Tag Archives: inclusion

Art Discussion, New Work

New Art – Diverse Creation

It’s been a tough year in the United States for the word “diversity”, with a mass confusion of what DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) is versus what affirmative action is resulting in unfortunate fallout, particularly for individuals with disabilities (See video below … who says autistic folks can’t be sarcastic/humorous when the need arises? You know what Oscar Wilde said, ‘If you want to tell the truth, make them laugh otherwise they’ll kill you.). Michigan Arts Access, a program I have worked with as a resident artist that provides arts education in special education classrooms, lost major funding sources for next year because their work falls under the “DEI” umbrella by including students with disabilities in elective opportunities that many other traditional students automatically receive. Unfortunately, this means their services probably won’t happen next year in less wealthy communities like mine. There was a general souring in public opinion towards the word DEI despite most people actually agreeing with the principles and practices of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion when asked without using the acronym itself, according to research. If anything, this reveals how muddled understanding has gotten as we have access to more information than we’ve ever been expected to handle all at once, but that’s a conversation for another day. 

The thing is, while equity and inclusion are sadly optional, in America we’re stuck with diversity whether we like it or not. This may seem too obvious to need reminding, but America is unique because everyone who lives here at one point came from somewhere else, and who has been here longer may at times be surprising (i.e. my Mexican partner’s family settled in Texas long before my ancestors came here from Italy, England, Hungary.).

Diversity is built into all of creation. The differences in plants, animals, and insects both visually and in how they function serve a purpose. Similarly, our different backgrounds, cultures, genders, and brains all bring something distinct to the table, and our society runs better when all are included and their gifts nurtured. Imagine what would happen if you had a vegetable garden, but decided tomatoes were your favorite so you’re only going to water those and just let the rain take care of the rest. Rain helps, but it’s not enough, and eventually the other plants would die, and you’d get pretty tired of only eating tomatoes every day. (Apparently I’m really into garden metaphors when it comes to people – see last year’s mural.) 

We can’t marvel at the vast variety in a field of flowers or all the different patterns on the wings of butterflies, and at the same time be angry about differences in the people around us. We can’t become excited about the literal tour around the world we can take in almost any given city when picking a restaurant, but be upset that we have neighbors who came from the culture where those recipes originated. 

It may feel like diversity is ‘canceled’, but the very notion is ridiculous. I am in no way trying to downplay the significance of words and policies that communicate that certain people don’t deserve basic needs, education opportunities, or respect. However, individuals, and I daresay especially creatives, still have a choice. This new piece was recently created for an upcoming Fall show with the theme “Diversity Is Beauty And Strength”. I’ve also been working on a series of fantasy themed family portraits from a client who reached out to me from my ebay shop. She noted that she saw my series of cute angels/fairies and mermaids and noticed that I offered a bunch of different skin tone choices. She shared that her family is mixed race, and it’s difficult to find fantasy art that looks like them. Thus, one of the most fun commissions I’ve ever done was born. I enjoyed getting to know my subjects from afar through an exchange of personal stories, and channeling their joys, struggles, and dreams into these keepsakes. More still to come!

This year has been hitting creators hard, but art is communication and we creative people are in a unique position to pivot the cultural conversation. How do you think diversity enhances the way you experience your daily life and community?

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Art Discussion

The ABCs of Creation – G Is For Gesture

An artist friend recently shared with me an article they wrote titled “The ABCs of Underground Art”. I really enjoyed it, and they encouraged me to write my own ABC’s of the type of art that I do as a fun journaling prompt to use to unwind and organize your thoughts. Those that have followed me for awhile know that I don’t typically stick to just one type of art, so to open up the limits I decided to make my “alphabet” the ABC’s of Creation. I have assigned a word to each letter, along with a video of my illustrating a cool little ACEO sized letter inspired visual to go with each word. Read, listen, or both – whatever works! 

G is for Gesture. I mentioned in letter E about how some of my art students with disabilities struggle with grip or coordination and how that changes their creating. Limitations can change an artist’s signature style and actually make it more recognizable. A prime example of this is a piece I own by a local artist with Parkinson’s, Patrick Humphreys. Another great example of this is renowned artist Henri Mattisse’s move from painting to collage after his dexterity was effected by illness. This new style ended up earning him a stained glass commission for the famous Rosary Chapel in France. The way we move our arms, the way we hold our tools, all of these things craft our creative voice. Our “gest” is distinctive to us as individuals, similar to how our auditory voices have different tones, speeds, and ruthyms. I was told recently that I even hold my pencil like an artist. This made me chuckle a bit as all through elementary school, I was told I hold my pencil “wrong”. The “right” way felt harder for me to control and hurt my fingers for whatever reason, so I did what came naturally to me. Imagine thinking there is only one way to hold something, or move through space, or add color to a piece of paper and that the same thing will work for everybody. The first thing I tell my students of all abilities when they say, “My art doesn’t look like yours” is GOOD! It’s not supposed to! Art can be skillfully done without looking exactly like the work of your instructor or favorite artist. 

Patrick Humphreys, Artshop Students Sarah G., Christina G., and Colleen D.

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Exhibitions and Other News

New Art / Disability & Mental Health & Exciting News

One of the reasons my new series is so slow to completion is because I’ve been creating a lot of art specifically for themed exhibits. I typically only do this if the premise speaks to me, and lately a lot of the local exhibit opportunities have really resonated. This piece was created for the Midland Area Cultural Awareness Coalition’s Pop Up Exhibit with the prompt “Our differences make us better together”. I was thinking a lot about how culture doesn’t always mean our country of origin, and how some differences can be internal more than external. In “Symphony”, I aimed to show neurodiversity including both disability and mental health. I used colored pencil for the figures, fabric for their clothing, ink for the birds, and watercolor for the background. I’m typically not a bright color person with my art, but this piece called for it. After I blended every watercolor in my palette into the background, it was … well, very bright and competing a bit too much with the figures even in their high contrast black and white. Solution: a wash of pearl white acrylic overtop. I love that this kerfuffle happened in the first place because having an iridescent foil effect in the background ended up so much cooler than if it would have been left just straight pastel watercolor.

I use birds with figures for symbolism a lot, because I love the movement birds add to an image and birds have long been a visual metaphor for the soul. The different artistic depiction of the birds flowing from each figure are representations of different ways of thinking and processing. I see this all the time with my art classes I teach. In the beginner classes, we will usually create the same basic image together step-by-step, but the exciting variety I see across everyone’s artwork still is truly amazing.

The birds eventually all converge into one stream, mingling together and blending into streaks of color. I didn’t have a title for this piece until the very end, when the word “Symphony” came to mind. Our thoughts, words, ideas, personality, presence, all play a part in our community and society as a whole, and each part is important. Much like a symphony in which each instrument layers together to create the finished song, or a work of art like this one where each splash of paint or piece of fabric layers together to create a recognizable image, all of our different experiences and ways of looking at and processing the world are necessary for innovation and progress.

This piece was one of the most fun mixed media artworks to create that I’ve worked on in awhile, and I was additionally honored with the Best Of Show Award. Prints will be available soon in my online shop, so keep an eye out, or you can always contact me directly.

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Artist Bio

The ABCs of Creation – E Is For Equalize

An artist friend recently shared with me an article they wrote titled “The ABCs of Underground Art”. I really enjoyed it, and they encouraged me to write my own ABC’s of the type of art that I do as a fun journaling prompt to use to unwind and organize your thoughts. Those that have followed me for awhile know that I don’t typically stick to just one type of art, so to open up the limits I decided to make my “alphabet” the ABC’s of Creation. I have assigned a word to each letter, along with a video of my illustrating a cool little ACEO sized letter inspired visual to go with each word. Read, listen, or both – whatever works! 

E is for Equalize. Creating is a great equalizer in my opinion, because there are so many different ways to go at it even with certain limitations. I work with students with disabilities, some of whom have a lot of trouble with fine motor skills or dexterity. Large, overarching strokes, wobbly lines, lopsided sculpting … Some people try to achieve these peculiarities on purpose!  There is a way to make qualities you may view as imperfections part of your signature look. How cool is it that when creating, we can take something that is typically viewed as a difficulty and transform it into something that enhances our end result.

Above are just a snapshot of the beautiful works of art my students have created over the years. I strongly believe that beginning my career as an instructor with the Express Yourself Artshop inclusive program in my hometown (as someone who wasn’t even planning to become an art instructor at that point!) made me a better teacher.

(Psst! We do have a Redbubble Shop as well, if you want to show some love.)

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Art Discussion

The ABCs of Creation – B Is For Beauty

An artist friend recently shared with me an article they wrote titled “The ABCs of Underground Art”. I really enjoyed it, and they encouraged me to write my own ABC’s of the type of art that I do as a fun journaling prompt to use to unwind and organize your thoughts. Those that have followed me for awhile know that I don’t typically stick to just one type of art, so to open up the limits I decided to make my “alphabet” the ABC’s of Creation. I have assigned a word to each letter, along with a video of my illustrating a cool little ACEO sized letter inspired visual to go with each word. Read, listen, or both – whatever works! 

B is for Beauty. Of course, when we create something we hope others will want to look at it (or listen, or watch, or read …) Beauty means different things to everyone. The great thing about that is, there is a pretty good chance that someone out there will find your creation beautiful, even if it doesn’t fit the norm of how beauty is typically defined. 7 years ago now, I created one of my favorite pieces of a young woman with down syndrome looking joyful, confident, and gorgeous. When it was shown for the first time at an exhibit and awarded, some viewers were confused, did not approve, or were even angry. (How did I know this? I have very acute hearing and was even playfully called “elephant ears” by my parents as a kid because I heard EVERYTHING.) Though the lack of openness towards diversity in portraiture or a disdain towards people with disabilities is definitely not ok, it is ok for us to not all agree on one definition of beauty. Many more people have adored this same mixed media drawing. We each get to define what beauty is for ourselves.

If you want to see the other letters all the way to Z, be sure to subscribe!

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Gifting, New Work

Support Artists With Disabilities! – Happy Disability Pride Month

As Disability Pride month comes to a close, I wanted to take a moment to celebrate the vibrant artists with disabilities I am priviledged to share my life with, and also remind you that we definitely shouldn’t confine our recognition of the talent and worth of those with disabilities to just one month. In fact, I never even knew there was a Disability Pride Month OR that disability rights had been part of the other early civil rights movements until I started working with individuals with disabilities and a disability rights activist informed me of all this.

For a fantastic, concise video on why there may be this disconnect and why it doesn’t make sense since we will all experience disability at least temporarily at some point in our life, check out Sitting Pretty.

I have never met a more innovative, unconditionally loving and accepting, open and expressive group of people than the neurodiverse artists I work with in the Express Yourself Artshop Program.

One of the hardest parts of supporting artists with disabilities is finding their work in the first place. We have an online store where you can purchase original art and handmade wares, as well as a print-on-demand Redbubble Shop that offers all our unique student designs covering wearables, bags, mugs, home decor, and a variety of other high quality products. I absolutely adore Redbubble and own many products from them myself. I feel they are the best value in a POD site. Myself and my team are passionate about discovering our students’ untapped potential, getting their art out into the world, and helping them support themselves through what they love to do.

This idea of inclusion and celebrating difference as something that makes our community better ties right in to my current largescale project: a “mini mural” for Midland’s Neighboring Week. I have 3 vastly different individuals represented: a middle aged white woman with down syndrome, a young black male, and a mid-late 20s-aged Latino woman using a wheelchair. Heart, Mind, and Spirit are represented by graphic elements connected to each individual. This symbolizes the importance of opening our hearts to others’ stories, and the fact that we need all different types of brains working together in order to be the best community we can be. 

Every person on earth has value, and every person’s story is important.

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Exhibitions and Other News

Weekend Art Experience at Creative 360

This past Saturday I enjoyed being a part of an art experience at my workplace, Creative 360 Studio and Gallery. I call it a art experience rather than an art fair because it was so much more than just an opportunity for people to “buy stuff”.

We had a diverse group of local artists working in a variety of mediums and styles, and also featured beautiful art and handmade items from our artists with disabilities in the inclusive arts and wellness program I run, Express Yourself Artshop. Treats were catered by the program’s culinary class.

Throughout the day, we also enjoyed a number of performances by talent of all ages and abilities. Our Artshop Community Theater members each performed the monologues they wrote portraying themselves as their favorite artist, writer, or musician. There was a singer who performed a song they’d written about their personal faith. We were treated to a vibrant stand up comedy routine by a very young aspiring comedian, complete with some mind bending riddles at the end 😉. A young woman with autism who has been passionate about playing piano since she was 2 performed a series of pieces.

One of my personal favorite parts about participating in fairs is the fun of art trades, and I was thrilled to go home with a cozy fleece blanket perfect for the sudden descent into winter over here in Michigan, and an amazingly unique “80s Death Mask” (Check out the artist’s shop for some of their other sculpture and mixed media work).

Attendees found the fair inspiring, joyful, and uplifting with an environment of openness that encouraged sharing and connection. These events can only be as successful as the number of people who come out to support our local talent and enjoy the atmosphere of creative community! We are hoping to do another fair in the Summer, and in the more immediate future we have our Express Yourself Artshop Talent Show coming up this Monday the 18th at 6:00 inside Creative 360’s gallery.

I am also working on adding more inventory to Artshop’s online store featuring all student made fine art and crafts. Having the opportunity to get their creations out into the world provides a sense of confidence, ownership, responsibility and motivation for our students and also allows them to make income for themselves. Be sure to check back as I am going to start filling the store this week and next! For those in the area, hope to see you at our next event :).

 

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Uncategorized

Exciting News From the MAG Annual Exhibition!

Friday was the opening reception for the Midland Artists Guild’s Annual Juried Exhibition. What’s awesome about this year is that the show actually took place at the gallery I work at as Coordinator for one of their major programs, Creative 360. The piece that was accepted into the show was “She Is Everything At Once“, the 3rd installment in my new series I’ve been working on since late 2015. There was so much amazing work this year, I truly was just excited to get into the show and did not go in expecting any further recognition… and then my name got called for an Award of Excellence. No matter how many years I spend involved in art, I don’t think I will ever lose that factor of complete surprise when something like this happens.

11×14 Prismacolor Pencil and Mixed Media

 

For those of you who may have missed previous posts on my new series, I will be creating 12 mixed media, surreal, conceptual portraits in which the meaning is influenced by the use of pattern and color. They will depict women of all ages, races, and time periods, and each will communicate a different theme. I aim for the pieces to speak to women’s collective experiences beyond their differences. Each of the 12 will represent a month of the year, the one featured in the MAG show being March. We tend to think of time and events in terms of our own personal history or the history of the nation in which we reside. But of course, there are women everywhere living out their day to day life all over the world, with hopes, dreams, fears , relationships. Our situations and struggles are very different, but were we in some alternate reality all given a chance to meet, I suspect we would find some surprising similarities, maybe more than we ever expected.

My goal is to get this series into this year’s ArtPrize in Grand Rapids. With the positive responses I’ve been seeing to images from this series thus far including an award for my January piece at the Greater Michigan Art Exhibition last Fall, I’m certainly feeling hopeful!

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Art Education

1 Year At Artshop

So, I have that goofy little timehop app on my phone, and as I was checking it the other day a text popped up in the “1 Year Ago Today” section in which I was telling my boyfriend, “I have an interview scheduled for tomorrow!” It’s been almost a whole year already since I started at what is basically my dream job. I became interested in art programs geared towards individuals with disabilities and mental illness after picking up the book It’s Kind Of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini at the library (Before I knew it was also soon to be a movie. As always, the book’s better). The role that drawing his “brain maps” plays in the main character’s recovery as well as how he uses his drawings to bring joy to others was something that stirred immense inspiration within me. I knew I wanted to work with something like this, but all I could think was … crap. I just finished an interior design/art degree. I will not accept that I endured 4 years of blood, sweat, and tears to go into the wrong field. And … I tried to push the thought from my mind. After some weird forays at furniture stores and hardware stores being promised by prospective employers that I’d “really get to do a lot of designing!” yet ending up as more of a sales clerk, I received a mass email through the Midland Artists Guild mailing list calling for instructors for a new art program offering instruction to adults with physical and mental challenges at Creative 360. I had zero teaching experience at that point, but knew I could make art so decided to go for it since I needed a job. The rest is history. This post title isn’t quite accurate, as I’ve worked with Artshop as an instructor for 2-3ish years before becoming Artshop’s Program Coordinator, but it’s been 1 year as an “official” employee. This date a year ago was my interview, and even though I already knew everyone who I’d be talking to, I was freaking out. Artshop is truly such an important part of my life. Yes, it’s my job, but my students feel like friends and family. I want to share with my readers the first full year of my new adventure.
december

December.

I was kind of eased into the job by happenstance because I officially started right around the holidays, which means there was a lot of fun activities going on and of course, parties. Basically, maximum events, minimal drudgery, and everyone was in a really good mood all the time :). The previous coordinator, who was quite an awesome lady herself, came back for a visit for our Christmas party.

 

January.january

I know I’ve mentioned my Art Clash buddy Heather-Dawn Deogracia before (psst! She’s pretty much Midland famous with her recent front page story. Next – the world!). Our artistic styles are pretty in-sync so we’d always clicked, but I had the opportunity to get to know her even better as I was around Creative 360 more often. We started sharing drawings with each other and giving critiques from time to time, and currently we are even working on a collaboration together.

february

February.

My dear friend Heather-Dawn again! When I started as coordinator, I was still teaching 3 of my previously 6 classes. With so many other things going on now I’m down to 1 fine arts class, and I do miss doing fun, crafty, pinterest-esque projects with students. A heart wreath made out of puzzle pieces covered in iridescent paint, what? I find myself sending other instructors lesson plans sometimes being like Do this! …. Or wait, I mean if you want, it is your class now but …. seriously do it. Luckily, most of them don’t see it as bossiness and actually appreciate the suggestions … at least I think ;).
march

March.

One of the things I’ve always been passionate about is empowering artists to get their art out into the world through selling it to the public. It’s not about the money, it’s about having the confidence to say my work is worth something. We opened our Virtual Gallery on facebook, and had our first “live” art sale at Dollar Daze. The guy in the blue Artshop T-shirt is Doug. He is our top salesperson, no joke. Like, I should tip off my previous employer Art Van about giving him a job.

 

april

April.

Our Artshop Redbubble Store is another opportunity to get students’ work out there. We sold a ton of these Easter cards. Look at that adorable pink bunny, how could we not?

 

 

may

 

May.

Everyone knows those wine and canvas or painting party things are all the rage and have been for quite some time. They’re super fun but can be pricey for those on a tight budget, and aren’t really structured for one-on-one assistance. I began teaching Creative Canvas Workshops for Artshop following the same format, and it has been a blast. The workshop in May was tiger day! What has been the coolest thing about these workshops is that a large number of participants often aren’t our usual Artshop students. There is a lot of research coming out now about the benefits of inclusive environments. I love getting together to paint with people of all abilities, and seeing how they encourage each others’ work and learn from each other.

june
June.

Summer is the season of outdoor art fairs. This time, I got to be a vendor not a looker in setting up a booth with the students’ creations. The temperature was in the record highs. I was hot, I was tired, and I realized that for my own art I am only doing indoor art fairs around Christmas, if I ever do any for myself at all. Did I say I was hot and tired?

july

July.

Another month, another art fair. The things you do for love … There’s Doug again! What did I tell you?

 

 

 

 

 

august

 

August.

This wonderful lady would come every Wednesday with a different animal she wanted to paint, and complete a piece start to finish without fail. Seeing what she would come up with next was seriously a highlight to my week. After the summer, she unfortunately had to move to an assisted living facility out of the area. Suffice to say we will all think of her for months and years to come. Her talent and cheerful spirit is simply amazing.

septemberSeptember.

The fall brought our long awaited showcase. Artshop students were able to show their work in a gallery setting along with pieces sent to us from VSA and Do-Art. There were also monologues, musical and choreographed dances performed. It was a celebration of joy, expression, and accomplishment.

october

October.

What’s this? Another art fair! I asked for more opportunities for students to show their work, and I got it. This fair right at Creative 360 was nice because it was indoors and also students had the option of setting up their own table so they could be there with their work throughout the day. The variety and skill level of the handmade works shown was incredible, as was seeing the excitement and pride on students’ faces, many of whom had never had the opportunity to participate in something like this before.november

November.

All in all, I am so glad I get to spend my the majority of my day around people who bring things like this into the world … yes, it’s a fierce looking hot pink and lilac unicorn. Things aren’t always perfect, and there are days I’m frustrated and just want to stay home like any other job. But overall, I love what I do and not everyone can say that. I’m thankful that I can.

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