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Fellowship funds Gallery director’s printmaking research
July 17, 2003 | |||||
KOKOMO, Ind.—IU Kokomo Art Gallery Director Minda Douglas has received 1 of the 50 Creative Renewal Fellowships presented for 2003–2005 by the Arts Council of Indianapolis. Funded by the Eli Lilly Foundation, the fellowships support professional development for Hoosiers in a variety of artistic disciplines.
Douglas will use her $7,500 fellowship to research non-toxic printmaking techniques, supply a non-toxic printmaking studio and create a body of work using the techniques. Using and disposing of the acids traditionally used to etch metal printing plates, plus related solvents and other chemicals, can pose health hazards, Douglas said. The hazards are “a big subject among printmakers,” she said, prompting the recent development of nontoxic, alternative means of printing, such as photosensitive printing plates. Using safer techniques is especially important to artists like Douglas, whose studio is located in her family’s Noblesville home. Under the fellowship, Douglas will create a series of artist books, an art form she exhibited at the IU Kokomo Art Gallery in August 2001. An artist book is “a paper sculpture in the form of a book,” she explained. The maker conceives and executes all aspects of the book, from text and images to pages and cover. She will exhibit some of the completed books in a two-person show for the Bloomington Arts Council in October. Works by Karen Baldner, a handmade paper artist, will share the bill. Recently, Douglas also received two scholarships, allowing her to attend a Portland, Ore., conference sponsored by Americans for the Arts. That organization gave Douglas a $500 scholarship toward conference costs, and the Arts Alliance of Indiana contributed an additional $250 for the trip. More than 500 people attended the June 7–9 conference, titled “ARTrepreneur: The New Arts Leader.” Sessions explored fundraising, reaching diverse audiences and “how the arts are important to spurring economic growth,” Douglas said. With an abundance of well-promoted and supported public art, the city of Portland underscored the conference theme well. “Art has become a part of Portland life, and not just something you see in a gallery,” she said. The city’s subway stations “are packed with art and displays tied to literature and science.” Designs etched into the stations’ steel elevator doors provide clues to nearby landmarks. “Everything’s a learning experience,” Douglas said. The public art was especially inspiring to Douglas as a member of the IU Kokomo Facility Art Committee, which is developing a competition to find new art for the Kelley Student Center.
At the conference, Douglas met arts supporters from Indianapolis, Lafayette and Logansport, and discussed possible collaborative efforts with the IU Kokomo Gallery. “Indiana had one of the strongest state representations, outside of the West Coast states,” she said. “It was nice to see at a national conference.”
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