Arts Access Newsletter February 2007

Three individuals and two arts organizations received the 9th annual Minnesota Arts Access Awards on September 24 for their efforts to make arts programs and facilities in Minnesota more accessible to people with disabilities.

Presented by VSA arts of Minnesota at the new Rondo Community Outreach Library in Saint Paul, the awards aim to recognize artists, educators, volunteers and arts organizations whose advocacy and achievements have enabled more people with disabilities to participate in the arts. Their examples encourage others to create greater access in their spheres of influence.

This year's recipients include:

Individuals or Organizations Actively Promoting Access to the Arts for People with Disabilities:

• Spectrum Art Works and its Arts Coordinator, Amy Rice, Minneapolis;
• Frank Theatre and its Artistic Director, Wendy Knox, Minneapolis;
• Rick Jacobson, audio describer, Saint Louis Park.

Active & Visible Minnesota Artist with a Disability:

• Kathryn Bakke, pianist and speaker who is hard of hearing, Richfield;
• Leslye Orr, performer, playwright, author who is legally blind, Saint Paul.

Each winner received an original sculpture - the Jaehny (named after Jaehn Clare, a founder of VSA arts of Minnesota), created this year by Laura Wallace, Mike Ebert and Heidi Leaf, three artists from Bridgeview in Spring Lake Park.

Performances were given by two musicians from West Africa, Sidiki Conde, a singer, drummer and dancer from Guinea, and Balla Kouyate, a percussionist from Mali, who spent part of the fall presenting their art for schools and community groups.

Six Minnesota artists were awarded the 2006 Artist Recognition Grants in December. Funded for the 11th year by the Jerome Foundation and presented after a jurying process by VSA arts of Minnesota, the $1,000 grants recognize excellence by Minnesota artists with disabilities. Selected from 48 applicants, the grantees are:

Robert K. Anderson, Saint Louis Park: Writing – creative non-fiction;
Frank Garcia, Duluth: Performance - clarinetist;
Barbara Harman, Minneapolis: Visual Art - monotypes;
Amy Salloway, Minneapolis: Performance - storyteller;
Holly Tappen, Falcon Heights: Visual Art – acrylic, oil, charcoal, mixed media;
Carei F. Thomas, Minneapolis: Performance – music performer/composer/theorist.

The Recognition Grants were awarded following application review by individuals with extensive backgrounds in the written, visual and performing arts. Panel members were:

Brian Balcom, theatre director, Fringe Festival & Guthrie, Edina;
Mary Anne Bennett, retired art educator, musician, Burnsville;
Jessica Pack, executive director, ArtReach Alliance, Stillwater;
Michael-jon Pease, marketing director, FORECAST Public Artworks, Saint Paul; recently executive director of Cornucopia Art Center, Lanesboro;
Denise Vogt, artistic director, Lakeville City Ballet; visual artist, writer, Lakeville;
Yvette Weijergang, painter, art instructor at Interact; Monticello.

Amy Salloway has a sample of her performance pieces at Minnesota Artists - Amy Salloway.
Carei Thomas is also on the web at Minnesota Artists - Carei Thomas.

The VSA arts national website offers an online list of Opportunities to increase exposure of artists’ work, including calls for art/artists, casting calls and funding opportunities. Go to at VSA arts, Resources: Opportunities (www.vsarts.org/x1317.xml).

Springboard for the Arts in Saint Paul lists local, regional and national arts opportunities, deadlines, grants, residencies, jobs and a callboard at Springboard for the Arts, Opportunities and Deadlines (www.springboardforthearts.org/Opportunities/Opportunities.asp). Contact VSA arts of Minnesota for our emailed Artists’ Pipeline.

VSA arts of Minnesota exhibits work from artists with disabilities around the metro area. Art displayed is for sale. All profits go to the working artists.

Park State Bank, 430 First Avenue N., #104, Minneapolis, Phone: 612-238-3588:
Showing through February 28, 2007: Mari Newman, visual artist;

Vision Loss Resources, 1936 Lyndale Avenue S., Minneapolis, Phone: 612-871-2222:
Showing through April 30, 2007: Anne Krocak, ceramic sculpture, and Mari Newman, visual artist.

To be considered for future exhibits, contact Amie Pence at VSA: amie@vsaartsmn.org.

VSA arts of Minnesota would like to thank the artists and educators who attended this workshop in January. It was an evening full of interesting dialog, inquisitive questioning and discussion. Thank you to Holly Schmidt, Jill Kuzma and Julie Overboe for their wonderful presentations and information. Special thanks to the Autism Society of Minnesota for their support with this professional development opportunity!

Do you have a student with a flair for art that you would love to have showcased? We are looking for original artwork from students with special needs that demonstrates their individual creativity. The student must be between kindergarten age and 21 years old. Sponsored by Minnesota Low Incidence Projects, it will be displayed March 12-13 at the Statewide Developmental Cognitive Disabilities Conference in Marshall.

For more information about this opportunity, contact Marilyn Labat, Phone: 507-537-2249 or Marilyn.labat@swsc.org.

ArtsWork is an arts-based summer youth employment and training program made available by COMPAS. VSA arts of Minnesota partners with COMPAS to assist students with disabilities in meeting their accommodation needs: transportation, communication, behavioral support, etc.

To learn more about ArtsWork, contact: Shelia Bland, ArtsWork Director, shelia@compas.org; Phone: 651-292-3265, COMPAS - ArtsWork (www.compas.org/pages/arts_work.html).

A monthly e-mail of arts news, jobs, classes, exhibits, networking, etc. Email: jon@vsaartsmn.org.

Nominations for 2007 Arts Access Awards are open now! Nominate artists with disabilities, arts educators working with students with disabilities, producing or performing groups, venues, volunteers or create your own category. Deadline: August 1.

Mail, fax or e-mail (up to 2 pages) or audio tape (up to 5 minutes) with contact info about nominee and nominator, relationship of the nominee to the writer; and why the award is deserved. News clippings, photos, etc. may be attached.

In the fall of 2004, VSA arts launched a call for art, asking children to "Discover What Art Is..." Children went on a quest to experience art, to identify working artists, to find art wherever they were and to experience it in a new way.

Their creations have become part of a nationally touring “Discover What Art Is…” exhibition that will come to the Minnesota Children’s Museum in downtown Saint Paul May 25 - August 19. The exhibit shows how children see and experience the world around them - the buildings, the sounds, the words and the motion - through the visual arts. We see what they believe art is, meet artists they have met, find art where they find it in their communities, and learn why art is important to them... why they say: "Art is what makes me unique."

VSA arts of Minnesota will be developing some community arts programming to correlate with this spring-summer exhibition. To learn more about these opportunities, call 612-332-3888.

The VSA arts Playwright Discovery Program challenges middle and high school students of all abilities to take a closer look at the world around them, examine how disability affects their lives and the lives of others, and express their views through the art of writing a one-act play. The winning playwright will travel to Washington, D.C. to view a professional production of their play presented at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. In addition, the winning playwright will receive up to $2,000 and possible mentoring opportunities.

The deadline is April 13, 2007. The 2007 Call for Scripts, as well as additional playwriting resources - a Resource Guide for Teachers, script formatting tips, and a list of books, plays and films that feature a character with a disability or focus on the theme of disability -- are on the VSA arts website at Arts In Action: VSA arts Playwright Discovery Program (www.vsarts.org/x244.xml). For more info, e-mail info@vsarts.org or call 1-800-933-8721; TTY 202-737-0645.

Explore the world of puppet-making in this two-session workshop. Create your own characters in a variety of media including finger puppets, bag puppets, sock puppets and rod puppets. All materials will be provided.

Ages: 6-10;
Instructor: Carol Weiler;
Dates: Saturday, March 24 & 31;
Time: 10 AM - Noon;
Place: Paramount Visual Arts Center, Studio B, 913 Saint Germain Street, Saint Cloud;
Cost: $32 per registration; $22 per registration for students with disabilities (please identify).
(The Paramount is partnering with VSA arts of Minnesota to offer this class at a reduced rate for students with disabilities.)

To Register: Contact the Visual Arts Center at 320-257-3112 or email: mgohman@paramountarts.org.
Directions: Paramount Theatre and Visual Arts Center: Directions (www.paramountarts.org/directions.html)

Join Articulture, VSA arts of Minnesota and the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts to create art that decorates bikes, wheelchairs and anything else that moves! Participants will create individual artwork as well as a collaborative piece that will be in the ARTMoves Parade on Saturday, June 2, 2007 as part of the Flint Hills 2007 International Children’s Festival!

Dates and times in May will be decided. For more information, contact Articulture at 612-729-5151 or visit ArtiCulture - Visual Arts Classes, Camps, and Workshops (www.articulture.org).

Music from Indonesia

Marion W. Savage Elementary School partnered with VSA arts of Minnesota in December to host teaching artist Joko Sutrisno (left), who brought the creativity and expression of Indonesian music to students of all abilities in District 191!

Nineteen students with developmental cognitive disabilities and their peers explored rhythm and music that developed skills in following directions, staying on task, and working collaboratively in group settings. Students in the week-long residency had the opportunity to perform on the Gamelan for their peers and families.

Special education instructor Lynn Palin said, "Joko found the true gifts that students had and focused on their strengths with the instruments he chose and how he had them work within the group. Joko worked so hard to find the right instrument to fit the right child’s gift. What a gift he turned out to be for us."

Saori Weaving

In March, VSA arts of Minnesota will exhibit Saori weaving at the State Department of Education. The art was taught to students of all abilities ages 7-21 at three of Dan O'Brien's Artist-in-Residency programs: at NE Metro South Campus in White Bear Lake, Thomas Jefferson High School in Bloomington, and Beaver Lake Educational Center in Maplewood.

Saori freestyle weaving provides the opportunity for students to bring out and express their already existent creative sense. In Japanese, this is called kansei and is something that is available to all beings. We do not "create" artists, but give an opportunity for the artist within to be expressed. For more information, contact Dan O’Brien at saoriminnesota@yahoo.com or SAORI Free-Style Weaving Studio "Fun" (www.geocities.com/saoristudiofun).

Save the Date!
Friday, April 13, 2007, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM.

The sixth annual "Metro Arts Festival" promotes self achievement through the arts. Middle school students identified as having developmental cognitive disabilities and peers from metro area schools will be treated to performances and participate in hands-on sessions with local artists. To learn more about this exciting opportunity, contact Amie Pence: amie@vsaartsmn.org

Thanks for all donations to VSA arts of Minnesota, enabling our nonprofit organization to conduct programs and provide information for children and adults with disabilities around the state. If we missed your name in the following list of donations received through January 15, 2007, please contact our office. (italic = in-kind).

Memorials (unrestricted)

In memory of David Green - Candy Hart & Craig Dunn;
In memory of Merle Hart Sr. – Richard Daum, Dolores & Merle Hart, Candy Hart & Craig Dunn;
In memory of Ann Jack – Sally Ratke;
In memory of Irina Lasoff – Margot Imdieke-Cross;
In memory of Eric Peterson - Barbara Davis;
In memory of Jim and Carol Scott - Robyn Alexander.

Gifts to the VSA arts of Minnesota Endowment Fund

John & Mary Thoemke;
Dorothy Timm Meili;
In memory of Nathan Schmidt - Mr. MOJO, John & Marilyn Schmidt, Karl & JoAnn Schmidt, Rowan Zeiss.

Major Benefactors ($10,000+)

VSA arts (through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education), ArtSpace Projects, Jerome Foundation, McKnight Foundation, Minnesota Department of Education, Minnesota State Arts Board, Saint Paul Travelers Foundation, United Arts.

Benefactors ($1,000+)

General Mills Foundation, Guthrie Theater, Medtronic Foundation, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, Lisa Skluzacek.

Advocates ($100+)

David Beebe, Britta Beeck, Bob & Kay Burland, Mary Catherine, Kay Chase, Jaehn Clare, Cornerstone Copy Center, Craig Dunn & Candy Hart, Taras Dykstra, Fairmont Opera House, Dale Finke & Deb Rielley, Pat Finucan, Clete Fleming, Pam & Jim Hall, Jody Hofer Van Ness, IceBox Quality Framing & Gallery, Jean Stephen Galleries, Erin Keyes, Dodie Kostishack, Angeline LaMere, Bob & Jeannine Lavens, LeJeune Investments, Michael Malver, William Muchow, Park State Bank - Warehouse District, Pure Blue Swim Shop, Lawrence Redmond, Roger Schanus, Steve & Elizabeth Schmidt, Lee Schwanke, Jon Skaalen, Gerald & Jane Skluzacek, Anna Thompson, Richard Thompson, Touchstones LLC, Steven & Susan Turbenson, Mary Vavra-Gibis & Chuck Gibis, Rick Vogt, Sue Warner.

Sponsors ($50+)

Howard Ansel, David Bach, Diane Baldwin, Diane Blake, Perrin Boyd, Mark Bressler, Nancy Charlebois, Yvonne Condell, James Conway, Craig Dahl, Sue & Mark Erickson, Mike & Billie Fienhage, Jimmie Hanson, Julie & Anders Himmelstrup, Margot Imdieke-Cross, Chris & Tom Janda, Johnstech International Corp., Kathy Klein & Scott Fink, Franklin Knoll, Andrew & Rebecca LeVake, Bill Luther, Kristen Mathisen, Fern & Bill Miller, David & Karen Minge, Tim & Lynn Moratzka, Holly Newman, Paul & Dorthea Ofstedal, Bob Payton, Richard & Rachel Quenemoen, Nancy & Larry Robbert, Mary Samuels.

Supporters (up to $50)

Robert K Anderson, Jack Becker and Nancy Reynolds, Jean Becker, Mary Anne Bennett, Woody & Joy Bridges, Cathy Carlson, Elizabeth Childs, Mary Darnall, Sharman Davis Barrett, Don Druke, Mavis Dunn, Randy Edinger, Richard A. Erickson, Thomas & Patricia Fetsch, Marvin & Rosemary Fish, David Fraher, Sherri & Wayne Fuller, Chris & Kristi Gaudette, Debra Glassman, Marge Goldberg, Donna Gravesen, Judy Gulden, Hilree Hamilton, Sara Haugen, IBM International, Tara Innmon, Yvonne Klocek, Becky Kragnes, Paula Krippner, Sue & Mark Lasoff, Vicki Lauruhn, Phill Lindsay, Charles & Hertha Lutz, Vicki Madsen, Linda Mindel, Raymond Myslicki, Steve Nagle, Nancy Nelson, Donna Norberg, Chris Orr, Chris Osgood, Don & Kathy Park, Beth Parkhill, Bela Petheo, Kate Pehrson, Jean Price, Carol Anne Quest, Jerry Rands, Karen Robison, Nadine Sehnert, Jan Severson, Mark Siegel, Mary Small, Jayne Spain, Pam Truesdell, Ann Wasserman, Tom & Kathy Weber, Gerrhart & Janet Weiss, Tony Wentersdorf, Don & Maryjane Westra, Elizabeth Wright.

Silent Auction Donors

Maxine Adams, Amazon Bookstore Coop, AMC Theatres, Ron Anderson, Arrowwood Resort & Conf. Center, Barra Dance Band, Dennis M. Behr, Bibelot, Black Forest Inn, Bloomington Art Center Gallery Players, Bloomington Civic Theatre, Pamela Bottoms, Cabela's, Caribou Coffee, Howard Carson, Mary Catherine, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Children's Theatre Co., CLIMB Theatre, ComedySportz, Commonweal Theatre, Cornucopia Art Center, Courage Center, Courage Center, CSB/SJU Fine Arts, Tismel Crow, Dale Studios, Sabine Dudda, Craig Dunn & Candy Hart, Dunn Bros. Nicollet Mall, Taras Dykstra, Edy's Grand Ice Cream, EH Publishing, Endangered Species Chocolate, Milt Evenson, Kieran Folliard, Frank Theatre, Future Horizons, Inc., Janet & Hal Gensler, Jane Gerus, Gingko Coffeehouse, Gluek's Restaurant & Bar, gray space Performance Co., Great Waters Brewing Co., Hunter Gullickson, Martha Hage, Jim Hanson, Harvey's, Haskell's, Hell's Kitchen, Stephen Henning, History Theatre, In the Heart of the Beast Theatre, Tara Arleen Innmon, Raghavan Iyer, Rick Jacobson, James Sewell Ballet, Jawaahir Dance Co. & The Cassandra School, Jean Stephen Galleries, Jigsaw Unlimited & Susan Diamond, Jimmy John's, Ken & Norm's Liquors, Kieran's Irish Pub, Mary Anne Kinane, Robert Kingston, DDS, Kevin Kling, Lakeshore Players, Lakeville City Ballet, James & Mary Laurie Booksellers, The Little Wine Shoppe, Lyon's Pub, Mantorville Theatre Co., Denise Martineau, Masque Youth Theatre & School, Ann Mathews, Billy McLaughlin, Merlin Players, Minnesota Fringe Festival, Minnesota Jewish Theatre, Minnesota Orchestra, Minnesota Vikings, Mixed Blood Theatre, Morgan Williams Design, Ken Moses, Mounds View Community Theatre, Mu Performing Arts, Museum Services, Nancy Hauser Dance Co., Mari Newman, Mari Newman, Dan & Chiaki O'Brien, Old Log Theater, One Voice Mixed Chorus, Leslye Orr, Chris Osgood, Panera Bread Co., Marguerite Pappaionou, Park Square Theatre, Eric Peterson Estate, Pillsbury House Theatre, Jerry Rands, Restaurant Entertainment Group, Ritz Camera Centers, Bridget Riversmith, Ron Burg Fine Portraits, Kathryn Rose, Harry Rosenbaum, Rosetown Playhouse, Rosy Simas Dance Projects, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Salon in the Park, Saint Paul, Don Sayles, Steve & Elizabeth Schmidt, Schubert Club, Gary Schulte, Science Museum of Minnesota, Dean Seal, Janice Severson, Sheldon Theatre, Jon Skaalen, Lisa Skluzacek, Brian Sostek, Stages Theatre, Starting Gate Productions, Norm Steere & Barbara Klemme, SteppingStone Theatre, Jerry Stillman, Jane Strauss, Ten Thousand Things Theater, Susan Thaemert, Theater Latte Da, Theatre Associates of Stillwater, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Theatre in the Round, Carei Thomas, Thumper Pond, Tierney Bros., Triple Espresso Co., Twin Cities Community Gospel Chorus, Walker Art Center, Jean Watson, Morgan Grayce Willow, Youth Performance Co., Zenon Dance Company & School, James Zotalis.

The 2007 VSA arts calendar "A View from My Window" includes one Minnesota artist: Naomi Staples, 10, of Clear Lake. Emily’s mixed-media window shows "four animals: a red butterfly, a blue bird, a black cat, and a brown dog."

American Printing House for the Blind has selected "Colors of Minneapolis" by Mari Newman, Minneapolis, for the 2008 APH InSights Art Calendar.

Are you looking for art classes (visual arts, theatre, dance, creative writing, media arts) for youth with disabilities? We would love to hear from parents, teachers or students! Please complete our Community Arts Survey: VSA arts of Minnesota Forms, Survey on art classes for youth with disabilities. Return the survey via email or mail to the VSA Arts in Education Coordinator. Thank you!

Arts administrators in the Midwest will have an excellent and affordable opportunity to attend a national forum on cultural access this summer in Minneapolis.

VSA arts of Minnesota, the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Guthrie Theater will host the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Education (LEAD) Conference sponsored by the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

Topics will be appropriate for theatres, museums, art galleries, concert halls, artists, administrators, and audience members with disabilities. A number of presenters and panelists will come from the Midwest, and others from around the country.

Seminars will be presented at the new Guthrie Theater’s classrooms and Dowling Studio. Awards will presented Saturday in the new wing of the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

For preliminary conference information, go to The Kennedy Center Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability: 2006 Conference and Training (www.kennedy-center.org/accessibility/lead/conference.html) or contact VSA arts of Minnesota.

Subscribe to the free Cultural Arts Access listserve (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/culturalartsaccess).

VSA arts "ArtLink" program is an international cultural exchange program that pairs 51 U.S. classrooms - one from every state and the District of Columbia - with International classrooms. Through this program, students of all abilities, ages 7-14, create visual art projects which are exchanged with a partner classroom abroad. The program teaches students the importance of diversity and how other cultures live. Students form relationships using art to share their personal experiences. This year's theme is "Culture Scope: Focusing in on My Life."

Debra Hornfeldt's class at Como Park Elementary School represents Minnesota in both the "ArtLink" and "MusicLink" programs. Debra's students created artwork inspired by the VSA arts "ArtLink" packet in October, and is expecting to receive artwork from their partnering classroom in Mongolia early 2007! For instance, two students sent these notes with their artwork:

"My name is Alejandro Hernandez. I am a boy and I am 10 years old. My class drew a picture about our everyday life. I drew the baseball picture because I love to play baseball with my dad. I colored my picture with chalk and oil crayons."

"My name is Josette Savea. I am a girl and I am nine years old. In October 2006, we worked on the artwork picture. I used the crayons and sometime I use the color pencils and colored chalk crayons. Our topic was Everyday Life. I pick Hawaii because I was born in Hawaii and my favorite animal is dolphins and Hawaii is beautiful."

VSA arts will select one piece of artwork by a student with a disability from each ArtLink classroom for an online virtual exhibit and for VSA arts' Start with the Arts Family Festival children's art exhibit in Washington, D.C. in June. For more information, visit VSA arts (www.vsarts.org).