My family has always found me to be creative, whether that meant eating hot dogs like corn-on-the-cob at a young age or creating marvelous stories in school through my writing. Even though I, too, find myself to be creative to some extent, I would have never imagined working for an arts organization.
Wait a minute- it’s not just an arts organization. It’s an art organization for everyone and anyone. You may be thinking, Felicia, of course, anyone can do art, or at least, they could try to… why is it so special? But that’s where you’re wrong, imaginary conversationalist. I would venture to say most people think that spaces (whether outside, in school, at work) are inclusive and welcoming to all people, that is, until you are the person excluded by happenstance or purposefully. And this is where ArtMix comes in.
ArtMix meets people with disabilities where they are at, which is something that is often preached and valued but not practiced. It provides arts programming for all people with its main mission of “transforming the lives of people with disabilities through the creation of art”.
A clay bird that I’ve been eyeing, with a squid behind it that I have also been eyeing
One way that ArtMix has changed the way I think is that it makes me aware of accessibility issues. The first week I arrived in Indianapolis, other CAPS fellows and I walked around town to explore what the city has to offer. After walking a very long time, over twelve-thousand steps I believe, we sat down under the shade of the public library’s trees. It was then that I noticed how people in wheelchairs would have a hard time maneuvering the streets since there is constant construction. My friends and I were able to jump and navigate around construction, but a person in a wheelchair would not be able to do that. I struggle to write this because I know that people with disabilities have agency, yet there are barriers that go unnoticed that make life harder for them to live.
Even though some would say that people with disabilities are handicapped, they are even more handicap-able. I don’t know where I first heard the term, but I try to switch my terminology because I believe it is important to give people more agency than not (thank you, Ed professors). We cannot use our differences, and in this context, the differences of actual and perceived ability, to forge a social (and therefore a mental and emotional) barrier; rather, we must celebrate differences and bond over similarities as best as possible.
The ArtMix Gallery, displaying the artwork of our Urban Artisans
Even though I have worked at ArtMix for nearly one month, the nonprofit world is still a foreign one to me; I can say that I am slowly getting the hang of it, but there is still a lot that I have to learn. Sure, I have volunteered for a nonprofit before (shout-out to the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center), but I have never truly been behind the scenes. Now that I am in the hustle and bustle of a nonprofit organization, I can say that though I knew it demanded a significant amount of work, it is much more detailed work than anything that I assumed. Under the umbrella of development, the ArtMix team created, planned, and implemented our events Here’s the Scoop and ArtMix Home Tours with the help of staff and volunteers. We did everything from advertising, alphabetizing, analyzing- and that’s just the “A’s”. Needless to say, we were booked every day making sure each event would go swimmingly. Programming, communications, development, and CEO leadership are all one-stop shops when in regard to staff members; this still astounds me and reminds me of the passion people have for this cause.
Volunteers and staff at our Here’s the Scoop event
Something I have noticed is that ArtMix has a difficult barrier to overcome, for it is on the unfavored side of both the social scene and the arts scene. ArtMix is “low art”, which to my understanding is more down-to-earth and less prestigious. And socially, ArtMix works with a community that is considered “The Other”. This combination is unique, which makes the organization incredibly personal, in my opinion. But this organization- and other ones that reach out to minorities -is pivotal and essential for the people it serves. And that is one of many reasons why I want to be a teacher and pursue the field of education: I aim to build relationships and develop students to a better version of themselves. And furthermore, my passion still remains to make education more equitable. These silent heroes, the people who work for the betterment of others, are the company I plan on keeping.
Outside of work, CAPS has truly blessed me with an opportunity to be independent with other like-minded college students- sometimes it’s fascinating how similar we are. Every evening, we make dinner for one another every night, which I should say is kind of funny, considering we consist of two vegetarians and one person who is lactose-intolerant (so, yes, we are basically vegan for dinner). I really enjoy this, partly because it is routine, and partly because it is a time to catch up and talk about whatever we want to. Sometimes the discourse is silly and lighthearted, but other times, we find ourselves dissecting, and I mean this in all my “millennial” seriousness, the problems of the world and how we find our futures to intersect with them. It is at these points that I like to engage as well as sit back and watch while the people around me exchange thoughtfully eager remarks. Early on, we learned that, for the most part, we have learned that our future careers and our current placements are seemingly thankless yet significant jobs, which I assume most jobs with a foundation on human interaction are. We will be those silent heroes, I’m sure. We’re simply in training right now.