A Sideshow Gone Saintly

By Kristine Kostuck
Contributing Writer

The 1932 cult classic “Freaks” brought us an inside look at people with physical abnormalities. Johnny Eck, the famous half man, is one of these “Freaks,” along with Bill Dirks, a man with a divided septum, a third eye and a cleft lip. Most of the film’s stars spent their lives moving throughout the country as sideshow entertainment.

For them, the sideshow life created a form of community, many marrying and having families within it. “It was their safe haven,” said Mackenzie Kouba, a Fargo-Moorhead based artist, at the UpFront Gallery, in downtown Fargo. “Traveling with a sideshow offered them acceptance and a way to make a living.”

Kouba was fascinated. It first started when a friend showed her a book called “Into the Sideshow.” The book tells the stories of people that traveled during the turn of the century, as a part of these shows. It gives a unique, detailed perspective of who they were and what became of them; acknowledging them as people, not just the characters they were onstage. Kouba started painting them by portraying them as icons.

The idea of iconology was inspired by one of her teachers in college, who was working on a Russian iconology project at the time. “He was very good at sharing his comparisons about the social links between icons and society’s beliefs. He also explained how different cultures portrayed them differently,” she said.

Kouba started with three pieces before realizing that this subject should be on display to share. It’s history often overlooked or forgotten altogether. She wanted to educate her viewers by showing them what it was like living within the sideshow, and how it could have been their opportunity for a fulfilling life.
Kouba’s “Sealo, the Seal Boy” captures this. Sealo had orthopedic problems and deformed arms. He spent most of his life working in the sideshow, by selling pitch cards of the characters onstage.

In 1972, the state of Florida banned these exhibitions of the handicapped. Sealo, among others, protested arguing that their income and family was being taken from them. The state later overturned the ban as a result of the protests.

The piece that will be displayed in the upcoming UpFront Gallery show is of Sealo with a red and white 1972 in the corner. Another is of a women with a conjoined twin growing from her torso. All of the pieces Kouba is displaying are based on real people from “Into the Sideshow,” but are her own creations.
The UpFront Gallery is currently for rent. Due to expenses and lack of traffic, the group of nine artists, who have their studios in the back, will be displaying their work around town after the gallery is rented. However, while maintaining their current studios, Kouba and the others hope to continue helping to lead local art students in the right direction.

The UpFront’s mission was to provide students with a venue to show their work. Kouba claims that getting your work out to be juried is the best thing to do before finishing school.

“So much can come from going to shows and being aware of the other artists in the community. There is a lot of talent and skill in every aspect of visual art. You can get info about almost anything: there is glass blowing, concrete specialists and architectural ceramics,” she said. “I understand that attending or participating in a show is intimidating,” she said. “But the sooner you start the better.”

Kouba started participating in shows during high school. “I was lucky. Moorhead High School’s Michael Dunn, an amazing teacher, pushed me into shows.” In the first few shows, her work was rejected. “I remember him telling me, this is what will happen if you want to pursue art. It isn’t about being on a neutral plain, it is always going to be bad or good. It is kind of a bipolar career choice,” she said.

Rejection isn’t the only thing that can intimidate an artist. Over the years, age, gender and education have taken an active role in it as well. However, Kouba thinks these shouldn’t make a difference, especially when it comes to gender. “Due to society and social preference there are certain boundaries to cross. There are a lot of stereotypes, but I think work is judged on the quality more than the person behind the piece.”

“It doesn’t matter who is behind the work once it is in front of the person viewing it. They are judging it by the piece itself, and because of that there is so much freedom in art. Really, we are capable of exploring anything,” she said.

Exploring can be taken in a number of ways, and when in the business of art it is necessary to be open to almost any option. During her junior year at NDSU, Kouba again began participating in community projects and shows. She remembers making signs for Girl Scout cookies. This was a small step, but one in the right direction - even if it didn’t feel like she was utilizing her full ability.

Kouba aims to help students realize their potential, and is willing to help any student who wants to take advantage by helping them build a name for themselves, at a young age, just as she did.

She is familiar with a collage of resources throughout the community for artists to seek out and form connections with. The artists of the UpFront will be available to students in their studio after the gallery closes.

She is also easy to find, as she spends the majority of her time in the studio working, missing only five days of work last year. When describing her life she says, “It’s not hard to know what to do when I’m painting, but it is hard to know what to do when I’m not.”

Even at a young age, Kouba saw the importance of art in her life. In the first grade, she was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. She claims that art was the only thing that kept her focussed. “I remember I would be out the door if someone gave me something to read, but if they gave me crayons it was a different story.”

She sees art as a major support to any civilization. “Anytime we’ve tried to get rid of it, we have seen a fall in civilization. It is a form of social commentary or documentation that cannot be altered, only interpreted by the viewer’s eyes. Anything that can provoke thought is an asset to our society.”

Her show, “Divine Oddities,” will be the gallery’s last. The opening reception will take place March 13 from 6 to 11 p.m. The exhibition will be on displayed thru April 13.

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If You Go

What: Mackenzie Kouba
Where: Upfront Gallery
When: March 9 - April 13
How Much: Free admission