Art Meets Politics: Regan Vasconcellos Hosts Election Night Watch Party at Alexander’s Tavern

By Myles Mims and Kenny Quinn

The election night watch party hosted by Baltimore visual artist Regan Vasconcellos at Alexander’s Tavern brings the worlds of art and politics together during a very important evening in American history. Rather than a bustling bar where tensions run high, Vasconcello offers a more laid-back atmosphere where people can mingle and share their opinions of the candidates so far in the race. While listening to the results, patrons can view many politically themed art pieces on display by local artists showcasing their work.

When asked about his inspiration for hosting a watch party, Vasconcello remarked,  “Watching the political climate, I found some rhetoric to be reprehensible as I am a veteran and immigrant of this country, and I feel that that immigrant pretty much made America, and it’s not garbage it’s a beautiful country with all different types of people with all kinds of different views so I want to stand up for anything that’s against that. I’m not fighting with guns or bombs but rather I’m fighting with my ideas and my art and that’s why I created this event to show with visual images to move minds and hearts to think about what America is truly about. To fight for democracy and freedom for all”.

The watch party consisted of a small group of people who came to enjoy the festivities. Attendee Tolicia Hill says, “I love the excitement of these watch parties. I want to come out and see how people are feeling. I’ve done it before, so this is my chance to help out”.

Many attending also wanted a place to share their opinions on the current political atmosphere as attendee Jeff Dicken claims, “I wanted to find some people who were hopefully progressive in the city, and luckily, I have. There’s been a lot of intentional disinformation. It’s gotten to a point where it’s tough for people to have an internal compass to distinguish what’s true and what’s not. More than now, we need to understand each other and come together to help each other”.

As the election comes to a close it’s important to have spaces where people can express their opinions whether that be through words or art as Vasconcello has demonstrated.

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