San Diego, CA – Afrofuturism Lounge 2024 will feature “Tim Fielder and Walter Greason: Celebrating the Launch of The Graphic History of Hip Hop” on Thursday, July 25, from 6 PM – 9 PM at the University Club on B St. in San Diego. In its 7th year and coinciding with San Diego Comic Con, Afrofuturism Lounge brings together diverse creators and supporters of Black comics, cultural speculative art, science, writing, graphic design, and other Afrofuturism-focused endeavors.
Visual Afrofuturism artist and illustrator Tim Fielder and preeminent Afrofuturism historian, Walter Greason, PhD, will share the process of creating The Graphic History of Hip Hop, a uniquely beautiful blend of music, history, research, and art intertwining hip hop’s five-decade evolution, massive global appeal, and its influence on culture, politics and economics.
“This amazing fusion of Tim and Walter’s distinct and different Afrofuturism expertise is an example of why Afrofuturism Lounge is popular and necessary, said Dr. LaWana Richmond executive director, Grioneers, Inc. the San Diego-based nonprofit that hosts the annual event for San Diego Comic Con visitors and others. “Grioneers has three strategic priorities: liberate inclusive Afrofuturist creative and intellectual power; connect individuals with tools to appreciate their agency in contributing to a more equitable future; and achieve sustainable growth through collaborative investment opportunities and resources for Afrofuturist artists, scientists, and intellectuals,” she added.
Among regional Afrofuturists highlighted during Afrofuturism Lounge 2024 are writer, illustrator, and graphic designer Marcus Newsome, creator of the Lightning Strike comic book series, who will sketch live during the event; Artless: 101 Haiku AmerikanoeBook author Winston Shaw, creator at GTET LLC, a digital publishing company rooted in Afrofuturism; and Kim Philips Pea, Art Director at Southeast Art Team’s Oya Art Gallery and Boutique, a studio and workspace celebrating
More about Featured Guests
Founder of Harlem, NY-based Dieselfunk Studios, Fielder is a graphic storyteller, animator, and portrait artist whose projects include his graphic novel, Matty’s Rocket. His Black Metropolis: 30 Years of Afrofuturism, Comics, Music, Animation, Decapitated Chickens, Heroes, Villains, and Negroes was highlighted in a career retrospective exhibition at The Hammonds House Museum. He has taught and lectured on areas of digital animation, concept design and illustration at The School of Visual Arts, New York Film Academy and Howard University.
Among the nation’s most prominent, historians, educators, and urbanists, Dr. Greason is the editor of Illmatic Consequences: The Clapback to Opponents of ‘Critical Race Theory.’ Influenced by rapper Nas’s 1994 debut album, “Illmatic,” the anthology is a mix of social science and hip-hop essays that addresses pervasive social injustice using hip-hop and Afrofuturism to offer solutions to cultural divisiveness. Dr. Greason is DeWitt Wallace Professor and chair of the History Department at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Afrofuturism Lounge tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door, with proceeds and a portion of bar sales going to Grioneers, Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.Tickets are available afrofuturismlounge.
