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New Member FAQ
How
do I join?
Any
artist interested in joining our group will be required to pass a portfolio
review. Send us six examples of your work. These can be in the form of
non returnable tear sheets or as e-mailed JPEGs. We will then in turn
review your work and make a determination for your membership. This is
the same process that the Societies of Illustrators use and one we will
continue to employ.
How
do the trips work?
There
are two types of trips. The Air Force Field trips and the bi-annual Washington
D.C. show.
In
the case of Air Force Field Trips the Pentagon will contact the MAFA
chairman and say, as an example, they have a trip planned to tour the
air bases of Pacific Rim. Once the artist(s) for the trip have been determined
flight arrangements ( generally on a commercial airline ) are made.
Once
you trip has begun and you arrive at your destination the Air Force will
then begin to act as your host as they show you select aspects of their
operations and training. In the case of a Pacific rim trip you might initially
land in Honolulu. There you may spend a day touring Hickam AFB then take
a military transport to Guam, Okinawa, Japan and finally returning home
on the commercial flight.
he
average trip lasts from three to seven days. What you see on the trips
can be as varied as the destinations you will visit. You could take
a 3 day trip to Edwards to watch a test flight of the F-22. You might
go to Whiteman AFB to see the B-2 bomber, or you could head to Seymour/Johnson
AFB to take a ride in a F-16.
Will I be traveling with other artists on trips?
You
may or may not be traveling alone to your destination but once there you
will likely be joined by other artists. This is one of the great facets
of the Trips. Many Air Force artists speak of friendships that have lasted
years all because of the shared experience of their Air Force Trip.
What
does all this cost me?
In
the case of the Air Force Field Trips your out of pocket expense is minimal.
The Air Force takes care of all your reasonable travel expenses, car rentals
(if necessary), and lodging. Meals are taken care of through a per diem
arrangement. With the exception of the air fare, these expenditures are
initially your responsibility. Save your receipts for your meals, car
rental and lodging and the Air Force than reimbures when you return.
Film, processing, and personal expenditures are not covered.
In
the case of the Washington D.C. Show your air fare is paid for by the
Air Force but all further expenses are your responsibilty. you are provided
lodging in Visiting Officers Quarters (VOQ) at either Andrews Air Force
Base or Bolling Air Force Base. These quarters, which are quite nice,
are available at a reduced government rate. Both bases are located minutes
from Washington D.C.
Tell
me about the Washington D.C.Shows?
The
D.C. shows occur every other year. It is here that the art created in
the previous two years are displayed. This high quality show consisting
of 2-300 paintings is held in the Andrews AFB Officers Club. All the artists
are in attendance as well and the friendship and camaraderie of the evening
is well known. A Black Tie gathering with cocktails, dinner, and dancing,
this affair is generally attended, in addition to the artists, by both
the Air Force Chief-of Staff, the Secretary of the Air Force and other
dignitaries and Air Force personnel.
The
Washington D.C. show takes place in mid October, and typically runs from
a Thursday through the following Monday. Following the Dinner/Presentation
on Friday evening you have three full days to explore D.C. or the surrounding
area. Your spouse is welcome to attend this trip at your own expense.
When
do I have to complete my painting?
You
have till the month of August prior to the October presentation to complete
your painting. For example, there is a presentation this year, 2004, in
October. Therefore you have till this coming August to create and finish
your art. Once it has been reviewed by the NWAFA committee the art will
be shipped to the Pentagon where it is professionally framed for the October
show.
Can
the artwork be digital?
No
digital art is accepted. The Air Force wants only artwork rendered in
traditional mediums.
What
becomes of the paintings?
The
Air Force has a climate controlled repository at the Air Force Academy.
Once the artwork is catalogued it may be shipped out to one of a number
of U.S. Air Force facilities internationally or may be part of their traveling
shows.
Can
I reproduce my art for my own self promotion?
Yes,
you can opt to retain the copyright to your work if you'd like. This gives
you the ability to use your work in any advertising you might want to
do as well as in the production of posters or limited editions.
How
does the trip rotation work?<
Trips
are organized like this. When you are at the top of the list it will be you turn. When you have been offered a trip
then your name will go to the bottom of the list and so on.
What
happens if I can’t go when a Trip is offered?/p>
If
your name is at the top of the list when a Trip is offered you have the
first right of refusal. The Trips can come with as little as a few days
to a few months notice. If you accept the Trip, the the chairman will
notify the Pentagon. He will then work with you and the Air Force to coordinate
the various details of your itinerary and keep you informed as to the
aspects of your Trip.
If
you decide you must decline the Trip then your name is moved to the bottom
of the rotation. The person next in line is then offered the opportunity
to accept or not. In this way we work our way down the list until a available
artist is found. This rotation arrangement is the same for everyone in
the group. However, moving to the bottom of the list does not necessarily
mean you’ll endure a prolonged period without another opportunity.
As trips are offered and differing artists have scheduling or timing conflicts
the list will invaraibly cycle fairly quickly through the rotation.
However,
should you not be able to take a trip or if one was not offered to you,
you are still eligible to attend the D.C. show if you
want to produce a painting and donate it. The painting will still go through
the same review process as those produced from the trips. This option
does present a chance to attend the October show even if you couldn’t
take a Trip.
What
is required of me?
You
need to have a current passport. This is critical. Of equal importance
is the requirement that you keep your Trip commitment once you have made
it. The Air Force goes to considerable time and energy organizing these
trips and they can’t have artists changing their minds once arrangements
have been made. Once you’ve agreed to go, you go. That's why it
is so important to consider your work and personal schedules before accepting
the Trip offer.
You will need a camera to photograph what you’ll be seeing for future
reference for your painting. You are free to sketch or paint on site .
Also,
its useful to bring to the trips a certain amount of flexibility. Trip
itineraries can evolve as events dictate and Air force mission deployments
change. So going with the flow and having a good attitude are always helpful.
In addition accommodations, depending upon the area you are visiting,
can be more rustic than some people might like. A recent Trip to the forward
areas of Saudi Arabia/Iraq required that the artists stay in tents with
the airmen. While this kind of experience is the exception rather than
the rule (generally accomodations are provided in Visiting Officers Quarters
or off base Hotels) it still does happen.
Who
do I pay my dues to?
Your dues can be remitted in the form of a check to the Midwest Air Force Artists and sent
to Konrad Hack. For future dues starting
in January 2005, the dues can be paid online at the MAFA Website Store.
What is the Air Force Art Program all about?
There is a long tradition in the military of
recording for posterity the experiences of soldiers and sailors in peace and at
war. Before the advent of the war correspondent and the camera, military artists
provided the only source of illustration of battles and countries at war. Since
the days of the Roman Empire, artists have traveled with armies, documenting
battle scenes to tell the story of war to generations that that followed.
American artists have documented every war since the Revolution when Archibald
Willard painted "The Spirit of '76" and Emmanuel Leutze captured the heroism of
a general and future President when he painted "Washington Crossing the
Delaware." Though a relative "newcomer," the United States Air Forces Art
Program carries on that fine tradition of documenting the military way of life
through the medium of art.
The USAF Art Program and the beginning of its extensive collection of aviation
art began in 1950 with the transfer from the U.S. Army of some 800 works of art
documenting the early days of the Army Air Corps. In addition, under General
Curtis LeMay, a "portrait" program was initiated.
These portraits of senior officers, along with the donated art from the Army Air
Corps, the works of noted artists Henri Farre (a French air combat pilot-artist
in World War I) and Frank E. Beresford (a British artist and war correspondent
in World War II), and captured German art from the Second World War, constituted
the nucleus of a collection that serves as a valuable historical record of
military aviation through the first half of the twentieth century.
In 1951, the Air Force sponsored a tour of USAF installations for 30
cartoonists, and in 1952 the Air Force sponsored 30 artists from the Society of
Illustrators (New York). The concept of an official program, designed to record
the Air Force story through the medium of art was born. Responsibility for the
growing collection of donated art that would document the history of military
aviation and the U.S. Air Force was given to the Secretary of the Air Force,
Office of Information Services. It was a natural home at the time because much
of the combat art produced in World Wars I and II by the U.S. and allies was
done in support of domestic and foreign "propaganda" and public information
programs.
Historians belonged to the Information Services career field at that time as
well. More importantly, the central purpose behind the program was to document
the "Air Force story"--a job that belonged to Information Services. Telling the
story through art--with sponsorship of artists trips to Air Force installations
to cover activities and events--was a natural extension of the Air Force public
relations program's effort to tell the young Service's story through news media
representatives, books, magazines, special public exhibits, trips and briefings
for important community/opinion leaders. The Art Program became a part of the
Civil Liaison Division of the Office of information Services to document the Air
Force History.
In a major milestone that was to shape the direction and content of the program
for the next fifty years, the Air Force met with the prestigious Society of
Illustrators of New York, inviting them formally to participate in the USAF Art
Program. They enthusiastically accepted the Air Force's invitation, and the
mechanism was established whereby civilian artists, members of the Society of
Illustrators, were sent on officially sponsored trips to Air Force installations
all over the world. Later, the Societies of Illustrators of Los Angeles, San
Francisco, the Midwest Air Force Artists, the Southwest Society of Air Force
Artists, and numerous independent artists joined the program.
Artworks produced from officially sponsored trips are "donated" to the U.S. Air
Force--usually as outright "gifts to the Government"--accepted on behalf of a
grateful nation and Air Force by the Secretary of the Air Force. Societies
review works of their members before offering them as gifts. The "formal"
presentation of artwork took on all the glamour of a New York society art show,
as the Societies (then later the Air Force) hosted a formal "Art Presentation"
every even year to unveil and exhibit their works to be donated to the service.
While there have been programmatic changes in the Air Force's Art Program, it
has retained the essential characteristics it started with--art in support of
Service public relations and Service support of the documentation of art.
ORGANIZATION
Today, management of the USAF Art Program and collection is the responsibility
of the Secretary of the Air Force, Office of the Administrative Assistant. The
Air Force Art Program Office handles day-to-day administration of the program.
The office is charged with responsibility for the Art Program.
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