Hat of Knives
Sherry Lee Short
Name: Sherry Lee Short
Location: Fargo, North Dakota
Website: www.sherryleeshort.com
Why did you leave Minnesota?
Silence
Tell me about your new city of residence?
Truly, in many ways, it is not a “new” city for me. “Fargo-Moorhead” is an interconnected urban
area of over 165,000 that also includes a couple of smaller communities on both
the Minnesota and North Dakota sides. Although I still feel like a resident of Fargo-Moorhead,
the longer I have lived in Fargo the more I have moved to identifying with
North Dakota, the state, as my home.
This is because I am interested in a number of political and
environmental issues. Because I can
affect such things both through activism and by voting as a resident, I have
begun to pay more and more attention to what is happening in North Dakota.
There are issues specific to the state that are
distinctly different than issues in the state of Minnesota. For example, through a project of the Archibald
Bush Foundation, I was part of a group that worked to identify what issues
impact artistic participation in the Dakotas.
I am also concerned about the political leadership that has allowed
widespread environmental destruction in a large area of North Dakota by
allowing almost unfettered oil extraction. These are just two examples of how my new residency has influenced my
participation and awareness.
Haiku
How has your art changed since moving from Minnesota?
In 2004, I started to explore landscape. Until then, I had exclusively worked as a
figurative artist. However, I have
always had a passion for many things outdoors and decided to explore
integrating that passion with my art.
Interestingly, at first I didn’t think I had any interest in the North
Dakota prairies. Instead, I headed up to
the North Shore along Lake Superior in Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of
Michigan. However, those places are
hours from where I live. So I also
started taking shorter day trips to areas closer to my home, such as the
Sheyenne National Grasslands in North Dakota.
Slowly, I started to develop a sense for the aesthetic of the
prairie. The bright summer sun and the
brilliance of the white glaring off of the prairie draped in snow now imbues
much of my work, even crossing over to affect the aesthetic of my figurative work.
Divide
If you come back to Minnesota for one weekend and you
need to see your old favorite places, where would you go to see art?
My favorite places to see art are in community spaces,
such things as coffee shops or an apparently random light pole “hit” by yarn
bombing. I like to just discover art
when I am out for a run or walking through a community space.
Warrior
Who are some of your favorite artists still living in
Minnesota?
Joyce Lyon http://www.land2.uwe.ac.uk/jlyon.htm
Mara Morken http://maramorken.com/knit.html
If you could transplant one aspect of the Minnesota arts
community home with you, what would it be?
There is greater support for the arts in general in
Minnesota than North Dakota. For
example, grants available to North Dakota artists are nominal. Minnesota artists are eligible for big grants
such as the Jerome and the McKnight. In
North Dakota, the largest grant available is through the North Dakota Council
on the Art—it’s $2,500, and it’s only available to one visual artist every
three years. I would love to see
foundations recognize that the Dakotas are populated by a diversity of artists
who deserve the grant opportunities available elsewhere.
Bride
Do you have any exhibits to promote now or in the near
future?
Unveiling: Three Women Explore Identity (portraits), May 19-June 24,
2012, Bloomington Art Center, Bloomington, Minnesota. Artist Talk: Thursday June 14, 7:00PM.
Reflections from Solitude (solo landscape exhibition),
September 30-November 4, 2012, Rourke Art Gallery, Moorhead, Minnesota.
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