by Mobi Warren Some Morning Thoughts This morning while out on a walk I paused several times to take a closer look at some small being, honing my attention to a tiny, more-than-human space:  a Monarch caterpillar balanced on a Zizotes milkweed leaf, a leafcutter bee asleep in the yellow cup of a Mexican prickly poppy, a Salt Marsh Moth caterpillar with long black and red-orange hairs crawling the length of a grass blade.  These small frames of encounter and attention are where I often find the beginnings of poems. I am particularly drawn to insects, and as both a poet and a puppete ..read more

by Jerry Slayton Artistic Vision This year, over Spring Break, a group of young photography interns set out from the Art Spark offices each morning in search of realizing their Artistic Vision. At their lead, Anthony Maddaloni, a local pro photographer, art educator, and darkroom wizard. Over the course of 5 days each intern made genuine strides in developing their photography skills, but also in connecting with one another as artists. Anthony and I sat down last week to recap and share a few stories about the class. As a visual art teacher myself, I was very interested to hear how Anthony or ..read more

by Silva Laukkanen Dwayne Scheuneman is a dancer, artistic director, and teacher as well as a kind, funny, and all-around amazing human being. Dwayne served eight years in the US Navy and then in 1995 became paralyzed in a diving accident. After the accident, Dwayne found himself in the depths of despair, and as he was searching his way out of that despair, he wound up on a team playing wheelchair rugby and track and field. In 2002, he was looking for some sort of cross-training activity when he saw an ad at the local VA. Someone was looking for dancers in wheelchairs. Dwayne answered the ad a ..read more

by Lila Milam-Kast “Pick one!” Did you ever hear that as a child, as you stood there, unable to decide which item to choose? How about the more common, “Don’t straddle the fence,” idiom? It traces back to some Bible verse, according to the Internet, and means that you shouldn’t try to take both sides of an argument. I never liked anyone telling me what I should or shouldn’t do. Like the girl with the gleeful joy in her eyes, below, I try to find a way around most things. A girl dressed in bright pink and blue smiles as she stands with one pink boot on either side of a metallic line that runs a ..read more

by Jerry Slayton Our March 2024 Artist of the Month is Lila Milam-Kast. Lila has been our intern for six weeks now, and in that time, we’ve had many opportunities to talk “art.” Though Lila is a multi-medium artist, it came out in our conversation that she considers her primary medium to be color. And in looking through her paintings I would have to agree. I’m drawn to her use of light and shadow, and the drama created through complementary and analogous hues. In Lila’s oil painting “Hamilton Pool,” a cool blue-green pool of water is framed by a warm rocky cave above and to the sides of the p ..read more

by Kristen Gooch Attention Disabled Actors, Playwrights, and Fellow Theater Geeks! My name is Kristen Gooch. I’m a disabled actress, poet, and advocate from Austin, Texas. I am writing this blog because I wanted to let you know that my friends Liz Ross, Kristi Taylor, Claude Chibib, James Burnside, Tom Common, Lettie Common, Brie Hall and I are organizing a Disability Play Festival called TUBU Fest (Theatre for Us, By Us). It will be from July 18th-20th of 2024 in honor of Disability Pride Month, at Ground Floor Theatre here in Austin, Texas. In the TUBU Fest logo, red and yellow icons of dram ..read more

My Capricorn Connection by April Sullivan Our February 2024 Artist of the Month is Austin artist Diane Perez. I have known Diane for several years. Her art takes many forms, such as black and white silhouette portraits, colorful abstracts, graffiti style, and so much more. She paints in her free time and loves doing commissions. Only recently did we realize that we were born one day apart in the same year. We both turned 50 years old at the end of December 2023 and first talked about how that feels. Diane Perez smiles for the camera Diane said, “I feel fabulous about turning 50! It gives me su ..read more

by Nath Freires Hi everyone! My name is Natanaele (but everyone calls me Nath), and I am currently interning at Art Spark Texas. Home for me is in Brazil, but Bennington College has now become my second home.  I believe that everyone has been asked that silly yet multifaceted question “if you had a superpower, what would it be?” at least once in their lives. Of course, some people might think that it is an easy question to answer, but as soon as you start reflecting on all the possibilities you now have (well, imaginarily have), your creativity and mind will take you places. Yes, flying i ..read more

Today is International Day of Persons with Disabilities. This United Nations observance promotes the rights and well-being of people with disabilities in all spheres of society. To commemorate this year’s celebration, we asked a lovely long-standing poet from our open mic community—Amy Litzinger—to pen one of her distinctive “Dear Ableism” letters. She delivered a thoughtful, true-to-form piece that encapsulates many of the frustrations, triumphs, and hopes that define life with a disability. As always, she articulates, frankly and unapologetically, the myriad thoughts that swirl in our minds ..read more

A Journey of Strength, Art, and New Beginnings by MsBoye Here are highlights from the delightful conversation I had with our December Artist of the Month, the amazing Cindy Massey. A conversation that revealed her playful nature, faith, sense of humor, and overwhelming gratitude for life itself. Cindy wearing glasses and smiling with her arms outspread against a rainbow backgroundFrom Cedar Park, TX to Cedar Creek, NM Cindy Massey’s life story is a testament to her unwavering strength and resilience. From a thriving career in photography to a life-altering car accident resulting in a traumatic ..read more