Mindful: Exploring Mental Health Through Art

MINDFUL: Exploring Mental Health Through Art

MINDFUL: Exploring Mental Health Through Art

Society for Contemporary Craft Pittsburgh, PA September 18, 2015–March 12, 2016

Ohio Craft Museum Columbus, OH July 10–August 21, 2016

Daura Gallery, Lynchburg College Lynchburg, VA September 19 –December 9, 2016

Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art Mindful: Exploring Mental Health Through Art is made possible by the Staunton Farm Foundation, The Fisher Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, The Fine Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, and media sponsors NEXTpittsburgh, WESA, and WYEP. Additional support is provided by the Allegheny Regional Asset District, the Elizabeth R. Raphael Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, The Heinz Endowments, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the Richard King Mellon Foundation. (as of 8.31.15)

Virginia Beach, VA January 27– April 16, 2017

Kaddatz Galleries and Lake Region Arts Council, McKnight Gallery Fergus Falls, MN August 14–October 7, 2017

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

people’s passion for this subject and their desire to help. This process ultimately helped expand Mindful into something much larger than initially imagined —a “socially engaged art experience” that involves not only our main gallery exhibition but several companion shows, and numerous community and education programs.

We used “crowd-sourcing” (a strategy of reaching out through social media to find new artists, ideas and opportunities) to put out an open call for stories and art related to the subject of mental health and 69 artists submitted work for consideration. Because we could only

When I first began talking about plans for Mindful: Exploring Mental Health Through Art, I was often asked,

accommodate a small percentage of these entries, we also added a Community Voices, show in our education center. Some of the artists have been on a lifelong journey of using art making to build resilience

“Why did you decide to do a show about mental health?

and work toward recovery. For others, the Mindful call motivated them to step forward publicly for the first time. We thank all of the exhibiting

You’re not a social service agency—how will you tackle such a complex subject?”

artists for their generosity and their courage in sharing their stories and art for this project.

To reach younger, family audiences, we also commissioned artist Nathaniel Taylor to create Osprey, a beautifully illustrated modern fable

We made the decision to undertake this project because we believe that

for families about stigma and compassion; and invited our summer fiber

arts organizations have important leadership opportunities to bring

artist-in-residence Daniel Baxter, to design a special line of Mindful dolls

about positive social change and serve as vital resources for building

to be available for sale in our Store.

community. This is a core value at Contemporary Craft —using the arts to build community by bringing residents and artists together to address urgent societal problems as well as support connections between creativity, community, and healthy living.

We are grateful to the three individuals whose catalogue contributions offer insightful perspectives on the subject of the arts and mental health.

Writer Matthew Newton shares an essay about his personal journey to find wellness—from his initial diagnosis in high school into young

Our goal is to provide a safe, welcoming place in which to foster what

adulthood. Lisa Miles offers her perspective as a musician, writer, and

the British philosopher A. C. Grayling calls ‘civic conversation’ through the

mental health worker on how “art allows for ease,” weaving together

lens of art. Using this strategy, we are working to achieve deeper

ideas from Mindful exhibition artists to make the case for the primacy of

community engagement by bringing together disparate groups of people

art in a balanced life. Arts administrator Michele Anderson highlights the

to respond to art and initiate dialogue around subjects that might be

history of the Kirkbride design movement used in the creation of 20th

difficult to talk about in other settings. Through art, a product of our

century mental institutions and tells how “creative placemaking,” is now

shared journeys, we have learned that we can celebrate, rather than fear

bringing transformation, growth and healing to a former Kirkbride

our differences.

institution in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.

There is both an urgent need and a great opportunity for arts

I especially want to credit former SCC Board member Leo Castagnari

organizations to convene community conversations about how the arts

for initially bringing to us the idea of mental health as an important social

can support positive mental health. Mental illness is a topic of primary

issue to explore through the arts. I also want to thank the entire SCC

concern for many of us but it remains a taboo subject. According to the

team for their passion, dedication, and commitment to this project. This

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), mental illnesses

effort has truly involved the whole staff; each of whom is recognized at

account for a larger proportion of disability in developed countries than

the back of this book. However, special credit goes to the core program

any other group of illnesses, including cancer and heart disease. Mental

staff led by our very talented Director of Exhibitions Kate Lydon, with

illness affects an estimated one in four adults in the United States. Yet

key support from Exhibitions/Program Assistant Natalie Sweet, and

unlike cancer and heart disease, which have finally become comfortable

Education Manager Rachel Saul. Marketing Manager Norah Guignon must

topics of conversation, mental disorders remain hidden behind a wall

be acknowledged for putting together striking yet thought-provoking

of secrecy, leading to stigma, misunderstanding, and neglect.

support materials for Mindful. And a special note of appreciation goes to

A primary goal of Mindful is to remove the stigma associated with mental

Paul Schifino for creating such a beautiful catalogue.

illness and to help increase understanding and grow compassion. The

Finally, we are grateful to the generous funders who believed in this

National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) estimates 60% of individuals

project and joined with us to make it possible: the Staunton Farm

with experiences with mental illness keep their experiences secret. By

Foundation, The Fisher Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, The Fine

shining a light on this subject and acknowledging that it touches all of us

Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jewish Healthcare

in some way, we hope to motivate the community to come together for

Foundation, and media sponsors NEXTpittsburgh, WESA, and WYEP.

open dialogue, sharing of experiences, and exchange on mental health

Additional support is provided by the Allegheny Regional Asset

needs and resources.

District, the Elizabeth R. Raphael Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation,

From the beginning, we aspired to make the project as inclusive as

The Heinz Endowments, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the

possible by representing a broad spectrum of experiences and voices.

Richard King Mellon Foundation.

Over nearly two years, we conducted meetings with mental health

Sincerely,

professionals to gather their suggestions and feedback. Each conversation opened up fresh ideas and new connections; we were overwhelmed by

Janet L. McCall Executive Director

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Fierce Catalyst: Artists, the Creative Life & Fighting the Stigma of Mental Illness

By Lisa A. Miles

permanently alter a person’s path.” With her “unsettling and alluring imagery,” she reveals the “psychological impact of family dysfunction” that bound her up much like artist Rose Clancy. Being “the child of a parent with an untreated mental illness,” Clancy tells of cyclical sadness affecting generations, perpetuating societal ill. Her mother’s dis-ease “swallowed her whole,” as she was “forced to bear witness to it with hands tied.” Her work, “deeply rooted in the experience of a powerless child trying to save a parent,” examines “neglect and nurturing.”

Artists certainly exhibit a stronger sense of self in the world than most

Wellness is best envisioned along a spectrum, having at one end mental health and the other mental illness. When thinking on the status of the mind, however, most people have a strong connotation only of the latter. How to ad-

people. Lyn Godley expresses it keenly: “I make things. It is who I am.”

Her work deals with the symbolism and profound affect of light. As with all the exhibit’s artists, “mindfulness” in its psychological term of being present with feelings is eloquently explored. Michael Janis uses that beautiful metaphor for the Self, glass, “as a way of seeing through ones

dress mental health? And what is the connection between

actions and intents.” He comments, “We live so often in a condition of

it, mental illness and creativity? Mental dis-ease remains

being obscured from ourselves and others.”

“hidden behind a wall of secrecy and isolation,” states the exhibition statement for Mindful. Abolishing that stigma should be inspired by the spirit of creative artists, that

i Along with throwing themselves into the fire of creativity, all artists exhibit diligence to their craft, and courage and resiliency in disregarding

segment of the population whose way of being in the world

convention and commerce. Their lives and work have hope and courage.

brings them variously close to both ends of this spectrum.

This despite continual misunderstanding by society, mismanagement of their interests by the cultural establishment and even periodic neglect by

There’s a fixation on health in this country—but the wrong focus. In attempt to fix the body and eradicate illness, ‘wellness’ visits are made up of tests and screens as precedent in a culture of doctoring... to dispel fear of cancer, heart disease, infectious disease. But what is feared the most is avoided. Mental health is utterly terrifying to most folks. Mental illness is vilified and the proper nature of wellness along a mental health spectrum is misunderstood. Yet mental health, which affects the somatic, is the

artistic compadres. Though they exalt in creating and it redeems them, artists face consistent stress. They struggle. Their noble determination to deal with their pain and determination to make a living creatively can make for emotional problems interfering with healthy functioning. Mania, anxiety, depression, mood or personality disorders can inordinately pervade their lives. Creative artists know too intimately the delicate balancing act on that spectrum.

most crucial aspect of individual and societal overall health.

Are artists crazy? Or profoundly the opposite?

Wellness has to do with the mind, far more than any physical debilitation

Amazingly strong individuals trying to weather a storm that defines their

that’s occurring due to imbalance. Wellness is acceptance, comfort, ease,

life in their urge for creativity, their urge for wellness. They put their pain,

connectedness to self. It is balance, and an arching toward wholeness

their ill, their full feeling into the transformative fire of creation but

defined at the mental health end of that spectrum... where at the other

poverty looms around every corner of artistic choice. It’s a terrible

lies illness, lack of ease.

predicament to be good at something, to know you have a unique

Art allows for ease.

ability... but to see little respect and prospect of work. Yet weather this storm—of creation and hardship brought on by self-identification—

“My motions are cathartic,” says Mindful artist Grace Kubilius, of the creative therapy that is the process of making art. On the very Self being

artists do. Strength, resolve, spirit and downright defiance are needed to propel one’s creative message and identity into the world.

hewn with one’s creative work, Jennifer Ling Datchuk offers, “I stitch together my individual nature.” Even therapeutic is the sharing of one’s creations. Meredith Grimsley speaks for all artists when she describes, “To my audience, I whisper about my search with the physical, indelible mark” of the created work.

This essay is certainly not suggesting that those diagnosed and living with chronic, significant mental illness can not feel well. For in the courageous acceptance of struggle, and with the same unabashed self-identification that artists have, can such individuals pull to the pole of wellness, recovery.

All creative artists have sensitivity. They are hyper-attuned to beauty, compassion, healing, openness. It is born out of their very nature but also often a response to dysfunction and dis-ease in family, environment, society. Artists “forever experience pain in search of perfection,” states

As mental dis-ease affects each of us at various points in our lives, its stigma should be attacked and finally eradicated with the same fierce energy that defines the transformative life struggle of the creative artist.

Datchuk. The creative process as balm is eloquently pondered by Kaitlyn Evans, who “seeks respite from emotions” she “[does] not fully understand.” Her works contain her state of unease, much like Alison

A small portion of this piece came from This Fantastic Struggle: The Life and Art of Esther Phillips (Miles, 2002) and was included in a 2013 article for PsychCentral entitled “Are Artists Crazy?”

Saar’s boxed-in figures. “The unfamiliar becomes manageable in my hand,” says Evans. Having at its core the Self, art allows for reflection on what makes one well and whole and functional.

Grimsley tells of her creative expression: “Each object made reflects moments of meditation and a longing for grace.” Within a body of work titled Same Old Wounds, she “contemplate[s] pivotal experiences which

Lisa A. Miles has been a professional creative artist and counselor for over 25 years. She composes/performs on violin and is the author of three books, a consultant/speaker in professional development, and a clinician for Mercy Behavioral Health. This Fantastic Struggle: The Life and Art of Esther Phillips is her biography/ cultural essay on a painter institutionalized over the stress of living creatively and attestation of ‘Artists as Workers,’ both subjects of which Lisa has written numerous articles for international publication (PsychCentral, WORK Magazine, Daily Kos, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). Her latest book is Spiral: An Anthology in Self Development, Mental Health & Creativity. www.lisamilesviolin.com; www.soundcloud.com/lisamilesviolin Lisa A. Miles © 2015 All Rights Reserved

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Ritual and Disorder

By Matthew Newton

to an extent, about my depression. All of my friends did. But I never went out of my way to talk about it too much, or go into detail about how these worsening rituals were actually manifestations of a debilitating disorder that was making day-to-day life miserable.

i Back in my bedroom I settled on a compromise, a silent three count: One, two, three. Each armpit was still sore, but I threw my T-shirt back on and laced up an old pair of black and white Vans. Running past Kelly on

It must have been June or July of 1993, sophomore year of high school behind me.

With my T-shirt in a ball on the bedroom floor, and

my way out the door, I patted her on the head before saying goodbye, still feeling deeply unsettled.

Six months earlier, in December of 1992, I was formally diagnosed with

my left arm extended to the ceiling, I recited a sequence

severe clinical depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

of numbers in my head: One, two, three, four, five, six.

Since freshman year, my mood and state of mind had started to shift.

I spent more time by myself; I slept long hours and was impossible to

A single swipe of deodorant accompanied each number in

wake in the mornings; and I was regularly acting out of character—

the silent count. If the swipes were inconsistent, I had to

a change most noticeably marked by fits of anger and near-constant

start over. Like if the edge of the plastic deodorant stick

irritability with everyone around me. The most dramatic changes,

container scratched against my skin, or if one swipe felt

however, were a series of compulsive and increasingly odd behaviors.

I had taken to constantly checking door locks, excessively washing my

longer than the other. Whenever the sequence got inter-

hands, applying deodorant in a ritualistic manner, counting every

rupted I would fret until I made it right.

footstep that I took, and had even developed an overwhelming concern

Aware of my reflection in the bedroom mirror, sweat beaded on my

impossible way to live.

forehead, I was concerned that my friend Keith would soon arrive. He was

Antidepressants masked my symptoms in those years, helping to boost

that each time I spoke I might offend someone. It was maddening, an

probably already behind the wheel of his beat-up gold Chevette, racing

my mood and alleviate some of my obsessions and compulsions. But life

across the winding roads in Pittsburgh’s eastern suburbs toward the

with antidepressants was far different than life without. Everything

house where I lived with my parents.

around me felt unreal. I yearned for the lost joy, moments of clarity, and

So I applied the deodorant again, six swipes under each arm. Like last

even the valleys of despair that landed me on drugs in the first place.

time, I attempted to flawlessly perform the ritual. No imperfections, no

I wanted to feel whole again, problems and all.

reason to seed doubt in my mind. The scent of Ocean Surf was heavy in

When I was 18 years old I stopped taking antidepressants. Not because

the air. And the deodorant stick was nearly gone, only crumbled pieces

I no longer needed the calibrated dosages of Paxil and Anafranil that I

left in its container.

was prescribed, but because I was tired of feeling separated from myself.

By the time I heard the rattling engine of Keith’s Chevette out in the

Each day felt like stumbling through a waking dream, set adrift in a sort

driveway, it was too late to stop the dog. Kelly was already howling,

of limbo where the fog never lifted.

disturbed from her nap at the foot of my bed, her milk-polished eyes and

My decision to stop taking antidepressants came with consequences.

gray muzzle pointed at the ceiling while a patch of fur on the back of

I struggled throughout my twenties and early thirties, plagued by bouts

her neck stood on end. Keith pounded on the horn in the center of his

of debilitating depression, obsessive rumination, and frequent anxiety. It

steering wheel and it let out a series of dull, stuttering drones from under

wasn’t until September 2007, after experiencing my first panic attack while

the hood.

on deadline for a major magazine assignment, that I sought help again.

“Out in a minute,” I yelled from my bedroom window at the back of the house. Kelly hurried from the room to investigate the noise. From the

I visited a psychologist who specialized in cognitive therapy. In other words, therapy that identifies dysfunctional thinking, behavior, and

corner of my eye I saw her jump from the bed, heard the nails on her

emotional responses. According to my therapist, much of my anxiety

paws click-clacking as she tore across the hardwood floor in the living

was brought on by a lifetime of what she called “negative thought

room on her way to the front door, where she let out another howl.

patterns,” also a breeding ground for self-loathing behavior.

I ran into the bathroom, wet a washcloth with warm water, and wiped

In a few months, after exhaustive exercises in identifying the sources of

away large white clumps of deodorant from under each arm. I would

my anxiety and figuring out how to rationally address them, my therapist

have to start over. But the skin was raw and irritated, and Keith was out

helped me curb the frequency of the attacks. She also helped me learn

front waiting, which made me nervous. Last thing I wanted was for him

how to deal with them in the future. To say it was a liberating experience

to walk in the house and catch me in the middle of this mess. It was too

would minimize the importance of the breakthrough. For the first time

embarrassing. He’d find me shirtless, with violent red streaks extending

ever, I had come across someone who could teach me how to coax the

from under the bicep on each arm to the top of my ribcage. Keith knew,

stubborn machinery in my brain to operate as it was intended.

Matthew Newton is a writer and editor from Western Pennsylvania, where he lives in the Electric Valley with his wife and two young sons. His essays have been published by the Oxford American, Guernica, The Rumpus, and The Morning News, and his reporting has appeared in Esquire, Forbes, and Spin. He is currently at work on Shopping Mall, his first book, which will be published by Bloomsbury in fall 2016. www.matthewnewton.us.

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Imagine Fergus Falls: Mobilizing Artists to Explore the Past and Future of a Mental Institution

By Michele Anderson

Kirkbride was a psychiatrist from Pennsylvania, a Quaker, and was one of many pioneers of “moral treatment” for the mentally ill. Known by his peers more as a stubborn idealist than a visionary, he founded the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutes for the Insane in 1844. For Dr. Kirkbride, place was the main prescription for healing mental health illness. The defining characteristic of the

Rural Program Director at Springboard for the Arts

institutions Kirkbride envisioned was a grand Victorian building in the shape of a horseshoe or bat wing, allowing for each patient’s room to receive an equal amount of sunlight. Appropriately, Kirkbride’s motto

For over 100 years, the labyrinthine history of institutionalized

was “beauty is therapy.”

mental health treatment evolved within five miles of the

Closed one by one between the 1970s and the early 2000s, fewer than

heart of downtown Fergus Falls—a community of 13,600 in the heart of the lakes and prairie of West Central Minnesota. This treatment took place on the sprawling,

15 of these buildings exist today. Now sitting empty, their overwhelming physical footprint provides a daunting challenge to potential developers and the cities or states that own them across the country. Add the cultural stigma of institutionalization to this equation and the possibility

pastoral campus of the Fergus Falls State Hospital, built in

for reinvention seems nearly impossible, something that has most

1890 under the design plan of Thomas Story Kirkbride.

recently been witnessed in Parsipanny, New Jersey, where demolition began on the Greystone Psychiatric Hospital in early summer 2015.

In Fergus Falls, the building has a complex reputation. It’s not uncommon to hear rumors that the building is haunted. At the same time, the public enjoys walking outdoors on the grounds, the community’s annual Summerfest is held at the foot of the building’s administrative tower, and former employees gather at the building for reunions. As such, the future of Fergus Falls’ Kirkbride Building is hotly debated at City Hall, in the local newspaper, and at coffee shops, restaurant and bars.

In 2011, Springboard for the Arts, a community and economic development organization for artists, based in St. Paul, MN, launched its first rural office in Fergus Falls. After opening its doors in downtown Fergus Falls, Springboard was approached almost immediately by the Friends of the Kirkbride, a grassroots advocacy group for the preservation and adaptive reuse of the building, about the possibility of getting artists involved with the issue.

It was clear from the beginning that the Kirkbride’s saga embodied the values and ideals of the then emerging field of Creative Placemaking.

Voices were not being heard in the community, and as a result, the building’s uncertain future was tearing the town apart. People of all ages were frustrated that they did not have a place to share their stories, hopes and ideas for the building. Many were starting to become apathetic, as if their

Aerial view of the former Fergus Falls State Hospital, or “The Kirkbride Building” in Minnesota, provided by the Friends of the Kirkbride.

opinions didn’t matter. To the City, demolition simply seemed easier than the long, multi-phased, and engaged process of reinventing the building.

Meanwhile, artists in the community were inspired, intrigued, and curious

Photo: David Lill

about the building. Many were already creating artwork inspired by the building, including fashion photo shoots in the vacant hallways, watercolors, quilts, and movies. Others saw the building as an opportunity to open up candid, honest conversations about mental illness.

Seeing the opportunity for artists to serve as a bridge between the past, present and future of the building, Springboard for the Arts, the Friends of the Kirkbride, and the Otter Tail County Historical Society launched “Imagine Fergus Falls” in the fall of 2013, a project intended to support artist-led projects that would foster community interaction about the past and future of the building.

Artists participate in a Creative Placemaking Action workshop about the Kirkbride Building, presented by Springboard for the Arts.

Photo: Holly Diestler

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Sculpture by former State Hospital patient, Justin.

Photo: Holly Diestler

Thoughtful, fiberglass sculpture

by Actual Size Artworks (Gail Simpson, Aristotle Georgiades) and Chris Walla.

If you can’t see you can’t see, can’t you see, curtain installation on the West Wing of the Kirkbride Building by resident artist Kristina Estell.

Photo: Naomi Schliesman

Photo: Khristina Estell

Thanks to an Our Town grant from the National Endowment for the Arts,

Around 600 people attended the play, most of whom were locals that

the Imagine Fergus Falls project adopted a robust, three-tiered approach

enjoyed seeing their Mayor, friends or family act in a play. Others traveled

to arts programming, through 1) supporting local artists to create new

from over 75 zip codes to be able to spend time at this mysterious

projects, 2) collecting, documenting and presenting current or previous

building, and got to witness one of the community’s most liminal moments

artwork that had already been created about the building, and 3) inviting

as it grappled with its past and future, suspending the questions that had

the site-specific theater production company, PlaceBase Productions,

been so urgent, reflecting and connecting deeply with one another as

to create an original play, performed by local community members at the

they moved from scene to scene. They laughed, smiled and cried in

building, about the history of the Kirkbride.

reaction to the stories that were so close to their hearts.

These approaches intertwined throughout the year, creating a vibrant

The future of the building remains uncertain, but some feel that a cloud

new ecology of expression and emergent traditions around the Kirkbride

has lifted since artists began getting involved and the narrative for

Building. Local artists attended a Creative Placemaking Action workshop,

Fergus Falls’ ability to confront the challenge of its preservation has

where they met various stakeholders of the building, learned leadership

changed for the positive. One actor in the Kirkbride Cycle decided to run

skills, participated in intergenerational conversations about mental illness

for city council as a write-in candidate after becoming more engaged

and community history, and generated ideas for projects.

with the issue through the rehearsal processes, and won his seat by 67

After a call for art for the exhibit, “Essence of Memory and Space,” former employees and residents of the hospital opened up about their experiences at the hospital, particularly the role that art played in every day life.

Former patients brought in projects they had made as residents, such as carved bookends or crocheted blankets, and former employees revealed

votes. Most recently, Springboard launched Hinge Arts, an artist residency program right on the campus, where artists live in newly renovated apartments in former nurses’ dormitories just yards away from the main Kirkbride tower.

No matter what happens with the building itself, Fergus Falls has once

that they had saved artwork from patients when the hospital first closed

again made a unique space in the world to explore and talk about mental

and had kept it hidden for years, unsure of whether they were legally

health —a reluctant but faithful steward of Thomas Kirkbride’s legacy of

allowed to keep it. Other submissions to the exhibit were not directly

challenging and questioning the societal systems that rule us. The inner

about the building, but instead were local artists’ expressions of their own

life of the building has been immortalized through dozens of works of art

struggles with mental illness, or their simple admiration of the building’s

that will never go away. More importantly, these works of art, created by

beauty. The opening reception turned into a vibrant, impromptu story-

artists of all experience levels and disciplines, have served as a sort of

telling night with standing room only at a downtown restaurant. The art

community therapy for Fergus Falls—strengthening relationships by

triggered memories, opinions, questions and ideas, and also illuminated

illuminating the town’s collective memory, and building its capacity for

the beauty of the wide variety of perspectives in the community itself.

a strong, shared vision of the future.

The following spring and summer, as individual artists worked on other projects, which included creating charm jewelry with local mental health patients, a participatory mural called “Paint My Castle,” and pop-up sculpture installations on the grounds, PlaceBase Productions held two “story swaps” to gather input and ideas for their play, and interviewed over 100 people with connections of all types to the building. With this material, they created the script for The Kirkbride Cycle, held auditions

Michele Anderson is the Rural Program Director for Springboard for the Arts in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has worked in the nonprofit arts sector for 10 years. Michele has her B.A. in Music from Lewis and Clark College, and her M.A. in Cultural Sustainability from Goucher College, where she was awarded the inaugural Rory Turner Prize in Cultural Sustainability in 2014 for her creative nonfiction essay titled “Imaginative Fields: A Companion to Action,” about Springboard's efforts in using the arts to foster community interaction about the past and future of the former Fergus Falls State Hospital. Michele is also a composer and pianist. www.springboardforthearts.org

for local community members, and set off to produce one of the most unique artistic experiences Fergus Falls had seen in its history—a clever, heartfelt and informative theater production that took place around the circumference of the hospital, with audience members riding bikes from scene to scene.

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PARTICIPATING ARTISTS

ALBRECHT   CLANCY       DATCHUK   EBERLE  EVANS  GODLEY     GOSWELL     GRIMSLEY    JANIS  KUBILIUS      PARK    SAAR SWOON  THOMAS    

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

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  

ALBRECHT

The Hammer (three views)

My work is a vessel for information — emotional, historical, and physical. I think of my pieces as multiple free lectures.

They can be a refuge from hidden agendas and affiliations,

2015 Earthenware 16" x 9" x 9" Photos: John Carlano

and a chance to hold a mirror to society, or maybe a tale of what is behind the curtain. Here are some questions to think about while looking at my work. Why are there non-profit organizations to help veterans? Why are people making billions of dollars from wars? What happened to courage?

Why are poor people killing poor people? What is behind all the fear being sold? Why are so few doing all the fighting?

Who was Smedley Butler? What did he expose? Why are we still doing this?

SOURCE Artist sketch

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SOURCE Altered photographs of artist’s mother

A Bright Blue Cotton Dress 2008 Silkscreen on acetate, salvaged materials 13" x 19" x 9 1/4" Photos: Rose Clancy

 

CLANCY My biographical history is that of a child of a parent with an untreated mental illness. My mother suffered with major depression, psychosis, anxiety disorder, and agoraphobic behavior — all of which worsened at an alarming rate as she aged.

As an artist I openly present my story for the benefit of others who have been affected by mental illness, and use my personal experience as a way of fostering conversation about social stigmas attached to mental illness. The stigma of being “mentally ill” suppressed my mother’s voice and disengaged her ability to act in defense against her illness.

If she had lived in a time where society was empathetic and supportive of those who struggle with emotional and mental balance, perhaps she wouldn’t have lived in denial of the illness and would have sought treatment. I feel that the time to tear down the walls that surround mental illness is long past due— it’s time to build bridges of understanding and compassion instead.

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    

DATCHUK

“one whiteness can cover three kinds of ugliness” 2014 Slipcast and hand built porcelain, steel wool, found trunk liner 18" x 20" x 6" Photo: Mark Menjivar

My work explores my experiences with identity, with the sense of being in-between, an imposter, neither fully Chinese nor Caucasian. I have learned to live with the constant question about my appearance: “What are you?” I find people are rarely satisfied with my answer. I explore this conflict through porcelain, which nods to my Chinese heritage but also represents “pure” white—the white desire I find in both cultures. My focus is the emotive power of domestic objects and rituals that fix, organize, soothe, and beautify our lives.

Bound by these conditions, I stitch together my individual nature, unravel the pressures of conformity, and forever experience pain in search of perfection.

12

SOURCE Facemasked swimmers on the beach in Qingdao, China Photo: Sim Chi Yin for The New York Times

A support system is needed, necessary and appreciated. My principle support is my wife Evalyn—without her understanding and support my situation would be most difficult.

And my support group also includes my sons and a few close friends. For all of their help I am most grateful. For all of their help I can go on making art.

SOURCE Evalyn Eberle Photo: Zoe Strauss

 

EBERLE Man in a Lifeboat (Revised) 2007 Porcelain 3" x 9" diameter Photo: Edward Eberle

The structure is given —a bowl, the inside round portion delineated with free form, light painting — the black band adding to the overall structure. The first figure emerges, is seen and the development of the painting proceeds. One line leads to another; a bird and a fish appear; the lifeboat is added (the bowl might have been called “Man in an Alive Boat”); a faceless figure appears in the background.

No preconception, no intention is brought into the painting.

No narrative is applied. The tone of the bowl is ‘light’ (as opposed to darkness); there is an awareness of surroundings; the principal figure is protector.

Painting for me is like jazz, like free form dance, like imagistic poetry, like stream-of-consciousness writing; the experience of seeing the bowl with all of its elements is just that— experiential, defying a narrative. The piece is encouraging and mindful.

13

SOURCE Artist process sketch



EVANS To Carry On 2014 Silver, copper, enamel, glass, plastic 3/4" x 1 3/8" x 1 1/3" Photo: Nick Heyl

I am overwhelmed with thoughts of the strange and unfamiliar containing forces that I will not be equipped to handle. Moving to an unfamiliar city that appeared rough and its people unpredictable left me feeling vulnerable.

It is difficult to articulate what I am ultimately afraid of, but I long for a sense of security and seek respite from emotions I do not fully understand. These insecurities have led me to make enameled handheld objects that contain my uneasy state. The unfamiliar becomes manageable in my hand, able to be contemplated, clutched, or tucked away.

14



GODLEY

In Flight 2011 Charcoal, fiber optics and LEDs, digital print on paper 96" x 193" x 2" Photos: Lyn Godley

SOURCE Early artist sketch with simulated lights

Lighting holds deep meaning for me. In my work light reads as the connection between a constellation far above, and the soul’s energy deep within; as an aura that connects us to something beyond, something that gives hope.

I believe art and design have the responsibility to make this world a better place, to relieve suffering wherever possible, and recent research is proving that both art and light have the capability to do just that.

I have lived a life of making. I made things for the 15+ year run of my design company with Lloyd Schwan. I made things after his death and while I raised our three sons.

I continued to make things while teaching at University.

Things which are beautiful, that have a level of interaction with the user, things that incorporate the magic of light.

I make things. It is who I am.

15

   

GOSWELL

Depression (two views) 2015 Mixed media 11 1/4" x 20 1/2" x

1/4"

Photo: Joan Iversen Goswell

There have been times when I have been depressed. I know what depression is like. The text of this book was written by Allie Brosh, creator of the online blog, Hyperbole and a Half.

She knows of what she speaks. This is the truest description of depression that I have ever heard— at least in my experience. Please visit Hyperbole and a Half and read her entire post entitled Depression Part Two. It is so true. It will, indeed, give you an insight into what goes on in a depressed person’s mind.

SOURCE Depression Part Two hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com © Allie Brosh 2013

16

Foundress 2014 Hand dyes, discharged rayon, silk organza, muslin, machine quilted, hand embroidered, hand made paper (abaca), acrylic paint 71" x 34 1/2" Photo: James Grimsley

Each generation within a family inherits not only genetics, but patterns of behavior. With my use of both unsettling and alluring imagery, I reveal the psychological impact of family dysfunction. This work discusses a balance between beauty and distortion and the endurance of the human spirit.

The nest in Foundress is that of a Yellow Jacket. Each year a single queen known as the foundress begins a new nest.

Legacy perseveres to rekindle her hostile swarm. Correlating the nature of these creatures with thoughts of dysfunctional family legacies, I see that, within families, significant events, words and behaviors occur and are absorbed into our daily routine without examination. Some happen in a breath while others linger endlessly corroding or correcting our core.

  

GRIMSLEY SOURCE

SOURCE

Vintage print from artist’s collection

Artist sketch

17

 

JANIS

Echoes 2015 Kilnformed glass, glass powder imagery, steel 10" x 30" x 4" Photo: Anything Photographic

Often individuals are unaware of how they are acting, feeling and engaging. We live so often in a condition of being obscured from ourselves and others. The things that can isolate can be social conventions, politeness; or it can be personal: timidity, self-fear or self-blindness, fatigue.

I use clear glass as a way of seeing through actions and intents. Echoes depicts three pairs of overlapped faces in fused glass powder that each create a new, third face. I see the interaction of the non-aligned faces as a depiction of the fate of both the inner and outer worlds. The imagery suggests the struggle to balance the different worlds that collide together. One cannot change without leaning a little SOURCE

further into the shared world, and without recognizing

Concept sketch

that even in one’s solitude, one is always at some point touching someone.

18

SOURCE Found welcome mat with rope Photo: Grace Kubilius



KUBILIUS Junk Bones (three views) 2014 Cotton, canvas, burlap, coffee filters, rope, string, found shoes, Barbie heads, wood 72" x 30" x 36" Photo: Carrie Anne Kelly

Clothing does not need to be pretty and it does not have to flatter the person wearing it. The body and the garment serve as architecture for ideas, memories, and personal histories. My work deals with gender, identity, trauma, self-image, ugliness and objectification. I approach new and found materials with a sense of play and disinhibition to make wearable objects. My process allows me to move with fluidity and urgency, to crudely cut and paste together and rip apart again, to create problems, and solve them.

My motions are repetitive, responsive, and cathartic.

19

  

PARK you are not going under 2014 Copper, acrylic paint, patina 15" x 17" x 31" Photos: Sophia Jung Am Park

My sculptural pieces are worn on the body in a gestural expression as a metaphor for human patterns of adaptation to difficulties in life. The idea for their appearance is derived from Bonsai trees, which are bound with wire during their growth, to create a particular configuration. These pieces constrain parts of the body in some way and impede its free movement. To further illustrate this concept, I have collaborated with professional dancers who wear these pieces while performing.

SOURCE Tree branches growing through chain-link fence.

20

SOURCE Interior view of J’Attends Photo: Natalie Sweet



SAAR J’Attends

J’Attends features a prone head with hollow eyes. When the viewer peers inside the head they witness a small

2007

solitary light bulb surrounded by moths. It is a view into

Mixed media

a mind which is anticipating the advent of madness.

14" x 18" x 12" Courtesy of L.A. Louver, Venice, CA Photo: Karen Lue

21

SOURCE Artist process image Photo: Swen Rudolph

Memento Mori 2015 Handprinted block print with coffee stain and cut out on mylar 84" x 67" Photo: Swoon Studio

I am a classically trained visual artist and printmaker, and for the last 13 years I have been exploring the relationship between people and their built environment. My first

SWOON

interventions in the urban landscape took the form of wheat-pasting portraits to the walls of cities around the world. More recently, I have been working collaboratively through my non-profit organization, the Heliotrope Foundation. Focusing on community revitalization in Braddock, Pennsylvania; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Haiti, these projects support artists’ place-based interventions that explore how creativity can positively impact communities in times of crisis and change.

22



THOMAS Compensation 2011 Slab built, molded earthenware, slip, mixed media 18" x 8" diameter Photos: Ian Thomas

Intimately, I have watched the struggles of mental illness and the years of trial and error finding the right concoction to stabilize this all-consuming issue. The works included in this exhibition are an examination of the relationship between pharmaceutical drugs and their user. These pieces illustrate the daunting regulatory intake of medicines and the deep introspective view one might have contemplating their role in “normality” if indeed there is such a thing.

SOURCE Pharmaceutical drugs

23

BIOGRAPHIES Biographical information has been selectively compiled and is not meant to be exhaustive.

Jesse Albrecht

Rose Clancy

Jennifer Ling Datchuk

Edward Eberle

Born: Amherst, WI, 1977 Lives: Bozeman, MT

Born: Pittsburgh, PA, 1960 Lives: Pittsburgh, PA

Born: Warren, OH, 1980 Lives: San Antonio, TX

Born: Tarentum, PA, 1944 Lives: Pittsburgh, PA

Education

Education

Education

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics and Drawing, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 2006

A. A., Visual Communications and Graphic Design, The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, 1984

M.F.A., Artisanry (Ceramics), University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, MA, 2008

M.F.A., Ceramic Design, The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 1972

Selected Exhibitions

B.F.A., Crafts (Ceramics), Kent State University, Kent, OH 2004

B.S., Art Education, Edinboro State College, Edinboro, PA 1967

M.A., Ceramics and Drawing, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 2004 B.S., Ceramics, University of Wisconsin — Eau Claire, WI, 2000

2015 Alloy Pittsburgh, Carrie Furnaces, Rankin, PA

Selected Exhibitions

Selected Exhibitions

Selected Exhibitions

2015

2014

2015

2014

Art and Other Tactics: Contemporary Craft by Artist Veterans, Craft and Folk Art Museum, Los Angeles, CA

Diversion, solo exhibition, Three Rivers Arts Festival, Pittsburgh, PA

Love and Wonder, Clam Shell Gallery, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA

Bodies at Rest: Figurative Clay from RAM’s Collection, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts Conference, Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee, WI

2014 Art Out of War, Eutectic Gallery, Portland, OR Call to Consciousness, Southern Graphics Council International Conference, City College of San Francisco, CA 2013 Citizen*Soldier*Citizen, Hyndman Gallery, Lubeznik Center for the Arts, Michigan City, IN

Yardage, solo exhibition, The Mattress Factory Museum, Pittsburgh, PA

Move Me, Museo Guadalupe, San Antonio, TX 2014

2012 A Matter of Convenience, Future Tenant Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA 2011 Your Place at the Banquet, Future Tenant Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA 2010

Dark and Lovely, solo exhibition, Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum, San Antonio, TX

2011

Intense and Fragile, Southwest School of Art, San Antonio, TX

Pittsburgh Biennial, Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA

Simple Ingredients, Mariago Collective, Houston, TX

2008

The GardenLab@510, solo exhibition, The Mattress Factory Museum, Pittsburgh, PA (through 2013)

2013

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Fe Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA

2012

Book As Witness: The Artist’s Response, Center for Book Arts, New York, NY

Touch Me Please, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, PA

In Praise of Hands, In Praise of Paz, Instituto Cultural de Mexico, San Antonio, TX

International Paper Biennial Rijswijk, Museum Rijswijk, Rijswijk, Netherlands

New Works: The Brew House Distillery Program, Season 3, Space 101 Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA

Veterans Book Project, Milwaukee Museum of Art, Milwaukee, WI 2012

Veteran Made: A Selection from the Combat Paper Project, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

2009

HERstory, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Ms. Mishimas, Seattle Design Center, Seattle, WA

2011

2010

The Blogger Show, Agni Gallery, New York, NY

Hopey Changey Things, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, Omaha, NE

Selected Grants and Awards

Beyond Useful and Beautiful: Rethinking Domestic Craft, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston, TX

2008

2012, 2011 Small Arts Initiative Grant, The Heinz Endowments, Pittsburgh, PA

Selected Grants and Awards 2006, 2005 Wilhelm & Jane Bodine Fellowship, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 2006 Finkbine Leadership Award, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA Selected Publications Colhoun, Damaris. “Art Grenade.”

Believer, Vol. 11, No. 9. 2013. Print.

2009 Artist-In-Residence, The Distillery Program, The Brew House, Pittsburgh, PA

From Prow to Gravity, solo exhibition, Perimeter Gallery, Chicago, IL 2006 National Biennial Ceramics Invitational, Parkland College, Champaign, IL 2004 The Perfect Collection: A Shared Vision for Contemporary Craft, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA 2003

Small Favors VII, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

2008

Dysphoria, solo exhibition, MacRostie Art Center, Grand Rapids, MN

Ed Eberle: Ceramics and Drawings, solo exhibition, Hoyt Center for the Arts, New Castle, PA

2010

21st Century Ceramics in the United States and Canada, Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus, OH 2000 Color and Fire: Defining Moments in Studio Ceramics, 1950-2000, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA

Little Graces, solo exhibition, SMART Art Space, San Antonio, TX

1999

Sometimes I Wish I Was Invisible, solo exhibition, Stella Haus, San Antonio, TX

Edward Eberle: Drawing on Paper and Porcelain, solo exhibition, Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH

Selected Grants and Awards

1986

2015, 2011 Artist-in-Residence, The Pottery Workshop, Jingdezhen, China

Poetry of the Physical, American Craft Museum, New York, NY

Website: www.roseclancy.com

2010 Travel Grant, Artpace, San Antonio, TX

Selected Grants and Awards

Website: jenniferlingdatchuk.com

1993, 1989, 1986 Individual Fellowship, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Harrisburg, PA

Pisano, Maria G. Book As Witness: The Artist’s Response. New York: Center for Book Arts, 2012. Print.

1987 Visual Artist Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC

Wilson, Eric. “Warning: Artists at Work.” The New York Times, July 20, 2011. Print.

Selected Collections

Website: www.jessealbrecht.com

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA National Gallery of Australia, Canberra The Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC Selected Publications Shearing, Graham. “Edward Eberle.”

American Craft 65, No. 4, 2005. Print.

Del Vechhio, Mark. Postmodern Ceramics.

London: Thames & Hudson, 2001. Print.

Koplos, Janet. “Edward Eberle at Garth Clark.” Art in America. May 1996. Print.

24

Website: edeberle.com

Kaitlyn Evans

Lyn Godley

Joan Iversen Goswell

Meredith Grimsley

Born: Mansfield, PA, 1987 Lives: Mansfield, PA

Born: Oberlin, OH, 1956 Lives: Philadelphia, PA

Born: Pittsburgh, PA, 1939 Lives: Valencia, PA

Born: Atlanta, GA, 1975 Lives: Bloomsburg, PA

Education

Education

Education

Education

M.F.A., Jewelry and Metalsmithing, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, MA, 2014

M.F.A., University of WisconsinMadison, WI, 1980

Classical Design Bookbinding with Jean Gunner, Hunt Botanical Library, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA

M.F.A., Fabric Design, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 2002 B.F.A., Fabric Design, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 1999

2015

Calligraphy with Elizabeth Houston, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, PA

2015

Flow, public art commission, Sugarhouse Casino, Philadelphia, PA

Printmaking and Design, Chatham University, Pittsburgh, PA

Light Wrap, public art commission, Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, Bethlehem, PA

Selected Exhibitions

B.F.A., Jewelry and Metalsmithing, Millersville University of Pennsylvania, Millersville, PA, 2009

B.F.A., Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 1978 Selected Exhibitions

Selected Exhibitions

Selected Exhibitions 2015 Naughty Narratives: Lives Revealed, Art Avenue, Greenville, NC 2013 Tongue ‘N Cheek, Greenville Museum of Art, Greenville, NC Surfacing, Gallery 244, New Bedford, MA

2014 Behind the Veil, solo exhibition, Gallery at International House Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA

2011 Emerging Artists in Residence Exhibition, Sykes Gallery, Millersville, PA

Lyn Godley: Light and Art, solo exhibition, Freyberger Gallery, Pennsylvania State University— Berks, Reading, PA

2010

2013

Art of the State: Pennsylvania 2010, The State Museum, Harrisburg, PA

Dew-mi O’my, public art commission, Lehigh Valley Health Network—Cedar Crest Campus Hospital, Allentown, PA

Selected Grants and Awards 2010 Emerging Artist in Residence, Millersville University, Millersville, PA Selected Publications Evans, Kristen. Mammal Room. Denver, CO: Springgun Press. 2015. Print.

Website: www.kaitlynevans.com

Contemporary Fiber: Breaking Tradition, Lore Degenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA

2015

2014

Reader’s Art: Concealed, Confined and Collected, Minnesota Center for Book Arts, Minneapolis, MN

Flight Patterns, T-North Gallery, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta, GA (traveling exhibition)

2014 2013 Book Rower Redux, 23 Sandy Gallery, Portland, OR San Diego Book Arts Fifth National Juried Exhibition, University of California San Diego, CA 2013 The Book as Art, The Art Institute of Atlanta, Decatur, GA

2011

Repetition and Ritual, Hudgens Center for the Arts, Atlanta, GA 2012 Fibers, Madison Morgan Cultural Center, Madison, GA 2011 Between the Inside, solo exhibition, Glasgow Goodkind Gallery, Glasgow, MT

In Flight, solo exhibition, Gallery 68, Cologne, Germany

Politics and Other Diversions, solo exhibition, Durango Art Center, Durango, CO

2010

2010

Cutting Edge: A Celebration of Fibers, The Textile Arts Center, Brooklyn, NY

Lyn Godley, solo exhibition, Moravian Academy, Bethlehem, PA

Artists Book Cornucopia, Abecedarian Gallery, Denver, CO

2009

2009

2008

Lyn Godley, solo exhibition, GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA

Fun and Games, Center for Book Arts, New York, NY

Evidence of the Unseen, solo exhibition, North Florida Community College, Madison, FL

2008

2006

Though Process, public art commission, GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA

Gestures, The Mattress Factory Museum, Pittsburgh, PA Selected Grants and Awards

Selected Grants and Awards 2008 Profession Development Grant, Philadelphia University, Philadelphia, PA Selected Collections Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO

Fiber National, Lancaster Museum of Art, Lancaster, PA

Selected Collections

Sapunar, Dora. “Kickstarting Fiber Optic Art.” Metropolis Magazine Blog, Aug. 10, 2013. Web.

Keeping Them, solo exhibition, Gasner Gallery, Millersville University of Pennsylvania, Millersville, PA 2007

Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA Brill, Louis. “Thought Process: Linear Light for the Creative Arts.” Professional Lighting Design. No. 88. July 2013. Print.

2008

2000 Y2K-PIT Best of Show, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, PA

Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

Selected Publications

Pearls and Honey, solo exhibition, Pendleton Center for the Arts, Pendleton, OR

2002 Abraham C. Frank Memorial Award, The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh, PA

1998 Buncher Family Foundation Award, Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA

Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY

2010

Jaffe Center for Book Arts at Florida Atlantic University Libraries, Boca Raton, FL The Sackner Archive of Concrete and Visual Poetry, Miami, FL Yves Klein Archives, Paris, France

Schira, Ron. “Art Review: Confronting Nature Conceptually, with Innovation at the Freedman Gallery.” Reading Eagle, June 20, 2010. Print.

Koerth-Baker, Maggie. “Solid-State offers a New Tool for The Art of Lighting.” Architectural SSL. November 2009. Print.

Website: www.lyngodley.com

25

BIOGRAPHIES (continued)

Michael Janis

Grace Kubilius

Born: Chicago, IL, 1959 Lives: Washington, DC

Born: Chicago, IL, 1991 Lives: Richmond, VA

Education

Education

B.Arch., Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL, 1983

B.F.A., Fiber (Experimental Fashion Concentration), Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD, 2013

Selected Exhibitions 2015

Selected Exhibitions

43rd International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI

2015

SOFA Chicago, Maurine Littleton Gallery, Chicago, IL

Artist-In-Residence Exhibition, Craft Alliance Center of Art and Design, St. Louis, MO

2014

2014

Greatness of Studio Glass Art, Gallery 72, Omaha, NE

My November Valentine, Reese Gallery, St. Louis, MO

2013

FABRIC, St. Louis Fashion Week, Public Media Commons, St. Louis, MO

Blast!, Zest Contemporary Glass Gallery, London, England

2013

Glass/Ceramics, Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, Chicago, IL

Off the Rack, Benefit Fashion Show for Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, Fillmore Theater, Washington, DC

2012

R.I.P. V.I.P., experimental fashion event, St. John’s Church, Baltimore, MD

Monumental Cast Glass Doors, public art commission, Adams Building, Library of Congress, Washington, DC 2011

2012 Cloth of Action, Middendorf Gallery, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD

The Glass Canvas, Flemish Center for Contemporary Glass Art, Lommel, Belgium

Selected Grants and Awards

Touching With A Lighter Hand, solo exhibition, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA

2014 Fiber Artist-In-Residence, Craft Alliance Center of Art + Design, St. Louis, MO

2009

2014 Artist Residency, Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, Silver Spring, MD

John McQueen & Michael Janis, two-person exhibition, Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis, MO

Selected Collections Craft Alliance Center of Art + Design, St. Louis, MO

Selected Grants and Awards 2015, 2014, 2009 Artist Fellowship, DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities, Washington, DC 2012 Fulbright Scholarship, University of Sunderland, Sunderland, England 2012 Artist-In-Residence, Institute for International Research in Glass, England National Glass Center, Sunderland, England Selected Collections Embassy of the United States, Bucharest, Romania The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL Selected Publications Ritzel, Rebecca J. “Becoming Michael Janis.” American Craft Magazine 73, No. 2, 2013. Print.

Website: www.michaeljanis.com

26

Website: www.gracekubilius.com

Sophia Jung Am Park

Alison Saar

Swoon

Ian F. Thomas

Born: Muan, South Korea, 1972 Lives: Macungie, PA

Born: Los Angeles, CA, 1956 Lives: Los Angeles, CA

Born: New London, CT, 1977 Lives: Brooklyn, NY

Born: Butler, PA, 1976 Lives: Slippery Rock, PA

Education

Education

Education

Education

M.F.A., Jewelry and Metals, San Diego State University, CA, 2010

B.A., Scripps College, Claremont, CA, 1978

B.F.A. Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY, 2001

M.F.A., Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 2006

B.A., Studio Art, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, 2005

M.F.A., Otis Art Institute, Los Angeles, CA, 1981

Selected Exhibitions

B.F.A. Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA, 1999

Selected Exhibitions

Selected Exhibitions

2015

2015

2014

1st Annual Chasing and Repoussé International Exhibition, A Survey 2000 thru 2015, Outnumbered Gallery, Littleton, CO

Alison Saar: Thistle and Twitch, solo exhibition, Sonoma County Museum, Santa Rosa, CA 2014

This Is A Brooch, 2015 Society of North American Goldsmiths Conference, Boston Park Plaza Hotel, Boston, MA

Hothouse, solo exhibition, Watts Towers Arts Center, Watts, CA

2014

2012

Ann Metzger Memorial National All Media Exhibition, St. Louis Artists’ Guild and Galleries, Clayton, MO

Still, solo exhibition, Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA (traveling)

Changing Hues: Color Embraced

by Metalsmiths Around the World, The Ganoskin Project (online)

2011

Academy of Bratislava, Slovakia, 1997 Submerged Motherlands, site-specific installation, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY 2013 Petrichor, solo exhibition, State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota Fine Art Gallery, Brandenton, FL

Selected Exhibitions 2015 Lively Experiments, 2015 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts Biennial, David Winton Bell Gallery, Brown University, Providence, RI

Zona Urbana, Museum de Arte Contemporaneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico

2014

2012

Transformation 9: Contemporary Works in Ceramics, Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize Exhibition, Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA

Honeycomb, solo exhibition, XYZ Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

Strictly Functional, Market House Craft Center, Lancaster, PA

Alison Saar: Feallen and Fallow, solo exhibition, Madison Square Park, New York, NY

2011

2010

Art in the Streets, Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA

2011 Juried Biennial Exhibition, William D. Cannon Art Gallery, Carlsbad, CA

Bound for Glory, solo exhibition, Hoffman Gallery, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

Inside Out Outside In, Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

2010

2008

2010

Going to Extremes, 2010 Society of North American Goldsmiths Conference, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX

Alison Saar, solo exhibition, Rochester Contemporary Art Center, Rochester, NY

Konbit Park Sculpture, public art commission, Brooklyn, NY

2012

2007

Selected Grants and Awards

Family Legacies: The Art of Betye, Lezley and Alison Saar, Ackland Art Museum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (traveling)

2011 International Community Engagement Award, SGC International

Push Play, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, Bellevue Arts Museum, Seattle, WA

2010 Creative Time Global Residency Grant, Creative Time, New York, NY

2000

Selected Collections

California Now, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA

Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY

Until You Make It, solo exhibition, Vergette Gallery, Carbondale, IL 2011

Materials: Hard & Soft National Contemporary Craft Competition and Exhibition, The Patterson-Appleton Center for the Visual Arts, Denton, TX REFINED VI: Back to Basics, The Cole Art Center, Nacogdoches, TX Textural Patois, Allen Priebe Art Gallery, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, WI Selected Grants and Awards 2010 Award of Merit, Textural Patois, Allen Priebe Art Gallery, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, WI 2009 First Place, Jewelry + Objects: Michigan Silversmiths Guild, 2009 Membership Exhibition, Ann Arbor Art Center, Ann Arbor, MI 2005 Rickert-Ziebold Trust Award, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL

1996 Bearing Witness: Contemporary Works

by African-American Women Artists, Spellman College Museum of Fine Art, Atlanta, GA (traveling) Selected Grants and Awards 2013 Artist-in-Residence, Joan Mitchell Foundation, New York, NY 2005 Excellence in Design Award, New York City Art Commission, New York, NY

Selected Publications

2000 Flintridge Foundation Awards for Visual Artists, Pasadena, CA

Le Van, Marthe, Talya Baharal. 500 Silver Jewelry Designs: The Powerful Allure of a Precious Metal. New York, NY: 2011. Print.

1989 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, New York, NY

Metalsmith: Exhibition in Print, Volume 35, No. 4, 2015. Print.

The Ring Show: Then & Now and Putting the Band Back Together.

Athens, GA: Georgia Museum of Art, 2008. Print.

2013 Anthropocene, The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, MA

Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, MA Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

Milk Money, solo exhibition, 4Most Gallery, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL OH+5, The Dairy Barn Art Center, Athens, OH Yesterday’s Tomorrow, Spring Street Gallery, Houston TX

Sculpture in So Many Words, Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, TX Translatory Motion, The Pottery Workshop Gallery, Jingdezhen, China Selected Collections Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, TX The Pottery Workshop Jingdezhen, China

Selected Publications

Selected Publications

Parry, William. Against the Wall: The Art of Resistance in Palestine. Chicago, IL: Chicago Review Press, 2010. Print.

Copeland, Collette. “Incidental Transformations.” Ceramics: Art and Perception. No. 91, 2013. Print.

Bloom, Julie. “A Floating City With Junkyard Roots.” New York Times, August 18, 2008. Print.

Wandless, Paul Andrew. 500 Prints on Clay: An Inspiring Collection of Image Transfer Work. Asheville, NC: Lark Crafts, 2013. Print.

Miranda, Carolina A. “A Two-Way Street.” ARTNews, November 1, 2008.

Web.

Website: www.ianfthomas.com

Website: www.caledoniacurry.com

Selected Collections Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA

“Sculpture and Performance: Kinesiology Professor Performs with Artist’s Work.”

Journeys. May 2014: 18. Web.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

“Sophia Park.” Expressions. PBS. WSIU, Carbondale. 22 May 2014. Television.

Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY

Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

Website: http://sophiaparkjewelry.blogspot.com

27

ADDITIONAL IMAGES

COVER: Grace Kubilius Junk Bones, 2014 Cotton, canvas, burlap, coffee filters, rope, string, found shoes, barbie heads, wood.

72" x 30" x 36"

PAGE 26: Grace Kubilius Oh How I Love You, 2014 Cotton, canvas, burlap, string, found fabric, found shoes, paint, plaster, wood .

72" x 30" x 36"

Photo: Carrie Anne Kelly

Photo: Gina Grafos

INSIDE FRONT COVER: Edward Eberle Blindfolded, 2009 Porcelain 6" x 3" x 3"

PAGE 28: Edward Eberle Like a Hole in the Head, 2009 Porcelain 3" x 2 1/2" diameter

Photo: Edward Eberle

Photo: Edward Eberle

INSIDE TITLE PAGE: Ian Thomas Consumption, 2015 Porcelain, underglaze 10" x 30" x 1 1/2"

INSIDE BACK COVER: Michael Janis My Other Self: Sancturary, 2011 Kilnformed glass, glass powder imagery, steel 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" x 1"

Photo: Ian Thomas

Photo: Anything Photographic

PAGE 8: Jennifer Ling Datchuk Clean and Bleed, 2015 Slipcast and hand built porcelain, wooden drawer, blood 13" x 10" x 5" Photo: Mark Menjivar

BACK COVER: Alison Saar Pret-a-Porter, 2013 Paper, matte medium, wax, pigment, found suitcases 28" x 14" x 9" Courtesy of L.A. Louver, Venice, CA

28

Board of Directors

Heart of Craft Circle

David Blair, Chair

Marianne Bokan-Blair and David Blair

Judy Kelly, Vice Chair

Judy and Michael Cheteyan

Susan Yohe, Secretary

Jan Kerr and Clark Nicklas

Janet L. McCall, Executive Director

Elsa Limbach

Kate Lydon, Director of Exhibitions

Wendy and Peter Mars

Natalie Sweet, Exhibitions/ Program Assistant

Michele O’Leary, Treasurer Annette Atwood

We acknowledge with appreciation the following staff and volunteers for their contributions to Mindful: Exploring Mental Health Through Art:

Alexandra Raphael Tracy Certo

Rachel Saul, Education Manager Catherine Raphael

Bridgette Cofield

Norah Guignon, Marketing Manager Emily and Ronald Bianchini

Susan Golomb Susan Golomb Clark Nicklas Donna Hansen and Ralph Kemp Cheryl Parzych Carolyn and Paul Hrach Clyde Wilson Pickett Judith A. Kelly Rita Resick Lois M. Madden Ed Rockman Janet L. McCall Larry Rosen Margaret McDonald and Russell Schuh Janice Faller Schermer Diane Mohr Patricia Sheahan Janice L. Myers-Newbury William Stein Cheryl and Brian Parzych Dorie Taylor Marisol Wandiga Valentin

Elizabeth Wainwright and Russ Kemerer

Loretta Stanish, Director of Development Sara Ryan, Development Coordinator for Individual Giving Lauren Peterson, Office Administrator Yu-San Cheng, Finance Manager Rebecca McNeil, Shared CFO — Arts Finance Cohort Megan Crowell, Retail Manager Marguerette Sokol, Store Associate Janette M. McCall, Store Intern Jenny Soracco, Studio Apprentice Amy Masters, Studio Apprentice Sarah Ceurvorst, Program Assistant

Legacy Circle

Karen Lue, 2015 Judy Cheteyan Intern Melissa Quarto, 2016 Fine Intern

Donna Hollen-Bolmgren * Gerri Kay * Elizabeth Rockwell Raphael * ISBN 978-0-9960989-1-5 *deceased

SOCIETY FOR CONTEMPORARY CRAFT 2100 Smallman Street Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222 PHONE: 412-261-7003 FAX: 412-261-1941 contemporarycraft.org exploremindfulart.com

DESIGN: PAUL SCHIFINO, SCHIFINODESIGN.COM