By Lisa Deaderick / The San Diego Union-Tribune / October 5, 2024
It’s not even that Dawud Hasan Tarleyb (who goes by Dawud Hasan) is a science nerd or anything like that. He’s not; he’s a writer, an independent hip hop artist, a community organizer, and an event planner. It’s in those creative spaces where he’s found himself open to expand his work and his visions for what he can do, including incorporating science into his creative work.
An opportunity came late last year in the announcement of the “Art for Planetary Health” community art project with the Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park. The program invited five local artists from diverse San Diego neighborhoods (Hasan, southeastern San Diego; LaRaza Webb, southeastern San Diego; Claudia Biezunski-Rodriguez, Barrio Logan; Yvette Roman, San Ysidro; and Kline Swonger, National City) to collaborate with their communities in creating art focused on alignment between communities and the health of the planet, and promoting an environmental consciousness.
“I named my project ‘Stardust’ and decided to create a book, a movie, and an album and we just got to work,” he says. “I formed a team and we worked on the graphics, the music. When it was finally time to apply, I showed them all the work we had done and a month or two later, we got an email that said we were selected. … Now, we’re here.” A showcase for all five artists’ projects will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Fleet Science Center, and admission is free.
Hasan, 44, lives in southeastern San Diego and works as an in-home health aide, and is the founder of Diamond Minds, an organization he created in 2012 that organizes the San Diego Hip Hop Health & Wellness 5k and Festival, community forums, art exhibits, food distributions, and other events and programs focused on growth and education. He took some time to talk about his “Stardust Project” for the Fleet center’s program, in which he wrote the novel and executive produced the album, and how a close friend got him interested in science and astronomy in the first place.
Here’s an excerpt of the interview:
Q: Please describe your ideal San Diego weekend.
A: Probably Ocean Beach, I’m an O.B. kind of guy. I’m chill, I like nature, so a nice walk in the morning and breakfast at Margarita’s (Restaurant). That’s my favorite restaurant. Then, go to the secret beach in O.B. It’s a three-mile walk from the secret beach to the dog park and back, so that’s a cool little walk.
