More than 750 Minnesotans created art in the past few months to show why “access to the arts” is important to them. Their creations are part of two large murals on exhibit in October 2013 in St. Cloud and Minneapolis.
This Disability Mural and Story Project was undertaken by VSA Minnesota, a statewide nonprofit that hired artists with disabilities to lead more than 30 art-making workshops. Participants responded in visual art (on 1’x1’ panels), writing or video to illustrate why they do or don’t participate in the arts.
The project replicates a 2011 project directed by Bridget Riversmith with the Arrowhead Alliance of Artists with Disabilities (AAAWD) in Duluth. The original Disability Mural Project in 2000, led by Frances Valesco at the Center for Accessible Technology in Berkeley, California, is now displayed at the Ed Roberts Campus in the Ashby BART station in Berkeley.
Art created in the St. Cloud area was exhibited October 4-13 at Gallery Saint Germain, with a reception for the artists held October 10.
About 650 art tiles are included in the Minneapolis exhibit, which will run October 21-30 in the first floor atrium of City Center, located between Hennepin Avenue and the Nicollet Mall between 6th and 7th Streets. Regular exhibit hours will be weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Sunday noon to 5:00.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. VSA Minnesota is a statewide, nonprofit organization whose mission is to create a community where people with disabilities can learn through, participate in and access the arts. For more information, call 612-332-3888 or 800-801-3883, or email: disabilitymural@vsamn.org.
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