This Time, Acceptance Takes the Cake.

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A trans Ken doll cake created by Freeport Bakery in Sacramento. (KTXL-TV).

SACRAMENTO — A local bakery is getting a flood of support after one of its custom cakes caught quite a bit of flack on social media. The cake was baked and molded into a transgender Ken doll.

“It wasn’t that unusual, we do doll cakes all the time.”

Eggs, milk, butter and a dash of controversy, the recipe at Freeport Bakery for the unorthodox custom cake.

A Ken doll wore a pink dress made of frosting, a sash, a tiara and jewelry.

“Naively, I guess I just thought this is a really cool cake, and look at how great they did with the butter cream,” said Marlene Goetzeler, co-owner of the bakery. “What’s wrong with a Ken cake?”

Baked at 350 degrees, but the real heat didn’t come until Goetzeler posted a picture of the dolled up delicacy on Facebook.

“I started getting some negative comments … Then a couple days later I noticed there was a big dip in unlikes. I was kind of surprised,” said Goetzeler.

An LGBT debate ensued. After a few hundred comments, and more than a thousand reactions, the bakery’s page lost dozens of Facebook likes and potential business, all because of the post.

“I was shocked that somebody would be offended,” said Goetzeler.

“Oh, I thought it was fantastic,” said Chad Graham, who attended the party where the cake was served.

Graham says it was at the birthday party for a member of a group that meets once a month for a dice game. He says the cake’s recipient is not transgender nor was he trying to make a political statement whatsoever. The cake’s recipient didn’t wish to speak to FOX40. The backlash took the group by surprise.

“I thought it was a little ridiculous. It was just cake,” said Graham.

But when word of the confection controversy began to spread, hundreds of people came to the bakery’s defense, both on social media and at the storefront.

“In the beginning, I thought ‘What’s the big deal?’ but now I realize how important it is to take a stand if you believe in something,” said Goetzeler.

A small gesture with a big impact. Goetzeler says this time acceptance takes the cake.

I think that’s a great cake, and I’m really happy that so many people took a stand and supported the Bakery.

Via Fox40.

GOOOOOOAAAALLLLLL!!!!!! WE DID IT!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYBODY!!!

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On Monday, I posted about The Sioux Chef, happily begging people to help the kickstarter over that final hurdle, and this was in an email I just received:

GOOOOOOAAAALLLLLL!!!!!! WE DID IT!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYBODY!!!

There’s some excitement, can you tell? We have some great food on the way, and thank you so much, everyone who saw fit to signal boost or kick a few dollars to the Indigenous Kitchen. Pilamayaye.

Update:

As you know, we hit our first goal today at 10:54 AM (CST) two weeks ahead of the end of our campaign. Our team has been screaming, texting, high-fiving, fainting,laugh-crying, and group hugging ever since. We couldn’t post an update for two hours because we are in a state of disbelief and euphoria!!

When Chef Sean had this idea ten years ago he knew that there could be true Native American restaurants, and he slowly started working on educating himself on what the fundamentals of an Indigenous food system are. Two years ago, he formally started the company The Sioux Chef, and Dana came on one month later. Our team has grown and now we have seven team members, and each one of these wonderful humans are completely committed to propelling the concept of bringing the awareness of these foods to as many people as possible.

Hopefully we can bring people in from tribal regions to learn about these foods, and then bring that knowledge back to their communities. You helped us get closer to these goals! You are coming along with us on that path, too! Each one of you has invested in us… That humbles us! Thank you! We are so happy to have you in our Kickstarter tribe!

We have two more weeks of fundraising. The more we raise, the less funds we will need in traditional financing options, and the less risk there will be for us. Two more weeks to get the word out, two more weeks to make new friends and to raise awareness of the importance of these foods that are beautiful, delicious medicine.

In other words, we are going to keep sprinting on this thing.

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The Sioux Chef: An Indigenous Kitchen.

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I know I have been asking half the world of people lately, and yes, here I am again, asking. This too, is important. Chef Sean Sherman, Oglala Lakota from the Pine Ridge rez, wants to change a serious absence in the food scene. Where’s all the Indigenous food? Traditionally based indigenous food is delicious, healthy, and sustainable. This also marks a great potential for so many Indigenous kids, who are looking more and more to traditional foods, and would like to be able to earn a living cooking, doing what they love. The kickstarter for the restaurant is so close, so very close. If you have a few bucks, please become a backer in this most important venture. (Oh yeah, I’m a backer. I want travel over and eat, so gotta make this happen.)

There is a great deal of information at the site, so I’ll just include a bit here, but I’m putting up lots of photos of amazing, delicious food. Foooooooooood. If you haven’t eaten Indigenous food, seriously, you are so missing out. If we can get one Native restaurant up and running, others will happen. So please visit, and back if you can. If you can’t, please signal boost, spread the word everywhere!

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[Read more…]

Absolutely Amazing. Wow.

Kestrel is an incredibly talented and skilled artist, who not only makes full miniature tack, also makes jewelry, and braids horsehair. I have worked with human hair, exactly one time, embroidered a bit with it, and it is the devil to work with, to say the least. Everything Kestrel does is so beautiful and polished. Stunning work. Today is a look at some miniature tack.  Click for full size.

Bridle with romal reins, braided of hand cut kangaroo leather and thread, hand made sterling silver hardware. For a traditional sized model horse such as a Breyer. Horse is an artist’s resin sculpture by Carol Williams, painted by Liesl Dalpe, haired by Faye Cohen.

Bridle with romal reins, braided of hand cut kangaroo leather and thread, hand made sterling silver hardware. For a traditional sized model horse such as a Breyer. Horse is an artist’s resin sculpture by Carol Williams, painted by Liesl Dalpe, haired by Faye Cohen.

From the other side:

Bridle with romal reins, braided of hand cut kangaroo leather and thread, hand made sterling silver hardware. For a traditional sized model horse such as a Breyer. Horse is an artist’s resin sculpture by Carol Williams, painted by Liesl Dalpe, haired by Faye Cohen.

Bridle with romal reins, braided of hand cut kangaroo leather and thread, hand made sterling silver hardware. For a traditional sized model horse such as a Breyer. Horse is an artist’s resin sculpture by Carol Williams, painted by Liesl Dalpe, haired by Faye Cohen.

 

Detail of the floral-tooled popper and knots on the romal. Notice the knot tied inside the loop at the end of the romal.

Detail of the floral-tooled popper and knots on the romal. Notice the knot tied inside the loop at the end of the romal.

 

Detail of connection between romal and reins, again with a knot tied inside the loop at the connector.

Detail of connection between romal and reins, again with a knot tied inside the loop at the connector.

 

To show scale, in Kestrel's hand.

To show scale, in Kestrel’s hand.

You can see much more of Kestrel’s amazing work at Beautiful Horses, the horsehair braider.

Marcus Amerman.

Marcus Amerman's work recently appeared in an issue of Sports Illustrated - Courtesy photo.

Marcus Amerman’s work recently appeared in an issue of Sports Illustrated – Courtesy photo.

Marcus Amerman (Choctaw-Hopi) is a very well known artist in Indian Country, and he’s been commissioned to do a series of beaded portraits in a national media campaign to promote the American Indian College Fund. The originals will be auctioned at their next gala fundraiser. ICTMN has a great interview with Marcus.

Amerman: Wieden + Kennedy, an international ad firm with an office in Portland, OR, contacted me about doing beaded ads for the AICF. They send me photos of current students who benefit from the AICF and I choose which ones I want to do based on their potential visual impact and bead-ability. They would run as full page ads in a number of national magazines such as, but not limited to, Sports illustrated, Harper’s Bazaar, Native Peoples, etc. They have just finished shooting photos of current students in New Mexico and Montana. I should receive them in two weeks and begin the third in a series of five 6.5″ x 8″ portraits which are enlarged to a full page bleed (8″ x 10″). This first image is Akisa Milk and he’s Oglala Lakota from Pine Ridge, South Dakota. The AICF will retain possession of all the pieces and auction them off at their gala fundraiser, I believe. I don’t know when it is.

The ad firm gives me 4 weeks to complete a 6.5” x 8” portrait and I use that format all that time. I only work on one piece at a time because of the time it takes to configure the trays full of separated beads specific to each project.

Marcus Amerman - Courtesy Photo.

Marcus Amerman – Courtesy Photo.

Marcus is also busy making bracelets and other wondrous works for the Indian Market in Santa Fe. http://www.marcusamerman.com/

Full interview is at ICTMN.

Abstract Thoughts.

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“It’s energy. It’s genetic memory. I’m connected to the past present and future all at once.” -MC Rhetorik.  Hailing from the Pueblo of Kewa, hip hop artist MC Rhetorik drops the ‘Abstract Thoughts’ album.

On August 10th, 1680 in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, present day New Mexico, marked the start of an Indigenous uprising against the Spanish colonizers known as the Pueblo Revolt. The Pueblo’s, under the leadership of Popé and other Pueblo leaders, planned and orchestrated the revolt which resulted in successfully driving the Spanish out of their homelands.

On August 10, 2016, MC Rhetorik (Santo Domingo Pueblo) carries on this storied history of resistance by releasing the second part of his concept ‘Abstract Thoughts‘, with Abstract Thoughts the album.

What are your plans for the release of Abstract Thoughts

I’ll be releasing the album on-line on bandcamp.com for download.  Today, I will be giving both a workshop and performing at the Youth Making a Change: Youth Conference in Albuquerque. I’m pretty honored and excited since the conference was entirely organized by our youth. That’s inspiring. From there I’ll be headed to Utah this weekend for a performance.  In the future, the album will be available on CD.

MC Rhetorik (far left) with LRI’s Matt Remle (center green shirt) at Shell No demostration.

MC Rhetorik (far left) with LRI’s Matt Remle (center green shirt) at Shell No demostration.

You can read more here.

The Emperor Has No Balls.

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Most of this post will be under the fold. It’s best to be aware that once something is seen, it’s seen. If you don’t want to see naked, don’t look. If you don’t want to see Trump, don’t look. If you don’t want to see Naked Trump, seriously, don’t look. Now that’s out of the way:

According to the Washington Post, anarchist artist collective INDECLINE has placed naked statues of Trump around the country Thursday morning. They were unveiled in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Cleveland and Seattle. INDECLINE posted videos of itself making the statues on YouTube.

“I don’t expect these things to last more than 30 or 45 minutes,” an anonymous spokesman for INDECLINE told the Post. “But I would love to watch some irate 65-year-old Trump supporter try to take thing down with his bare hands.”

[Read more…]

Rolled Paper Ocean Reefs.

Absolutely stunning work.

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For artist Amy Genser, paper is pigment. The Connecticut-based artist cuts, rolls, and arranges countless tubes of mulberry paper mounted to Masonite boards to produce vibrant reef-like canvases. The tightly rolled papers perfectly mimc the forms of sea coral that appears to grow organically in every direction across (and on the sides of) each canvas.

You can see more of her recent work in her portfolio.

Via Colossal Art.