12 at Real Art Ways

12 the Band's 2009 album Streets and Avenues; packaging designed by Marlon Darbeau


12 the Band, led by Sheldon Holder, will perform at Real Art Ways in Hartford, Connecticut, on Thursday 18 March, from 6 pm. This event is associated with Rockstone and Bootheel: Contemporary West Indian Art, an exhibition which opened in November 2009. (Rockstone and Bootheel includes projects by several artists associated with Alice Yard, including Christopher Cozier, Marlon Griffith, Jaime Lee Loy, Wendell McShine, Sheena Rose, and Dave Williams. In addition, Richard Rawlins of Draconian Switch has designed and produced a series of Rockstone e-catalogues, and filmmaker Mariel Brown's documentary The Solitary Alchemist was included in the exhibition's film series.)

12's US tour also includes several performances in New York. For a schedule, see the band's website. 12 has been based at Alice Yard since September 2006, and Holder has been a key instigator of many events and activities in this space.

Founded in 1975, Real Art Ways is "an alternative multidisciplinary arts organization that presents and supports contemporary artists and their work, facilitates the creation of new work, and creatively engages, builds, and informs audiences and communities." Jamaican artist Kristina Newman-Scott is RAW's director of visual arts, and co-curator with Yona Backer of Rockstone and Bootheel.