The packed house helped–you know it always gets a little warmer when black folks sit close together.   The faces become more familiar each time, the embraces more genuine, the smiles more fluid.  And the artistry was beautifully sincere.  From the suave to the spiritual, it was all love.  Looking clean in a blazer and button-down, Smitty Rock graced the mic–and a lovely lady’s ear–when he spoke about penetrating the walls of her mind to travel to her heart.  More than a few shivers went around the room when he ended with, “Can I lay you down?” and licked his bottom lip as he walked off the stage.

We took it back to Africa, too; Brother Ben did his thing on the djembes as usual, but he had some help this time.  Trooth Heals, from Black on Black Rhyme Tallahassee, is doubly blessed with his hands and his tongue…by that I, mean he drums like a warrior and spits poetry like a seasoned griot.

The usual host, Paul D, was laid back for this show, but still took us on a musical journey back to Shai and Whitney’s “I Will Always Love You” with his poem about breaking up right.   We rode that one out in waves of laughter and “mmhmms,”  chiming in to help him sing, “my friiiiend….” from “If I Ever Fall in Love Again.”  Because what is a song without a killer ending, anyway?

Speaking of friends and strangers, my personal favorite from the night was a dreadlocked newcomer to the venue named Deangelo.  Silver spike in his lower lip, sandals on his feet, he had us spellbound with his poem about never forgetting where you came from and how you grew up.  His gravelly voice drew us into the Atlanta of his childhood, with its concrete sidewalks and grandmothers welcoming us home.

And that’s what made it hot last Tuesday…that comfortable feeling that the people surrounding you share your love for the art flooding your ears.  Not a searing heat, but a feel-good warmth that drove me home smiling.  Like Paul D said, the hook might be off the hook, the bridge might be pimp, but nothing beats a Tuesday bookended with poetry and music.

Take a Load Off Tuesday’s next show is June 1st.  Don’t miss out!

In the early days of the Pangea’s Garden Project I was fortunate to discover the extraordinary works of Maxim Vakhovskiy. At the time i’d created several captures that would, later, find a home here and I was curious to know if anyone shared a vision of Afrocentric beauty and sensuality. Maxim was one of the first I found.

Eastern Europe born, Maxim is a portrait photographer currently based in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is “delighted to photograph interesting, natural, vintage-souled, humble, passionate, uninhibited, and free-spirited characters with richly whispering beauty. His work is predominantly focused on women of African descent from around the world.” Currently he is working on a coffee table book and he is still “seeking African and Afro-American females of all backgrounds, ages, body types, sexual orientations, and life stages. Mothers, mothers-to-be, wives, girlfriends, daughters, sisters, rebels, and simply individuals with a story to tell.” His intent is to “cast a light on the “venus” in black women who do not trap themselves in the artificial ideals of beauty and who find grace in their body, heritage and individuality.”

I could not have said it better myself. His concepts and his images set a benchmark as well as provided validation for my own. And I feel very fortunate to have him here. Because, just as I found him when I was starting this up, he found the Garden without any prompting from me. That fact alone is one reasons I feel what we do here is worthwhile.

The images presented here are just a taste of the extraordinary portfolio of images this photographer has created. And you should check out his website to see more. To do so simply click on  http://www.maximushka.com

-Vincent

Peace. Vincent