WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.934 align:middle line:90% [MUSIC PLAYING] 00:00:02.934 --> 00:00:13.700 align:middle line:90% 00:00:13.700 --> 00:00:15.030 align:middle line:90% Thank you all for being here. 00:00:15.030 --> 00:00:15.870 align:middle line:90% Good to see you. 00:00:15.870 --> 00:00:17.090 align:middle line:90% My name is Rebecca Trawick. 00:00:17.090 --> 00:00:19.717 align:middle line:84% And my pronouns are she/her/hers. 00:00:19.717 --> 00:00:21.800 align:middle line:84% I'm the director and curator of the Wignall Museum 00:00:21.800 --> 00:00:24.980 align:middle line:84% of Contemporary Art, a teaching museum located 00:00:24.980 --> 00:00:28.370 align:middle line:84% on the Rancho Cucamonga campus of 性视界. 00:00:28.370 --> 00:00:30.740 align:middle line:84% Thank you for joining us for today's program, 00:00:30.740 --> 00:00:34.430 align:middle line:84% featuring Yvette Pino, presented as part of the Collective Care 00:00:34.430 --> 00:00:38.390 align:middle line:84% series and in collaboration with the Faculty Success Center. 00:00:38.390 --> 00:00:40.880 align:middle line:84% Collective Care is an ongoing collaborative series 00:00:40.880 --> 00:00:42.770 align:middle line:84% of programs developed by the Center 00:00:42.770 --> 00:00:46.520 align:middle line:84% for Culture and Social Justice or CCSJ and the Wignall 00:00:46.520 --> 00:00:48.930 align:middle line:90% Museum of Contemporary Art. 00:00:48.930 --> 00:00:50.360 align:middle line:84% Collective Care programs are often 00:00:50.360 --> 00:00:53.270 align:middle line:84% organized in concert with fellow student service areas 00:00:53.270 --> 00:00:55.040 align:middle line:90% on campus. 00:00:55.040 --> 00:00:58.370 align:middle line:84% Collective Care brings together scholars, activists, artists, 00:00:58.370 --> 00:01:01.670 align:middle line:84% and community experts to explore contemporary issues that 00:01:01.670 --> 00:01:04.542 align:middle line:84% affect 性视界 students' lives. 00:01:04.542 --> 00:01:06.000 align:middle line:84% So with the Collective Care series, 00:01:06.000 --> 00:01:08.580 align:middle line:84% we hope to foster a sense of belonging, strength 00:01:08.580 --> 00:01:11.550 align:middle line:84% and identities, challenge stigmas, and continue 00:01:11.550 --> 00:01:14.220 align:middle line:84% to commit to being lifelong learners and advocates 00:01:14.220 --> 00:01:16.380 align:middle line:90% for a socially-just world. 00:01:16.380 --> 00:01:18.900 align:middle line:84% Further, today's program is part of a series of programs 00:01:18.900 --> 00:01:21.180 align:middle line:84% presented in honor of Veterans Appreciation 00:01:21.180 --> 00:01:23.310 align:middle line:90% Week at 性视界. 00:01:23.310 --> 00:01:26.560 align:middle line:84% A special shout out to veterans who are with us today, 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:27.750 align:middle line:90% including Yvette. 00:01:27.750 --> 00:01:30.460 align:middle line:84% On behalf of all the areas represented here today, 00:01:30.460 --> 00:01:32.980 align:middle line:90% we thank you for your service. 00:01:32.980 --> 00:01:35.640 align:middle line:84% Next, I'd like to introduce Faculty Success Center 00:01:35.640 --> 00:01:38.730 align:middle line:84% facilitator Cindy Walker, who will share our lab 00:01:38.730 --> 00:01:41.910 align:middle line:84% acknowledgment and share a bit about the short faculty-only 00:01:41.910 --> 00:01:45.750 align:middle line:84% discussion immediately following Yvette's presentation. 00:01:45.750 --> 00:01:46.470 align:middle line:90% Cindy/ 00:01:46.470 --> 00:01:49.470 align:middle line:90% Thank you, Becca. 00:01:49.470 --> 00:01:53.010 align:middle line:84% With respect and honor for the lands that we gather on 00:01:53.010 --> 00:01:56.460 align:middle line:84% and the leaders before us, we acknowledge the Gabrielle Union 00:01:56.460 --> 00:01:58.740 align:middle line:84% Tongva peoples, the original stewards 00:01:58.740 --> 00:02:00.990 align:middle line:84% of the sacred and unceded homelands. 00:02:00.990 --> 00:02:05.340 align:middle line:84% The Tongva people's history, languages, cultural traditions, 00:02:05.340 --> 00:02:08.160 align:middle line:84% and legacy continue to shape this region, 00:02:08.160 --> 00:02:10.380 align:middle line:84% and we recognize their continuing presence 00:02:10.380 --> 00:02:12.000 align:middle line:90% in their homelands. 00:02:12.000 --> 00:02:13.630 align:middle line:84% In the spirit of truth and equity, 00:02:13.630 --> 00:02:15.480 align:middle line:84% 性视界 commits to uplifting 00:02:15.480 --> 00:02:17.880 align:middle line:84% the voices of Indigenous peoples, 00:02:17.880 --> 00:02:20.070 align:middle line:84% building an inclusive and equitable 00:02:20.070 --> 00:02:23.880 align:middle line:84% educational environment, and decolonizing the institution. 00:02:23.880 --> 00:02:27.270 align:middle line:84% We also encourage members of the 性视界 community 00:02:27.270 --> 00:02:29.190 align:middle line:84% to learn about the land they reside on 00:02:29.190 --> 00:02:32.160 align:middle line:84% and the original caretakers and advocate 00:02:32.160 --> 00:02:34.890 align:middle line:84% for culturally-responsive action. 00:02:34.890 --> 00:02:38.880 align:middle line:84% Briefly here, I will introduce Yvette 00:02:38.880 --> 00:02:41.160 align:middle line:84% but wanted to let you know that she'll be presenting 00:02:41.160 --> 00:02:42.550 align:middle line:90% for about 50 minutes. 00:02:42.550 --> 00:02:46.810 align:middle line:84% And as time allows, we can also do some Q&A. 00:02:46.810 --> 00:02:49.890 align:middle line:84% So if you do have questions, feel free to jot them down. 00:02:49.890 --> 00:02:53.970 align:middle line:84% You can include them in the chat now, and we will get to as many 00:02:53.970 --> 00:02:57.040 align:middle line:84% as we possibly can during that time. 00:02:57.040 --> 00:02:59.640 align:middle line:84% So please, without further ado, allow 00:02:59.640 --> 00:03:04.220 align:middle line:84% me to introduce our esteemed guest, Yvette M. Pino. 00:03:04.220 --> 00:03:06.770 align:middle line:84% Motivated by honest conversations and a belief 00:03:06.770 --> 00:03:09.200 align:middle line:84% that everyone and everything has a story, 00:03:09.200 --> 00:03:11.930 align:middle line:84% Yvette M. Pino harnesses her artistic ability 00:03:11.930 --> 00:03:13.970 align:middle line:90% to interpret these narratives. 00:03:13.970 --> 00:03:18.440 align:middle line:84% While deployed to Iraq in 2003 with the 101st Airborne 00:03:18.440 --> 00:03:21.320 align:middle line:84% Division, she was tasked to paint murals 00:03:21.320 --> 00:03:24.590 align:middle line:84% and was coined the unofficial division artist. 00:03:24.590 --> 00:03:26.330 align:middle line:84% Painting in the field often encourage 00:03:26.330 --> 00:03:28.760 align:middle line:84% discussions between artist and audience 00:03:28.760 --> 00:03:31.940 align:middle line:84% and would fundamentally influence Ms. Pino's creation 00:03:31.940 --> 00:03:34.670 align:middle line:90% of the Veteran Print Project. 00:03:34.670 --> 00:03:37.880 align:middle line:84% Over the last 10 plus years, the Veteran Print Project 00:03:37.880 --> 00:03:39.800 align:middle line:84% has paired more than 100 veterans 00:03:39.800 --> 00:03:42.530 align:middle line:84% with artists to exchange a dialogue that 00:03:42.530 --> 00:03:44.330 align:middle line:84% resulted in an addition of prints 00:03:44.330 --> 00:03:46.650 align:middle line:90% based on the veterans' story. 00:03:46.650 --> 00:03:48.530 align:middle line:84% The artwork has exhibited nationally 00:03:48.530 --> 00:03:53.040 align:middle line:84% and has been recognized by NPR's All Things Considered 00:03:53.040 --> 00:03:55.200 align:middle line:84% and has been licensed by the ABC Studios 00:03:55.200 --> 00:03:58.166 align:middle line:84% for use in television stage sets. 00:03:58.166 --> 00:04:00.110 align:middle line:84% Pino is research artist who served 00:04:00.110 --> 00:04:02.270 align:middle line:84% in the military for over 12 years. 00:04:02.270 --> 00:04:05.150 align:middle line:84% This investigation of veteran as artist 00:04:05.150 --> 00:04:08.150 align:middle line:84% has revealed the impact of that experience 00:04:08.150 --> 00:04:12.650 align:middle line:84% on the artist over its gleaned and extensive record 00:04:12.650 --> 00:04:15.390 align:middle line:84% of veterans, who not only create powerful bodies of work when 00:04:15.390 --> 00:04:18.320 align:middle line:84% returning home but who also built 00:04:18.320 --> 00:04:20.510 align:middle line:84% the foundations of monumental art programs 00:04:20.510 --> 00:04:24.080 align:middle line:84% across the United States and globally. 00:04:24.080 --> 00:04:26.540 align:middle line:84% Yvette M. Pino earned her BFA from the University 00:04:26.540 --> 00:04:29.420 align:middle line:84% of Wisconsin Madison and received a certificate 00:04:29.420 --> 00:04:32.690 align:middle line:84% in museum studies from Northwestern University. 00:04:32.690 --> 00:04:35.750 align:middle line:84% She was a National Endowment for the Humanities Curatorial 00:04:35.750 --> 00:04:40.940 align:middle line:84% Fellow for the 2019 National Veterans Art Museum Triennial 00:04:40.940 --> 00:04:43.060 align:middle line:90% and Veteran Arts Summit. 00:04:43.060 --> 00:04:47.690 align:middle line:84% Pino served on the Madison Arts Commission from 2013 to 2021 00:04:47.690 --> 00:04:50.690 align:middle line:84% and is the curator of veteran art for the Wisconsin Veterans 00:04:50.690 --> 00:04:53.900 align:middle line:84% Museum in Madison, Wisconsin, where she recently 00:04:53.900 --> 00:04:56.480 align:middle line:84% curated artwork with the award-winning, historic 00:04:56.480 --> 00:04:59.000 align:middle line:84% renovation of the Milwaukee Soldiers Home 00:04:59.000 --> 00:05:01.380 align:middle line:90% by the Alexander Company. 00:05:01.380 --> 00:05:03.940 align:middle line:84% So please join me in giving a warm virtual welcome 00:05:03.940 --> 00:05:06.870 align:middle line:90% to Yvette Pino. 00:05:06.870 --> 00:05:09.600 align:middle line:84% Thank you so much, Rebecca, for that. 00:05:09.600 --> 00:05:12.450 align:middle line:84% I'm going to share my screen with you all as 00:05:12.450 --> 00:05:14.950 align:middle line:90% I start this presentation. 00:05:14.950 --> 00:05:18.990 align:middle line:90% 00:05:18.990 --> 00:05:20.700 align:middle line:90% So good afternoon. 00:05:20.700 --> 00:05:23.330 align:middle line:84% Thank you, everybody, for being with us today. 00:05:23.330 --> 00:05:24.950 align:middle line:84% And thank you, Rebecca, of course, 00:05:24.950 --> 00:05:28.310 align:middle line:84% for that wonderful introduction and for inviting me 00:05:28.310 --> 00:05:30.680 align:middle line:90% to speak with all of you today. 00:05:30.680 --> 00:05:32.660 align:middle line:84% Thank you, Roman, for the behind-the-scenes 00:05:32.660 --> 00:05:34.310 align:middle line:90% administrative support. 00:05:34.310 --> 00:05:36.800 align:middle line:84% And of course, thank you to 性视界 00:05:36.800 --> 00:05:41.010 align:middle line:84% for welcoming me to speak with all of you today. 00:05:41.010 --> 00:05:43.790 align:middle line:84% I mentioned in my social media post, 00:05:43.790 --> 00:05:45.230 align:middle line:84% telling everybody about this show, 00:05:45.230 --> 00:05:48.170 align:middle line:84% that I'm grateful for all of these recent projects 00:05:48.170 --> 00:05:52.560 align:middle line:84% that I've had on the West Coast over the last few years. 00:05:52.560 --> 00:05:55.100 align:middle line:84% I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 00:05:55.100 --> 00:05:59.600 align:middle line:84% And every time I feel like I'm getting closer and closer 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:03.170 align:middle line:84% to the West Coast, I have a nostalgia for being home. 00:06:03.170 --> 00:06:05.090 align:middle line:90% So it gets me a little homesick. 00:06:05.090 --> 00:06:08.150 align:middle line:84% So thank you for this invitation. 00:06:08.150 --> 00:06:10.760 align:middle line:84% This new world of digital presentations 00:06:10.760 --> 00:06:13.520 align:middle line:84% opens up new opportunities for artists 00:06:13.520 --> 00:06:16.550 align:middle line:84% to reach a broader audience and for institutions 00:06:16.550 --> 00:06:19.040 align:middle line:84% to welcome visiting artists, like myself, 00:06:19.040 --> 00:06:23.600 align:middle line:84% without the extra financial barriers of travel expenses 00:06:23.600 --> 00:06:26.300 align:middle line:84% and the drama of scheduling conflicts. 00:06:26.300 --> 00:06:30.240 align:middle line:84% So I'm really excited to be a privilege-- 00:06:30.240 --> 00:06:33.860 align:middle line:84% I'm really excited to be here as not only a participant, 00:06:33.860 --> 00:06:35.900 align:middle line:84% as a visiting artist in this platform, 00:06:35.900 --> 00:06:38.450 align:middle line:84% but I get to host similar events like this 00:06:38.450 --> 00:06:41.670 align:middle line:84% in the other creative roles that I'm in. 00:06:41.670 --> 00:06:45.020 align:middle line:84% So I appreciate the value of this platform. 00:06:45.020 --> 00:06:47.570 align:middle line:84% Now, today, I know I have a lot of time to talk to you, 00:06:47.570 --> 00:06:51.230 align:middle line:84% but I also just how quickly that time will speed by. 00:06:51.230 --> 00:06:54.810 align:middle line:84% So I'm going dive right in and get started. 00:06:54.810 --> 00:06:57.320 align:middle line:84% As mentioned, my name is Yvette M. Pino. 00:06:57.320 --> 00:06:59.420 align:middle line:90% My pronouns are she/her/hers. 00:06:59.420 --> 00:07:03.080 align:middle line:84% I'm an army veteran, an artist, and a printmaker. 00:07:03.080 --> 00:07:04.520 align:middle line:90% I'm also a curator. 00:07:04.520 --> 00:07:06.680 align:middle line:84% And today, I'm really excited because I'll 00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:11.270 align:middle line:84% be discussing my work on all of those fronts, work 00:07:11.270 --> 00:07:13.280 align:middle line:90% like the Veteran Print Project. 00:07:13.280 --> 00:07:17.420 align:middle line:84% And the Veteran Print Project, in the simplest terms, is this. 00:07:17.420 --> 00:07:20.780 align:middle line:84% A veteran meets an artist, a conversation happens, 00:07:20.780 --> 00:07:21.890 align:middle line:90% a print is made. 00:07:21.890 --> 00:07:24.350 align:middle line:84% We'll be discussing the how to all 00:07:24.350 --> 00:07:26.750 align:middle line:84% of that throughout the artist talk today. 00:07:26.750 --> 00:07:29.960 align:middle line:84% I'll also be able to discuss some of my responsibilities 00:07:29.960 --> 00:07:32.780 align:middle line:84% that I've had working as the Curator of Veteran 00:07:32.780 --> 00:07:35.900 align:middle line:84% Art at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. 00:07:35.900 --> 00:07:38.150 align:middle line:84% And last but certainly not least, I'm 00:07:38.150 --> 00:07:39.710 align:middle line:84% going to be able to share elements 00:07:39.710 --> 00:07:42.680 align:middle line:84% of my own personal body of artwork, which is really 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:45.440 align:middle line:84% exciting because as a curator and with the Veteran Print 00:07:45.440 --> 00:07:47.730 align:middle line:84% Project, I don't always get a chance to do that. 00:07:47.730 --> 00:07:51.770 align:middle line:84% So I get to share some of my own artwork with you today. 00:07:51.770 --> 00:07:54.280 align:middle line:84% So first, a little bit of background. 00:07:54.280 --> 00:07:56.890 align:middle line:84% I was in the United States Army, and I 00:07:56.890 --> 00:07:59.500 align:middle line:84% served with the 101st Airborne Division. 00:07:59.500 --> 00:08:03.400 align:middle line:84% I deployed twice to Iraq, once in '03, '04 and again 00:08:03.400 --> 00:08:05.530 align:middle line:90% in '05, '06. 00:08:05.530 --> 00:08:08.620 align:middle line:84% And I was really lucky because while I was deployed, 00:08:08.620 --> 00:08:10.300 align:middle line:90% I got to paint murals. 00:08:10.300 --> 00:08:12.760 align:middle line:84% Now, there's a much longer story to how 00:08:12.760 --> 00:08:15.910 align:middle line:84% I became the unofficial division artist 00:08:15.910 --> 00:08:17.260 align:middle line:90% and how I painted these murals. 00:08:17.260 --> 00:08:20.500 align:middle line:84% But for the sake of time today, really, what you need to know 00:08:20.500 --> 00:08:22.480 align:middle line:84% is that I served in the Army, and I 00:08:22.480 --> 00:08:27.040 align:middle line:84% got to paint while I was overseas in my deployment. 00:08:27.040 --> 00:08:29.440 align:middle line:84% When I say I painted murals, really, I 00:08:29.440 --> 00:08:31.720 align:middle line:84% was doing these large-scale reproductions 00:08:31.720 --> 00:08:33.760 align:middle line:84% of unit crests or the division patch, 00:08:33.760 --> 00:08:36.010 align:middle line:84% like you see here on these giant helipads. 00:08:36.010 --> 00:08:40.549 align:middle line:84% These are 30-foot by 60-foot helipads into Iraq. 00:08:40.549 --> 00:08:42.620 align:middle line:90% I had to do four of those. 00:08:42.620 --> 00:08:46.120 align:middle line:84% So really, again, what you need to know is I was in the Army, 00:08:46.120 --> 00:08:48.580 align:middle line:84% and I got to paint murals while I was in the Army. 00:08:48.580 --> 00:08:50.800 align:middle line:84% And now, I'm going to get all curatorial with you, 00:08:50.800 --> 00:08:52.900 align:middle line:84% a little graphic designey because I'm going 00:08:52.900 --> 00:08:54.310 align:middle line:90% to use the rule of thirds. 00:08:54.310 --> 00:08:59.060 align:middle line:84% And I'm going to break down how this integral moment in time, 00:08:59.060 --> 00:09:04.480 align:middle line:84% how me painting murals in Iraq was integral 00:09:04.480 --> 00:09:07.780 align:middle line:90% of my future artistic career. 00:09:07.780 --> 00:09:10.420 align:middle line:84% Number one, painting murals in the Army 00:09:10.420 --> 00:09:13.240 align:middle line:84% laid the groundwork for what would become the Veteran Print 00:09:13.240 --> 00:09:13.817 align:middle line:90% Project. 00:09:13.817 --> 00:09:16.150 align:middle line:84% Like I said, you're going to be hearing a lot about this 00:09:16.150 --> 00:09:17.620 align:middle line:90% throughout this talk. 00:09:17.620 --> 00:09:21.760 align:middle line:84% Number two, painting murals in Iraq inspired 00:09:21.760 --> 00:09:24.590 align:middle line:84% my future research, the research I do today, 00:09:24.590 --> 00:09:28.120 align:middle line:84% which is examining the artists in the field, what do we, 00:09:28.120 --> 00:09:32.530 align:middle line:84% artists, do when we are in a military deployment? 00:09:32.530 --> 00:09:35.590 align:middle line:84% And three, painting murals in Iraq 00:09:35.590 --> 00:09:37.870 align:middle line:84% cultivated the innovative techniques 00:09:37.870 --> 00:09:41.770 align:middle line:84% and the mental endurance that I would need as an artist working 00:09:41.770 --> 00:09:44.770 align:middle line:90% with minimal supplies and time. 00:09:44.770 --> 00:09:47.050 align:middle line:84% So how all of this happened is just 00:09:47.050 --> 00:09:49.330 align:middle line:90% important as what it revealed. 00:09:49.330 --> 00:09:52.180 align:middle line:84% I was unaware of it at the time, but most people 00:09:52.180 --> 00:09:54.430 align:middle line:84% who paint or work in the creative sector know. 00:09:54.430 --> 00:09:58.735 align:middle line:84% People just love to watch other people make art, don't they? 00:09:58.735 --> 00:10:01.630 align:middle line:84% They love to watch us and the creative process. 00:10:01.630 --> 00:10:06.250 align:middle line:84% As you can see, in 3, 2, 1, oh, the audience applause. 00:10:06.250 --> 00:10:10.030 align:middle line:84% Yes, we made a print using a steamroller as a giant printing 00:10:10.030 --> 00:10:13.300 align:middle line:84% press because people love to watch the process 00:10:13.300 --> 00:10:14.990 align:middle line:90% and ask questions. 00:10:14.990 --> 00:10:17.680 align:middle line:84% And as artists, whether it comes naturally 00:10:17.680 --> 00:10:20.020 align:middle line:84% or whether we have to adapt, we have 00:10:20.020 --> 00:10:24.370 align:middle line:84% to learn to communicate what we are doing in real time 00:10:24.370 --> 00:10:27.160 align:middle line:84% while people are watching because they're 00:10:27.160 --> 00:10:28.840 align:middle line:90% mesmerized by what we do. 00:10:28.840 --> 00:10:30.130 align:middle line:90% And they want to know more. 00:10:30.130 --> 00:10:31.570 align:middle line:90% They want to know how. 00:10:31.570 --> 00:10:34.030 align:middle line:84% And if you can embrace that, then you 00:10:34.030 --> 00:10:36.730 align:middle line:84% can understand that there's a bigger opportunity 00:10:36.730 --> 00:10:40.510 align:middle line:84% for conversations that are going to occur organically 00:10:40.510 --> 00:10:43.910 align:middle line:84% through that type of interaction. 00:10:43.910 --> 00:10:47.002 align:middle line:84% For example, imagine this, I'm in Kuwait. 00:10:47.002 --> 00:10:48.710 align:middle line:84% You don't really have to imagine too hard 00:10:48.710 --> 00:10:50.120 align:middle line:90% because here's a picture of it. 00:10:50.120 --> 00:10:51.780 align:middle line:90% I'm in Kuwait. 00:10:51.780 --> 00:10:54.920 align:middle line:84% It's somewhere between 100 and 115 degrees. 00:10:54.920 --> 00:10:58.280 align:middle line:84% We, the soldiers, are usually, not in this picture, 00:10:58.280 --> 00:11:01.010 align:middle line:84% but we're usually wearing our full battle rattle, which 00:11:01.010 --> 00:11:03.860 align:middle line:84% means our flak vest, our Kevlar, our MOPP 00:11:03.860 --> 00:11:07.730 align:middle line:84% gear, which is our chemical protection suit, and gas mask. 00:11:07.730 --> 00:11:10.190 align:middle line:84% Remember, it's 2003, we still had 00:11:10.190 --> 00:11:12.350 align:middle line:84% to don our mask when the alarm would sound. 00:11:12.350 --> 00:11:14.480 align:middle line:84% All of that, you can see, is in that little pouch 00:11:14.480 --> 00:11:15.800 align:middle line:90% on the back of my thigh there. 00:11:15.800 --> 00:11:17.840 align:middle line:84% All of that was packed and on our person. 00:11:17.840 --> 00:11:20.660 align:middle line:84% And I'm standing in front of this concrete barrier, 00:11:20.660 --> 00:11:22.610 align:middle line:84% otherwise known as a Jersey barrier, 00:11:22.610 --> 00:11:25.280 align:middle line:84% those things you see on highway road construction. 00:11:25.280 --> 00:11:28.460 align:middle line:84% And I'm attempting to apply paint to this baking block, 00:11:28.460 --> 00:11:33.110 align:middle line:84% well in conversation with two guys I've never met before. 00:11:33.110 --> 00:11:35.570 align:middle line:84% And during this exchange, I learned 00:11:35.570 --> 00:11:37.640 align:middle line:84% who these guys are, what unit were they with, 00:11:37.640 --> 00:11:40.880 align:middle line:84% what was their job, what are their likes, what 00:11:40.880 --> 00:11:43.400 align:middle line:84% are their dislikes, what music do they listen to? 00:11:43.400 --> 00:11:44.840 align:middle line:90% You get the idea, right? 00:11:44.840 --> 00:11:47.030 align:middle line:90% I'm getting to know these guys. 00:11:47.030 --> 00:11:49.850 align:middle line:84% And they're super excited when I tell them, sure, 00:11:49.850 --> 00:11:51.780 align:middle line:84% I'll make these two figures in this painting. 00:11:51.780 --> 00:11:52.572 align:middle line:90% I'll make them you. 00:11:52.572 --> 00:11:54.110 align:middle line:90% I'll personalize it to you. 00:11:54.110 --> 00:11:56.180 align:middle line:84% Just spell your name out on a piece of paper 00:11:56.180 --> 00:11:59.660 align:middle line:84% so that I paint it correctly on this block. 00:11:59.660 --> 00:12:02.780 align:middle line:84% Now, this was not one of my finest piece of artworks. 00:12:02.780 --> 00:12:04.700 align:middle line:84% As you can see in the picture, I did not 00:12:04.700 --> 00:12:08.610 align:middle line:84% use this and submit this in my portfolio for art school. 00:12:08.610 --> 00:12:11.570 align:middle line:84% But what I learned that day is that exchange with those two 00:12:11.570 --> 00:12:16.550 align:middle line:84% guys, I've never forgotten, that they 00:12:16.550 --> 00:12:19.040 align:middle line:84% took a few minutes of their precious times 00:12:19.040 --> 00:12:23.840 align:middle line:84% in the blazing sun to talk to me just days before-- 00:12:23.840 --> 00:12:26.000 align:middle line:84% this was literally just a few days 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:32.580 align:middle line:84% before we cross the border into Iraq to start the war in 2003. 00:12:32.580 --> 00:12:34.110 align:middle line:84% And in my defense of this painting, 00:12:34.110 --> 00:12:37.150 align:middle line:84% I had a half-inch size brush to paint that whole thing. 00:12:37.150 --> 00:12:40.440 align:middle line:84% So-- [CHUCKLES] I just-- the important part of this 00:12:40.440 --> 00:12:43.920 align:middle line:84% is that exchange between me and those guys. 00:12:43.920 --> 00:12:46.380 align:middle line:84% That interaction gave me something 00:12:46.380 --> 00:12:48.280 align:middle line:84% to talk about with everybody else that 00:12:48.280 --> 00:12:50.490 align:middle line:84% would come before me in those next few days 00:12:50.490 --> 00:12:51.840 align:middle line:90% while I was painting that mural. 00:12:51.840 --> 00:12:54.180 align:middle line:84% I was able to tell them who those people were 00:12:54.180 --> 00:12:55.080 align:middle line:90% in that painting. 00:12:55.080 --> 00:12:57.930 align:middle line:84% It wasn't just two random people from a history book. 00:12:57.930 --> 00:13:00.990 align:middle line:84% It wasn't anonymous faces on a wall with military subject 00:13:00.990 --> 00:13:01.500 align:middle line:90% matter. 00:13:01.500 --> 00:13:04.050 align:middle line:84% It was guys that you might be sitting across 00:13:04.050 --> 00:13:05.220 align:middle line:90% from at the chow hall. 00:13:05.220 --> 00:13:06.990 align:middle line:84% It was guys that you were going to be 00:13:06.990 --> 00:13:09.300 align:middle line:84% arm in arm, hand in hand with as we 00:13:09.300 --> 00:13:11.400 align:middle line:90% crossed the border into Iraq. 00:13:11.400 --> 00:13:14.580 align:middle line:84% And that moment also gave those two guys something 00:13:14.580 --> 00:13:17.580 align:middle line:84% to talk about on that last phone call home 00:13:17.580 --> 00:13:20.620 align:middle line:84% that they were able to make before we jumped. 00:13:20.620 --> 00:13:24.160 align:middle line:84% This moment right here is where I 00:13:24.160 --> 00:13:30.830 align:middle line:84% learned about the power of art as a catalyst for conversation. 00:13:30.830 --> 00:13:33.480 align:middle line:84% Now, moments like that happened not just once, 00:13:33.480 --> 00:13:36.530 align:middle line:84% not twice, but every single time I 00:13:36.530 --> 00:13:38.690 align:middle line:84% was able to draw and paint in the army, 00:13:38.690 --> 00:13:41.960 align:middle line:84% which fortunately, for me, was really quite often. 00:13:41.960 --> 00:13:43.650 align:middle line:90% I got to meet a lot of people. 00:13:43.650 --> 00:13:46.460 align:middle line:84% I was a cook in the army, so everybody has to eat. 00:13:46.460 --> 00:13:49.070 align:middle line:84% Between people come in and eat and me painting 00:13:49.070 --> 00:13:51.650 align:middle line:84% murals and people coming to watch me make art, 00:13:51.650 --> 00:13:54.350 align:middle line:84% I learned a lot about the people I was serving with. 00:13:54.350 --> 00:13:57.050 align:middle line:84% And they were learning a lot about me. 00:13:57.050 --> 00:13:59.810 align:middle line:84% And of course, they now knew that I 00:13:59.810 --> 00:14:01.100 align:middle line:90% could draw and paint, right? 00:14:01.100 --> 00:14:05.420 align:middle line:84% So often, I was asked to create a portrait of a fellow soldier 00:14:05.420 --> 00:14:07.200 align:middle line:90% in the field, which I did. 00:14:07.200 --> 00:14:09.345 align:middle line:84% Now, these portraits, I just drew recently. 00:14:09.345 --> 00:14:10.970 align:middle line:84% All those portraits I did in the field, 00:14:10.970 --> 00:14:12.650 align:middle line:84% I gave to the people that asked me to do them, 00:14:12.650 --> 00:14:14.192 align:middle line:84% so I don't have any pictures of that. 00:14:14.192 --> 00:14:16.970 align:middle line:84% But I was able to draw portraits. 00:14:16.970 --> 00:14:20.840 align:middle line:84% And while I was doing that, what I didn't realize then 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:24.800 align:middle line:84% was that was also guiding me toward the future research 00:14:24.800 --> 00:14:26.420 align:middle line:90% that I would be doing right now. 00:14:26.420 --> 00:14:28.040 align:middle line:84% And that's considering what artists 00:14:28.040 --> 00:14:29.330 align:middle line:90% do while they're in the field. 00:14:29.330 --> 00:14:32.600 align:middle line:84% And unsurprisingly, portrait illustration 00:14:32.600 --> 00:14:35.840 align:middle line:84% goes all the way back through every generation 00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:38.210 align:middle line:90% of military service. 00:14:38.210 --> 00:14:40.790 align:middle line:84% One of the earliest accounts I read about this 00:14:40.790 --> 00:14:42.710 align:middle line:90% was written by Pliny the Elder. 00:14:42.710 --> 00:14:45.260 align:middle line:84% Pliny the Elder was a Roman Naval commander. 00:14:45.260 --> 00:14:47.480 align:middle line:84% He was one of the first art historians, 00:14:47.480 --> 00:14:49.250 align:middle line:84% one of the first military historians. 00:14:49.250 --> 00:14:50.840 align:middle line:84% And I call him one of the first, it's 00:14:50.840 --> 00:14:53.480 align:middle line:84% because his writings have existed and haven't been 00:14:53.480 --> 00:14:54.740 align:middle line:90% destroyed by the test of time. 00:14:54.740 --> 00:14:57.800 align:middle line:84% But he has a conversation in his writing 00:14:57.800 --> 00:14:59.630 align:middle line:90% about the origins of painting. 00:14:59.630 --> 00:15:02.840 align:middle line:84% He started a debate of where painting really came from. 00:15:02.840 --> 00:15:05.720 align:middle line:84% And he tells the story about a girl in Corinth. 00:15:05.720 --> 00:15:07.370 align:middle line:90% She's the daughter of Butades. 00:15:07.370 --> 00:15:10.290 align:middle line:84% And her lover is going off to battle the next day, 00:15:10.290 --> 00:15:12.830 align:middle line:84% and so she creates this silhouette portrait of him 00:15:12.830 --> 00:15:15.650 align:middle line:84% as a keepsake before he heads off to battle. 00:15:15.650 --> 00:15:18.920 align:middle line:84% And her father was a ceramicist, and he 00:15:18.920 --> 00:15:21.260 align:middle line:84% created, from that silhouette, a clay 00:15:21.260 --> 00:15:24.050 align:middle line:84% tile that he put on the roofing tiles that he was making. 00:15:24.050 --> 00:15:26.270 align:middle line:84% And that's kind of that first indicator there, 00:15:26.270 --> 00:15:28.670 align:middle line:84% yellow ribbon, right, something to identify 00:15:28.670 --> 00:15:32.630 align:middle line:84% that this household has somebody that's going off to battle. 00:15:32.630 --> 00:15:37.070 align:middle line:84% And if you're not familiar what light silhouette portrait is, 00:15:37.070 --> 00:15:41.030 align:middle line:84% you can see, we did this for a drink-and-draw event 00:15:41.030 --> 00:15:44.210 align:middle line:84% at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum on Valentine's Day. 00:15:44.210 --> 00:15:47.300 align:middle line:84% I had people come and create silhouettes to remember me by. 00:15:47.300 --> 00:15:49.520 align:middle line:84% But in order to do this, you need a light source. 00:15:49.520 --> 00:15:51.020 align:middle line:84% Often, it would be, back in the day, 00:15:51.020 --> 00:15:52.670 align:middle line:84% it would be a candle or the sunlight. 00:15:52.670 --> 00:15:54.440 align:middle line:84% And you have somebody sitting in profile, 00:15:54.440 --> 00:15:57.380 align:middle line:84% and it projects that profile onto the surface 00:15:57.380 --> 00:15:58.220 align:middle line:90% that you're drawing. 00:15:58.220 --> 00:16:00.110 align:middle line:84% And you outline it, and then you fill it in. 00:16:00.110 --> 00:16:03.230 align:middle line:84% And now, you have this two-dimensional essence 00:16:03.230 --> 00:16:08.810 align:middle line:84% of somebody's profile, or in the case of the girl in Corinth, 00:16:08.810 --> 00:16:10.880 align:middle line:84% her father three dimensionalizes it 00:16:10.880 --> 00:16:14.030 align:middle line:84% by making it into a roofing tile. 00:16:14.030 --> 00:16:17.030 align:middle line:84% What I'm trying to get to-- the point is 00:16:17.030 --> 00:16:20.150 align:middle line:84% that we create these keepsakes, portraits 00:16:20.150 --> 00:16:21.680 align:middle line:90% create these keepsakes. 00:16:21.680 --> 00:16:26.480 align:middle line:84% In World War II, they call them snaps, like snapshots. 00:16:26.480 --> 00:16:29.270 align:middle line:84% Cameras haven't always been available or allowed. 00:16:29.270 --> 00:16:32.570 align:middle line:84% But I think there's a stronger sense to the handmade. 00:16:32.570 --> 00:16:34.130 align:middle line:90% This is from Harold Schmidt. 00:16:34.130 --> 00:16:37.760 align:middle line:84% I curated an exhibit of his in 2019 at the Wisconsin Veterans 00:16:37.760 --> 00:16:38.283 align:middle line:90% Museum. 00:16:38.283 --> 00:16:39.950 align:middle line:84% And he actually was getting commissioned 00:16:39.950 --> 00:16:43.010 align:middle line:90% to create these portraits. 00:16:43.010 --> 00:16:45.980 align:middle line:84% Most of them were-- he would have his soldiers sit and pose 00:16:45.980 --> 00:16:47.930 align:middle line:84% for a portrait, or they would bring him 00:16:47.930 --> 00:16:50.060 align:middle line:84% a little photograph of their loved one, 00:16:50.060 --> 00:16:51.560 align:middle line:84% of their sweetheart that they wanted 00:16:51.560 --> 00:16:53.570 align:middle line:90% him to make a handmade drawing. 00:16:53.570 --> 00:16:56.270 align:middle line:84% And there's nothing against the artistic integrity 00:16:56.270 --> 00:16:59.360 align:middle line:84% of the photograph or the photographer, 00:16:59.360 --> 00:17:02.300 align:middle line:84% but people just seem to be much more-- 00:17:02.300 --> 00:17:05.000 align:middle line:84% there's an intimacy behind a hand-drawn, right? 00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:08.494 align:middle line:84% There's a vulnerability to sitting for a portrait. 00:17:08.494 --> 00:17:12.520 align:middle line:90% 00:17:12.520 --> 00:17:15.640 align:middle line:84% Cameras haven't always been available either or accessible 00:17:15.640 --> 00:17:16.690 align:middle line:90% or even allowed. 00:17:16.690 --> 00:17:20.530 align:middle line:84% So think about the vulnerability that encourages 00:17:20.530 --> 00:17:23.650 align:middle line:84% and more intimate exchange and connectivity. 00:17:23.650 --> 00:17:26.020 align:middle line:84% Somebody is intentionally staring at you 00:17:26.020 --> 00:17:28.720 align:middle line:90% for a long period of time. 00:17:28.720 --> 00:17:33.460 align:middle line:84% Examining drawings by Wisconsin World War II veteran Santos 00:17:33.460 --> 00:17:37.330 align:middle line:84% Zingale, I started exploring the underlying sentiment 00:17:37.330 --> 00:17:40.720 align:middle line:84% behind the gaze of the subject toward the artist. 00:17:40.720 --> 00:17:44.260 align:middle line:84% How is the person being depicted looking back at you, right? 00:17:44.260 --> 00:17:46.900 align:middle line:84% There's a myriad of storytelling that's 00:17:46.900 --> 00:17:51.230 align:middle line:84% found simply by studying the eyesight and the body language. 00:17:51.230 --> 00:17:53.740 align:middle line:84% And you can start to identify the different levels 00:17:53.740 --> 00:17:55.090 align:middle line:90% of vulnerability. 00:17:55.090 --> 00:17:58.030 align:middle line:84% There's a level of vulnerability in each one of these people 00:17:58.030 --> 00:17:59.710 align:middle line:90% that the artist is depicting. 00:17:59.710 --> 00:18:01.660 align:middle line:84% Sometimes, they're uncomfortable. 00:18:01.660 --> 00:18:03.070 align:middle line:90% They don't like to be stared at. 00:18:03.070 --> 00:18:06.250 align:middle line:84% Sometimes, they're unaware that they're even being drawn. 00:18:06.250 --> 00:18:09.550 align:middle line:84% To unchecked fear, that like far off gaze, 00:18:09.550 --> 00:18:11.590 align:middle line:84% I see it in a lot of the drawings. 00:18:11.590 --> 00:18:13.270 align:middle line:84% I was drawing on my fellow soldiers. 00:18:13.270 --> 00:18:15.680 align:middle line:84% That looking off into the unknown, 00:18:15.680 --> 00:18:19.960 align:middle line:84% the fear of the unknown, what is tomorrow going to bring, 00:18:19.960 --> 00:18:21.790 align:middle line:90% so that's that unchecked fear. 00:18:21.790 --> 00:18:24.220 align:middle line:84% All the way to skirting the lines of narcissism, 00:18:24.220 --> 00:18:26.750 align:middle line:84% like the guy in the bottom right there. 00:18:26.750 --> 00:18:32.770 align:middle line:84% So that vulnerability of sitting for a portrait, that 00:18:32.770 --> 00:18:35.380 align:middle line:84% would become a very interesting part 00:18:35.380 --> 00:18:39.010 align:middle line:84% of the components of the Veteran Print Project, 00:18:39.010 --> 00:18:43.950 align:middle line:84% this exercise in trust, the trust 00:18:43.950 --> 00:18:47.430 align:middle line:90% between artists and subject. 00:18:47.430 --> 00:18:50.700 align:middle line:84% When I talk about trust with my participants of the Veteran 00:18:50.700 --> 00:18:54.000 align:middle line:84% Print Project, I tell the veterans 00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:57.360 align:middle line:84% that are participating, this is an exercise in trust 00:18:57.360 --> 00:18:59.880 align:middle line:84% because you have to trust that you are offering 00:18:59.880 --> 00:19:01.860 align:middle line:90% your story to another person. 00:19:01.860 --> 00:19:03.600 align:middle line:84% And they are going to listen to it. 00:19:03.600 --> 00:19:05.040 align:middle line:90% And they are going to absorb it. 00:19:05.040 --> 00:19:07.920 align:middle line:84% And they're going to translate it and visually depict it. 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:10.560 align:middle line:90% And that makes you vulnerable. 00:19:10.560 --> 00:19:12.940 align:middle line:84% You don't know what the end result is going to be. 00:19:12.940 --> 00:19:15.120 align:middle line:84% But you have to trust that that conversation is 00:19:15.120 --> 00:19:17.910 align:middle line:84% going to be meaningful, and it's going to be reciprocal. 00:19:17.910 --> 00:19:21.420 align:middle line:84% And so take the time, trust in the artist, trust 00:19:21.420 --> 00:19:24.090 align:middle line:84% in the process, see what might come out of it. 00:19:24.090 --> 00:19:27.090 align:middle line:84% When I'm talking to the artists of the Veteran Print Project, 00:19:27.090 --> 00:19:29.400 align:middle line:84% I tell them, this is an exercise in trust 00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:32.490 align:middle line:84% because you, as an artist, have to trust 00:19:32.490 --> 00:19:36.600 align:middle line:84% in your artistic capabilities, trust in your style, trust 00:19:36.600 --> 00:19:37.830 align:middle line:90% in what you do best. 00:19:37.830 --> 00:19:39.820 align:middle line:90% Don't change who you are. 00:19:39.820 --> 00:19:42.240 align:middle line:84% Don't change the style of your artwork 00:19:42.240 --> 00:19:45.450 align:middle line:84% to fit the person, the subject that you're depicting. 00:19:45.450 --> 00:19:48.540 align:middle line:84% Do what you do best, listen to the story, 00:19:48.540 --> 00:19:51.420 align:middle line:84% and hope that what you produce will 00:19:51.420 --> 00:19:53.010 align:middle line:90% be accepted by the veteran. 00:19:53.010 --> 00:19:56.850 align:middle line:84% And do we get it right 100% of the time? 00:19:56.850 --> 00:19:58.140 align:middle line:90% Absolutely, not. 00:19:58.140 --> 00:20:00.780 align:middle line:84% There are moments where we have missed opportunities, where 00:20:00.780 --> 00:20:03.990 align:middle line:84% the artist doesn't capture what the veteran thought 00:20:03.990 --> 00:20:05.070 align:middle line:90% they would capture. 00:20:05.070 --> 00:20:08.830 align:middle line:84% And we don't-- we're not upset about that. 00:20:08.830 --> 00:20:10.230 align:middle line:90% That's part of the process. 00:20:10.230 --> 00:20:13.410 align:middle line:84% That opens up even more lines of dialogue, 00:20:13.410 --> 00:20:16.420 align:middle line:84% more conversations, more learning experiences come out 00:20:16.420 --> 00:20:16.920 align:middle line:90% of that. 00:20:16.920 --> 00:20:18.360 align:middle line:90% Why did we miss the mark? 00:20:18.360 --> 00:20:19.170 align:middle line:90% What happened? 00:20:19.170 --> 00:20:21.570 align:middle line:84% There's no wrong answer in the Veteran Print Project. 00:20:21.570 --> 00:20:23.890 align:middle line:90% It's about conversations. 00:20:23.890 --> 00:20:26.520 align:middle line:84% And that is the exercise in trust 00:20:26.520 --> 00:20:30.680 align:middle line:84% that you think about when you're doing portrait drawing. 00:20:30.680 --> 00:20:33.410 align:middle line:84% When I write about artists in the field, 00:20:33.410 --> 00:20:37.670 align:middle line:84% I note an occurrence of a specific type of mark making 00:20:37.670 --> 00:20:42.080 align:middle line:84% that implies the literal marking of the passage of time. 00:20:42.080 --> 00:20:44.630 align:middle line:84% If you're familiar with drill and ceremony, 00:20:44.630 --> 00:20:47.870 align:middle line:84% then you may know that the phrase "marking time" 00:20:47.870 --> 00:20:50.060 align:middle line:90% means to march in place. 00:20:50.060 --> 00:20:52.550 align:middle line:84% Each step neither advances nor retreats, 00:20:52.550 --> 00:20:54.860 align:middle line:84% but it marches steadily to nowhere. 00:20:54.860 --> 00:20:59.180 align:middle line:84% So too are the marks made by some of these artists, whose 00:20:59.180 --> 00:21:02.270 align:middle line:84% marks, whose brushstrokes, whose pencil marks 00:21:02.270 --> 00:21:05.720 align:middle line:84% matched the passage of time, like we see in the work 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:08.330 align:middle line:84% by Civil War veteran John Gaddis. 00:21:08.330 --> 00:21:11.090 align:middle line:84% He often painted when he was on sentry duty, which 00:21:11.090 --> 00:21:12.710 align:middle line:90% means he's on guard duty. 00:21:12.710 --> 00:21:15.170 align:middle line:84% And any one of us that has served on guard duty 00:21:15.170 --> 00:21:17.780 align:middle line:84% means that you have to stay awake and alert 00:21:17.780 --> 00:21:19.410 align:middle line:90% for long periods of time. 00:21:19.410 --> 00:21:21.020 align:middle line:84% And if you're an artist, that means 00:21:21.020 --> 00:21:22.740 align:middle line:90% capturing what's around you. 00:21:22.740 --> 00:21:25.430 align:middle line:84% And so you can see John Gaddis in the foreground. 00:21:25.430 --> 00:21:27.920 align:middle line:84% He was often on a hill, down looking troops 00:21:27.920 --> 00:21:30.170 align:middle line:90% on a field, drilling troops. 00:21:30.170 --> 00:21:32.870 align:middle line:84% But I started writing about Gaddis 00:21:32.870 --> 00:21:35.660 align:middle line:84% because each little individual watercolor 00:21:35.660 --> 00:21:38.510 align:middle line:84% brushstroke doesn't have-- it doesn't 00:21:38.510 --> 00:21:40.220 align:middle line:90% give a lot of information. 00:21:40.220 --> 00:21:42.590 align:middle line:84% But it literally is the tick tock 00:21:42.590 --> 00:21:44.750 align:middle line:90% of the clock of time going by. 00:21:44.750 --> 00:21:47.870 align:middle line:84% And when you zoom out, like in an impressionist painting, 00:21:47.870 --> 00:21:51.770 align:middle line:84% it has the whole composition, is actually showing you 00:21:51.770 --> 00:21:54.080 align:middle line:84% the laborious movement of troops, 00:21:54.080 --> 00:21:56.180 align:middle line:84% like you see the movement in these troops. 00:21:56.180 --> 00:21:59.030 align:middle line:84% But you also see not only the laborious movement 00:21:59.030 --> 00:22:02.840 align:middle line:84% of the troops but the laborious passage of time while sitting 00:22:02.840 --> 00:22:04.550 align:middle line:90% on guard duty. 00:22:04.550 --> 00:22:07.010 align:middle line:84% So I'm starting to think about how 00:22:07.010 --> 00:22:11.690 align:middle line:84% these marks on paper in the artwork of these veterans 00:22:11.690 --> 00:22:14.780 align:middle line:84% comes to play in the passage of time. 00:22:14.780 --> 00:22:17.390 align:middle line:84% In my own artwork, I've also embraced 00:22:17.390 --> 00:22:21.320 align:middle line:84% this repetitive and this meditative mark making. 00:22:21.320 --> 00:22:23.720 align:middle line:84% Part of my line work started because I 00:22:23.720 --> 00:22:25.940 align:middle line:84% wanted to add some more graphic sensibilities 00:22:25.940 --> 00:22:27.290 align:middle line:90% to my compositions. 00:22:27.290 --> 00:22:30.860 align:middle line:84% But I also found that this repetitive line work is also 00:22:30.860 --> 00:22:34.860 align:middle line:84% a great way to layer symbolism into the work. 00:22:34.860 --> 00:22:39.200 align:middle line:84% The most common repetitive line or symbol that I use 00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:44.180 align:middle line:84% is derived from my attraction to the ritual from my compulsion 00:22:44.180 --> 00:22:47.780 align:middle line:84% to say the Hail Mary and the soothing nature of praying 00:22:47.780 --> 00:22:51.080 align:middle line:84% the rosary, which, of course, is the influence 00:22:51.080 --> 00:22:55.400 align:middle line:84% of the Catholic iconography that surrounded me and my youth. 00:22:55.400 --> 00:22:59.600 align:middle line:84% At some point, I realized, in the military, 00:22:59.600 --> 00:23:03.110 align:middle line:84% that the silhouette on a range card that we 00:23:03.110 --> 00:23:06.650 align:middle line:84% use to qualify with our weapons, that silhouette 00:23:06.650 --> 00:23:09.140 align:middle line:84% can look like the Virgin Mary, which 00:23:09.140 --> 00:23:13.790 align:middle line:84% then translates to a woman wearing a headscarf or a hijab. 00:23:13.790 --> 00:23:16.100 align:middle line:84% Especially if you put the crosshairs on the range card 00:23:16.100 --> 00:23:18.380 align:middle line:84% silhouette, it really has that emblematic, 00:23:18.380 --> 00:23:23.900 align:middle line:84% that iconic Virgin Mary silhouette with a halo. 00:23:23.900 --> 00:23:27.830 align:middle line:84% I have one distinct, very distinct memory in Iraq 00:23:27.830 --> 00:23:31.760 align:middle line:84% where I'm pointing my weapon at a woman wearing a headscarf, 00:23:31.760 --> 00:23:33.830 align:middle line:90% and she's holding a child. 00:23:33.830 --> 00:23:37.670 align:middle line:84% And I realized that moment that I was pointing my weapon 00:23:37.670 --> 00:23:40.400 align:middle line:90% at the Virgin Mary. 00:23:40.400 --> 00:23:44.810 align:middle line:84% The repetition in my line work has so many layered symbols, 00:23:44.810 --> 00:23:49.280 align:middle line:84% but for the most part, these repetitions of lines 00:23:49.280 --> 00:23:53.930 align:middle line:84% are a literal translation of my self-inflicted penance 00:23:53.930 --> 00:23:59.180 align:middle line:84% and a need for me to reconcile my beliefs with my actions, 00:23:59.180 --> 00:24:00.500 align:middle line:90% with my experiences. 00:24:00.500 --> 00:24:03.550 align:middle line:90% 00:24:03.550 --> 00:24:06.670 align:middle line:84% Marked time, when we look at marked time, 00:24:06.670 --> 00:24:11.150 align:middle line:84% it is the essence of captured memory. 00:24:11.150 --> 00:24:13.150 align:middle line:84% All of these drawings are mementos. 00:24:13.150 --> 00:24:16.840 align:middle line:84% And these mementos become more than just a keepsake, 00:24:16.840 --> 00:24:18.850 align:middle line:90% they're heirlooms. 00:24:18.850 --> 00:24:21.940 align:middle line:84% In an essay called "Notes on the Post Indexical," 00:24:21.940 --> 00:24:24.730 align:middle line:84% the author is writing about Pliny. 00:24:24.730 --> 00:24:27.490 align:middle line:84% If you remember me talking about Pliny earlier, 00:24:27.490 --> 00:24:31.780 align:middle line:84% his story is not just the story about the origins of painting, 00:24:31.780 --> 00:24:36.800 align:middle line:84% but it is a story about loss and strategies of remembrance. 00:24:36.800 --> 00:24:40.090 align:middle line:84% I just think the phrase "strategies of remembrance" 00:24:40.090 --> 00:24:41.720 align:middle line:90% is so beautiful. 00:24:41.720 --> 00:24:44.170 align:middle line:84% And if we're talking about loss, we have to remember, 00:24:44.170 --> 00:24:46.420 align:middle line:84% we're not just talking about loss of life. 00:24:46.420 --> 00:24:49.990 align:middle line:84% We're talking about loss of a family member being removed 00:24:49.990 --> 00:24:53.020 align:middle line:84% from the family unit and is taken away 00:24:53.020 --> 00:24:55.540 align:middle line:84% for a long period of time in deployment. 00:24:55.540 --> 00:24:57.340 align:middle line:90% So loss isn't just death. 00:24:57.340 --> 00:25:01.060 align:middle line:84% Loss is separation from a loved one. 00:25:01.060 --> 00:25:05.170 align:middle line:84% And these drawings are strategies to remember. 00:25:05.170 --> 00:25:09.880 align:middle line:84% These drawings, this passage of time, for me, in my opinion, 00:25:09.880 --> 00:25:13.750 align:middle line:84% it's the preparation for a time to come 00:25:13.750 --> 00:25:17.470 align:middle line:84% when all you have is memory or when 00:25:17.470 --> 00:25:19.630 align:middle line:90% memory is being taken from you. 00:25:19.630 --> 00:25:22.090 align:middle line:84% These artworks aren't always fully realized 00:25:22.090 --> 00:25:25.727 align:middle line:84% images, whether it's because guard duty ended, 00:25:25.727 --> 00:25:27.310 align:middle line:84% and you didn't have time to finish it, 00:25:27.310 --> 00:25:31.810 align:middle line:84% or they're just marked literal passages of time. 00:25:31.810 --> 00:25:35.830 align:middle line:84% It makes them not really fully realized. 00:25:35.830 --> 00:25:41.500 align:middle line:84% And that makes that heirloom now a designated space to remember. 00:25:41.500 --> 00:25:43.360 align:middle line:84% Those two beautiful elements came out 00:25:43.360 --> 00:25:46.090 align:middle line:84% of that essay, and that strategies of remembrance 00:25:46.090 --> 00:25:48.640 align:middle line:84% and designated spaces to remember. 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:52.070 align:middle line:84% It's really important that we offer ourselves these moments. 00:25:52.070 --> 00:25:54.670 align:middle line:84% Whether it's visually or meditatively, 00:25:54.670 --> 00:26:00.040 align:middle line:84% we need to give ourselves designated spaces to remember. 00:26:00.040 --> 00:26:04.420 align:middle line:84% If we're considering giving space to remember, 00:26:04.420 --> 00:26:08.800 align:middle line:84% I want to share with you a realization I came to in 2018. 00:26:08.800 --> 00:26:13.450 align:middle line:84% Most of you may know that 2018 was the 100-year commemoration, 00:26:13.450 --> 00:26:16.510 align:middle line:84% the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice 00:26:16.510 --> 00:26:19.060 align:middle line:90% that ended World War I. 00:26:19.060 --> 00:26:22.180 align:middle line:84% Many in my field had been researching for years 00:26:22.180 --> 00:26:26.050 align:middle line:84% and preparing for the exhibits, the events, and the discussions 00:26:26.050 --> 00:26:28.420 align:middle line:90% about this historic topic. 00:26:28.420 --> 00:26:30.370 align:middle line:84% Now, for some reason, World War I 00:26:30.370 --> 00:26:33.430 align:middle line:84% is one of those specialized history topics, one 00:26:33.430 --> 00:26:36.700 align:middle line:84% of the conflicts that's rarely discussed in America prior 00:26:36.700 --> 00:26:38.080 align:middle line:90% to the Centennial. 00:26:38.080 --> 00:26:42.190 align:middle line:84% Now, obviously, World War II is considered the creator 00:26:42.190 --> 00:26:43.750 align:middle line:90% of the greatest generation. 00:26:43.750 --> 00:26:46.060 align:middle line:84% So of course, it's going to be the most commonly 00:26:46.060 --> 00:26:48.040 align:middle line:84% discussed conflict in our nation's history 00:26:48.040 --> 00:26:49.660 align:middle line:90% beyond the Civil War. 00:26:49.660 --> 00:26:53.170 align:middle line:84% Yes, we discussed Vietnam, we discussed Iraq and Afghanistan. 00:26:53.170 --> 00:26:55.240 align:middle line:84% And there's a few wars that some people 00:26:55.240 --> 00:26:59.590 align:middle line:84% refer to as the forgotten wars, like Korea and the Gulf War. 00:26:59.590 --> 00:27:02.650 align:middle line:84% And World War I sometimes finds itself 00:27:02.650 --> 00:27:06.920 align:middle line:84% in that category of the forgotten war. 00:27:06.920 --> 00:27:09.200 align:middle line:84% But what is always confusing to those of us 00:27:09.200 --> 00:27:13.640 align:middle line:84% that do study World War I is the lack of discussions about it 00:27:13.640 --> 00:27:17.180 align:middle line:84% because it really was the catalyst for much 00:27:17.180 --> 00:27:20.990 align:middle line:84% of the current political perspective and policy 00:27:20.990 --> 00:27:23.050 align:middle line:90% that we see today. 00:27:23.050 --> 00:27:26.010 align:middle line:84% So during strategic planning sessions at the Wisconsin 00:27:26.010 --> 00:27:28.590 align:middle line:84% Veterans Museum at the end of 2018, 00:27:28.590 --> 00:27:30.780 align:middle line:84% we were considering this question, 00:27:30.780 --> 00:27:32.740 align:middle line:90% why does it still matter? 00:27:32.740 --> 00:27:35.460 align:middle line:84% Why does the final narrative and the decisions 00:27:35.460 --> 00:27:37.680 align:middle line:84% that were made at the end of World War I 00:27:37.680 --> 00:27:42.150 align:middle line:84% still continue to affect world politics and policy today? 00:27:42.150 --> 00:27:44.490 align:middle line:84% And the overarching sentiment was 00:27:44.490 --> 00:27:49.410 align:middle line:84% this, which is really, in most institutions of humanities, 00:27:49.410 --> 00:27:50.790 align:middle line:90% we need to remind-- 00:27:50.790 --> 00:27:54.690 align:middle line:84% we need to revisit this history, a continual revisitation 00:27:54.690 --> 00:27:57.180 align:middle line:84% of this history, specifically World War I, 00:27:57.180 --> 00:28:02.580 align:middle line:84% to remind us, to remind our audiences why we find ourselves 00:28:02.580 --> 00:28:06.390 align:middle line:84% immersed in certain situations today, just 00:28:06.390 --> 00:28:08.730 align:middle line:90% a short 100 years later. 00:28:08.730 --> 00:28:10.960 align:middle line:90% Yesterday affects today, how? 00:28:10.960 --> 00:28:13.090 align:middle line:84% And how does today affect tomorrow? 00:28:13.090 --> 00:28:16.370 align:middle line:90% This was a revelation for me. 00:28:16.370 --> 00:28:18.620 align:middle line:84% In 2018, there were so many events 00:28:18.620 --> 00:28:21.590 align:middle line:84% going on to commemorate this 100-year anniversary. 00:28:21.590 --> 00:28:23.390 align:middle line:84% And during this time, I was working 00:28:23.390 --> 00:28:26.510 align:middle line:84% with a group of musicians in Madison, Wisconsin, who 00:28:26.510 --> 00:28:30.620 align:middle line:84% were creating content for a concert called The Greatest 00:28:30.620 --> 00:28:33.800 align:middle line:84% War, World War One, Wisconsin, and Why it Still Matters. 00:28:33.800 --> 00:28:36.300 align:middle line:84% And they dubbed it a rock-and-roll history show. 00:28:36.300 --> 00:28:36.980 align:middle line:90% I loved it. 00:28:36.980 --> 00:28:40.430 align:middle line:84% The Kissers, John Wedge, who you see pictured here, he's 00:28:40.430 --> 00:28:44.000 align:middle line:84% a historian and a member of The Periodicals, Sean Michael 00:28:44.000 --> 00:28:46.670 align:middle line:84% Dargan, The November Criminals, a hip hop polka 00:28:46.670 --> 00:28:49.130 align:middle line:84% group in Milwaukee, all of these groups 00:28:49.130 --> 00:28:51.560 align:middle line:84% came together to tell the stories of Wisconsinites 00:28:51.560 --> 00:28:53.960 align:middle line:90% and their role in World War I. 00:28:53.960 --> 00:28:56.390 align:middle line:84% I was introduced to them because of all of the events 00:28:56.390 --> 00:28:58.790 align:middle line:84% that you see on the left here that I was coordinating 00:28:58.790 --> 00:29:01.250 align:middle line:90% and curating during that time. 00:29:01.250 --> 00:29:04.130 align:middle line:84% But I was brought on to consult with them 00:29:04.130 --> 00:29:06.440 align:middle line:84% to talk about the artist perspective, 00:29:06.440 --> 00:29:09.350 align:middle line:84% like the art and the veteran perspective. 00:29:09.350 --> 00:29:12.260 align:middle line:84% But the serendipitous part of this connection 00:29:12.260 --> 00:29:14.060 align:middle line:84% was they were researching why it still 00:29:14.060 --> 00:29:18.170 align:middle line:84% matters at the same time the Wisconsin Veterans Museum was 00:29:18.170 --> 00:29:20.420 align:middle line:90% looking at why it still matters. 00:29:20.420 --> 00:29:22.580 align:middle line:84% I'm researching art from World War I, 00:29:22.580 --> 00:29:25.400 align:middle line:84% trying to figure out why it still matters. 00:29:25.400 --> 00:29:29.750 align:middle line:84% And it started having an effect on me. 00:29:29.750 --> 00:29:30.740 align:middle line:90% It opened a door. 00:29:30.740 --> 00:29:32.390 align:middle line:84% And where another one door opened 00:29:32.390 --> 00:29:34.310 align:middle line:84% about why it still matters, another door 00:29:34.310 --> 00:29:35.960 align:middle line:90% opened, and then another door. 00:29:35.960 --> 00:29:38.030 align:middle line:84% And all of these rabbit holes that I 00:29:38.030 --> 00:29:42.870 align:middle line:84% was finding myself falling into changed my perspective. 00:29:42.870 --> 00:29:46.810 align:middle line:84% It gave me a whole new perspective on everything. 00:29:46.810 --> 00:29:49.120 align:middle line:84% It highly affected the way I started 00:29:49.120 --> 00:29:52.360 align:middle line:90% looking at and analyzing art. 00:29:52.360 --> 00:29:56.710 align:middle line:84% And it reignited the inspiration for why I created the Veteran 00:29:56.710 --> 00:29:59.980 align:middle line:84% Print Project, to bridge this gap, 00:29:59.980 --> 00:30:06.410 align:middle line:84% to be a conduit for the veteran to the disconnected society. 00:30:06.410 --> 00:30:10.460 align:middle line:84% Now, collaborating in those 2018 events motivated me 00:30:10.460 --> 00:30:11.780 align:middle line:90% to research topics-- 00:30:11.780 --> 00:30:15.590 align:middle line:84% excuse me, motivated me to research topics and situations 00:30:15.590 --> 00:30:18.800 align:middle line:84% that I was completely unaware of about World War I. 00:30:18.800 --> 00:30:23.120 align:middle line:84% And it pushed me to refer back and to reconsider what I really 00:30:23.120 --> 00:30:26.270 align:middle line:84% thought I had already understood about the art history 00:30:26.270 --> 00:30:27.620 align:middle line:90% that I had studied. 00:30:27.620 --> 00:30:29.330 align:middle line:90% So thank you to art history. 00:30:29.330 --> 00:30:32.450 align:middle line:84% I will always use art history as a guidepost 00:30:32.450 --> 00:30:36.050 align:middle line:84% to help me evaluate the artwork that's being made 00:30:36.050 --> 00:30:41.680 align:middle line:84% and the reasons why and maybe how my perspective changes. 00:30:41.680 --> 00:30:43.770 align:middle line:84% So again, during this time, there 00:30:43.770 --> 00:30:48.960 align:middle line:84% were all these events happening about World War I worldwide. 00:30:48.960 --> 00:30:50.970 align:middle line:84% And there was these series of exhibits 00:30:50.970 --> 00:30:52.620 align:middle line:90% that were happening in Madison. 00:30:52.620 --> 00:30:56.170 align:middle line:84% And we were all asking, why does it still matter? 00:30:56.170 --> 00:30:59.620 align:middle line:84% And then Warrior Writers invited me to come to Philadelphia 00:30:59.620 --> 00:31:02.980 align:middle line:84% to teach about veteran artists in World War I. 00:31:02.980 --> 00:31:06.100 align:middle line:84% And they asked me to teach about the global war on terror, 00:31:06.100 --> 00:31:08.860 align:middle line:90% the post 9/11 veteran artists. 00:31:08.860 --> 00:31:11.650 align:middle line:84% And I was brought there to share information 00:31:11.650 --> 00:31:14.470 align:middle line:84% with their moderators, who would be hosting 00:31:14.470 --> 00:31:19.600 align:middle line:84% facilitated conversations, as they're part of the dialogue 00:31:19.600 --> 00:31:23.770 align:middle line:84% on war, National Endowment for the Humanities grant. 00:31:23.770 --> 00:31:29.040 align:middle line:84% And their program was about reintegration and the arts. 00:31:29.040 --> 00:31:32.250 align:middle line:84% So a good art historian is going to compare and contrast 00:31:32.250 --> 00:31:34.200 align:middle line:90% to defend an argument. 00:31:34.200 --> 00:31:37.350 align:middle line:84% Unintentionally, Warrior Writers gave me 00:31:37.350 --> 00:31:41.100 align:middle line:84% the perfect compare-and-contrast opportunity for me 00:31:41.100 --> 00:31:45.150 align:middle line:84% to connect World War I with global war on terror in a way 00:31:45.150 --> 00:31:46.990 align:middle line:90% that I had never seen before. 00:31:46.990 --> 00:31:49.110 align:middle line:84% And all of a sudden, the world was 00:31:49.110 --> 00:31:52.160 align:middle line:90% starting to make sense to me. 00:31:52.160 --> 00:31:54.650 align:middle line:84% Up to that point, I had not put the pieces 00:31:54.650 --> 00:31:58.400 align:middle line:84% together of the eerie similarities between these two 00:31:58.400 --> 00:31:59.900 align:middle line:90% generations. 00:31:59.900 --> 00:32:03.980 align:middle line:84% I knew I was drawn to modernism during my art history courses, 00:32:03.980 --> 00:32:08.030 align:middle line:84% but I hadn't yet identified the extent of that connection 00:32:08.030 --> 00:32:12.530 align:middle line:84% until this moment, specifically, the artwork that was being 00:32:12.530 --> 00:32:15.350 align:middle line:90% created by both generations. 00:32:15.350 --> 00:32:17.480 align:middle line:84% All of this research was coming together, 00:32:17.480 --> 00:32:21.380 align:middle line:84% and it was guiding me to these thoughts. 00:32:21.380 --> 00:32:25.490 align:middle line:84% After World War I, artists were desperate to find 00:32:25.490 --> 00:32:28.730 align:middle line:84% a visual language that depicted the complexities 00:32:28.730 --> 00:32:31.640 align:middle line:84% of the catastrophic apocalypse they had just 00:32:31.640 --> 00:32:35.870 align:middle line:84% experienced as both victims and as participants. 00:32:35.870 --> 00:32:38.510 align:middle line:84% Society was wounded, and it was searching 00:32:38.510 --> 00:32:42.260 align:middle line:84% for a new identity that was both splintered and, at times, 00:32:42.260 --> 00:32:48.010 align:middle line:84% unconscious, or at best, uncomfortably numb. 00:32:48.010 --> 00:32:50.560 align:middle line:84% The resulting artistic era was filled 00:32:50.560 --> 00:32:53.350 align:middle line:84% with angled, disconnected fragments, 00:32:53.350 --> 00:32:55.540 align:middle line:90% and abstracted realities. 00:32:55.540 --> 00:32:59.560 align:middle line:84% Surreal images reveal confusing truths 00:32:59.560 --> 00:33:01.750 align:middle line:90% of an implausible existence. 00:33:01.750 --> 00:33:04.030 align:middle line:84% The rapidly advancing technologies 00:33:04.030 --> 00:33:06.670 align:middle line:84% that had brought an overwhelming force of destruction 00:33:06.670 --> 00:33:10.810 align:middle line:84% to the battlefield were being presented in societal portraits 00:33:10.810 --> 00:33:13.990 align:middle line:84% of humans existing in a distracted theater 00:33:13.990 --> 00:33:17.260 align:middle line:84% of complicit detachment from humanity. 00:33:17.260 --> 00:33:20.320 align:middle line:84% The Armistice would provide some sense of closure, 00:33:20.320 --> 00:33:22.660 align:middle line:84% and these artists would go on to define 00:33:22.660 --> 00:33:26.590 align:middle line:90% what we now know as modernism. 00:33:26.590 --> 00:33:29.830 align:middle line:84% In my own personal postwar experience, 00:33:29.830 --> 00:33:33.850 align:middle line:84% I was studying art history, and I kept finding myself asking, 00:33:33.850 --> 00:33:36.250 align:middle line:84% why does this genre, why does modernism 00:33:36.250 --> 00:33:38.260 align:middle line:90% connect with me so much? 00:33:38.260 --> 00:33:41.100 align:middle line:90% And why does it still matter? 00:33:41.100 --> 00:33:43.680 align:middle line:90% And my answer is simple. 00:33:43.680 --> 00:33:47.600 align:middle line:84% The artists returning from our military experiences 00:33:47.600 --> 00:33:51.770 align:middle line:84% in the global war on terror in today's modern society, 00:33:51.770 --> 00:33:55.040 align:middle line:84% we are also seeking a new creative language 00:33:55.040 --> 00:34:00.400 align:middle line:84% to both depict and inform a disconnected society. 00:34:00.400 --> 00:34:03.100 align:middle line:84% But rather than abstracted realities 00:34:03.100 --> 00:34:06.400 align:middle line:84% and surreal interventions, we're immersing ourselves 00:34:06.400 --> 00:34:07.760 align:middle line:90% in our communities. 00:34:07.760 --> 00:34:10.810 align:middle line:84% We're actively engaging in a participatory 00:34:10.810 --> 00:34:14.159 align:middle line:90% and a social process. 00:34:14.159 --> 00:34:17.760 align:middle line:84% Is the transformative nature of this process 00:34:17.760 --> 00:34:21.130 align:middle line:90% a metaphor for reintegration? 00:34:21.130 --> 00:34:23.290 align:middle line:84% Let me describe the processes we're doing, 00:34:23.290 --> 00:34:27.350 align:middle line:84% and maybe we'll reveal a deeper metaphor. 00:34:27.350 --> 00:34:29.920 align:middle line:90% Marks are made on metal. 00:34:29.920 --> 00:34:33.639 align:middle line:84% That metal's dipped into acid, so a chemical alteration 00:34:33.639 --> 00:34:36.550 align:middle line:84% will provide a void for ink to occupy, 00:34:36.550 --> 00:34:41.120 align:middle line:84% until it's pressed into a sheet of paper to reveal an image. 00:34:41.120 --> 00:34:47.030 align:middle line:84% This is the process to create multiples of the same thing. 00:34:47.030 --> 00:34:50.630 align:middle line:84% Rag is being cut down, it's beaten to a pulp, 00:34:50.630 --> 00:34:53.540 align:middle line:84% placed in a vat, scooped up, and pressed 00:34:53.540 --> 00:34:55.969 align:middle line:90% into a new sheet of paper. 00:34:55.969 --> 00:35:02.460 align:middle line:84% This is the process of deconstruction and reformation. 00:35:02.460 --> 00:35:05.850 align:middle line:84% Pliable clay is kneaded and folded. 00:35:05.850 --> 00:35:10.170 align:middle line:84% It is of the earth mineral and water molded into a form. 00:35:10.170 --> 00:35:14.730 align:middle line:84% It is exposed to high temps that allow it to harden. 00:35:14.730 --> 00:35:17.130 align:middle line:90% And thus, it is strengthened. 00:35:17.130 --> 00:35:21.980 align:middle line:84% This is the process of malleable fortitude. 00:35:21.980 --> 00:35:27.250 align:middle line:84% Reintegration implies that there's a return to something 00:35:27.250 --> 00:35:29.900 align:middle line:90% that existed before. 00:35:29.900 --> 00:35:32.240 align:middle line:84% Today, as veteran artists, we are 00:35:32.240 --> 00:35:35.670 align:middle line:84% revealing the implausibility of that charge. 00:35:35.670 --> 00:35:38.190 align:middle line:90% We are seeking a more literal-- 00:35:38.190 --> 00:35:42.130 align:middle line:84% a more literal meaning to the word "reintegration." 00:35:42.130 --> 00:35:45.880 align:middle line:84% Reintegration is the act of restoring elements 00:35:45.880 --> 00:35:48.950 align:middle line:90% that were disparate to unity. 00:35:48.950 --> 00:35:52.550 align:middle line:84% Community immersion recreates the camaraderie 00:35:52.550 --> 00:35:57.010 align:middle line:84% of service in an effort to deflect isolation. 00:35:57.010 --> 00:36:01.960 align:middle line:84% Global war on terror artists, we don't have an Armistice. 00:36:01.960 --> 00:36:05.770 align:middle line:84% In a state of perpetual war, we don't have an opportunity 00:36:05.770 --> 00:36:06.820 align:middle line:90% to find closure. 00:36:06.820 --> 00:36:11.320 align:middle line:84% Thus, the outcome of our process is transformation, not closure. 00:36:11.320 --> 00:36:14.630 align:middle line:84% And our narrative will remain transient. 00:36:14.630 --> 00:36:17.810 align:middle line:84% So I'll ask you this, should healing 00:36:17.810 --> 00:36:21.510 align:middle line:84% be a requirement for transformation? 00:36:21.510 --> 00:36:25.080 align:middle line:84% And if so, let's think about who is being healed. 00:36:25.080 --> 00:36:28.230 align:middle line:84% How often do civilians think the veteran is seeking 00:36:28.230 --> 00:36:30.840 align:middle line:84% healing when the veteran believes 00:36:30.840 --> 00:36:35.670 align:middle line:84% they're seeking to heal society and not the self? 00:36:35.670 --> 00:36:38.970 align:middle line:84% Now, I can't take credit for those last few works. 00:36:38.970 --> 00:36:43.730 align:middle line:84% Jesse Albrecht-- oh, it skipped it, sorry. 00:36:43.730 --> 00:36:47.370 align:middle line:84% Jesse Albrecht, I'll find him here. 00:36:47.370 --> 00:36:48.180 align:middle line:90% Here he is. 00:36:48.180 --> 00:36:50.640 align:middle line:84% Jesse Albrecht, who you see here, 00:36:50.640 --> 00:36:53.340 align:middle line:84% shared that sentiment about healing in an interview he 00:36:53.340 --> 00:36:55.110 align:middle line:90% did when he discussed his work. 00:36:55.110 --> 00:36:58.860 align:middle line:84% He challenged this idea of, who's really being healed? 00:36:58.860 --> 00:37:01.500 align:middle line:84% And I love Jesse's question about healing. 00:37:01.500 --> 00:37:05.010 align:middle line:84% And it means a lot to me because every single art talk I go to, 00:37:05.010 --> 00:37:08.950 align:middle line:84% the dominating topic is not the art but about healing. 00:37:08.950 --> 00:37:12.240 align:middle line:84% And that's OK, but I like that Jesse pushes it back to you 00:37:12.240 --> 00:37:14.340 align:middle line:84% to really think about, who's being healed, 00:37:14.340 --> 00:37:16.350 align:middle line:90% who needs to be healed? 00:37:16.350 --> 00:37:18.540 align:middle line:84% And there's no right or wrong answer to this. 00:37:18.540 --> 00:37:21.010 align:middle line:84% I just really like that he pushes it back. 00:37:21.010 --> 00:37:25.740 align:middle line:84% And it's not just on us to absorb this concept of healing. 00:37:25.740 --> 00:37:27.560 align:middle line:84% Jesse's an incredible human being. 00:37:27.560 --> 00:37:29.250 align:middle line:90% And I served with him in Iraq. 00:37:29.250 --> 00:37:31.980 align:middle line:84% He's making a name for himself in contemporary ceramics 00:37:31.980 --> 00:37:34.530 align:middle line:84% right now and in contemporary arts right now. 00:37:34.530 --> 00:37:38.158 align:middle line:90% So shout out to Jesse Albrecht. 00:37:38.158 --> 00:37:39.700 align:middle line:84% Now, I shared those thoughts with you 00:37:39.700 --> 00:37:43.600 align:middle line:84% about my revelation in 2018 because even though they 00:37:43.600 --> 00:37:46.360 align:middle line:84% were written as part of my participation in the Greatest 00:37:46.360 --> 00:37:49.780 align:middle line:84% War rock-and-roll history show, they also 00:37:49.780 --> 00:37:53.140 align:middle line:84% prompted me to really reevaluate the direction 00:37:53.140 --> 00:37:56.230 align:middle line:84% that my creative process was taking me. 00:37:56.230 --> 00:37:57.610 align:middle line:90% The way I started-- 00:37:57.610 --> 00:38:02.860 align:middle line:84% after 2018, the way I started discussing my artwork shifted. 00:38:02.860 --> 00:38:07.590 align:middle line:84% The way I started looking at the Veteran Print Project shifted. 00:38:07.590 --> 00:38:10.560 align:middle line:84% The way in which I look at artwork created by veterans 00:38:10.560 --> 00:38:12.000 align:middle line:90% has shifted. 00:38:12.000 --> 00:38:13.680 align:middle line:84% Throughout this artist's talk today, I 00:38:13.680 --> 00:38:15.270 align:middle line:84% have circled back to this narrative 00:38:15.270 --> 00:38:17.550 align:middle line:84% to show how this all ties together 00:38:17.550 --> 00:38:19.350 align:middle line:84% and to show how I'm moving forward 00:38:19.350 --> 00:38:24.360 align:middle line:84% with my practice as both artist and as curator. 00:38:24.360 --> 00:38:27.900 align:middle line:84% When I first wrote those ideas in 2018, 00:38:27.900 --> 00:38:31.740 align:middle line:84% we had not yet removed ourselves from Afghanistan. 00:38:31.740 --> 00:38:34.980 align:middle line:84% And those words now are even more profound to me 00:38:34.980 --> 00:38:37.440 align:middle line:90% because they're still yet-- 00:38:37.440 --> 00:38:39.120 align:middle line:90% we still don't have closure. 00:38:39.120 --> 00:38:41.580 align:middle line:84% And that's why I say our narrative will 00:38:41.580 --> 00:38:44.220 align:middle line:90% remain transient. 00:38:44.220 --> 00:38:47.760 align:middle line:84% We'll continue to-- we'll continue to have conversations 00:38:47.760 --> 00:38:49.380 align:middle line:84% about this topic, and we'll continue 00:38:49.380 --> 00:38:53.820 align:middle line:84% to understand what it means to be in a status of perpetual war 00:38:53.820 --> 00:38:57.580 align:middle line:84% and what that looks like in a disconnected society. 00:38:57.580 --> 00:39:00.450 align:middle line:84% What does it mean to be in perpetual war and a conflict 00:39:00.450 --> 00:39:03.010 align:middle line:90% that's not in your own backyard? 00:39:03.010 --> 00:39:06.000 align:middle line:84% When you don't go outside every morning with a reminder, 00:39:06.000 --> 00:39:08.790 align:middle line:84% hey, we're at war, like how do you 00:39:08.790 --> 00:39:12.030 align:middle line:84% have conversations with a society that 00:39:12.030 --> 00:39:14.640 align:middle line:84% is complicit in what is happening and completely 00:39:14.640 --> 00:39:19.170 align:middle line:84% unaware of what the realities are of war? 00:39:19.170 --> 00:39:21.240 align:middle line:90% I try to do that in my artwork. 00:39:21.240 --> 00:39:25.290 align:middle line:84% I try to use symbolism and storytelling to shed light 00:39:25.290 --> 00:39:28.900 align:middle line:84% on topics that I find difficult to discuss because I really do, 00:39:28.900 --> 00:39:33.210 align:middle line:84% I have a hard time discussing certain things. 00:39:33.210 --> 00:39:37.080 align:middle line:84% I try to build a narrative in these pieces of artwork. 00:39:37.080 --> 00:39:40.170 align:middle line:84% And that narrative helps me defend my work, 00:39:40.170 --> 00:39:42.040 align:middle line:90% and it helps me expand on it. 00:39:42.040 --> 00:39:43.710 align:middle line:84% And once I'm able to expand on it, 00:39:43.710 --> 00:39:46.890 align:middle line:84% then I'm able to have much deeper conversations. 00:39:46.890 --> 00:39:49.290 align:middle line:84% And there's a lot of artists that will lean back 00:39:49.290 --> 00:39:52.230 align:middle line:84% toward mythology, will lean toward Shakespeare, 00:39:52.230 --> 00:39:58.500 align:middle line:84% that will lean toward imagined worlds to help bridge the gap 00:39:58.500 --> 00:40:03.240 align:middle line:84% and tell that story of hard topics to discuss. 00:40:03.240 --> 00:40:05.880 align:middle line:84% Artwork has the power to do that. 00:40:05.880 --> 00:40:10.980 align:middle line:84% I love talking about World War I artists because the things 00:40:10.980 --> 00:40:14.520 align:middle line:84% that I learn, as I learn more about that artwork, 00:40:14.520 --> 00:40:19.050 align:middle line:84% helps me make much more sense of the world of the artwork that's 00:40:19.050 --> 00:40:22.770 align:middle line:84% being created by the Emerging Veteran Artists right now. 00:40:22.770 --> 00:40:25.500 align:middle line:84% And I've started to write about my contemporaries 00:40:25.500 --> 00:40:26.970 align:middle line:90% through an art history lens. 00:40:26.970 --> 00:40:31.050 align:middle line:84% And that's been extremely informative. 00:40:31.050 --> 00:40:33.720 align:middle line:84% Writing about my contemporaries reminds me 00:40:33.720 --> 00:40:36.240 align:middle line:84% about the Veteran Print Project and how 00:40:36.240 --> 00:40:39.630 align:middle line:84% I discussed the process of somebody else absorbing 00:40:39.630 --> 00:40:43.350 align:middle line:84% your story to my veteran participants. 00:40:43.350 --> 00:40:47.700 align:middle line:84% When I have a veteran, who is an artist, 00:40:47.700 --> 00:40:49.620 align:middle line:84% the process is a little bit different 00:40:49.620 --> 00:40:52.380 align:middle line:84% because for the most part, our artists 00:40:52.380 --> 00:40:55.440 align:middle line:84% are civilians, civilian printmakers, 00:40:55.440 --> 00:40:57.210 align:middle line:90% who are interviewing veterans. 00:40:57.210 --> 00:40:59.070 align:middle line:84% The veteran doesn't make the artwork, 00:40:59.070 --> 00:41:01.290 align:middle line:90% the artist makes the artwork. 00:41:01.290 --> 00:41:03.870 align:middle line:84% But when I have a veteran who is a printmaker, 00:41:03.870 --> 00:41:06.390 align:middle line:84% like myself, I'm a printmaker and a veteran, 00:41:06.390 --> 00:41:08.730 align:middle line:84% I ask the veteran to offer their story 00:41:08.730 --> 00:41:13.380 align:middle line:84% to an artist and not to make an autobiographical print. 00:41:13.380 --> 00:41:15.150 align:middle line:84% And then I asked them to interview 00:41:15.150 --> 00:41:17.610 align:middle line:84% another veteran, hopefully, somebody that's 00:41:17.610 --> 00:41:20.730 align:middle line:84% of a different branch of service, a different gender, 00:41:20.730 --> 00:41:23.610 align:middle line:84% different generation, somebody with a completely 00:41:23.610 --> 00:41:25.050 align:middle line:90% different experience. 00:41:25.050 --> 00:41:28.500 align:middle line:84% And this will help reveal your own personal biases. 00:41:28.500 --> 00:41:32.400 align:middle line:84% It helps you gain an understanding of an experience 00:41:32.400 --> 00:41:34.720 align:middle line:90% other than your own. 00:41:34.720 --> 00:41:38.100 align:middle line:84% And I encourage that because I was able to see, firsthand, 00:41:38.100 --> 00:41:42.030 align:middle line:84% the results when I was interviewing-- when I started 00:41:42.030 --> 00:41:44.450 align:middle line:90% interviewing other veterans. 00:41:44.450 --> 00:41:46.970 align:middle line:84% I revealed my own preconceived notions. 00:41:46.970 --> 00:41:50.570 align:middle line:84% And I had to bypass my personal story in an effort 00:41:50.570 --> 00:41:54.740 align:middle line:84% to genuinely capture another's experience with integrity 00:41:54.740 --> 00:41:57.550 align:middle line:90% and with empathy. 00:41:57.550 --> 00:41:59.620 align:middle line:84% Being able to write about my contemporaries 00:41:59.620 --> 00:42:02.530 align:middle line:84% in the veteran art movement, in real time, 00:42:02.530 --> 00:42:05.020 align:middle line:84% looking at the deeper psychological meaning 00:42:05.020 --> 00:42:08.020 align:middle line:84% of the way we're creating work or the methodologies 00:42:08.020 --> 00:42:11.380 align:middle line:84% we're using or how we approach our craft, 00:42:11.380 --> 00:42:14.440 align:middle line:84% knowing these people personally and trying 00:42:14.440 --> 00:42:18.620 align:middle line:84% to write about them has been really interesting. 00:42:18.620 --> 00:42:21.280 align:middle line:84% It's helped me consider how others 00:42:21.280 --> 00:42:26.080 align:middle line:84% might be examining my artwork, how others might be analyzing 00:42:26.080 --> 00:42:28.890 align:middle line:90% my story, my artwork. 00:42:28.890 --> 00:42:31.680 align:middle line:84% It's important for us to understand how 00:42:31.680 --> 00:42:35.450 align:middle line:90% people interpret our stories. 00:42:35.450 --> 00:42:39.230 align:middle line:84% How people are interpreting my story or your artwork 00:42:39.230 --> 00:42:42.180 align:middle line:84% is always going to be from a different lens, 00:42:42.180 --> 00:42:44.400 align:middle line:90% through a different lens. 00:42:44.400 --> 00:42:46.790 align:middle line:84% The Veteran Print Project helped me see that 00:42:46.790 --> 00:42:50.240 align:middle line:84% by me allowing somebody else to portray my story. 00:42:50.240 --> 00:42:52.430 align:middle line:84% But it's hard when you tell your story, 00:42:52.430 --> 00:42:57.090 align:middle line:84% and somebody else translates it through a new point of view. 00:42:57.090 --> 00:43:00.030 align:middle line:84% And this same front, I worked with Martin McClendon 00:43:00.030 --> 00:43:02.560 align:middle line:84% at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. 00:43:02.560 --> 00:43:04.380 align:middle line:84% He's a professor of theater there. 00:43:04.380 --> 00:43:07.080 align:middle line:84% And they do this series of verbatim plays, where 00:43:07.080 --> 00:43:08.490 align:middle line:84% they interview veterans, and they 00:43:08.490 --> 00:43:12.120 align:middle line:84% create a script using the actual words of the veterans 00:43:12.120 --> 00:43:15.780 align:middle line:84% and make a cohesive plot tying all these stories together. 00:43:15.780 --> 00:43:17.460 align:middle line:90% These are award-winning plays. 00:43:17.460 --> 00:43:19.090 align:middle line:90% They're incredible. 00:43:19.090 --> 00:43:21.240 align:middle line:84% And I've been lucky enough to participate twice 00:43:21.240 --> 00:43:23.460 align:middle line:90% for two different events. 00:43:23.460 --> 00:43:26.250 align:middle line:84% But the first time I saw my story portrayed 00:43:26.250 --> 00:43:29.250 align:middle line:84% by a really talented actress, I had 00:43:29.250 --> 00:43:32.340 align:middle line:84% this moment where I thought, wow, 00:43:32.340 --> 00:43:36.630 align:middle line:84% is that how others hear and see my story? 00:43:36.630 --> 00:43:40.830 align:middle line:90% Is that how they see my actions? 00:43:40.830 --> 00:43:44.820 align:middle line:84% Because that's not what I felt, or that's not what I meant. 00:43:44.820 --> 00:43:48.870 align:middle line:84% But our words and our actions, though very personal to us, 00:43:48.870 --> 00:43:51.432 align:middle line:84% are not always the way others absorb them. 00:43:51.432 --> 00:43:52.890 align:middle line:84% And it's not always the way they're 00:43:52.890 --> 00:43:55.500 align:middle line:90% going to translate them. 00:43:55.500 --> 00:43:59.820 align:middle line:84% One of the reasons I started the Veteran Print Project was yes, 00:43:59.820 --> 00:44:02.430 align:middle line:90% absolutely, to create dialogue. 00:44:02.430 --> 00:44:06.180 align:middle line:84% But another reason I started it was based off of my reaction 00:44:06.180 --> 00:44:10.230 align:middle line:84% to students in the classes I was attending in art school, that 00:44:10.230 --> 00:44:13.560 align:middle line:84% were motivated to depict military imagery without having 00:44:13.560 --> 00:44:15.630 align:middle line:90% any personal connection to it. 00:44:15.630 --> 00:44:18.130 align:middle line:84% I did that before I joined the Army, so I get it. 00:44:18.130 --> 00:44:18.640 align:middle line:90% I get it. 00:44:18.640 --> 00:44:19.950 align:middle line:90% The imagery is cool, right? 00:44:19.950 --> 00:44:23.460 align:middle line:84% But these students didn't have any personal connection 00:44:23.460 --> 00:44:25.590 align:middle line:90% to that imagery. 00:44:25.590 --> 00:44:29.430 align:middle line:84% And with the increase in gaming platforms, the development 00:44:29.430 --> 00:44:32.220 align:middle line:84% of these realistic simulation games, 00:44:32.220 --> 00:44:35.130 align:middle line:84% we have a new generation of artists creating work that 00:44:35.130 --> 00:44:37.620 align:middle line:90% is digitally super realistic. 00:44:37.620 --> 00:44:40.530 align:middle line:84% And they're creating it based off of imagery that I really 00:44:40.530 --> 00:44:42.990 align:middle line:90% hope is research based. 00:44:42.990 --> 00:44:45.190 align:middle line:84% Object research, they're definitely doing. 00:44:45.190 --> 00:44:47.280 align:middle line:84% They understand the mechanism of war. 00:44:47.280 --> 00:44:49.710 align:middle line:84% But human research, I'm not sure. 00:44:49.710 --> 00:44:52.710 align:middle line:84% I know there are veterans in the industry because I was studying 00:44:52.710 --> 00:44:53.940 align:middle line:90% with them at Wake Tech. 00:44:53.940 --> 00:44:56.640 align:middle line:84% But I'm not sure of the personal connections that 00:44:56.640 --> 00:44:59.790 align:middle line:84% are being made between artists and imagery 00:44:59.790 --> 00:45:02.190 align:middle line:90% that's being created. 00:45:02.190 --> 00:45:04.530 align:middle line:84% I'm a huge advocate for research being 00:45:04.530 --> 00:45:08.340 align:middle line:84% a major component of the artist experience because I think, 00:45:08.340 --> 00:45:11.340 align:middle line:84% there's a responsibility to understand what you're creating 00:45:11.340 --> 00:45:12.990 align:middle line:90% and why. 00:45:12.990 --> 00:45:14.622 align:middle line:84% And not all artists will agree with me. 00:45:14.622 --> 00:45:16.080 align:middle line:84% Not all artists believe there needs 00:45:16.080 --> 00:45:18.330 align:middle line:90% to be a research section-- 00:45:18.330 --> 00:45:20.280 align:middle line:84% excuse me, research practice in conjunction 00:45:20.280 --> 00:45:21.630 align:middle line:90% with your artist practice. 00:45:21.630 --> 00:45:25.560 align:middle line:84% I'm one of the people that is an advocate for research. 00:45:25.560 --> 00:45:27.270 align:middle line:84% And of course, I understand, there's 00:45:27.270 --> 00:45:31.140 align:middle line:84% going to be parody, pastiche, fictionalized worlds, 00:45:31.140 --> 00:45:34.980 align:middle line:84% and a lot of ways to take artistic creative license. 00:45:34.980 --> 00:45:37.950 align:middle line:84% But I just don't think that ignorance should be one 00:45:37.950 --> 00:45:39.430 align:middle line:90% because there's a reality. 00:45:39.430 --> 00:45:41.220 align:middle line:84% There's a real world behind what's 00:45:41.220 --> 00:45:42.870 align:middle line:90% being documented visually. 00:45:42.870 --> 00:45:45.390 align:middle line:84% And there are personal human stories 00:45:45.390 --> 00:45:48.630 align:middle line:84% from people who wear that uniform. 00:45:48.630 --> 00:45:52.140 align:middle line:84% We've created so many fictionalized, dehumanized, 00:45:52.140 --> 00:45:56.970 align:middle line:84% over heroized, romanticized versions of military service 00:45:56.970 --> 00:46:00.390 align:middle line:84% that it makes it really just too easy to put this character out 00:46:00.390 --> 00:46:02.910 align:middle line:84% there in full battle rattle with a neck gaiter 00:46:02.910 --> 00:46:05.940 align:middle line:90% up to their goggles. 00:46:05.940 --> 00:46:08.100 align:middle line:84% We have essentially, in this world, 00:46:08.100 --> 00:46:15.010 align:middle line:84% made our connection to military service, to warfare faceless. 00:46:15.010 --> 00:46:17.710 align:middle line:84% My initial hope for the Veteran Print Project 00:46:17.710 --> 00:46:20.500 align:middle line:84% was to connect the civilian with the veteran 00:46:20.500 --> 00:46:23.350 align:middle line:84% to start a dialogue, to help civilians 00:46:23.350 --> 00:46:25.990 align:middle line:84% use art as a catalyst for conversation, 00:46:25.990 --> 00:46:28.390 align:middle line:84% and to help the veteran feel comfortable 00:46:28.390 --> 00:46:31.750 align:middle line:84% sharing their story in an effort to find a shared 00:46:31.750 --> 00:46:34.420 align:middle line:90% human experience. 00:46:34.420 --> 00:46:36.730 align:middle line:84% Veteran Print Project was one of the earlier-- 00:46:36.730 --> 00:46:40.300 align:middle line:84% like post-9/11, was one of the earlier efforts to bridge 00:46:40.300 --> 00:46:42.850 align:middle line:90% the civilian-veteran gap. 00:46:42.850 --> 00:46:47.320 align:middle line:84% And after just over 12 years, over 100 prints created, 00:46:47.320 --> 00:46:48.640 align:middle line:90% with over 100-- 00:46:48.640 --> 00:46:51.160 align:middle line:84% depicting over 100 veteran stories, 00:46:51.160 --> 00:46:54.310 align:middle line:84% the Veteran Print Project has helped narrow that gap 00:46:54.310 --> 00:46:56.680 align:middle line:90% of the civilian-veterans-- 00:46:56.680 --> 00:47:01.250 align:middle line:84% excuse me, that gap of the civilian-veteran divide. 00:47:01.250 --> 00:47:03.470 align:middle line:90% But that gap still remains. 00:47:03.470 --> 00:47:06.770 align:middle line:84% And unfortunately, we have some new terrain to cover. 00:47:06.770 --> 00:47:09.830 align:middle line:84% There is now a veteran-to-veteran gap. 00:47:09.830 --> 00:47:13.190 align:middle line:84% And I'm not talking about the generational veteran-to-veteran 00:47:13.190 --> 00:47:16.460 align:middle line:84% divide, the Vietnam Veterans trying to welcome in the Gulf 00:47:16.460 --> 00:47:18.110 align:middle line:90% War or World War II to Vietnam. 00:47:18.110 --> 00:47:21.170 align:middle line:84% That's not the veteran-to-veteran generational 00:47:21.170 --> 00:47:22.430 align:middle line:90% gap I'm talking about. 00:47:22.430 --> 00:47:24.620 align:middle line:84% The veteran-the-veteran gap exists 00:47:24.620 --> 00:47:27.740 align:middle line:84% because we continue to remain in Iraq, 00:47:27.740 --> 00:47:30.470 align:middle line:84% and we only recently left Afghanistan. 00:47:30.470 --> 00:47:32.570 align:middle line:84% And those stories continue to evolve. 00:47:32.570 --> 00:47:36.320 align:middle line:84% New veterans continue to come out of the military. 00:47:36.320 --> 00:47:38.420 align:middle line:84% And as those stories evolve, they're 00:47:38.420 --> 00:47:41.040 align:middle line:90% revealing a great discrepancy. 00:47:41.040 --> 00:47:45.570 align:middle line:84% For example, my experience in Mosul, Iraq in 2003, 00:47:45.570 --> 00:47:50.040 align:middle line:84% as you can see pictured in the palace here from 2003, 00:47:50.040 --> 00:47:52.320 align:middle line:84% my experience is going to be vastly 00:47:52.320 --> 00:47:55.380 align:middle line:84% different from somebody returning home from Mosul, Iraq 00:47:55.380 --> 00:47:56.250 align:middle line:90% today. 00:47:56.250 --> 00:48:00.390 align:middle line:84% That's like what's left of the palace. 00:48:00.390 --> 00:48:02.920 align:middle line:90% It doesn't exist anymore. 00:48:02.920 --> 00:48:05.050 align:middle line:84% The soldiers coming home today, their perspective 00:48:05.050 --> 00:48:07.510 align:middle line:84% and their interaction with the Iraqi people 00:48:07.510 --> 00:48:11.320 align:middle line:84% is going to be completely different than my interaction 00:48:11.320 --> 00:48:12.730 align:middle line:90% with the Iraqi people. 00:48:12.730 --> 00:48:15.550 align:middle line:84% The landscape of the country is completely different. 00:48:15.550 --> 00:48:17.950 align:middle line:84% And the reflections on the mission of why we're there 00:48:17.950 --> 00:48:20.200 align:middle line:90% are incredibly changed. 00:48:20.200 --> 00:48:23.680 align:middle line:84% Since my time in Iraq, there have been four different United 00:48:23.680 --> 00:48:25.180 align:middle line:90% States presidents. 00:48:25.180 --> 00:48:28.270 align:middle line:84% Some of the service members, now deployed to the area, 00:48:28.270 --> 00:48:31.850 align:middle line:84% were not even born when 9/11 happened. 00:48:31.850 --> 00:48:33.980 align:middle line:84% Until 2019, there were people serving 00:48:33.980 --> 00:48:37.220 align:middle line:84% in Afghanistan, who were born after the terror attack-- 00:48:37.220 --> 00:48:39.695 align:middle line:84% after the terror attack that prompted that conflict. 00:48:39.695 --> 00:48:43.910 align:middle line:90% 00:48:43.910 --> 00:48:47.270 align:middle line:84% There's also a disconnect from society 00:48:47.270 --> 00:48:49.730 align:middle line:84% to the familial loss of a loved one being 00:48:49.730 --> 00:48:52.280 align:middle line:90% gone for long periods of time. 00:48:52.280 --> 00:48:55.460 align:middle line:84% Outside of the military or beyond the cliche welcome-home 00:48:55.460 --> 00:48:58.250 align:middle line:84% surprise videos, we don't really see the impact 00:48:58.250 --> 00:49:01.220 align:middle line:84% on the families and the day-to-day lives of a loved 00:49:01.220 --> 00:49:03.590 align:middle line:90% one serving overseas. 00:49:03.590 --> 00:49:06.540 align:middle line:84% The stories of the family members just aren't being told. 00:49:06.540 --> 00:49:09.140 align:middle line:84% And I can tell you, firsthand, I've been on both sides of it. 00:49:09.140 --> 00:49:11.420 align:middle line:84% It's harder to be on the home front. 00:49:11.420 --> 00:49:14.460 align:middle line:84% And I think there are people that will disagree with me, 00:49:14.460 --> 00:49:18.268 align:middle line:84% but it's hard to live in the unknown of what 00:49:18.268 --> 00:49:19.560 align:middle line:90% is really happening over there. 00:49:19.560 --> 00:49:22.102 align:middle line:84% When you're deployed, you have some sense of what's going on. 00:49:22.102 --> 00:49:24.280 align:middle line:84% You have an idea of the danger that you're in. 00:49:24.280 --> 00:49:28.320 align:middle line:84% But when you're on the home front, you have no idea. 00:49:28.320 --> 00:49:30.520 align:middle line:84% You don't get a lot of that information. 00:49:30.520 --> 00:49:32.640 align:middle line:84% So those stories need to be told. 00:49:32.640 --> 00:49:35.680 align:middle line:84% The stories of the family member are really important. 00:49:35.680 --> 00:49:37.620 align:middle line:84% And this concept, while it's not new, 00:49:37.620 --> 00:49:39.780 align:middle line:84% is something that my confidence has 00:49:39.780 --> 00:49:42.090 align:middle line:90% grown that I want to highlight. 00:49:42.090 --> 00:49:45.600 align:middle line:84% One of the great things about working in the Veteran Print 00:49:45.600 --> 00:49:48.990 align:middle line:84% Project is that I get to meet a lot of different veteran 00:49:48.990 --> 00:49:50.500 align:middle line:90% organizations. 00:49:50.500 --> 00:49:52.500 align:middle line:84% And one of them that's near and dear to my heart 00:49:52.500 --> 00:49:55.050 align:middle line:90% is the American GI Forum. 00:49:55.050 --> 00:49:58.200 align:middle line:84% And through the American GI Forum, 00:49:58.200 --> 00:50:00.990 align:middle line:84% I've grown to understand how they embrace the family 00:50:00.990 --> 00:50:03.450 align:middle line:90% member as an honorary veteran. 00:50:03.450 --> 00:50:06.930 align:middle line:84% The family member is a veteran as well because they 00:50:06.930 --> 00:50:09.000 align:middle line:90% lived that experience with you. 00:50:09.000 --> 00:50:13.120 align:middle line:84% They have their own side of the story that should be told. 00:50:13.120 --> 00:50:15.120 align:middle line:84% Now, the Print Project is looking at ways 00:50:15.120 --> 00:50:16.380 align:middle line:90% to make that effort happen. 00:50:16.380 --> 00:50:19.320 align:middle line:84% We're continuing our partnership with the Milwaukee Institute 00:50:19.320 --> 00:50:20.250 align:middle line:90% of Art and Design. 00:50:20.250 --> 00:50:23.070 align:middle line:84% And we want to start telling the stories of the family, 00:50:23.070 --> 00:50:27.030 align:middle line:84% not just of the veteran because that support system is 00:50:27.030 --> 00:50:29.070 align:middle line:84% the other side of the military narrative 00:50:29.070 --> 00:50:31.612 align:middle line:90% that we don't hear about. 00:50:31.612 --> 00:50:33.820 align:middle line:84% Now, an interesting part of running the Veteran Print 00:50:33.820 --> 00:50:37.420 align:middle line:84% Project, while simultaneously, trying to nurture my own art 00:50:37.420 --> 00:50:41.380 align:middle line:84% practice and thrive as a curator of veteran art, 00:50:41.380 --> 00:50:44.020 align:middle line:84% is understanding how all of these separate things 00:50:44.020 --> 00:50:46.990 align:middle line:84% influence my thinking and how I motivate 00:50:46.990 --> 00:50:48.850 align:middle line:90% myself to move forward. 00:50:48.850 --> 00:50:51.460 align:middle line:84% Sometimes, this requires that I distance myself 00:50:51.460 --> 00:50:53.500 align:middle line:90% from the Veteran Print Project. 00:50:53.500 --> 00:50:56.080 align:middle line:84% Logistically, I can't completely disconnect 00:50:56.080 --> 00:50:59.500 align:middle line:84% because the project, as it's currently structured, 00:50:59.500 --> 00:51:01.150 align:middle line:90% would cease to exist. 00:51:01.150 --> 00:51:02.260 align:middle line:90% And that's OK. 00:51:02.260 --> 00:51:04.070 align:middle line:90% Someday, that might be the case. 00:51:04.070 --> 00:51:06.610 align:middle line:84% But as new collaborations continue to emerge, 00:51:06.610 --> 00:51:10.260 align:middle line:84% I'll make sure I keep the project on track. 00:51:10.260 --> 00:51:13.950 align:middle line:84% But what's curious is that as my own personal narrative shift, 00:51:13.950 --> 00:51:17.550 align:middle line:84% as my perspective shifts on world politics 00:51:17.550 --> 00:51:21.210 align:middle line:84% and my perspective shifts on my role in the grand scheme 00:51:21.210 --> 00:51:25.650 align:middle line:84% of things, I'm expecting to see a similar shift in the Veteran 00:51:25.650 --> 00:51:26.940 align:middle line:90% Print Project narratives. 00:51:26.940 --> 00:51:31.815 align:middle line:84% I'm expecting to see the veteran stories evolve in the same-- 00:51:31.815 --> 00:51:33.490 align:middle line:90% in parallel to mine. 00:51:33.490 --> 00:51:35.220 align:middle line:84% And that's just not the case, that's 00:51:35.220 --> 00:51:37.770 align:middle line:84% not reality, which is why I need to remind 00:51:37.770 --> 00:51:41.500 align:middle line:84% myself to distance myself because VPP is not about me, 00:51:41.500 --> 00:51:42.000 align:middle line:90% me, me. 00:51:42.000 --> 00:51:46.020 align:middle line:84% It's about the participants and their stories. 00:51:46.020 --> 00:51:48.780 align:middle line:84% And the stories that I expect to come out 00:51:48.780 --> 00:51:51.750 align:middle line:84% of each new round of Veteran Print Project prints 00:51:51.750 --> 00:51:53.605 align:middle line:84% are not always the stories they get told. 00:51:53.605 --> 00:51:55.980 align:middle line:84% I always keep thinking, I'm going to see certain stories. 00:51:55.980 --> 00:51:58.230 align:middle line:84% And those aren't the ones that are getting told. 00:51:58.230 --> 00:52:01.140 align:middle line:84% But it's those unexpected stories 00:52:01.140 --> 00:52:05.280 align:middle line:84% that help remind me of the big diversity 00:52:05.280 --> 00:52:08.620 align:middle line:90% of the human sentiment. 00:52:08.620 --> 00:52:15.070 align:middle line:84% Veteran Print Project helps me remain connected to experiences 00:52:15.070 --> 00:52:16.750 align:middle line:90% that are other than my own. 00:52:16.750 --> 00:52:21.520 align:middle line:84% It helps me remain connected to the stories of today's veterans 00:52:21.520 --> 00:52:23.560 align:middle line:90% and of the veterans in the past. 00:52:23.560 --> 00:52:25.990 align:middle line:84% And it works as a bit of a barometer for me 00:52:25.990 --> 00:52:30.040 align:middle line:84% to differentiate how my own perspective changes in relation 00:52:30.040 --> 00:52:33.160 align:middle line:84% to the general shared experience and whether that's changing, 00:52:33.160 --> 00:52:35.080 align:middle line:90% or it's not changing. 00:52:35.080 --> 00:52:37.600 align:middle line:84% The stories that are coming out of the Veteran Print Project 00:52:37.600 --> 00:52:39.250 align:middle line:84% are what we had hoped would come out, 00:52:39.250 --> 00:52:42.190 align:middle line:84% which are individual, personalized narratives 00:52:42.190 --> 00:52:44.890 align:middle line:90% about a shared human experience. 00:52:44.890 --> 00:52:47.440 align:middle line:84% These narratives are visually reflected 00:52:47.440 --> 00:52:50.350 align:middle line:84% by an artist who, I really hope, is really 00:52:50.350 --> 00:52:52.870 align:middle line:90% connected to them as well. 00:52:52.870 --> 00:52:56.140 align:middle line:84% The variety of stories range from the whimsical 00:52:56.140 --> 00:53:01.030 align:middle line:84% to the philosophical, from the traumatic to the joyous. 00:53:01.030 --> 00:53:03.610 align:middle line:84% And some are even grounded enough to focus 00:53:03.610 --> 00:53:05.710 align:middle line:84% beyond the military subject matter 00:53:05.710 --> 00:53:08.510 align:middle line:90% as part of their narrative. 00:53:08.510 --> 00:53:10.940 align:middle line:84% Now, if my measurement for success 00:53:10.940 --> 00:53:14.090 align:middle line:84% is based on the principles of the original concept 00:53:14.090 --> 00:53:15.890 align:middle line:84% of the Veteran Print Project, and that's 00:53:15.890 --> 00:53:18.320 align:middle line:84% to share a conversation that will prompt 00:53:18.320 --> 00:53:22.730 align:middle line:84% the creation of a piece of art to continue that dialogue, then 00:53:22.730 --> 00:53:25.220 align:middle line:90% yeah, we've succeeded. 00:53:25.220 --> 00:53:29.930 align:middle line:84% But the Veteran Print Project, it's also changed me. 00:53:29.930 --> 00:53:33.770 align:middle line:84% As incredible as it is to hear all of these various stories 00:53:33.770 --> 00:53:37.070 align:middle line:84% and the perspective of each individual participant, 00:53:37.070 --> 00:53:40.850 align:middle line:84% it can take its toll, especially when 00:53:40.850 --> 00:53:45.650 align:middle line:84% my other professional endeavors require me to also 00:53:45.650 --> 00:53:47.930 align:middle line:84% be immersed in first-person narratives that 00:53:47.930 --> 00:53:52.040 align:middle line:84% accentuate this fact-based timeline of military history. 00:53:52.040 --> 00:53:54.710 align:middle line:84% The reality of studying history of something 00:53:54.710 --> 00:53:57.110 align:middle line:84% that you were a part of can be very 00:53:57.110 --> 00:53:59.150 align:middle line:90% challenging psychologically. 00:53:59.150 --> 00:54:03.860 align:middle line:84% And at times, it can make it difficult to remain objective, 00:54:03.860 --> 00:54:05.810 align:middle line:84% especially when the war carries on. 00:54:05.810 --> 00:54:09.110 align:middle line:84% And there is no finality to that timeline. 00:54:09.110 --> 00:54:12.020 align:middle line:84% The cyclical nature of history allows 00:54:12.020 --> 00:54:14.810 align:middle line:84% us to see how far we've come or perhaps 00:54:14.810 --> 00:54:16.370 align:middle line:90% how far we've retreated. 00:54:16.370 --> 00:54:19.130 align:middle line:84% Or sometimes, it just reveals that some things 00:54:19.130 --> 00:54:23.280 align:middle line:84% will remain the same, and they just won't ever change. 00:54:23.280 --> 00:54:26.420 align:middle line:84% It's in those moments, though, where I think some veterans-- 00:54:26.420 --> 00:54:27.980 align:middle line:90% I won't speak for all veterans. 00:54:27.980 --> 00:54:32.510 align:middle line:84% Some veterans start to ask, well, then what was it all for? 00:54:32.510 --> 00:54:36.860 align:middle line:84% Sometimes, it's nice to reveal the connection to a generation 00:54:36.860 --> 00:54:38.720 align:middle line:90% that came before you. 00:54:38.720 --> 00:54:42.320 align:middle line:84% This repetitive nature of history allows-- 00:54:42.320 --> 00:54:46.370 align:middle line:84% this repetitive nature of history creates traditions. 00:54:46.370 --> 00:54:50.940 align:middle line:84% And the sharing of traditions can bring great pride. 00:54:50.940 --> 00:54:55.550 align:middle line:84% But some traditions can also create great divides. 00:54:55.550 --> 00:54:58.400 align:middle line:84% And not everybody always has a part-- 00:54:58.400 --> 00:55:01.610 align:middle line:84% has a chance to be a part of a tradition. 00:55:01.610 --> 00:55:04.820 align:middle line:84% Not all the time are people welcome to be 00:55:04.820 --> 00:55:06.980 align:middle line:90% invited into that tradition. 00:55:06.980 --> 00:55:10.490 align:middle line:84% Everybody doesn't always have a seat at the table 00:55:10.490 --> 00:55:13.880 align:middle line:84% because history is not always kind. 00:55:13.880 --> 00:55:18.070 align:middle line:84% And that's just a reminder to me to continue to ask, 00:55:18.070 --> 00:55:22.330 align:middle line:90% why does it still matter? 00:55:22.330 --> 00:55:24.640 align:middle line:84% My personal work is transitioning 00:55:24.640 --> 00:55:27.850 align:middle line:84% from using visual language that reflects 00:55:27.850 --> 00:55:32.110 align:middle line:84% my military experiences toward new investigations, 00:55:32.110 --> 00:55:35.860 align:middle line:84% investigations of the celebrated topics within my own family's 00:55:35.860 --> 00:55:38.740 align:middle line:84% lineage and my own family folklore. 00:55:38.740 --> 00:55:41.260 align:middle line:84% I'm trying to gain an understanding of family 00:55:41.260 --> 00:55:45.880 align:middle line:84% behaviors that ultimately chose to reject our Mexican lineage 00:55:45.880 --> 00:55:48.490 align:middle line:84% in favor of elevating and celebrating 00:55:48.490 --> 00:55:51.100 align:middle line:90% our Spanish heritage. 00:55:51.100 --> 00:55:55.240 align:middle line:84% My work is now trying to create visual defenses 00:55:55.240 --> 00:56:00.650 align:middle line:84% to fight back against the denial of that part of my identity. 00:56:00.650 --> 00:56:02.750 align:middle line:84% After so many years of considering 00:56:02.750 --> 00:56:06.140 align:middle line:84% the realities of the celebrated militarism in this country 00:56:06.140 --> 00:56:09.080 align:middle line:84% and my role within that narrative, 00:56:09.080 --> 00:56:11.240 align:middle line:84% I'm now wanting to return to the roots 00:56:11.240 --> 00:56:12.740 align:middle line:90% of my own personal history. 00:56:12.740 --> 00:56:16.190 align:middle line:84% And I think, like many in our communities today, 00:56:16.190 --> 00:56:20.420 align:middle line:84% I'm considering new ways to commemorate the past, new ways 00:56:20.420 --> 00:56:24.740 align:middle line:84% that don't require or expect us to build monuments 00:56:24.740 --> 00:56:30.980 align:middle line:84% to worship or finding heroes that we're going to promote. 00:56:30.980 --> 00:56:33.770 align:middle line:84% There will always be layered symbols within my work. 00:56:33.770 --> 00:56:36.020 align:middle line:84% That will always be a part of my work. 00:56:36.020 --> 00:56:39.530 align:middle line:84% And it will draw meaning from personal trauma, all the way 00:56:39.530 --> 00:56:42.980 align:middle line:84% to the amplified collective trauma over the last few years. 00:56:42.980 --> 00:56:46.100 align:middle line:84% And maybe, hopefully, in all of this, 00:56:46.100 --> 00:56:49.580 align:middle line:84% in this new creation of work, maybe, I 00:56:49.580 --> 00:56:54.490 align:middle line:84% will be able to create a designated space to remember. 00:56:54.490 --> 00:56:57.370 align:middle line:84% So thank you all for listening to me. 00:56:57.370 --> 00:57:01.900 align:middle line:84% Here, you see some current and upcoming exhibits. 00:57:01.900 --> 00:57:06.385 align:middle line:84% Relative Perception comes down in just this week in Milwaukee. 00:57:06.385 --> 00:57:10.690 align:middle line:84% O Say Can You See is on exhibit in Pennsylvania 00:57:10.690 --> 00:57:11.860 align:middle line:90% through December. 00:57:11.860 --> 00:57:13.720 align:middle line:90% I'm really excited. 00:57:13.720 --> 00:57:16.810 align:middle line:84% We'll be at Syracuse University National Veteran Resource 00:57:16.810 --> 00:57:18.790 align:middle line:84% Center gallery, which is brand new. 00:57:18.790 --> 00:57:20.770 align:middle line:84% And I'm an alumni of their entrepreneur 00:57:20.770 --> 00:57:22.190 align:middle line:90% program for women veterans. 00:57:22.190 --> 00:57:24.280 align:middle line:84% So I'm excited to be one of the first exhibits 00:57:24.280 --> 00:57:25.450 align:middle line:90% in that new space. 00:57:25.450 --> 00:57:30.910 align:middle line:84% And then save the date, I was a curatorial fellow 00:57:30.910 --> 00:57:34.090 align:middle line:84% for the inaugural Veteran Art Triennial. 00:57:34.090 --> 00:57:37.480 align:middle line:84% And our second one is coming in March of this year. 00:57:37.480 --> 00:57:40.150 align:middle line:84% And I'm excited that I'll have some of my work 00:57:40.150 --> 00:57:41.950 align:middle line:90% on exhibit in that. 00:57:41.950 --> 00:57:44.410 align:middle line:84% And then if you visit the Wisconsin Veterans Museum 00:57:44.410 --> 00:57:48.310 align:middle line:84% website on our Events page, I host a monthly drink and draw. 00:57:48.310 --> 00:57:50.830 align:middle line:84% And it still remains virtual, where 00:57:50.830 --> 00:57:54.010 align:middle line:84% I pick an object from our collection or a story, 00:57:54.010 --> 00:57:55.630 align:middle line:90% and then we sketch. 00:57:55.630 --> 00:57:57.790 align:middle line:84% And we have some fun while drawing. 00:57:57.790 --> 00:57:59.500 align:middle line:90% I did pretty good on time. 00:57:59.500 --> 00:58:02.210 align:middle line:84% I think I left this room for questions. 00:58:02.210 --> 00:58:04.690 align:middle line:84% Here's a slide with all of my contact info. 00:58:04.690 --> 00:58:09.600 align:middle line:84% But I'll stop talking now and open it up for questions. 00:58:09.600 --> 00:58:15.500 align:middle line:84% I appreciate that you shared so many artists of note, 00:58:15.500 --> 00:58:20.870 align:middle line:84% artists who you've collaborated with, organizations, et cetera. 00:58:20.870 --> 00:58:22.560 align:middle line:84% But I guess I'd kick it off by saying, 00:58:22.560 --> 00:58:25.110 align:middle line:84% are there any other organizations, 00:58:25.110 --> 00:58:29.030 align:middle line:84% both in support of veterans and the arts 00:58:29.030 --> 00:58:34.340 align:middle line:84% and veterans' collaborative projects or artists that you 00:58:34.340 --> 00:58:37.580 align:middle line:84% weren't able to sort of embed that you would like 00:58:37.580 --> 00:58:40.670 align:middle line:90% to amplify and share with us? 00:58:40.670 --> 00:58:41.930 align:middle line:90% Gosh, yeah. 00:58:41.930 --> 00:58:45.350 align:middle line:84% It's funny, as I was creating this, there's so many-- 00:58:45.350 --> 00:58:48.770 align:middle line:84% I've been really lucky to participate 00:58:48.770 --> 00:58:52.490 align:middle line:90% with so many different people. 00:58:52.490 --> 00:58:56.510 align:middle line:84% There's a theater group in Wisconsin that has grown, 00:58:56.510 --> 00:58:58.520 align:middle line:84% called Feast of Crispian, and they 00:58:58.520 --> 00:59:04.100 align:middle line:84% use the words of Shakespeare to work with veterans, 00:59:04.100 --> 00:59:06.890 align:middle line:84% to use those words and find out just 00:59:06.890 --> 00:59:11.870 align:middle line:84% how relevant they are to today's service members that 00:59:11.870 --> 00:59:13.550 align:middle line:90% are coming out of the military. 00:59:13.550 --> 00:59:15.590 align:middle line:84% And I had just started working with them 00:59:15.590 --> 00:59:20.210 align:middle line:84% to try to bring more programs to the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. 00:59:20.210 --> 00:59:22.070 align:middle line:90% But they are national. 00:59:22.070 --> 00:59:25.040 align:middle line:84% They're called Feast of Crispian, 00:59:25.040 --> 00:59:27.590 align:middle line:90% based out of Wisconsin. 00:59:27.590 --> 00:59:30.350 align:middle line:84% Of course, the VA System has incredible programs 00:59:30.350 --> 00:59:32.030 align:middle line:90% that are accessible out there. 00:59:32.030 --> 00:59:34.220 align:middle line:84% Jason Moon does Warrior Songs, which 00:59:34.220 --> 00:59:36.470 align:middle line:84% is essentially a Veteran Print Project doing 00:59:36.470 --> 00:59:38.600 align:middle line:90% using songwriting. 00:59:38.600 --> 00:59:40.850 align:middle line:84% I mentioned Martin McClendon at Carthage College 00:59:40.850 --> 00:59:43.460 align:middle line:90% in the verbatim theater. 00:59:43.460 --> 00:59:45.560 align:middle line:84% The Emerging Veteran Artists, there's-- 00:59:45.560 --> 00:59:46.820 align:middle line:90% I should find the website. 00:59:46.820 --> 00:59:50.040 align:middle line:84% I should have put it up there for all of the links 00:59:50.040 --> 00:59:52.040 align:middle line:84% to the artists that are working in this movement 00:59:52.040 --> 00:59:55.760 align:middle line:84% right now because there's performance art theater, poetry 00:59:55.760 --> 01:00:01.680 align:middle line:84% writing, prose, a lot of writing programs exist out there. 01:00:01.680 --> 01:00:03.050 align:middle line:90% I can always send a link. 01:00:03.050 --> 01:00:07.310 align:middle line:84% I have a long list of contacts to go to. 01:00:07.310 --> 01:00:10.850 align:middle line:84% One thing that you mentioned repeatedly 01:00:10.850 --> 01:00:13.490 align:middle line:84% was that collecting these first-person stories 01:00:13.490 --> 01:00:16.920 align:middle line:84% can really take a toll, emotionally and mentally. 01:00:16.920 --> 01:00:19.910 align:middle line:84% And so I'd be curious to know how 01:00:19.910 --> 01:00:24.320 align:middle line:84% you care for yourself, both as a creative 01:00:24.320 --> 01:00:27.180 align:middle line:84% and also just as a human being and a veteran. 01:00:27.180 --> 01:00:30.740 align:middle line:84% How do you-- how do you care for yourself in all of that work? 01:00:30.740 --> 01:00:33.050 align:middle line:84% I think learning to communicate and actually, 01:00:33.050 --> 01:00:35.960 align:middle line:84% identifying that it was actually affecting me. 01:00:35.960 --> 01:00:38.290 align:middle line:84% I've been a storyteller my whole life. 01:00:38.290 --> 01:00:40.040 align:middle line:84% The whole reason the Print Project started 01:00:40.040 --> 01:00:43.353 align:middle line:84% was because we were all isolating veterans, 01:00:43.353 --> 01:00:45.270 align:middle line:84% we're isolated and only talking to each other. 01:00:45.270 --> 01:00:48.240 align:middle line:84% And so I knew we had to find ways to talk to other people. 01:00:48.240 --> 01:00:52.430 align:middle line:84% And when I started realizing that I was losing my ability 01:00:52.430 --> 01:00:57.980 align:middle line:84% to-- or want to tell my story or that I didn't really want-- 01:00:57.980 --> 01:01:04.040 align:middle line:84% that I was actually finding a new way to isolate, I'm lucky, 01:01:04.040 --> 01:01:06.810 align:middle line:84% I have a really good support system. 01:01:06.810 --> 01:01:09.260 align:middle line:84% And the vet working at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, 01:01:09.260 --> 01:01:12.710 align:middle line:84% I am only able to be open and honest with my colleagues 01:01:12.710 --> 01:01:14.760 align:middle line:90% about how this affects me. 01:01:14.760 --> 01:01:20.030 align:middle line:84% And so being able to have colleagues that are also 01:01:20.030 --> 01:01:21.890 align:middle line:84% very aware of that, that maybe they 01:01:21.890 --> 01:01:24.200 align:middle line:84% need to take the reins of something. 01:01:24.200 --> 01:01:27.290 align:middle line:84% Even though you might be really good at it, even though you 01:01:27.290 --> 01:01:29.360 align:middle line:84% might be the best candidate for this, 01:01:29.360 --> 01:01:33.350 align:middle line:84% maybe stepping in and saying, why don't we take this one? 01:01:33.350 --> 01:01:36.470 align:middle line:84% You take some time to just be who you are. 01:01:36.470 --> 01:01:39.170 align:middle line:84% And then finally, I will say, in the last couple of years, 01:01:39.170 --> 01:01:42.980 align:middle line:84% I finally did start going to the VA and talk to somebody. 01:01:42.980 --> 01:01:45.950 align:middle line:84% I didn't think I needed that for almost 12 years. 01:01:45.950 --> 01:01:49.820 align:middle line:84% And I think everybody's timeline is different. 01:01:49.820 --> 01:01:52.350 align:middle line:90% 01:01:52.350 --> 01:01:54.360 align:middle line:84% I was told as soon as I got out of the Army 01:01:54.360 --> 01:01:56.693 align:middle line:84% that I needed to be talking to somebody, and I was like, 01:01:56.693 --> 01:01:58.920 align:middle line:84% but I'm already talking, it's not a big deal. 01:01:58.920 --> 01:02:01.650 align:middle line:84% And it took about 12 years before I actually sat down, 01:02:01.650 --> 01:02:03.510 align:middle line:90% formally, to talk to somebody. 01:02:03.510 --> 01:02:06.960 align:middle line:84% So I think, support system, being 01:02:06.960 --> 01:02:08.950 align:middle line:84% really grateful to have a support system, 01:02:08.950 --> 01:02:12.210 align:middle line:84% and being able to maybe see when somebody else needs one. 01:02:12.210 --> 01:02:14.955 align:middle line:84% And you can be the support system for them. 01:02:14.955 --> 01:02:17.580 align:middle line:90% 01:02:17.580 --> 01:02:19.050 align:middle line:90% Well, hello, Yvette. 01:02:19.050 --> 01:02:20.460 align:middle line:90% Long time no see. 01:02:20.460 --> 01:02:22.433 align:middle line:84% This is my roommate from the Mission Continues 01:02:22.433 --> 01:02:23.850 align:middle line:84% when we did a fellowship together. 01:02:23.850 --> 01:02:25.080 align:middle line:90% [LAUGHS] 01:02:25.080 --> 01:02:29.100 align:middle line:90% So probably about 10 years now. 01:02:29.100 --> 01:02:31.590 align:middle line:90% So I do work in the VA. 01:02:31.590 --> 01:02:35.820 align:middle line:84% I work in a brand new community engagement position 01:02:35.820 --> 01:02:38.100 align:middle line:84% in the Suicide Prevention Program. 01:02:38.100 --> 01:02:44.610 align:middle line:84% And I just-- one of the priority areas that we have 01:02:44.610 --> 01:02:47.880 align:middle line:84% is promoting connectedness and improving care transitions. 01:02:47.880 --> 01:02:51.500 align:middle line:84% This is such a huge aspect of that. 01:02:51.500 --> 01:02:56.910 align:middle line:84% I just wondered if there was any connection to any of the State 01:02:56.910 --> 01:03:03.750 align:middle line:84% Governor Challenges because that's a VA-SAMHSA partnership 01:03:03.750 --> 01:03:08.520 align:middle line:84% to prevent suicide in veteran and military-connected families 01:03:08.520 --> 01:03:09.550 align:middle line:90% at the state level. 01:03:09.550 --> 01:03:11.980 align:middle line:84% So it convenes a statewide coalition. 01:03:11.980 --> 01:03:16.680 align:middle line:84% But the priority areas are all aligned with what you're doing. 01:03:16.680 --> 01:03:18.720 align:middle line:84% I mean, the whole time you're talking, 01:03:18.720 --> 01:03:21.360 align:middle line:84% I know I'm looking at it through a suicide prevention lens, 01:03:21.360 --> 01:03:23.130 align:middle line:90% but that's what it is. 01:03:23.130 --> 01:03:24.240 align:middle line:90% Yeah, I mean-- 01:03:24.240 --> 01:03:28.680 align:middle line:84% And I just wondered if there was any connection to even though-- 01:03:28.680 --> 01:03:32.370 align:middle line:84% because all 50 states have a Governor's Challenge. 01:03:32.370 --> 01:03:33.900 align:middle line:84% Yeah, do you mean does Veteran Print 01:03:33.900 --> 01:03:35.520 align:middle line:90% Project have that connection? 01:03:35.520 --> 01:03:41.250 align:middle line:84% Like if there's any-- to either any specific suicide prevention 01:03:41.250 --> 01:03:46.530 align:middle line:84% programming or groups or anything within that arena. 01:03:46.530 --> 01:03:47.970 align:middle line:84% I mean, I've done stuff like that 01:03:47.970 --> 01:03:50.190 align:middle line:84% before but nothing in the works right now. 01:03:50.190 --> 01:03:52.500 align:middle line:84% I mean, I'm always open to make that connection. 01:03:52.500 --> 01:03:56.160 align:middle line:84% And because I was working with the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, 01:03:56.160 --> 01:04:02.220 align:middle line:84% we are a state organization or a state education component 01:04:02.220 --> 01:04:04.500 align:middle line:84% of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. 01:04:04.500 --> 01:04:06.510 align:middle line:84% So we have that direct connection 01:04:06.510 --> 01:04:08.280 align:middle line:84% to the Department of Veterans Affairs. 01:04:08.280 --> 01:04:11.400 align:middle line:84% And they've brought me in and embraced the Veteran Print 01:04:11.400 --> 01:04:12.390 align:middle line:90% Project in that way. 01:04:12.390 --> 01:04:17.850 align:middle line:84% But that's sort of where my role at the museum has evolved to, 01:04:17.850 --> 01:04:22.800 align:middle line:84% is like, how do we use the arts to create that connection 01:04:22.800 --> 01:04:24.120 align:middle line:90% to the statewide? 01:04:24.120 --> 01:04:26.760 align:middle line:84% And now, I'm actually work there, 01:04:26.760 --> 01:04:28.740 align:middle line:84% but I do consulting work with the museum now. 01:04:28.740 --> 01:04:30.330 align:middle line:90% I relocated to North Carolina. 01:04:30.330 --> 01:04:33.090 align:middle line:84% And so now, I'm also a little bit-- 01:04:33.090 --> 01:04:35.610 align:middle line:84% I'm able to not be a state employee anymore. 01:04:35.610 --> 01:04:40.590 align:middle line:84% So I can expand nationwide and still emphasize the great work 01:04:40.590 --> 01:04:42.540 align:middle line:84% that Wisconsin is doing and still 01:04:42.540 --> 01:04:44.970 align:middle line:90% continue to consult with them. 01:04:44.970 --> 01:04:47.910 align:middle line:90% But we can look at ways that-- 01:04:47.910 --> 01:04:50.880 align:middle line:84% this project, we've tried to get it with the VA a while back. 01:04:50.880 --> 01:04:54.480 align:middle line:84% But for whatever reason, it just didn't flesh out. 01:04:54.480 --> 01:04:57.165 align:middle line:84% Well, yeah, that's-- it's a big bureaucracy. 01:04:57.165 --> 01:04:57.990 align:middle line:90% [CHUCKLES] 01:04:57.990 --> 01:04:59.040 align:middle line:90% Yeah. 01:04:59.040 --> 01:05:02.250 align:middle line:84% But that's where a community engagement 01:05:02.250 --> 01:05:05.520 align:middle line:84% position that's working outwardly 01:05:05.520 --> 01:05:07.840 align:middle line:90% with a lot of different-- 01:05:07.840 --> 01:05:10.560 align:middle line:84% I mean, they're the coalitions that 01:05:10.560 --> 01:05:13.830 align:middle line:84% have faith based, have schools like allow the colleges 01:05:13.830 --> 01:05:14.780 align:middle line:90% and universities. 01:05:14.780 --> 01:05:16.650 align:middle line:84% There's a lot of veteran-friendly employers. 01:05:16.650 --> 01:05:20.590 align:middle line:84% I mean, it's comprised of a lot of different stakeholders. 01:05:20.590 --> 01:05:23.130 align:middle line:84% But I just see so many connection points 01:05:23.130 --> 01:05:25.650 align:middle line:84% to a lot of the Suicide Prevention work 01:05:25.650 --> 01:05:28.720 align:middle line:84% that's going on because it's a public health approach now. 01:05:28.720 --> 01:05:30.000 align:middle line:90% which is suicide prevention. 01:05:30.000 --> 01:05:31.590 align:middle line:84% Yeah, I was going to say, I will say, 01:05:31.590 --> 01:05:34.200 align:middle line:84% the really cool thing is I am with Collective Care. 01:05:34.200 --> 01:05:36.960 align:middle line:84% I really am seeing institutions like 性视界 really 01:05:36.960 --> 01:05:41.610 align:middle line:84% start to embrace the idea of collective care 01:05:41.610 --> 01:05:47.940 align:middle line:84% and utilizing different formats to address that. 01:05:47.940 --> 01:05:50.760 align:middle line:84% And they're are embracing that within the veteran community. 01:05:50.760 --> 01:05:54.390 align:middle line:84% And what's nice about connecting that to veteran community 01:05:54.390 --> 01:06:02.420 align:middle line:84% is the veteran community has that same diversity of thought 01:06:02.420 --> 01:06:03.510 align:middle line:90% in humanity. 01:06:03.510 --> 01:06:07.350 align:middle line:84% We have so many different points of view, perspective, 01:06:07.350 --> 01:06:10.560 align:middle line:84% experiences within the military component 01:06:10.560 --> 01:06:14.430 align:middle line:84% that we need to be helping veterans, 01:06:14.430 --> 01:06:16.110 align:middle line:84% with every different perspective, 01:06:16.110 --> 01:06:19.290 align:middle line:84% have a place to discuss and have a place, that outlet 01:06:19.290 --> 01:06:20.940 align:middle line:90% to share their stories. 01:06:20.940 --> 01:06:24.960 align:middle line:84% So yeah, I think there's always opportunity. 01:06:24.960 --> 01:06:28.860 align:middle line:84% And I'm happy to continue that and figure out what we 01:06:28.860 --> 01:06:32.140 align:middle line:90% can do because it's important. 01:06:32.140 --> 01:06:36.210 align:middle line:84% I just don't think that's a coincidence that you kept 01:06:36.210 --> 01:06:39.623 align:middle line:84% circling into my purview because like I said, 01:06:39.623 --> 01:06:41.290 align:middle line:84% there's just a lot of connection points. 01:06:41.290 --> 01:06:44.915 align:middle line:84% So I just love to have a conversation with you. 01:06:44.915 --> 01:06:45.790 align:middle line:90% Yeah, we definitely-- 01:06:45.790 --> 01:06:48.300 align:middle line:84% --to know a little bit more in depth, not just to catch up. 01:06:48.300 --> 01:06:49.040 align:middle line:90% [CHUCKLES] 01:06:49.040 --> 01:06:49.740 align:middle line:90% Oh, yes. 01:06:49.740 --> 01:06:51.330 align:middle line:90% That's always a plus. 01:06:51.330 --> 01:06:53.520 align:middle line:84% But yeah, for sure, we'll be linking up. 01:06:53.520 --> 01:06:55.770 align:middle line:84% And then if anybody else has ideas out there too. 01:06:55.770 --> 01:06:57.370 align:middle line:84% I know Vera Roddy is in the audience. 01:06:57.370 --> 01:06:59.850 align:middle line:84% She's doing work with Gulf War veterans 01:06:59.850 --> 01:07:02.490 align:middle line:84% but doing work with another NEH grant. 01:07:02.490 --> 01:07:05.430 align:middle line:84% And I can put you in contact with her. 01:07:05.430 --> 01:07:09.030 align:middle line:84% and the work she's doing also with veterans, and specifically 01:07:09.030 --> 01:07:11.190 align:middle line:84% a lot of work with women veterans. 01:07:11.190 --> 01:07:14.880 align:middle line:84% And that's what-- I mean, I used to manage the Women Veterans 01:07:14.880 --> 01:07:18.420 align:middle line:84% program, so I know these were the type of events 01:07:18.420 --> 01:07:21.090 align:middle line:84% and these are the type of programs that are really 01:07:21.090 --> 01:07:24.510 align:middle line:84% just anything to get women to tell their story, especially, 01:07:24.510 --> 01:07:27.240 align:middle line:84% since it's a story that's not heard enough. 01:07:27.240 --> 01:07:29.580 align:middle line:84% Yeah, it's tough to get women to share their stories. 01:07:29.580 --> 01:07:31.740 align:middle line:84% That is one of the toughest things out there. 01:07:31.740 --> 01:07:34.950 align:middle line:84% I've been really lucky, the women veterans in Wisconsin 01:07:34.950 --> 01:07:37.800 align:middle line:84% are my family, are the reason why I'm here, 01:07:37.800 --> 01:07:39.910 align:middle line:90% why my career is where it's at. 01:07:39.910 --> 01:07:42.420 align:middle line:84% But even those women, who are always very generous with 01:07:42.420 --> 01:07:46.170 align:middle line:84% their story, when it comes to public platforms, they're-- 01:07:46.170 --> 01:07:49.650 align:middle line:84% women are good about pushing other women forward 01:07:49.650 --> 01:07:53.820 align:middle line:84% while putting ourself on the back shelf. 01:07:53.820 --> 01:07:56.730 align:middle line:84% And helping each other learn to put our stories forward 01:07:56.730 --> 01:07:57.870 align:middle line:90% is important. 01:07:57.870 --> 01:08:00.000 align:middle line:84% It wasn't as important to me when I first got out, 01:08:00.000 --> 01:08:01.570 align:middle line:90% but I didn't understand it. 01:08:01.570 --> 01:08:04.110 align:middle line:84% And now, I really have a much greater understanding 01:08:04.110 --> 01:08:07.740 align:middle line:90% of that need and importance. 01:08:07.740 --> 01:08:10.030 align:middle line:84% So yeah, thank you for coming today. 01:08:10.030 --> 01:08:11.610 align:middle line:90% I'm really excited you're here. 01:08:11.610 --> 01:08:14.610 align:middle line:84% Yeah, I wanted to hear more about the Print Project. 01:08:14.610 --> 01:08:16.590 align:middle line:84% And I saw that this was going on, 01:08:16.590 --> 01:08:20.432 align:middle line:84% and it was going to be a lot more in depth, so. 01:08:20.432 --> 01:08:23.689 align:middle line:90% Well, thank you. 01:08:23.689 --> 01:08:25.939 align:middle line:84% I have a-- I see there's a question about the process, 01:08:25.939 --> 01:08:26.439 align:middle line:90% right? 01:08:26.439 --> 01:08:30.229 align:middle line:84% Cindy, you want to talk about the process? 01:08:30.229 --> 01:08:34.740 align:middle line:84% So the way the project was started was-- 01:08:34.740 --> 01:08:36.970 align:middle line:84% obviously, working at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, 01:08:36.970 --> 01:08:38.500 align:middle line:90% I had access to oral histories. 01:08:38.500 --> 01:08:42.250 align:middle line:84% And originally, the process was a recorded oral history 01:08:42.250 --> 01:08:43.840 align:middle line:90% was given to the artist. 01:08:43.840 --> 01:08:46.240 align:middle line:90% And they never met the veteran. 01:08:46.240 --> 01:08:49.390 align:middle line:84% And then when we moved the project to Colorado State, 01:08:49.390 --> 01:08:51.880 align:middle line:84% the oral history component wasn't as accessible 01:08:51.880 --> 01:08:53.020 align:middle line:90% as it was in Wisconsin. 01:08:53.020 --> 01:08:55.420 align:middle line:84% So we had to have the veteran meet 01:08:55.420 --> 01:08:58.359 align:middle line:90% the artists out of logistics. 01:08:58.359 --> 01:09:03.370 align:middle line:84% And that ended up creating a much richer experience 01:09:03.370 --> 01:09:06.819 align:middle line:84% because you actually are engaging in a conversation. 01:09:06.819 --> 01:09:09.640 align:middle line:84% And that's where the idea of dialogue really blossomed. 01:09:09.640 --> 01:09:12.130 align:middle line:84% And so I work with organizations. 01:09:12.130 --> 01:09:15.700 align:middle line:84% The Veteran Print Project, essentially, starts-- 01:09:15.700 --> 01:09:18.850 align:middle line:84% it works best like when you have a university that 01:09:18.850 --> 01:09:22.630 align:middle line:84% has a veteran community and an art community, 01:09:22.630 --> 01:09:24.580 align:middle line:90% like printmakers. 01:09:24.580 --> 01:09:26.029 align:middle line:90% But it's not a requirement. 01:09:26.029 --> 01:09:27.760 align:middle line:90% It's not a requirement. 01:09:27.760 --> 01:09:29.968 align:middle line:84% Essentially, if I have a group of veterans 01:09:29.968 --> 01:09:31.510 align:middle line:84% that are willing to tell their story, 01:09:31.510 --> 01:09:35.290 align:middle line:84% I'll find artists that are willing to create the prints. 01:09:35.290 --> 01:09:36.310 align:middle line:90% I'm kind of a stickler. 01:09:36.310 --> 01:09:41.170 align:middle line:84% It has to be printmaking for my project, hand-pulled prints. 01:09:41.170 --> 01:09:43.930 align:middle line:84% We've evolved a little, but there's other-- 01:09:43.930 --> 01:09:47.140 align:middle line:84% people have modeled the project in different mediums. 01:09:47.140 --> 01:09:49.870 align:middle line:90% But Print Project is prints. 01:09:49.870 --> 01:09:52.990 align:middle line:84% So yeah, it's really about finding artists 01:09:52.990 --> 01:09:55.750 align:middle line:84% who can create a hand-pulled print 01:09:55.750 --> 01:10:00.260 align:middle line:84% and having veterans that want to tell their story. 01:10:00.260 --> 01:10:03.760 align:middle line:84% It's funny, sometimes, I have a harder time finding artists, 01:10:03.760 --> 01:10:06.220 align:middle line:84% and I have all these veterans waiting. 01:10:06.220 --> 01:10:07.780 align:middle line:90% And then sometimes, I have-- 01:10:07.780 --> 01:10:10.420 align:middle line:84% like in Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design sometimes, 01:10:10.420 --> 01:10:12.850 align:middle line:84% I've been working with Rina Yoon, their professor. 01:10:12.850 --> 01:10:14.840 align:middle line:90% So it's for a class. 01:10:14.840 --> 01:10:17.110 align:middle line:84% So I have a specific number of artists. 01:10:17.110 --> 01:10:19.340 align:middle line:90% And she's really strict. 01:10:19.340 --> 01:10:20.920 align:middle line:84% So she doesn't just let them get away 01:10:20.920 --> 01:10:22.658 align:middle line:84% with making one print per semester. 01:10:22.658 --> 01:10:24.700 align:middle line:84% She makes them interview three different veterans 01:10:24.700 --> 01:10:27.160 align:middle line:84% and do an addition on three different veterans. 01:10:27.160 --> 01:10:30.670 align:middle line:84% So that makes it hard for me because then, I 01:10:30.670 --> 01:10:33.130 align:middle line:84% have to find-- let's say I have 10 students in the class, 01:10:33.130 --> 01:10:35.470 align:middle line:90% now, I have to find 30 veterans. 01:10:35.470 --> 01:10:40.630 align:middle line:84% [LAUGHS] So it's kind of a balancing 01:10:40.630 --> 01:10:42.280 align:middle line:90% act of your participants. 01:10:42.280 --> 01:10:46.450 align:middle line:84% But if you're doing it at your institution, a lot-- you'll 01:10:46.450 --> 01:10:48.610 align:middle line:84% be surprised how many student veterans you have 01:10:48.610 --> 01:10:52.030 align:middle line:84% and some that won't identify as veterans or artists, who 01:10:52.030 --> 01:10:53.980 align:middle line:84% actually are veterans, that won't identify 01:10:53.980 --> 01:10:55.600 align:middle line:90% their veteran experience. 01:10:55.600 --> 01:10:58.840 align:middle line:84% And so for me, the Print Project works well 01:10:58.840 --> 01:11:01.713 align:middle line:84% because I offer the opportunity that you don't actually 01:11:01.713 --> 01:11:03.130 align:middle line:84% have to share-- your story doesn't 01:11:03.130 --> 01:11:06.280 align:middle line:84% have to be about the military if you don't want it to be. 01:11:06.280 --> 01:11:09.470 align:middle line:84% You just happen to be a veteran, and you're sharing a story. 01:11:09.470 --> 01:11:11.620 align:middle line:84% And sometimes, through conversations, 01:11:11.620 --> 01:11:13.420 align:middle line:84% that military experience organically 01:11:13.420 --> 01:11:15.540 align:middle line:84% comes out because they've built a trust. 01:11:15.540 --> 01:11:18.040 align:middle line:84% And now, they feel comfortable telling you a little bit more 01:11:18.040 --> 01:11:19.130 align:middle line:90% about who they are. 01:11:19.130 --> 01:11:22.910 align:middle line:84% But if you allow people to tell whatever side of the story 01:11:22.910 --> 01:11:25.510 align:middle line:84% they want, then you don't have to-- 01:11:25.510 --> 01:11:30.280 align:middle line:84% people feel better about sharing when they don't feel forced 01:11:30.280 --> 01:11:36.280 align:middle line:84% or coerced into any expected result. Take the pressure off. 01:11:36.280 --> 01:11:38.980 align:middle line:84% That's why I tell the artist, yes, the artwork is beautiful, 01:11:38.980 --> 01:11:41.700 align:middle line:84% but that's not the point of this all. 01:11:41.700 --> 01:11:44.200 align:middle line:84% And I don't want to discredit that because I get some really 01:11:44.200 --> 01:11:46.330 align:middle line:90% amazing, beautiful prints. 01:11:46.330 --> 01:11:49.000 align:middle line:84% I have a lot of beautiful prints in the collection. 01:11:49.000 --> 01:11:50.170 align:middle line:90% And I'm really grateful. 01:11:50.170 --> 01:11:54.220 align:middle line:84% But the stories that have come out, 01:11:54.220 --> 01:11:55.720 align:middle line:90% it goes up a little higher. 01:11:55.720 --> 01:11:58.720 align:middle line:90% [LAUGHS] I value the stories. 01:11:58.720 --> 01:12:00.040 align:middle line:90% I'm wondering, too, with that. 01:12:00.040 --> 01:12:02.050 align:middle line:90% Are they given a prompt? 01:12:02.050 --> 01:12:06.640 align:middle line:84% Like when to share the story and it's like what prompt are the-- 01:12:06.640 --> 01:12:08.860 align:middle line:84% So I actually give them a handout 01:12:08.860 --> 01:12:13.780 align:middle line:84% that is taken from oral history best practices. 01:12:13.780 --> 01:12:16.630 align:middle line:84% And for the Print Project, I use the Library 01:12:16.630 --> 01:12:19.750 align:middle line:84% of Congress sample questions for veterans 01:12:19.750 --> 01:12:22.660 align:middle line:84% because another reason why I started the project was-- 01:12:22.660 --> 01:12:25.630 align:middle line:84% it's not as much anymore, but when we were first getting out 01:12:25.630 --> 01:12:29.170 align:middle line:84% in '03, '04 people were-- the whole thing of, oh, 01:12:29.170 --> 01:12:32.290 align:middle line:84% did you kill anybody, like learning to have proper 01:12:32.290 --> 01:12:34.180 align:middle line:90% conversations. 01:12:34.180 --> 01:12:37.480 align:middle line:84% And I always compare it to when you meet somebody, 01:12:37.480 --> 01:12:39.910 align:middle line:84% you don't introduce yourself, hi, I'm Yvette, 01:12:39.910 --> 01:12:43.000 align:middle line:84% and then when you're introducing yourself say, 01:12:43.000 --> 01:12:44.800 align:middle line:90% oh, were you abused as a child? 01:12:44.800 --> 01:12:47.560 align:middle line:84% Like that's not a question that you would ever ask somebody 01:12:47.560 --> 01:12:48.650 align:middle line:90% when you first meet them. 01:12:48.650 --> 01:12:50.740 align:middle line:84% So why would you ask them those invasive questions 01:12:50.740 --> 01:12:51.880 align:middle line:90% about being a veteran? 01:12:51.880 --> 01:12:55.510 align:middle line:84% So I give you some sample oral history best practice questions 01:12:55.510 --> 01:12:57.400 align:middle line:90% to get this started. 01:12:57.400 --> 01:12:59.680 align:middle line:84% But like I said, I was a cook in the army. 01:12:59.680 --> 01:13:04.600 align:middle line:84% So for me, the best advice I give is to talk about food. 01:13:04.600 --> 01:13:06.850 align:middle line:90% Food prompts so much memory. 01:13:06.850 --> 01:13:08.380 align:middle line:84% And I always tell people, this is 01:13:08.380 --> 01:13:10.300 align:middle line:90% how I got to know my soldiers. 01:13:10.300 --> 01:13:13.150 align:middle line:84% If you talk about food, then you know people's likes 01:13:13.150 --> 01:13:13.940 align:middle line:90% and dislikes. 01:13:13.940 --> 01:13:17.230 align:middle line:84% You know how they were raised because you know, 01:13:17.230 --> 01:13:19.270 align:middle line:84% did they have food, did they not have food? 01:13:19.270 --> 01:13:22.400 align:middle line:84% If they did have food, who was preparing it? 01:13:22.400 --> 01:13:24.310 align:middle line:90% What were they preparing? 01:13:24.310 --> 01:13:26.290 align:middle line:84% What is food that makes you happy? 01:13:26.290 --> 01:13:28.930 align:middle line:84% What is food that makes you nostalgic? 01:13:28.930 --> 01:13:31.990 align:middle line:84% But you get to know a lot about a person simply by the food 01:13:31.990 --> 01:13:35.840 align:middle line:84% that they eat and their access to food. 01:13:35.840 --> 01:13:41.590 align:middle line:84% So when all else fails, have a conversation about food. 01:13:41.590 --> 01:13:42.310 align:middle line:90% It works. 01:13:42.310 --> 01:13:43.090 align:middle line:90% Music, too. 01:13:43.090 --> 01:13:45.790 align:middle line:84% But food is really the common denominator. 01:13:45.790 --> 01:13:46.930 align:middle line:90% We all have to eat. 01:13:46.930 --> 01:13:50.080 align:middle line:90% 01:13:50.080 --> 01:13:52.190 align:middle line:90% Can I ask a follow up, Yvette? 01:13:52.190 --> 01:13:52.690 align:middle line:90% Yeah. 01:13:52.690 --> 01:13:57.230 align:middle line:84% I'm curious if these conversations are documented 01:13:57.230 --> 01:13:59.750 align:middle line:90% as part of the process. 01:13:59.750 --> 01:14:02.360 align:middle line:84% Sorry, if these conversations are documented, what? 01:14:02.360 --> 01:14:04.760 align:middle line:84% As part of your process, are they being-- 01:14:04.760 --> 01:14:07.940 align:middle line:84% So like I said, we originally had the oral histories, 01:14:07.940 --> 01:14:10.700 align:middle line:84% like we were trying to bring a new generation of veterans 01:14:10.700 --> 01:14:11.540 align:middle line:90% at the Wisconsin-- 01:14:11.540 --> 01:14:14.150 align:middle line:84% I was doing my work study at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. 01:14:14.150 --> 01:14:16.790 align:middle line:84% And we were trying to bring a new generation 01:14:16.790 --> 01:14:21.200 align:middle line:84% of oral histories to get recorded before we forgot them. 01:14:21.200 --> 01:14:23.540 align:middle line:84% Don't wait 50 years to record that oral history. 01:14:23.540 --> 01:14:26.000 align:middle line:90% So we had access to that. 01:14:26.000 --> 01:14:30.830 align:middle line:84% And then my dream was always to have the recorded oral history 01:14:30.830 --> 01:14:32.270 align:middle line:90% be the component of it. 01:14:32.270 --> 01:14:35.690 align:middle line:84% And that just hasn't really happened. 01:14:35.690 --> 01:14:38.600 align:middle line:84% If an institution has access to recording 01:14:38.600 --> 01:14:41.030 align:middle line:84% of the oral histories, then we'll do it. 01:14:41.030 --> 01:14:44.090 align:middle line:84% My thing is about recording the oral histories. 01:14:44.090 --> 01:14:47.000 align:middle line:84% Sorry, so before I get to that point, 01:14:47.000 --> 01:14:52.130 align:middle line:84% the artist has to give me a paragraph on the print. 01:14:52.130 --> 01:14:56.060 align:middle line:84% So that goes with the print, the narrative of the story. 01:14:56.060 --> 01:14:58.730 align:middle line:84% But the recording of oral histories, 01:14:58.730 --> 01:15:01.700 align:middle line:84% if it's not at an institution of humanities, 01:15:01.700 --> 01:15:06.170 align:middle line:84% like the Veterans Museum has an oral history collection, so you 01:15:06.170 --> 01:15:08.720 align:middle line:84% sign a release form, it's recorded, 01:15:08.720 --> 01:15:12.230 align:middle line:84% you have a right to make it private or public, 01:15:12.230 --> 01:15:16.250 align:middle line:84% or like Library of Congress, their release forms. 01:15:16.250 --> 01:15:21.590 align:middle line:84% I'm very particular about rights and privileges and also 01:15:21.590 --> 01:15:23.160 align:middle line:90% privacy, rights to privacy. 01:15:23.160 --> 01:15:26.690 align:middle line:84% And so for me, I don't have the capacity 01:15:26.690 --> 01:15:31.250 align:middle line:90% to properly store this archive. 01:15:31.250 --> 01:15:34.610 align:middle line:84% So if I have an institution where we can put those recorded 01:15:34.610 --> 01:15:35.990 align:middle line:90% archives, then we'll do that. 01:15:35.990 --> 01:15:37.790 align:middle line:84% But for the Veteran Print Project, 01:15:37.790 --> 01:15:42.110 align:middle line:84% it's just one level that I'm not privy to. 01:15:42.110 --> 01:15:43.730 align:middle line:90% I am going to be-- 01:15:43.730 --> 01:15:47.280 align:middle line:84% we did reach out to the artists at our 10-year anniversary-- 01:15:47.280 --> 01:15:50.060 align:middle line:84% I'm sorry, to the participants to see how 01:15:50.060 --> 01:15:51.960 align:middle line:90% they've changed over 10 years. 01:15:51.960 --> 01:15:55.010 align:middle line:84% And we did add some like follow-up narrative 01:15:55.010 --> 01:15:56.190 align:middle line:90% to their experience. 01:15:56.190 --> 01:15:57.830 align:middle line:84% And that's something I want to work on 01:15:57.830 --> 01:15:59.090 align:middle line:90% In the next couple of years. 01:15:59.090 --> 01:16:02.270 align:middle line:84% And Zoom is going to offer me this new ability 01:16:02.270 --> 01:16:04.760 align:middle line:84% to actually maybe record some of those conversations 01:16:04.760 --> 01:16:08.030 align:middle line:84% of the experience of the Veteran Print Project. 01:16:08.030 --> 01:16:12.380 align:middle line:84% And they can talk about their print in that capacity. 01:16:12.380 --> 01:16:16.350 align:middle line:90% 01:16:16.350 --> 01:16:18.600 align:middle line:84% Rebecca had asked a question in the chat before, and-- 01:16:18.600 --> 01:16:19.230 align:middle line:90% Oh, OK. 01:16:19.230 --> 01:16:19.800 align:middle line:90% --share it. 01:16:19.800 --> 01:16:21.480 align:middle line:84% Am I cutting out too, or am I sounding-- 01:16:21.480 --> 01:16:22.380 align:middle line:90% No, I hear you. 01:16:22.380 --> 01:16:24.030 align:middle line:90% OK, cool. 01:16:24.030 --> 01:16:28.380 align:middle line:84% So Rebecca had noted that you often 01:16:28.380 --> 01:16:31.770 align:middle line:84% say that art has a power to be transformative, and we 100% 01:16:31.770 --> 01:16:36.330 align:middle line:84% agree, and also that healing and art as therapy 01:16:36.330 --> 01:16:38.040 align:middle line:90% are not necessarily the goal. 01:16:38.040 --> 01:16:40.470 align:middle line:84% Can you talk about the intersections and differences 01:16:40.470 --> 01:16:44.550 align:middle line:84% between healing, art as therapy, and the transformative nature 01:16:44.550 --> 01:16:45.660 align:middle line:90% of art making? 01:16:45.660 --> 01:16:49.020 align:middle line:84% It seem like interesting and important distinctions. 01:16:49.020 --> 01:16:50.250 align:middle line:90% Yeah, absolutely. 01:16:50.250 --> 01:16:51.840 align:middle line:84% I mean, I think at one point in time, 01:16:51.840 --> 01:16:53.830 align:middle line:84% I considered going into art therapy. 01:16:53.830 --> 01:16:57.090 align:middle line:84% And I think that art therapy is extremely valuable. 01:16:57.090 --> 01:16:59.910 align:middle line:84% And the people in that field are doing incredible work. 01:16:59.910 --> 01:17:04.230 align:middle line:84% And art therapy allows folks to come to the table 01:17:04.230 --> 01:17:07.470 align:middle line:84% and use the creative process to work through a trauma, 01:17:07.470 --> 01:17:09.240 align:middle line:90% to work as therapy. 01:17:09.240 --> 01:17:13.140 align:middle line:84% And the artists that I talk about on my work, 01:17:13.140 --> 01:17:17.610 align:middle line:84% while therapeutic, isn't always the main goal. 01:17:17.610 --> 01:17:19.920 align:middle line:84% And I think there's a lot of us that-- 01:17:19.920 --> 01:17:23.070 align:middle line:84% I get kind of-- sometimes, I struggle 01:17:23.070 --> 01:17:26.152 align:middle line:84% because I can get a little personally snobby about it, 01:17:26.152 --> 01:17:28.110 align:middle line:84% but it's because I've been drawing and painting 01:17:28.110 --> 01:17:29.190 align:middle line:90% since I was a kid. 01:17:29.190 --> 01:17:32.490 align:middle line:84% And so my goal has always been to be an artist. 01:17:32.490 --> 01:17:36.300 align:middle line:84% And often, we get lumped into art therapy. 01:17:36.300 --> 01:17:38.430 align:middle line:84% Then I do these presentations, and I 01:17:38.430 --> 01:17:39.990 align:middle line:84% realized how much of the art work 01:17:39.990 --> 01:17:45.760 align:middle line:84% actually does result in healing of some sort. 01:17:45.760 --> 01:17:53.330 align:middle line:84% I think, the transformation is from personal realizations 01:17:53.330 --> 01:17:57.980 align:middle line:84% that maybe revelations that come out of that process. 01:17:57.980 --> 01:18:02.150 align:middle line:84% Maybe, you see your experience-- like I talked a lot 01:18:02.150 --> 01:18:04.730 align:middle line:84% about seeing your experience through a different lens, 01:18:04.730 --> 01:18:08.630 align:middle line:84% like somebody else observing your experience 01:18:08.630 --> 01:18:09.770 align:middle line:90% and giving it back to you. 01:18:09.770 --> 01:18:11.870 align:middle line:90% It's hard to see that sometimes. 01:18:11.870 --> 01:18:12.980 align:middle line:90% It's hard to really-- 01:18:12.980 --> 01:18:14.900 align:middle line:84% like with that play, the reason why 01:18:14.900 --> 01:18:17.750 align:middle line:84% I wanted to talk about the play, the verbatim play 01:18:17.750 --> 01:18:20.720 align:middle line:84% was I sunk into my chair the night 01:18:20.720 --> 01:18:23.930 align:middle line:84% that was performed because I couldn't 01:18:23.930 --> 01:18:27.180 align:middle line:90% believe that that's how-- 01:18:27.180 --> 01:18:31.800 align:middle line:84% they really performed my exact words back. 01:18:31.800 --> 01:18:34.890 align:middle line:84% But the way it was acted out was not at all 01:18:34.890 --> 01:18:36.760 align:middle line:90% the way I saw myself. 01:18:36.760 --> 01:18:40.685 align:middle line:84% And I actually had to revisit some of my friends 01:18:40.685 --> 01:18:45.520 align:middle line:84% that that personal narrative, that dialogue was taken from. 01:18:45.520 --> 01:18:47.980 align:middle line:84% I revisited friends that that interaction 01:18:47.980 --> 01:18:53.490 align:middle line:84% had happened with to see which way was real, 01:18:53.490 --> 01:18:57.090 align:middle line:84% like the way I saw it or the way that it was portrayed. 01:18:57.090 --> 01:19:00.660 align:middle line:84% And oddly, it was much more of the way it was portrayed. 01:19:00.660 --> 01:19:02.910 align:middle line:84% And we talk about-- it took me 12 years 01:19:02.910 --> 01:19:04.620 align:middle line:90% to finally go to the VA. 01:19:04.620 --> 01:19:09.090 align:middle line:84% Well, that was sort of that realization. 01:19:09.090 --> 01:19:10.770 align:middle line:84% I've been on this soapbox for years, 01:19:10.770 --> 01:19:13.650 align:middle line:84% like we're not art therapy, yet it's taken me 12 years 01:19:13.650 --> 01:19:16.890 align:middle line:84% to realize I finally needed to talk to somebody because all 01:19:16.890 --> 01:19:19.140 align:middle line:84% these stories I was sharing, that I thought I was just 01:19:19.140 --> 01:19:22.965 align:middle line:84% fine, were actually indicators of you 01:19:22.965 --> 01:19:24.810 align:middle line:84% should be talking to somebody else. 01:19:24.810 --> 01:19:27.360 align:middle line:84% And I didn't realize that about myself 01:19:27.360 --> 01:19:30.450 align:middle line:84% until I had been out long enough and started 01:19:30.450 --> 01:19:32.700 align:middle line:84% interacting with veterans who had just got out. 01:19:32.700 --> 01:19:35.190 align:middle line:84% And I was listening to the way they would talk 01:19:35.190 --> 01:19:37.590 align:middle line:90% and their behaviors. 01:19:37.590 --> 01:19:42.980 align:middle line:84% And I was like, whoa, we need to calm down. 01:19:42.980 --> 01:19:44.450 align:middle line:84% I hate to say the word calm down. 01:19:44.450 --> 01:19:46.250 align:middle line:90% But like when they-- 01:19:46.250 --> 01:19:48.590 align:middle line:84% some of the veterans coming out are just so 01:19:48.590 --> 01:19:52.640 align:middle line:84% amped up that I was able to step outside of my body 01:19:52.640 --> 01:19:55.790 align:middle line:84% and see how I was 10, 12 years ago. 01:19:55.790 --> 01:19:57.300 align:middle line:90% And a light bulb went off. 01:19:57.300 --> 01:20:01.700 align:middle line:84% I was like, oh, that's how people were hearing 01:20:01.700 --> 01:20:03.110 align:middle line:90% what I was talking about. 01:20:03.110 --> 01:20:05.660 align:middle line:84% And I thought I was just fine, like floating on air. 01:20:05.660 --> 01:20:07.410 align:middle line:84% Look at me, I'm telling all these stories. 01:20:07.410 --> 01:20:10.310 align:middle line:84% And so I think that's the transformation. 01:20:10.310 --> 01:20:14.120 align:middle line:84% And the transformative process in the art, for me, 01:20:14.120 --> 01:20:17.180 align:middle line:90% it's the literal transformation. 01:20:17.180 --> 01:20:20.990 align:middle line:84% We have chosen mediums that literally 01:20:20.990 --> 01:20:23.940 align:middle line:84% require transformation in order to get the end result. 01:20:23.940 --> 01:20:26.270 align:middle line:84% So combat paper, for example, you 01:20:26.270 --> 01:20:29.600 align:middle line:84% are literally tearing apart your uniform 01:20:29.600 --> 01:20:33.620 align:middle line:84% and recreating it into something new and beautiful. 01:20:33.620 --> 01:20:36.110 align:middle line:84% It's a whole new life to that memory. 01:20:36.110 --> 01:20:38.030 align:middle line:84% It's a tangible recreation of that. 01:20:38.030 --> 01:20:41.960 align:middle line:84% Printmaking, I always say, it mimics the military experience. 01:20:41.960 --> 01:20:43.910 align:middle line:84% You have to have a lot of discipline. 01:20:43.910 --> 01:20:47.510 align:middle line:84% You have to have a lot of intestinal fortitude, 01:20:47.510 --> 01:20:50.030 align:middle line:90% as we say in the military. 01:20:50.030 --> 01:20:53.510 align:middle line:84% It's the process of unknown outcomes. 01:20:53.510 --> 01:20:56.270 align:middle line:84% And you do all of this because you're a little crazy, 01:20:56.270 --> 01:20:57.950 align:middle line:84% and you have to be a little disciplined. 01:20:57.950 --> 01:21:00.650 align:middle line:84% And the end result is to spit out multiples of the same, 01:21:00.650 --> 01:21:02.750 align:middle line:90% just like in the military. 01:21:02.750 --> 01:21:06.980 align:middle line:84% But each print still holds its intrinsic values that makes it 01:21:06.980 --> 01:21:09.440 align:middle line:90% an individual, an original. 01:21:09.440 --> 01:21:11.570 align:middle line:84% So we might all be standing in uniform, 01:21:11.570 --> 01:21:15.530 align:middle line:84% looking exactly the same, but each one of us, in a formation, 01:21:15.530 --> 01:21:17.370 align:middle line:90% still holds our own identity. 01:21:17.370 --> 01:21:19.610 align:middle line:90% And that's a print to me. 01:21:19.610 --> 01:21:21.740 align:middle line:84% Obviously, in clay, I mean, the metaphor 01:21:21.740 --> 01:21:24.080 align:middle line:84% is really more on the nose, like it 01:21:24.080 --> 01:21:26.577 align:middle line:84% has to go through the fire in order for it to harden. 01:21:26.577 --> 01:21:28.910 align:middle line:84% And then the only way it will have its ultimate strength 01:21:28.910 --> 01:21:32.270 align:middle line:84% is until it goes under that fire. 01:21:32.270 --> 01:21:33.930 align:middle line:84% That, to me, is military experience. 01:21:33.930 --> 01:21:35.300 align:middle line:90% So I think there's just-- 01:21:35.300 --> 01:21:40.130 align:middle line:84% the mediums, the performance art finds its way in that as well. 01:21:40.130 --> 01:21:43.160 align:middle line:84% There's a literal transition of something that started here, 01:21:43.160 --> 01:21:45.740 align:middle line:90% and it changes to end up here. 01:21:45.740 --> 01:21:47.360 align:middle line:90% And in painting, you get that. 01:21:47.360 --> 01:21:49.790 align:middle line:84% But painting kind of is what it is. 01:21:49.790 --> 01:21:53.780 align:middle line:84% I mean, it depends on the way you paint. 01:21:53.780 --> 01:21:56.930 align:middle line:84% But I just think my own personal artwork 01:21:56.930 --> 01:21:59.540 align:middle line:84% shifted because I liked artwork that 01:21:59.540 --> 01:22:03.560 align:middle line:84% challenged me, that something that isn't going to just 01:22:03.560 --> 01:22:05.000 align:middle line:90% be easy and given. 01:22:05.000 --> 01:22:09.570 align:middle line:84% I need to see that change happen in real time. 01:22:09.570 --> 01:22:11.720 align:middle line:84% And I think the longer we're out, 01:22:11.720 --> 01:22:17.060 align:middle line:84% the better we can have these conversations about comparing 01:22:17.060 --> 01:22:24.010 align:middle line:84% these processes to our experiences or our perspective 01:22:24.010 --> 01:22:25.390 align:middle line:90% on these experiences. 01:22:25.390 --> 01:22:38.130 align:middle line:90% 01:22:38.130 --> 01:22:42.250 align:middle line:90% [MUSIC PLAYING] 01:22:42.250 --> 01:22:49.000 align:middle line:90%