Support Women Artists Now!

Published March 12, 2009 @ 02:12PM PT

It's that special time of year again! Not only is March Women's History Month, it's also a time to celebrate women artists around the world.

SWAN Day is an international holiday started in March 2008 by the Fund for Women Artists to inspire communities to recognize and support the creative contributions of women in their region.

Everyone is invited! Your SWAN Day event can be a party, performance, exhibit, rally, parade, auction, or any other activity that draws attention to women artists and/or raises money for women artists. It can be on March 28th or any time in March or early April. You can share your event with supporters around the world by posting your event on the SWAN Day Map at http://events.womenarts.org.

Here are some ideas from the Fund for Women Artists about how you can make this month special:

1) CELEBRATE WITH YOUR FRIENDS OR CO-WORKERS

Go to Women's Events - Gather your friends to go to an arts event featuring women or to watch a film by women. Check our SWAN Day Map, to find out if anyone has organized a SWAN Day event in your area.

Get Inspired - Get together with friends and tell each other stories about women artists who inspire you. Make gifts or write letters together to send to your favorite women artists.

Host a Trunk Show - Host a "trunk show" party where a woman artist in your community can display and sell her art or craft items to your guests.

2) SHOW YOUR FAVORITE WOMEN ARTISTS THAT YOU CARE

"Do It Yourself" SWAN Day Awards - Organize a party and ask everyone to make a small donation when they come. Use the money to create your own "SWAN Day Award". (If 10 people give $10 each you can make a $100 award.) Discuss your favorite women artists, and decide as a group who should receive the award. Send the artist the money with a note explaining that she has received a SWAN Day Award as part of the second international Support Women Artists Now Day. If you have time, you can send out a press release!

Take Up a Collection - Find a woman artist that you would like to support, and then take up a collection at your workplace or at the next meeting of your favorite social group, club, or church group. Send the artist the money and tell her how much you appreciate her work. You can search the WomenArts Network by theme or keyword to find women artists or women-led arts organizations that are working on issues that your group cares about.

Personal Celebrations - Send letters or gifts to your favorite women artists and wish them a happy SWAN Day. You can search for women artists by name, theme, geographic region, art form and more on the WomenArts Network.

Who are your favorite women artists and how do you plan to support them this month? Share your thoughts in the comments section!

Photo via amayzun

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Comments (6)

Ok, I'll start us off with some favorite contemporary female artists I'd like to honor:

1) Alta Buden a visual artist whose work recently appeared in the National Headquarters show "Treasure Hunt": http://www.nationalheadquarters.org/blog/?p=550

2) Heather Woodbury, the amazing playwright and performer who played 100 characters in her one-woman show "Whatever" (I saw it 4 times): http://www.heatherwoodbury.com/index.php

3) Novelist Anastasia Royal (and my mom!) who wrote a funny and poignant novel about love and single motherhood: http://www.undoingido.com/

Posted by Dorothee Royal-Hedin... on 03/12/2009 @ 02:32PM PT
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Marilynne Robinson - "Gilead" and "Home" might be the best fiction written so far this century.

Posted by Whet Moser on 03/12/2009 @ 02:49PM PT
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My two favorites are Dorothee Royal-Hedinger (no shit - really!), Sarah Ramey (author/singer), and the insanely talented Kyle Durrie:

http://afonline.artistsspace.org/view_artist.php?aid=2729

Posted by Alex Steed on 03/12/2009 @ 03:22PM PT
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My newly rediscovered favorite women artists are Alix Olson, one of my first exposures to the power of Spoken Word, and meshell ndegeocello, a most talented musician

Posted by Interfaith Youth Core on 03/13/2009 @ 08:02AM PT
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My newly rediscovered favorite women artists are Alix Olson, one of my first exposures to the power of Spoken Word, and meshell ndegeocello, a most talented musician

Posted by Interfaith Youth Core on 03/13/2009 @ 08:06AM PT
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There is an upcoming event in my area that is an example of women trying to educated everyone about our rights as women in the artist world. This event also is designed to raise money for a local battered women's shelter. Read about Women Rise Up here.

Posted by Mindy Haas on 04/19/2009 @ 09:49PM PT
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Author

Dorothee Royal-Hedinger is a web video producer, blogger and experienced New Media Strategist specializing in nonprofit outreach. She is the founder and host of OrganicNation.tv and runs the video magazine Fresh Cut. She enjoys biking, guerrilla gardening and sustainable design. You can follow her on Twitter @DorotheeRH.