When Hadley Johnson got a temporary gig coordinating local embroiderers to do some stitching for renowned artist Ghada Amer in preparation for her Kansas City show, she quit her job at the Better Cheddar. Amer was one of her favorite artists, and she didn't want to botch the project. She figured another service job would turn up. But Johnson didn't end up needing another service job. When it was time for Amer's residency here to end, the artist continued sending canvases to Johnson from New York. Johnson has handpicked a smaller crew to continue working with her on Amer's art. Carving out a career in the arts that allows people to quit making cheese displays for a living isn't easy in this town, where most artists work from show to show and even many curators don't work for profit. Instead of perpetuating that old cycle of Kansas City artists leaving for the big city in search of opportunities, Amer's collaboration with local artists brought opportunity here. As a result, several talented embroiderers are no longer working as isolated crafters but rather as a collective of motivated professionals with international credentials. Admit it: That's awesome.
Comments (0)