SWAN Day 2020 Re-Cap

This year marked the 13th Annual SWAN Day and boy was it a fabulous one! While many events faced cancellations due to COVID19, we were so inspired by the ways the arts community innovated to translate the vitality of in-person events to online, accessible spaces.

We seeing all of the new and existing content from incredible women and non-binary artists all over the globe being shared online as well. The many live events, digital portfolios, studio tours, shout outs, and comments circulating online spaces offered so much vital connection in a time of social distancing. Here’s a highlight reel of just some of the thrilling content that was shared!

Highlights from Virtual SWAN Day Spaces:

Through Women’s Eyes International Film Festival: Best Feature Winner "SEEMA", Directed by Macherie EKWA. Check out the trailer for this powerful and devastating film here:

Read & Rant is a new online book club hosted by Athena Project Arts! Click the image below to learn how you can participate:

Spoken word poet Shruti Chauhan is a featured artist this year with the "She Growls UK Poetry Tour". Here is Shruti performing her poem entitled "Relations".

Jasmine Gardosi is also a featured artist for the 2020 "She Growls UK Poetry Tour". Here is Jasmine performing her poem 'She' live at Funkenteleky in Birmingham:

Artist, author, and vlogger Gwenn Seemel shared a video called "Art in the time of Mass Suffering".

Panya Banjoko, a third featured artist from the "She Growls UK Poetry Tour”, performs her poem “Otobong Nkanga, Taste of a Stone”.

Frida Kahlo's legacy has inspired decades of artists to be bold, follow their path, and break down boundaries. Watch as multimedia artist Alexa Meade transforms musician and singer/songwriter Ely Guerra into living, breathing artwork inspired by Frida Kahlo’s work, life and legacy.:

The Resistance Revival Chorus has been hosting live virtual concerts! Click the image below to watch a recording from their last concert!

Megan Hicks is a featured artist this year at the Women's Storytelling Festival Video Viewing Partay! Here she is at the West Chester Story Slam in 2015:

SWAN DAY CT Presented Jennifer Hill (AKA The Murderous Chanteuse) in a Live Stream Concert! Click the image below to watch a recording of this concert!

Stories are our medicine. Listen to Oanh Ngo Usadi's beautiful story via The Moth, featured as part of the Women’s Storytelling Festival. Her story, “Sandwiches & Neighbors”, is about when she and her family arrived in Texas from Vietnam with high hopes and an American Dream.

Femspectives is hosting a fabulous at-home virtual Feminist Film club every Thursday night! Join the party to watch and discuss with other filmmakers and film lovers!

Spoken Soul Festival had a truly incredible lineup of artists last year. Here is one of their featured artists, Reshma Anwar performing her original piece “Runaway”.

HowlRound Theatre Commons plus a group of artists, arts administrators, and others from around the US to discuss how COVID-19 is impacting freelance artists (those who identify as independent contractors) in this powerful panel. The conversation focuses on shared resources (legal, advocacy, how to take your work virtual, finding emergency funding, and financial best practices in crisis) and building and grounding the national community.

Rebecca Jay (Nelems) was the winner of the Women’s Freedom Song Contest with her original song "Stealing Me Back From You". Give it a listen!

Special thanks to: Jamie Bilgo Bruchman of SWAN Day MKE, Sophie Dowllar of SWAN Day Kenya, Jennifer Hill of SWAN Day CT, Deborah Magdalena of SWAN Day Miami, Charné & Rachel of SWAN Day Chicago, Christine Kellogg of SWAN Day Pensacola, Vanessa Gendron of SWAN Day Prague, Sheila Kalkbrenner of SWAN Days Allegany County, Karin Hendricks of SWAN Day Central Coast, Deborah Gaffney of SWAN Day Houston, Martha Richards of WomenArts, Michaela Goldhaber and Bay Area WTF, Brenda Foley of The Bridge Initiative, Kristen van Ginhoven of WAM Theatre, Jennie Webb of Los Angeles Women’s Female Playwright Initiative, Avis Boone of Women in the Arts & Media Coalition, the League of Professional Theatre Women, SAG-AFTRA, The Kilroys, and so many others. You inspire us everyday!

Additional SWAN Day 2020 Blog Posts:

SWAN Day Chicago: A Celebration of Black Hair

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Today we’re spotlighting SWAN Day Chicago now in its 7th year of celebration. We caught up with Rachel Gadson, SWAN Day Chicago co-coordinator, to talk about what’s in store for this year’s celebration.

StateraArts: Tell us a little bit about what's on the docket for SWAN Day Chicago.
Rachel Gadson: Sure! This year we'll be featuring Black women hairstylists. Showcasing our hair as art is such an empowering and affirming tool that we are so excited to explore. We wanted to explore the creativity within the Black woman’s hair experience and how so much of it is representative of how we uniquely express ourselves. We’ve specifically hand-picked women in 5 different hairstyling categories: Natural Hair, Weaves, Colorist, Braider, Short Hair Stylist/Barber. We want this to not only be an exhibition of the expressions of Black women’s multifaceted hair care but a celebration of the innovative and talented women behind them. We hope the attendees of this year's SWAN Day Chicago leave with an enlightening experience.  

SA: What makes you most excited about SWAN Day Chicago this year?
RG: I think what's most exciting is being able to highlight and showcase such an expressive and unique art form that isn't celebrated as much as it could/should be. Black women have used hair in many ways to express style, creativity and influence culture. We are honored to accentuate the diversity of this immersive industry.

SA: Can you tell us a bit about why you feel called to lead SWAN Day in this capacity?
RG: Creating space to empower our peers has always been the fuel to lead SWAN Day events. Charne Graham and I started the celebrations here in Chicago in 2014 under the guise of wanting to create opportunities for women to support other women. It is also vital that we make the artists feel appreciated for the amazing commitment they display to their craft. It's not often that women are credited and honored in the world of creative arts, especially black women. We found that if we continue cultivating these spaces to lift up our peers, then we have done our part in effecting a change to that narrative. Fostering a strong sense of community of extremely talented women from Chicago is the root of why we take on the mission each year. 

MEET THE ARTISTS

Courtney "Conay" Elzy is a licensed cosmetologist located in Chicago, Illinois, specializing in braids & protective styling. She aims to provide top of the line service to each and every client.
www.conay.as.me
IG: @conay_control

Latoya Johnson owns Laced Layers Beauty and specializes in natural hair care & protective styles.(Image is of LaToya’s work, on model @themonalena)
www.lacedlayers.com
IG: @lacedlayers_beauty

Sheena Renee is a well known hair expert and master stylist in the industry today. Known for her ability to create sleek, shiny curls and beautiful soft waves, her wide range of abilities have made her a sought after stylist in Atlanta for years. Sheena also specializes in remarkable sew-in extensions and wig installs.
www.sheenarenee.com
IG:@iamsheenarenee

For over 20 years, Chicagoland premier celebrity stylist Kesha Levy, continues to lead the beauty industry in expert salon services. As a visionary and trendsetter, her highly trained Chicagoland team provides a number of services; natural hair haircare, cutting edge hair styling, flawless extensions, the “Perfect ponytail” for any occasion, advanced cutting and protective styling. https://www.keystylist.com/.
IG:@keystylist

SWAN Day Chicago will take place on April 4th, 6-10pm at Pear Nova Studio (2150 S Canalport, Chicago). To stay in the loop about SWAN Day Chicago, check out and follow their FaceBook page here, or visit their website at http://www.swandaychicago.com/. We love SWAN Day!!

Interested in adding your women-led art event to the Statera Calendar? Please submit your information HERE.

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SWAN Days in Allegany County: Join the Fun!

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Today we’re spotlighting SWAN Days Allegany County, now in its 6th year of celebration. This year, their line-up is absolutely chock-full of fun gatherings! We caught up with Sheila Kalkbrenner, SWAN Day Allegany County coordinator and local visual artist to talk about what fuels this celebration each year. If you’re already familiar, feel free to scroll to the bottom of this page to see the amazing lineup of events!

Celebrated locally and in partnership with Belfast Organization for Artists, this chapter shines a light on local women artists and is held in honor of the many creative people working hard to keep the arts accessible to all members of this rural community. Sheila shared with us a poignant thought about why SWAN Day is so special to her community. She said, “Our county residents are quite spread out in this landscape, and winter weather makes it difficult to connect with others. As we honor the many people who volunteer their time to advocate for the arts and provide art and cultural activities to our local youth, SWAN Day is a perfect time to re-connect, appreciate the artwork, share a meal, and find out what everyone else has been doing all winter. This quality time together is its own reward.”

Sheila has been spearheading these events for the last six years. When asked why she feels called to lead in this capacity she stated, “For years I have seen how the women in our community dedicate long unrecognized hours to community wellness, volunteer groups, creative projects, etc. on top of working low-paying jobs, while in pursuit of long-term careers, while educating and/or raising children, and many other personal responsibilities. I wanted to create a family-friendly, equitable event that highlights the talent and creativity of the women who contribute the art in its limitless mediums to our lives without excluding the men who join them in these goals. Together, we create a county that we can be thankful to call "home" in the Western NY Wilds.”

PARTICIPATE IN THIS YEAR’S EVENTS

SWAN Days Allegany County, NY, invites artists, entrepreneurs, libraries, and other public venues are invited to host and post events and activities by, for, and about women in the arts. Send your event to Sheila Kalkbrenner at [email protected]. Through the months of March and April, updates are posted in the order in which they are received. Held annually in honor of the local creators and patrons keeping the arts accessible to all members of our rural community, 2020 SWAN (Support Women Artists Now) Days Allegany County, NY invites you to join them in celebrating women in the arts. For more information please take a look at their most recent newsletter.

$100 #SWANShelfie fund for a local library One Allegany County, NY Library participating in the 2020 SWANShelfie social media contest March 1st – 25th will be selected to receive a $100 SWANfund toward the purchase of any women in arts media of their choice.

$100 SWANSongs fund for a local female acoustic artist
One local female acoustic artist will be the recipient of a $100 stipend to perform a thirty-minute set at the SWAN Day Party on March 28th. Accepting Digital Submissions March 1 – 15th. Late entries will not be considered.

SWAN Days Annual Art Show & Sale CALL FOR ARTISTS Local women artists age 18 and up residing or working in Allegany County, NY, are invited to display their work in the annual art show & sale in the David A. Howe Library exhibition room. Pre-registration is required by March 6th. Ready-to-Display Media Accepted: Illustration, Drawing & Painting, Fabric Arts, Wood Works, Mixed-media, and Up-cycled Art. Participating artists who submit a bio will be featured on the event pages.

The 2020 SWAN Days Art Show & Sale
Free and open to the public March 16th–March 27th and March 30th–April 3rd during regular library hours. Winners are determined by visitors’ votes. Voting will take place at the library March 18th 4:30-7pm. Light refreshments provided. Each visitor wishing to vote will sign in at the door to receive ONE ballot. Winners will be selected based on the number of votes received for each award category.

AWARD Categories: “BEST IN SHOW” $100, “Best Craftsmanship & Presentation” $50, “Most Unique” $50, “Favorite Entry Featuring a Swan” $45 Winners TBA at the SWAN Day Party on March 28th.

SWAN Day Party
March 28th, 11:30-1:30 at David A. Howe Library Exhibition Room in Wellsville, NY. Receive your ticket to attend when you RSVP by March 6th. The SWAN Day Party is a free event to celebrate the local women artists and those keeping the arts accessible to all members of this rural community. Attendees are asked to bring a dish to pass. Those wearing or bringing a swan (no live animals please) will be entered for a chance to win a fun door prize. A table will be available to present your artsy news and business cards.

If you would like to make a Tax-deductible contribution, you can do so to Charitable Art Projects and Events at SheilaLynnK Art Studio HERE. 

Interested in adding your women-led art event to the Statera Calendar? Please submit your information HERE.

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