read this - i did get it :(

dear everyone who gets this. below is a fellow ship aplication that i am currently filling out...i need to mail it this thursday. please look over it and tell me what you think and how i might make corrections.
-t

Applicants must respond to the following 4 items:

1) Provide an artist statement. Include the following in your statement: The processes and techniques you use and why; the subjects you prefer; how your work differs from others

2 Describe your goals and aspirations as an artist.

3) What specifically do you intend to accomplish with a $20,000 fellowship award?

4) Provide a specific breakdown of how you plan to spend the $20,000 fellowship award.



My work is about my life as a person with a disability, I use both humor and seriousness as away of dissecting and examining the world in which both you and I live in. I frequently cite and use history, the human body, my personal life and the experiences of others as a means of questioning and re-examining our societies view point on the concept that is normalcy.

although i have been known to use everything from collage to drawing my main medium is photography. this artistic medium allows me to make work that can be as big or as small as i would like it to be and it also allows me to over come most of my physical limitations.


the process for creating a works is that i first create either a thumb nail sketch or i write up the concept of the work or series of works in which i would like to create. for example if i want to do a series of photographic based works i would first make a list of subject matters that i could take photos of and then i make another list of how the subject could be depicted.

in the self portrait series i first came up with the concept of doing a series of nudes of people with disabilities, then i thought about why i should do so, and if the reason to do so was a concept that i felt was worth the effort to do. as i was trying to find models for the project i came to the conclusion that it would be both easier and more financially reasonable for me to create a series of self portraits. the reason i came to that conclusion was that at the time i was and am still living in a very small apartment, and my financial means was and still is so ii could not afford to hire models for the series. plus by doing a self portraits i could have twenty-four hour access to my main model, and i could also take the time to really explore every angle, shape, and texture contained within in its/my body.

my work differs from others in that instead of a non-disabled person documenting people with disabilities, and in many ways and forms looking at us as chartes and stereotypes of people that physical differ from the norm i allow the viewer to see us as the many shades of emotions and opinions we actually are. i also allow the viewer to see the disabled world through the eyes of a person with a disability.


my goal as an artist is to create work that is elegant, powerful, emotionally layered and embedded with both social and personal messages that vary from humorous to dark. i would also like to get to the point that i will have no excuses when it comes to access to the help and equipment that i would need to make the best work that i can make.

the work i will make using the money will consist of a series of 16 by 20 inch full color lambda prints of people with varying disabilities, and body types. the funds will allow me to hire models, get a newer computer, get a proper studio, lighting, back drops , a studio assistant, and the ability to to edit and print using the latest equipment and processes.

because i will mostly be using mostly people with disabilities as models a proper studio with room enough toaccommodate both my wheelchair and the other persons equipment will be necessary. plus i will need an artist assistant to help me set up back drops, help with transportation to and from the studio, and move things like lighting and props. a laptop computer with the latest photo editing software will allow me to do most all of the editing, resizing, and proofing in the studio, it will also cut down on down time between photo shoots by allowing me to do some of the work eathier at home or in the studio without having the artist assistant present. i will find models by putting ads up in local news papers, websites , galleries, and places of business and i will attempt to do at least one photo shoot a week. after each photo shoot i will edit down and pick at least two photos to make proofs of these proofs will be made using a small yet high quality printer. at the end of each month i will choose at least three photos to print at a local professional grade photo processing establishment , and then i will frame them in a simple frame. at the end of the allotted time i hope to have at least 30 photographs finished and ready to show.


budget



taxes.......................................................................................3 thousand
studio rental for 10months..........................................................4,250 dollars
models ...........100 dollars per model....three models monthly.......3,250 thousand
studio assistant for 10 months....................................................4 thousand
macbook computer ...................................................................1500 dollars
Aperture 2 photo editing software..............,...................................150 dollars
black back drop .......................................................................100 dollars
white back drop........................................................................100 dollars
economy sized soft box lighting.................................................150 dollars
proof photo printer............................................................200 dollars
proof paper.........................................................................160 dollars
ten month worth of ink......................................................140 dollars
printing 30 16 by 20 inch photos....................................750 dollars
framing.................................................................................2, 250 dollars

total.......................................................................................20 thousand