The Skin I'm In is an exhibition on living life as yourself and all the identities that come with it and how you see yourself and how the world sees you.  This is a moment to creatively share your stories as a person with a disability, a man with a wonderful smile, a war vet, a Black woman, a Person of Color. This exhibit is a place to tell how you feel in your skin as a member of the LGBTQ community, as an Asian man, a Muslim grandmother. How you express yourself as an Indigenous person, a person with red hair and freckles or a Black Man in today’s America. Whatever skin you are in, who you are matters. Your story matters.

For the past 18 years, Donna has dedicated her skills as a designer and project manager to develop marketing and promotional strategies for urban libraries and non-profits. She has been a graphic/web designer for Detroit Public Library and Houston Public Library systems and brand manager for Houston Public Library.

Donna attended Western Michigan University in the College of Engineering and also attended the College for Creative Studies as a Graphic Communications major. She is the founder of DMJStudio, her creative studio devoted to developing art projects and events that close gaps between community and cultural institutions through public art, exhibits, film, and social collaborations. Much of her artwork and projects are available to view at www.dmjstudio.com

Her body of work includes Colorful Women, a collection of abstract paintings, illustrations, video, and installations narrating stories of women and her hometown of Detroit. She has created and curated several projects and installations. These include the Door of Opportunity project, a collection of doors transformed into art by local artists, Posters on Politics (an international exhibition of posters on global politics), and Women Work, (a platform of women exhibits, projects and programs that focus on the narratives of women). She continues to work in the neighborhoods of Detroit developing story projects and exhibitions, such as Middle Detroit, a collection of stories about Detroit’s middle class as well as In Pursuit of Hope, stories about the Detroit 1967 Rebellion. 

Entry requirements
This call is open to all artists 18 years of age or older in the following states: Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. All work must be the original work of the artist and completed in the last three years. We reserve the right to decline any work that is substantially different from the submitted images, does not meet size limitations, or is not professionally presented.

Size limits: 2D - 72”high x 55” wide maximum 3D- must fit through standard doorway, max. 50lbs. No installations or ceiling hung work

Please contact Kerry Hagy with questions at [email protected]

South Haven Center for the Arts 600 Phoenix St, South Haven, MI 49090 Phone: (269) 637-1041 Hours: Wed, Fri, Sat 11AM – 4:00PM (ET), Thurs: 11AM – 6:00PM www.southhavenarts.org
[email protected]

WHEN YOU BUY SOMETHING FROM AN ARTIST
YOU’RE BUYING MORE THAN AN OBJECT
YOU’RE BUYING HUNDREDS
OF HOURS OF ERRORS AND EXPERIMENTATION
AND MOMENTS OF PURE JOY
YOU’RE NOT BUYING JUST ONE THING
YOU ARE BUYING A PIECE OF A HEART
A PIECE OF A SOUL
A SMALL PIECE
OF SOMEONE ELSE’S LIFE

Author Joy Plett