Form Festival at Arcosanti

By Jeff SredniMay 15, 2017

In the canyons of Arizona's high desert lies the otherworldly eco-city of Arcosanti. Each May 1,500 participants gather for Form, a weekend of creative immersion, adventure and retreat. The festival embraced Phoenix's arts community in a meaningful way, and we were proud to participate along with fellow artists and contributors.

The Fortoul Brothers had a strong visual presence, showcasing murals and selling prints and shirts at Form's general store.

Lauren Strohacker and Kendra Sollars reimagine traditional wildlife encounters in a contemporary format - through technology in an urban space with human inhabitants - as seen in their visual projections of Animal Land.

and Phoenix based artist Andy Brown drew flowing blue waves on an old water tank:

The most inspiring event was watching our good friends from Palabra Collective perform their art piece titled "Re:Birth." In it, a group of black performers slowly walked out in rows, led by three women in couture dresses, by Phoenix Designer Alejandra Inzubza, connected by one long braid. The woman in the center held a single red apple. The group walked, stopped, stood in silence and stillness for minutes on end, walked out further, and stood still again. They continued the process throughout the grounds and through the crowds of the festival at Arcosanti. The juxtaposition of the stillness and silence against the movement of the festival made the story all the more poignant.

Framed Ewe provided the Superfuture frames used in the performance:

The front group was trailed by another group dressed head-to-toe in black, sporting masks that only revealed their eyes and combat boots. The performers again stood in silence and perfectly still, finally walking out, introducing a series of movements that included putting their hands up, making gun gestures and raising one arm, and pushing it down with the other. Liliana Gomez, a Phoenix dancer, choreographed the piece, which was first shown at the Kehinde Wiley exhibit at the Phoenix Art Museum.