Knight Foundation names winners in second part of ‘New Work’ initiative

A drive-thru circus, a writer’s mixtape and a virtual bus stop tour of Miami’s neighborhoods are among the nine projects that will come to fruition with funding from Knight New Work.

The initiative funded by the Knight Foundation launched an open call last year, challenging local artists to adapt their ideas to the constraints of the pandemic. The two-part initiative awarded $10,000 grants to 18 local artists in December. An additional $300,000 divided among the nine winners announced Wednesday will allow those artists to launch their work before the end of the year.

First up is Fereshteh Toosi’s “Oil Ancestors: Metaphysical Hotline.” The Miami artist’s immersive phone theater experience will take place on select dates from June 9 through June 20. The piece creates a kind of seance that turns participants into ancestors by placing them on a one-on-one phone conversation with a descendant from the future. “Oil Ancestors” forces participants to reckon with the past and take responsibility for our impact on the future, Toosi wrote in her grant proposal.

The nine winning proposals range from interactive pieces that can be experienced at home, such as Toosi’s, to drive-thru live performances, such as Maya Billig’s “A Lot,” which explores the experience of regaining momentum after being “parked” in one space for an extended period of time. (Sound familiar?)

Knight New Work launched in 2018, but the biennial initiative’s 2020 edition comes at a time when the pandemic has put the performing arts in particular in a pinch, said Adam Ganuza, program officer for the Knight Foundation. Yet the constraints of social distancing have encouraged a high degree of creativity, he added.

“We need to be connected to each other in our society and we see the consequences of having a disjointed and disconnected citizenry,” Ganuza said. “The arts are a powerful way to bring us together even when we can’t physically be together.”

“The nine projects are works of performing arts that have adaptations in them that are drawn from lessons learned during the pandemic,” Ganuza said. “These are the types of lessons that will stay with us moving forward even in the post-pandemic period.”

Along with Toosi and Billig, the winners are:

Juraj Kojs, “Where Home Is”: a multi-movement music composition for voices, instruments and computers, which explores the theme of home, immigration and citizenship from the perspective of a recently naturalized U.S. citizen.

Natasha Tsakos, “CARABOOM The Carwashow Miami”: an immersive, dynamic theatrical experience that aims to bring human connection, fun and awe back into people’s lives from the comfort of their vehicles.

Najja Moon, “The Huddle is a Prayer Circle”: an immersive installation and interactive performance that encompasses sound, visual art, scripture and movement.

Melissa Cobblah Gutierrez, “CuBlack: Invisibilized No Further!”: a dance film and performance that analyzes the oppression of Blackness inside the Cuban community in Miami.

Carlos Miguel Caballero, Inez Barlatier and Lornoar, “Sharing Grandmothers”: a collaborative theatrical performance by the Cuban-born Caballero, Haitian-American Barlatier and Cameroonian Lornoar, who joined forces to combine original music and dance with themes that highlight the human experience.

Juggerknot Theatre Co., “Miami Bus Stop Stories”: The creators of the popular and critically acclaimed “Miami Motel Stories” theater performances crafted an immersive virtual theater experience where bus passengers meet neighborhood residents in a series of virtual stops throughout Miami neighborhoods.

Octavia Yearwood, “Life’s Interludes”: The project by Yearwood, named “Best Author in Miami” by the Miami New Times in 2018, is a mixtape of music and poetry paired with visual components that share the intricate experiences of queer artists.