Marco Aquino
2020 has been a landmark year for Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson. In March, she released her first book of poetry, She Lives in Music via FlowerSong Books. The same month, the City of San Antonio appointed Sanderson as the fifth San Antonio Poet Laureate, a term that will last from 2020-2023. Most recently Sanderson, along with Centro San Antonio, created a poetic mural on the streets near Travis Park. Painted in the familiar yellow block letters associated with the Black Lives Matter Movement, Sanderson’s poem read: “Jubilant and exuberant is the melanin of our skin / From despair, we have arisen.” But Sanderson’s love and support for the local community doesn’t end there. In her new music video, Nouveau, Sanderson spotlights several local artists including Kaldric Dow and Akaimi Davis alongside several masterworks that hang at the San Antonio Museum of Art. Like much of Sanderson’s work, Nouveau carrys a message of love, self-acceptance and racial equality.
Talk about the concept behind your new music video, Nouveau, which was filmed at the San Antonio Museum of Art.
I got into a partnership with the San Antonio Museum of Art a couple of months ago …One of the initiatives we rolled out was this music video. I collaborated with this french artist and producer named James Digger. He sent me some beats, I recorded some vocals and then he added violins … I decided I wanted to make a statement with the music video about the value of people of color in the art world. I wanted to say that we deserve a seat at the table.
Nouveau features the work of several local artists like Kalderic Dow and Angel Rodriguez Diaz who are known for some of their dignified paintings of black people. Talk about the importance of representation and having people who look like you included in the arts and popular culture.
I think it’s absolutely important. I was talking to the people from SAMA and I asked if we could get a shot of Kaldric in front of the Kehinde Wiley painting. I wanted to have these shots and these moments … and there is a shot of Akaimi standing in front of an Egyptian sculpture just to say black people are present and have been present at all times. These things are manifestations of us and we are a manifestation of these things. We should see ourselves in art.
There are some commonalities between Nouveau and Beyonce’s Apeshit video. Was that an inspiration as well?
In some ways it was an inspiration. I mean, her video was phenomenal like, ‘How did you even pull that off to go inside the Louvre?’ I wanted to shoot Nouveau in an art gallery space but I never imagined I’d be able to shoot it at the San Antonio Museum of Art. I prayed and the next day they showed up so I was like ‘wow!’ The song itself talks about art in motion so it is a very literal translation but still abstract at the same time.
One of the more stunning shots is the one where you’re standing in front of the Rodriguez Diaz’ Venus painting which depicts a nude, black female figure. Did you feel a sort of kinship to that particular work?
Absolutely! When I walked into that room I affectionately called it the big girl room. You walk in there and there are these portraits of nude women of color and I was like, “well, my body looks like their body and I want to stand in this room. I want to perform in this room.” I wore white because we need to see the black body as a pure thing instead of a vile thing or an evil thing. I wanted to say we are cleansed of all these toxic ideas associated with black bodies.
Do you feel as vulnerable as the figure in that painting when you present your work on stage or in print?
In some ways yes, but, also, when I look at those portraits … they represent strength to me. There is a power to be regained in these women posing and allowing themselves to be seen.
Were you familiar with Angel Rodriguez Diaz’ work before?
I was not. I had no idea that those paintings were even there. When I did my walk through I said ‘Oh, these are amazing! I gotta shoot in this room.’
How are you holding up right now as the country experiences both the Covid-19 pandemic and BLM movements at once?
The mural that’s downtown kind of speaks to where I am. I wanted to leave a message for the city by painting the ground with that poem. It’s great that Centro San Antonio asked me to be a part of that project. I’m hoping that people will feel love and feel that they can rise out of any situation. Originally, I had approached Andi Rodriguez (vice president of urban planning at Centro San Antonio) about a completely different project and when I did, she presented me with this opportunity to have my words painted. I said yes and sent her my poem. She started the process of getting it approved with the different committees and the City. We went out there on a Tuesday and did it all in one night with about 20 volunteers. We just kind of went out there and we painted.
How do you feel about the reaction to the mural?
I haven’t read the negative responses but I know they are there. Everybody has been very encouraging. Some people responded by writing poetry in response to my poem. People have sent me so many beautiful things. Some say they feel inspired and that they feel some hope. That’s all I ever wanted, for people to feel some sense of hope and that they can overcome any circumstances.
You created a conversation with the community.
I think so.
How do you find hope and courage living in the harsh climate of today?
Through prayer and friends. I like to talk to my tribe and have very personal conversations. I get with my inner circle of friends, we talk out a lot of issues and we support each other.