12:00 – 1:30 PM
Session A - ALH FRONT GALLERY
"No” is Free: The Art of Ask/Borrow/Trade/Give (You too can be an artist with little to no money down!)
Stephanie Saint Sanchez and Koomah
(interactive workshop and game)
So you wanna be an artist? Money is tight! What do you do?!? Get a ‘real’ job? Inherit money from Nana and Pop-pop? Rob a bank? Rejection is scary, but remember: “No” is Free! In this interactive workshop, Stephanie will discuss tips and tricks for keeping focused on being the artist you want to be while working a ‘normal’ job. Koomah will present The Art of Ask/Borrow/Trade/Give - their practice of asking for what you want, borrowing what you need, trading up for the best, and giving to help other artists. Participants will have the opportunity to try a game version of Ask/Borrow/Trade/Give and make a list of their art ‘wants’, ‘needs’, and ‘haves’ to share amongst each other to encourage bartering within the arts communities.
Stephanie Saint Sanchez is a by-any-means-necessary media artist, movie maker, and instigator. As founder of La Chicana Laundry Pictures, she has made over 30 award-winning, genre-bending shorts and installations. She also started the Señorita Cinema film festival, the only all Latina Film Festival in Texas. She is a recipient of a S.W.A.M.P. Emerging Filmmakers Fellowship, The Idea Fund, Lawndale Artist Studio Program and her work has been featured at Creative Women United, Project Row Houses Houston, Art League Houston, Fresh Arts Houston, and Art Licks, North and Found London. www.lachicanalaundrypictures.com
Koomah is an intersex-bodied trans-identified queer interdisciplinary grassroots visual artist, performer, filmmaker, and part-time hermaphrodite unicorn. Active in Houston-area artspaces since 2003, Koomah challenges audiences to ask questions, see from new perspectives, be vulnerable, and ponder social norms. Koomah is a performance artist with Continuum, a performer with the Houston Gendermyn, a frequent performer at QUEERLESQUE!, and a solo visual and performance artist. Koomah has performed, showcased artwork, and screened films nationwide. https://www.facebook.com/Koomah/
El “No” es gratis: El arte de pedir/pedir prestado/intercambiar/dar (¡Tú también puedes ser un artista con poco a nada de enganche!)
Stephanie Saint Sanchez y Koomah
(presentación y juego interactivo)
¿Así que quieres ser un artista? ¡El dinero es escaso! ¿!¿Qué hacer?!? ¿Buscar un trabajo de “verdad”? ¿Heredar dinero de Nana y Pop-pop? ¿Robar un banco? El rechazo da miedo, pero recuerda: ¡El “no” es gratis! En este taller interactivo, Stephanie discutirá consejos y trucos para mantenerse enfocados en ser el artista que quieres ser mientras realizas un trabajo “normal”. Koomah presentará “El arte de pedir/pedir prestado/intercambiar/dar” —su práctica de pedir lo que quieres, pedir prestado lo que necesitas, intercambiar por algo mejor y dar para ayudar a otros artistas. Los participantes tendrán la oportunidad de probar una versión de pedir/pedir prestado/intercambiar/dar en forma de juego y hacer una lista de sus “deseos”, “necesidades” y “pertenencias” para compartir con el resto y fomentar el intercambio dentro de las comunidades artísticas.