Episode 19: If The Community Doesn’t Support Us We Don’t Deserve To Be Here (w/ Naomi Chambers)

On this episode, I biked over to The Flower House, located in Wilkinsburg, a borough right next to Pittsburgh. The Flower House is a creative space cultivated by group-centered artists who practice cooperative economics to empower women and families. Naomi Chambers, a Pittsburgh-based painter and assemblage artist, also helps run the Flower House. I first met Naomi at a dinner for an event, but I also ran into her work at her solo show at the August Wilson Center. Kilolo Luckett, the curator of that show and someone I interviewed in episode 6, also highly recommended I talk with Naomi. I’m glad I did, since Naomi was extremely generous with her time and I also got to meet her beautiful daughter, Dodi. Naomi and I discussed how she found her way to the arts, the complexity of community engaged art projects, and the development of The Flower House. Yes, I know, there are birds chirping throughout the conversation, but I didn’t notice until after and during the editing process. Hopefully, they aren’t too distracting. In any case, I hope you enjoy this.

Photo Credit: Sarah Bader

Links Mentioned:

Naomi’s Instagram
Flowerhouse’s instagram
Recent Interview on Jenesis Magazine
Naomi’s Solo Show at AWC
El Anatsui at the Carnegie International
Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse
My interview with Kilolo Luckett
Recology San Francisco
Marie Kondo

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