So…how’s your relationship with clutter? In your house, your workplace, your studio, your car, your head? Do you function well in it, does it drive you up the wall? I’ve got a love/hate relationship with it, wanting to see and touch (and hear and smell and taste) everything I have available to create and function. But I have a hard time editing, so I get easily overwhelmed. (My ADHD also plays a large factor in this). I’m currently on a months-long project, going through my home, trying to edit out what I don’t absolutely don’t need or love. The impetus for this is twofold.
First, when the fire bomb went off at Winter Street Studios in December, I had to vacate my studio so building repairs could proceed. I was forced to go through everything (and that’s a lot of things) in my 1000 sq. ft. studio, figure out what to toss, what to clean, what to bring home, and what to put in offsite storage. I’m still cleaning soot off of things, still deciding what art project materials should be kept and what should be passed along to someone else. I’ve come to the realization that I will fill up a space (to the absolute brim) if I see things out in the wild that has ‘potential.’ Now I need to discipline myself to ask whether I am the best person to realize that potential in everything I bring into my home.
Second, my husband is retiring at the end of the year, and we’ve decided to make a move to Hot Springs, Arkansas. This will probably happen at the end of this year or the beginning of next year. I really don’t want to take anything with us that (again) we don’t need or love. I’m trying very hard to be practical, but admit I’ll need help from a friend or two to come in and talk me through some collections, especially my collection of ‘potential’ projects.
And what does any of this have to do with WiVLA, you may ask? Well, I’ve found a third reason to do this massive weeding out of things. I can no longer create in clutter, whether it be a cluttered room or mind. I’ve currently got multiple art (both visual and literary) projects I desperately want to jump into and move along, but I am frozen when I carve out time for any of them. This clearing out of so much unnecessary baggage is getting me excited to start creating again. I have a long way to go in going through my entire house, but I’m seeing progress. So, I’m curious, how do you deal with clutter? How about mental blocks? Do you feel the two are related in your minds, in your ways of working? How do you not only get but hold onto inspiration for your art? I’d love to hear from you about your own challenges with how you maintain your creative energy. If I get enough responses from you, I’ll make it the subject of a future newsletter article. Please, reach out to me at gretchen2art@yahoo.com to share your thoughts. I’m eager to hear from you.
Walk in love
- Gretchen -
Exhibit news!
WiVLA’s exhibit EXPANSIONwill take place from September 1, 2023 to October 31, 2023 and will be held at Winter Street Studios. Our juror is Elena Poirot from Lee College in Baytown. The exhibit will be open to WiVLA members as well as women artists working in the Greater Houston Area. More news coming soon!
Literary and visual artists will have the opportunity to –
Explore the Jung Center Library and Bookstore
Enjoy art at the Jung Center show - Visions: A Celebration of the Creativity of The Jung Center Community. Once a year, The Jung Center showcases the artwork of its students, members, instructors, volunteers, and staff. The artists work in a variety of media to explore their own inner journeys and find meaning in everyday life.
Spend time writing about a piece(s) of art in a lovely atmosphere.
Our host is Elissa Davis (WiVLA Monthly Meeting presenter for May). She was taught to sew by her mother, which kicked off a love of making and creating. She has a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management from the University of Houston, but landed in the bookstore of The Jung Center over 20 years ago and found a home. She is married to a writer, has two cats, and smiles very easily.
Friday, May 26, 2023
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
1001 Bissonnet, Houston TX 77005
Jon Evans, chief of libraries and archives will take us on a tour of the newly renovated library. Please have a look at the rare books in this library, and let the Program Chair know which books you would be interested in seeing during the tour (btw, you can filter just by the “Hirsch Library” to only get their holdings): https://mfahlibraries.on.worldcat.org/discovery
And for those who are interested, we can have lunch, afterwards, at Cafe Leonelli at MFAH
You have admired the spectacular metal sculptures by Michelle O'Michael all over Texas. Now, let's see where the magic happens in her studio. According to Michelle, her studio can accommodate 40-50+ visitors. "The number of people is not carved in stone. We can accommodate more." She just needs to know how many as there are several big rooms. The studio is 100' long. People should dress comfortably, no AC, and be prepared for potential industrial dirt on their clothes.
Becky Soria will host WiVLA for a Archway Gallery tour & discussion of Gaia’s Oracle, a new collection of works in dialogue with Gaia, or Mother Earth Goddess.
Becky Soria pursued her early art training in South American studios. After immigrating to the USA, she continued her training at The Glassell School of Art in Houston, Texas, as well as with Fernando Casas, Ph.D., artist, and philosopher.
Becky is an Archway artist who has also exhibited at Redbud Gallery, the Jung Center, and G Spot Her work has been shown in numerous Galleries in the USA, Europe, and South America. Her art has been collected by South American Museums, by international corporations, and private collections in the USA and Switzerland.
Urban Fairy Doors and the Wonder of Small Things with Elissa Davis
Tuesday, May 16, 2023
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
via Zoom
Urban Fairy Doors are a small window into the mundane and complex lives of Urban Fairies.
When my husband asked if I could make a Fairy Door for our house, I knew what he meant…and thus our Urban Fairy, a worn out Private Eye, was welcomed to the neighborhood.
The response from visitors, both in-person and virtual, has brought an unexpected quality to the activity: participating in a shared imaginative space.
I look forward to sharing my Urban Fairy Door experience, as well as other small but mighty crafts I’ve had the delight to make over the years.
Note from the Program Chair: If you need a shot of positive, fun energy, this meeting is for you!
Bio:
Elissa Davis was taught to sew by her mother, which kicked off a love of making and creating. She has a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management from the University of Houston, but landed in the bookstore of The Jung Center over 20 years ago and found a home. She is married to a writer, has two cats, and smiles very easily.
Watch your Inbox for an email with the Zoom meeting code.
Mildred Mills
Mildred J Mills, MA, is a podcaster, writer, and retired IT professional passionate about music, tennis, and reading. She is the third of seventeen children born and raised on a sixty-acre cotton farm in Wetumpka, Alabama. She earned a Creative Nonfiction master’s degree from Wilkes University and has written her first book. The memoir, Unbroken: My Journey of Defiance, Resilience, & Grace is in submission. Her essay, Daddy’s House a Place to Run Away From, won the 2022 Etruscan Prize. Her essay, The Dreams I Never Dreamed, was featured in Revise This!, the official newsletter of the Maslow Family Graduate Program.
Mildred lives with her husband in Atlanta, Georgia, spends her time creating new podcast material, and is busy with book submissions. She plans to use the published memoir as a platform for motivational speaking to encourage others to tell their stories of abuse, refuse defeat by life's trials, and use hard work as a tool to determine their destiny.
She recently launched a podcast, My Cotton Patch Moment, which is available on major podcast services, and the trailer reflects Mildred’ passion to encourage and motivate others to be their best self.
Last year’s recipients of the ECO (Educational Cultural Opportunity) Grant, Ellen Seaton (Literary) and Mary Jean Carter presented their projects that were partially funded by the $1,000 grant.
Ellen shared artwork that she commissioned from Shirl Riccetti to illustrate her upcoming novel about ghosts, monsters and mystery. Ellen stated that her work has been influenced by Alice Hoffman, Margaret Attwood, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, and the Galvez Hotel: the haunted Galvez Hotel. Cemetery visits with Sabina Gartler have also worked their way into Ellen’s stories.
Mary Jean used her grant for educational programs to help further her art. She gave the WiVLA members a virtual tour of her studio. Clemente Garcia Lassaulx Art Studio, 1214 W. Gray MJCarterArt.com
Mary Jean also introduced the members to Clemente Garcia – a mentor to artists - clementegarcia.com
Some interesting aspects of her art – Mary Jean uses all objects in the making of her art, e.g., vegetable mashers serve as texture makers. You can check out Mary Jean’s work, including portraits of dogs, on her website: https://mjcarterart.com/
At the end of the program, winners were drawn for the 2023 grant. The visual artist recipient is Susan Salter and the literary artist recipient is Margo Stutts Toombs. We will find out how they spent their grant money next year.
Since the beginning of the awarding of the grant, $50,000 has been awarded to WiVLA members.
If you missed the zoom meeting, you can watch the recording on the WiVLA YouTube Channel.
ECO Fund 2023 Winner - Literary
Margo Stutts Toombs
ECO Fund 2023 Winner - Visual
Susan Salter
Poetry by the Bay Caps off Poetry Month 2023
Keeping with WiVLA’s Poetry Month traditions, 10 of WiVLA’s poets shared their poetry at La Porte Library. As usual, our gracious host, the La Porte Branch Library, welcomed us with scrumptious treats and beverages. Following the readings, most of us met at the New Orleans Seafood Kitchen. We were pleased to learn that the food was just as good as we had remembered.
Home//COOKED Dinner Fundraiser for hot poet & pass the salt literary journals
Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 5:00pm
Margo Stutts Toombs is the featured performer for the fundraiser - Table//FEAST Literary Magazine's editorial team and Equinox's editorial team from hot poet - Saturday, May 13 @ 5:00pm CDT.
The suggested donation is $20 for a spaghetti dinner with an omnivore sauce option and a vegetarian//vegan sauce option. Gluten-free pasta with be provided as well. Dessert will be sorbet or gelato.
Other readers will be a few editors from each press. An open mic will follow.
Houston Media Source offers the use of video and filming equipment as well as green screened studios and editing suites for free. All that is required is some orientation and training. WiVLA would like to have a team of 3 members to produce videos for WiVLA. If this sounds exciting to you, contact Margo Stutts Toombs.
Authors in Grocery Stores is a program that pairs authors wanting to have book signings with grocery stores that will allow them to set up a table with their book. Kroger is the business that participates in the program in Houston. For more information or to sign-up, go to http://www.authorsingrocerystores.com The referral person for the form is Dru Richman.
We'd love to celebrate your good news. If you are interested in sharing, please send your items to newsletter@wivla.org. The deadline for inclusion in the next month's newsletter is the 20th. Thank you.
So…how’s your relationship with clutter? In your house, your workplace, your studio, your car, your head? Do you function well in it, does it drive you up the wall? I’ve got a love/hate relationship with it, wanting to see and touch (and hear and smell and taste) everything I have available to create and function. But I have a hard time editing, so I get easily overwhelmed. (My ADHD also plays a large factor in this). I’m currently on a months-long project, going through my home, trying to edit out what I don’t absolutely don’t need or love. The impetus for this is twofold.
Remember to check the WiVLA Calendar for exciting happenings - fieldtrips, studio visits, workshops, and other fun activities. 
Mildred J Mills, MA, is a podcaster, writer, and retired IT professional passionate about music, tennis, and reading. She is the third of seventeen children born and raised on a sixty-acre cotton farm in Wetumpka, Alabama. She earned a Creative Nonfiction master’s degree from Wilkes University and has written her first book. The memoir, Unbroken: My Journey of Defiance, Resilience, & Grace is in submission. Her essay, Daddy’s House a Place to Run Away From, won the 2022 Etruscan Prize. Her essay, The Dreams I Never Dreamed, was featured in Revise This!, the official newsletter of the Maslow Family Graduate Program.
Houston Media Source offers the use of video and filming equipment as well as green screened studios and editing suites for free. All that is required is some orientation and training. WiVLA would like to have a team of 3 members to produce videos for WiVLA. If this sounds exciting to you, contact 
