Thoughts about art and community.
In the midst of any kind of crisis, we don’t have the emotional bandwidth to wax poetic about why artists matter and why we need support. We’re literally trying to get through the next minute or hour without losing our minds. Here’s checklist of what to do when you don’t know where to start.
Read MoreA few weeks ago, I wrote 7 Signs of a Vibrant Community, which is a brief introduction to the concept of the Community Capitals Framework. As a recap, the CCF provide us with seven distinct areas to evaluate to see how healthy our places (and consequently our people) are. While all seven are necessary for having a high quality of life, I’ll defend social capital to my grave as really being the glue that binds everything else together.
Read MoreAbout a year ago, I lived in a lovely farmhouse as an artist-in-residence at the Whiterock Conservancy in Coon Rapids, Iowa. Established in 2005, Whiterock Conservancy (WRC) is a 5500 acre non-profit land trust that balances sustainable agriculture, natural resource protection and public recreation on the landscape.
Read More“If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning.” - Catherine Aird
Last week, I warned that I’d be sharing a laundry list of what I learned by participating in Iowa Pop Art, my very first pop-up-art-festival-type experience.
Without further ado….
Earlier this spring, I was invited (thanks, Niq Thomas) to participate in Iowa Pop Art Market, an inaugural pop-up art event at the National Czech and Slovak Museum & Library in Cedar Rapids. Being a pop-up and festival first-timer, I jumped at the chance and then scrambled to get myself organized.
Part of that scrambling was trying to figure out what I didn’t know that I needed to know. With that in mind, I’m writing a couple of blogs (and later a toolkit) for those folks who need a Pop-Up Prologue, so to speak.
Read MoreMany blogs ago, I rattled on about the basics of asset-based community development***, including why it’s been so influential to me as an artist and how it’s been the grounding nugget of The What’s Good Project. Each painting that I create is a testament to an asset shared with me by someone with strong ties to that particular community.
Read MoreIntroducing Kristin M Roach, Ames-based artist, author, and entrepreneur. If you live in Ames or central Iowa, you undoubtedly know of Kristin, as her hands metaphorically (and sometimes literally) have been in many, many, MANY creative projects and places.
Read MoreA few weeks back, Paige Kappelman, Story County Conservation’s Outreach Assistant, reached out to me (did her job like a boss) for an informal interview after she saw some of my paintings of McFarland Park on Instagram. Naturally, I said yes and we invited Kyle Renell to join the party. Kyle’s not only my good friend and a terrific Ames-based artist, but she also was the person I interviewed for The What’s Good Project here in Ames. In other words, Kyle’s the reason I painted McFarland Park.
Read MoreI can’t tell you how much I enjoyed and learned from this conversation with Iowa State University colleague and fellow artist, Reinaldo Correa. It was one of those conversations that inspired me for the rest of the week. So much insight and wisdom - this is an interview I encourage you to read over and over, and take some notes.
Read MoreI’m happy to report that I am contacted monthly, and increasingly weekly, by someone in Iowa who wants to begin a community mural project. The smallest community to date was a call from McIntire, Iowa (pop 122). The fact that more and more communities are finding value in community art projects fills me with joy.
Read MoreIn 2007, I moved to Ames from Greenville, North Carolina. I’m embarrassed to admit that I didn’t fall in love with Ames until 2012, when I met my husband, Aaron. PA (Pre-Aaron), I was more of a complainer (still one of my big flaws) and found fault with Ames like some people find buried treasure.
Read MoreGot 85 minutes to spare? Listen to me talking shop with friend and fellow artist, Earle Rock. I was delighted to be asked by Earle to participate in this artist interview series. We cover the gamut from my weirdo early life experiences, to painting practices, to the business of art, to asset-based community development.
Read MoreTo an Iowan, or at least to the one I’m married to, “pretty good” means outstanding, fine is “terrific”, and “okay” means pretty dire straits. (Aaron’s worst descriptive is “peachy,” translation: I want to kill someone immediately.)
Fortunately, in the 13 years I’ve lived in the Midwest, I learned that generosity is not understated, not in action anyway. Although, to be fair, Midwesterners definitely have a “it’s no big deal” attitude right after they’ve done something truly kind or generous or thoughtful.
This year, I decided to expand For the Common Good to include interviews with Community Arts Leaders, many of whom are also artists (but not always), as well as serving in more formal nonprofit or civic leadership roles. These folks have often done the arduous (and often thankless) work of fundraising, navigating local red tape, and building diverse partnerships within their communities, all while supporting and advocating for their local artists.
Read MoreI don’t often like to speak in generalities, but I would venture to guess that we all have that pull to some place, and that those emotional ties give us inklings about what we value.
Read MoreIn our house, Rathbun Lake, holds two important titles: one of the largest man-made lakes in the state and most importantly, my husband Aaron’s favorite place in Iowa.
Read MoreGuest post by Mrs. Velma Benson-Wilson of Jackson, Tennessee and Marks, Mississippi. Mrs. Benson-Wilson wrote this autobiographical essay in response to a 2013 visit back to her hometown of Marks, Mississippi. Author of What’s in the Water: Fannie, a Legacy of Love, Mrs. Benson-Wilson is currently the Director of the Quitman County Tourism and Economic Development, and was instrumental in the 50th Anniversary of Marks’ Mule Train and Poor People’s Campaign in 2018.
Read MoreIt’s present day and a child on a field trip walks into a gift store on Pennsylvania Avenue. Immediately, she confronts a wellspring of memorabilia adorned with the president’s name in bold letters and the year “2024” beside it. She is puzzled by the significance of the year. But … it’s only 2020? Bright-red hats embroidered with a popular slogan tower high. Bobbleheads depicting our nation’s leader, with emblematic wavy hair and carrot skin, sit in a row ten figurines deep.
Read MoreHappy 2021! We made it! I couldn’t be happier to start off this fresh new year with a Community Artist Interview with my friend, colleague, and fellow artist, Jordan Brooks.
Read MoreThe What’s Good Project has grown so much in 2020, thanks to your support. Thank you. I am beyond grateful.
Because of you, we’ve been able to support these organizations that are doing really great work in Mississippi, Michigan, and Iowa…
