“The City is Ours”
Oakland, CA.
June 2012

Graffiti artist G.A.T.S. (Graffiti Against the System) and I collaborate to put a poem Ive written into the city. Each line of the poem is reflected in the envoronment it exists within.

“Hoodstoccupy”
December 2011
Oscar Grant Plaza
“Beyond simply functioning as a fundraiser, Miguel sees the festival as a form of activism in itself, making explicit the inherent political basis of all artistic expression. He explains that the event as a whole can be viewed as an art installation meant to convey the positive effects of creating community. At the same time, emulating the situationist tactics that Adbusters had initially based the Occupy Wall Street concept on, the festival functions as a complex “detournement” against capitalism — an artistic form of political resistance established in the 50’s. While the festival already transforms each performance by incorporating it in what is effectively an installation, Miguel explains, it is transcending even that transformation by becoming a political action, as well as physically transforming the space by making it a musical venue.”
-the daily cal

this follows the different stages of the event…

first we set up a sound system on the stage..the police focused their attention on it, surrounding it. We then asked everyone to surround the real soundsystem and to start filming.

what looked like a police higher up attempted to shut off the sound system but was fought off and spat on..

a variety of bands played, ranging from local rappers to thrash punk bands…

people then took to the streets….

“Seasons”
shown at The Whitney Museum of American art on july 11, 2009
drawing by roberto miguel
music written and preformed by roberto miguel
animation by paul barron
video by josef lukas

In this collection I am attempting to reflect the concept of surplus, exemplified by an abandoned garden, found in George Bataille’s “The Accursed Share”.