FRANKFORT, Ky. — Artists with disabilities who are interested in participating in a traveling exhibit curated by the Kentucky Arts Council have until Oct. 25 to submit entries for consideration.
Kentucky artists with disabilities who are 18 and older may submit up to three entries for consideration to be included in the exhibit, "identity." However, being a person with a disability does not need to be central to the artist's identity to participate. The arts council is looking for a mixture of media and style, as well as diversity in opinion about living with a disability.
"Art, at its core, is the interpretation of the human experience by the artist who creates it," said Lori Meadows, arts council executive director. "This exhibit opens up a unique opportunity for individuals to express their paths through life as artists with disabilities."
The exhibit will open in January at the Weber Gallery in Louisville and will travel across the state. It will travel to the Houchens Gallery of the Capitol Arts Center in Bowling Green in April 2014. Several pieces will appear in a special exhibition during Kentucky Crafted: The Market 2014. Others will appear exclusively in the offices of the Kentucky General Assembly during the next legislative session as part of the Kentucky Visions at the Capitol exhibit.
"The aspiration for this show is to open up a discussion about artists with disabilities," said Sarah Schmitt, arts access director for the arts council. "The only qualification for this show is that the artist be willing to self-identify as a person with a disability and share about how living with a disability does, or does not, shape his or her artistry."
Artists should read the prospectus before they apply. For more information, contact Schmitt at or 888-833-2787, ext. 492.
The exhibit is made possible, in part, by a $6,000 Statewide Forum Grant from the National Arts and Disability Center (NADC) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to continue the arts council's work to address careers in the arts for people with disabilities.
The National Arts and Disability Center is a program of the Tarjan Center at UCLA, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities.
The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies and the philanthropic sector.
The Kentucky Arts Council, the state arts agency, creates opportunities for Kentuckians to value, participate in and benefit from the arts. Kentucky Arts Council funding is provided by the Kentucky General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts.
