The Juried Exhibition

How to be a Professional Artist

Part 3: 

Juried Exhibitions

After you have had some success showing your art work in local “open” art exhibitions, you will want to begin to seek out some “juried” exhibitions. 

The “open” show allows all entries to be displayed in the show.  

This is an amateur type of show.  

There are no selections and all works are displayed in this show. It is a nice place to begin if you want to start getting your work out in front of the public.  I suggest you do this for a year or two to get started and get a feel for showing your work to the public.

The “juried” show will be selective and a “juror”  will choose some works, and reject some works for the show.  

This is a step forward for you, to begin to be selected for exhibitions. At this point, you have decided to become more professional about showing your art work and you will no longer be looking for the “open” art shows.

Here are some types of Juried Exhibitions for you to consider:

1.)  Regional Juried Exhibition – 

This show usually limits the scope of entries to a radius around where the show will be presented.  It may be a “Tri-State” show, or a show that sets the distance that an artist may live from the exhibition site. Typically, that will be anywhere from 50 to 150 miles away.

Art works will be selected from artists who live within a tri-state area if it is a “Tri-State” show, or within the mileage described for entries.All other artists who live outside the selected  area  cannot enter this show. 

Typically the “Juried Exhibition” is selected by one juror. It will be a successful artist who is well-known nationally or regionally.  The show will be sponsored by a museum or art center.  The exhibition will be held at that site and only works of art that have been pre-selected by the “juror” will be on display in that show.

2.)  National Juried Exhibition – 

Artists will be selected by a nationally known juror for this exhibition.  It is usually held in a museum or gallery or art center.  Since the range from which the entries may come is quite wide – the entire nation – you can imagine that the chances of getting into a National Juried Exhibition are not as good as a regional show would be. The competition will be strong for a place in this exhibition.

One nice thing about such a show is that your work is viewed alongside fellow artists  rom across the entire country.  This gives you an idea of what is going on with other artists nationally. You can see how your work stacks up next to the others. You can also attend the opening  reception for the show, and meet  the other artists who are in that same show.

3.)  Juried Exhibition sponsored by art organizations – If you are a member of an artist’s organization, 

you will most likely have the opportunity to be involved in an annual exhibition. They are always “juried” exhibitions. That means, everyone in the group can enter a specified amount of art works.  Typically, you can enter anywhere from 1 to 4 works. 

There will be a “juror” for this show, too.  The juror will come from out of the area and will be someone who is notable in the art world. It can be a working artist or an arts professional such as a professor of Fine Arts at a university, or the director of an art museum or gallery.

This kind of a show is exciting because your work is put up for the jury process against your fellow artists in the arts organization that you all belong to. This is a chance to put your work up with your peers. 

4.)  International Juried Exhibition –

 Here, your work is in competition with art works from many different countries. 

This show can be expensive for you if you are selected. You will have to ship the work to the country where the show will be held. You’ll be paying shipping to and from that show. You will have to find out what the rules are for shipping the work and it can be complicated but you have to do that. You have to do your research to find out exactly how you can ship the work.

Some Juried Exhibitions require that you send your work to an art handler instead of sending it directly to the museum or gallery where it will be in a show.  The art handler receives your  work, unpacks it, and delivers it to the show site on a specified day. This is often the case when doing shows in New York City or other large metropolitan areas.  You have to pay a fee to the art handler for this service. And, it usually has to be the art handler specified by the art gallery or museum. You cannot choose another one, there is only one permitted to do this usually.

Sometimes, when doing an exhibition in another country, the museum will pay for shipping of your work, both ways. I have been fortunate to be in a couple of shows in Japan and New Guinea and  all shipping costs were covered to the artists who were in the show.

Everything you need to know about how to enter a show is printed on a “prospectus.” 

What is the prospectus?

It is a flier on which all the rules are outlined for you. It will tell you how many works you can enter, where and when you can enter them, and the cost to enter. When you learn about a show, you may contact the gallery or museum and ask for a prospectus. It can be mailed to you, or you can often get it via e-mail.

This gives you a brief look at some aspects of putting your work in a juried exhibition. By now, you are probably wondering what the costs involved may be.  I will give you a brief overview of that here:

Jury or Entry Fee:  

This is the fee charged for you to enter the show.  You will enter the show by taking your work to the museum for the juror to look at directly. Or, you will enter slides of your work, or a CD with pictures of your work. You pay this fee and even if you are NOT juried into the show it is not refunded. This fee is your first expense when entering a juried show. All juried shows that I am aware of have a Jury or Entry Fee.

Shipping Fees:  

If the show is too far away for you to drive to it, then you will want to ship your work there. You will pay to ship the work to and from the show.

I hope this gives you an insight into how you might want to proceed to become more professional about where your work is being viewed. 

Your opportunities for selling your work at a juried show are fairly good.  It is much better  if your work is shown in a well-known gallery or museum because that is where collectors will come to buy art. The collector respects the gallery and the juror and knows that the work has been selected from many other entries just to be in this show.

Another exciting thing about a juried show is that there is always prize money awarded to a selected few winners from the show.  

The prize winners are always recognized in the show’s catalogue and they are given their awards publically at the Opening Reception for the show.

The winning works are usually depicted in the show catalogue, too.

I hope this has inspired YOU to think about what YOU might do with your work.

 What is YOUR NEXT STEP?  

Are you ready to try to get into a Juried Exhibition? I hope you do. Go ahead and get your prospectus, read it over, and follow the directions - you are off on a new phase of your career.

The Artist's Statement

Part II

The Artist's Statement

Do YOU have an Artist's Statement?

     One thing you will need to start thinking about after you begin to get your work into juried exhibitions is the Artist's Statement.

     Galleries will ask you to provide them with an Artist's Statement.  You'll need to begin right NOW to start thinking about YOURS and begin writing down your ideas on what you wan the gallery and the public to know about YOU, your WORK, and the IDEAS behind your work.

     In my next article I will go into more detail on Juried Exhibition and explain them in more detail to you. But, for now, I want you to begin thinking about your own art work, and how you can begin to TALK about it.

     Here is the Artist's Statement I completed today to send to a gallery that will be displaying my work in a few weeks. They also needed my Artist's Statement to apply for a grant for me to be an Artist in Residence at their gallery. 

 Lynda Lambert: Artist’s Statement

September  2011

The source of my pottery lies in two traditions: 

1.)    Art History - my studies of the ancient past. I taught Ancient to Medieval Art History for many years as Professor of Fine Arts and Humanitis at Geneva College. It is natural that the imagery and history I worked with daily would be abiding motifs in my own creative efforts. My love of the ancient past was aroused as a mature student working on my BFA degree at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania in the mid 1980s. My first glimpse into this world happened the first night of my first art history class. These memorable images and ideas have remained a central part of everything I create.

2.)    Nature - My observations of the natural, organic world around me have been urges that I have held within my creative self from as far back as I can remember.  Nature has been my muse since childhood. She continues to guide my hands as I work with clay. The ancient myths hold me transfixed as I contemplate the symmetry and majesty of Nature. My work is both a celebration of Nature, and a recognition of the eternal forces that are inherent within Nature.

My artist process begins as I gather fragments of information from the art of the past, and combine those inages with the world of Nature that surrounds me every day  These fragments mingle with memories, myths, history, and become the force that guides me in my creative work.

I define and explore a sense of place as I make my pottery.  Images and motifs emerge slowly as I work in layers of clay, mark making, stains, under glazes, and glazes. My   color is influenced by nature and a sense of the passage of time. The methods I use in creating my organic sculptural vessels are very time intensive. Each piece takes form over a period of weeks or months before it becomes the final work that will be on view in the gallery.

     Each piece begins with my choice of clay.   From there, the object is created mostly by using timeless Asian hand throwing techniques.  I am influenced by ancient pottery and especially by shards of pottery that is found in an ancient ruins. I like to be sure that the mark of my hand is left in the clay to show the process and to remind the viewer that pottery is made from the earth and by a person who has left behind marks that naturally occur in the process of making the object.

     I see my pottery creations as individual works of fine art. I am not a production potter. There are no two pieces of my work that are the same. Each piece is one of a kind. 

How to Begin Your Art Career

How will YOU  Plan Your Art Career?

Part I

Juried Exhibitions and

Your  Resume’

_

By Lynda J. Lambert

Pennsylvania Artist

ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS:

What is an art career?

Do I even have an art career?

Do I want to have an art career and exhibit my art in public shows?

Am I happy just playing “artist” or do I want more?

How serious am I anyway?

What does it take for me to move from a hobby artist to an artist who is recognized as a professional?

Would I like to see my art hanging in galleries, museums, or exhibitions?

Lynda Lambert at her opening reception for _Primal Garden...la vida luminiscentes_ 

September 9th, 2011 at Merrick Art Gallery, New Brighton, PA

Lynda is shown with her daughter Heidi Lambert McClure, also an artist

Lynda has been in over 200 juried exhibitions and exhibited nationally and internationally.

STEP ONE:

This is an important FIRST STEP: 

You may be saying, “What IS a JURIED EXHIBITON?

You will  need to know about this before you can move on to the next step in your exhibition career.

The first step towards a serious commitment to your art requires that you begin to enter juried exhibitions. In this way, you get a feel for how your work stacks up when in competition with your fellow artists. 

Be prepared for some rejections.  Even artists who have been exhibiting their work for many years get rejected by a juror.  This is just part of the world of art exhibitions.  Sooner or later, you WILL get into a juried show and you will be so proud of your achievement. It will be a big step in your career when you begin to get into juried shows and even win some recognition for them.

How does it work?

A JURIED exhibition is a show that has been selected by one judge or a small panel of judges who view your work along with lots of other entries from other artists.  The juror will select the art works that he/she decides will best suit the kind of show that will be exhibited in the end.   You want to begin putting your art work out among the crowd of other art works through the jury process.

Before this, you may have entered your art in shows that are non-juried. This means that all work entered in a show will be hung or displayed.  This could be the first step for the novice, and one that is non-threatening nor intimidating.  This type of show is usually uneven, with work by seasoned artists appearing beside art works that are made by beginners.  After you have done just a few of these, you are now ready to move UP to put your work before a jury.  You will definitely want to do this and you will need to do this to gain professional experience in showing your art works.

As you begin to participate in juried exhibitions you will need to begin listing them on an artist’s resume. It is an important step and it reflects that you are a serious artist. It also reflects that an doing work that is notable in your field because experts have chosen your work for public display in their shows

Hand Beaded Jewelry on display at Merrick Art Gallery

5th Avenue and 11th Street, New Brighton, PA

Sept 9 - October 2, 2011

Bead Weaving by Lynda Lambert

Create a good Resume:

Now is the time to begin working on a good resume, or a one page Vita.

Begin doing this as soon as you begin getting into juried exhibitions.


After listing your name, address, contact information website or blog address, then you will divide you resume' into some important categories. It will be in those catagories that you will begin to list your exhhibitions and honors and awards. Do it chronologically. Begin with your latest one, and then go backwards.

Create a category titled:  “Juried Exhibitions.”

Later on, you will need to create a category for “Invitational Exhibitions.” That usually comes after you have been doing some juried exhibitions for a while. Eventually  you will be  invited to participate in a gallery, museum, or art center’s show. This is also decided by a gallery owner, a selected juror or a committee, so it is also prestigious  because you have been asked or invited  to participate in the show.

Awards and Honors on your RESUME:

On your resume, create a THIRD category listing for “Awards and Honors.” 

When you need to send your Vita' or Resume' to another show or to a gallery, they will be looking to see what shows your work has appeared in and any awards or honors you have won.  List them chronologically by placing the most recent ones at the top of your list.

Review of Step ONE:

1.)     Begin to look for “juried” art exhibition and enter them

2.)     Create your Resume' or a short one-page Vita’

Here is what you need to put on your resume’ or one-page  vita’:

Your Name

Your Address

Phone Number/ E-mail

Your Blog or Website (IF you have one)

Categories:

          1.)  Juried Exhibitions:

                        List name of show; the juror’s name;

 the place where it was on exhibit,

                        and the dates of show

            2.) Invitational Exhibitions

                        List name of show, 

the juror or group who invited you, 

place when the exhibition was on display; 

date of show

            3.) Awards and Honors:   

List any awards you received in a show, 

date of Award 

Later on, we'll be adding a couple more categories. But for a start, this is all you'll need to put on your artist's resume' or one-page vita'. Remember this: An artist's resume' is very different than a business person's resume'.


The steps are small ones, but very important ones. It is the little things that make your art career work. It is the ability to pay attention to the small details and be careful about them.

One of the biggest failures for an artist is to spend tons of time in the studio creating work, and then failing to develop a business PLAN for marketing that work.  We have to be in BALANCE.  Work + Exhibitions are important to us. Exhibitions give us an audience for our work AND  it brings us recognition and collectors who will be buying our work. We want to begin to develop our exhibition opportunities AND our clients.

To BEGIN:  

Step it UP

Find some Juried Shows

Begin your Artist  Resume'

You can begin by doing a search on-line for juried shows in your local area. I strongly suggest that you begin with a show that is very close to where you live.  You'll probably be surprised at how many juried exhibitons and opportunities you will find within a 30 mile radius of where you live.  Check out  any galleries or museums, art centers, universities, colleges, or local educational programs in the arts to find out when their next juried show will be held.

The Prospectus:
Ask the gallery  for a prospectus. The prospectus is a program flyer that gives you all the information you need to enter the juried show. They will probably email it to you. You can read the prospectus and you will know all the rules and regulations for that particular show. The prospectus will tell you exactly HOW to enter the show. It will give the dates of the show;  the juror's name and credentials;  the day to deliver your art for the jury process; the day to deliver your accepted art work; the day of the opening reception and awards ceremony; the FEE you need to send with your application, size limitations; and the kinds of art forms that are permitted  for entry in this show. Your Prospectus is your ROAD MAP for that particular exhibition. 

Autumn Reflection Vessel:  Grape Leaves, Snakes, and Sanils

by Lynda Lambert

In the solo exhibition:  Primal Garden...la vida illuminscentes

Merrick Art Gallery,  5th Avenue and 11th Street,

New Brighton, PA

Sept 9 - October 2, 2011

Our next conversation will be to explore the different kinds of JURIED EXHIBITIONS  that you will encounter once you begin your SEARCH for a show to enter.

Autumn is a GREAT TIME to begin looking for some shows to enter.  I would love to hear from you on this topic and hear about your experiences as you begin to enter some juried shows. I willbe celebrating with you when you get IN your FIRST JURIED SHOW. Be sure to let me know about it.          

The Art Opening Needs More than the Artist to be Successful

Read MORE about Lynda LambertThe Ellwood City News, Ellwood City, PA - Feature Story on Lynda LambertThe next time you go to an art gallery or attend an opening reception for the artist please think about the enormous efforts that go into such a thing as an art show.

It is a team effort. 

 Here are the players in the team:

The ARTIST:

 has to make the work for the show. This normally takes several years of concentrated efforts to creat enough work to fill a gallery.  When my show opened last night at Merrick Art Gallery in New Brighton, PA, the gallery was filled with pottery and jewelry that I had worked on to develop for four years.  And, that was four years with almost daily work in the studio.  This is certainly not a hobby type of exhibition. It is a show put on by a seasoned professional artist who can stay focused and on-target with a THEME for a very long period of time. In this case, four years, working on the theme of a PRIMAL GARDEN...la vida luminiscentes.  I decide on the them, then I begin the long process of creating the work for the exhibition with a vision towards what the final "picture" will be. I hold that picture in my mind, daily, over this period fo time as I continue working.

A GALLERY

when creating the work, you need a glalery to exhibit the work.  I had been working towards this show for three years with no idea of where it would be shown. Then, one year ago, a gallery called me with an invitation to have a solo show.  And, there it wass.  I had the vision for the show, had been working on that vision for three years, and finally a gallery invited me to host a show. After that, I had one more year to complete the work for the show. It is a long process. You begin in faith not knowing where the show will be, but you begin.

THE DELIVERY PERSON:

When the time  comes to take your work to the gallery and get it set up for the exhibition, you will need people to help you.  The work has to be carefully delivered. In my case, it took six truck loads to deliver my very fragile and large work. My husband Bob is my road manager, and he transported the truckloads of pottery, one by one, over a period of a week. When we began to unwrap, unbundle, and take out the work for installation, we were joined by a good friend who is an artist.  The three of us began the process of installing the show.  It took three entire days to get the show installed and ready for the opening.  We worked till late the night before the opening, to finish this job.

THE OPENING RECEPTION:

For the opening recweption you need lots more team members.  Here are some of the things that wyou will need to organize for opening night:

Food and drinks - you'll need a couple of people in charge of this area of your show.  You want your guests to be able to have refreshments during the reception and you need peole to be sure the table is full all night long.

SALES:

you will need people in charge of taking care of paying for their purchases.  I had four people in charge of writing up sales and putting the charges through via I-Phone. They also had to write up each sale so that we would know how much we would owe the gallery for the percentage they get from all sales.  Then, the items have to be labeled as sold on the gallery walls. Other things were sold and folks could take them home at the same time. Those things had to be wrapped and bagged.  This takes a team of at least four people to pull off smoothly.  My daughters and grand daughters were in charge of this critical part of the show opening.  They are professionals at this kind of thing and did a fabulous job keeping it all straight.

 GREETERS:

My great grand daughter is 14 years old. She came to the show and brought one of her firneds. Theyw ere outside the entrance to the gallery. It was their job to greet people, give them a program for going through the show, and be sure they signed my little guest book when they were leaving.  This gave my guests a personal greeting and welcoming feeling upon their arrival.

My husband is part of the team, too. He greets people, spends a lot of time where the food is so that he can be in conversations with people all night long.  He takes care of little things that may come up during the evening.

And, finally, YOU the artist. Once you have arrived and things are put in motion, and you have given your team instructions on how to do things you are then ready to greet the visitors who will be arriving.

Once the first people come through the door, from then on, you are engaged in greeting people, taking them around to see art works, telling them the stories about the works, and just enjoying the next three hours to the fullest.  You will be seeing people from every aspect of your life. Folks from your past community involvements, people from your daily life, people you went to school with many years ago, and you next door neighbors. It is so wonderful and everyone has such a beautiful time together.

YOUR FEET:

My final piece of advice:  wear very comfortable shoes. You will not be seated one time for at least 3 to 4 hours.  Even when I wear shoes that are flat and comfy, believe me, by the end of the night my feet ar buring and feel like they are in a vice. In the final moments of the show, I am now not wearing my shes at all - despite my fancy dress, I am in my bare feet on the cool gallery floor. Everyone laughs and my feet say "ah, thank you so much!"

If you are an artist and want to have a gallery show, begin NOW to design your show and begin working on the pieces for your show. No matter if you do not know exactly where it will be.  It WI"LL BE, once you begin to envision it and begin doing the work for it. Remember, you need a TEAM to help you get your show ready once you have done the work and are ready to have your opening night. You have many friends and family members who will join you and will be happy to do it.

THE OUTFIT:

You need to think about what you will wear. You are the STAR of the evening and you need to stand out in the drowd.  I like to select an outfit that matches the spirit of my art work.

For my opening reception I wore a beautiful top designed by MARC BOUWER.  I created a TALISMAN in my encrusted bead weaving techniques to coordinate with this beautiful fluid top.  It was a hit and people asked me all evening where I got my outfit. And, they stopped in their tracks to have a close look at the talisman I designed to match the outfit, that matched my art work. 

It is your show so be a STAR. You need your TEAM. New Castle News, New Castle, PA - Feature Story on Lynda Lambert

Making Art with Inner Vision

I was asked to write a short article for a journal recently. The editor asked me to discuss how my art changed from the time I could see to do it, and how it is done now that I cannot see to do it. I am delighted to answer this question because it means that someone has an interest in what I do and how I do it, as an artist. It also means that someone is not afraid to have an honest discussion with me about a topic that far too many people are afraid to face or discuss - sight loss.

Here is what I wrote and sent off today to the editor of the journal:

"Art and Inner Vision"

One of the most valuable lessons I learned as a mature student of the fine arts at Slippery Rock University of PA, back in the 1980s was that there was a difference between “seeing” and “looking.” My painting professor had talked with me about learning to “see.” He sent me off on a new journey when he gave me a list of artists on day. My assignment was to visit the library and find those artists. He told me to look at pictures of their work. I spent many days in the library. I back the information to him about what I was “seeing.” This assignment opened up a new way of thinking for me, a new understanding of what art is really about.

Seeing takes a long period of time. It is not a glance, or a quick look. It is about the passage of time. It happens in layers. Seeing involves the entire body, not just the eyes. I soon became aware of the inner vision that sees the art work, and time stood still. We are outside of time when we begin to “see” the world around us through all of our senses.

This belief that I embraced enabled me to continue to create after I lost most of my eyesight nearly four years ago. I learned to adapt, to find new ways of expressing an idea. I decided that this change in vision opened new doors for me and new ways of exploring in my art work. I viewed it as a new opportunity to learn new ways of working.

Instead of painting pictures and making wood cut prints, I decided to begin working in clay. It was a very quick transition for me to move from a 2 dimensional flat surface, to a 3 dimensional form. My love of painting has been transformed to working on the surface of the forms I made, using glazes, under glazes and stains to get the rich colors and depth of surface that I always had in my paintings. Now, I think of my vessels as paintings. They are paintings that you can take a walk around, and view from all sides.

Making pottery is a new adventure for me. It is one that I experience because of a life-changing challenge. Most people would think that to lose your eyesight, for an artists, would be the worst imaginable tragedy. This is not true.

Instead of feeling sorry for something I had no control over, I turned my personal challenge into a new adventure. I changed my mind and looked for positive outcomes. Every day, I look for what is positive and I think of ways to adapt things so that I can do them in my own way. It is all about finding your inner vision. It is all there inside of you, waiting for you to discover it. My art work reflects my way of Walking by Inner Vision.

River Road Studio, Wurtemburg, PA since 1976

Tribute to my Mother on Mother's Day

Who are you as a person?

How did you become the person you are today?

My thoughts go back to childhood memories of my Mother. I recall the the hours I spent with my Mother. Her marks on every aspect of my life through the lessons, training and ideas she handed down to me.

Mother's Day seems like the appropriate day to reflect on her-

Esther Luella Kirker McKinney

(1920 - 2007)

From the earliest years of my childhood, I recall spending time at my Grandmother's house. On one occasion I was there with my Mother and we were beginning a new project. My Mother was teaching me to do embroidery. She had bought a white linen tea towel that was marked with a stamped on pattern. And, the embroidery floss we were using was various shades of blue and gray. I would begin learning how to do embroidery. My Mother was my teacher, and my first Muse.

Mother not only made lovely embroidered items, she is usually best remembered for her soothing and flowing alto voice. Mother was a singer. She sang solos, and duets, and in the choir in our church. But it didn't stop there, where she had an audience. She sang every day in our home. Our house was filled with her songs. It would have been impossible to spend any amount of time at our house, without hearing my Mother singing.

In the final years of life, after Alzheimer's took away her ability to communicate through words and conversations, she still was able to sing the old songs of the church that were in her soul. We would sing as we drove down a highway together. and then we would burst out in laughter as we forgot a line or a word. Then, we would just make it up, and laugh some more. She never lost her ability to sing until her final days on earth.

Back in my Grandmother's house, so long ago, the blue embroidery threads were put through the eye of a silver needle. We began the exciting new project. One by one, Mother taught me the different ways of working the thread to create patterns on

the tea towel. She was patient and I was excited to be learning this new craft. I was mesmerized as the smooth thread went in and out of the creamy white linen cloth; my arm moved up and down in rhythm as the pattern began to take shape on the cloth; blue threads wrapped around the slick needle and was pushed through the crisp cloth. I was creating a design! I was hooked on fibers, threads, and cloth. I was becoming ONE with my work.

Mom created lovely "pictures" out of embroidery techniques. Her pictures hung in our home. there was a Crewel embroidery piece that became a clock in our living room. Then, one by one, Mom made pictures of red cardinals and bluebirds using Crewel techniques. The bird pictures joined her clock. There were lavender scented pillow cases lovingly made by Mom and we slept on those freshly ironed pillows at night. Mom's art was comfort under our heads, and soothing.

I have always had a love for fiber arts since that time. My idea of heaven is to spend the rest of my life in a yarn shop, surrounded by the most beautiful yarns imaginable.

I find that I simply love everything about yarn. It engages all my senses. TOUCH; SMELL; VISION. Most of all, it is my IMAGINATION that kicks in the moment I walk into a fabulous YARN SHOP. When I pick up the skeins of yarn, I begin to envision what that yarn will become once I take it home and begin to work with it.

Colorful yarn was a part of my Mother's life, too. She crocheted afghans in the later years of her life. She left behind a legacy for me. It is the LOVE for fiber arts in my heart. Often, when I pick up my needles and begin knitting, I think of her and how much she loved handmade things. Her embroidered pictures, her afghans, were her treasures.

And, one of the greatest treasures my Mother gave to ME, is the love of things hand-made. There is something to healing and so important of the touch of a human hand that is left in a piece of fiber art. Sometimes, when my heart is still and listening to spirit, I believe I hear her singing as I touch my knitting needles and move them softly through the luxurious silky yarn.

Happy Mother's Day, Esther Louella Kirker McKinney

from

he Village of Wurtemburg, PA.

When I grow up,

I want to be just like you.

May 8, 2011

Artists Continue to Make Art After Sight Loss

Question: What does an artist do when she loses her sight?

Answer: She makes Art!

I love reading about how other artists deal with loss of sight. I often wondered how an artist would cope with sight loss. I had read of many artists who lost their eyesight. When I was teaching and lecturing on art and artists, I would often note when an artist would be blind, after years of making art. I wondered how that transition would be made by the artist. I never suspected that it would happen to ME! We seldom ever see ourselves beyond how we are at the moment. And, I believe, we seldom ever imagine that WE would some day have a disability or a challenge like the one we read about that someone ELSE has. .

Making art was something I did most of my life. I cannot remember not making art. When confronted with my own challenge of sudden and profound sight loss in 2007, it meant that I shifted from making painting and woodcut prints, to making pottery.

I have always been a very optimistic person - mostly. After the initial shock and months (now 3 1/2 years) of rehabilitation, I viewed my sight loss as an entry into a new world and took it as a chance to make a new life for myself - one I would never have chosen to make.Sight Loss marked a new phase in my life - I celebrated by switching to a new art medium instead of trying to resurrect the former ones I had worked in for over 30 years. Sight Loss meant a New Kind of Life - New Paths to explore. New Adventures - New Friends - and New Ways of Doing EVERYTHING.

It's nearly the end of April! It's a nice sunny day. My travels for the month of April are now behind me, Bob and I had celebrated our 50th Anniversary on April 14 in Puerto Rico. Our daughter Ilsa and her family was there with us for the week. Then, we traveled to Ilsa's home for our annual family celebration in Kentucky.

Upon our arrival back home yesterday, I started cleaning my studio for the season. It is a kind of ritual that I have to do every spring - Spring Cleaning of the River Road Studio. Once I have it all in order, then I can begin to work there.

Today, I will finish it and be in there working on my pottery and bead work creations from mow till December when I close it for the winter months. SPRING is HERE in PA, Officially.

My studio is now OPEN and I am IN IT AGAIN. But now, there is not the smell of paints and inks, and stacks of canvases. Now, it is CLAY and POTS and a table with a CCTV on it so I can work away at my intricate encrusted bead worked pieces. I have one-person gallery show that will open in September, so I have lots of work to do from now until then.

Art truly is for everyone - even blind people. this blind photographer inspired me today!

USAirways provided me with a trip through hell yesterday

Recently, I had the opportunity to participate in a pilot program for blind. I was selected out of applicants from across the United States and given a grant by the eBay Corporation in partnership with the National Federation of the Blind. Sixteen blind people were selected for this special grant from eBay. As part of our grant we were flown to and from Baltimore, MD. My flight was from my home in Pennsylvania. I was given a lovely place to stay at the NFB Conference Center, and fantastic meals. In addition, I was in training classes ever day with the 15 other participants in this experimental program.

I was a bit nervous about getting to and from Baltimore as I had never traveled alone by plane since my sight loss three years ago. I did not let my apprehension keep me from going and so I started my trip on Monday morning, February 21 at the Pittsburgh Airport. My husband left me at the Continental Airlines counter where we were assured I would be taken to my gate, and then given help on boarding. I was to take two flights to get to Baltimore.

A delightful gentleman helped me from the counter through security and then to my gate. As I had a little while before the plane left, he came back through a couple of times just to be sure I was ok. Another attendant who would be in charge of getting me on the plane came, too. I was made to feel comfortable. Everything went perfectly due to their help. I made the two flights just as scheduled. and when I arrived at the Baltimore airport my driver was there at the gate to take me to the National Center for the Blind, so that I could join my peers there and begin the program. I thought, now, I am not afraid to travel anywhere by myself. This is wonderful, and I am over my fear of solo traveling.

At the end of my week in Baltimore I was taken by van to the airport to begin the two flight journey that would get me back to Pittsburgh again. Since I had such a good experience flying to Baltimore via Continental Airlines, I had no idea what was waiting to unfold for me on the trip home. I arrived at the airport at 8 am. There, I was told that my two flights had been cancelled. I was rebooked to fly home via USAirways. I would be taking one plane to Philadelphia, and then another to Pittsburgh. I thought, well, that is ok.

I was walked through security there and escorted to my gate which was in the far reaches of the bottom level of the airport. I was told I would be pre-boarded, as usual, and I relaxed and sat there with my knitting because I knew I had about 1 1/2 hours to wait. Finally, an attendant came to the podium, and I thought I better go and just make my presence known and to reassure me that I would indeed be pre-boarded . The attendant was very aloof with me, like I was a nuisance, and she snapped, "When you hear me make the announcement, you will be boarded." I told here where I would be sitting so that someone could help me. She made no comment and I went back to my seat. In a short while a passenger was pre-boarded. He was in a wheelchair. So, I thought, I will be next. I waited. She made her announcement for people with special needs to come forward. I went up to her podium again, and thought that meant me. She asked from my ticket. I had it in an envelope with another ticket. I offered her my envelope and asked her to get the correct ticked for my flight. Since I cannot see, I had no way to know exactly which ticket was the correct one. She grabbed the envelope from me with a loud sigh. She pulled out the correct ticket and handed it to me. Instead of any help, I was told to "step aside because she she had to get all the other passengers on the plane. She said she “does not have time to get me boarded” and did not have time to help me. She told me I would have to wait for someone else to come help me. I have no idea why I was not pre-boarded when the passenger in the wheel chair and his were pre-boarded. Instead, I was left to wait again. So there I stood while all the other people in the plane filed by as their sections were called out by this woman. I did not know what to do, since she was certainly boarding the entire plane and I was standing by myself to the side as everyone paraded past me. I was very cold as I was standing there with the doors open as one by one, all the other’s passed me by.

Eventually, a passenger who was going by came up to me and asked if she could help me. I told her I was standing there because I was told by the attendant to wait, and this stranger went up to the attendant and told her she would take me to the plane. The passenger came back and took me by the arm and carefully led me to the plane, got me in my seat and told me to wait when the plane landed as she would be back to help me out and to my gate. When the plane landed in Philadelphia, this passenger came to help me as she promised. No one from the airline ever came near me to help me in any way.

The woman's name is Christina. Christina took me into the airport, took me to my gate and stayed with me. She even took me to get some food and to the bathroom. Her gate was near mine, and she repeatedly came to talk with the flight attendants to be sure I would have help in boarding. The planes were delayed and we had several hours till the next plane that I would get to Pittsburgh. Two attendants, Elizabeth and Terrance, were fabulous and they kept an eye on me and they took care of making sure I was put on the plane that would take me to Pittsburgh. I thought my troubles were now over, but I was very wrong on that assumption.

When we landed in Pittsburgh, a special attendant from USAirways came on board to get me, and took me on a cart. I thought, this is great, finally I will be back with my husband and on our way home. The attendant did not take me to the luggage area however. Instead, she took me to a place where the escort services work from and she left me there in a seat and told me she would be back. She was going to go get my husband, or at least locate him and get me to him. She never did come back. I had numerous conversations with the women who were working in the escort services area. After a very long time, they decided to take me to the baggage pick up area and were hoping to find my husband and get us united again. And, this is how I finally got to him.

Meanwhile, my husband had not been notified that they had switched me onto a different airlines and completely different time schedules. He was at the airport for hours trying to find out where I was. When my plane returned, and I was not on it, he went seeking help. Finally he was told I was coming on a flight from Philadelphia instead of Newark, and that it was hours later than the original flight was to be.

Eventually he found my luggage in the baggage dept but I never arrived at the baggage department. After an hour or so of trying to get information on where I was. My husband was told by the personnel in Baggage Dept. that I was put on a cart and was on my way.

I was finally brought to the baggage area by the woman from the escort services because the woman from the USAirways who drove the cart had left me at the escort services and never returned to get me. In all, I had left Baltimore at 8 am yesterday, and was not back to my home till nearly 8 pm - just from Baltimre to Pittsburgh.

Of course, I will be flying alone again because I am not a woman to quit when the going is tough. Next time, I might not be so foolish as to think that all people who work for the airlines will observe the Americans With Disabilities Act and obey the Federal Laws to provide help for people with disabilities. US Airways needs to do a lot of training so that all their employees get the message that it is the law to provide for their special needs passengers and it is unlawful for them to refuse to board such passengers and to abandon them and not return to help them complete their trip safely.

I have tickets to Puerto Rico for April and they are on US Airways. After my horrifying experiences with this airline yesterday, I am quite uneasy about my safety. And, I am still wondering if some blind people just disappear and never get to their destination. Are blind people still standing aside while all the other passengers are taken care of right now? Is a blind person sitting somewhere in a chair waiting for the airline personnel to come back as promised? Is there a "missing persons" department or a "lost and found" department for blind people who fly on USAirways? Will I actually get to Puerto Rico in April? And, if I do, will I ever get back home again? And, how many more humiliations and broken promises will I endure the next time I fly USAirways?