Imani Celeste Fuentes & Ana Luisa Larrazolo-López
2021 HEAR US Awardees
Imani Celeste is a multidisciplinary Afro-Latinx artist. She’s performed at Carnegie Hall, the Smithsonian, and Summerstage. This will be her last semester at NYU Tisch School of the Arts majoring in Drama with a minor in film production.
Ana Luisa is a senior in performance studies and artist from the border.
Project
The City Of Dreamz
From the Harlem Renaissance to the birth of hip hop and vogue, the city has been the basis for revolutionary art and it is only right to pay homage to the birthplace of the greatest artistic movements. The City Of Dreamz is our love letter to New York City, the communities within it, and the experiences that have shaped our lives as creatives. The project consists of multiple short films, each a cinematic ode to Black and Brown life, an art itself, and its intersectionalities. Each of the short films are like a chapter immersing you into our world.
The first chapter ‘From Whence You Came’ explores culture and identity within New York City. ‘Love & Utopia’ delves into queerness, friendship, and love in its many forms. ‘A World With/out Whiteness’ speaks on freedom outside of the white gaze as well as what life is like within it. ‘Art: A Survival Apparatus’ looks at the art and performance of NYC from the streets to the stage and how it acts as a means of survival.
The City of Dreamz will show the bodegas, Jordan’s, cyphs, name chains, hoop earrings, going out to Dyckman, walking down the streets of Uptown and Brooklyn, laughter and love, revolution and resilience. Welcome to our world.
