On Creativity As Ritual: Five Artists from The Front Festival 2024
As we reflect on this year, we’re unearthing a few interviews on ritual from The Front Festival, our annual end-of-summer music and film festival (get the 2024 recap here).
Keep reading for an introduction to five Austin-based artists and their thoughts on independent creative work, nurturing community and returning to oneself.
✹ ON embracing CREATIVE METAMORPHOSIS with INDEPENDENT ARTIST Virginia L. Montgomery
Virginia L. Montgomery is an award-winning experimental filmmaker and multimedia artist working across video, performance, sound design, and sculpture. She received her MFA from Yale University and her BFA from The University of Texas at Austin. VLM is known for her surreal, synthesia-esque artworks which unite elements from mysticism, science, and her own neurodivergent femme experience. www.helloVLM.com | ig @skinnyaliens
Q — How do you view community building through your work? What does that look like?
In my artwork, I work with a community of Luna moths. Over the course of 6 months, I am with them from the time they are tiny eggs, through their caterpillar stage, their cocoon process, and their metamorphosis into big, beautiful, verdant green Luna moth beauties. On the first day that the Luna moth emerges from its cocoon, we'll work together on photos and videos while its wings dry. The next day, once the Luna moth is ready to fly, I thank them and release them. It brings my heart such warmth to see a Luna moth fly away into the night so she may join her own Luna moth community.
Q — Can you share a memorable or challenging experience that has influenced your artistic journey?
One of my favorite artistic journey memories occurred during the opening of my 2023 solo show at Women & Their Work Gallery when a little girl came up to me and said that after watching my Luna moth videos that she was no longer afraid of bugs because she now thought moths were fuzzy and cute. I was so touched by her! Because just knowing that this little girl no longer held fear in heart about bugs and that she now even cared about them from a positive perspective, made me feel like that as an artist I was doing the job that I was meant to do.
Q — What advice would you give to creatives starting out? Or even to yourself at the beginning of your creative journey?
Embrace the chaos! Remember to give yourself grace! Everyone is always in a state of metamorphosis.
Q — What or who inspires your work? Are there any particular themes or ideas that consistently appear in your art?
The 20th century surrealist filmmaker Maya Deren is an inspiration to me. Her dreamlike film editing style and use of experimental storytelling through symbols both energizes and soothes me. Themes of eco-surrealism populate my work. In my own films, I use recurring visual motifs like circles, holes, and spheres. I use circles because I see circles as a hopeful form. Every circle is a portal for something to appear.
✹ ON PRIORITIZING COMMUNITY with RECORDING ARTIST Promqueen
promqueen (she/they) is a second generation queer Vietnamese American artist based in Austin, TX. She is a daughter to Vietnamese born parents who immigrated to America post Vietnam war. promqueen draws lyrical inspiration from her family history and own experiences as a second generation kid raised in Texas.
Alongside music, promqueen thrives in collaborative environments as a co-writer and multidisciplinary artist across acting, community organizing and writing a memoir. Through her music, she hopes AAPI folks feel encouraged to process, express and share their art to the world.
promqueen is active in the community, performing at Asian Culture Fair (200+), Asia World Night Market (5k-10k), Silk Club 10th zine release anniversary (UT's Asian women/nonbinary/genderqueer creative organization), KUTX Free Week, and is set to take the ACL stage in October 2024.
Q — What do you think are some of the most inspiring things happening in your circles currently?
Conversations with other friends about how their artistic process is shapeshifting. How people are responding to each other and world events. I feel a pulse on people wanting to expand their ideas, conversations, actions and habits. I feel people are getting more creative with their art and becoming more multimedia which I absolutely love!
On AANHPI film and representation, I recently watched an indie film at AGLIFF about queer Asian males in a comedy setting. It was authentic, experimental and showed male vulnerability. There is a shift happening in the media where we are getting to see more vulnerability and process and I love that. It seems to me people are tired of polished algorithms and curation and want to see the messy real parts of being human.
Q — What advice would you give to creatives starting out? Or even to yourself at the beginning of your creative journey?
Everyone finds their own rhythm and pace that suits their journey and pacing so I’ll refrain from saying what others “should do” or “what works”. The moments I’ve had creative breakthroughs and peace come from being kind to myself, not putting overwhelming pressure on needing to “accomplish” or “achieve” where it starts to feel forced. When I have fun is where my creative process starts and I try to aim there. I do the things that give me delight.
In acting class, my coach reminded us that “product and presentation” rob us of the present moment and our artistry. When we try to achieve a result and worry about what others will think of us, we missed the point. The story is bigger than me. It’s not about me. It never was. I am purely the instrument the art plays through.
Q — How do you view community building through your work? What does that look like?
Community building is the centerpiece of the project. I intentionally wrote my songs in Vietnamese and English as an SOS call to other Vietnamese Americans. My ideal situation is a Vietnamese American hears my lyrics in a crowd and gets it, like they are in on a joke, to essentially feel included. Everyone else can still enjoy the music but at the end of the day I want to connect with those who are trying to figure out their cultural identity for themselves. My hope for my live shows is that people walk away with a greater sense of imagination for themselves, their journey and their own communities.
Q — What are you hoping to accomplish within your work over the next five years? Speak it into existence—we want to know!
I want to secure funds to tour with my team domestically and internationally to connect with other AANHPI communities outside of Texas with our own staging and lighting crew.
I want to work on a short indie comedy drama film about coming of age, self and cultural identity discovery with a predominantly BIPOC and persons with disability cast.
I want to explore ways to create a summer art exchange program between a university and a girls warm shelter in Vietam (where I previously worked at) where college students receive a fellowship to live and work at the shelter for 2 months.
✹ ON WOMANHOOD’S INFLUENCES with FILMMAKER ANA TREVIñO
Ana Treviño is an artist and educator based in Austin, TX. Her practice bends the rules of filmmaking and is informed by cultural histories. Through video installation and performance she explores how she can reinvent subjugated narratives.
Q — Tell us about your journey as an artist and how you ended up at The Front Festival 2024.
I'm originally from Galveston, TX but was raised in Brownsville, TX until I was 10 years old. This made a huge impact on my life as I constantly crossed the border to Mexico. I grew up in two very distinct places and quickly saw the differences. My mother really made me be proud of my Mexican heritage and I have carried that with me my entire life.
I was lucky to teach a workshop last year at The Contemporary Austin Laguna Gloria with my friend Mark Menjivar where we explored migration and place with eight participants. This turned into the film that [screened at] The Front Festival this year.
Q — What or who inspires your work? Are there any particular themes or ideas that consistently appear in your art?
Women are a big influence in the work I make. Oftentimes, we are surrounded by the male perspective in literature, art, etc. so I seek out perspectives coming from women. Lately, I have been very inspired by Renaissance painter Artemisia Gentileschi and writer Toni Morrison. Themes that are common in my work are labor, injustice, migration, motherhood, and feminism.
Q — How do you get into a creative headspace? Any mindsets or rituals that work for you?
I don't have a very structured way of making work or getting into a creative headspace. For me, it's important to be viewing art, films, and reading to get me excited about making art. If I'm not doing this, I think my creativity starts to fall flat. It also comes in waves. As a working mother, I have very limited time to sit and make work, let alone film. So, I try to use my time wisely and jot down themes/ideas that I want to explore and research more.
For example, I was very impacted by the role of being a mother. I started to really analyze what I was watching and how mothers were being represented in media. I created a survey to get honest, insightful feedback from mothers and this drove me to make work based on my and their experiences. This is a project I am continuing to build and hopefully exhibit in a solo show sometime in the future.
Q — What advice would you give to creatives starting out? Or even to yourself at the beginning of your creative journey?
The advice I'd give is to keep making work. You will only grow and get better if you continue to push yourself creatively and intellectually. You will fail more times than you'll succeed, but that is part of the process. If you don't try, you will never know what could have been. I still tell myself this when I have doubts about my abilities. I am not the best, but I will always strive to do the best work I can.
✹ ON BEING THE MAIN CHARACTER with COMEDIAN, ACTRESS, HOST AND FILMMAKER AIRA JULIET
Aira Juliet is an award winning host and community organizer - creator of black and queer as fuck and host of queer trivia. She is a comedian, writer, trivia extraordinaire. She has also danced on stage with Janelle Monae + Meg Thee Stallion.
Q — In your own words, tell us who you are and what you do both in and out of work.
I am an Aquarius through and through. I’m an Aries Venus. Middle child. Trader Joe’s fiend. I’m an older sister. First born daughter. I’m a dog mom to a corgi/aussie mix that stresses me tf out. Stomach sleeper. I’m a former worship leader and former purity ring wearer. I am a comedic writer. I love to dance. Have danced with Megan Thee Stallion + Janelle Monae . I love to eat. I have a corporate job that keeps me being able to have the a/c at my apartment around 68° daily.
Q — What or who inspires your work? Are there any particular themes or ideas that consistently appear in your art?
Inspiration: Black women. Silly women. Audrey Hepburn. Megan Thee Stallion. Queen Latifah. Issa Rae! Gordon Ramsey. Lauryn hill! Julia Louis Dreyfus. Shrek 2. Gentlemen prefer blondes. My grandma. Jeff Goldblum. My best friend. My little sister. My chaotic youth. My purity ring. Sex and the city. Tony Soprano. Athena. Champagne on a patio.
Themes: Being the main character in your own life. Black women can be lead and every one see themselves in characters they play. Inclusivity! Being yourself.
Q — What advice would you give to creatives starting out? Or even to yourself at the beginning of your creative journey?
Surround yourself with people who inspire you! Also you need friends around you who will critique you. You don’t need a bunch of yes men in your corner. Apply for grants. Show up for your friends. Go to shows. Talk to people who inspire you. SUPPORT PEOPLE!!!!
Don’t be scared to fail!!!!! Try new things even if it scares you.
Q — What are you hoping to accomplish within your work over the next five years? Speak it into existence—we want to know!
I will be writing a TV show or hosting my own night time talk show??! I hope to meet Jeff Goldblum and work with him. Going to Greece! Maybe even making an album - been exploring my musical side again
✹ ON THE STRUGGLE FOR SELF-ACCEPTANCE with DIRECTOR AND SCREENPLAY WRITER BEO LERMAN
Beo Lerman is an award winning writer and director, and a lifelong native to Austin, Texas. Their work focuses on the inner lives of women and queer people, most often through a comedic lens. They enjoy campy monster movies and love colorful lighting.
Q — How do you view community building through your work? What does that look like?
In my opinion, filmmaking work can be as collaborative as it gets. Everyone has a hand in it. Writing, costuming, lighting, camera work, etc, etc, everyone is contributing. And through that collaboration and hard work, you build a community.
Being a gender minority in the film world, when I run my own sets I work hard to make sure that an inclusive environment is there. I want to collaborate, I want to work with all different kinds of people and I don't want anyone feeling excluded. But I will say that overall, the Austin film community is a caring community. There is a real level of trust and support there, and a lot of really cool inclusive people. I hope that through my career I can help strengthen that community more :^)
Q — What or who inspires your work? Are there any particular themes or ideas that consistently appear in your art?
I feel like the most recurring theme in my work is insecurity, and the struggle for self acceptance. On the inside, I am a pretty insecure person, and it's like this disgusting little creature that lives inside of me and I have to beat it down periodically. It sucks! And so it accidentally comes out in all of my work. All the things that come with being insecure: the self-sabotage, the delusion, being a generally unpleasant person, I think it makes for a good story. And naturally, it ends up being about people like me, queer and trans people.
Q — Can you discuss any specific techniques, mediums, or tools that are integral to your artistic practice?
I love comedy as a medium: I think it allows people to talk about what they're not comfortable with touching on directly. Comedy allows me to discuss my innermost feelings and work through my fears by holding them at a safe distance. If you're a broke queer person trying to have fun, you end up being camp.
In some ways I love going over the top: I love colorful lighting and quirky production design, but I want my characters to feel like real, regular people. I think blending the surreal and the mundane is where you get to have the most fun. Being realistic is boring anyways.
Q — What do you think are some of the most inspiring things happening in your circles currently?
Costume designer/super 8 visionary Ligeia Djanga immediately comes to mind. Check her out, her aesthetic is so honed, and I love how she combines her work in multiple different mediums. There's so many other cool people out there too, like Ivy Chiu and their studio/shared space 24 Cobras. I am so thankful that there is such a vibrant community of people in the arts here in Austin, and that I get to meet new people who inspire me so frequently.
The Front Festival will return in 2025.
Stay updated on announcements and applications for next year’s festival at thefrontfest.com.