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ArtReach Student, Latoya

Published February 20, 2012 Broad Ripple Village , Uncategorized Leave a Comment
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‘Art Helped Me Grow as a Person’

ArtReach Graduate talks about program’s impact

Latoya preps materials for a session of her SMART class

Latoya, 16, has been participating in the Art Center’s ArtReach program at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center every other Thursday night since she was 7 years old. Last year, she also participated in SMART (Supportive Mentoring through ART), a partnership between the Indianapolis Art Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana. She got a scholarship to continue in the program this year as a teacher’s assistant.

When did you develop an interest in art?

I started drawing when I was two, but I was drawing stick figures and trees that didn’t look like trees and cars that looked like some kind of airplane. Since I’ve gotten older and since I’ve been in Ms. Jude (Odell)’s outreach class at the Martin Luther King Center, I realize I’ve become a better artist because she’s helped me achieve a better perspective and I’ve seen myself as an artist ever since then.

How did you hear about the ArtReach program?

I found out about it because my grandma was in it (the Second Time Around program at Martin Luther King Community Center for grandparents raising their grandchildren) and she started taking me along with her. And ever since I started doing the program I kept bugging my grandma, ‘can I go with you?’ When I went I saw the best art teacher I ever had since I was a seven-year-old. Now I’m sixteen and I still will remember her even when she’s gone.

Latoya with Jude Odell, her ArtReach instructor for the past nine years

Why is Jude Odell such an important person in your life?

I’ve noticed that my way of thinking about art has changed because I used to think of art as just being a hobby that you can do. Now I think of art as even my career other than being a veterinarian. I found that art is not only a hobby, it’s a passion. Art is how I express myself. Most people express themselves by the way they dress or act; I express myself through art.

Art has made me feel that I am a person and not just a person that’s just here on the earth just to be here. I feel that I have a purpose now. Because before art, I felt not like a person. I was used to feeling…nothing. Art made me feel like a person because I could express myself through it.

You won the Outstanding Student award last year. Tell us about that.

That night (of the exhibition opening) I was surprised to hear my name. I was happy, too, because everyone was cheering for me. And that’s the kind of thing I don’t get. So I kind of feel happy from people cheering for me.

Has the ArtReach program changed you?

My grandma feels it has helped me grow as a person and being more outgoing and show people I’m not just a quiet person that can sit around and not be part of a crowd. It’s helped me to see that I’m an artist and not just a person who loves to do art. (It used to be that) I wouldn’t talk or anything. If there was a question, I’d probably say I don’t know, shrug my shoulders, shake my head. Now I can give a straightforward answer using my words, not shrugging my shoulders or shaking my head. I can say yes or no.

Anything you’d like people to know?

The Art Center here in Broad Ripple is a great place to come for all the kids that feel that they don’t have a place to go. It will show them that they matter in the world and through art they probably could show their real personality and who they are through art.

Jude Odell has been an instructor in the Indianapolis Art Center’s ArtReach program for 20 years. Since has taught hundreds of children throughout her career and established long-term relationships with some of them, like Latoya.

Jude Odell, Indianapolis Art Center ArtReach instructor for the past 20 years

How did you get started and why have you stayed?

(When) I started working in the program, I was selling my artwork full time and I felt I needed a balance in my life. I wanted to work with children and I began working when outreach was in public housing.

How did you meet Latoya?

When Latoya started coming to ArtReach, she was probably seven, maybe eight years old. I believe the Martin Luther King center at that point was the afterschool program and we met every week. She was young and she was very shy and quiet and hardly ever spoke. At that point, she was just newly living with her grandmother. She seemed afraid of the world at the time. But she always liked art. As she grew up, she started finding herself and blossoming.

How has the program changed over the 20 years?

ArtReach when I started was in public housing. And it was very very different. We did that for several years. And there was a time where I was the only ArtReach instructor. It was down for awhile. … I’ve been at different sites along the way. Each site has its own dynamics.

What do you see for the future of ArtReach?

I’m pretty happy with ArtReach the way it is running these days and the way it’s put together. It seems like it’s going into the right communities and presenting the right types of experiences for kids.

What do you like best about the Art Center’s ArtReach program?

I work with children all over the city in a lot of different programs. The ArtReach program is one in which I see the children week after week and I really develop strong bonds and relationships with them. The program I develop often is a response to the specific children, seeing what they need and where they’re going.

And we can do a variety of things. We have a longer period than they would in school so we can do bigger projects that take longer and (they can) get more wrapped up in it. I like to teach about really opening your eyes to a bigger world. So we do a lot of multicultural art. We also look at different artists and we talk about how they think and what their perspective is. So I like to broaden the children’s minds in terms of seeing life from different perspectives and different viewpoints and that helps them develop their own viewpoints and perspectives more.

What should people look for in the ArtReach exhibition beyond what’s on the wall?

There’s lots of learning and exploration of the world and yourself that goes on in these ArtReach classes. And experimenting with materials and learning about themselves and interaction with the teacher and the subjects and each other. And we bring just a small token of that to put on the wall. And it’s just a little piece of the ArtReach program going on in the city.

Any additional thoughts?

The two sites I’m at with ArtReach now…with Martin Luther King, I’ve been there maybe 12 years, Coburn Place six years…and I enjoy developing relationships with staff, the children and sometimes the parents and grandparents. Each site is different and has its own characteristic and its own needs. It’s very interesting to make connections with different sites. They are all unique.

Student Show Primer

Published October 17, 2011 Exhibits , Uncategorized Leave a Comment
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Patrick Flaherty, Director of Exhibitions

Stay tuned for an upcoming blog featuring the jurors judging the 2012 Student Show.

What is the Student Show?

The Art Center does its annual Student Show to give students the chance to experience what it’s like to enter and compete in a juried art exhibition. My experience in entering juried shows is it really is a rush when you get in. It’s just the greatest thing ever as an artist to have someone you really don’t know privately select your work to include it in a show among your peers. And there’s nothing worse than not getting into a show.

What does “jurying” really mean?

A juried show is a judged show. The (student) shows do vary greatly year to year and that’s because we change the jurors. A juried show simply means you’re bringing in one or two, sometimes more, outside art professionals whether they’re artists or art administrators. They’re going to come in and they’re the ones who pick the show. They go through the work and select what makes it in and what doesn’t. It’s an honor to be asked to be a juror. Jurors are really very respectful to the work. It’s a very calm, collected process; they’re going around and looking at these pieces. Having juried shows, I know it’s a huge responsibility and it’s not something you just walk into and say ‘oh, it’s in. It’s out.’ It takes hours and hours of time, especially when you have to work with someone else. I want each of our students to know that if you do enter our student show, you’re getting full consideration.When you’re in a juried show, it’s not just the jurors. It’s also the body of work you’re being juried against. Whereas your piece might not make it into one show, it might win best of show in another body of work because it stands out; it’s the only glass piece. Whereas you competed against 20 glass pieces in the last show. Oftentimes, even the same juror that rejects a particular piece in one show has picked that same piece in a different show to be best of show. I’ve had shows where I’ve entered, I’ve gotten in, I get the postcard and my print’s on the postcard. And that’s like, wow, a double bonus! And then the next year, you go in all confident and it’s those three No checkmarks. 

Why should I enter the Student Show?

A lot of people compete for the prize money. A lot of people compete for the solo exhibition that’s given to the Best of Show winner or the group show for the Divisional winners. I’m sure that every person you ask is going to have a slightly different reason for entering. I would say, ‘why not?!’ It’s a competition. It’s totally subjective. If your work isn’t accepted, it doesn’t mean it’s time to throw away the paintbrushes and move on. It just means that in that year, against that body of work, the jurors did not select your piece.  

 

How do I prepare for a juried show?

What you’ll find is that in each juried show, you’ll read the prospectus and you have to go down and find out if your work is eligible. Sometimes it’ll be ‘this media is and this media isn’t.’ In our student show, since we focus on so many different kinds of art in our 11 different studios, we allow it all to be entered.

 

What are the requirements for entering the Student Show?

It is the “Student” show. In order to participate, we do require that you are a member. That’s fairly common among juried shows. And the reason is, it’s because it’s a benefit of membership. All of the money it costs to enter comes back in terms of prize money. And so we want it to be our own pool of people. You’re not competing against all of the painters in Indianapolis; you’re not competing against all the ceramicists in Indiana or Ohio or the nation. It is our own home team. This is our home turf and that’s who you’re playing with. So you have to be a member.

You also have to have taken a class here in the last two years. Because we want you to know us.

Work by Elizabeth Smith

The work doesn’t have to have been made in the class (you took). So you could have taken Tom Laird’s woodworking class and been painting. And you can enter that painting. That’s not a problem. We do ask that you list your instructor. So what you’ll see a lot of times on the labels is “independent.” We love it when our students are doing their own creative things at home and confident enough to enter those in the show!

We want the work to not be any older than two years old because we want it to be fresh. We want it to be what you’re working on now.

 

What are my odds of being selected for the show?

The more people who compete, the fresher the show because if the same people compete every year, all of a sudden the student show starts to look the same. So what we’re hoping for is for a really diverse pool of people to enter. Usually we have around 120 people enter which generally works out to be about 400 pieces to be juried. With those numbers, you have about a one in four chance, sometimes one in three. Last year (2011), it was more like one in three and a half chance of getting into the show.

We explain to (the jurors) that it doesn’t have to be a balanced show. We usually give them a low number and a high number of how many pieces we think we can accommodate. It’s always a little different each year because the size is different and we really want (the jurors) to be able to pick, but if it’s too little work, it’s not going to fill the galleries. If it’s too much work, it’ll be impossible to look at the show. So we give them a range, usually between 100 and 120 pieces. Some years we’ve increased that range, but we try to give everyone a pretty good chance of getting in. This year (2012), I think we’re going to set the low end at 100 and the high end at 140.

We tell (the jurors) that they need to look at each category and pick at least something from each one, but it’s not like it has to be the same amount from each category, like it has to be 30 beginners, 30 intermediate, etc. We educate our jurors that we have these divisions because someone coming to the Art Center for the first time and it’s the first time they’ve thrown on the wheel, they’re not going to compete against someone going around to art fairs or comes to the Art Center with a master’s degree in ceramics and uses our studios to make their work.

It also has to do with the turnout. If there are 20 submissions in beginning and there are 280 in intermediate, you’re going to see more intermediate work (selected for the show). It’s not fair to say, ‘there are 20 people in beginning so we’ll put all 20 people in the show.’

(The jurors) do look at all the work, but we keep it (in separate categories of beginning, intermediate, advanced and professional). So although they do a walk-through to get an idea of what they’re looking at, they’re not looking at your painting or your photograph in beginning and thinking ‘I saw this amazing thing in Professional.’

 

Why have different jurors every year?

We do like to change our jurors. That doesn’t mean that if you jury a show, you might not come back some day and jury again. But what we like to is find someone who’s an artist and someone who’s an art administrator, educator or collector. It doesn’t always work out that way, but our thinking there is we want someone who’s really got their hands in it, whether it’s painting or blowing glass or making ceramics. And then we also want someone who understands it from an art educational or art administration point of view in that they look at a wide range of art all the time and know what’s going on outside of their own studio.

 

Why have two jurors?

The reason we have two jurors is because it’s so subjective, if you ask three different people to pick their favorite painting in a show, they’re all going to pick a different one. Maybe they’ll pick the same one, but by having two people, we’ve created dialogue. What usually happens is they’ll go through all the work, look at all of it, then they’ll say, ‘okay, we agree on all of these. And we definitely agree that we don’t want these.’ And then where the interesting thing happens is what do they do with what’s left. And that’s where the conversation is. And that’s when the dialogue really gets interesting because someone may see something in a piece that someone else hasn’t considered. Someone might have a technical expertise in a certain media that they can speak to how difficult something may be.  

Most of the time when you enter a juried show, you get your prospectus, you fill it out, you send in your images, and you usually fill out the jury decision card. Two months later, or a month later or whatever, you get your own, handwritten envelope back in the mail with your own hand-filled out decision card with three cold checkmarks. And sometimes there’s a Yes. Most of the time, there’re all No’s. It’s just cold. There’s no good way around it. There’s usually a letter in there, a form letter, saying ‘thank you for entering.’ As my mentor used to tell me, when you get a rejection letter, throw it away immediately; forget about it and move on. When you an acceptance letter, put it on the refrigerator like it’s your third grade project and you leave it up all year or until you get your next acceptance letter.

Because it is so subjective and we want the jurors to make the meaty decisions, they jury the show privately. But then there’s an hour and a half at the end where they go division by division spending about 15-20 minutes in each division where they speak to the decisions they made and you are allowed to ask questions. You’re not allowed to ask, ‘why didn’t you pick my piece?’ or ‘why did you pick their piece?’ But you are able to ask ‘what were you looking for in this category?’ or ‘what was different about how you judged beginning versus intermediate?’ What (the walk-through) doesn’t help is, if your piece wasn’t picked, it doesn’t make you feel better. But it might dispel some of the mystery around it. If you go to a few of them year after year you really start to see how different it is based on who the jurors are.

 

What is the cost to enter a juried show?

For Art from the Heartland and the Student Show it is $25 for two entries. For the Student Show, you can continue to pay $5 for each additional entry. For the Broad Ripple Art Fair, it’s a $35 entry fee and you get four images. All these jury fees are non-refundable and that is always the case (in any juried show you may enter). Most jurying fees are $20-25. So it’s not uncommon for artists to have to pick and choose which shows they’re going to enter because if you start to enter every juried show that comes up, you’re racking up hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars in entry fees.

The student show always breaks even. If there’s extra money, we’ll just put that aside for awards next year. The Student Show is in no way a fundraiser (for the Art Center).

 

How does the Student Show jurying compare with the Broad Ripple Art Fair jurying?

How the Broad Ripple Art Fair is juried, we have a panel of five jurors. These are selected from art professionals, artists—sometimes we try to put a couple Art Fair artists on there, a couple art administrators—a museum professional, someone like that, so they all bring that into the pot. There’s no discussion among the jurors (for this show). They are looking at projected images and they each have their own laptop on which they enter a score from 1 to 7. We ask them not to score 4 so they are forced to either like one a little bit or not like it a little bit. We go through these (images). It takes about 10 hours to do it. And then those scores are captured online and the artist committee goes through and tabulates to figure out where the cutoffs are in each category. It’s an open jury as a service we provide (to students). You’re welcome to come into the auditorium and watch. You’ll see the images projected. You’ll see how many we go through. There were 801 applicants last year times 4 images for each (3,204 images). You’ll hear a brief artist’s statement read for each person, e.g., I work in ceramics. This is what I do-type of thing. You’re not allowed to comment and we do keep you back a little way from the jurors. You’ll get a sense of how fast and how quickly those decisions have to be made, how competitive it is, and how much artwork is out there. We do it open so if you’re starting to sell your work and thinking about doing the Art Fair, but aren’t quite ready, you can see what you’d be competing against. We also do it because we want to prove to our artists that we look at each and every image and that we really do give everyone the same amount of time and the same amount of consideration.

To see/hear excerpts from Patrick’s interview, visit the Art Center’s YouTube channel. The video is 11 min. long, but there are chapter divisions marked by black if you need to skip through.

The Blue Monkey Sideshow to perform at ArtSparkle: Circus under the Stars

Published August 16, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment

The Blue Monkeys

Entertainment extraordinaire Elliot Feltman, of the Blue Monkey Sideshow talks about what sideshows are all about and what we can expect from the Blue Monkeys at ArtSparkle: Circus under the Stars.

 Though the sideshow was historically considered a “secondary production to the circus,” don’t let the word sideshow fool you here. The Blue Monkey Sideshow, an Indianapolis-based performance troupe, is nothing short of a main stage event.

 Elliot Feltman, the talker of the Blue Monkeys, the “captain of raconteur,” says “the sideshow is not a play, nor a magic show,” The Blue Monkey Sideshow is a series of spectacles and stunts “with a contemporary and humorous twist,” that make up a show unlike any other live entertainment. Glass walking, sword swallowing, exotic weightlifting, the human blockhead, and the “three monkey shrink wrap” are only a few of the acts we might see at ArtSparkle: Circus under the Stars.

Feltman performing with the Blue Monkeys at the Artsgarden

 The Blue Monkey Sideshow is a performance unlike any other because Feltman and Bart Simpson, the other “founding” Monkey, are true performers by nature and by trade. Feltman began juggling as a child growing up in New York. He traveled the world working festivals and streets in Egypt, Israel, Western Europe and throughout North America. Still though, after 25 years of experience and travel, the oddest thing he’s ever juggled was at the Indiana State Fair when he was asked to juggle “naked Spam,” as in Spam out of the can.

 The natural knack for entertaining inspired the formation of the Blue Monkey Sideshow in 1998. Feltman and Simpson came up with the name “Blue Monkey” for their show “because Red Fox was already taken,” Feltman joked before explaining that they didn’t want to be known as a kids show; “Blue” denotes the more grown up nature of the show, and “Monkey” for their antics. 

 The list of “antics” the Blue Monkeys have acquired with time and new members are impressive at the very least; their unique skills and dauntlessness on stage have taken them across the country, performing everywhere from Nevada to New York. It’s a show you don’t want to miss, so, as the Blue Monkey’s say, come to ArtSparkle to see the sideshow as it is, as it was, and as it shall be!

 

All Things Great and Small

Published August 15, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment

Charming Quarks

Liz Smith describes herself as a late starter in art. As an undergrad, she took her first art class and ended up with a minor in art. She went on to earn her MFA, and then began to teach junior high art classes. Liz fell in love with teaching, and for the next twenty years she taught not only art classes but also geography and language arts. Her experience with art and teaching art helped her connect with her students in geography and language arts in that it gave her a unique perspective on how children react and interact with material.

She and her husband moved to Indianapolis two years ago. Retired and bored, Liz began to again dabble in painting, and found the Art Center a little over a year ago. In looking through the Student Show, she noticed that she liked the work of several of the students and that Susan Hodgin’s name kept coming up as the instructor. She registered for a class with Susan and a year later won the 2011 Best of Show student award and the shot at a solo exhibition. More than  25 of her paintings are now on exhibit in the Clowes gallery.

Her husband’s interest in particle physics and cosmology has largely influenced her paintings, and though she says she doesn’t necessarily understand it all, she is fascinated by the idea of string theory, particles, atoms, and minute collisions and movements that happen all around us. A large part of her inspiration comes from the difference between what you see from afar and what you see up close. We never see the movements of these microscopic objects in our daily life, but upon closer inspection they prove to be beautiful and instrumental pieces of our universe.

Her paintings consist of at least three layers of imagery and pattern, which is meant to create a series of paintings within a painting. The detail in each work is such that the closer you get to it and the longer you look at it, the more you see. One completed 12”x12” canvas takes her approximately 12 hours to complete. That’s one hour per four inches of canvas, which only goes to show how much emphasis Liz puts on detail.

She hopes that people will walk away with an appreciation for the many different perspectives and ways you can look at any given object. In creating these layered paintings, she is trying to show that nothing is quite as it seems until you study it carefully, and even then you will always see something new.

Alternate Universe

Liz plans on continuing her classes with Susan, and looks forward to networking more within the Art Center and Indianapolis communities. In all the classes she’s taken, she most appreciates the support she receives from other students. In classes, students work together with the instructor to refine, expand, and develop their talent. 

Creating Community Art

Published August 8, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment

L-R: Ejazz, Anna, Kelsi, Tionne, Diana

In January of 2010, Flanner-Buchanan cemetery decided to commission a sculpture for their grounds. Having always been an active supporter of the IPS school district through a well established scholarship program, they turned toBroadRippleHigh School, IPS’s art magnet for help. Art teacher, Deb Tyte, charged her students with the task of drawing what came to mind when they heard the word “ascension.” When one student, Kelsi, sketched a series of butterflies for the assignment, she had no idea her concept would be selected to be the basis of a steel sculpture for Flanner-Buchanan.

Kelsi and classmates Diana, Anna, Tionne, Ejazz and Stephanie began work in January 2011 with ArtCentersteel sculpture instructor Julie Ball. Using the ArtCenter’s steel sculpture studio, Julie and the students designed, constructed, and created The Ascension, now installed in Westridge Park Cemetary at 21st Street and Raceway Road. The sculpture is a spiraling column composed of three steel panels, all twisting upward. The panels have rainbow colored butterflies flying out of them and through the top of the sculpture, ascending to the heavens above.

The Ascension

Julie described the project as a true group effort. “Throughout the process, the students worked together to develop the idea, Tony Lloyd of Flanner-Buchanan offered continuous support, and countless others contributed to the piece in a hundred different ways. The project was like riding a creative wave.”

The sculpture was installed on June 2nd, 2011, which was, unbeknownst to Flanner-Buchanan and the students, Ascension Day. Ascension Day is celebrated as the day that Christ was seen ascending to heaven by his disciples. As The Ascension was originally slated to be installed in early May, this coincidence resonates with all those involved.

This poignant piece is the product of a series of truly inspiring community partnerships betweenBroadRippleHigh School, Flanner-Buchanan and the Indianapolis Art Center!

Circus Chic

Published August 2, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment

Cathy Yingling

Cathy Yingling, ArtSparkle committee member, fashionista and blogger gives us her two cents on what to wear to ArtSparkle: Circus under the Stars!

I have to admit, when I started thinking about what to wear to this year’s ArtSparkle, I was a bit stumped. The last few have been easy themes for fashion: China, Mardi Gras, Morocco. But the circus? That’s more challenging. After all, we don’t want a bunch of clowns running around on August 20 (the guests, anyway.) So, I decided to start with some basic ground rules that apply to every ArtSparkle: 1) It’s August, it’ll be hot; dress accordingly. 2) It will be rocking; you’ll want to dance – either plan to kick off your heels, or go flat. 3) It’s theArtCenter- creativity is encouraged. Feel free to go a little wild.

Lipsy Feather & Lace Layered Skirt

And then, it hit me. Feathers. That’s right, feathers. It’s trend right – from feather hair extensions to feather fascinators (thanks, royal wedding-istas) to feather earrings and false eyelashes, it’s a veritable aviary out there right now. And feathers evoke lots of circus characters – the gorgeous girl on the flying trapeze; the magician’s assistant/show girl – you get the picture. But leave the boas at home. Instead, pair a tank top with a feathered skirt, like this one from asos.com  http://bit.ly/q2pvkU  Bonus: it’s on sale right now. If you want to go a bit dressier and budget allows, here’s another great choice from bloomingdales.com: http://bit.ly/ngpzUC       

Chan Luu feather earings

 If feathers on your outfit feel like a bit much, you can always go with a great accessory – I absolutely love these Chan Luu earrings from shopbop.com:  http://bit.ly/nq04pH    A bit spendy, but they can be worn far beyond ArtSparkle. Etsy has a million feathered fascinators for sale on their site at a variety of price points:  http://www.etsy.com/search/handmade/accessories?ref=auto&q=feather+fascinator&noautofacet=1b (I know many of these are really just headbands, but doesn’t “fascinator” just sound so much more sophisticated?) 

 ArtSparkle would also be a perfect opportunity to go a little wild with a beauty trend, like feather hair extensions:  http://etsy.me/qeUyQg. Lots of salons in the area are doing them, like Honey Blush in Carmel, Geneva Hair Studio in Irvington, Evolve on Mass Ave. and WHITE: The Art of Hair.

Feather eyelashes by Make Up Forever

Make Up For Ever makes some amazing feather false eyelashes, which you can get at Sephora (or on Sephora.com): http://bit.ly/q9KfZs If, like me, the thought of applying them makes you cringe, makeup artists at lots of salons can do it for you.

 If feathers won’t fly with you at all, you can also channel the circus with color – particularly ringmaster red.  This maxi dress from Target would be so comfy on a hot night, and could really be jazzed up with jewelry: http://bit.ly/pghrq0

Nantucket red blazer by Murray's Toggery Shop

Red is  the answer for the guys, as well.For the classicists go for the sports coat: http://bit.ly/nAqzin Or, for the true prepsters, go with something Nantucket red like a blazer, pants, or shorts.  http://bit.ly/ohB5FZ    http://bit.ly/o7dXZt   http://bit.ly/rrXYZB 

 So there you have it. My take on circus-inspired fashion. But of course, feel free to take a flyer on your own ArtSparkle outfit – safety net not required.

Vintage circus sideshow banners on exhibit during ArtSparkle: see the rarity, mystery and intrigue

Published July 26, 2011 Events , Exhibits , Uncategorized Leave a Comment
 On August 20, the Art Center will present a never-before-exhibited collection of hand painted vintage sideshow banners from the 1920s – 1960s, at ArtSparkle: Circus Under the Stars.

The collection takes viewers back in time to the days of big tops and ringmasters, and when traveling sideshows were present at local fairs and events.

The banners were an attempt to attract and intrigue; each one making a grand promise to the audience. The owner of the collection, who prefers to remain anonymous, believes the banners have a certain allure comparable to movie posters, but with more charm. “The colors, the imagery, the promises they make… you almost believe them,” he says.

"House of Smiles" by Jack Sigler, one of the 32 banners in the vintage collection.

The bright colors used in the banners are similar to folk art, but the owner considers the banners “imperative art,” in that they had a clear and immediate reason for existing, but sideshow culture has historically been the farthest from mainstream. The banners exude the sense of humor of the circus, and an appreciation for the bizarre through simple representations of whatever or whoever the banner was advertising.

Though the concepts used in the banners are not advanced or studied, there are a few recognizable banner artists of the time, whose works are present in the collection.

 Neiman Eisman, one of the earliest banner artists created some of the most visually articulate circus banners with an almost airbrushed look to them, and signed his banner work with his first name only.  Eisman’s “Tiniest Entertainers” banner is the owner’s most prized piece in his collection.  

“Tiniest Entertainers,” 1920s banner by Neiman Eisman is being used for 2011 ArtSparkle advertisement.

 After Neiman Eisman came Jack Sigler, Snap Wyatt and Fred Johnson, whose work can also be seen on display at ArtSparkle.

 The banners evoke a sense of mystery and mischief, but what the collector likes most about the banners is their durability. “They’re tough things,” he said, “animals walked on them, they were thrown in the back of carts, they’re survivors.”  

All of the banners are oil paint on canvas, which accounts for their longevity and makes them easy to store and collect, but they are getting harder to find as the age of sideshow entertainment drifts farther into the past. Many of the pieces in the collection were bought through a dealer in Gibston, FL., where circus and sideshow folk would retire. In 1989 when the owner began collecting them, the banners could be purchased for a few hundred dollars, now, one can purchase original banners at the Carl Hammer Gallery in Chicago for $5,000 and up. Occasionally an original will go up for sale on eBay, but the most of the banners for sale on the internet are reproductions. 

 The rarity, the mystery, the intrigue of the original sideshow banners will be at the ArtCenter, but like the circus itself- for one night only, so purchase your ArtSparkle tickets today!

Gayla talks Creative Renewal

Published March 16, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment

Gayla at her Stutz studio in front of an eariler work.


“December 18, 2010″ by Gayla Hodson

On April 15, the Art Center’s galleries will be full of work from about 40 Arts Council of Indianapolis’ Creative Renewal Fellows. This will be the first time in two years the community will have the chance to see the new work from some of the city’s established artists – new art that for fellow Gayla Hodson accompanies a whole new outlook on life.

 Hodson, known for her strikingly vibrant paintings, had spent 15 years teaching art to children at middle and high schools and to adults at the Indianapolis Art Center. She operates a successful art business out of her studio in the Stutz building, completing numerous commissions. She felt like she “was becoming a designer” instead of staying true to her art and hoped the Creative Renewal Fellowship would both widen the scope of her artwork and help her to bring a sense of “connection and collaboration” to her commission work..

 Since flowers were such a common subject of her work, she first set out for British Columbia to paint in the Butchart Gardens, hoping the new environment would inspire a new outlook. But Hodson came back home feeling like some authentic part of herself and her art still lay untapped. So she found her way to a workshop on intuition and not only tapped into her gut, but her future as a different type of artist. Hodson, surrounded by the desert mountains of Taos, New Mexico, “surrendered to the process of showing up at the right sheet of paper and allowing images to show up without the judgment of the mind,” she said.

 “It was absolutely life-changing,” she said. “Everything just fell in line. There was no fear.”

 At the workshop, participants painted with tempera paints on paper to try and unlock the instincts children have when they work on art. With this new mindset, before she paints, she looks at her full palette and waits for feelings, not thoughts to take hold. There are no noises, no sounds, no sketches, no stories. She has been working on these new process paintings in her home studio. Hodson is cautious she will again be too influenced by her desire to please others with her art. “I don’t want to take the tension out of my art,” she said in her Creative Renewal application, “But I do think it is imperative that, as an artist, I learn to strike a better harmony among the tensions that affect my work.”

 Her road as an artist has taken many turns, and while her trip to British Columbia was the first step on a much longer journey, she feels much closer to where she wanted to be by now. Her new process paintings may not be as familiar or consistent; painting her series of hearts or flowers may be gone for now. But with letting go expectations of outcomes, has come an appreciation for the beauty of the intuitive creative process. And in that respect, she has done just what she intended to do when she applied for her Creative Renewal, to “break from the routine, re-examine how I approach my work and use the inspiration and creativity that will surround me to renew my love for art so I can see my paintings in a whole new light.”

Aside from preparing for the Creative Renewal exhibition and continuing her process painting, Hodson has collaborated with local poet  Diane Andrews on the e-book, “Feel the Love,” which will be available for download in April.

A Sure Sign of Summer

Published March 2, 2011 Uncategorized 2 Comments

2011 Broad Ripple Art Fair

 

Sure Sign of Summer

Broad Ripple Art Fair, the Art Center’s largest fundraiser, is Indy’s traditional kick off to the summer festival season. This year the Art Fair is May 21-22, 2011 with a special preview party Friday night, May 20 from 6-8 p.m.

New for 2011

  • Friday Night Preview Party Get a sneak peek at work by some of the Art Fair’s more than 225 artists. The ticket price includes drinks and hors d’oeuvres along with a chance to shop before the Art Fair opens. Ticket information for this event will be announced soon. Stay tuned.
  • Local Food Options Look for more local favorites as food vendors in addition to The Jazz Kitchen, Yats, Ripple Bagel & Deli and Hubbard & Cravens. BRICS (Broad Ripple Ice Cream Station) is already on board and we’re in various stages of winning over others!
  • Kid Activities throughout The Art Center has distributed its kid-friendly activities and entertainment throughout the grounds (instead of all under one tent). This will allow adults more time for themselves to shop between stops—a little time for you yet close enough between activities where the kids won’t get bored.

Back by Popular Demand

Return Wristbands Visitors last year gobbled up the wristbands allowing them to return Sunday for free. Some were bummed they had to wear the band overnight, but we know you understand that we do have to make them tight enough so they can’t be slipped off and given to visitors who haven’t paid for a ticket. For that reason, we also can’t accept any visitors on Sunday whose bands have been cut and re-taped.

Drawing for a Free Class Fair goers who purchase tickets in advance can write their name, email address and phone number on the back of their ticket. When they turn in their ticket at the gate, they will automatically be entered in a drawing for $250 good toward an art class or workshop at the Art Center. Chances of winning are approximately 1 in 5,000.

It’s true. Artists are their own bosses.

Published February 24, 2011 Uncategorized 2 Comments

A good friend of mine, and fellow artist, writes a really amazing blog as part of her jewelry business. Nancy Lee has the ability to put a lot of the insights, tips, tricks and business know-how into words (I envy that about her. That, and her truely gorgeous jewelry).

I’ve borrowed – with her permission – today’s post to share with our Art Center readers.  I like pulling back the veil on the mysterious world of artists…I promise it’s not that scary. Today Nancy talks about her epiphany on being her own boss, as most artists are. I remind you, art is a business.

Epiphanies, Routine and Boss of the Dustpan

Epiphanies can arrive at the most mundane times. A small moment of surprise in an otherwise routine day. For many years, the corporate grind was my routine. Perpetually sleep-deprived, a well-oiled routine allowed me to function. Disengage brain – engage routine. This quotidian way of life became both comfortable and numbing (yeah, there’s a Pink Floyd song in there somewhere). Unemployment awakened me from this self-induced coma and forever freed me from dreaded routine. Woo-hoo! Be my own boss! Something like that.

Fast-forward two years to the present, and to a daily routine that continues to be purposely fiddled with. Even though warning bells sound if too much routine wriggles in, a certain rhythm has lilted into the daily music of my life. It’s rather sweet. To that, add the recent ping of an epiphany. Unannounced, of course, as these things will do.

It happened in my studio while cleaning Big Ben, a 10-foot long monster of a workbench, built for the ages using two by fours reinforced with angle iron. Ben was adopted from an old suite in the industrial complex where I now work. He was wrangled into my studio a year ago (which is a whole other exciting, death-defying story) and he’s probably going to be there forever. Big Ben was being prepped for a Big-Ben-worthy copper etching job.

While in the midst of a routine activity – sweeping debris from Big Ben’s surface using a shop brush and dustpan – my little epiphany arrived. Ping! I was my own BOSS. No one made me sweep and reorganize this work area. No one was timing me. Yes, routines, responsibilities and deadlines do exist. But this thing, this project, and this life, are of my own making. I own it and everything within it – good or bad. I CHOOSE this life. That was my little epiphany. I choose this life. And I love it. Three seconds later, with an inward grin, I begin sweeping again.

What do you choose to do with your time? Do you dream of a different way? If you could do anything, what would it be?

-Nancy Lee

Nancy Lee is a contemporary designer and accomplished metalsmith working in copper, silver, brass and gold. Her adventures in Metalsmithing began over ten years ago at the Indianapolis Art Center (Indianapolis, IN) where she enrolled in Marilyn Smith’s Jewelry class to learn to make sterling findings for polymer clay beads she had created. She fell in love with the plastic qualities of metal and has been hooked since. Her work is now recognized for its minimalist style, body-conscious architecture and attention to detail. Work sometimes includes unusual semi-precious gemstones and found objects. Techniques include etching, heat-treatments, and various patinas to bring warmth and color to the metal. Her work is available in the Art Center’s Basile Studio Shop (open Monday-Friday noon-7pm, Saturday noon-4pm).

Filed by Kate Oberreich, photos courtesy of the artist.

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