Saturday, November 8, 2025 at 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
18th Street Arts Center, Santa Monica
Gourd Craft with the Quinn Research Center Saturday, November 8th | 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM 18th Street Arts Center 1639 18th Street. Santa Monica, CA 90404 **Free + Open to the Public** Join the Quinn Research Center for an interactive workshop that explores the rich traditions of gourd making in Black communities across the American South. Participants will learn hands-on techniques for crafting and decorating gourds while delving into the cultural, spiritual, and communal significance of this historic art form. Gourd making, rooted in African diasporic practices, has long served as a vessel—both literal and symbolic—for storytelling, survival, music, and ritual. In the South, gourds have been transformed into water vessels, instruments, and artistic expressions, often passed down through generations. This workshop uplifts these legacies, celebrating the creativity at the heart of Black cultural resilience. The session will also feature musician **Rasheed Ali**, who will share his creative practice around gourd making and guide participants in listening to selections from his *The Empty Vessel Speaks* album—an evocative musical exploration of rhythm, ancestry, and sound rooted in the spirit of the gourd itself. As part of the Historic Broadway Project, this workshop honors the artistic and social histories that shaped the Broadway community, connecting ancestral practices to place-based memory and ongoing cultural preservation in Los Angeles. This program is generously supported by the Mike Kelly Foundation for the Arts and the Quinn Research Center and made possible in part with 150th Anniversary Microgrant support from the City of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs. **Quinn Research Center ** The QRC is an archive and educational resource that promotes the study and research of Black family history and culture in the Santa Monica Bay Area, and a place of inspiration and empowerment for future generations. **Learn More about the QRC Here** **Rasheed Ali** The music of Rasheed Ali is critically acclaimed, mind-expanding Black music. Rasheed Ali is a creative artist working for social change. Ali is an international performer, producer and writer with exciting raw talent. 1968 featuring Rasheed Ali is reminiscent of James Brown funk, Curtis Mayfield's evocative lyrics, Normal Whitfield's horns, Sly Stone's quirky cleverness, et al. You can hear EW&F in his background vocals and an early Cameo, a little Frankie Bev and Maze, Marvin Gaye harmonies, and shades of the bands like the Blackbyrds. **Do you know Broadway PDF** [](https://18thstreet.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/logo_sm-Copy.jpg" class="wpex-lightbox-group-item)[](https://18thstreet.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/mikekelleylogotemp.png" class="wpex-lightbox-group-item)[](https://18thstreet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Official-150-Graphic-w-City-Logo.png" class="wpex-lightbox-group-item)