PUBLIC ART: We B*Girlz Festival, Berlin

Many ladies who came of age during the birth of hip-hop are B-Girlz at heart and that trend hasn’t stopped for the generations that followed. In celebration of the creativity of gutsy girlz with dynamic style and non-stop energy who mastered skillz in all aspects of hip-hop from the early days up until this moment, We B*Girlz is presenting the 1-month We B*Girlz Festival 2008 in Berlin, Germany this August. The organization, founded by Martha Cooper and Nika Kramer, aims to present strong, smart, independent B-Girlz and other hip-hop females as role models for upcoming generations, and to highlight the significant place for and history of women in the worldwide culture of hip-hop.

(Image: The Queens of Graffiti series, a collection of screenprinted portraits of outstanding female graffiti artists from around the world, on view at the Hip Hop Ladies With Attitude – Jammin’ Fresh & Def exhibition.)

Overall the multimedia festival’s intent is to provide a platform for girls and young women from different nations and cultural backgrounds to make contacts, exchange ideas and support each other. A highlight of the festival will be the visual art exhibition, Hip Hop Ladies With Attitude – Jammin’ Fresh & Def, organized by AnAttitude Magazine (Belgium) and Catfight Magazine (Holland) from 8/22-8/31/08. The 10-day exhibit will showcase live art in the form of Style Battles (8/28) and Graffiti Jams (8/29) featuring artists like Faith47 (South Africa), Shiro (Japan) and Mad C (Germany). Other artists such as, Roxanne Shante, Bahamadia, Toofly and Asia One, will all be in effect throughout the month representing MC, graf and breakin’ skills. In a packed schedule of events and activities, girls will gain knowledge, skills and tools to develop their creative prowess in all elements of hip-hop culture. The We B*Girlz Festival will also teach participants how to document their artistic output through workshops in video editing, photography and web design. Music, club nights and a film festival will round out the month long celebration and will close with a final flurry of battles, shows and a concert on the last weekend in August. The entire event will be documented in a compilation CD, magazine and DVD.

Event sponsors include Hauptstadtkulturfonds, Montana Cans and many more. For more info click here!