40 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • APRIL 29, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
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New Queens Museum exhibits center on social justice, healing after trauma
BY CONNOR WALTER
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Th e Queens Museum in Flushing
Meadows Corona Park has announced
two new exhibits.
Th e exhibits, “Art as Social Action” and
“RAF: Prosthetic Location,” both explore
issues regarding social justice and healing
aft er trauma. Th ese topics have become
even more important during the past
year, and the art exhibits help bridge the
gap between current events and analyzing
these events.
Th e “Art as Social Action” exhibit utilizes
creativity to connect and celebrate political
change. Th e exhibit displays an interactive
way for individuals to engage with
concerns such as climate change, gentrifi
cation and struggles with togetherness.
“Exploring the intersectionality of art
and social justice, the exhibit is a call for
action that emphasizes the opportunity
for artistic engagement and positive
politics to coexist,” a spokesperson for
the Queens Museum said. “Th e exhibit
features interdisciplinary projects from
nine local and international SPQ alumni:
Alix Camacho-Vargas, Floor Grootenhuis
(with Joel Murphy), Cody Herrmann, Jeff
Kasper, Naomi Kuo, Julian Louis Phillips,
Erin Turner, Pedro Felipe Vintimilla
Burneo and the Workers Art Coalition.”
Social Practice Queens (SPQ) is a degree
program for students to learn about the
connection between art and social justice.
SPQ also has a published textbook entitled
Art as Social Action, the same name
as the exhibit.
Th e “RAF: Prosthetic Location” sculpture
tells a narrative of reconciliation in
the aft ermath of violence. It highlights the
importance of the past year in regards to
coming together for social justice.
Th e Queens Museum spokesperson
described the exhibit as a “single event,
not as a static occurrence.”
“‘RAF: Prosthetic Location’ by Asif
Mian examines how behavior, memory
and ritual can impact both an act of violence
and its perception through sculpture,
textile, drawing, video and performance,”
the museum’s spokesperson said.
“RAF: Prosthetic Location” is part of a
larger exhibit, “RAF,” by artist Asif Mian.
Mian holds an MFA from Columbia
University and attended the Skowhegan
School of Painting and Sculpture.
Both “Art as Social Action” and “RAF:
Prosthetic Location,” will be on display at
Queens Museum until July 25, 2021.
For more information, visit
queensmuseum.org.
Jamaica actor starring in hit television series
BY SOFIA VALDES
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Lorenzo Antonucci, a Latino actor,
writer and producer born in Brooklyn
and raised on the streets of Jamaica, is
executive producer, writer and star of
the currently trending hit drama series
“Paradise City.”
Antonucci stars as Pauly, who he
says is based on his “best friend” Paulie
Antignani, who passed away in 2018.
“I lived a lot on the road and took all the
bumps and bruises of rejection and the
failures Pauly goes through,” Antonucci
said.
For over a decade, Antonucci toured
internationally with well-known band
Sworn Enemy. Th at experience, he
said, made it easy to adapt to his role in
“Paradise City.”
world gave me a lot of the real-life experiences
Antonucci, who is of Puerto Rican and
“Paradise City really hits home because
that I was able to bring into
Italian descent, found success as a professional
of my time in the bandSworn Enemy.
‘Paradise City,’ especially the world of my
wrestler but found his true passion
Being a touring musician around the
band, Over it All,” Antonucci said.
in acting and fi lmmaking in Los Angeles.
His work can also be found in “Ballers,”
“Game of Th rones,” “American Satan,”
“Reactor” and “Cracka.”
“From my Puerto Rican mother I
learned that failure was never an option.
From my Italian immigrant father, I
learned that you do anything you want,
you just gotta want it,” Antonucci said.
Th e eight-episode drama series is a spinoff
from the 2017 fi lm “American Satan”
and presents an accurate portrayal of the
chaotic and somewhat dark Los Angeles
music scene.
Th is is a self-fi nanced show; it is not
funded by any of the major studios. It features
an all-star cast, including Fairuza
Balk, Drea de Matteo, Bella Th orne, the
late Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart and
Olivia Culpo.
“Paradise City” quickly topped the
iTunes lists as the No. 1 TV show and
the No. 1 drama series only days aft er its
release. Th e show is available for streaming
on multiple platforms, including
Amazon Prime.
Lorenzo Antonucci, an actor who was raised on the streets of Jamaica, is the executive producer,
writer and star of the currently trending hit drama series “Paradise City.”
QNS fi le photo
2022
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