Monica Wants You...Or Rather, Your Art

I received the following from Ms. Monica Sheets...and wanted to pass on. Please do the same:

Call for Artists: Seeking Artists who applied for the 2006 Jerome Emerging Artist
One goal of this project is inclusiveness, and I would love to reach all 260+ applicants.

I am inviting artists who applied for the Fellowship to take part in a show to be presented in the gallery at MCAD during the MCAD/Jerome Emerging Artists show in October. I would like the show to represent the breadth of work being created by the self-identified emerging artists in Minnesota.

Due to the number of artists, it is not practical to hang a physical show, so work would be displayed in digital form. I am currently envisioning a two part system: one part would be a randomized digital slide show projected on the wall; the second part would be a computer station with a digital image archive that can be accessed by visitors. The show would have its own title, brochure, postcard and announcement to local press. It would be open to all artists who applied for the fellowship in fall of 2006.

I have multiple reasons for pursuing this project. As an artist, I generally engage in participatory public art projects. In these projects, I am often dealing with issues about access, examining individuals' relationships to institutions, and providing a forum for dialogue and expression. After discussions with artists and non-artists about their perceptions of the fellowship, I came to the idea for the parallel show as a way of spreading
the access I have gained as a Jerome fellow to a larger pool of recipients and raising questions about the selection process and how it shapes our interactions as artists and art viewers.

I realize that to some people this may seem like an act of condescension or an attempt to co-opt other artists' work for my own purposes. All I can do is to assure you that my intent is sincere and that I will do my utmost to keep the focus on the artists and the issues rather than this as "my piece."

My hope is that you will view it as an opportunity for the exposure of your work and as a move toward defusing the negative competitive aspects of the grants process. If you have questions or would like me to elaborate on any of the ideas, please feel free to contact me without obligation to participate.

If you are interested in participating, please contact me as soon as possible. I'd like to develop a final count of artists by June 15th. Sometime in July, artists will submit a number of images or length of video to be included in the exhibition. If you have input about the final format of the exhibition, I am eager to hear it. I want this to be a showcase for
the artists and know well the limitations of two dimensional images in representing artwork.

I hope to hear from you soon, and wish you the best in your artistic endeavors.

Sincerely,
Monica Sheets
ste_haruka@hotmail.com
www.mnartists.org/Monica_Sheets