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"Art is My Voice!" Young Artists Take Over

12/18/2017

Carissa Barnhouse (5 pieces at top), Madeline Russell (bottom left), and Beatrice Gutierrez (right).

Artists ages 11 to 16 took over the FFOYA House art gallery in December for the Young Artists "Art is My Voice" Show. The art show was sponsored by a grant from ArtWorks, Inc., and organized in coordination with Art Matters for the BG Gallery Hop on Dec. 1, 2017. Young writers and musicians performed in an open mic showcase during the art show.

Fourteen young artists from the region were featured in the show: Maria Jackson, 12; Hanna Thorp, 16, Greenwood High School; Madelyn Kirk, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School; Aidan Dillard, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School; Madeline Russell, 16, Barren County High School; Gabriella Nopo, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School; Lily Simpson, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School; Emma Simpson, 14, Bowling Green High School; Emily Mason, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School; Brenya Carr, 13; Carissa Barnhouse, 13, Barnhouse Academy; Beatrice Gutierrez, 11; Daniel Bell, 12; and Emma Bridges, 13.

From top to bottom: Madelyn Kirk (1 & 3) Gabriella Nopo Daniel Bell Carissa Barnhouse

Emma Bridges (left), Madelyn Kirk (3 at top right) and Gabriella Nopo (2 at bottom right and sculpture).

Hanna Thorp

Emily Mason

Lily Simpson (2, at left) and Emma Simpson (5, at right)

Brenya Carr (left) and Maria Jackson.

Aidan Dillard

Daniel Bell

Participants were asked to describe how they use art as their voice. Some of their answers:

“I use art as my voice through the depth of what I create. I try to put meaning behind every piece I make; I want the viewer to think about the art they are viewing and form their own meaning around it. Through art, I can convey an emotion, or depict a scene, and through this I use my voice to make my art mean more than what meets the eye, allowing for a unique interpretation for each individual who sees the work.” -- Emma Simpson, 14, Bowling Green High School.
“I express my feelings through my art. Whatever my emotion is, there is bound to be a hint of it in my art.” - Gabriella Nopo, 12, Bowling Green Junior High.
“Art is my voice because it speaks for me. It creates an image that tells a person’s character and describes the emotions I feel. I normally go to art when I’m having a difficult time, and I use it to express my emotions through the creativity and level of difficulty in my work of art.” - Madeline Russell, 16, Barren County High School.
“With all the ideas flying around my head, art is sort of a way to make sense of what I’m thinking. And making those ideas into something that I hope looks somewhat decent sort of helps get my thoughts in order. Of course, this method is not 100 percent reliable and sometimes leaves me more confused than before.” Lily Simpson, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School.
“I use art to express what I’m thinking. The first and second pieces show gender identity and the fact that anybody is beautiful no matter what skin tone, ethnicity, etc. I’m able to show what I like through the third and fourth photos because it shows I’m fascinated with space and planets like the girl seems to be fascinated with the things in the fourth picture. The third picture shows what I like by showing that I like mountains and learning about people from different backgrounds.” -- Emily Mason, 12, Bowling Green Junior High School.

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DVAM '17 Showcases Survivors' Art

12/15/2017

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FFOYA House hosted its second annual Domestic Violence Awareness Month Art + Music + Literature show to benefit the Barren River Area Safe Space on Oct. 13, 2017. Wet-Eyed Liars (Bowling Green, KY) and Chew (Atlanta, GA) performed, several writers and poets read their work, and the gallery was open for the BG Gallery Hop.
The gallery exhibit featured artwork by area artists Lee Alcott, W. Paul Carter and Amanda Vickous and artisan, Amy Jessup of Neo Peasant Revolution, who makes ecologically sound flannel menstrual pads. The show also featured work produced during the FFOYA House art and writing workshops held in the summer and fall of 2017 in partnership with BRASS and Hope Harbor, Inc. Visual artists Chloe Lee and Courtney Davis worked with writer Amanda J. Crawford to lead the workshops for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence and volunteers from all three organizations. The workshops and show were supported by an Art Meets Activism grant from the Kentucky Foundation for Women.
The artwork as well as writing from the workshops was also featured in an issue of the FFOYA House zine. Be sure to check out the zine here!

Amanda Vickous, “Broken.” The mannequin represents the physical marks left on us. The black handprints are the visible wounds; the bruises, cuts, burns, etc. The gray handprints represent the people in our lives who know about the abuse and say or do nothing. Finally, the blue handprints represent those people who reach out to heal us: social workers, domestic violence shelters, family, friends, counselors, clergy, etc. The photo next to the mannequin is a self portrait taken after a PTSD induced panic attack due to a traumatic event. The artist wants people to see and understand that not all the marks of abuse and domestic violence are visible.

W. Paul Carter, “Masks 1,2, & 3." We all wear masks every day. That's what the artist is examining here using the ancient tradition of the death mask and death rituals. The viewer was invited to wear whatever mask calls to them and speak, loudly, their truth.

Portraits from "Amazing Me" workshop led by artist Chloe Lee & writer Amanda J. Crawford. Participants were asked to visualize moments in their life in which they felt empowered. Then they created self-portraits inspired by those thoughts. From top left: A.J. Crawford, M.A., Ashanti, Ariana Michaela, Chloe Lee, J.C. (See more in zine.)

Lee Alcott, “Woman Who Talked to Stones.” This photograph captures a theme of transition, survival, and power. The artist's work with battered women for over 30 years, as an art therapist and an administrator developed a discourse on creativity, imagery, healing and resiliency. When voices are silenced, bodies are broken, memory is lost, and one’s spirit is twisted and splintered, transitional objects become treasures.

"Lifecycle" and "Healing Mandala," small murals for BRASS by FFOYA House volunteers: Meranda Caswell, Alayna Milby, A.J. Crawford, M.A., and Ariana Michaela.

"Finding Beauty," large murals for BRASS created by artist Courtney Davis and painted during a FFOYA House workshop by Demetria D. France, Connie K. Kingrey-Knapp, Ke-Ke, NK, Pattycake, Jessica Hodge, M.K., Denise Merriweather, M.L.G., Amanda Duggar, Zoe, and Courtney Davis.

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"Art is My Voice!" Young Artists Take Over

DVAM '17 Showcases Survivors' Art

FFOYA House Art

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