C. Meranda Flachs-Surmanek, 2018
C. Meranda Flachs-Surmanek (they/them) is an artist and urban planner. Meranda is driven to destabilize the conditions that shaped their upbringing—the prison industrial complex, poverty, and violence—through an ethic of love and the rigor of transformative justice. They collaborate with groups to understand complex systems, re-orient ourselves to places, make decisions, and build people’s leadership. Their recent projects include documentary theater, performances, short films, walking tours, and workshops. Meranda’s Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry, white body, queer identity, and working-class upbringing shape their approach to troublemaking and joymaking.
Meranda is a Forefront Fellow (Urban Design Forum), researcher (University of Florida/Center for Arts in Medicine), and collaborator with Ping Chong + Company. They were born in Queens, NY, and love making life here.
merandissime.com