WIN-R artists display works
by Tamara Collins, Reporter

    More than 30 contributing artists attended the official opening of the annual WIN-R Art Show last Monday on the South Campus.
    The show, in the Gallery of the Joe B. Rushing Performance Hall, opened with a poetry reading by Alice Eldridge, WIN-R student.
    The exhibit by current and former WIN-R students includes a mixture of pieces from paint to photo and sculpture to poetry.
   “I create from my family and relationships. They inspire me; I can write words more eloquently than I can say them,” Stacy Sala, a WIN-R student exhibitor, said.
   Sala shared some of her writing in this show. A poet and songwriter, she was among some of the show’s first-time exhibitors.
   “It seemed like a wonderful chance to display something that is a big part of my life,” she said.
   Carol Wheeler, a former nurse, said she joined WIN-R to find a new career. Wheeler said she likes photography because she cannot draw. Her children were on hand to see her showing of Dejected, which includes her now adult child in the scene.
   “I capture what inspires me. I love my family; they provide me with plenty of inspiration,” she said.
   The exhibit was organized by Patti Zimmerman, a former WIN-R student. An artist herself, she exhibited in a prior art show. After serving as the show’s chair, Zimmerman said she likes to be able to give back to the program.
    “After exhibiting in my first show, I was involved with its clean up. Some time later, I was asked to chair this show. I am pleased with the results,” she said.
   Though Zimmerman went through the program in 2000, she stays involved with the ongoing events the WIN-R Network sponsors for both former and current students.
   “I am always floored by the women who come through here. It is really an empowering and supportive group to be a part of,” she said.
   Triesha Light, South Campus WIN-R coordinator, said the art show is an important part of the program’s success.
   “I like to show my students the many different possibilities in humanities and artistic career choices that are out there. We are very pleased with the response to the show,” she said.
   Light said she is especially pleased with the program’s development.
   “Win-R has become so much more than it was 26 years ago. I am thrilled to see it expand and grow,” she said.
   Gallery hours are Monday-Thursday 11 a.m.-2 p.m. For information concerning the art show or the WIN-R program, contact Light at 817-515-4740 or by e-mail at triesha.light@tccd.edu.