Last week, a national tour came to Milwaukee. Bay Area artist James Shields is on his third nationwide tour to interview Black farmers about Black agriculture and history.
Previous legs of the tour brought Shields across the South and Northeast. Now he’s tracing the Midwest, stopping in Milwaukee to interview farmers at Alice’s Garden. He conducts his interviews on a hand-made watermelon couch he tows with him across the country.
Lake Effect’s Sam Woods joins Shields on the couch in Alice’s Garden to discuss the project, the commonalities he sees across regions and what stands out about Milwaukee.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity
Tell me how this couch came to be and why it's a watermelon.
So in the summer of 2021, I quit my job as a design organizer for a labor union because I wanted to focus back on full-time art. But in doing that, I really wanted to step my game up in regards to my next endeavors. Previously that year I was in Mexico City, and I was at an art festival and I saw this sculpture that kind of looked like furniture. So I said, “That's what I'm aspiring to do.” That led me into soft sculpture by way of upholstery, and in the beginning of 2022, I made a collection of abstract pieces based off my abstract paintings. Just like some really funky couch cushion style sculptures. It went really well. I was able to present it and kids were able to play with it and whatnot.
But Juneteenth was coming up and I was tasked with doing another collection. But I didn't have money for a new collection. But I had an old couch that was getting rained-on on my balcony. So I asked my friend, "What represents Black people?” And we settled on the watermelon.
This couch has traveled across the country in multiple regions. Can you tell me about all the places this couch has been and why you've taken it on the road?
Me taking this couch on the road was really just to answer a question, which was, “Where are the Black farmers and where are the Black farmers that are growing watermelon?” Because I created this for Juneteenth, I wanted to take the couch to where Juneteenth started, which is Galveston, Texas. Realizing that I have family in Alabama, I was able to take the couch from Texas to Alabama with making stops along the way, talking to farmers, talking to business owners, creatives, anyone that had some kind of connection to land, and one of my posts went viral. From that point, I knew I really had something in regards to capturing stories from, specifically from elders, you know, like just the nuances and the wisdom and the humor that elders possess was really something that was strong and fitting.
So from that point, I realized that I wanted to retrace the Great Migration routes. So yeah, that first summer I was on the road for a month just in the South. Then the second summer I did more of the South, but I went the whole east coast from South Carolina up to Maine. And then this year, I've been focusing on the Midwest.
Are there commonalities that you see across regions in this country when it comes to Black agriculture and history?
We're 100 years from the Harlem Renaissance, right? I think now that there's a Black agricultural renaissance taking place. At the center of that renaissance are artists, and we're the ones that are bridging the gap between these farmers and our communities now that are not connected to the land. So whether it's in the healing arts, whether it's in the creative performative arts, we're coming back to the land because we realize the value that it has, you know, and how we can and how we can utilize land. There's such a deep, deep history that still needs to be captured and shared. And who better to do it than artists?
How have you changed through this project?
Well, I studied business marketing in school and my first job was in New York at Macy's as an assistant buyer. So I thought I was going to be a straight business guy or whatever that meant. Turns out I was terrible at that job, and I got laid off a year later. From there I said, you know what, I'm going to be an artist. So that's what I set out to do.
In general in America, you measure success by money. Because I wasn't making tons of money as an artist, I always felt compromised, even though the successes and the journey and the experiences were evolving. Fast forward to this journey with this watermelon couch, there were a lot of people affirming what I was doing. There's individuals affirming me and just speaking life into me and saying, this is what you're supposed to be doing. This is where you should be at.
I'm curious about your thoughts on food sovereignty and how you've seen people kind of take on that ownership of their own nourishment in different regions of this country.
I think what I've realized from my journey is how serious it's going to get. The axe hasn't fallen yet. Food stamps just got cut this year. So while many people see farming in these community gardens as cute, it's about to be real in a minute. And these farmers that we know now, their knowledge and their value is about to skyrocket. This is coming from someone that's not a farmer. You know what I mean?
Additionally, just like mental and physical well-being, you know, whether it comes from putting your feet and hands in the soil and dirt or just having time to decompress and just all the benefits that come from working the land. That's been the biggest thing for me isthe power of making green spaces in the urban environments or getting out of urban environments to be in green spaces. That's what I've come to value.
So we've spoken about commonalities across regions and what you've learned on this journey. But since you've been in Wisconsin and Milwaukee, is there anything that stands out about Black agriculture here compared to other places you've been?
Well, I've only been here a few days, right? So I can't make any proclamations. But I would say that one that sticks out the most for me is segregation. I didn't realize how heavily segregated of a city this is. So, that's really interesting.
But I would just say like being here at Alice's Garden, it's beautiful. This is a community hub with 100 plots, and I have not been to a community garden with 100 plots. You know what I mean? This garden is a highlight of the journey, this garden is one that sticks out.
