Kristen Baumlier

Yesterday I attended artist Sarah Paul’s lecture “I Heart Cleveland: The Strategic Seduction of a City” at the Guilford House at  Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) campus.

Before the lecture began, Paul invited the audience to take a Little Miss Cleveland calendar, a calendar she has made with 12 images of Little Miss Cleveland, the beauty queen from Cleveland that is a persona of Paul.  The calendar has provocative images of Little Miss Cleveland posing in front of memorable places in Cleveland including Lake Erie, the flats, and the Cleveland skyline.

The lecture started by the hosts of the event surrounding Paul with boxes of pizza.

Paul began by presenting some of the early roots of her work which is music, singing, and being in bands.  We heard an early clip of the first song she wrote and recorded and Paul talked about the power of music to transcend reality, engage an audience, and exist as an intersection of art, music, and pop culture.

Paul’s artwork in recent years has explored issues of gender fluidity and the spectrum between the male and female.  Some of her past works have included a video about being in love with a large My Little Pony and an installation of a My Little Pony brushing bar which had real size ponytail hair pieces the audience could brush and braid while under a looming 20 foot projection of Paul as Captain Firepants (an alter ego of hers) becoming a beautiful flower girl.

Originally from Buffalo, NY, Paul moved to Cleveland in 2007 and fell in love with the city.  As we know, Cleveland has a self –depriating quality to it.  People often love to hate it or talk about how it could/should be different – but Paul developed a unique relationship with the city which made her as Paul said, “ heart Cleveland.”

When Paul settled into her artist live/work space after moving to the area, she found that out her large windows she had a unique view of the smokestacks and flames of a steel factory nearby.  She would watch the smokestacks, videotape the smoke and flames, and grew to feel that they were neighbors and had a personal connection and dialogue.

During the Winter, the factory closed down for a few months – and the smoke and flames disappeared.  Paul felt a great loss, as though a neighbor had moved away.  Little Miss Cleveland was born out of her inspiration to call the smoke and fire back. Paul projected a video piece of the smokestacks that she had made on the windows of her space – a poetic way to try to call the smokestacks back.  Paul become a siren seducing the city to bring the smokestacks back to life.

Eventually the smoke and fire came back, like a neighbor returning from a vacation, but Paul felt inspired to continue to embrace and celebrate Cleveland in her work.

As Little Miss Cleveland, she dressed as a plus-size beauty queen and began to attend Indian baseball games.  Over time the vendors and workers at the stadium began to recognize her –and baseball fans wanted to know who Little Miss Cleveland is.

Who is Little Miss Cleveland?  In an interview with Cool Cleveland Paul said, “ She’s just this really playful giant chubby girl. She’s very sincere….I’ve crafted this narrative and this character and all of that, but the passion and the motivation behind it is rooting for the underdog that Cleveland is, that the Rust Belt is. There’s a sense of humor in it and in her; she’s this giant, self-crowned beauty queen. She’s embracing herself, her large body. Whatever is technically “wrong” with her, she embraces all of that and celebrates it to a point where she becomes this sexy, vivacious irresistible character.”

In her talk Paul explained that the work is for herself and also for Cleveland.  Little Miss Cleveland is in love with the city, the steel mill and the lake.

Paul has continued to make appearances, make music, and art installations  as Little Miss Cleveland.  Each form explores the blurring of art and life.  Paul and Little Miss Cleveland present a ironic position – promoting loving Cleveland, which often is seen as an underdog city.

In Paul’s closing comments she talked about blurring the mainstream and high art genre, and the invented myth.

What is Little Miss Cleveland doing next?  She has some upcoming music shows with her band Now That’s Class and an upcoming show at the Sculpture Center in Cleveland in April.  Everyone is invited – and you might find that you heart Cleveland a little bit more after spending time with Little Miss Cleveland.

Image Source:
Sarah Paul

Links:

Interview with Sarah Paul in Cool Cleveland

Sarah Paul’s website

Little Miss Cleveland website

Sarah Paul Plain Dealer Article