This was the first time I have ever curated a show and it was in Japan.  For many people this would be a nightmare.  For me I think it was on some levels but it also was so exciting that I don’t think I noticed all the problems I had and instead just kept plugging away.  The most difficult part was dealing with the stress that came from knowing that so many things could go wrong and were out of my control.  

I had to organize shipping.  This meant staying up late to call shippers first thing in the morning and also hanging around the house in the afternoon to get a hold of the artists in the evening.  I also had to get boxes packed as carry on luggage for one of the artists, Dain Gore, who came out for the exhibition.  

 

I met weekly with Japanese friends to work on translating artist statements, get all the paperwork filled out to get support from the Himeji cultural association and get the exhibition space at Egret.  In the end I had a crew of people helping me with so many things because I can’t read, write or speak Japanese.  It was so great to work with quality people who were as excited about the idea as I was.

I ended up with a nice round number of ten artists representing  downtown Phoenix.  I had mixed media work from Cheryle Marine and Susan Copeland, bromoils and cyanotypes from Lisa Takata, Encaustic pieces from Kate Timmerman, Pop art photographs from Stepanie Carrico, Paintings from Luis Gutierrez and Dain Gore, found object work from Joe Willy Smith and ceramic sculptures made by Gabe Marques and myself.  

 

We had over five hundred people come to the show and I kept hearing over and over that many had never seen work like this.  Many people spent at least fifteen minutes reading all ten artists statements and I had more questions than I have ever had at an art exhibition before.  I was glad that I had selected artists who I have shown with because many of the questions would have been impossible to answer if I didn’t know the artists and their work.  I had no idea what to expect from my first exhibition in Japan.  This exhibition was an overwhelming success in so many ways and I am so excited to work on finding other venues for this work while I am here.