The first bold crocuses may find their tender heads bent by the weight of March snow, but promise still lingers in the warming earth. The courage to raise one’s head is always accompanied by the risk of defeat. We must strive to overcome trepidation that may hold us back, be courageous when there are storm clouds on the horizon, set our faces to the wind and plant our roots in the ground. Life demands defiance. Boldness may not always be rewarded, but hesitation kills inevitably. Albert Einstein said, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

Felicia Rice founded Moving Parts Press in 1977. Since then she has collaborated with countless artists to produce books that explore the line between art, the written page and traditional bookmaking, and digital technology. Presently Rice is working with US Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera on a book titled Border Bus. To create this, and other books, Rice uses a letterpress system and a photo polymer plate maker on which she can create relief surface images from digital negatives. Her collaborative work incorporates sight, sound, touch, the written word, projected images, and a grand scale to produce an immersive book experience.

Jenny Marketou grew up in Athens, Greece. Her life and career are impossible to distill into a meaningful paragraph as the scope and variety of her work is so vast. She is an art educator, a writer, a creator, a collaborator, and more. Marketou’s work has touched on the topic of art in response to conflict. She has collaborated with arts organizations and individual artists to produce a prodigious body of work. She explores the refugee community, as well as other conflicts through multimedia including installations, roundtable discussions, and organized spaces for knowledge sharing. Marketou feels it her responsibility as an artist to engage with social and political topics facing the world today.

Additional interviews include: Alison Jackson, Neil Goldberg, Declan Clarke, Andreja Kuluncic, and George H. Waterman, III

We can derive courage from literature. What are you reading for fortitude? Add your titles to our reading list here. Felicia Rice is reading Gilead by Marilynne Robinson while user Diane turns to The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien.

Air SEA Foundation Netherlands is accepting applications for a three month funded residency. Artists have the opportunity to further their career development by means of a generous list of funded resources including accomodation. Participants are responsible for travel and personal expenses as well as some fees that could be associated with an exhibition. Deadline for submissions is March 14.

Reach out into the clouds whatever the forecast. Be the first bold blossom of late winter, bearing the risk of disaster in order to pursue the possibility of triumph.

Here, as ever, are the interview archives and resources. Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android please click here.

Sincerely,

Brainard


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