Culture
Bay Area artist moves home to Athens, launches art-centered Kollage for Kamala fundraising platform
By: Ian Saint
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — The San Francisco Bay Area is reputed as a political fundraising goldmine — from Silicon Valley’s Super PACs to Napa Valley’s infamous billionaire wine cave — but one longtime Bay Area artist launched a creative method of grassroots fundraising, back home in Athens.
Artist Barbara Bryn Klare is an Athens native, who spent over 30 years residing in California before recently moving back to Southeast Ohio. She has had artist residencies as far as France and Iceland; and showcased in group exhibitions as far as South Korea and Australia. When Donald Trump was inaugurated in 2017, Klare’s Great Trump Makeover “draw-athon” was featured in a large Oakland artist collective’s “100 Days Action” project, paralleling the President’s first 100 days in office.
After President Joe Biden’s surprise withdrawal from the Presidential race on July 21, a diverse flurry of organizing cohorts for Vice President Kamala Harris erupted — Swifties for Harris, Evangelicals for Harris, White Dudes for Harris to name just a few.
Klare was inspired to launch @KollageForKamala on Instagram, featuring artworks exchanged for $50 minimum contributions to the Harris-Walz campaign. As of Election Day 2024, the project has raised $10,000. She says that “connecting like-minded people and helping to grow communities online,” and sparking campaign excitement via a novel medium, is just as valuable.
Ian Saint:
Which art modes comprise Kollage for Kamala?
Barbara Bryn Klare:
It’s not strictly collage, but mostly collage; two-dimensional putting-together different elements — often from different magazines or articles, etc. We’re also taking prints and photographs of original work, but the artist is reproducing it. There’s something for everybody.
We have some rockstar artists stepping up. Larissa Nowicki is a Bay Area artist; she does paper weavings from old books, journals, etc. that’s shown with Jack Fischer Gallery. Another one of our rockstars is Donnelly Marks in New York; she’s doing wearable art — mostly pendants, and they’re going very fast. We even have some international artists. Jeff Kallet is in Athens.
Was this initiative something you would’ve inevitably done for President Biden, or was there a spark specific to VP Harris that inspired you to launch this?
Klare:
It was very specific to Kamala Harris. I think Biden is a great president; but for whatever reasons, she’s more energizing. [Kollage] started a week after Biden’s [withdrawal]; I knew that artists needed an outlet, so I gave them a platform.
Personally, abortion rights is the fire under me — that’s why I’m so excited about her, and many other people are as well. Demographically, the collage art community is primarily women; and the majority of female artists involved in Kollage for Kamala see abortion as a major issue.
How have Athens and the San Francisco Bay Area — where VP Harris hails from — informed your art?
Klare:
Both of my parents taught Psychology at Ohio University. I was born and raised here, then spent most of my adult life in the Bay Area; but I’d come back to visit family, so I’ve been connected to Athens for a long time.
I’ve been connecting politics, social practice, and social issues to art for quite a while; for me, it’s all connected. Artists reflect their times, and that [reflection] is important in the Bay Area [arts scene].
Jefferson Airplane was famously based in San Francisco, and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen is also resettled in Southeast Ohio. Does Southeast Ohio offer understated allure to San Franciscans?
Klare:
That’s an interesting connection; I think it’s worth exploring. Interesting enough, I lived near Paul Kantner from Jefferson Airplane, who was still in San Francisco. I actually thought it would be interesting to have SF-to-Ohio stores, an exchange between here and there.
Do you feel that “coastal bias” in national media coverage of Appalachia distorts what life is like here?
Klare:
Yeah, that happens a lot. I’ve had people visit from larger, cosmopolitan cities; and they will say things like, “oh, I didn’t realize you really need to travel around the US to see what variety really exists.” And I think it’s a problem for the Democrats. Hopefully I’m not espousing it; Athens County is a blueberry in this red region, so I have to remember to get outside of my own comfort zone.
I’m studying to be a therapist, in addition to my art career. The reason I wanted to come back to Ohio to do that — and not do that in the Bay Area — was there’s such a high need here. I grew up here, this community raised me, and I feel like I wanted to give back. My college is in Kentucky, and it’s deep in the heart of Appalachia; so by doing that, I’m getting outside of my own silo [of Athens and the Bay Area]. I’m learning how the allure of Trump ties into what’s going on in all the counties around Athens, and Appalachia in general.
Living in the Bay Area is very exciting for an artist; but were there aspects of Athens that you missed, and cherish now that you’re back?
Klare:
Oh, yeah. I have a different perspective on Athens than I did when I left. I had to go and see the world; I saw the world, and it’s been great to come back to a place that’s easy to maneuver. I can walk to the store so easily. I’m liking that I go somewhere, and I see people I know. I didn’t have family in the Bay Area; it was just me, so I was always breaking new ground, even though I was there awhile. Here, so many people knew my parents and family. I’m falling back into that soft-feather bed of family when I’m here. It’s very comforting.
I saw that you work with rescued fabrics. What does “rescued fabric” mean, and does that play into your political activism?
Klare:
Definitely. Thank you for making that connection. Rescued fabric, in my mind, is post-production — it’s already been woven, and I’m cutting the connection to the landfill. Artists must really think of not only what they’re producing with, but where their works will end up. What’s going to happen to all this art being produced?
Consider the carbon footprint of your productions?
Klare:
Yeah, I think about all that. I’m very interested in Boro, a textile in Japan [sprung during their Edo period from] saving cotton, because cotton was so scarce — that’s a real sustainable practice, with social complexity.
Where can folks obtain rescued fabrics?
Klare:
The simplest way is going to a fabric store and buying “remnants.” Those are going to end up in the landfill if nobody buys them.
Whenever I [start] any project, I [check for] any pieces of my own. You can always cut up your own clothing, instead of throwing it away or donating it — because donating it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be reused. Start with your own fabrics, then check the remnants section of the store. There are also fabric swaps in some areas — in LA and New York, there are large organizations working with designers who have off-cuts, and they will send it to you.
Election Day is today. Barbara Bryn Klare’s artist website is https://www.barbarabrynklare.com/.