Queer pride, CAELLI, and a quiet moment

This weekend, after hosting an artist talk for “Ancestors” (a group show curated by Steph Littlebird and Kanani Miyamoto), I get to go see my own artwork cohabitating with a whole bunch of work by other local queers. Radius Gallery hosts this exhibition each year, and I just love it. It fills me up to see the creativity of us, and the beauty that we bring into the world. And I’m proud of us, especially in these increasingly hard times. Just take a quick peek at this June 2024 map of anti-trans legislation across the US and you get a sense of the weight that queer folks are carrying. Carrying, composting, and then creating possibilities anew.

Speaking of new possibilities, I’m heading to CAELLI next Monday, 6-month fellowship lead by the National Guild for Community Arts Education. It feels a bit like I’m jumping off the high dive, and also like I’m might be on the path towards home. Here’s a snippet from my program application:

“I find that I am being called back towards leadership roles, after taking a few years to focus on my arts practice and the needs of my family. I have questions and a fair bit of trepidation about this urge to step up….I am searching for a way to do leadership work differently. I want to be able to be and bring my whole self to the work. I would like to find/learn/practice a form of leadership that is sustainable, embodied, generative, and beyond collaborative…that is in fact community-held.”

And then there’s this, a moment from my walk this morning. The sweetest smell caught my attention, and then the light through the source of that sweetness stopped me in my tracks. It felt like a gift. Because it was.