The F Factor: Female artists of The Bahamas

Wanted to share this article from The Nassau Gardian by Sonia Farmer about the F Factor exhibit:

"...the dynamic exhibition “The F Factor: Female Artists of The Bahamas” opened at The D’Aguilar Art Foundation, showcasing work in a wide range of media from 24 established and practicing female artists based in The Bahamas.

For curator Holly Parotti, the show is a culmination of experiences that she and her contemporaries have faced over the years — from exclusion to outward sexism — both as artists and simply just as women.

The show itself is even drawn from extensive Bahamian collections in the care of two women, Dawn Davis and Saskia D’Aguilar. Viewers may even be pleasantly surprised to find a piece each by both of these powerful women alongside the work by female artists they supported and promoted through their collecting.

Parotti was inspired by the spirit of the Guerrilla Girls, a group of anonymous female artists, formed in New York City, that addresses sexism through powerful — and some may say antagonist — artwork, especially sexism in the art world itself.

“Collecting the work from this group, I asked myself, what were these women thinking when they decided to become an artist and to really put that into their perspective in life?” Parotti says.

“I think it’s a conversation to have with the male and female artists in this community, to ask when did you decide to become an artist? What was going on in your life? Were you raising a family? Were you getting married? It’s that whole part of Bahamian culture of what happens in a young woman’s life that she makes those decisions that could take her one way or another, based on the pressures that may be put on her from whatever sources.”

Read more here: http://www.thenassauguardian.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11995&Itemid=59

Calling All Alaska Native Artists!

The Alaska Native Heritage Center announces an exciting opportunity for Alaska Native writers and other artists. Alaska Native Playwrights Project (ANPP) seeks to identify, teach and nurture Alaska Native playwrights and to establish a repertoire of uniquely Alaska Native plays derived from the rich oral tradition of Alaska’s indigenous cultures. Last year’s initial cohort completed nine plays, all of which received readings at Cyrano’s Playhouse to launch Anchorage’s Alaska Native American Indian Heritage Month celebration. Subsequently, three of the plays were included in the Play Lab of the 2011 Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, AK, and two were invited to the Native Voices Playwrights Retreat and 13th Festival of Plays, with readings at LaJolla Playhouse in San Diego and the Autry National Center in Los Angeles. Now, they are recruiting our next cohort of ten Alaska Native artists from across the state for a year-long mentorship. Call for Participants, Artist Application and FAQ Sheet are available online at www.alaskanative.net.

For more information: Email ebourgeois@alaskanative.net or call (907) 330-8057.

The deadline for artist applications is August 31, 2011.

Go bananas Alaskan women in theatre!