Sheila Cameron (artist)

Sheila Cameron is an American artist, blogger, graphic designer and producer based in California. She is mostly known for initiating the "Free Katie" campaign, in which she designed and sold merchandise in response to the news of Katie Holmes's engagement to Tom Cruise.

Sheila Cameron
Sheila Cameron at The Center for The Arts
EducationLoyola University Maryland
Occupation
  • blogger
  • graphic designer[1]
  • painter[2]
  • producer[3]
Known for"Free Katie"
MovementDANK (Do Art Now Kids)[4]
WebsiteSheila Cameron

Hollywood

After graduating from Maryland's Loyola University, having double-majored in creative writing and fine art,[2] Ohio native[5] Cameron moved to Hollywood, to focus on painting and writing. While living there, she worked as a graphic designer,[6] and also a producer and developer of content for film, television and websites, with clients and employers including HBO's original pictures department, Jagged Films, and Project Greenlight.[3]

Free Katie

In response to the news of Katie Holmes's engagement to Tom Cruise in 2005, Cameron designed and began selling merchandise online bearing slogans including "Free Katie", "Run Katie Run",[7] and (in a reference to Cruise's Oprah interview) "Stop Sofa Abuse",[1][8] among other designs. Items for sale included buttons, hats, mugs, stickers, T-shirts and undergarments.[8][9] Imitators soon copied Cameron's designs and began selling Free Katie merchandise as well.[5]

In less than a month, the Free Katie website received more than half a million visitors,[8] and sold thousands of shirts and other merchandise to customers both in the US and around the world.[5][9][10] Free Katie shirts were worn on the red carpet in 2005[8][11] and made reference to by Iggy Pop in a 2006 interview,[12] and in 2008 a group of fans picketed Katie Holmes's Broadway debut, their signs bearing Cameron's "Free Katie" and "Run Katie Run" slogans.[13] As late as 2012, a group of people wearing Free Katie shirts had an unexpected encounter with Holmes herself when they all dined at the same restaurant.[14] Shortly thereafter, the then-recently divorced Holmes was seen wearing a Free Katie shirt of her own.[15]

Free Katie's popularity also led to the creation of an online forum community,[16] which is still active as of 2015.[17] Cameron was deluged with emails from fans, and she had to buy more bandwidth multiple times to accommodate the traffic the Free Katie website and forums generated.[6][18]

Cameron's Free Katie campaign was covered by U.S. media including ABC News,[8] Los Angeles Times,[19] NBC News,[20] Newsweek,[10] and The New York Times;[11] she was interviewed by NPR and a British TV program; and the phenomenon was covered internationally by news outlets in Australia,[21] Brazil,[22] India,[23] Spain[24] and Sweden,[7] among others.

Cameron clarified that she did not actually believe Holmes to be in need of rescue from her relationship with Cruise, but added, "I think we need to let her know that we support her if she wants to get out of it."[1] She also said she originally created the Free Katie campaign for the amusement of herself and some friends,[6] but that interest in the merchandise snowballed.[9] The success of Free Katie merchandise motivated Cameron to produce T-shirts featuring other "pop-culture satire political commentary"[3] as well.

Cameron called the Free Katie campaign her "Dear John letter to Hollywood,"[3] citing the intra-industry response to criticism of mega-stars like Tom Cruise by people at her echelon of the Hollywood ladder. She left Hollywood not long after the campaign achieved widespread notoriety.[3]

Works and exhibitions
Cameron's canine portrait Sit was her first painting to be featured on a magazine cover

Cameron is part of two artist collectives: Nevada County Yarn Bombers, which focuses on textile art, especially knitted and crocheted works;[25] and DANK (Do Art Now Kids), whose "pop-up gallery" initiative, to bring art into otherwise unused spaces, she helped pioneer.[4]

Blog

Cameron maintains a noted blog, Watching the Paint Dry, that contains essays about creativity, family life and other topics, and which also serves as a storefront for her artwork.[3] She has characterized her blogging as a way to "illustrate what it means to be an artist."[26] Cameron began the blog in June 2010, immediately embarking on a project of posting art on a daily basis for a full year.[27]

Magazine covers

The August 2012 issue of Style magazine's Roseville Granite Bay Rocklin edition featured Cameron's painting "Sit" as its cover image, and included a profile of her inside the magazine.[28]

Jerry Saltz's challenge
Hell 14 is one of the pieces painted in response to Saltz's direct challenge

In 2013, Jerry Saltz, senior art critic for New York magazine, issued a challenge to Cameron via Facebook:

"Sheila Cameron, All right. You asked for it.

Make 55 works with NO allusion to Fairytale.
And experiment with various mediums and finishes and touches and surfaces and ideas-of-finish.
Start today; you'll be in hell by the end of this VERY simple challenge...
Maybe remove figures for these works as well.
Or just get to work.

See you in Hell … … … maybe."[2]

In response, Cameron created the requisite 55 works, a three-month project she described approaching as a performance piece. The resulting collection was exhibited as a Facebook event, and some pieces were auctioned via eBay.[2] Saltz himself, in reviewing the collection, said, "Sheila Cameron did magnificently."[27]

ArtSlant competition

ArtSlant magazine named Cameron's submission, "Original Super Power", a finalist in its 2013 juried competition.[29]

Exhibitions
  • Beautiful Monsters. At Miner's Foundry Cultural Center. Solo exhibition. 2011[30]
  • At Art Works Gallery. Juried shows.[31] 2012[32]–2013[31]
The Evolution of the Feather
  • Wild & Scenic Film Festival Art Exhibition. At multiple venues. A juried exhibition, for which Cameron was one of 40 artists chosen from among 500 applicants. 2013[33][34]
  • Smallworks. At Artist Studio in the Foothills. Group show of works measuring 12 inches or less. 2013[35]
  • Two Johns and a Whore. At Los Angeles's Coagula Curatorial. A curated show with a theme of "art, love, sex, and commerce" and how they interrelate. 2014[36][37]
  • Art Walk program. At multiple venues including "pop-up" galleries. A project of the Nevada City-based art collective DANK. 2014–[4][38] 2015[39]
  • Wild & Scenic Film Festival Art Exhibition. Osborne Woods Gallery. Juried exhibition. 2015[40]
  • Discover. At Off Center Stage, part of Grass Valley's Center for the Arts. Solo show, but part of a multidisciplinary exhibition matching visual art with live music, readings and other creative works. 2014[27][41]
  • ArtExpo. At a former factory space in San Diego. Curated exhibition presented as an alternative to the concurrently-running San Diego Comic-Con International. 2014[42]
  • Every Angeleno Counts. At outdoor display along route. Curated exhibition[43] combined with a 5K (5 km (3.1 mi)) run/walk. 2014[44]
  • LORE: The Art of Story. At Miner's Foundry Cultural Center. DANK group show. 2015[45]
  • New Works. At Miner's Foundry Cultural Center. DANK group show. 2015[39]
  • Cinema. At Miner's Foundry Cultural Center. DANK group show. 2015[46]

Personal life

Cameron and her husband Greg have two daughters.[27] In 2008, Cameron and her family relocated from West Hollywood to the Grass Valley, California area,[3] settling in Nevada City.[26]

References
  1. Lane, Tahree (18 June 2005). "Paris proposal latest plot twist to Holmes-Cruise romance". The Toledo Blade. pp. A1, A6. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  2. Bentley, Brett (13 June 2013). "To hell and back: The tale of an artist". The Union. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  3. Kellar, Tom (25 March 2012). "Artist, blogger and mom finds voice, opportunity to share it in Nevada County". The Union. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  4. Bentley, Brett (4 June 2014). "A moveable feast for the eyes: New collective announces inaugural 'pop up' exhibit". The Union. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  5. Semuels, Alana (5 August 2005). "Sharing schadenfreude, from Katie Holmes to The Star Wars Kid". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  6. Smith, Ryan (17 June 2005). "Tongue-in-cheek Internet campaign explodes into celebrity-gossip phenomenon". The Toledo Blade. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  7. Hallhagen, Erika (28 June 2005). "Spring Katie spring" [Run Katie run]. www.svd.se. Svenska Dagbladet. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  8. Wolf, Buck (23 August 2005). "'Free Winona' to 'Talentless,' Celebs Let T-Shirts Do the Talking". ABC News. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  9. "Website hopes to 'free Katie'". The Guardian. 14 June 2005. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  10. Kuchment, Anna (1 August 2005). "CELEB T SHIRTS: Free This Trend!". Newsweek. p. 12. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  11. Robertson, Campbell (21 June 2005). "Ceci N'Est Pas Un Newspaper". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  12. Bianculli, David (14 July 2006). "Iggy Pop: 'Godfather of Punk'". Fresh Air. Event occurs at 11:40. National Public Radio. Retrieved 28 September 2015. [responding to interviewer's question about why Pop rarely wears shirts] Everything you wear says something, and I just felt that what everything was saying was getting in the way. If you wear a t-shirt that says, you know, Free Katie Holmes, you're saying something. You know? If you wear a blue Oxford shirt, you're saying something.
  13. Singh, Anita (19 September 2008). "Katie Holmes' Broadway show picketed by Scientology protesters". The Telegraph. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  14. Bozzetti, Valentina (31 October 2012). "Katie Holmes is embarrassing meetings in restaurants [Katie Holmes fa incontri imbarazzanti nei ristoranti]". Style.it. Conde Nast. Retrieved 26 September 2015. (translated into English by Google Translate)
  15. Helmore, Ed (10 November 2012). "Katie Holmes to make Broadway debut after divorce from Tom Cruise". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  16. Young, Pandora (29 June 2012). "Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Call It Quits". AdWeek. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  17. "SheilaCameron.com Boards Home Of the Original Free Katie Community". Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  18. Lee, Chris (18 June 2005). "Cruise, Holmes will always have Paris". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  19. Fernandez, Maria Elena (11 June 2005). "Website aims to 'liberate' Holmes". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  20. Keith, Olbermann (10 June 2005). "'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for June 10". Countdown with Keith Olbermann. NBC. [transcript here].
  21. "Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes looked a match made in heaven". The Herald Sun. 7 July 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2015.(subscription required)
  22. "Site pede 'libertação' da namorada de Tom Cruise [Site asks 'liberation' for Tom Cruise's girlfriend]". Terra.com.br. Terra Networks. 10 June 2005. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  23. "Designer Tees to 'Free Becks' from pushy Posh!". WebIndia123 News. 4 April 2007. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  24. Gamazo, Rosa (24 July 2005). "Liberad a Katie [Free Katie]". ABC. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  25. Terman, Jennifer (23 October 2013). "Yarn bombing for kids' sake". The Union. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  26. Kopochinski, Lisa (Summer 2014). "The Artist and Social Media" (PDF). Perspectives on Arts: 12–13. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  27. "'The Real' to showcase standout local talent". The Union. 3 April 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  28. "About the Cover". Style. StyleMG.com: cover, 6. August 2012.
  29. Kuennen, Joel (27 August 2013). "Juried Winners and Jurors of the ArtSlant Prize 2013 Competition". ArtSlant.com. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  30. "The Miners Foundry Cultural Center Nevada City, CA — Exhibition Detail". ArtSlant.com. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  31. Pelline, Jeff (23 January 2013). "Art Works Gallery: Meet the Artist". Sierra FoodWineArt. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  32. "Art Works Gallery hosts Holiday Open House". The Union. 29 November 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  33. "Visualizing 'A Climate of Change' through art". The Union. 10 January 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  34. Pelline, Jeff (10 January 2013). "Wild & Scenic Film Festival art exhibition this weekend". Sierra FoodWineArt. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  35. "Smallworks art creates unique collections". The Union. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  36. Thompson, Elise (13 January 2014). "Opening Party Coagula Curatorial: Two Johns and a Whore". The Los Angeles Beat. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  37. Derrick, Lisa (25 January 2014). "Two Johns and a Whore: Well Hung and Packed at Coagula". CartwheelArt.com. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  38. "DANK inaugural show opens Friday". The Union. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  39. Pelline, Jeff (1 June 2015). "DANK and Music in the Mountains team up Miners Foundry on June 5". Sierra FoodWineArt. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  40. "Wild and Scenic Art Exhibition 2015". NevadaCountyArts.com. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  41. "Artist Sheila Cameron at Off Center Stage". TheCenterfortheArts.org. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  42. "ArtExpo During Comic-Con July 24–26" (Press release). PRWeb. 17 July 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  43. "Popular 'Angeleno' artists from all over greater LA will have their works on display at this year's Every Angeleno Counts 5k and Festival. We're anticipating an entire block of curated art!". EveryAngelenoCounts.org. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  44. Derrick, Lisa (17 October 2014). "Homeboy Industries: "Every Angeleno Counts" 5k Race and Art Show". Huffington Post. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  45. "DANK to host art opening 'LORE: The Art of Story'". The Union. 9 April 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  46. "DANK's art inspired by film has opening reception Saturday at Miners Foundry". The Union. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
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