Saturday, November 28, 2009

Sankofa Studio to Participate in Art DC's Cool Yule Arty Party December 12th



Sankofa Studio will participate in Artdc's Cool Yule Party on Saturday, December 12, 2009 from 1 pm - 7 pm at the Artdc.org Gallery at the Lustine Center 5710 Baltimore Avenue in Hyattsville, MD.

Sankofa Doll Artistry will be vending our small artworks,dolls, cards and handmade items.

Hope to see you there!

For more information check out artdc.org

Thursday, November 26, 2009

ICAD Holiday Gift Show and Sale-Historic Savage Mill




International Center For Artistic Development, Inc. presents its 5th Annual Holiday Gift Show and Sale at Historic Savage Mill on December 4 through 31, 2009. The Opening Reception will be held on Sunday, December 13, 2009 at 2PM to 4PM in the ICAD Art Studio & Gallery on the Mezzanine level of the New Weave building. On display in the gallery will be beautiful and unique one of a kind works of art by be Sherry Burton Ways, Eljay McBride, and Michelle Lisenbee. These artists will be talking about their artwork during the reception. The public is invited to attend.

SHERRY BURTON WAYS is a doll artist who enjoys working intuitively creating one of a kind cloth art dolls and mixed media art on canvas. Her inspirations come from her travels to other countries and her work as a professional interior designer.

ELJAY MCBRIDE is an illustrator and fine art painter who is well known for his enjoyable social and cultural ethnic commentary paintings. He has won numerous awards for his paintings of musicians and everyday people and has participated in numerous exhibitions.

MICHELLE LISENBEE is a mixed media collage artist who creates highly textured colorful collages grounded in American heritage and memorabilia. Her artworks make lovely framed wall displays that will embellish any space.

The ICAD gallery hours are Wednesdays through Sundays from 12 Noon to 6PM. Other hours are available by appointment. For further information visit the ICAD website at: http://www.icadev.org or call 301-604-4484. Individuals and tour groups are welcome to visit the gallery and see the show as well as other works on display by ICAD artists.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Highlights of Sankofa's Open Studio, November 22nd!









Sankofa Studio held our first Open Studio at Passageways Artist Studios on Sunday, November 22nd in Riverdale Park, Maryland. It was a wonderful occasion to show off our latest dolls and meet collectors in person. We even had a surprise visit from one of my favorite doll artists, Gwendolyn Aqui and her husband.

As a new member of Passagways Studios I was surprised at the number of collectors who came through. Some of which never looked at the art of dolls from the same perspective as 2 D art forms.

We served refreshments as people marveled at the lovely pins, dolls and wall hangings that were displayed in the studio. Also, we got several sales to boot.

I wish to thank everyone who attended who made the event special!

Joy Diet Update: Non Connection With an Old Friend



Chapter 9 Connection was an interesting chapter in the Joy Diet because it hit so close to a recent situation with a friend that I had known from my previous career who is working through some personal concerns.

I had dinner with her the other week and she met me at my studio. Upon seeing her she looked not as put together as I had always known her. Her hair was out of place and she seemed not particularly at ease.

We talked about her current job situation which is very negative, the issues surrounding her mother's death, extremely hurtful, and a recent breakup with a boyfriend which provided the icing on the cake.

Throughout our talk it seemed as if she felt that I was not sympathizing with her on what was going on in her life. She seemed quite bitter and I could not CONNECT with her.

She appeared restless, a little annoyed at some questions that I asked her and even snapped at me a couple of times about little things. Then she preached about something she thought I should do.

At the end of the evening I began to meditate on the questions from this chapter:

1) I learned to reach a place of peace while I was with her. As she was in her miserable mood, I learned to stay at peace through out the dinner. Stay in my own skin.

2) Learn to tell yourself the truth while interacting with someone else.

What am I feeling about this person? Very negative, taking my energy down.
Is there anything about this relationship that hurts? Yes, everything right now.
What about the story? She is missing her mother, depressed, angry, not connected to anyone outside her space including me.
Is the story true? Yes.
Is the story working for me? Yes, I realize what it is and where it is coming from and it makes me feel saner as a result.
Can I think of another story that might work better? Yes, I think the next story will be to send her a card or something to demonstrate that I understand and provide her space for a while.


3) Identify what you want in the relationship. I identified that I think she and I definitely need space and that her current situation is not healthy for me to be around. I would like the relationship to grow and become closer, but she is not healthy enough for this right now.


4) Risk Openness. I intend to let her know how I feel. I have not decided in what way yet.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

REMINDER: Art Reception TODAY for Liberated Muse's "Celebration of Freedom" 4:00 pm TODAY

Saturday, November 14, 2009
Time:
4:00pm - 6:00pm
Location:
The Potter's House
Street:
1658 Columbia Rd NW, Washington, DC

Come to the OFFICIAL opening of the art exhibit "Celebration of Freedom" @ the Potter's House. Liberated Muse Productions presents an art exhibit showcasing the talent of DC visual artists featured in the book Liberated Muse Volume I: How I Freed My Soul and the arts community. Featured artists include:

Prudence Bonds
Shan'ta Monroe
Sherry Burton-Ways
James Terrell
Jade Andwele
Sharon Burton
Choke
Stephan Cox
Marshetta Davis
Keisha Carroll
Khadijah Ali-Coleman

Sharon Burton of Authentic Contemporary Art curated the exhibited.

Refreshments served and live entertainment. See you there!

Joy Diet Update: Play and Laughter!



Again things have been quite busy for me and I apologize that I have not posted in a while. Trying to prepare for holiday shows and my design clients really keep me hopping with things to do. As a matter of fact, it seems I was too busy for one of my "followers" of this blog who decided to unfollow me within the last 48 hours. But to my faithful followers I am BACK and I here is my report on the Joy Diet from the past two weeks!

Joy Diet: Play

The author asks in this chapter- what did you you do on the evening of 9/11? 9/11 was one of the United States' severe crises, which divides our lives between the before and after.

I had to think about this one a bit. I remember working my good government job being told to leave immediately, jumping on one of the first metro trains out of Washington, DC heading home and sitting by the television all day and all night. I tried desparately to call members of my family to see if they were alright.

Was this a defining moment? No not really. 911 was indeed one of the most scariest times I have experienced. But did it define what I should be doing? I don't know except worrying and fretting over the lives of my family members.

Fast forward to the summer of 2005. The defining moment for me to change careers and focus on something else came when one of my colleagues, a young newly married, healthy looking, 27 year old, training program professional on a detail assignment from Georgia, on my good government job, suddenly dropped dead while talking to her supervisor in the office directly across mine.

Wow! It hit me like a ton of bricks! At that moment the role and the act I was playing in my career: working hard, playing the right game, speaking the right way, dressing the right way, joining the right professional development groups, be seen at the right places, make sure I was working on projects that "matter to the office", climbing that so called ladder of success, making that job more important than anything on the planet, kissing #$%, traveling all over, making others look good, taking insults, being disrespected, questioned, spied on, did not matter anymore....

Within two years I went on to a new career and started the art of doll making and mixed media shortly thereafter.

Fast forward 2009- not just 2009 but November 2009. Well this was an interesting chapter to read. Why you ask? Because it just fell into some reflection I was having in particular about my doll making career. It appears I have had to "play" alot of "games" lately. Mostly the game of playing a "victim" to gallery owners who make decisions without my knowledge or simply disrespect my doll work. This game has been quite interesting because of their sweet and in some cases sour role they play to make me feel one way or the other about my doll art or simply withholding information that eventually becomes public knowledge.

Without going into detail about these "incidences" I have had to make a tough decision about whether or not to continue to move forward with doll making. I began to doubt myself and my abilities. I reasoned that these incidences have not made me what do you say? Feel good. Is this the game I signed up for and want to continue to play as a creative entrepreneur?

But what about the overall direction of the doll making career? How do I strategize to determine if there is improvement needed, a new set of gallery partners? Do I work with galleries at all or simply begin the online selling world of Etsy or reconfigure my website to be more of a shopping cart? I DO know that the same team I have had in the past year is now no more. Also, I am doing a lot of reflection on the role I have played in this art career, how cut throat it is and whether or not the art itself continues to bring me joy.

I look at myself as an OOKA doll artist. Nothing else. I do not do rag dolls, I do not do children's dolls. I take my art seriously and only wanted presented in respectable places as well as honored for what it is. Yes, some don't get it; don't think it meets some "standard" of ethnic doll making. Some think it is "voodoo" or whatever. But guess what? I woke up this morning and determined that I don't care. I am going to continue to blossom shine, and make dolls that collectors will appreciate.

I am reminded of a recent tweet by Iyanla Vanzant which goes like this:
"As you run your race in life,don't worry about the other runners. Stay focused and you'll pass them. Competition isn't the way to victory."

Laughter

Okay this chapter is right up my alley. Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE to LAUGH! I think because I was raised by a father who is so funny. Laughter always permeated our household growing up. My sister and I love to laugh about silly things, also things that are not apparent to everyone else. I guess it is this "twin" thing we have.

To be honest laughter is something I can find everyday. My business partner, my fellow artists at Passageways, my husband, my cat, my brother, father, sister, brother, television- there is a lot in life that people experience or I watch that makes me laugh.

The hardest thing that I find trouble with laughing at is myself. As many of my close friends and family know, I take myself way too seriously! This is where the Joy Diet got me. How do I find humor in myself? If anyone has any ideas, please let me know. This is something I intend on meditating on.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Sankofa Represented by Vivant Art Collection at 24th Annual Philadelphia International Art Expo



Sankofa Studio is proud to announce that our mixed media doll art will be represented by Vivant Art Collection at the 24th Annual Philadelphia International Art Expo this weekend.

October Gallery brings it's 24th Annual Philadelphia International Art Expo The Nation's largest African American Art Expo to the Liacouras Center. The Art Expo features over 200 artists from 45 states and 6 countries, which includes visual artists, poets, writers, musicians etc...

This year's show also features a concert within the Gallery, Love Train, the sound of Philadelphia featuring the O'Jay's*

October Gallery Philadelphia International Art Expo
November 13-15th 2009
Temple University - Liacouras Center
10-10 Fri and Sat 10 - 7 Sun
More Information: Check out October Gallery or
Buy tickets here