Instagram and my
my website to see, you know,
what I have coming up next.
One collaboration was just cool.
I'm going to do a pop up with a
spot called main squeeze and
Bridgeport, the juice bar.
Those are those are my guys
always open up a juice bar.
And once again, just based on,
you know, my way of life and my
sort of natural as much as I can
be lifestyle, you know, I'm
into, you know, vegetarian.
Well, I'm up.
I eat a little bit of fish, but
I'm mostly a vegetarian.
But, you know, just just being
into that that lifestyle, you
know, of health and trying to
keep yourself fit.
So we're going to do a
collaboration with Maine Squeeze
that's coming up later this
month, and just just constantly
working on stuff.
That's amazing.
I'm looking forward to that.
I haven't made it to me and
Squeeze yet, but I see it all
over the feed and I will be
there.
Yeah, yeah, definitely.
I can't wait.
And then for our our listeners,
especially young or emerging
artists in Norwalk, what advice
would you give them about
staying true to their voice and
finding their path in the art
world?
Which is an interesting question
because I work with a lot of
artists.
So I just know, I know a lot of
like young, young artists and,
and it's strange, I know like
children of artists that I've
come up with.
So we're like, you know, a
couple generations deep.
And I feel like now with
technology, I'm getting at a lot
of like young artists are, are,
are finding it hard to find
their foothold, you know,
because you're almost you're
competing with AI and all this
computer generated stuff.
And then it's like there's so
much out there, you know, so
you're seeing, you know, art
from everywhere, from Spain,
from Portugal, you know, from
all, all around the world so
that, you know, there's so much
art, you know, filtering into
your influence and how you go
about creating.
So some, you know, a lot of kids
are finding hard to find out,
you know, or, or find their
direction to find their
identity.
And my advice would be to just
do that first to try to, you
know, just block everything out
and find something that you're
really passionate in some
direction, you know, regardless
of what medium you create, you
know, don't don't get stuck on
just one medium either.
You know, you can work in a lot
of different mediums, but I
still find something that you're
passionate about and stick with
that and block everything else
out and really focus on your
craft, you know, not necessarily
be influenced by everybody
else's so-called success.
Because that's another thing.
It's like, you know, people are
not taking the time to to fail
and then come back and fail
again and come back.
It's like you fail one time and
then I said I just quit.
It's hopeless, you know, like
there's always another side.
You know what I'm saying?
So just, but just definitely
stick with what you do and stick
with your craft and then
everything else will fall in
line.
OK, I, I, you did say like your
website where you know, people
can see what's next for you, but
can you please officially plug
how people can follow your work?
What is your website and how
they you know so that they can
support what you're doing
Website, Instagram for that.
OK, well, my website is Art of
Jemaine, ARTOFJA hmane.com.
And then my Instagram is just at
Jermaine Arts.
No, no, at Art of Jermaine.
OK, my Jermaine arts is my
e-mail for one thing.
But yeah, so at Art of Jermaine
on Instagram and then everything
else sort of falls in line.
I think I have TikTok and
everything, but all that's like
streamline.
Those are the main the the main
to artofjermaine.com and Art of
Jermaine on Instagram.
OK.
Well, Jermaine, it was such a
pleasure to thank you talk with
you today.
I just want to thank you so much
for sharing your story just
being here.
So thank you.
Thank you.
I appreciate the support.
I mean, I think this is your
first of many great shows and
I'm going to be listening to
myself.
Thank you so much.
This episode of Community Ties
wouldn't have been possible
without the work of the board of
Nancy on Norwalk, especially
Justin Matley, Shawn Fox, and
Ashley RK Smith.
A special shout out to Jack
Pavia for his support and
helping me feel confident in
recording my very first podcast.
Nancy on Norwalk is powered by
its donors who support keeps the
organization's lights on.
Thank you so much to Jermaine
for coming on the show and
sharing your story.
Access to the recording
equipment was provided by the
Westport Library's Verso
Studios.
With a special thanks to Travis
Bell for showing me how it all
works.
If you're interested in audio,
music, or podcasting, I highly
recommend checking out the
resources that the Westport
Library offers.
Always support your public
libraries.
And to everyone listening, thank
you for tuning in.