Sara McNeilly Ammon selected for Lenka Clayton's MOTHER'S DAYS
Sara McNeilly Ammon selected for Lenka Clayton's MOTHER'S DAYS
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
KHN Assistant Director, Sara McNeilly Ammon, has been selected as one of 82 artists whose written pieces are published in the book, MOTHERS' DAYS, envisioned, edited and compiled by Lenka Clayton, and published by ARIM in a limited-edition run. MOTHERS' DAYS is the first book published by ARIM. The book debuted in NMSU's University Art Museum's group exhibition, Labor: Motherhood & Art in 2020 in February 2020, co-curated by Marisa Sage and Laurel Nakadate. The show will remain on view until May 28, 2020 (see website for COVID-related adjustments). At the close of the exhibition, 800 limited-edition books will be distributed for free in a special draw. Museum visitors, as well as members of ARIM, and other interested parties will be invited to submit their names to be one of the people to receive a copy. (see links below)
Members of An Artist Residency in Motherhood (ARIM) were invited to simultaneously record the events of the July 15th, 2019, in as much or as little detail as they chose. The book shares accounts from 82 people in 19 countries—all artists and mothers/caregivers to children from six weeks to 33 years old—who wrote about and detailed the events of their days. Clayton received submissions from 300+ ARIM applicants for entries into the volume.
"Though parenthood can be an ongoing dance of tasks, experiences and near-constant engagement, I'd often find myself at the end of a day thinking I had done 'nothing'. Mothers' Days is a 388-page document of what happens when nothing happens." (Lenka Clayton)
ARIM is a free, open-source, flexible and self-directed residency program to empower and inspire artists who are also mothers (and those who have similar roles in the lives of children) started and ran by artist / interdisciplinary artist Lenka Clayton. There are over 900 Artists-in-Residence-in Motherhood in 64 countries.
Labor: Motherhood & Art in 2020 is the inaugural exhibition of the new University Art Museum at New Mexico State University. This exhibition, co-curated by museum director Marisa Sage and artist Laurel Nakadate, aims to expand and enrich the compelling conversations regarding motherhood in today’s socio-political climate.Through video, painting, installation, sculpture, film and photographic works, a diverse group of artists explore themes of empowerment, empathy, intimacy, selflessness, vulnerability, failure, anxiety, and choice. This exhibition strives to create a space of inclusivity and support that offers opportunities not only for internationally-celebrated artists, but also for the regional community.
Many of the works reframe motherhood within the context of artistic practice, finding this recalibration necessary, urgent, and inspirational. “There has always been an abundance of artists making work about mothers and motherhood,” says Nakadate, “but until recently, many galleries and institutions have not created a space for that work. Our hope is that providing a platform for this work can create a forum for conversations to take place, and for artists ruminating within this realm to find one another.”
Works on display include a participatory art installation by Yoko Ono, entitled “My Mommy Is Beautiful,” in which audience members are invited to write memories of their mothers; Laurie Simmons’s powerful portrait of her child Cyrus Grace Dunham; and Justine Kurland’s expansive landscapes of mothers’ bodies in the American west. Also included is Hương Ngô & Hồng- Ân Trương’s recontextualized vernacular snapshots of their mothers participating in everyday American activities; Tierney Gearon’s arresting photographic portraits of her mother and children; and Joey Fauerso’s mixed media installation, You Destroy Every Special Thing I Make, which incorporates her sons into her practice of building and dismantling assemblages and sculptural forms in humorous and poignant ways.
During the course of the exhibition, the museum will debut a published book, MOTHERS’ DAYS and installation by Lenka Clayton (shown in 5th photo) inspired by her 2012–2014 project “Mother’s Day,"in which the artist assembled one hundred written accounts of a day in the life of one hundred mothers around the world. Copies of the completed book will be distributed on Mother’s Day, 2020. (show description via University Art Musuem/NMSU)
To download a PDF of the full book, for free, see link below, as well as the entry form to submit your name into the drawing for one of the printed copies of the book.
Sara McNeilly Ammon (she/her/hers) is an interdisciplinary artist, poet, writer, and musician currently living in Nebraska City, NE, USA. She has worked as a professional freelance writer, editor and ghostwriter, visual artist, piano teacher and is also currently the Assistant Director at KHN. Sara’s poetry, writing and visual art have been featured in collaborative and solo shows at various regional galleries, festivals, and performance venues. She is a featured artist with Random Arts Omaha and her poetry and photography have been published in several issues of The Lincoln Underground. Sara is a 2016 Artist INC Fellow. She is an ongoing member of the ARIM (Artist-Residence-in-Motherhood) community, and has upcoming solo shows in 2021 at The Burkholder Project and Kimmel Gallery as well as several co-curatorial projects in the works.
Artists in MOTHERS’ DAYS and LABOR:
Mothers’ Days / design Brett Yasko / photo Phillip Andrew Lewis / a project by Lenka Clayton / published by An Artist Residency in Motherhood / texts by Agnieszka, Aldrete, Guadalupe, Anonymous, Hannah Baker Saltmarsh, Amy Beeston, Araidia Blackburn, Elena Blythe, Brittany Bond, Joanna Bond, Bonnie, Susan Bradley Smith, Luisa Callegari, Catherine, Joie Chan, Mya Cluff, Danka, Jessica Delfino, Sarah Dolan, Jen Donnery, Magdalena Edwards, Stephanie Edwards, Grace, Meagan Grant, Jelena Grujičić, Ariel Hall, Nicole Haroutunian, Heather, Helen, Corrie Hosking, Rachel Johnston, Janie Julien-Fort, Sarah Kain Gutowski, Katie, Rachel Kerwin, Jessica Kneipp, Lauren, Robyn LeRoy-Evans, Lisa, Lisa, Jennifer Long, Patti Maciesz, Rachel Maggart, Taylor Mardis Katz, Chloë Marsden, Jennifer McCandless, Rachel McDonnell, Sara McNeilly Ammon, Amanda Mehl West, Rachel Moodie, Jessica Mueller, Dr. Emily O’Hara, Candace Jane Opper, Jenny Pritchett, Ramona, Georgina Reskala, Rita, Sofía Roncero, Rosalie, Sally, Sarah, Hanna Schaer, Carly Schmitt, Laurie Schram, Bérénice Staiger, Donna Szoke, Alyson Thomas, Corrie Thompson, Jenny Weir, Caprice White, Amanda Wood, Shiori Yajima / published on the occasion of the exhibition Labor: Motherhood & Art in 2020, University Art Museum at New Mexico State University, co-curated by Marisa Sage and Laurel Nakadate, which features the work of artists Tracey Baran, María Berrío, Patty Chang, Lenka Clayton, Amy Cutler, Joey Fauerso, Tierney Gearon, Kate Gilmore, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Las Hermanas Iglesias, Mary Kelly, Justine Kurland, Marilyn Minter, Laurel Nakadate, Hương Ngô & Hồng- Ân Trương, Yoko Ono, Catherine Opie, Laurie Simmons, Wendy Red Star, and Mickalene Thomas.
Image credits/ Sara McNeilly Ammon / ARIM / NMSU Press Images: María Berrío, Virgin & Child I, mixed media on canvas, 60 x 40, 2014. Image Courtesy of Anna Getty and Scott Oster
