Women's Works new site!!

I am happy to post the first comment and can't wait to get the website up and running.

Comments

[Nina Weiss]

Creative Visions
Illinois State Museum
Southern Illinois Art and Artisians
nina@ninaweiss.com
ninaweiss.com
http://www.museum.state.il.us/ismsites/so-il/exhibitions.html?ExhibitID=222

[Gloria J Zucaro]

This is the first time I have seen this website and I want to say it is one of the most beautiful ones that I have seen! Congratulations to all who made it possible. I hope to enter the Women's Works again this year. Sincerely, Gloria

[WW2012 Site Owner]

Woman Made Gallery
15th International Open
womanmade.org
Exhibition Dates-March 2-April 26, 2012

[Gordana Curgus]

I’m so glad that I have found this website, thank you for organizing all this. I’m planning to apply for Woman’s Works 2012 show.
I’m an artist from Bellingham, WA state. I was born in Sarajevo, former Yugoslavia, where I lived until the civil war began in 1992. I ended up being a refugee, luckily survived the mess and moved to Bellingham. After twenty something years of my engineering profession I have decided to end it, to become an artist full time, and teach myself how to paint.
Art is universal language that transcends all barriers, inspires and enhances our lives physically, emotionally, and spiritually. So, I’m hoping that my paintings are accomplishing that.
Gordana C

[WW2012 Site Owner]

We appreciate your kind words, and we really enjoyed creating this site and we hope it will be a interactive site for women to advance their artistic ideas and sharing what inspires you.
thanks,
kim

[Patricia Franklin]

Teaching Art to the Blind

On Memorial Day 2011, I had the honor of teaching mosaics to a new friend, Barbara. I teach mosaics often so this session should be “business as usual.” Right? Well, not quite. First, the story of how we connected…

Barbara is a breast cancer survivor and she attended a fundraiser (last winter) for Team Survivor Northwest. I was at the same auction and had donated a basic mosaic training session. I didn’t know who received my gift until I got an email in February from Barbara Oswald. I gave her a call and we chatted for a bit. She was very excited about learning mosaics and she knew exactly what she wanted to do, a Tree of Life. “There’s just one little thing you should know” she said, “I’m legally blind.”

I have to admit this took me by surprise. I mean, I like a good adventure and enjoy out-of- the-ordinary life experiences but how DO you teach art to the blind? As it turned out, Barbara already had an art background; she paints and does photography. She’s also a big supporter of artists with disabilities and invites them to show their work in her gallery at the Bed & Breakfast she owns and runs in Seattle, Casa de Esperanza. Oh – and she works full time at Bellevue Community College (she puts my whining and sniveling about my day-to-day chores into a new perspective).

As we talked about the possibilities (I didn’t know if I had the ability to teach her with her disability), it became clear that Barbara had the spunk, tenacity and, sense of humor to make this possible. She would guide me through the process of teaching her.

I went to pick Barbara up at her B&B and on the drive back to my studio in Woodinville, I asked what sight she DID have. She explained “If you cover your right eye so you can’t see anything (which takes away depth perception) then, put a hand over your left eye and open your fingers to give yourself about 10% vision, then cover that 10% with bubble wrap - that’s what I can see.”

Barbara uses her fuzzy 10% to its full potential and she LOVES color – she is crazy/wild about color, just as I am! We were kindred spirits… we were able to tease each other, easily talk about everything and anything and we shared a multi generational heritage from Southern California. We had a blast!

We spent nearly 5 hours getting her Tree of Life started. I was stunned by the exceptional work she did. Her ability to feel the edges of the glass, visualize the place it was to fit, determine where to cut the glass - went way beyond my expectations. She was cutting with about 85% accuracy and I rarely see that in a beginning student.

By the end of the evening, we were laughing so much that it was hard to concentrate on her project. She was poking fun at me - I was giving it right back to her… at one point I said “I must be crazy to leave a blind woman alone in a glass studio.” (She kept getting up to go look at the “pretty colors” when I was out of the room.) “If you get cut, all you’ll get from me is a band aid and no sympathy.” She was fine with that; she has dealt with a few obstacles in her life. It just doesn’t bug her. Nothing stops Barbara from doing what she wants, when she wants to.

It was a pleasure to meet Barbara, a joy to see her embrace the art of mosaics and a blessing for me to know that in some small way I might have enrich her life by sharing my art. I can’t wait to see her at my next workshop so I can watch her Tree of Life grow.

[WW2012 Site Owner]

Hi Patty,
This is such wonderful and inspiring story, it makes me think we all should appreciate our gifts and always live our lives as if we part a true tree of life. We are all connected by our roots of humanity and humility.

I am so happy you both met each other, it is almost as if you were always friends and aritisans meant to meet. kim

[Andrea Clarkson]

The design of the NAAC Women's Works site is fantastic. Congratulations! Thanks for promoting and encouraging women who make art.

[Mejo Okon]

Contemporary Western Artist

[Susie Isome]

What a wonderful community you've created here at Women's Work.
I'm glad I found you and hope to participate in some of your activities
in the near future.
Thanks
Susie