Libby Maynard

An Interview with the Emeritus Director of the Ink People

by Courtney Ramos

Where did you start? What is your background? What brought you to where you are today?

I grew up in a home filled with art. My mother came to the US from France in 1939 to see the World’s Fair in New York. She was 15 years old and was hosted by family friends Charles and Eugenie Prendergast. World War II erupted and the Prendergasts agreed to take care of her, which included making art with Charles in his studio. Charles’ and Maurice’s artworks covered the walls of my family’s Washington, DC home and I was encouraged to be creative. Additionally, growing up in DC meant that for school field trips we went to National Museums, Theatres, Symphonies, and Smithsonians.

When I was 11, my father joined the US Agency for International Development (the folks who distribute foreign aid) and we moved to Bangkok, Thailand. There and in Laos, I discovered a whole new way of looking at art and culture, seeing the importance of arts and culture on healthy communities.

After graduating from the International School of Bangkok, I briefly attended Wellesley College in Massachusetts before I ran away to be with my fiancé in Menlo Park and then Arcata. I was an art major at Humboldt State College for my BA and Teaching Credential, and later went back to get my MA in Art from Humboldt State University. While in the graduate program, I met Brenda Tuxford. We knew how hard and expensive it was to have access to printmaking (etching and lithography) machinery and supplies, so we decided to start a nonprofit in 1979 and “get lots of grants.”

What kind of economic woes did you face in the late 1970s? Do you see the same struggles today or in the future?

In 1979, Ronald Reagan was elected President and most of the grants went away. In the 1980s, interest rates soared to 24% and we bought our first lithography press and stones. Initially, Brenda, local donors, and I financed the Ink People. Brenda liked to say that we always had $13.27 in the bank. Slowly, we built a donor base and created other revenue streams, as well as winning those elusive grants.

The Covid-19 pandemic has created new financial challenges. At its most basic, arts and culture are about people sharing with each other, doing things together. This has been the hardest, not being able or safe to gather. Many arts organizations of all kinds have shut down permanently. It is a great loss to our communities. Others have struggled and pulled through, so far, thanks to loyal donors and state and federal government support. The arts have always been underfunded. It may have something to do with this country’s misunderstanding of the value of the arts and their power to heal, fuel economic growth, and create healthy communities.

We have one of the highest percentages of artists per capita in CA. What does the average creator in our community need to be more economically successful?

Artists of all stripes need opportunity, encouragement, and being appropriately compensated for their work. Until the pandemic, there were lots of opportunities, if artists were inclined to market themselves, but they were almost always underpaid. Creative works don’t just spring into being. Most visual, performing, literary, cultural, and digital artists study and practice for years before they find a measure of success. And those years aren’t cheap. Whether it’s paints, canvases, studio space, practice rooms, presentation venues, the artist must feed, house and take care of themselves and their loved ones. That’s why many artists have day jobs to stay alive, but those jobs suck time and energy from the creative process.

What inspires your art? What’s your favorite art piece you have done? What’s your definition of an artist?

First, let me say that being any kind of artist is not really a choice, it is a calling. If you are an artist and you don’t do art, you will be unhappy and go crazy. I think anyone who creates is an artist. Some are just better at working the system and some are content to create for themselves and their community. I don’t like the artificial hierarchical ranking systems put in place by creative gatekeepers who decide who gets shown and who doesn’t. I don’t like the imposed division between fine art and craft that fuels the economic hegemony of the elite art world.

For 20 years, I was a printmaker, primarily making etchings. I have a lot of allergies and chemical sensitivities, so after a while I became severely compromised by the harsh etching chemicals, though I tried to employ safe practices. Now, I make mixed media on paper works that may also include parts of my etchings. My favorite piece is a large (40” x 120”) mural on paper called Gort which means Spring in Gaelic. It is composed of an etch- ing of a bison in 4 parts and several etchings of circling wolves on a background of lush spring growth. To me, it speaks to the strength and majesty of the bison who is not afraid of the wolves.

Who’s your favorite artist or your all-time favorite work?

I have two favorite artists, each very different from the other: Vincent Van Gogh for his intense brilliance and Henri Matisse for his lyrical playfulness.

Is there anything you want to add about yourself? (hobbies) continued on next page

I have spent the last 43 years building community arts engagement. During most of that time, I was able to continue making art, if on a limited scale. I am looking forward to spending much more time creatively. Other than that, I’m a sci-fi/fantasy aficionado, and believe in magic.

Does your art parallel your real life or the work that you do?

My art is about being in touch with the spirit world and I am an instrument through which it can express itself.

What’s your most significant career accomplishment?

The Ink People has grown to encompass many expressions of our communities. I have always tried to serve compassionately and to listen well. I believe that the Ink People has changed Humboldt County for the better, making it vibrant and joyful.

Are you working on any current projects?

Right now, I am a recovering Executive Director. Forty years of intense work has left me more burned out than I was aware and for the last two years I have had long covid. My current project is healing and regaining my balance in life.

Who is a mentor/teacher who impacted or set you on your current path?

Two wonderful women greatly influenced me. When I was growing up, my Godmother, Carol Crotty, inspired me to be compassionate and adventurous. Around 40, I met Nina Wolf, who mentored me on my spiritual path.

What is your most significant contribution at the national/local level?

In 2011, I was awarded the Selina Roberts Ottum Award for Arts Leadership by Americans for the Arts (AftA) and the National Endowment for the Arts at the annual AftA Convention. After the ceremony, at least a dozen people from all over the country came up to me and told me how people who had been part of the Ink People had come to their communities and contributed so much to make them more vibrant and engaging. It was even better than getting the award.

What has been your greatest board service challenge?

Back in the 1990s, I was on the board of ACAT (Arcata Community Access Television). The board was primarily composed of local video producers. Because they all thought their work was the best and should be shown continuously on the channels, they had no perspective about community need or fairness. They were also unskilled in being board members. ACAT had good policies and procedures, but they weren’t being followed. As board president, I insisted on process according to our established guidelines and most of the producers got bored and resigned. We could then fill their positions with community-minded people.

What lessons have you learned? What advice would you give?

I have learned so much. It is important to be a good listener. Compassion will always serve to get to the best solution. Collaboration and working together is hard, but worth it. It may be easier to do it yourself, but it’s more powerful to teach someone else to do it. Always treat others as you would like to be treated.

What do you value most?

I value and work to practice compassion, love, and joy.

Tell me about the DreamMaker Program, which has incubated over 300 community-initiated projects in the past 40+ years and currently manages 100 community-initiated projects?

The DreamMaker Program grew out of seeing so many great community arts and cultural projects wither and die while people worked through the bureaucracy of establishing an IRS designated 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization. Many of the projects were short term in nature, so it didn’t make sense to set up a corporate structure that would need to live beyond the life of the project. In 1984, Rural Arts Services needed a fiscal receiver so the California Arts Council could give them money. I was on the RAS board and volunteered the Ink People. From there, with the guidance of the Ink People board, we developed and grew the program.

This community has so many creative people! I have always believed that top down programming doesn’t reflect a community’s true needs. The people know what they need and have the vision and passion to make it happen. As DreamMakers, they get to benefit from the resources, experience, and reputation of the Ink People. Some are short term, defined projects, while others may continue for many years. There is no set “graduation” time. We have helped a few gain their own 501(c)(3) status, such as the Redwood Discovery Museum and Redwood Curtain Theatre. Some stay with us for a long time, because we do the back office work like bookkeeping and insurance. Anyone can propose a project as long as it has arts and/or cultural elements.

How do you think these programs benefit and serve your local community?

DreamMaker projects have enabled residents to be actively involved in making their community better. It has created a sense of ownership and pride in the community

What opportunities are there for the arts community that need focus?

Humboldt County has a national reputation as an arts active community. Unfortunately, local government agencies have taken this resource for granted and do not actively support their arts and cultural communities. This was magnified by the pandemic. All arts organizations, artists of all disciplines, have been negatively impacted and changed to either stay alive or close down. This is not a zero sum problem where the arts are pitted against child care, the environment or housing. This is an opportunity for visionary leaders to engage the arts in addressing these challenges. Artists are creative. They can see things in new and innovative ways. By not funding arts organizations, the governments might as well be cutting off their noses to spite their faces.

What’s the most remarkable success story in your line of work?

One of the Ink People’s core programs is the MARZ Project (Media Arts Resource Zone). It started as the result of a meeting in 1997 where we convened youth service providers from all over the county, from DHHS to schools to United Indian Health Services. We asked: “Who is not being served?” It was those youth who were falling off the edge of society. We said: “We’ll do it!”

The program has always been free to the youth. It is drop in and participant driven, though recently through partnerships with charter schools, there has been more structure in some cases. Participants can work one on one with skilled artist mentors in areas such as music (digital and analog), video, graphics, or analog arts (painting, etc.). Many of the youth have come to find a safe, accepting place to be. At the same time, they have found something to be proud of in themselves and turned their lives around.

Out of this focus on supporting youth, we have been working for over 25 years with the Humboldt County Probation Department to bring the arts into Juvenile Hall. Thanks to funding from the Probation Dept. and the California Arts Council’s JUMP StArts program, we have placed artists in Juvenile Hall to offer incarcerated youth alternative ways of communicating, discovering talents, and benefiting from adult role models who are professional artists.

What is your hope in legacy for the Ink People and DreamMaker Program?

The Ink People, and not just the DreamMaker Program, but core programs like the MARZ Project, arts and cultural classes, the Brenda Tuxford Gallery, and many more have changed Humboldt County. The proliferation of public art isn’t all due to Ink People, but much of it is. We have partnered and collaborated with other arts organizations, tribes, cultural groups, government agencies, and businesses to make this a better place in which to live. The arts are not a separate part of life. They are what makes us human.