OUTCOMES
Jeffrey Gibson, participant
Lower Manhattan Cutural Council 2003 Workshop

Jeffrey Gibson's Democratic Drawing no. 1 (2003). Acrylic and pen on paper. 7”w x 9.5”h

Jeffrey Gibson, a painter and a member of the Mississippi Choctaw Indian tribe, came to the first Professional Development Program in April 2003 with a lot of ambition, but without many expectations. "I had done a similar workshop before," he explains, "and found that at the end of the day, it's possible to do a lot of running around for your career, but it can feel kind of empty." By the end of the workshop, he started seeing ways to integrate two facets of his life; his Native American background, and his career in New York's contemporary art world, and he had begun planning a way to give back to his community.

By the end of the Friday night artists' presentations, Jeffrey knew the Creative Capital workshop would be different from others like it. "Usually that sort of thing can feel competitive," he says, "but it was clear that this was more about a communal effort, for each of us to find our own goals and plans." Jeffrey also says that the experience of the Creative Capital artist-facilitators was powerful for him. "Having people who've had careers for that long, and seemed to have happiness in terms of what they're doing - that was a really nice shift," he says.

Another important aspect of the weekend for Jeffrey was the integration of career goals and life goals. "Creative Capital actually cared that we were happy in our lives!" Jeffrey says, "And Colleen Keegan's background in the business world helped us integrate art world goals with things like buying a home, having a family. A lot of artists feel like those kinds of things don't apply to us," he goes on, "but the workshop made it seem real."

A successful emerging artist before the workshop, both Jeffrey's career and his community involvement are taking off, with upcoming shows opening everywhere from Boston's Samson Projects Gallery to The Jones Center for Contemporary Art in Austin, to the Jersey City Museum. And as a testament to his increasingly integrated life, Jeffrey has a solo show opening at the American Indian Community House Gallery in the fall of 2005.

But the most exciting development for Jeffrey, one that came directly from the Creative Capital workshop, has been the scholarship fund for Native American college students in the arts that he's gotten off the ground. "I had always thought you had to make it first and have a lot of cash," he says, explaining why he hadn't initiated it sooner. "The weekend helped me look at the resources I have now, and I decided to take the small income I receive from my tribe and turn it into scholarship money right away."

Jeffrey's tribe will disburse the funds each year, with the first award going to a Choctaw high school senior this fall. Jeffrey will also arrange an online mentorship program for the scholarship recipient with some professionals working in the worlds of art, fashion, and design. "The differences between the mainstream contemporary art world, and the Native American art world are significant. Students on the reservation may feel intimidated by the art world beyond their own community," he says. "And this is a way I can use my own experiences to contribute to my community in Mississippi."

For more information about Jeffrey Gibson's artwork, and his scholarship fund for Native American students, please visit Jeffrey's website at www.jeffreygibson.net