by Kim SchneiderEAST LIVERPOOL -- Following a discussion at last month’s Ohio Arts Council Listening Tour event on campus, KSU East Liverpool English professor Patti Swartz elaborated on moving art from the galleries to the street.
During the Oct. 15 OAC meeting, Swartz said, “People are open to the arts but afraid to bring it to life.” After the meeting, Swartz said, “Art is like poetry, and we have strange ideas about who can do art and what it means. Native American weavers and potters made art to use in everyday life. Art should give us joy, but many people think art is for someone else and not for them. Too many people are frustrated because they cannot live up to the work they would like to do because they never begin. In many countries art and poetry are seen as part of the warp and woof of life, for all people and public art is much more common than here.”
Swartz shared her past experiences with art and how different communities use art to celebrate festivals and other events by putting storefronts and businesses to use. She mentioned several communities as prime examples: “Pittsburgh has the Three Rivers Art Festival,” she said. “Youngstown also has an outdoor festival where art is displayed.”
The former Kentucky resident said, “The Lexington Art League sponsored events all over the city. The Art League arranged displays in banks, storefronts, in stores, in retail etc…. This gave people a chance to look at art on a daily basis as they went around their business.” Swartz also mentioned that “Gallery Hops.” Two Fridays per month art was featured throughout town, with each building serving appetizers and wine. As well, artists were available to speak to the people. “These were successful, and it was a way to involve everyone in art,” Swartz added.
Swartz believes that doing such an event in East Liverpool would be beneficial to the community because more people would see art and develop a greater appreciation for the arts. Gallery Hops help both the artists and businesses. When asked if people would be more open to the arts if this were done, Swartz replied, “Yes, many people think art is something removed from daily life. Many are afraid of going to galleries or museums because they think those institutions belong to another class, and they don’t belong. We all own the right to see and appreciate art.”
How can something like this get started in East Liverpool? “Ask,” Swartz said. “Quite often banks, merchants, and building owners with empty storefronts would be glad to do this, but someone has to take the initiative.”
Swartz currently has her own photographs on display in at Coffee Fusion & Tea, a popular downtown coffee shop. The display includes work from other local artists as well. Swartz was asked if hanging her work in the coffee shop has influenced her opinion. She said, “This hasn’t really changed my views, for I’ve seen this done in many places, and I’m glad to have the opportunity, but it’s as good for the town as it is for me. I’ve exhibited in a number of shows, local, regional, and national, in university galleries, and I actually like where my photos are now better than any of those places.”
Swartz was a member of the Ohio Valley Arts Council during her first year at KSU. She helped to hang and judge show and did a gallery talk. “We are fortunate to have a gallery,” she said. “We have had some wonderful events in the gallery.”
Swartz reminisced about her first trip to the Butler Art Institute of Youngstown for a school field trip. “A missionary teacher took us there to expose us to culture, and it makes me angry and grateful at the same time. Angry because I felt colonized, yet grateful because it opened the world,” Swartz said.
Swartz also shares her photography and writing at her Web site: www.douganddave.net/patti_swartz_home.html
