We spent most of the class watching this film about a former corporate administrator who leaves his profession and begins to make art--printmaking.
I showed the film as an example of an artist who is also an entrepreneur, a social entrepreneur.
How does APK use printing to alter or change the world? What is his motivation? How is printing art? How is what Amos does with printmaking metaphor, even poetry?
What about his life is most intriguing and most existing? What questions does Proceed raise? What questions does it answer?
Write this response in the form of a profile of APK and a film critique/review. Use a published review of the film as a guide. Give citations. Visit Brown Finch Films for more information. The response should be minimally three paragraphs.
I returned a few TKW essays. The revisions are due at the next meeting unless you need to see me. A couple students do. I am around on Wednesdays--call me. I have office hours in the morning and afternoon.
Visit http://www.kennedyprints.com/
http://sfdocfest.bside.com/2009/films/proceedandbebold_sfdocfest2009;jsessionid=DACE16C369829B888458937DF8CE65AE
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5 comments:
Bishwojit Sharma
Professor Wanda Sabir
English 1B
27th October 2010
Amos Paul Kennedy
Amos Paul Kennedy is a great artist and printer. His profession is to print words and symbols. He also prints posters which rolls language and color in it. He is one of the great artist. He tries to put his feelings in his arts and also tried to aware society. He has also printed lots of posters on racism. according to him he started painting because he likes it and it makes him happy. He thinks people should do those things which they like the most. But people in today's world don't listen to their heart and only do those works which their society prefers. Kennedy thinks people might earn money and live a standard life but can never be happy until he does what he wants. he thinks if we do the things we wanna do then we can do it much more better than other works which we don't wanna do. So, he encourage people t become bold and try to find what kind of works we are interested in so that we can be more successful and happy in our life.
Mauricio Cavero Alprecht
English 1B
Professor Wanda Sabir
27 October 2010
Proceed and Be Bold
Proceed and Be Bold is a documentary of how Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. (AMK) found his calling and changed everything he knew to what he believed. AMK was a successful computer programmer working in the corporate world and one day, at age forty, he found his calling in a letter press printer machine. He decided to drop everything in pursuit of his new vocation. The goal was not an easy goal to achieve, and after quitting his corporate job he even lived in his own shop completely isolated, but it really didn’t matter for him because it was free rent.
He learned to express himself through the print machine and learned that the composition of his art was being noticed everywhere he went. What is most intriguing and most existing of his life is that he found who he wants to be for the rest of his life and he knows who he is. He is just a happy “negro,” as he calls himself, that jumps around in overalls with his pink shirt and that is not afraid to say what is in his mind expressed in his letter press posters. If that is not impressive enough, he is also successful at what he does.
APK is motivated by his willing to express himself. You can see that by the “NappygRams” that he often send when we was a teacher at a university. He often printed those “NappygRams” after he was angry over something that happened in the institution.
In the documentary we are told that “Something that was done long time ago and nowadays only some do is considered art.” According to this definition APK work is art, mainly because letter press printers are almost instinct and APK is one of the few that does it nowadays. Also art is a way to express yourself and APK has his canvas in his letter press printer. For him to produce a poster he needs to go through the process of composition, press work and binding. The composition process is how he creates his art, like for example his snake book.
APK said, “Beauty is a way to put the defense mechanism down and pass along what you want to say.” Because of this statement we can determine that he is very active in his community and that he wants to grow with the community. The documentary touches that side of APK, and it finish by showing statements of the people from his community saying how good he is for his community and that hopefully he never leaves.
Senay Ghidei
Professor Wanda Sabir
English 1B
28 October 2010
Amos Paul Kennedy
Amos Paul Kennedy is a very interesting man who uses typing and printing to convince people his perception. Kennedy was a married man and employed by AT&T when he decided to use printing to express his thoughts. The video “proceed and be bold” shows his past and present life including controversy and conflict with the system. Kennedy gave up his successful life to follow his dream: becoming a master printer.
Kennedy focuses on printing interesting quotes relating racial issues. One of his interesting quotes is “Affirmative Action is a joke.” After printing that he faced a tremendous problem with the police and was called to be interviewed and explain his actions. Kennedy believes that being bold and talking about the racial issues should be encouraged. He believes that his printing will change the world, by addressing the racial issues, once we start viewing it in different direction.
Kennedy was motivated to become a printer when he was working for AT&T store and observed that many black folks weren’t allowed to work. He observed that one black man working with four-five white men is easier than one white man working with four-five black men. After viewing this, Kennedy decided to do printing and use it to express his thoughts.
Printing is an art because it allows you to express your thoughts and gives an opportunity to persuade peoples’ perception. Kennedy uses this to create his world and invite others to join him. He prints poetry, famous sayings and quotes to help people analyze the main issue. Although Kennedy’s printings don’t answer many questions and racism issues, it brings a familiar conception which may have huge impact on life. He encourages people to become bold in expressing their thoughts.
Shonta Jones
Professor Wanda Sabir
English 1B
17th November 2010
Amos Paul Kennedy was a man who loved to paint and did not own a phone and would rather have people send him a letter in the mail. Amos would use print words and symbols to show off his talents and put all his feeling and heart into his paintings. Than Amos said goodbye to the middle class life of a computer programer and started to work in the field of letterpress printing and bookmaking in Gordo Alabama. All Amos work seems to be bold, colorful and exploring issues of race, gender and artistic expression. When Amos is not painting he is traveling the world speaking and teaching his works at Universities. His work embodies his passion for stirring up strong emotions and encouraging people to think in previously unexplored ways. Some of his books include: the Mask Book, the Riddle Book, Charm/Snake book, the Cryptics book (first of a series).
Sha'Quea Pratt
Professor Sabir
English 1B
26 October 2010
We Shall Proceed and be Bold
Amos Paul Kennedy, a dedicated artist and printer. He designed many popular signs people bought to hang in their homes, their shops and stores. Amos is very passionate about his work. He is not an artist for the money, he is an artist because it is what he loves and what he feels happy doing. He moved to different communities just to keep up his art career. He would do anything to remain a printer and an artist. He made many signs that had to do with racism and violence as a way of contributing to social change.
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