Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Staycee Pearl. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Staycee, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
For over 20 years, my husband & collaborator, Herman Pearl and I have been making art together. In 2012 we founded PearlArts Movement & Sound, a dynamic arts organization dedicated to honoring Black creativity through dance and sound. PearlArts supports both our own individual projects, as well as creates a community of movement and sound artists in Pittsburgh, PA. We had our own studio for several years, where we hosted works-in-progress showings and encouraged experimentation by the choreographers and musicians in Pittsburgh, NY, Massachusetts, Texas and across the country. In 2019, we were pushed out of this space by rapidly increasing rent, and we’ve relied on our friends and partner organizations to host our administrative staff while we’ve been on the hunt for a new space to call our own.
In early 2020, we were offered an opportunity to become a primary tenant in the newly renovated Braddock Arts & Media Building in Braddock, PA. We jumped at the opportunity and in Summer of this year, we will officially move into the building. As performers, we are taking a huge risk with this.
We are entering a neighborhood that has historically been underserved and under-resourced. The community is a former Steel Mill neighborhood, which has never been a center for arts and culture. But following the success of a few art organizations such as Unsmoke Systems and Barebones Productions, we have decided to make the leap.
In June of 2023, we were able to bring our dancers to the space right before we entered construction. Even with dust, ladders and caution tape filling the space, seeing our dancers move across the floor, the dream began to feel like reality. This risk will all be worth it when we have opened our space which will be able to support both this and the next generation of artists by providing a physical space for artist residencies, works-in-progress showings, public classes, and multimedia performances.
Staycee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I started my training in dance while in high school where I studied and performed with a young local dance company, and I continued to explore movement as I went off to college in 1984. The University of the Arts and The Alvin Ailey American Dance Company both provided my first experiences with professional contemporary dance. I was hooked and couldn’t get enough. While in NY, I studied with iconic legends including Pearl Primus, Ron Brown, Gus Solomon, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Bill T. Jones. This time period also represented a moment of installation and mural making. In both NYC and Atlanta, while dancing for other choreographers, I also took every opportunity to show work at community festivals and group exhibitions. My formal training for visual art would come much later in life at the age of 40, when I moved to Pittsburgh and enrolled in the Studio Arts program at the University of Pittsburgh. Since, I’ve shown work at Fe Gallery, SPACE Gallery, and The Warhol, and collaborated with many acclaimed artists hailing from Pittsburgh. This all while leading dance organizations including Xpressions Contemporary Dance Company (2001 – 2006) and our own PearlArts Movement & Sound (2012 – present).
PearlArts Movement and Sound is now a dynamic, Black-led arts organization that strives to create and support new multimedia creative works by a diverse group of artists, guided by the curation and artistic vision of myself and my husband as its founders.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
While we strive to uplift the voices of all marginalized artists, we center the creativity of BIPOC and particularly Black Women Artists. PearlArts strives to collaborate with Black women in all we do, and all of my work is created with the context of my lived experience as a Black woman.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
If we want to commit to supporting artists, we must be willing to do so financially. By giving artists funding, without strings attached, you allow them time to experiment and find new ways to be creative. Artists cannot experiment without security, and experimenting is the only way to build a future. The future of our world comes from the imagination of artists, and by supporting them, we can create a better world for all of us.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.pearlartsstudios.com
- Instagram: @pearlartsstudios
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PearlArts
Image Credits
Patrick Fisher, Barbara Weissberger, Beth Barbis, Heather Mull, Njaimeh Nije, Joshua Franzos