Arts & Entertainment

From the iconic typeface of “The Godfather” book cover to Herman Miller’s Noguchi table, the influence of Japanese American artists and designers in postwar American art and design is unparalleled. While this second generation of Japanese American artists have been celebrated in various publications and exhibitions with their iconic work, less-discussed is how the World War II incarceration — a period of intense discrimination and hardship — has also had a powerful effect on the lives of artists such as Ruth Asawa, George Nakashima, Isamu Noguchi, S. Neil Fujita and Gyo Obata.

In a city on the divide between Russia and Europe, the art of protest stands against war and corruption. Kiev has a government that ignores its citizens and responds to demonstrators with violent measures. Now, artists and activists are spearheading the fight to claim Ukrainian cultural identity. 

Lagos, the largest city in Africa and an economic powerhouse, is characterized by extreme social inequalities, frequent power cuts and a rapidly increasing population. In the rest of Nigeria, political upheavals, including the militant insurgency of Boko Haram and a drop in oil production in the country’s oil sector, are among some of the challenges facing the government of Mohammadu Buhari, elected in 2015. Lagos, and its exploding art scene, is where these realities are brought to the fore of people’s consciousness.

Día de los Muertos has been adapted for centuries from its pre-colonial roots to the popular depictions in mass media today. Inspired by rich Oaxacan traditions, it was brought to East Los Angeles in the 1970s as a way to enrich and reclaim Chicano identity through a small celebration at Self Help Graphics and Art. Since then, the celebration has grown in proportions with renditions enacted in communities all around the world.

"Artbound" looks at the dinnerware of Heath Ceramics and a design that has stood the test of time since the company began in the late 1940’s. Through the writings of Edith Heath, the founder and designer of Heath Ceramics and voiced by renowned chef Nancy Silverton, this episode explores the groundbreaking work of a woman who created a classic of American design.

Reverence and Decadence features music videos from Dutch producer Bokoesam, US band Almas Fronterizas, Swiss group Vendredi sur Mer, Brazilian group francisco, el hombre, Japanese rocker Gotch, and NY musician Frankie Rose.

"Kaleidoscope" features music videos from Taiwanese singer 9m88, Israeli bands Balkan Beat Box featuring A-WA, American singer Bells Atlas, Mexican artist Caloncho, and British-Argentine producer El Buho, Japanese-American collaboration Tashi Wada with Yoshi Wada and Friends. 

Sounds of Earth features music videos Kinshasa’s KOKOKO, Colombian-Canadian artist Lido Pimiento, L.A. band La Chamba, Portuguese producer Populous, Australian musician A.r.t. Wilson, and New Zealand singer Julien Dyne.

Amid the chaos and confusion from Greece's financial meltdown, artists from all corners of Athens are gathering to protect Athenian culture through the power of their art. In this episode, four artists show how they are fighting to counteract the bleak outlook of their urban landscape: iNO, the city's only incognito graffiti artist; photographer Panagiotis Maidis; electro-pop group Kid Flicks formed by Nickos Dervisis; and film and television producer Theo Simantirakis. 

"Parade" features music videos from Togolese group Vaudou Game, Egyptian producer Rozzma, Argentinian singer Corina Lawrence, British-Tanzanian artist 3rdCultureKid, and Indonesian band Jirapah, U.S. artist Sudan Archives. 

In Port-au-Prince; a radio host, a photographer, a Rabòday singer and a creole rapper showcase the emerging and subversive sounds and images of Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake.

Cuba is a multi-layered, complex, culturally-rich island, known primarily for the 1953 revolution of Che Guevara and Fidel Castro. The revolution, America’s subsequent trade embargo and the economic struggles that the island faced has had a notable impact on the kind of art that was created. Much of it was inspired by a sense of cohesion and unity, with Cuban artists promoting the belief that socialism would work. More recently, and in the context of renewed normalization of relations between the U.S.

Gospel music would not be what it is today if not for the impact left by Los Angeles in the late '60s and early '70s, a time defined by political movements across the country. Artists like James Cleveland and Aretha Franklin captured live recordings of the church experience of South Central and the voices and sentiment of the people coming together to give birth to a new gospel sound and the election of L.A.’ s first black mayor, Tom Bradley.

City Streets features music videos from French producer/director duo The Blaze, NY singer Yaeji, South African artist Petite Noir, Japanese polymath Cornelius, US musician Frank Maston, and Spanish singer Rosalía.

"Misfits" features music videos from Indian indie rocker Alluri, Brazilian band Boogarins, Japanese group The fin, Canadian rock band Destroyer, Swedish singer Fatima, Tunisian producer Ammar 808, and Egyptian artist Nadah El- Shazly. 

After two decades of violence and corruption under the reign of the largest cocaine drug cartel operation in history, Medellín, Colombia awakens to the sights, sounds and colors of an urban renaissance crafted by a group of creative entrepreneurs, artists and visionary city planners defying street wars.

Manila, a giant Asian metropolis with traffic-laden roads, towering skyscrapers and sprawling informal settlements, has become a dangerous place. Rodrigo Duterte was elected president of the Philippines in June 2016, vowing to crack down on the drug trade. Since then, extrajudicial killings have led to the deaths of over 3500 people by vigilantes; his approach is reminiscent of the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled from 1965 to 1986.

The charming, unusual and at times polarizing Jeffrey Deitch left Los Angeles in 2013 after a tumultuous run as the director of MOCA ending in his resignation. He makes his return with a new gallery opening with the first LA exhibit of renowned Chinese artist and activist, Ai Weiwei. A behind-the-scenes look at the contemporary art world through the eyes of a legendary art dealer and curator.

Music includes NYC's Combo Chimbita, Portugal's PONGO, Guatemala's Rebeca Lane, OKZharp & Manthe Ribane from South Africa, British producer Leon Vynehall and Lebanon's Yasmine Hamdan.

Life in the Mexican capital throws up many obstacles, but a small number of dedicated people are trying to build an electronic music scene in one of the world's most chaotic cities.

To most of us, a police ban on dancing sounds like the stuff of dystopian nightmares, but in this episode of "Real Scenes," we see how this is a reality for people in the Japanese capital.

"Catharsis" features music videos from U.S. rapper of Nigerian heritage Tobe Nwigwe, French-Chilean singer Ana Tijoux, U.S. group Khruangbin, South African guitarist Sibusile Xaba, Icelandic singer Kristín Anna, Japanese duo Young Juvenile Youth, and Puerto Rican artist Bairoa.

Moscow is a city where dissidents live in fear. After emerging from a decade of post-­Soviet economic and political turmoil, the country, under Putin’s rule, is a place where authorities have tightened control over the media and stifled the opposition. The government maintains a narrative that insists on the country’s unique power in contrast with the rest of Europe. In 2011, thousands of protestors gathered in Moscow to protest electoral fraud – it was the biggest show of protest since the fall of the USSR.

Mexico City, a massive, sprawling metropolis and home to over 21 million inhabitants, is the capital of a country that has become notorious for drug-­‐related violence. The ‘drug war’ as it is widely known, officially launched in 2006, had initially the support of communities who were tired of gun battles, execution-­style murders and police corruption.

Music in this episode includes El Haru Kuroi, Spanish artist Ibon Errazkin, Japanese musician Cornelius, DJ Raff from Chile, Niger’s Bombino and Kata from Russia.

In fall of 2015, RA crisscrossed Los Angeles' neighborhoods, gathering the perspectives of artists, promoters, record shop owners and historians on topics such as mainstream vs. underground music culture, the resurgence of Downtown LA, the West as a haven for free-thinking experimentalism, and the unexpected opportunities afforded by the city's vast sprawl. Alongside the documentary, RA also captured performances from a couple of the film's subjects. Gifted & Blessed is an Inglewood resident with roots in hip-hop who makes hypnotic, new age dance music.

"Inner Anthems" features music videos from U.S. indie rock group Hurray for the Riff Raff, Brazilian singer Dona Onete, French artist Tshegue, Bosnian indie artist Hector Gachan, UK rap trio Young Fathers, and Japanese rapper Kid Fresino.

As one of the oldest cities in the world and of significance to followers of all three major religions, Jerusalem is constantly on edge. It is segregated into two distinct parts, East and West. In the streets, 18-­year-­old soldiers patrol the city with guns. Artists in both parts of the city are using art to find and fight for their own truth and bring about peace amid the regular eruptions of violence.