Arts Access Newsletter June 2003

Throughout the school year, second grade students from Como Park Elementary School Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program in Saint Paul have been discovering what it means to be a community. Students explored maps, contrasted rural and urban communities, and identified the diversity of people who live in and work in various communities. They gained insight into what it means to be part of global, national, state, city, neighborhood and cultural communities.

This month, the art they created on the theme of "Community" will be seen as banners on Saint Paul's Kellogg Avenue, welcoming the VSA arts community from 41 states, 5 international countries and the District of Columbia.

Likewise, Minnesota performers with disabilities will provide home-grown entertainment June 18-21 for the international visitors to the VSA arts Annual Meeting and Leadership Institute (AMLI) in Saint Paul. A pre-conference educational institute will take place at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center.

The theme for this year's event, Linking Communities Through the Arts, is what VSA arts offices do in a wide variety of ways -- linking communities of students, educators, adults, people with different disabilities and artistic disciplines. More than 100 affiliate staff and board members will gather at the Saint Paul Radisson Riverfront Hotel to attend workshops, meet new directors and discuss prospects for future funding, changes in programs and policies, and plans for the 2004 International Festival.

There will be optional outings to see work by Minnesota artists with disabilities and accessible performances. For more information, call VSA arts of Minnesota or check the national and state websites: www.vsarts.org and http://mn.vsarts.org.
(And thanks to Como teacher Deb Hornfeldt and artist in residence Amy Ballestad for collaborating on the student banner project. Our broad community appreciates your insights!)

Over the course of a week, artist in residence Amy Ballestad taught mask-making techniques at Royalton Elementary School. Students created colorful masks using cardboard and paper mache and then wore them in a school parade.

Phil Gerbada, principal at Royalton Elementary School, described the residency as a great experience for students and staff. "The VSA arts of Minnesota grant enabled us to offer a valuable artistic experience to a special group of students. It was an uplifting event for our entire school."

During the 2002-03 school year, VSA arts of Minnesota awarded 11 mini-grants of $500 each to assist schools in collaborating with outside artists and to allow students with disabilities to have greater access to and participation in the arts.
Funding for this program is made available by generous grants from the Ann Jack Memorial Fund, Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning, and VSA arts in Washington D.C.

STRIVE Program, Osseo Senior High School, Osseo:
STRIVE students met with visual artist Melina Weir to create journals and individualized shields. The residency finale was a docent-led visit to the Minneapolis Museum of Arts to study art work featuring shields.

WRAP (Washburn Resource Adaptive Program), Washburn High School, Minneapolis:
Artists from Galumph Interactive Theater led students through a process of writing storyboards, creating puppets, masks, costumes, sets, props, rehearsing and performing their stories. Artists also trained teachers and special education assistants in arts integration.

CAP (Creative Alternatives Program), Capitol View School, Little Canada:
Puppeteer Dianne Gasch and storyteller Bob Gasch worked with students to build large puppets and create and act out stories. One student commented, "I didn't think I could make a big puppet, but it was fun to make and use in a play."

TTI (Transition to Independence), Saint Paul Public Schools:
An artist from the Northern Clay Center taught basic hand building and glazing techniques to students, providing an introduction to an art form not currently available to them.

Royalton Elementary School, Royalton:
Amy Ballestad, from ArtStart, engaged students in a mask-making project followed by a parade.

Christa McAuliffe Elementary School, Hastings:
Artist Barb Pinc taught students a variety of drawing, painting and sculptural techniques. Students collaborated to create a book describing their art experience.
Minneapolis Southwest High School:
James Williams, a theater artist, worked with students over the course of a month, culminating in performances for selected audiences at the school.

Humboldt Junior High School, Saint Paul:
Artist Nancy Beard, from the Deaf Art Club, assisted students in sculpting clay into manual letters and signs in American Sign Language (ASL) in order to celebrate Deaf Culture, diversity and the preservation of ASL.

Anne Sullivan Elementary School, Minneapolis:
By combining clay and ASL, artist Nancy Beard, from the Deaf Art Club, provided students with the opportunity to express themselves and celebrate Deaf Culture. Students will exhibit their art work at upcoming festivals and gallery showings.

Rondo Early Childhood Special Education, Saint Paul Public Schools:
A music therapist from MacPhail Center for Music provided musical activities that addressed the physical, emotional, cognitive, language and social needs of students. Outside of this residency, music therapy is not a typical part of the students' educational day.

Minnesota State Academy for the Blind (MSAB), Faribault:
In conjunction with Young Audiences of Minnesota's Real Art + Real Kids program, featuring The Art of Latin American Masks, students will work with an artist to create their own masks and use them in a performance.

VSA arts and Volkswagen of America have issued a call for visual artists with disabilities, ages 16-25 living in the United States, to participate in a juried exhibit entitled, "Road Trip: A Journey of Discovery." Fifteen finalists will be awarded a total of $30,000 and will be honored in a public exhibition in Washington D.C. in October.

Please contact VSA arts of Minnesota for more information and to obtain an entry form.

Anodyne Artists Company and Transition To Independence (TTI) of Saint Paul teamed up with VSA arts of Minnesota to provide an opportunity for TTI students to work with professional artists with disabilities from their company.

Artists led students through visual art and theater activities and demonstrated what it takes to succeed as a visual artist or a performer. The students realized the possibilities of working in the arts, and discovered the dedication it takes to be a professional artist. Anodyne Artists Company and Transition To Independence (TTI) of Saint Paul teamed up with VSA arts of Minnesota to provide an opportunity for TTI students to work with professional artists with disabilities from their company. Artists led students through visual art and theater activities and demonstrated what it takes to succeed as a visual artist or a performer. The students realized the possibilities of working in the arts, and discovered the dedication it takes to be a professional artist.

The Eden Prairie Leisure Education Program partnered with VSA arts of Minnesota this spring to offer a four-part drama workshop for young adults with disabilities. Led by artist Janet Beard, they engaged in a variety of theatre games and improvisations, collaborated in pairs and as a group, and learned how to move and express themselves on stage.

This summer the Eden Prairie program is offering a variety of camps for students with disabilities in art, photography and drama. For more information, call Nicole White at the City of Eden Prairie, Phone: 952-949-8457.

Mackenzie Myren's poem, "The Perfect Storm," has been selected to represent Minnesota in VSA arts' International Poetry Project. Mackenzie is 12 years old, attends Park Brook Elementary School, and was inspired to write this poem because of a love for thunderstorms.

The Perfect Storm:
Gray days are my favorite days, even though I like the sun.
As I hear the first boom of thunder I feel an exhilarating spark.
The storm clouds move in and I see a lightening bolt
strike through the dark, storm covered sky.
I can feel the static in the air.
Everyone else is afraid but I am not.
I feel as if I am part of the storm,
the jagged lightening bolt, or the strong voice of thunder.
I'm the angry storm clouds moving fast over the sky,
coming back to claim the frightened whimpers of scared children.
I love the boldness and fearless surrender of this storm.
I call this
The Perfect Storm.

Ten Minnesotans with disabilities who are developing skills in art forms have been awarded $250 Emerging Artist Grants by VSA arts of Minnesota. In its tenth year, the program helps individuals take classes to develop their artistic skills, improve their business or marketing skills, or purchase materials to continue their artistic efforts. Recipients, selected at random from 29 entries, include:

David Almquist, Saint Paul musician.
Kofi Kofi Ekanem, Saint Paul, high school artist.
Tiffany Holmes, Dovray musician.
Nancy Janes, Shoreview visual artist.
Andrea G. Kiley, Brooklyn Park visual artist.
Rufino Lucio, Little Canada visual artist.
June Orr, Hopkins visual artist.
Janice Severson, Saint Paul visual artist.
Sunny Sierra, Richfield potter/sculptor.
Alec Sweazy, Minnetonka high school keyboard artist.

The next round of grants is for Artist Recognition Grants, which are awarded by a panel of jurors based on quality of art (all art forms eligible).
Applications will be available in September and the deadline will be November 14.

The International Art Show by Artists with Disabilities attracted several hundred people to Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute in Minneapolis this spring. Numerous awards were presented, including VSA arts Encouragement Awards to Eric Sherarts of Minneapolis and Joni Gross of Hibbing. Sunny Steinmetz of Lake Elmo is pictured with her artwork (see pictures below).

Art by ten visual artists with disabilities is on display through August at Vision Loss Resources, 1936 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis. The exhibit includes watercolors by Char Coal and Rena Vettleson of Minneapolis; clay works by Helene Oppenheimer of Woodbury; oils by Tara Arlene Innmon, Minneapolis, and Theresa Wanta, Saint Paul; ceramics by Bill Borden, Carol O'Connor, Sandra Lindell and Suzyn Lundgren of Interact Center for Visual & Performing Arts in Minneapolis, and acrylics by Mari Newman, Minneapolis. The works are for sale.

A new exhibit will go up in September. Artists with disabilities who are interested in opportunities to have their work exhibited (and possibly sold!), plus receive a stipend for the temporary use of the art, should send information about your work along with slides/photos to VSA arts of Minnesota, or e-mail jon@vsaartsmn.org.

Organizations or businesses who would like to sponsor an exhibit of artwork by children or adults with disabilities should also contact VSA arts of Minnesota.

More than 300 adults with disabilities from a dozen community education programs performed and gained new experiences in art, movement, theatre and music at two VSA arts Spring Festivals on April 12 & 26 in Elk River and Faribault. Thanks to all instructors and our hosts!

A gallant journey celebrating the arts. A fearless exploration of your imagination. A daring quest to be creative.

Middle school students from Minneapolis, Saint Paul and Prior Lake-Savage public school districts visited Augsburg College on a beautiful spring day eager to participate in Adventure in the Arts 2003. The theme of the day was strength - "Survivor" style. Activities were geared toward empowering students. The activities began with performances by musician Ted Brown and Chicks on Sticks, a group of Minnesota stilters. Students then rotated through sessions involving various facets of the arts. Augsburg College music therapy students led the sessions with assistance from the theater and education departments. The big finale was an original performance by Anodyne Artists Company.
This collaborative Adventures in the Arts festival was a success due to the hard-working Augsburg College music therapy student volunteers and to generous grants from the Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning and VSA arts. Thanks to all!

Students pictured below are engaged in Adventures in the Arts activities.

As mentioned in "Notes from the Top of a Balding Head," VSA arts of Minnesota will be modifying its programming so that a greater part "impacts" or has "relevancy" to children and young people with disabilities in Minnesota. While we have ideas on how to do this, we would like to have input from you regarding what and how we should impact and/or be relevant to this group of Minnesota people.Please let us know by completing the form below or sending your thoughts to us via email at craig@vsaartsmn.org (note our new address). Also, please feel free to call us should you wish to discuss this topic more directly. Thanks!

By Craig Dunn, Executive Director, VSA arts of Minnesota.

There is one thing that we can all count on in our lives and that is that nothing stays the same; change is ever-present and unrelenting. It is a force that is neither good nor bad, it just is. Individuals change, governments change and organizations change - which brings me to this column's crux.

VSA arts is about to embark on change that will affect the way that state VSA arts affiliates, like VSA arts of Minnesota, do business. As many of you know, our annual funding from VSA arts emanates from the U.S. Department of Education. Policy and procedure changes at the Department are resulting in changes in the ways that the Home Office and the state affiliates are able to use those funds. Beginning in October, programming funded with VSA arts monies (from the Department) will need to be conducted in such a way that it "impacts" or has "relevancy to" students and young people with disabilities up to the age of 21. Since we use some of our annual affiliation funding
for programs benefiting adults as well as young people, this may cause our programming mix to change, at least in the near term.

Regardless of this change coming from Washington, our commitment to access to the arts for people with disabilities across all ages will not be deterred. Participation in and with the arts does not end for an individual at the age of 21, whether or not they have a disability. Students seeking to pursue a career in the arts need to know that there are people with disabilities currently working in those careers. Having interpreters and audio describers at theater and dance performances affects not only the Deaf and Blind adult attendees today but also their younger community-members tomorrow.

This will not be a big change for us, but, as with any change, it may take a little while to get used to it. Watch for our newsletter at the end of the summer to see how we will be implementing our modified programming for the coming fall. In the meantime, enjoy the change in the colors around you, in the warmth of the sun on your skin and in having a few extra moments to enjoy it all. Have a good summer!

The 2003 Minnesota Legislative session was indeed a rough one for all nonprofits. While it is too early to know exactly how hard it will impact VSA arts of Minnesota, here is what we know and expect:

• The Minnesota State Arts Board administration will be cut 60%.
• The pool of money for arts programming to arts organizations and the regional arts councils will be cut 30%.
• VSA arts of Minnesota received an operating grant for our last fiscal year of $11,877.
• With more organizations eligible for funding, we expect the next grant will be about $7,125.
• Given that state funds will be reduced for hundreds of non-profits, it will be harder for all organizations to make up those reductions from individuals, corporations and foundations.

While this is not an organization-threatening cut, a reduction of non-restricted, operating funds of any kind is a tough one to absorb for all nonprofit entities. Donations from individuals, unless restricted for a particular program purpose, are one of the best ways of making up this reduction of state funding.

Feel free to use the form below if you can step forward to help.

Looking for a way to shop, have a drink and a bite to eat, view live performances by artists with disabilities while at the same time supporting the work of VSA arts of Minnesota?

Well, mark your calendar now to save the afternoon of Sunday, September 21st to attend Summer's Last Silent Auction & Cabaret, a fund-raising event to benefit the programs and operations of VSA arts of Minnesota.

The gathering will be held at the Illusion Theater, 8th Floor of the Hennepin Center for the Arts, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Auction items will include fabulous works of art by Minnesota artists with and without disabilities, scrumptious restaurant offerings, thrilling performances by Minnesota music, theater and dance companies and a fantastic miscellany of other goods and services. Artists with disabilities will share song performances that are both spell-binding and raucous, instrumentals that are haunting and soothing, and stories that are mesmerizing and side-splitting.

This will be our first fund-raiser in nearly 15 years and our first performance since the Mother's Day Spring Ahead event in 1998! If you would like to donate items, art or services for Summer's Last Silent Auction or assist as a volunteer, contact Craig Dunn at 612-332-3888 or craig@vsaartsmn.org.

Watch for further details on our website in the coming months and look for the next edition of Arts Access at the end of August.

Joseph Baird of Burnsville (see picture - here performing at the opening of the 2003 Sister Kenny International Art Exhibit), will be among the performers for the VSA arts Annual Meeting and Leadership Institute, June 18-21 in Saint Paul. He is one of many freelance artists with disabilities available "for hire."

For the third consecutive year, students from Buffalo High School have donated proceeds from their annual silent auction to VSA arts of Minnesota.

The silent auction features one of a kind slump bowls created by Advanced Ceramics students.

VSA arts of Minnesota appreciates the time and effort that goes into creating the inventive bowls and organizing this event. The proceeds will be used in art education and disability awareness projects across the state of Minnesota.

Shadow puppetry was a hit for these students, as were mask-making and theatre improvisations (see pictures below).

A student with cerebral palsy is looking for a used French horn. If you can donate or loan one, please contact VSA arts of Minnesota.