Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Help to fund Alma

From hardworking and super-talented DMV area artist Alma Selimovic:
I am an artist who lives and creates in Mount Rainier, Maryland. I work with metal, but experiment with other materials such as plaster, digital media, photo transfers, fiberglass, etc. I have my own studio and I am involved in my local community, teaching art to kids at Art Works Now.

Six years ago, I would have never thought my life would have taken this direction. As one of the more prominent LGBTIQ activists in Bosnia and Herzegovina, I faced violence and threats. In late 2009, I came to the USA where I was granted political asylum.

I was new to USA, hardly making a living, struggling with language and barely making basic connections with other artists. For me, it was hard to imagine going to graduate school, having my own studio, and working endlessly.
But, here I am. Seven years later. I feel blessed to have a life I have. And, I would like to give something back. I took an opportunity to be an artist in residence at the INSTITUT FÜR ALLES MÖGLICHE, for two months (May and June, 2017) in Berlin, Germany. My focus there will be to create live digital drawings of people from Eastern Europe who are queer, trans and/or gender neutral. At the same time, I would like to record their life stories and incorporate them in the final work. I want to capture each person’s uniqueness and give their stories a different kind of voice. Incorporating visual and sound in my work is experimental for me and I am really excited to take that step. My drawings/instalations will be exhibited in Berlin, Bosnia, USA and potentially at a few other locations.

Where your money will go?

I would like to compensate travel and time of all of my models. Most individuals are transitioning or struggling in far worse ways than I ever did. I am turning to you for help. Please donate as little as you can or as much as you want. In return, you will become a part of this project and monitor its progress. You will also get a copy of my work, mailed to you upon my return to the US. If any of my work is sold during the exhibitions, part of the profit will be donated to LGBTIQ organisation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Please help me help others tell their stories. Please help me make these stories count. Only together we can make change.

If you are not familiar with my work you can chek it out at www.almaselimovic.com.

Thank you,
Alma