We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Doris Marie Provine. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Doris Marie below.
Alright, Doris Marie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
The project was helping my local art organization to grow. This story is not just about me — I was part of a small group of dedicated artists, and I was in some ways the least likely choice to play a meaningful role. I joined when no one volunteered to become an officer. I was recruited to be secretary after my first meeting, an obvious sign of desperation. I did not know anyone, so it was hard to take notes for the minutes. But as the only officer, I felt called upon to try to do something when no one else stepped forward. So I gathered together a group of five of us to see if we could do something to save this organization from dying. We called ourselves The Skeleton Crew. We met all summer around our dining room table. We made a lot of tough decisions, cutting the meeting time by half and removing the least satisfying parts. Then COVID hit, It became necessary to move to Zoom. But this proved easier than it might have been because everyone was affected by the Covid shutdowns and had some familiarity with Zoom. As we moved on, we grew more confident that our organizational plan was working. We got grant support from Tempe, and membership started to grow. Our focus on finding excellent speakers for meetings and workshops has paid off — the membership tends to be enthusiastic and loyal. We restarted a scholarship program with the local community college to attract a younger membership. We have found new exhibition opportunities, and they are gaining favor with members. We are investing heavily in social media and have a top-notch web page. This year we will have one one-month exhibit, one two-month exhibit, 3 weekends of selling our art for the holidays, a pop-up exhibit at a wildlife sanctuary, and possibly one other lengthy exhibit. We have 5 workshops, one our first plein-air painting workshop, which will also be our first two-day workshop. Looking forward to reintroducing field trips in the summer.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am an academic by training and experience, having earned a PhD and a law degree from Cornell University. I taught for about 25 years at Syracuse University, spending some time in that period teaching abroad, working in Washington, and doing research on grants. I was department chair at Syracuse University’s political science department. In 2011 my husband Mike Shelton and I came to Arizona State University, where I took a position directing the School of Justice Studies. I was their longest-serving director, staying in that role for six years and on the faculty a few years afterwards. When I retired in 2011 I had more time for art, rowing, bird rehabilitation and other pursuits. The Tempe Artists Guild became one of the organizations I joined. I am most proud of my ability to support others in common endeavors. I feel fortunate to have the education and experience and support from a loving husband to make this possible.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
What I miss most is places to display art informally and for free. I wish that the post office, grocery store and other places people visit frequently would make their walls available to artists. Artists want to share their art, and people enjoy seeing it. What we need are mechanisms to make this easy and fun. Online opportunities could also be improved. I’m no expert on the technology, but I wish there were lots of free sites, maybe specified by subject (birds, landscapes, southwest scenes) or by medium.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
It’s fun to bring life to a canvas or page. And always a surprise. You start with high hopes and everything looks perfect for a bit, but then you hit the stage of thinking that you’ve failed the subject, but then you recoup, usually, but not always. So art making is an adventure, not just a process. Artists also like to experiment with new mediums, in case one fits better, or out of curiosity. All those media and available techniques keep the process of making art interesting and adventuresome.
Contact Info:
- Website: marieprovine.com
- Instagram: @marieprovine
- Facebook: ProvinePortraits
- Twitter: @DorisProvine
- Email: [email protected]