Sandra Yancy:

 

Mary Ann Thompson is an artist and writer who has taken on the responsibility of being on the forefront of Dallas' art community. She is currently on the Boards of Friends of Fair Park, The Texas Visual Arts Association, The Fair Park Film Festival: Women in Film, Vice-President of Sanctuary For Life, and is the Chairman and Founder of The Visual Arts Coalition of Dallas' Advisory Board.

 

1.) Can you tell me why was the Coalition founded?

 

According to Dallas' city government, you have to be a part of a group in order to have representation. This was easy for performing artists, whose art naturally takes the form of a dance troop, ensemble or theatrical group. But since visual artists traditionally work independently, they did not fit the requirements and conversely weren't able to have their voices heard. This meant that the initial design of the Dallas Arts District left out the needs Dallas's visual artists. Therefore, the Coalition acts as an umbrella organization so that the visual artists can fit the requirements of our local government, while gaining a strong voice for the first time. 

 

2.) What are the Coalition's present goals and how do they meet the needs of the visual art community?

 

The overall goal of the Coalition is to help consciously evolve Dallas from being a metropolitan city into being a cosmopolitan one. Most individuals have no idea that 5,000 artists inhabit our metroplex. We take for granted the china, the clothes, the buildings, the designs which shape the world around us. In order for Dallas to evolve into a city possessing its own unique culture we must encourage the creative community that is uniquely ours to further develop. This is an education process. The foremost problem was that most artists' voices were ignored by the influential. The second problem was that most often artists are not naturally inclined to participate in the arenas necessary to move forward. Today, we are in the process of remedying this situation through the creation of an Advisory Board which links the influential voices of Dallas into direct discourse with the artists we represent. This is a first of its type in any art organization in our city. It is also immensely exciting as for the first time the visionaries are in correspondence with the cultural leaders of our Society. From those experienced in politics such as Craig Holcomb, to those who are socially savvy such as Nelda Pickens, to those with broad knowledge in establishing programs for the arts, such as Philip Collins, we have taken the wise rout of finding those whose knowledge we can both utilize and benefit from. Lastly, in order to inform Dallas of the existence and talents of 5,000 artists in our midst, we are also in the process of unifying all our individual organizations' public relations reps. into a committee which will oversee events that will be offered to the public throughout the year. What is not commonly known is that unless an artist or gallery is considered "established" the periodicals will not list events. The formation of this committee, lead by Rosanne Hart who brought the Art Expo to Dallas from New York, will seek to become the umbrella of legitimacy for our community artists. The volunteers here will also be trained by Rosanne about how  to reach the media. Also, by unifying our press releases, we will hopefully be perceived as an organization worth listing in local periodicals. Lastly, we provide a means for 5,000 citizens to strategize usage of their specific talents inorder to boost the internal culture of our city. We accomplish this by working with our associate organizations.

 

3.) Can you tell us about some of the things you and your associate organizations have planned?

 

The most immediate of these programs is the coordination of the Coalition's Handweaver's and Spinner's Guild with DIFFA in August. These are the people who create the fabric that the designers later use. It is a perfect match! Other collaborations will include a gallery showing and lecture series with The Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture, thanks to our Advisory Board member, Dr. Larry Allums. This exhibition will be very unique because it will showcase the diversity of endeavors within the Coalition alongside the interpretations of the Institute's intellects. Also coming soon will be a collaboration with the Dallas Opera wherein we will provide artwork for viewing during the intermission. The Dallas Opera, The Institute, The Fair Park film Festival: Women in Film, and The African American Museum have agreed to participate in our program with DISD's Dallas Urban League's Options Project. The Coalition is acting as a database for Lew K. Mays, the Head Director who is always seeking for optional means of teaching highschool students about the arts. We will be sending artists to  DISD schools as well as welcoming groups of 6 to 12 students into our studios and galleries for tours and lectures. We hope that in a years time we can expand this program to include hands on experience with the arts. Sadly, for several students, this will be their arts education. The good news is that since the Urban league is national. if we do a good job here, we will have created a plan of cooperation other arts organizations could follow in other states.

 

4.) With all these programs going on, how do you all manage to communicate between groups?

 

Modern technology has made it so that our community of 5,000 seems tiny at times! We have a web page, WWW.visualartdallas.org ,courtesy of one of our groups, The Electronic Graphic Artists of Dallas, better known as EGAD. We have gotten into the habit of creating a calendar that all our groups consult. this way we are not competing for the same audiences on the same night! We also work through the individual newsletters of each group. We have open meetings once a month which anybody is welcome. This is a great opportunity for interested individuals to come check us out! It costs nothing, and your questions will be welcomed. We also enjoy the visits by art lovers as well as artists. We used to meet at the DMA, but thanks to a generous donation from Southwest Real Estate, we now have an office on the first floor of City Place, as well as a meeting room. Our Advisory Board is unique in that we call upon its members on an individual basis depending upon what their expertise is. We have found this to be extremely efficient and respectful of these wonderful individuals' time.

 

5.) How can an artist or art lover join and get involved with your organization? 

 

If you are an artist, it is most beneficial to join the individual guild or association which specializes in your artform. this will enable you to learn about opportunities in your field of choice as well as vote directly for representation on the Coalition's Board. If you are an artlover/supporter, their are several levels of membership available. Those who join will be invited to programs throughout the year dealing with fields as diverse as architecture, computer graphics, sculpture, film, clothing design, painting, video, and many more. in short, you will be privy to the cultural goings on of our City. Transforming Dallas from metropolitan into cosmopolitan begins here, with the interest and support of our city's citizens.