September 2021

Sep 1

Written By WiVLA Houston

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Inspire. Promote. Collaborate. September 2021

Article header: (text on image) President's Message

Caught Between Realities

In addition to being the president of WiVLA, I’m also the president of my Sunday school class (the DIVAS, which is a cool acronym). Although the similarities might not seem obvious, I’ve encountered many of the same experiences and challenges with both groups. In addition to both groups being strictly female, we’ve had to rethink how we meet.

Like WiVLA, the DIVAS stopped meeting for a couple of months in 2020. The members were steadfast in their decision to not meet via Zoom and that we’d meet again once it was safe. That plan worked for about three months. My church subscribed to an enterprise version of Zoom and in June 2020, we started meeting on Monday afternoons. As you might suspect, not everyone embraced this medium, so only a small subset of the class met. However, as time passed, something unexpected happened. Women from other local churches (and a transplant to Hawaii) started attending our sessions. We now have more regular attendees than we did when we met in person, although the participants are different. I’ve asked them several times about resuming our in-person meetings on Sunday, and they have pushed back. My new “regulars” have fully embraced the more casual Zoom meetings on Monday. On the other hand, I’ll never get some of our original members to meet on Zoom, and when we return to in-person meetings, I’ll lose most of my current regulars. I’d love to elect a new president to make the decision, but someone suggested that I become President Emeritus, a title that has no appeal for me.

We have a similar situation with WiVLA. During Lee’s tenure, we moved to Zoom meetings, although I don’t believe that you could say that we embraced the move. However, we have had some wonderful speakers from beyond our city and state boundaries. We’ve also attracted some members from outside of our city, state, and country. The virtual meetings also cater to our guests and members who are unable to get transportation to our meetings. When we return to in-person meetings, I’d like to think that our long-distant members would stay, but I can’t count on it. During the past few months, I’ve also learned about the pilgrimages that some of our local members made to our meetings at Archway. I don’t know how willing I’d be to drive 30+ miles during rush-hour traffic (sometimes in the rain and in the dark) to attend a meeting. I bow to their tenacity and loyalty.

Our challenge for 2022 is to find that sweet spot that can accommodate most of us most of the time. To help us plan for a transition from virtual, we need input from you. A survey was recently sent to our members. If you did not receive it, check your SPAM/Junk folder. If you still cannot find it, contact info@wivla.org. Regardless of what we decide, this president will err on the side of caution when it comes to resuming in-person meetings.

Your board and I look forward to hearing from you.

- Melody -

Awakening Reception, the 2021 WiVLA Member Exhibition

Thursday, September 2
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

During the virtual reception for the Awakening Exhibition, WiVLA's biennial member exhibition, we'll walk through the virtual exhibition gallery and hear from Rosa Ana Orlando, our juror. During her talk, she'll also announce the recipients of the First, Second, and Third-place awards, and the award for the piece that best represents the theme of the exhibition.

We'll also have an opportunity to introduce and thank some of our sponsors who graciously donated the prizes.

Pour your wine, or other libation of choice, grab a snack, and enjoy the evening.

There will be an email with the zoom link sent out. Please check your inbox for it. You may also find the link on the WiVLA calendar.

Masks: What do they mean to you?
by Ellen Seaton, Literary Co-Chair

November is coming, and that means that all of the muses are aligned to help writers with essays, short stories, and poems about Masks. I wrote in the last newsletter that masks are not just the pandemic face coverings we hear and talk about on a daily basis. There’s so much more to them. There are Halloween masks, Ritual masks, and Tribal masks. Do you mask your feelings? What kind of masks do you wear even when you’re not wearing one to feign off a deadly virus? Who do you wear masks in front of, and who do you wear masks for?

Start now on writing either an essay, short story, or poem about your experience and interpretations. You will have the opportunity to share your insights with us during the November member meeting.

During September, all of you will receive an email asking you to sign up for the November Literary Reading, but you can beat the rush and sign up now. All readings should last no longer than 3 to 5 minutes because we want to give as many writers as possible a chance to join in the fun.

Keep an eye on your emails so you can sign up or reserve a spot below. If you need more inspiration, please click on the "Read more" button below.

I look forward to hearing everyone’s creative interpretations of Masks.

Reserve a Reading Slot

Gladys Jones & Sabina Gartler
2020 ECO Fund Grant recipients

Tuesday, September 21

6:00pm - 7:30pm

Gladys Jones (left) and Sabina Gartler (right), WiVLA's 2020 Visual and Literary ECO Fund Recipients, will share how they spent their grants. There will not be another drawing this evening. The next drawing will be held during the April 2022 meeting.

Meeting Schedule
6:00 - 6:20 pm Social Time and Board Announcements.
6:20 - 7:20 pm Presentation with Q & A.
7:20 - 7:30 pm Time permitting, Member announcements.
*Some meetings may run slightly off schedule due to the nature of the conversation.

Zoom Meeting Information
Due to Zoom's security suggestions, we will send out another email with the Zoom meeting information one day before the meeting. Be certain to look for it. If you need the meeting code, please send an email to newsletter@wivla.org to get the meeting code no later than 5:00 pm the day of the meeting.
If you need information on how to use Zoom before the meeting date, please use the links below:

If you need to download Zoom, it's free: https://zoom.us/download.

Here is the link to a video on how to join a meeting:
https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-Meeting

Literary Members!

Our November/December virtual gallery exhibition space is seeking one literary member to participate. The deadline to submit your work is Thursday, October 7th. If you would like to learn about online exhibitions, this is a great opportunity to learn from our board. If you have any questions, please contact Marie Casamayor-Harvey, at visual@wivla.org.

Deadline for November: Thursday, October 7th.
To apply, click here.

Lois Stark
Emmy Award-winning producer, documentary filmmaker, and author

Like WIVLA itself, both images and stories have been my portals to understand and to record the world. They are equal messengers in the thirty documentary films I’ve made and the book I wrote, The Telling Image : Shapes of Changing Times.

My early career was with NBC Network News. Working out of Washington, DC., I made documentary films covering countries in tensions and transition, filming in Liberia, Abu Dhabi, Northern Ireland, Israel, Cuba and throughout the USA. After marriage, I returned to Houston, Texas, my hometown, where I made documentaries on architecture, globalization, medicine, artists and social issues. The films earned an Emmy, Silver Gavel by the American Bar Association, Matrix Award from Women in Radio and Television, two Golds in the International Film Festival of the Americas and two CINE Gold awards.

The Telling Image : Shapes of Changing Times traces the shapes that have shaped human worldviews through time. A connected Web was indigenous cultures understanding of the world, expressed in stone circles and round thatched huts. A linear Ladder was the mindset of settled humans, from pyramids to skyscrapers. A Network masters today’s mental map. You can read the past and catch the future by watching when shapes shift. To think out of the box, you have to know the box you are in.

My TEDx talk, Shape : Hiding in Plain Sight, also explores how shapes shape us. The book won Best Nonfiction 2019 from Next Gen Indie Book Awards, Nautilus Book Award, National Indie Excellence Award, Independent Press Book Award and NYC Big Book Award.

In civic life, I have served on the boards of Sarah Lawrence College, St. John’s School, Texas Children’s Hospital, Alley Theatre, Harry Ransom Center, Harvard Kennedy School’s Women’s Leadership Board, among others.

The images and stories that WIVLA artists contribute reflect our era. “An artist is not one who sees ahead of his time. He is one of the few that sees his time for what it is,” Picasso reflected. I look forward to seeing, reading, and sharing our collective work as portals to better understand ourselves and our times.

Link to TEDx talk: Shape : Hiding in Plain Sight

Website: http://www.loisfstark.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loisfstark
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LoisFStark

September-October Virtual Exhibition

WiVLA Members Melody Locke, Aliza Bejarano, Ellen Seaton, and Kathleen Davis are featured in the September-October virtual exhibition. To view their exhibition, please click here. For best results, view on full screen on your computer or laptop. You will be prompted to download the app if you view it on your mobile device.

This is an opportunity available to all WiVLA members. For information or to register to exhibit your work please visit our website.

Aliza J. Bejarano artist statement:

Aliza J. Bejarano works in oils, installation, and performative art. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drawing and Painting from California State University Long Beach and has three years of experience as a curatorial assistant representing various galleries and artists throughout Los Angeles. She has shown in exhibitions in Orange County, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Nice, France. Her work has also been shown at Latino Art Museum in Pomona and El Paso Art Association’s Crossland Gallery. Having recently relocated to Pearland, Texas, she hopes to continue her practice, creating lasting connections through her work.

Kathleen Davis author statement:

As a survivor, Kathleen is committed to educating about sexual abuse and promoting safety for everyone. With a BS in Nursing and two masters degrees, an MA and an MS in Counseling, and Family Life Educator certification, her professional experience spans from neonates to geriatrics with many interesting venues: presentations, cruise ship, author, hospice, suicide/depression assessments, drug/alcohol, case management, health fairs, interim director, palliative care, mental health, domestic violence, homelessness, Planned Parenthood, and volunteering with teen/parent Methodist Church Sexuality program. In addition, she developed a campus program that won a monetary award for that school. Kathleen uses techniques from trauma-based models, psychodrama, and art therapy while counseling survivors.

Melody Locke artist statement:

Melody Locke uses traditional and alternative photographic processes to create fine art prints. Using B&W and infrared film, she develops black and white prints in a traditional wet darkroom, using high-quality fiber paper. Using similar photographic papers, she also uses non-camera photographic processes, such as lumen printing, to create colorful images from botanical material and negatives. Her love of nature inspires her landscape photography and her more intimate and often abstract lumen images of plants and flowers.

Ellen Seaton author statement:

Ellen Seaton is a writer of memoir, personal essays, and urban fantasy. She lives in Houston, Texas, and was a social worker for 30 years before retiring in 2018. Since then, she has devoted her life to her love of writing and art.

August Meeting Highlight:
Renne Victor

Renee Victor defines herself as an urban interpretive painter and sculptor. She creates high-chroma modern landscapes that are derived from images taken in caves. Her work is seemingly set out to explore contrasts where dichotomies of graphic hard edges and fluid organic forms intersect. Hers is a space where the internal and external world conflate.
A Houston-based artist, she has exhibited in several local and state exhibition spaces, including the Houston Museum of African American Culture. In addition, she is a resident artist working with the Mini Murals civic art program with UP Art Studio. If you were unable to attend and would like to watch this presentation please visit the WiVLA YouTube channel or use the link provided here, August Meeting.

Social Media and Website Information:
Website: https://artistreneevictor.com/about
Instagram: @artistreneevictor
Mini Murals: https://minimurals.org/artist/renee-victor/

Ellen Seaton wrote in to share her first podcast experience. She was a featured author on Creatix Chats hosted by Arden Erimitis. To listen to Ellen's episode and learn how she stokes her creativity, please click the link provided here, https://vimeo.com/588130016.

Deborah Blumberg has won the Writer's League of Texas 2021 Manuscript Contest in the Historical Fiction category with her piece, On the Deck of the Orizaba. This award will provide Debbie with free registration to attend the WLT 2021 Agents and Editors Conference in Austin. To view the recipients' list please visit, https://writersleague.org/

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Article header: (text on image) Keep in Touch

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.

WiVLA Houston

September 2021

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