From the west-facing windows of my downtown Lincoln studio, I watch gorgeous Midwest sunsets filled with hot pink clouds. My days are spent cutting, stretching, and priming cotton and linen canvases in preparation for early morning plein air painting—work often completed from the front seat of my car during these cold Nebraska mornings.

It is a labor-intensive ritual requiring strength and coordination: one hand straining the pliers over the stretcher bars, the other managing the staple gun. Each painting begins with this craftsmanship, whether it is a landscape or a portrait. Looking through the windshield’s glass during those hours of isolation mirrors the observational distance and clarity required for portraiture; it is a space for quiet study before the brush hits the surface.

This winter, Beata Szechy, director of the Hungarian Multicultural Center (HMC), invited me to join a summer session as an Artist-In-Residence in Budapest. The HMC bridges cultures through artist exchanges, providing the uninterrupted time and community necessary to address the misconceptions and vital issues of our time.

My residency coincides with a significant milestone: the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Those who survived their escape are known as the “Fifty-Sixers.” I am planning a U.S. Portrait tour designed to be a bridge between the Hungarian-American diaspora on the East Coast and my upcoming residency in Budapest. The goal is to capture the faces and the living history of these survivors to ensure their cultural legacy remains vibrant.

“Artist rights are human rights,” as my teacher, Hongnian Zhang, often says. Art is a profound gift; it speaks to and connects us in ways words cannot. It heals. Since the Neolithic, it has been our most enduring tool for communication—a language we are still learning to fully translate.

This week, as I stretch these canvases, I am preparing to meet the faces of history. I will watch the sunrise over the vast Nebraska prairie and say my peace about beauty, just as so many have before me. If you know a 'Fifty-Sixer' with a story that needs to be told, my studio doors (and my car windows) are open. 

September 6, 2024 will mark the sixth annual Art From The Inside exhibition. The purpose of AFTI Nebraska is to create public awareness about incarcerated life through the artworks of the incarcerated and their loved ones.

The show is broadly themed around the experience of being incarcerated and any art form is accepted. Artwork should have a message. For example, conditions in NE prisons, your experiences, things you miss, or hopes for the future. Please include a short description of the piece and the message you want it to convey.

There is no entry fee, membership, or other association required for entry into this exhibition.

Eligibility is open to anyone who is or has been incarcerated, or who is a friend or family member of someone incarcerated. You are invited to share their experience through an art form of any type or genre.

Sales: if released from the prison facility through a loved one, any proceeds from sales will be sent to the loved one. If mailed to the studio, any proceeds will be donated to the People’s City Mission, unless otherwise specified. Unsold work will be returned to the family or the artist representative. If unsold work is to be released to a designated representative, please include the best and most complete contact information for the person.

Entry is Sunday July 7, 2024, 12:00 - 5:00 p.m.

• G Dobos Studio, Studio #9
• Mission Arts Building
• 124 S 9 th Street
• Lincoln, NE 68508

Reception is Friday, September 6, 2024, 5:00 - 9:00 p.m. is also at G Dobos Studio, in the Mission Arts Building, Studio #9

Return of Entries: All work must either be picked up at G Dobos Studio on Sunday, September 29, 2024, 12:00 – 5:00 p.m., or by appointment. In special instances, the work will be shipped to the contact person designated on the entry form.

To receive an entry form, and full details, email the author.