Not Real Art

One essential trait that differentiates us from animals is creativity—you could say it’s what makes us human. Today’s podcast guest believes creativity not only cultivates connection, better health, and critical thinking but can also “help humanity save itself.” In today’s episode, host and NOT REAL ART founder Scott “Sourdough” Power introduces 2022 NOT REAL ART grant winner Ellamaria Foley-Ray, a visionary artist who combines ceramics, literature, anthropology, and quilt-making to magical effect. The annual grant, established in 2019, provides financial backing and creative support to working artists across the US who challenge the meaning of “real art.”“[The phrase] ‘not real art’ has Western, colonial, oppressive tones that define some creatives as legitimate art-makers and the rest of us as imposters who fail at making ‘real art,’” says Ellamaria, whose work explores African culture across the continent and throughout the diaspora. Treating clay like cloth, the professor of African American studies