Art Focus Oklahoma Spring 2020 by Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition

Art Focus

O k l aho m a V i s ual A r ts C oal i t i on

Ok l a h o m a Vo l u m e 3 5 N o . 2

| Spring 2020

DIANE SAVONA ART & ARCHEOLOGY

Witnesses to the Past (detail), by Diane Savona

April 3–June 14, 2020 ARTIST TALK April 3, 5–6PM

Brady Craft Inc., dba 108|Contemporary, is a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. 108|Contemporary is an equal opportunity employer committed to principles of the broadest form of diversity. Design by Naomi Dunn, Third Floor Design, The University of Tulsa

www.108contemporary.org 108 East Reconciliation Way Tulsa, Oklahoma 74103 918.895.6302

Art Focus

Ok l a h o m a Vo l u m e 3 5 N o . 2

| Spring 2020

THE ART HALL: A Creative Corridor Through the Vibrant Uptown District By Ariana Jakub

O. Gail Poole’s Sideshow Exhibition Honors Artist’s Legacy By Carleigh Foutch

MEMORIES & INSPIRATION: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of Africa American Art By B. L. Eikner

ON THE COVER: Nicole Moan, Lace Garden Corset, ceramic, glaze, and ribbon mounted on wood panel. page 4.

12 From Earth to Sky… And Back Again By Kerry M. Azzarello

14 HEARTS OF OUR PEOPLE: Native Women Artists By Kristin Gentry

F e a t u re s 18 HALEY PRESTIFILIPPO: Primary Elements By Cedar Marie

20 Arts and Cultural Advocates Gather at the Capitol by Olivia Dailey Lois Mailou-Jones, St. Michelle France, photo by Gregory Staley. page 8.

22 MARILYN ARTUS: Celebrating Women’s Rights by Following the Path of the 19th Amendment By Emily L. Newman

24 EKPHRASIS: Art & Poetry edited by Liz Blood

27 OVAC News 28 Gallery Guide Support from: Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition PHONE: 405.879.2400 1720 N Shartel Ave, Ste B, Oklahoma City, OK 73103. WEB: ovac-ok.org Editor: Krystle Brewer, director@ovac-ok.org Art Director: Anne Richardson, speccreative@gmail.com Art Focus Oklahoma is a quarterly publication of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition dedicated to stimulating insight into and providing current information about the visual arts in Oklahoma. Mission: Supporting Oklahoma’s visual arts and artists and their power to enrich communities. OVAC welcomes article submissions related to artists and art in Oklahoma. Call or email the editor for guidelines. OVAC welcomes your comments. Letters addressed to Art Focus Oklahoma are considered for publication unless otherwise specified. Mail or email comments to the editor at the address above. Letters may be edited for clarity or space reasons. Anonymous letters will not be published. Please include a phone number.

2018-2019 Board of Directors: President: John Marshall, OKC; Vice President: Douglas Sorocco, OKC; Treasurer: Dean Wyatt, Owasso; Secretary: Laura Massenat, OKC; Parliamentarian: Jake Yunker, OKC; Susie Marsh Agee, Pauls Valley; Marjorie Atwood, Tulsa; Bob Curtis, OKC; Gina Ellis, OKC; Jon Fisher, OKC; Barbara Gabel, OKC; Saiyida Gardezi, OKC; Susan Green, Tulsa; Drew Knox, OKC Kyle Larson, Alva; Travis Mason, OKC; Kirsten Olds, Tulsa; Diane Salamon, Tulsa; Chris Winland, OKC; Ricco Wright, Tulsa The Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition is solely responsible for the contents of Art Focus Oklahoma. However, the views expressed in articles do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Board or OVAC staff. Member Agency of Allied Arts and member of the Americans for the Arts. © 2020, Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. All rights reserved. View the online archive at ArtFocusOklahoma.org.

Nonney Oddlokken, The Feu Follet and Her Roseate Spoonbill, threadwork on paper, handmade, stitched paper overlay, stitched collage elements, and 8 yards of hand-stitched gold thread embellishment

THE ART HALL: A Creative Corridor Through the Vibrant Uptown District By Ariana Jakub

Just one block west of the iconic Tower Theatre in OKC, The Art Hall’s entrance is discreetly located in The Rise building at 519 NW 23rd Street. Artworks hang on a long white wall opposite one of exposed brick, creating an element of warmth. The entire gallery can be viewed in one glance. Gallery owner Anna Russell conceived of The Art Hall after living in Miami and encountering numerous art spaces that defied the layout and operating hours of most traditional galleries. Security cameras monitor the art and sales are processed online or at Urban Teahouse next door. This system eliminates the need for an attendant and allows for extended viewing hours. Helen Opper, The Art Hall’s curator and director, has played a key role in the gallery’s success. Opper, who was born in Oklahoma City, recently returned to her hometown after ten years of working in the New York art world. Her boomerang story is typical of many talented Oklahomans who leave the state to gain a broader experience and then return. She is articulate and passionate about increasing opportunities for Oklahoma artists to present their work to a wider audience. The current exhibit titled Tiny Little Fables: The Enchanted features work by three artists: Nonney Oddlokken, Nicole Moan, and Aztrid Moan. Oddlokken combines images of insects and animals in her collages, inviting the viewer to enter into an alluring world of fables that migrates down the hallway. Her rhythmic gold stitching mimics the cadence of her New Orleans accent and connects her enchanted subjects to one another. On the opposite wall is Nicole Moan’s life-size ceramic Death Bed Series. Lightly glazed spines and ribs, absent skulls or leg bones, enclose metallic flesh forms. Inside the rectangular coffin-like frames are wonderfully stylized ceramic blooms that beg to be touched and smelled. In lieu of fragrance, these works emit a red light from within, created from repurposed VW tail lights. This series was made during a time when Moan lost a number of people in her life, helping her to process and manifest her grief into a physical form. A vaulted ceiling allows the hallway to open vertically and an upward glance reveals two cat paintings by Aztrid Moan, Nicole’s daughter. The cats are rendered playful and yet intensely surveillant.

I zigzagged through the gallery from left to right, unable to commit to one wall at a time. Oddlokken’s Rougarou and His Spirit Guide beckoned me; a fox with a human eye enclosed in a monocle gazed both at me and toward a cicada simultaneously. According to the artist, “The encircled eye symbolizes the enchanted people and creatures who live among us that we may not see, but always see us.” After Hurricane Katrina, Oddlokken moved to a river parish which requires her to regularly drive through the bayou just to get to the grocery store. Her continuous observations of this forgotten part of New Orleans have increased her connection to the city’s Cajun roots. The rougarou, a Cajun version of the werewolf, as well as all of the flora and fauna appearing in her collages, are indigenous to her hometown. In The Feu Follet and Her Roseate Spoonbill, a curious woman and bird are encased in a palette stitched from flamingo pink thread, the color of the native spoonbill bird. The Feu Follet, or Cajun fairy, is thought to glow in the bayou and can sometimes confuse people causing them to become lost. Her work is unbelievably rhythmic and impeccably crafted. Layers of white and thick gold thread push and pull one’s eye around the composition, recalling the teachings of Hans Hofmann. The fairy’s face and hands are highlighted by the absence of threading, signaling a stillness and siren-like ability to draw the viewer in with her expression. Across from this work is one of Nicole Moan’s ceramic works, Lace Garden Corset, cinched together with a pink ribbon echoing the color and movement of Oddlokken’s threaded lines. The raised designs on Moan’s corset are fluid and decorative compared to Oddlokken’s angular stitching. Moan said she designed several of her corsets for the women in Oddlokken’s works, imagining them stepping out of their frames and into one of her works. In fact, at the show’s opening, dozens of attendees did just that, proudly donning Moan’s corsets around their chests. Near the end of the hall hangs one of Aztrid Moan’s works, Iris, an ink drawing of a celestial being on a wood panel. She gracefully extends her arm for an eyeless bird to perch, her body revealing the grain of wood on which she is drawn. A flock of birds, drawn in both ink and wood, maintain the rhythmic patterns visible in all three women’s work. In this exhibit, Opper succeeds in

Nicole Moan, Lillie, Death Bed Series, clay, glaze, thin-set resin, and LED on panel.

her intention to show the “breadth and quality of nontraditional artwork being made by women artists at various stages of their careers.” As NW 23rd Street, one of the most traveled roads in Oklahoma, continues on its path of becoming a destination district, The Art Hall has established itself as its creative corridor. Opper not only highlights the talent of her selected artists, but also the connections made possible when artworks are displayed so closely together—an apt metaphor for this developing block. As the Uptown District continues to grow, with many businesses owned by women, expect to see a schedule of consistently strong exhibits from this women-run Art Hall. Tiny Little Fables: The Enchanted is on view through May 18. The Art Hall is located at 519 NW 23rd Street, OKC. Hours are Monday-Friday 8am-9pm, Saturday 10am9pm, Sunday 10am-6pm. arthallokc.com n Ariana Jakub is an artist, educator, and writer. She teaches art at Cascia Hall Preparatory School and can be reached at ariana.jakub@gmail.com.

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O. Gail Poole’s Sideshow Exhibition Honors Artist’s Legacy By Carleigh Foutch

O. Gail Poole (U.S. 1935-2013), Strong Man, ca. 2000, oil on Masonite, 22” x 16 1/2”, courtesy of The O. Gail Poole Collection

When you think of O. Gail Poole (1935-2013), words like eclectic, masterful, and influential come to mind. In fact, they’re hard not to when admiring the caricatures of culture that so often appeared in his work. To honor Poole’s legacy, the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma will be showcasing the talented Oklahoma native from January 24 to May 10, 2020, for all to appreciate and enjoy. For Mark White, director at the FJJMoA, bringing Poole’s work to the museum was an easy choice.

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“In 2019, I approached Nicole [Poole’s daughter] with the idea of an exhibition focused on the last two decades of her father’s career,” he said. “He encouraged people to question and think for themselves... He wasn’t interested in forcing viewers to decode his paintings, but to consider carefully and arrive at their own meaning.” Audiences can expect plenty of absurdism and satire when perusing O. Gail Poole’s Sideshow. The exhibition is the perfect blend of Poole’s plurality and technique, a spectacle of the odd and unusual, which brings nothing but pride and honor to Nicole Poole.

Lucky art contest. He studied art at the University of Oklahoma and, after graduating in 1957, went straight into the army. Upon his return, he spent many years in advertising, honing his craft at Ackerman McQueen before diving in and kick starting his own agency, Poole Hobbs. After the Western art scene took root in Oklahoma in the 1970s, Poole decided to leave the advertising world for cowboy portraits and broad landscapes. While he went on to represent the state in the Western Artists of Oklahoma invitational exhibit in Germany, Poole still wasn’t satisfied as an artist. “He realized he was still an illustrator, not a painter,” Nicole Poole said. “When he started meeting people he considered painters, he realized that what he was doing was not that.” Not only did Poole find teachers, he found some of the best teachers in the state: Dick and Edith Goetz. Their tutelage proved to be just what Poole needed to reach his next milestone as an artist; after seeing great improvement in his work, Poole went on to win Best of Show at the Presbyterian Hospital Evening of Art in Oklahoma City for almost a decade straight. Poole hit his stride in the late 1980s when he began exploring more humorous, absurd art styles.

O. Gail Poole (U.S. 1935-2013), The Inner Self, (ca. 1992) oil on canvas, 47 1/4” x 35 1/2”, courtesy of The O. Gail Poole Collection

“Dad’s insistence upon painting for himself, on exploring his authentic voice...that’s what’s special to me about Dad’s art, combined with his dedication,” she said. “He was at it all the time. He practiced, sketched, and painted every day of his life and kept his creative muscle engaged.” An artist herself, Nicole Poole is thrilled to be able to honor her late father with the opportunity to educate other Oklahoma artists about the mine of talent and expertise the country seems to gloss over. Poole sees herself as a passionate champion

of not only her father’s legacy, but of Oklahoma artists in general. “Our artists are never going to gain recognition until we recognize them,” Poole said. “Dad’s art is just a reflection of his life here. Once you peel back the layers of what Oklahoma wants you to see, we are some deeply complex human beings who have decided to stay under this giant sky, and I want our voices to emerge.” O. Gail Poole’s art career began in elementary school with a Draw

“I remember dad just laughing his face off one day. I looked at the easel to see a formal portrait of a watermelon on a stool,” Nicole Poole said. “It was like he suddenly threw down this gauntlet of ‘I’m weird.’ People had no idea what to make of it because back then there were only pockets of weirdness. Luckily those were the people I grew up with!” Nicole Poole hopes that the Sideshow exhibit helps audiences think more critically about the work Oklahoma artists are producing. Poole touched on this topic, along with many others, at a special lecture at Fred Jones on February 20. “I wanted to explore artistic integrity and plurality, and why we insist that artists stay in one lane,” she said. “It’s so outdated and hasn’t been addressed yet as part of our creative DNA. Oklahoma artists have a very deep, deep well to mine. We are so much more than how we’ve been represented thus far.” In addition to Poole’s eccentric paintings, he also sketched a preliminary logo for the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition (OVAC), and was a lifelong advocate (continued to page 8)

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for the organization’s many events. Poole routinely contributed to OVAC’s 12x12 Art Fundraiser. (To continue honoring her father’s legacy, Nicole Poole will be contributing additional 12x12 artwork found in one of her father’s notebooks for years to come.) Both Poole and White have leaned on one another tremendously in order to educate Oklahomans on the how and why Poole’s well of creativity needs to have its own space to inspire other local artists. “Nicole has a tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm, particularly when it comes to her father’s legacy,” White said. “It has been gratifying in exploring her father’s late career with her. As I began to strengthen the thesis of the exhibit and write the essay for the publication, she was incredibly supportive and always willing to answer a question.” Poole’s work doesn’t stop there, either. With the help of White and the inspiration of Johanna Van Gogh, Nicole Poole has started the Poole Fund for the Art of Oklahoma, while White plans to head up a state-wide survey of Oklahoma art (pre-state to contemporary) with as many museums as possible. “Dad’s art has given me access to some really influential people. The fact that I’m an unknown Oklahoma artist who’s working to create his legacy has opened up conversations with people I normally wouldn’t have access to, like directors of institutions,” Poole said. “Because I’m banging on doors and asking hard questions, all of these people want to know how to help.” Poole hopes that the more people she’s able to talk to about her father’s legacy, the better exposure Oklahoma artists will have in the future. “It’s time for the artists of Oklahoma to take their place on the national stage and conversation. With the exception of OVAC and similar organizations, we’ve historically overlooked our artists. It’s important that museums bring stuff from out of state, but Oklahoma artists are sort of left in the dirt as a result and ignored in exhibitions and critical writings or studies. It’s time.” To learn more about the artist’s fund, visit giving.oufoundation.org/OnlineGivingWeb and search for “Poole Fund for the Art of Oklahoma,” or email oufoundation@ou.edu. n

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O. Gail Poole (U.S. 1935-2013), Mental Dilemma/No Joke, n.d., oil on Masonite, 33 7/8” x 21 5/8”, courtesy of the O. Gail Poole Collection

Carleigh Foutch is a writer and activist living in Oklahoma City. She received her BA in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma and continues to write stories of all kinds in her spare time (although her favorite things to write are screenplays), and she works as a full-time copywriter in Edmond. To learn more about Carleigh and her work, visit carleighfoutch.weebly.com.

MEMORIES & INSPIRATION: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of Africa American Art By B. L. Eikner

Installation view at the Gilcrease

The primary purpose for collecting any object is love. An unexplainable emotional and spiritual attachment that grows out of the bottom of one’s soul. Collecting is described as a process or action that makes you feel good, reminds you of your mother or a life changing event, or it simply makes your heart sing. Kerry Davis a former military man and retired employee of the United States Postal System, collects African American art of all media because he is touched by the faces and places, the moods and messages, and the signs and spirits on the canvases. He is captured by the interactions with the artists in their studios and his strong and intimate relationships that have developed over the past four decades have created life-long friends and new family. Many of these artists traveled with him on their own dollar to Tulsa for the opening of Memories & Inspiration and had an opportunity to discuss and showcase their creative genius during the exhibition tour. Present were Georgia artists Freddie Styles, Kevin Cole, Cynthia Morrison, Sedrick Huckaby, Brenda Thompson, and Lionel Lofton of Houston, Texas. Kerry’s first purchase was General Toussaint L’Overture by the Internationally known African American painter Jacob Lawrence. Other Internationally known artists such as Elizabeth Catlett, Romare Bearden, Lois Mailou Jones, and Charles White are also in this extensive collection. Kerry has loaned his works to community associations, arts organizations,

colleges and universities, and private social groups for classroom and educational support in his home state of Georgia. Showcasing this tremendous collection of works of art, Memories & Inspiration: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of African American Art is currently on view at the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa and runs through July 26, 2020. This exhibition is part of an extensive collection that the Davis’s started in the mid 1980s in their home, which now has amassed to over 300 pieces. This is the first time that any part of the collection has been exhibited outside of Atlanta, Georgia. The next stops are Richmond, Virginia; Ocala, Florida; and West Virginia (city site not finalized as of press time). The collection at Gilcrease Museum has a total of sixty-two pieces. The works range from collage on board to oil on canvas, sculptures to wood cuts, mixed media to watercolors, and hand colored engraving on copper to photography. The exhibit covers the life experiences, religion and work, positive and negative community triumphs, tragedies, courage, and perseverance of being Black and living in America. A collage on board by John T. Riddle, Jr. (1933-2002) entitled, Stain Glass Windows 1988 provides ghostly images of the four

young girls who lost their lives in the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, the Statue of Liberty, parts of the Declaration of Independence, and the dates 1883-1963 which brought back memories of the organized group of terrorists who took the lives of innocent children and a country slow to move legalizing citizenship and the right to vote to all. However, as you move through the gallery, the watercolor of Lois Mailou Jones (19051988), St. Michelle, France 1958, reminds the artist and the viewer that the quiet solace and comforting arms of the French landscape was a reason many African Americans made the decision to travel to the countryside and cities of France and other European countries where freedom to create, live and grow existed in the 1940s, 50s and 60s for all people. This collection moves in many directions and one you must see at least three times to capture the many messages from the myriad images and views of artists with different eyes and spirits on the world in which they live and work. The exhibition includes a video presentation for guests featuring Tulsa teacher, Written Quincy; members of the Black Moon Collective; Poet, Deborah Hunter; Tulsa City Representative, Dwain Midget; Community Partner, Michelle Anderson, of Jack and Jill; and State Representative Regina Goodwin (continued to page 10)

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Kerry Davis, Susan Neal (executive Director), and C. Betty Davis-courtesy Gilcrease Museum; Claude Clark, Self Determination, photo by Reis Birdwhistle; Charles White, Lily; Quraysh Ali Lansana, (curator and moderator), Dr. Amaki (curator) and Kerry Daviscourtesy Don Thompson; Kevin Cole and Linda Jenkins.

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ABOVE: Installation view at the Gilcrease LEFT: Attendees at the exhibit

(who is also an artist) reviewing their support of and concerns for arts in the community. Curator Quraysh Ali Lansana of Tri City Collections is the host. This exhibition is connected to Tulsa, Oklahoma by the creation of fifteen thematic panels that share stories, short essays, and history of the African American life in Oklahoma to fifteen specific artworks in the exhibition. These panels are called Gateways to Tulsa and were written by members of the Tri City Collective. The curator has selected for example the artwork entitled, Mickey Dees 1987, by Michael Ellison (1952-2001) and connected this image to the social issue of food deserts in the Black community of Tulsa and its negative impact on health, education, and economic development. Each thematic panel hangs next to the artist statement of the selected artwork.

The Gilcrease hosted a special program on January 25th entitled, Black Collectors: For, By, and About Us with Dr. Amalia Amaki of Atlanta, Georgia, Quraysh Ali Lansana (special curator and moderator), Kerry Davis (Collector), Allison Rossi (Director of Learning and Community Engagement), and Susan Neal, Executive Director. Other special events for this exhibition include Fun Day Sunday, March 15th, April 19, May 17th, June 21st, and July 19th with free admission all day from 11 am to 5 pm, and Gilcrease After Hours (GAH), Friday, March 27th, April 24th, May 22nd, and June 26th from 7 pm to 10 pm. This is a great opportunity to include this exhibition and tour as part of your artistic travels and educational moments. Build your memories and be inspired.

Memories & Inspiration: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of African American Art was organized and toured by International Arts & Artists of Washington D. C. The exhibit is funded in part by Oklahoma Humanities (OH) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). n B. L. Eikner is author, writer, journalist, poet and event planner. She has published two books of poetry, Dirt and Hardwood Floors and How Do You Love â&#x20AC;ŚWhen? She is owner of Trabar & Associates, which provides artist with PR and management services and is a regular contributor to Art Focus and The Oklahoma Eagle. She can be reached at trabar@windstream.net, or Twitter @trabar1

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From Earth to Sky…And Back Again By Kerry M. Azzarello

David Holland, Shadow Player, 2020, oil on canvas, 18”x24”

A celebration. That’s how Oklahoma Citybased artists Barbara Scott and David Holland describe their upcoming exhibition From Earth to Sky. The two are celebrating their artistic paths, which have been intertwined for over 30 years, and celebrating the Oklahoma arts community that has been a vital source of knowledge and support. The nature-loving pair met, appropriately, at a local garden center in the summer of 1987. Their initial meeting turned into a decades-long friendship which has nourished their growth as individuals and artists. Both experienced frequent moves early in life.

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However, it was here in the fertile ground of Oklahoma that they were able to plant roots and begin to grow. The artists are quick to acknowledge that their artistic journeys would not be the same without the support and resources offered by the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition (OVAC). The organization, founded by John McNeese in 1988, allowed Scott and Holland opportunities to obtain professional skills associated with the business of art by attending workshops and seminars, exhibiting in 12x12 Art Fundraiser, and receiving artist grants.

While perhaps the most powerful part of this exhibition is the underlying friendship and journey between the two artists, viewers will be captivated by the works themselves. Upon entering the gallery space at the GaylordPickens Museum in Oklahoma City, visitors will encounter a variety of works: Holland’s skyscapes meticulously captured in oil paint and Scott’s emotionally driven free-standing sculptures and sculptural wall hangings. Even if guests know nothing of the pair’s intertwined backgrounds, Holland hopes they will see the connections in the pieces themselves which are rooted in nature, spiritual, highly dimensional, and composed of simplified forms.

Titles such as Simple Wonder, On the Verge of Unknown Skies, and The Prayer of a Heart, immediately point to the spiritual nature of Barbara Scott’s work, meaningful phrases reinforced by their figural forms. In Ladder of Success, an open-palmed hand sits atop seventeen rungs of a slightly crooked ladder. One pole of the ladder, dark and textured, stands straight and tall, unwavering. The other pole, light and smooth, curves, undulating with the rhythm of a plant emerging from the ground and growing toward the light. The rungs of the ladder, themselves twisted, connect the two supports, spanning their distance at points both wide and narrow. Tethers, though often associated with restriction, here seem to symbolize strength and stabilization, ensuring the wavering arm never strays too far from the erect enigmatic constant. One can imagine each step of the journey bringing both pain and pleasure, confidence and doubt. There is a directionality, the hopeful pointing upward, and a serenity symbolized by a single butterfly resting on the hand’s index finger. Despite not knowing what is next, there is optimism that the result of the climb will result in both success and peace. Those familiar with David Holland’s work will immediately recognize his stunning skyscapes. Hungry for a River, Water Unfolding, and On the Shoulders of Others, each 16” x 20”, will hang alongside The Shadow of Water, a never before seen 48” x 72” panoramic sunset thunderstorm scene created specifically for the exhibition. Another piece new to audiences is Shadow Player. This depiction of towering cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds during a daytime Oklahoma storm beautifully highlights the technical skill of Holland’s brushwork and use of color contrasts to create depth. The rippled layers of clouds billow outward with exquisite realism. The storm’s beauty and power are on full display. Trees along the horizon line provide a sense of scale, revealing the expansiveness of the storm clouds suspended above. To achieve his end product, Holland actively monitors weather conditions, seeking out and photographing storms which will then serve as

his source images. “Clouds change very quickly, both their shape and their color,” he explains. “Their motion is almost imperceptible to our eyes, yet when I look at the photos I’ve taken of a storm, even though [they] may have been taken only seconds apart, if I compare two shots side by side, I can see huge differences between them.” As a prelude to the works themselves, which have both a surface value and a deeper meaning upon closer inspection, the show’s title, From Earth to Sky, similarly has layers. Scott notes that on a casual glance, her pieces constructed in wood and depicting both humans and animals would be reflective of the earth, while Holland’s literal views of storms captured in time with oil paint would be reflective of the sky. Which is true, but it’s not the whole truth, to borrow a quote from existentialist Bernard Jaffe. Scott elaborates, “With a deeper awareness it can be seen that, though my materials are so physical and tangible in nature, my work is always reaching up, reaching up to express what is beneath and beyond the physical. While David, in his work of ethereal skies, is actually very businesslike, grounded in practicality, and pragmatism in his love of painting what actually physically exists.” Given their strong ties to Oklahoma and their appreciation for the support of the local community, it seems only fitting for this joint celebration to be on display at the GaylordPickens Museum. Director of Museum Experience, Donna Merkt, notes, “We always want our viewers to walk away from exhibits feeling proud and inspired as Oklahomans. Our state is home to such amazing, creative people. This exhibit reveals both the talents of our people and the beauty of our state.” From Earth to Sky: The Art of Barbara S. Scott and David Holland is on view June 2 - September 10, 2020 in the Tulsa World | Lorton Family Gallery at the Gaylord-Pickens Museum, home of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, located at 1400 Classen Drive in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. A free reception is scheduled for Thursday, June 4, 2020 from 5-7pm. Museum hours are Tuesday through Friday 9am-5pm and Saturday 10am-5pm. Admission is $7 for adults. To learn more or to redeem free

Barbara Scott, Ladder of Success, basswood, cedarwood, gold leaf, 25” x 8” x 4”

passes, visit oklahomahof.com/plan-yourvisit. For more information on the artists, visit barbarascottartist.com and davidhollandartist.com. n Kerry Azzarello lives and works in Oklahoma City. She often marvels at Oklahoma sunsets and tries to have faith that taking the first step will lead to the next one in perpetuity. She can be reached at kerryazzarello@gmail.com.

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Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists By Kristin Gentry

Anita Fields (Osage, b. 1951), Osage Wedding Coat, 2018, wool, satin, silk, embroidery, beads, clay buttons, top hat, feathers, Coat: 45” x 58” x 18”, Hat: 20” x 20”, Photo courtesy of Anita Fields, L2018.194, Photograph: Tom Fields

“Everyone takes these beautiful black and white photos of our men. The women—the grandmas, mothers, and aunties created what the men wore. They were carrying the power and the legacy, silently.” —Jessa Rae Growing Thunder (Dakota and Nakoda) It’s been expressed that this exhibition has been in the making for over a decade, or even that the art in it spans the last one thousand years, but in reality, this exhibition has been in the making since the first indigenous woman was created. With over 115 pieces of art, Hearts of Our People is

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creating the change for Native women artists, for North America, and even creating change within our fine art museums and institutions. The positive outpouring on social media, the press, and the shift in museum operations because of this landmark exhibition is taking root all around us. During her interview, Teri Greeves (Kiowa), co-curator of Hearts of Our People, said that when institutions only have white culture saying what we as Native women artists are—we need to tell in our own voice, what we are. The material culture is what man can hold. Our voice is through our story, our dances, our ceremony. Not our beads.” It’s exciting that this essential need in the fine art world for Native women is happening right here in Oklahoma with the Philbrook Museum of Art, and includes so many of our own artists, writers, and curators.

Alongside this exhibition celebrating, honoring, and acknowledging all of the beautiful cultures of the indigenous peoples of North America, this exhibition also shows the true histories of the cultures through the voices of Native women. Native people across the United States and Canada face histories of both past and present on-going traumas, genocides, murder, violence against women, and loss of indigenous identity. Non-Native governments, institutions, and people are still fighting present day to erase the indigenous peoples from North America. “We will not be erased, our spirits are led by those who came before us, and prayed us into the present,” words by Anita Fields. These women are using their voices to speak for their families, their ancestors, and their tribal cultures that did not always have the voice to do so. They don’t do this selfishly; they do this for all people, past, present, and future. Five years ago, the curators invited twenty-one artists and scholars from many different nations from all over North America to Minneapolis to begin the radical process to culturally curate the ground-breaking exhibition, Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists. Rather than a museum curatorial staff designing an exhibition and inviting a single Native artist to an initial meeting only, Hearts of our People was collaboratively created together with all the voices of all the women, Native and non-Native, throughout the curatorial process. Every single woman interviewed expressed how this exhibition’s creation is an extension of the vast Native cultural norms of collective consensus within community decision-making versus a typical institutional museum’s singular curation. The Oklahomans on the local advisory board are America Meredith (Cherokee), Juanita Pahdopony (Comanche), Christina Burke, Ruthe Blalock Jones (Peoria, Shawnee, and Delaware), Mary Jo Watson (Seminole), and Anita Fields (Osage and Mvskoke Creek). Christina Burke, the curator of Native American and nonwestern art at Philbrook explained that the exhibition is divided into three parts: Power, Legacy, and Relationships. During her interview on Legacy, Joyce Growing Thunder (Nakoda and Dakota) said, these women have not always had their voices honored, respected, or even acknowledged throughout history. We work on our legacy daily. We are carrying on what our grandmothers do. We’re carrying on their work. It’s a blessing to do what they did in the same way and same manners.” Joyce, her mother Juanita (Nakoda and Dakota), and her daughter Jessa Rae Growing Thunder have their collaborate piece, Give Away Horses (dress and accessories), in the Legacy themed section. Jessa Rae expressed how excited she is that the museums have all created the artist cards in each person’s tribal language, and then has them translated to English. The audio tracks for spoken word throughout Philbrook will also be in the Native languages of the women in the exhibition.

Joyce Growing Thunder Fogarty (Dakota (Eastern Sioux)/Assiniboine (Nakoda), b. 1950), Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty (Dakota (Eastern Sioux)/Assiniboine (Nakoda), b. 1969), and Jessa Rae Growing Thunder (Dakota (Eastern Sioux)/Assiniboine (Nakoda), b. 1989), Give Away Horses (dress and accessories), 2006, deer hide, glass beads, canvas, thread, leather, moose hide, German silver, porcupine quills, feathers, elk hide, brass bells, ribbon, silk ribbons, and brass thimbles, 67 7/8” × 28 11/16” × 43”, Collection of the National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution 26/5818-5821

(continued to page 16)

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(continued from page 15)

Valjean McCarty Hessing (Choctaw, 1934–2006), Choctaw Removal, 1966, watercolor on board, 7 7/8” x 21 1/2”, Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Museum purchase, 1967.24

The pieces are not grouped like a typical exhibition is chronologically, but through those three themes transcending again, how Native art is viewed and experienced. With Philbrook being a smaller space than some of the others on the exhibition route, Christina curated a smaller selection of the overall show, but also honored the local tribes surrounding the Philbrook Museum of Art. Philbrook and the local advisory board are acknowledging the Mvskoke Creek people were inhabiting and living on the specific land where Philbrook now sits. The layout of the exhibition itself is designed with Mvskoke Creek curvature for the community to physically walk through rather than traditional squared gallery walls and walkways. During one of the many conversations with Christina she said, “I included work by any artist whose tribe is affiliated with Oklahoma, including Arapaho and Seneca. I think this shows the diversity of Native nations in Oklahoma and the inclusivity of the exhibition.” When the community enters the space, they will be viewing a piece by Choctaw artist Valjean McCarty Hessing entitled,

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Choctaw Removal. This piece was important for Christina to open the viewer to as it is a pertinent and difficult part of the history of Oklahoma. Some of the other Oklahoma artists are Joan Hill (Mvskoke Creek and Cherokee), America Meredith (Cherokee), and the late Shan Goshorn (Eastern Band of Cherokees). Shan wrote about her hand-woven basket, Hearts of our Women, on her website before her passing. Shan wrote, “I was struck with the realization that most of the studio portraits featured men, not women. And most of the women who were photographed were identified as if they were the chattel of men. I felt very fiercely that these beautiful, strong women, who were representative of a variety of Indigenous Nations, deserved recognition and honor beyond these labels.” The piece by Joan Hill, Women’s Voices at Council, is from the Betty Price Gallery at the Oklahoma State Capitol. During his interview, Alan Atkinson, Oklahoma Art Council, stated that “it was given as a gift to commemorate the creation of the Oklahoma State Commission of Women in 1990.” Anita Field’s piece, Osage Wedding Coat & Hat, will be in the Power section of the

exhibition, and was commissioned by the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Anita said, “This piece is about the continuum of Osage philosophies of the earth and sky. I wanted it to show the transformation, the good and the bad, the treaties, and have the ribbon work and embroidery symbolize our women.” During her interview, Anita powerfully expressed, “Art is the thread that holds everything together. It’s why we create things.” Anita Fields is an Osage and Mvskoke Creek woman artist. Anita serves on both the Native Exhibition Advisory Board (NEAB) and local the advisory board with Philbrook Museum of Art for Hearts of Our People. Anita discussed how it felt to hold the historical Osage wedding coat and other art pieces in the archives at the Osage Museum and at the Philbrook Museum of Art. She discussed how things were made by ancestors and even some things we make as artists now don’t always have names or signatures on them. A woman would make their child’s moccasins, but there would be no signature as these things were not created to sit in a museum or archive. Looking at these items in an archive she said, “It’s so powerful

CLOCKWISE (left to right): America Meredith (Cherokee Nation), Bambi Makes Some Extra Bucks Modeling at the Studio, 2002, acrylic on cradled hardboard panel, 24” × 30 ½”, National Collection of Contemporary Indian Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Shan Goshorn, Hearts of our Women, 2015, Arches watercolor paper splints printed with archival inks, acrylic paint, copper foil, center basket approx 8” X 8” X 26”, 10 smaller baskets approx 4” X 4” X 4” each. Joan Hill (Muscogee (Creek)/Cherokee, b. 1930). Women’s Voices at the Council, 1990, acrylic on canvas, 38 ½” × 28 1/2”, Oklahoma State Art Collection, courtesy of the Oklahoma Arts Council, Gift of the artist on behalf of the Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women, 1990

because you feel the energy of the maker. Their love, compassion, the justice or the injustice.” Hearts of Our People is a raw experience that shows all walks of real life that we have to endure. Anita said the exhibitions is a representation of, “the happiness, the joys, the sadness, and the hardships of life.” There is a book accompanying the show with Anita Field’s work on the cover as well. Teri Greeves said that, “the book is a body of scholarship, and this exhibition is a survey show—absolutely not the definitive book of Native women’s art. This exhibition and book are a launching point, and not an ending or landing.” This influential exhibition, curated by Jill Ahlberg Yohe and Teri Greeves, is organized by the Minneapolis Institute of Art and is part of a four-gallery tour, with the last stop being the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma June 28th to September 20th, 2020. The Local Advisory Board members and Philbrook Museum have many communities-led and local Native artist events this summer for the community locally, and those coming in from all over North America. n Kristin Gentry is citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, an artist, writer, educator, and curator of art. She also notes that she chose to not use the English spelling of Muscogee Creek, and used Mvskoke Creek for this article.

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HALEY PRESTIFILIPPO: Primary Elements By Cedar Marie

Hayley Prestifilippo, Cut From The Same Cloth, 2014, graphite on paper, 7” x 5”. Hayley Prestifilippo, We Have Waited, 2015, graphite on paper, 22” x 30”

Graphite is an accessible and malleable tool that provides Haley Prestifilippo with a sense of freedom. A tiny stick of wood combined with a sliver of carbon that was once a tool used in grade school is magically transformed into a medium that can also make large, beautiful drawings. Contrasting textures, swirling movements, and spaces of detailed depth and erasure become more than just marks on the surface of paper; a lion, a tiger, rabbits and storks emerge, bound in a tightly wrapped fabric in the process of unraveling— or binding even tighter in a cottony orb that is also fragmenting their bodies—or may even be their bodies. The narrative isn’t clear, as Prestifilippo conflates visual information to explore symbiotic relationships using animals as placeholders for human experiences. “Animals have their own way of being and have certain roles because they are a part of a specific group, a genus or species, for example,” Prestifilippo said. “I use animals to reference that there are different types of identities in which we also define ourselves.

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I’m curious how being a part of a specific group or system creates a sense of necessary belonging and often a sense of othering, that us-vs-them mentality where anyone who doesn’t define themselves as fitting within specific systems—nation, religion, politics, and gender—becomes an outsider to be mistrusted or attacked. I find animals to be a perfect conduit for exploring these themes.” In small, poetic vanitases to larger scale pieces that are both beautiful and unsettling, Prestifilippo draws from art historical references, examining, for example, how animals in Baroque still life paintings show decadence and opulence; or the way Rachel Ruysch’s flower bouquets also include a few dead flowers or some rotted fruit as a subtle reminder of mortality. Prestifilippo is using the same sort of aesthetic sensibility to disrupt exquisite details with quiet but troubling visual cues that ultimately push back against the preciousness of the drawing and upend the visual narrative.

For instance, in the large composition We Have Waited, the viewer senses that something is alive underneath a depiction of bound yet floating fabric, an anonymous reclining figure or “thing writhing in midair” that Prestifilippo suddenly captured in a monochromatic graphite snapshot instead of a photograph. Predator and prey are intertwined within the fabric folds, but their usual places are subverted, as lions become prey and storks become predator. Prestifilippo wanted to entangle these relationships in the same narrative to question their roles. “When you really look at the drawing, you see that the stork is biting off one of [the] lions’ ears or chewing on an eye. It is ambiguous as to why this is happening to the lions; They cannot prevent it and they cannot escape these large, imposing birds that are generally not viewed as aggressive or violent; in western culture fables, they are viewed as bringing babies. How that relates to people and our relationships with each other is that we are all in this world together; half of us are

fighting and the other half is getting along. There needs to be a way to have a discourse without people feeling like—well, you’re a lion and I am a bird and we can’t interact. In the end, we are all just people.” A similar relationship confusion occurs in We Can’t Stay. Small birds carry off disintegrating bits of a horse and a tiger, effervescent blood cells or pomegranate-like seed-selves being taken back to the nest to nurture other tiny birds. In a swirling mass of black graphite drapery that is also part horse and/or human hair, smaller animals burrow in the folds of erasure or are abruptly tousled in a suspended still-life moment, becoming or unbecoming in a fabricated situation where their usual set of rules and the systems they live within no longer make sense. If we imagine these animals as people, what Prestifilippo says about the systems and roles we place ourselves in becomes a simple reminder that “we are all just people,” and one day we, too, will die. Still, in a smaller vanitas, From the Same Cloth, predator and prey emerge as equals from a flowing fabric womb, delivering a softer, powdery heartbeat to the memento mori that Prestifilippo is signaling throughout her sometimes gritty graphite narratives. The only piece in Prestifilippo’s current body of artwork that includes color is You Can’t Steal it if I Give it to You. Decorative tapestry unfurls between the split-halves of a carousel-like horse while a great-horned owl hooks part of the tapestry in its beak. Is the owl pushing the tapestry back into place to make the horse whole again, or is there an agreed upon violence in which both animals are participating? The title of the work is evocative enough; yet once again, the viewer must interpret the relational and social dichotomies.

LEFT: Hayley Prestifilippo, We Can’t Stay, 2016, graphite on paper, 50” x 36”. RIGHT: Hayley Prestifilippo, You Can’t Steal It If I Give it to You, 2016, graphite and gouache on Paper, 11” x 11”

Prestifilippo originally trained as an oil painter, but having to plan for where every element had to go in the painting felt too stifling. Using graphite provides the needed flexibility to experiment and play. “Working this way allows me to layer meaning and imagery in a more complexed way. I am also fascinated with the fact that graphite is carbon; it is a diamond, the simplest form of life and a primary element. I love that I can just put it down on paper and pull it back up through erasure; it doesn’t have to remain on the page, as it does with paint. I draw the animals with great detail and then I go back in and erase to play with the positive and negative areas. It is a little painful because I usually have spent a long time working on the details, but the erasure gives a sense of the history of the piece and goes along with the memento mori, the metaphor for life and death themes. People can see that erasure has happened, as there is a ghost image through the rest of the work.” When Prestifilippo was a Spotlight Artist in the 2016 Momentum exhibition, she did a detailed drawing that people could participate in “live-erasing.”

“Art often has this sense of preciousness to it and I was curious how people would respond to the invitation to erase the drawing. Seeing the progress of the piece throughout the show evoked an immediate and uncomfortable experience of having to overcome their own social cues or rules. The tension between their fear of participating and the obvious violation of my artwork by putting the vulnerability of the drawing in their hands inverted their usual expectations. By the end of the exhibit opening, the drawing was completely gone.” Upon continued examination of Prestifilippo’s artwork and talking with her, rich layers of meaning and social theory questions float in the background like fluid fabrics, shiny orbs, and mirror-like surfaces. Yet something remains hidden still, unfinished. Moving forward, Prestifilippo’s artwork deserves more critical discourse. For more information and images of Haley Prestifilippo’s work, visit haleyprestifilippo.com. n Cedar Marie is an independent artist and writer.

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Arts and Cultural Advocates Gather at the Capitol by Olivia Dailey

Arts Day at the Capitol 2019

Oklahomans for the Arts’ annual day at the Oklahoma State Capitol is Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020. Arts & Culture Day is a chance for anyone who supports the arts (in any capacity) to meet with legislators to help promote and support the arts in their communities. The “& Culture” was added to the original “Arts Day” name this year in order to grow outreach across the state. The day kicks off at 9 a.m. and will feature different artists from around the state. Art will be seen, heard, and felt all around the Capitol’s second floor rotunda. “It will be obvious that we are here,” says Tonnie Dosser, Oklahomans for the Arts’ Executive Director. There will be an advocacy training session, time to visit with legislators visits, and a lunch for both attendees and legislators. The advocacy training will act as a mock visit prior to meeting with lawmakers faceto-face. This provides attendees a chance to practice their pitch and calm some nerves if it is their first time advocating at the Capitol. An array of art advocates with

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varying experiences are both expected and encouraged to attend. Arts & Culture Day is a great first step in advocacy for anyone new to it who is interested in supporting the arts and learning more about the advocacy process. When it comes to actually meeting and talking with lawmakers, simply sharing a personal story is highly useful and valuable for lawmakers to hear, according to Oklahoma State Senator, Julia Kirt (District 30). “We hear statistics all day; we want to hear people’s stories,” says Senator Kirt. Even when the personal anecdote is not the most applicable, it tells lawmakers what is important to their constituents in a way that cuts through the noise. Senator Kirt began her career in nonprofits. She served as OFTA’s Executive Director for four years before winning her Senate seat in 2018. Before that, she worked at the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition for 15 years as Executive Director. Coming from an advocacy background has led her to prioritize being accessible as a senator. It’s

important to her for constituents to know that she is listening and hopes to lessen the intimidation factor. Senator Kirt’s previous experiences on the other side of legislature meetings has allowed her to really empathize with her constituents whenever they meet face-toface, over a broad spectrum of issues, not just art education and funding, although those remain important issues to the Senator as is evident in her work. On the day we spoke, a bill the Senator authored, SB106, which would create the Cultural Districts Initiative Act, was on the floor for a vote. Both former and current OFTA Executive Directors emphasized the importance of public art in communities because it is the ultimate representation of the “art is for everyone” sentiment. It is the great equalizer that brings everyone together. Similarly, Arts & Culture Day is for everyone. There is something for everyone: from the most seasoned advocate, to the burgeoning artist, to the

lifelong art enthusiast. There is no ideal participant, only people who care about art. OFTA’s art advocacy deals in funding, education, public art, and even works with other agencies like health and veteran organizations. Even though a great turnout is expected, it is important to keep in mind that “for every person there, there are twenty people back home who could not make it,” says Dosser. No registration is needed to participate. If you are curious to learn more about the state of the arts in Oklahoma, come see what Arts & Culture Day and Oklahomans for the Arts are all about, and

unite with fellow Okies over the state’s arts and cultures. Says Dosser, “OFTA is providing resources to unite art, art education, and cultural sectors, developing a strong network of informed and engaged advocates for the arts and building support for the arts through advocacy, research, and training for arts and culture leaders.”

To learn more about OFTA and their outreach efforts, visit their website at ok4arts.org. n Dailey is a production coordinator and freelance writer in Norman, OK. She is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma.

SUE FISH

LUANNE ARAGON

CHICKASAW

LAGUNA PUEBLO

7TH ANNUAL

B E N J A M I N H A R J O J R.

TYRA SHACKLEFORD

ABSENTEE SHAWNEE SEMINOLE

CHICKASAW

Saturday, May 23, 2020 • 10 a.m.-6 p.m. WEST MUSKOGEE AVE, SULPHUR, OKLAHOMA f e a t u re 21

MARILYN ARTUS: Celebrating Women’s Rights by Following the Path of the 19th Amendment By Emily L. Newman

The 36 collaborating artists that made a stripe for Her Flag

The battle for women’s right to vote in the United States was long and hard-fought, but in 1920 Tennessee finally became the 36th state to ratify the 19th Amendment. Alice Paul, one of the staunches suffragists and leader of the National Women’s Party, helped visualize the ratification process by contributing a star to a banner, horizontally striped in gold, white, and purple, symbolic of the party. Each time a state approved the amendment, another star was added. Unfortunately, the flag is now lost, but it exists in pictures and suffragist narratives. This flag was just one of many different elements that inspired Marilyn Artus to create Her Flag. Her Flag is a bold ongoing endeavor, with many different parts and performances. Its complications only enhance the project, mirroring the long and frustrating years that many suffragists had worked so diligently. Artus’ ambitious project begins with the physicality

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of the flag itself; with the collaboration of 36 artists (one from each state that ratified the 19th Amendment), Artus is making a large flag (intended to be 18’x26’). Each artist contributes a stripe to the flag, that is then attached to the flag by Artus. Significantly, she travels to each state to meet with the artist and stage a performance. As the gathering is held, Artus attaches the newly created strip to the flag. These performances are celebrations, stories are shared, and the spirited atmosphere allows everyone to remember the importance of women’s right to vote. For Artus, diversity is key. However, and like many others, she acknowledges the that the amendment only guaranteed the right to vote for white women. At these events, Artus makes sure to tell stories of people of color and their important contributions. By incorporating these stories, she is working to change the narrative that has

for so long deemphasized the role that women of color played. To further encourage conversations of inclusion, Artus made sure that the performances and contributing artists reflected the current population of the United States. Interested artists submitted an application to be involved in the project. Over 240 people applied. In searching for people to contribute, Artus accepted resumes, artist statements, and artwork samples. Looking for diversity in age groups, race, and art styles, she wanted to make sure to find artists whose work naturally complemented the project. Importantly, and perhaps unusually, Artus has paid each artist involved in the project: every contributor who makes a stripe for the flag, the performance artists, and her assistants. By raising funds to pay everyone involved in the

Sewing event at the Oklahoma History Center, where Marilyn Artus sewed the shorter stripes onto the star field of the flag. Photo by Brett Deering

project, she is arguing for the importance of women’s worth. This has not always been easy, but Artus has been constantly working on grants and fundraising to make this project happen. The project is not solely composed of the contributions and performances, but Artus has meticulously mapped out and visited the states that ratified the 19th amendment in the order that they ratified. This had led to long and winding road trips and indirect flights all in the name of Her Flag. In fact, Artus put 22,000 miles on her car in 2019, but, these miles are all part of the project. Her commitment to this trip is all-encompassing. Simultaneously, this journey has allowed her to see the extent of the country, exploring places she has never been and allowing her to better see and experience the United States. This is a critical part of the project for Artus– she sees the potential for Her Flag to unify the country. Intending the quilt and performances to be apolitical, she elaborates on the artwork’s website, “This project is not about Democrats or Republicans. It is about Americans. It is about celebrating an important anniversary in our history. And it is about evaluating how we can encourage more women to participate in their democracy.” Calling this current moment “political mayhem” Artus hopes to find some common ground for people to unite upon. While that proves harder than articulated, it is a noble goal for this time and age.

Artus envisions the last trip of Her Flag to be the most celebratory stop yet. In August of 2020 and in celebration of Tennessee’s ratification the 19th Amendment, the last stop of the trip will be filled with special events (currently in the final planning stages). The Arts Company, a gallery based in Nashville, is coordinating a solo exhibition of Artus’ artworks to go along with the end of Her Flag. When asked about the future of the project, Artus hopes that Her Flag can end up in the Women’s History Museum (which, unfortunately, has still not been built yet) at the Smithsonian Institute, if not there, somewhere visible where it can be celebrated by the most amount of people possible. Born and raised in Oklahoma, Artus has often centered her artistic practice on being female. Her work often includes discarded objects that she repurposes and sews into a new art piece. For example, in her series Works on Vinyl, she explores the graphic of a women’s skirted body that is often used to designate female restrooms. At first glance, these works appear simple, but up close the evidence of hand and machine embroidery quickly appears. Textural and layered, these pieces bear close examination while challenging the overly simplistic representation of womanhood. Her Flag has its roots in a series of American Flags that she been making in 2015. Again, she is using vinyl and stitching, but further incorporating objects like playing cards, slides, measuring tapes, tickets, pages of Playboy magazine, and more. They are all

arranged to visibly mimic the stars and stripes of the flag, a subject that many artists have historically explored, including David Hammons, Faith Ringgold, and most famously, Jasper Johns. Yet Artus’ flags are distinguished because she has utilized combinations of objects sewn together on vinyl and then covered with multiple layers of resin to create poster-sized objects. Filled with different symbolic objects, these works allow for multiple viewpoints including feminist interpretations, nostalgic representation, and even commentary on the American Dream among others. Tirelessly, Artus has worked hard to create art that aligns with her belief system. From her house, she can see the Oklahoma State Capital Building, undoubtedly encouraging her to think about her position in the political arena. In particular, she has focused on equality for all women, hoping to use her art and her skills to make a difference. As the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has begun to garner attention again recently, Artus is watching closely as this important discussion could serve as the basis for future projects. Her Flag is supported in part by a Creative Projects Grant from the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. n Emily L. Newman is presently Associate Professor of Art History at Texas A&M UniversityCommerce, specializing in contemporary art, gender studies, and popular culture.

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EKPHRASIS: Art & Poetry Edited by Liz Blood

Ekphrasis is an ongoing series joining verse and visual art. Here, poet Cameron Brewer responds to two images from Shane Brown’s “Life Out There” series, which explores the mythology of the Atomic Age in the cultural landscape of the Desert American West.

Extinction Level Events and Other Bargains And so I told the man, “I’d like to buy something that can end the world.” He replied “I only sell rocks here.” I make some witty comment about how he’s selling himself short, how rocks are the only thing that have ever ended the world. I tell him how millions of years ago, rocks fell from the sky and turned our planet into a dull, red hot mass of aching potential. Nothing should have been able to grow there, and yet, it did. I tell him how things settled down, how it rained until there was nothing but an ocean, how that ocean held new life in itself until the children decided to play upstairs. And this new life thrived and adapted and grew in this world of green and chance and wonder until, one day, a rock fell from the sky and killed most of them. The survivors endured millennia without light or heat, with air that burned to breathe. Nothing should have been alive after the dust settled, and yet, it was. More time and more change until, one day, some particularly smart apes decided beating each other with rocks would be easier than talking about their problems. And so they set to the task of devising increasingly efficient ways do so. Clubs then swords, cannons then guns. And then the smartest of the apes, inspired perhaps by some genetic memory of cosmic trauma, remembered that, once, rocks fell from the sky and destroyed everything. Now, a button and good intentions are the only things between us and a burning world. No one should be allowed to hold apocalypse in their hand, and yet, we do. So, how much does yours cost?

Cameron Brewer is an activist, poet, comedian, and writer in Oklahoma City. For nearly a decade, he has been writing and performing poetry addressing themes of race, pop culture, and American trauma. Shane Brown is a photographer and cinematographer living in Tulsa. “Life Out There” is one of his latest documentary photography projects.

ekphrasis

Shane Brown, Advertisement, Interstate 40 West, Arizona, 2012, digital photograph Shane Brown, The explosion at .053 seconds. Trinity Site, White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, 2012, digital photograph

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ONLINE NOW At The University of Tulsa’s School of Art, Design and Art History, students thrive as individuals. Our aim is to help them discover and express their unique goals, talents and visions. For fine arts junior Josue Saucedo, making art is an exercise in problem solving: “Each project presents obstacles as you transfer visual information onto a piece of paper.” Saucedo’s professors encourage him to approach art from multiple perspectives. From the lighting on a still life to the message of a piece, Saucedo finds the creative process calming. “As someone living with focus issues, making art is a way to ground myself in the very intuitive task at hand,” Saucedo explained. During his undergraduate studies, Saucedo has worked at Third Floor Design, TU’s student-run graphic design studio. The opportunity provides hands-on experience with real-world clients. “Third Floor Design is intense, but it offers a unique chance to learn and has helped me improve at an incredible pace,” Saucedo said.

Experience the Concept exhibition through the digital catalog, images of the exhibition, and exclusive interviews with the Focus artists. More info: concept-ok.org

ONLINE NOW Check out this year's Momentum in slow motion! In addition to the online gallery of artwork, this year there is also a virtual guided tour. More info: momentumoklahoma.org

DEADLINE : MAY 1 Call for artists working in any media on paper for an 18-month touring exhibition! More info: 24works.org

DEADLINE: APRIL 30 These awards are intended to recognize past achievements and future promise and can be used as the artist’s needs require.

Please Follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/utulsaschoolofart Instagram: @utulsaart

For more information, visit http://www.utulsa.edu/art or call 918.631.2739 • TU is an EEO/AA institution •

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More info: ovacawards.org

OKLAHOMA VISUAL ARTS FELLOWSHIPS & STUDENT AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE

FOR MORE INFO: OVAC-OK.ORG

OVAC NEWS

SPRING 2020

In this unprecedented time of uncertainty, while all of us are facing incredible challenges, OVAC and all of our colleagues in the arts sector are working diligently and swiftly to transform our programming to be digitally-based. As our friends at ahha Tulsa said—creativity isn’t cancelled. It’s just changing. We care deeply about our artists and recognize the unforeseeable hardship they are now facing. In an effort to support our artists, we have created an Artist Relief page on our website where we are compiling resources and aid opportunities. On Facebook, we created a new OK Artist Community page to provide a platform for connection and community. We will continue to find ways to support our arts community and see us all through this devastating chapter.

Our annual exhibition Momentum has become Slowmentum. Each day we are highlighting the work of three of the featured artists on social media and the work can be viewed (and purchased) through our website. We also created a virtual guided tour that allows the community to connect with the artwork and even provides details about each individual work of art. Links to these can be found at momentumoklahoma.org. We hope you were able to see our exhibition Concept at ahha Tulsa before it closed last month. It was an inspiring display of the impressive work being made across the state. If you missed the catalog release party, you can view a digital version on our website at conceptok.org. There, you can also find exclusive video interviews with each of the Focus artists. (continued to page 30)

Krystle Brewer, Executive Director

Thank you to our new and renewing members from November 2019 through January 2020 Blue Sage Studios Gaylord-Pickens Museum, home of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame Mountain Woman Silver The Vault Art Space And Gathering Place Sue Hale Rachel Adler Grant Akiyama Matin Alavi Dylan Albertson M.J. Alexander Lauren Alfaro Aliyah Ambrose Kylie Anderson Jean Ann Fausser Marilyn Artus Marjorie Atwood Meredith Bailey Keith Ball Carlos Barboza Rebekah Barkocy Rachel Beer DiAnn Berry Kerry Billington Julie Blackstone Amber Borum Kaitlyn Bottoms Lacy Brown Gustafson Raasheda Burnett Megan Bush

Cady Carlson Dill Benjamin Chaney Jack Chapman Carrie Chavers Shannon Claire Kendall Clark Terry Clark Megan Clement Clay Cockrill Megan Crow Bob Curtis Kevin Davis Ann Dawkins Adrienne Day Emma Difani Liesl Dolese Chandler Domingos Beth Downing Andrea Duran-Cason Bobby Edmon Caleb Elliott Alexandra Emmons Brenda Esslinger Josh Farrell Jonathan Fisher Whitney Forsyth Jim Franklin Barbara Gabel Ryan Garrett Trey Gause Ghazal Ghazi Aubrey Ginsterblum Audrey Gleason

Alexa Goetzinger Rowan Good Cassandra Good Douglas Gordon Almira Grammer Bill Green Whitney Hampton Kayla Hawkins Alexis Hazel Calli Heflin Hannah Helbig Mary Hocket Thoma Claire Holloway Alyssa Howery Theresa Hultberg London Huser Jacqueline Iskander Lydia Jeffries Macy Jennings Rusty Johnson Julius Johnson Renee Jones Jo Kenaga Nathan Kent Laura Kent Lauren Kerr Hannah Kidd Carrie Kouts Wesley Kramer Amanda Lawrence Beverly Layton Gentry Leach Alexandra Lewis

Ashley Lewis Jordi Lister Jaquelin Lopez Kayla Manrique Ana Maria Diaz J Mark Larson John Marshall Gianna Martucci-Fink Cindy Mason Travis Mason Laura Massenat Marla Massey Bill McClure Kurt McDaniel Samantha McElhiney Ross Mercado Jr. Isabella Messman Carla Miller Garrett Morgan Josephine Morrison Barbara Morrison Krista Mustain Shane Nearman Elissa Newmeyer Kate Nickel Hayley Olson Karyn Ortega Judy Osburn Cecilia Otero Suzanne Owens Ryan Pack Rebecca Pipkin Spencer Plumlee

Mia Pons Cheryl Price Shirley Quaid Kathryn Quinn Chris Ramsay Rachel Rector Joy Reed Belt Shawn Reeder Megan Rieff Lauren Riepl Jessica Roberts Caitlin Rodriguez Gabriel Rojas Lauren Rosenfelt Regan Rosson Ryan Davis Lynda Savage Tyra Schackleford Stacey Schmidt Faith Sears Abbie Sears Courtney Segrest Lilia Shahbandeh Jay Shanker Bryon Shen Sherry Schoenfeldt Celeste Shields Virginia Sitzes Rob Smith Janetta Smith Kitra Smith Laura Smith Douglas Sorocco

Eric Spiegel Austin Stark Clint Stone Allyson Stympf Kindra Swafford Paul Sweeney Jordan Tacker Michael Takahata Emily Torres Kately Towsley Austin Tran Sean Tyler Audra Urquhart Cindy Van Kley Kaitlyn Vercellino Michelle Wagner Tori Walach Carol Webster Ariana Weir Shanley Wells-Rau Chris & Lori Winland Madison Winter Madeleine Witt Alice Wolf Jordan Wong Jennifer Woods Dean Wyatt May Yang Robert Zecha

o v a c n e w s 27 27

Gallery Listings & Exhibition Schedule Ada

Chickasha

Pogue Gallery Mar 17 Thomas Gamble Natural History Mar 26-Apr 30 65th Annual Student Exhibition East Central University 900 Centennial Plaza (580) 559-5353 ecok.edu

Nesbitt Gallery University of Science and Arts Oklahoma 1806 17th St (405) 574-1344 Usao.edu/gallery/schedule

Chokma’si Gallery Feb-Mar Employee Art Show Chickasaw Nation Arts and Humanities Building 201 N Broadway (580) 272-5520

Foundations Gallery Rogers State University 1701 W Will Rogers Blvd (918) 343-7740 rsu.edu

Altus Wigwam Gallery Feb 10-May 8 Half a Lifetime: Art of Woodrow Wilson Crumbo 117 W Commerce St (580) 481-3150

Alva Apr Tour de Quartz May Sun, Fun, and Friends June Art on the Salt Fork Graceful Art Center 523 Barnes St (580) 237-ARTS Gracefulartscenter.org

Bartlesville Price Tower Arts Center 510 Dewey Ave (918) 336-4949 Pricetower.org

Broken Bow Forest Heritage Center Beaver’s Bend Resort (580) 494-6497

28 g a l l e r y g u i d e

Claremore

Davis Chickasaw Nation Welcome Center 35 N Colvert Rd (580) 369-4222 Chickasawcountry.com/explore/ view/Chickasaw-nationswelcome-center

Duncan Chisholm Trail Heritage Center 1000 Chisholm Trail Pkwy (580) 252-6692 onthechisholmtrail.com

Durant Visual Art Faculty and Student Exhibition Centre Gallery Southeastern Oklahoma State University 1405 N 4th se.edu

Durham Metcalfe Museum 8647 N 1745 Rd (580) 655-4467 metcalfemuseum.org

Edmond Donna Nigh Gallery University of Central Oklahoma 100 University Dr (405) 974-2432 uco.edu/cfad

Edmond Historical Society & Museum 431 S Boulevard (405) 340-0078 edmondhistory.org Fine Arts Institute of Edmond 27 E Edwards St (405) 340-4481 edmondfinearts.com Apr 2- Aug 27 Light Sculpture by Olafur Eliasson Melton Gallery University of Central Oklahoma 100 University Dr (405) 974-2432 uco.edu/cfad University Gallery Oklahoma Christian University 2501 E Memorial Rd oc.edu

El Reno Redlands Community College 1300 S Country Club Rd (405) 262-2552 redlandscc.edu

Guthrie Owens Arts Place Museum 1202 E Harrison (405) 260-0204 owensmuseum.com

Guymon All Fired Up Art Gallery 421 N Main (580) 338-4278 artistincubation.com

Idabel Museum of the Red River 812 E Lincoln Rd (580) 286-3616 museumoftheredriver.org

Lawton The Leslie Powell Foundation and Gallery 620 D Avenue (580) 357-9526 lpgallery.org

Museum of the Great Plains 601 NW Ferris Ave (580) 581-3460 discovermpg.org

The Depot Gallery 200 S Jones (405) 307-9320 pasnorman.org

Norman

Oklahoma City

The Crucible Gallery 110 E Tonhawa (405) 579-2700 thecruciblellc.com

Mar-Apr Chris Chandler: Neu Haus Press Exhibition Apr 25 Steamroller Print Festival ARTSPACE at Untitled 1 NE 3rd St (405) 815-9995 artspaceatuntitled.org

Downtown Art and Frame 115 S Santa Fe (405) 329-0309 May 8- Jul 18 2020 FAC Faculty Exhibition Firehouse Art Center 444 S Flood (405) 329-4523 normanfirehouse.com Jacobson House 609 Chautauqua (405) 366-1667 jacobsonhouse.com Jan 24- Apr 5 Renegades: Bruce Goff and the American School of Architecture Jan 4- May 10 O. Gail Poole’s Sideshow Fred Jones Jr Museum of Art 555 Elm Ave (405) 325-4938 ou.edu/fjjma Lightwell Gallery University of Oklahoma 520 Parrington Oval (405) 325-2691 art.ou.edu May 8- Jul 10 Herb Greene: Existential Generation MAINSITE Contemporary Art Gallery 122 E Main (405) 360-1162 normanarts.org Feb 11-Apr 18 Emma Coleman Moore-Lindsey House Historical Museum 508 N Peters (405) 321-0156 normanhistorichouse.org

Contemporary Art Gallery 2928 Paseo (405) 601-7474 contemporaryartgalleryokc.com Mar 12-Apr 5 Isaac Diaz, Cecelia Otero, Solune Ceramics DNA Galleries 1705 B NW 16th St (405) 371-2460 dnagalleries.com Exhibit C 1 E Sheridan Ave Ste 100 (405) 767-8900 chickasawcountry.com Factory Obscura 25 NW 9th St factoryobscura.com Feb 6-Apr 30 Inclusion in Art: Spirit of Color Gaylord-Pickens Oklahoma Heritage Museum 1400 Classen Dr (405) 235-4458 oklahomaheritage.com Grapevine Gallery 1933 NW 39th (405) 528-3739 grapevinegalleryokc.com Howell Gallery 6432 N Western Ave (405) 840-4437 howellgallery.com

Due to our publishing timeline, the contents of this issue were created prior to the closures due to COVID-19. Please check the individual institution’s website for current information.

Terry Clark and Randy Fields In Your Eye Studio and Gallery 3005A Paseo (405) 525-2161 inyoureyegallery.com Inasmuch Foundation Gallery Oklahoma City Community College 7777 S May Ave (405) 682-7576 occc.edu Individual Artists of Oklahoma 1900 Linwood Blvd, Ste 100 (405) 232-6060 iaogallery.org JRB Art at the Elms 2810 N Walker Ave (405) 528-6336 jrbartgallery. com Apr 6-June 26 Reflections by Liza Terell The Martha Burger Gallery in CHK|Central Boathouse 732 Riversport Drive (405) 974-2628 Now-May 10 Colors of Clay Now-May 10 Two Grits: A Peek Behind the Eyepatch Now-May 10 Find your Western Jan 31- May 10 Warhol and the West National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum 1700 NE 63rd (405) 478-2250 nationalcowboymuseum.org Nault Gallery 816 N Walker Ave naultfineart.com Nona Hulsey Gallery, Norick Art Center Oklahoma City University 1600 NW 26th (405) 208-5226 okcu.edu Jun 11-Jul 31 Ardith Goodwin North Gallery Studio

Northpark Mall 12100 N May Ave, Ste L (405) 254-6674 Northgallerystudio.com Now-Apr 26 Renewing the American Spirit: Art of the Great Depression Now-Dec 31 Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s “Fireworks (Archives)” Now-Dec 31 Postwar Abstractions: Variations Now-Dec 31 From the Golden Age to the Moving Image: The Changing Face of the Permanent Collection Oklahoma City Museum of Art 415 Couch Dr (405) 236-3100 okcmoa.com Mar 13-Aug 10 Bright Golden Haze Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center NW 11th St (405) 951-0000 oklahomacontemporary.org Oklahoma State Capitol Galleries 2300 N Lincoln Blvd (405) 521-2931 arts.ok.gov Paseo Art Space 3022 Paseo (405) 525-2688 thepaseo.com Red Earth 6 Santa Fe Plaza (405) 427-5228 redearth.org Now-Oct 25 Tom Shannon: Universe in the Mind smART Space Science Museum Oklahoma 2100 NE 52nd St (405) 602-6664 sciencemuseumok.org

Park Hill

Sulphur

Cherokee National Historical Society, Inc. 21192 S Keeler Dr (918) 456-6007 cherokeeheritage.org

Chickasaw Visitor Center 901 W 1st St (580) 622-8050 chickasawcountry.com/explore/ view/Chickasaw-visitor-center

Pauls Valley

Tahlequah

The Vault Art Space and Gathering Place 111 East Paul Ave, Suite 2 (405) 343-6610

April Tahlequonia Plein Air Red Fern May Keys High School June Pride Arts Council of Tahlequah Gallery 215 S. Muskogee Avenue artscounciltahlequah.com

Ponca City Ponca City Art Center 819 E Central (580) 765-9746 poncacityartcenter.com

Shawnee

The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of African American Art Jun 25-Jan 31 2021 Weaving History into Art: The Enduring Legacy of Shan Goshorn Gilcrease Museum 1400 Gilcrease Road (918) 596-2700 gilcrease. utulsa.edu Henry Zarrow Center for Art and Education 124 E Reconciliation Way (918) 631-4400 gilcrease.utulsa. edu/Explore/Zarrow Alexandre Hogue Gallery University of Tulsa 2930 E 5th St. (918) 631-2739 utulsa.edu/art

Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art 1900 W Macarthur (405) 878-5300 mgmoa.org

Cherokee Arts Center 212 S Water Ave (918) 453-5728 Cherokeenationart.com

Stillwater

Tonkawa

Holliman Gallery Holland Hall 5666 E 81st St (918) 481-1111 hollandhall.org

Eleanor Hays Gallery Northern Oklahoma College 1220 E Grand (580) 628-6670 north-ok.edu

Joseph Gierek Fine Art 1342 E 11th St (918) 592-5432 gierek.com

Apr 2-16 Graphic Design Portfolio Exhibition Apr 20-30 39th Annual Juried Student Exhibition Gardiner Gallery of Art Oklahoma State University 108 Bartlett Center for the Visual Arts (405) 744-4143 museum. okstate.edu Postal Plaza Gallery Oklahoma State University Museum of Art 720 S Husband St (405) 744-2780 museum. okstate.edu Modella Art Gallery 721 S Main Modellaartgallery.org

Tulsa Apr 3- Jun 14 Art and Archeology 108|Contemporary 108 E Reconciliation Way (918) 895-6302 108contemporary.org aberson Exhibits 3624 S Peoria (918) 740-1054 abersonexhibits.com Feb-May King’s Mouth ahha 101 E Archer St (918) 584-3333 ahhatulsa.org Now-Aug 30 Mexican Modernism: Revolution and Reckoning Jan 24-July 26 Memories and Inspiration:

Mar 13-Apr 4 Fireflies: A Crone’s Tale Apr 4 Women’s Performance Apr 10-May 2 View of Educational Structures Apr 10-May 2 Deaf Bruce Lee Liggett Studio 314 S Kenosha Ave (918) 694-5719 liggettstudio.com Living Arts 307 E Reconciliation Way (918) 585-1234 livingarts.org Lovetts Gallery 6528 E 51st St (918) 664-4732 lovettsgallery.com

(continued to page 30)

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Due to our publishing timeline, the contents of this issue were created prior to the closures due to COVID-19. Please check the individual institution’s website for current information. M.A. Doran Gallery 3509 S Peoria (918) 748-8700 madorangallery.com Now-Apr 26 Sharon Louden Jan 10-Apr 12 The Current: Eric Sall Mar 15-May 24 Tulsa Treasures: Private Collections in Public Philbrook Museum of Art 2727 S Rockford Rd (918) 749-7941 philbrook.org Pierson Gallery 1307-1311 E 15th St (918) 584-2440 piersongallery.com

Apr Neil Cluck May The 5x5 Show and Sale Tulsa Artists Coalition 9 E MB Brady St (918) 592-0041 tacgallery.org

Weatherford

Tulsa Performing Arts Center Gallery 110 E 2nd St (918) 596-2368 tulsapac.com

The Gallery at Wilburton 108 W Main St (918) 465-9669

Urban Art Lab Studios 1130 S Harvard Ave (918) 625-0777 Waterworks Art Studio 1710 Charles Page Blvd (918) 596-2440 waterworksartcenter.com

SWOSU Art Gallery 100 Campus Drive (580) 774-3756 swosu.edu

Wilburton

Woodward Plains Indians and Pioneers Museum 2009 Williams Ave (580) 256-6136 pipm1.info

Become a member of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. Join today to begin enjoying the benefits of membership, including a subscription to Art Focus Oklahoma. Collector Level + Community Supported Art (CSA) Program $1,000 ($85 a month option) · · · · ·

2 original and quality pieces of art by Oklahoma artists 2 tickets to CSA Launch Events twice a year 2 tickets to 12x12 Art Fundraiser $400 of this membership is tax deductible All of below

PATRON $250 · · · · ·

Listing of self or business on signage at events Invitation for 2 people to private reception with visiting curator 2 tickets each to Momentum OKC & Momentum Tulsa $200 of this membership is tax deductible. All of below

FELLOW $150 · · · · ·

Acknowledgement in Resource Guide and Art Focus Oklahoma Copy of each OVAC exhibition catalog 2 tickets to Tulsa Art Studio Tour $100 of this membership is tax deductible. All of below

FAMILY $75

· Same benefits as Individual, for 2 people in household

INDIVIDUAL $45 · · · · ·

Subscription to Art Focus Oklahoma magazine Monthly e-newsletter of Oklahoma art events & artist opportunities Receive all OVAC mailings Listing in and copy of annual Resource Guide & Member Directory Invitation to Annual Members’ Meeting

Plus, artists receive: · Inclusion in online Artist Gallery, ovacgallery.com · Artist entry fees waived for OVAC exhibitions · Up to 50% discount on Artist Survival Kit workshops · Affiliate benefits with Fractured Atlas, Artist INC Online, Artwork Archive, and the National Alliance for Media Arts & Culture.

STUDENT $25

· Same benefits as Individual level. All Student members are automatically enrolled in Green Membership program (receive all benefits digitally).

The Oklahoma Visual Arts Fellowship and Student Awards of Excellence calls are now open. Our guest curator, Sara O’Keefe, is the new Nancy E. Meinig Associate Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art for Philbrook Museum of Art and we are thrilled to give her this opportunity to get to know Oklahoma artists. Artists may apply for the award until April 30th. We look forward to the day when our events and exhibitions will resume in their usual form, but until then we wish you safety and good health. Sincerely,

Krystle Brewer Executive Director

MEMBER FORM ¨ Collector Level + Community Supported Art Program ¨ Patron ¨ Fellow ¨ Family ¨ Individual ¨ Student ¨ Optional: Make my membership green! Email only. No printed materials will be mailed. Name Street Address City, State, Zip Email Website

Phone

Credit card #

Exp. Date

Are you an artist? Y N Medium?________________________ Would you like to be included in the Membership Directory? Y N

Would you like us to share your information for other arts-related events?

Detach and mail form along with payment to: OVAC 1720 N Shartel Ave, Ste B, Oklahoma City, OK 73103 Or join online at ovac-ok.org

POP_PrintAds_ArtFocus_Full_V6.pdf

3/4/20

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CMY

Collection of Jordan D. Schnitzer.

From Warhol to Koons: Masterworks from the Collection of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation

Organized by the Taubman Museum of Art

Support for the exhibition and

Roy Lichtenstein (American,

related educational and

1923–1997). Sweet Dreams,

outreach programs has been

Baby!, 1965, published

made possible by a grant

1966, from 11 Pop Artists.

from the Jordan Schnitzer

Screenprint. 37 7/8 x

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Summer 2020

Art Focus

Ok l a h o m a

1720 N Shartel Ave, Suite B Oklahoma City, OK 73103

Non Profit Org. US POSTAGE PAID Oklahoma City, OK Permit No. 113

Visit ovac-ok.org to learn more.

UPCOMING EVENTS April 8: ASK Office Hours: Grant Writing Consultant April 15: Grants for Artists deadline April 30: Fellowship & Student Awards deadline May 1: 24 Works on Paper deadline

AA Perpetual Collaboration Perpetual Motion Dance + Factory Obscura Collaboration

June18-21 & 25-28 25 NW 9th Street on Automobile Alley Tickets & More at FactoryObscura.Fun

Art Focus Oklahoma Spring 2020

Articles inside

Art Focus Oklahoma Spring 2020

Gallery Guide

THE ART HALL: A Creative Corridor Through the Vibrant Uptown District

MEMORIES & INSPIRATION: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of Africa American Art

O. Gail Poole’s Sideshow Exhibition Honors Artist’s Legacy

MARILYN ARTUS: Celebrating Women’s Rights by Following the Path of the 19th Amendment

OVAC News

HEARTS OF OUR PEOPLE: Native Women Artists

HALEY PRESTIFILIPPO: Primary Elements

Arts and Cultural Advocates Gather at the Capitol