We were lucky to catch up with Lori Bauman recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Lori 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?
Why do I love art so much? It’s at once meaningful and self indulgent. Now that I have more years behind me than in front of me, I want as much meaning as possible in my indulgent days. Being an artist is always a bit self serving but it can also serve. Art serves as a great communication tool and can be learned and utilized by all. How do I know this? I know because I’ve witnessed it over and over again. Years of being an artist and educator have left me with hundreds of examples of how art builds bridges. One of my favorite examples is a program I worked on as Co-Founder of RedLine Milwaukee, an Arts Residency and Art Center. Every Saturday morning for five years, the Salvation Army Emergency Shelter families would walk the five blocks from their center to ours. Shelter families choose from a variety of life skill building activities to engage in and earn “credits” which were mandatory to continue their stay at the Shelter. These families could choose to earn their credits by participating in our art programming at RedLine. All participants would begin in our gallery, learning visual literacy while being lead through the current exhibition which always held social justice content. Both parents and kids of all ages would learn how to visit a gallery or museum, how to “read” the artwork, how to feel not only comfortable but welcome in these environments and how to engage with others using art as a beginning point to create a shared social experience. After the gallery talk, Art Therapists would work separately with parents and children on age appropriate projects in response to the exhibition, helping to facilitate a new kind of dialogue. Sometimes, the parents and children did work together in our printshop with technical help from our resident artists. When the art making was complete the groups gathered to talk about what was created. Some families were with us the entire semester. Some came for a few weeks or maybe only a single session. The artists, therapists and families all gleaned some important insights from these Saturday mornings. We all learned that just when you believe someone (or a certain demographic of people) have nothing to teach you, look again. All of us involved in this program learned something unexpected and found something in everyone that we could connect with. One father shared that before this experience he didn’t really think his son was very capable. After the program, the father related a changed vision of his son. After learning to share ideas and perspectives through the exhibition, new dialogue and art making, the father realized his son “really was something special”. Families learned that communication patterns are difficult to break and understand. Using art as a point to begin hard conversations gives us all a common mode of expressing and understanding. This program was the beginning step to gaining new perspectives, seeing those we think we know in new ways, learning to speak a new language and to healing relationships through a new communication. Watching these families relate in new and healthy ways was meaningful for all involved. Helping others succeed in any way is always meaningful. Art can be a form of therapy and confession. It’s a serotonin boost. It can inspire people to aspire.
These Saturday experiences fall second only to the Teen Outreach Program I worked on at the Milwaukee Art Museum from 2001 to 2007. Teens are generally a tough group to win over. As a suburban mother of three I was teaching an urban population of teens who were sure they had nothing to learn from me. This program used art with social justice themes to form connections and facilitate collaborations which resulted in new methods of conflict resolution. Through the door way of art and education these teens surprised themselves and me. That’s when I learned that important lesson about learning. These kids I thought I had nothing to teach me? They schooled me the entire, long 16 week semesters for several years…..and I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. ….. But that’s a story for another time.
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 a visual artist living and working in both Scottsdale, Arizona and Denver, Colorado. I hold an MA in Studio Art with an emphasis in video from New York University’s Study Abroad Program and a BA from Alverno College in Studio Art and Education. I have taught in multiple academic and community settings including Alverno College and the Milwaukee Art Museum. In 2009, I Co-Founded RedLine Milwaukee with Steve Vande Zande, at its core an artist residency program which provided professional development, education and exhibition for an international community. I am a past Artist in Resident of PRPGMX, Mexico City, 2021, I have exhibited in the USA, Italy and Mexico. I am a multidisciplinary artist with experience in video, installation, site specific work and most recently apparel design. I often use collage and mixed media to explore long-held, nonbinary systems of belief as they relate to gender, sexuality, ethnicity and social class. Pieced and layered materials and stories serve to chronicle consistent aspects of narratives which are influenced by the translation of ancient myths, rituals, ceremonies, cultural norms, traditions, folktales, fairy tales and religion. I am interested in how these constructs integrate in our contemporary daily lives and relationships.
Born- Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I’m very interested and just now exploring the world of NFTs. I’d love to find a pioneer in the field and learn!
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is that we see the world differently. We often have a different sense of reality and offer a different perspective for public consumption. Artists open up the world by offering an alternative form of communication and a universal point of connection.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.loribauman.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_labstudios/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LAB-Studios-100408231879976
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lori-bauman-79b58a5/