New Year's Resolution: Utilize the Art Roads and Farm Trails of NC

Having stumbled upon a motivating website today called Homegrown Handmade, I decided to make a New Year's resolution to better support and understand North Carolina culture. Homegrown Handmade is a collaboration of artists, farmers, and rural creative entrepreneurs. It promotes sustainable tourism in rural areas of North Carolina through self-guided driving tours. It's an economic and tourism development project, but it also helps us understand how agriculture, rural living, and art have all come together to form specific and different pockets of North Carolina culture.

When one visits Homegrown Handmade's website, you are given the option of exploring one of three trails: Foothills, Piedmont, or Coast. Each "trail" is really a wealth of information on festivals, art studios, wineries, and farms to help a potential tourist to plan a trip.

Here is a long weekend trip I've already planned from the Foothills Trail for June:

Starting out Friday, leisurely drive to the Mount Airy Fiddlers' Convention. This weeklong festival is filled with old-time music performances and free demonstrations by skilled musicians. Spend the day listening, dancing, and visiting. Saturday morning, visit the Downtown Cinema Theatre for the a.m. taping of the longest-running bluegrass radio program in the United States, "Saturday Merry-Go-Round." Saturday afternoon, take a short drive to Westfield to kayak at the Hanging Rock Outdoor Recreation Center. That evening, enjoy the sunset view and listen to MORE bluegrass and folk music at Round Peak Vineyards. End the trip with a scenic drive back down 89.

That's just one trip of so many across the state. If you're interested in planning a trip, Homegrown Handmade has a great guidebook available here.

Local Triad Artist William Mangum on NBC Nightly News for Holiday Honor Card Program

Local blog Triad Watch recently made note of an artist from the Piedmont community who was featured on NBC Nightly News for using his skills to benefit local nonprofits. Click on the following link to view this story:

Local Triad Artist William Mangum on the NBC Nightly News about His Holiday Honor Card Program

Upcoming January Events

Auditions: As Far As We Can Remember
January 6-9 - Caldcleugh Multicultural Arts Center - Greensboro
Caldcleugh makes good on a community request for something "different" for Black History Month. We gathered stories from senior members of Greensboro's African American community and asked them to tell us what they remember about Greensboro to develop this original performance piece. Caldcleugh will audition middle-aged and senior male and female actors for the leads and young actors/dancers to play peripheral parts and perform dance sequences. Please prepare relevant monologue (adults/youth) and a short dance piece (youth). Audition dates and times: January 6 (Wednesday) 5:30-8:00 pm, January 9 (Saturday), 1:00-4:00 pm.
336.373.5881

Esperanza Rising
January 7 - 7 PM - Children's Theatre of Winston-Salem - Winston-Salem
Suddenly separated from her family in Mexico, Esperanza must navigate a new world in America to rediscover the magic and power of love, life and friendship. An enchanting retelling, with music and dance, of the award -winning book by Pam Muñoz Ryan.
336.725.4531

2010 Triad Jewish Film Festival
January 16 - February 4 - Regal Grande Cinema at Friendly Center - Greensboro
Presented by the Greensboro Jewish Federation, the 2010 Triad Jewish Film Festival is hosting a spectacular lineup of films that highlight the Jewish experience and celebrate diversity and understanding. The Festival committee has chosen six critically acclaimed films that promise to entertain, enlighten, educate and enrich. Tickets are available for purchase online.
Admission: $9.50 per film or $50.00 for a six film pass.
336.852.5433

Support the Arts!
January 23 - Volunteer in Your Community, Inc. - Greensboro
A fundraiser to help fund Volunteer in Your Community's (VIYC) programs, which include activities in literacy, health, etc. VIYC has an arts scholarship program that allows low-income youth to receive grants to gain knowledge in music, dance, and visual arts. The students will also be given the opportunity to participate in a focus group that allows them to discuss and share their works with their peers and members of the community. VIYC will award grant amounts based on donations received.
336.669.7667

Multi-Lingual Storytime
January 29 - 11 AM - Children's Museum of Winston-Salem - Winston-Salem
Presented by the Forsyth County Public Libraries, children will learn about other cultures and listen to other languages from all over the world in these storytimes.
Free with admission or membership.
336.723.9111

Music Kitchen: Musicians and Homeless Men Exchange Thoughts on Classical Music

Journalist Daniel J. Wakin recently reported in the New York Times on a violinist named Kelly Hall-Tompkins who, along with other well-accomplished musicians, offers performances to homeless men through a program she started called Music Kitchen.

Read the article here.

Violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins

Study Community Arts: Auburn's Rural Studio

Back in the summer of 2007, I was lucky enough to get a little exposure to several former students of Auburn University's Rural Studio who were installing a public art piece in Arlington, Virginia titled CO2LED.

Rural Studio is a sought-after undergraduate program of the Auburn University School of Architecture. What most drew my attention was their outreach program. Students focusing in outreach work to further the $20K House, an experiment in innovative affordable housing. Students work out the question of what type of house can be designed for $10,000 in materials plus $10,000 in labor. Here is Version 3 of the house built in 2007.

The Rural Studio has encouraged creative ventures from many of its students, including the project CO2LED. Here are images I took while the piece was being constructed. It ran off of solar power and repurposed old water bottles into a sort of lightbulb, resembling the tops of reeds.

Artist Jack Sanders constructing CO2LED, 2007.

Close-up of water bottles, 2007.

Upcoming December Events

Chrome and Stone: Opening Reception
December 4 - 6-8:30 PM - Gateway Gallery - Winston-Salem
This exhibition will feature digitally enhanced photographs of hotrods and muscle cars by Walker Lewis, Jr. and infrared film photographs of England, Cornwall and South Wales by James C. Williams. The exhibition will contrast the vanishing media of infrared film photography with the burgeoning field of digital photography, a media that threatens to replace film. The Enrichment Center Percussion Ensemble will perform during the reception. The exhibition will remain on display through January 16.
Cost: Free. 777-0076 x238.

Our Journey Your Destination
December 10 - 7 PM - Enrichment Center - Winston-Salem
The Enrichment Center will present "Our Journey Your Destination," an original performance, on December 10, 7pm in Gateway Gallery. A dress rehearsal on December 9, 11am, will be open to the public. The program, a dramatic blend of dance, acrobatics, drama, and street entertainment with whimsical characters, will feature actors and dancers with and without disabilities and music by the Enrichment Center Percussion Ensemble. The show highlights the journey of the main character, "The Fallen Sparrow," a metaphor for the struggle between acceptance and denial suffered by a young woman who loses the use of her legs and is suddenly confined to a wheelchair. The performance was choreographed by Laurette Henry, director of the Enrichment Center Performance Company. A reception and sale of holiday gift items created by the Enrichment Center's artists will follow the performance.
Cost: Free. Seating is limited. 777-0076 x238.

Signing Artist/Gallery Contracts
December 11 - Noon- Associated Artists - Winston-Salem
Steve Virgil of the WFU Community Law Clinic will lead a conversation on the artist contract."The Artist and the Gallery - questions to consider before signing a contract."
Cost: Free. 722-0340.

ArtQuest: Community Arts Sundays
Sundays Through December 20 - 3-5 PM - Green Hill Center for North Carolina Art - Greensboro
Sponsored by Lincoln Financial. Explore the many cultures of your community. Each month features arts and crafts activities of cultures from around the world that contribute to our local community.

Inspiration Hailing from New Orleans

Couldn't resist reblogging this post from the Ashé Cultural Arts Center, which always has envy-worthy programs going on. Ashé will be hosting a book signing of Men We Love, Men We Hate, an anthology of writings by students from Students at the Center (SAC), a program that works with New Orleans public schools in teaching English and elective writing classes.

Adrinda Kelly, an alumni who participated in the first year of SAC, provides this introduction: "This book is pregnant with love, but it is a love overburdened by secrets, disappointments, repression, confrontation, accusations, forgiveness, and loss." (Students at the Center Writings. Men We Love, Men We Hate. Students at the Center: 2009.)

The book can purchased for download or hardcopy online at SAC's website.

New Downtown Middle School Features Gallery Space

A new segment of the population will soon be selling art on Trade Street, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. So glad to hear that the new middle school downtown will feature a space to sell students' art work. What a message to send to kids that art can be a viable (and paying) career.

Along with the Community Arts Cafe, Winston-Salem now has two new locations to explore local artists (of all ages).

Local Artist Jan Detter Featured in The Chronicle

Local artist Jan Detter was recently featured in The Chronicle for a project she leads at Kennedy Learning Center, a school which specializes in assisting immigrant and ESL students. Detter spent time at Kennedy leading a weaving project. She chose weaving because of its universal presence in many cultures. Click below for a full image of the article.

Unity in Motion

Kicking off Kwanzaa festivities this year, the Urban League Young Professionals, Triad Cultural Arts, and the National Association of Black Veterans sponsored the celebration of the concept of Umoja, or unity.

Read more in Todd Luck's Chronicle article.

Asian Sensation

While websurfing I discovered three amazing girls aged 13-15 who have already entrenched themselves in community arts.

Rae-Yao is a local student who, along with two other students, received a grant through DoSomething.org which has enabled her to perform classical music for many community groups. Inner-city children, elderly residents, and many other members of our local community have benefitted from hearing the"Asian Sensation" trio. Check out Rae-Yao's summary of the project online.

New Faces: Immigrants and Refugees in NC

Monday, November 16, 3 pm.
Diggs Gallery- WSSU - Winston-Salem
Presented by the Center for New North Carolinians at UNC-Greensboro
Sponsored by The Office of International Programs and Club Latino

Focus on education and community outreach programs for youth and children, and opportunitiesfor internships and service learning.

Young Americans by Sheila Pree Bright

In Conjunction with:
YOUNG AMERICANS: Photographs by Sheila Pree Bright
This dynamic new series of photographs by Atlanta-based photographer Sheila Pree Bright explores the identities of U. S. citizens and immigrants pursuing citizenship by presenting portraits of Americans aged 18- 25, each posing with the American flag. The exhibition features 49 large format chromogenic prints, several accompanied by statements from the subjects revealing their unique conceptions of patriotism. The project began in 2006 and features 15 WSSU participants.
Young Americans: Photographs by Sheila Pree Bright is organized by The Amistad Center for Art & Culture, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut, in collaboration with the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia. Made possible by generous grants from Aetna and the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources and the WSSU Office of Student Affairs.

Downtown Winston-Salem Blog: Lighting Project

Reblog from the DWSP Blog: Lighting Project on the Pepper Building

Downtown Winston-Salem Blog: Lighting Project (Click on the Photo for a Link for more info)

The Gallery of the Arts Opens in Downtown Winston-Salem

The Community Arts Cafe recently opened a space at 411 W. 4th Street in Winston-Salem called The Gallery of the Arts, which is part of a larger project to expand interest in local arts. Read up on their future plans at the Winston-Salem Journal. Community Arts Cafe is also an online newsletter with separate editions for Winston-Salem, Greensboro, and High Point.

Image from Gallery of the Arts website

ACCORD Grant Concept Proposals Due in Mid-November

What is the ACCORD Initiative?

ACCORD is an acronym for Artists Contributing to Civic-Oriented and Responsive Democracy. It is a project of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, which, according to Kenan Institute materials, "sparks dialogue about the essential role of the arts and civic-minded artists within a thriving democracy.

It is an effort to encourage collaboration between nonprofits, community organizations, charitable groups, and governmental agencies with local college students to create arts-based projects that address community needs and/or social issues.

Organizations can apply for grants for up to $2,5oo to complete this type of local, collaborative project. Concept proposals are due November 19, 2009. The most important thing is for organizations to identify the social issue they would like to address.

Please e-mail Amanda Balwah at amandab@kenanarts.org for more information on guidelines. Training workshops are available for organizations who would like assistance in writing their grant proposals.

Intersections with Photographs from Gaze by Michael Meyersfeld

A series of photographs from a book titled Gaze by Michael Meyersfeld accompanied the unveiling of a new local organization, Intersections of the Triad. Intersections is an organization devoted to social support for the local HIV/AIDS population. The organization plans to promote HIV awareness, encourage testing, and open a center where homeless men and women can use computers and consult with case managers. Read the September 24th article in The Chronicle by browsing through the archive for the September 24th edition and reading page A2.

Michael Meyersfeld's book Gaze is a collection of portraits of a spectrum of South Africans who identify with many different sexual identities.

The exhibition of these photographs was the first in the United States. Although the event was private, the public will have more opportunities to view Meyersfeld's work in the future. The exhibit is abroad for several months but will eventually visit the U.S. again.

Artists Tell the Story of Sex Trade Victims in Shipping Containers

Simon Clark/Eyebox, NPR's "Emma and Elena, Exposing the Sex Trade," October 31, 2009.

Actress Emma Thompson and sex trade victim, Elena, bring seven artists together in an exhibit called Journey. The exhibit will be available to the public November 10-16 in Washington Square Park in New York City.

Read the NPR article for an explanation of the exhibit as well as a video tour of Journey with Emma Thompson.

After the exhibit, be on the lookout for photographs from visitors to the exhibit. We would love to post them here.

Upcoming November Events

Shoe Shrine: Call for Entries
Through November 13 - 5IVE & 4ORTY - Winston-Salem
Shoe Shrine entries on display at 5ive & 4orty. Entries will be auctioned off on Friday, November 13th. Proceeds will benefit the Kelly Jo Petersen Scholarship at UNCSA School of Design and Production.

Society for the Study of AfroAmerican History
November 13 - 5 PM - Delta Fine Arts Center - Winston-Salem
Cost: Free. 336.722.2625

African Night
November 14 - 7:30 PM - UNCG Elliott University Center Auditorium - Greensboro
The African Student Union at UNCG will hold African Night, which will include fashion, dancing, singing, and more from different African cultures.
Cost: $5 before the day of the show and $7 at the door.

Busy-40 Bridges
November 18 - 11:30 AM - Center for Design Innovation - Winston-Salem
A software traffic simulation augments discussion of possibilities for public art, considering the upcoming renovations of bridges along the downtown Winston-Salem stretch of Business Route 40.

More Bridges
November 18 - 12:30 PM - Center for Design Innovation - Winston-Salem
Bridges Connecting Communities, Inc. is Winston-Salem's newest social networking venue, wtih both a virtual marketplace and bricks-and-mortar sites.

15th Annual Will-Read-for-Food
November 19 - 7 PM - Weatherspoon Art Museum - Greensboro
Suggested donation to the Glen Haven Community Center: $5 students, $10 general public. The Weatherspoon Art Museum along with the UNCG MFA Writing Program and UNCG Alumni Relations, hosts the 15th Annual Will Read for Food Fundraiser, which last year raised over $1100 for the Glen Haven Community Development Center. Readings begin at 7 PM in the museum auditorium.

Arts for Life Market Gala
November 21 - 5 PM - 823 Reynolda Road - Winston-Salem
Social and shopping event to benefit Arts for Life WS and the hundreds of hours of art lessons provided to young patients and their siblings.

Enrichment Center Sculpture Garden
Through November 21 - Enrichment Center - Winston-Salem
On the corner of S. Marshall Street and Salem Avenue. The garden includes three cast aluminum sculptures entitled "Things That Fly" created by six of the Center's artists: Trip Collins, Mindy Kistler, Meredith Lamy, Jonathan Lindsay, Paul Quinn, and Valarie Williams.
336.777.0076 x209

Community-Wide Ecumenical Celebration of Thanksgiving
November 22 - Dana Auditorium at Guilford College - Greensboro
Piedmont Interfaith Council in collaboration with the Human Relations Commission of Greensboro, presents 26th Annual Community Ecumenical Celebration of Thanksgiving "Our Community Kaleidoscope" featuring the E. Gwynn Dancers, the First Young American Dancers, Triad Tapestry Children's Chorus, Louis Allen, and representatives from a dozen local faith traditions. Supported in part by a grant from the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro.
Cost: Free. Contact info@piedmontinterfaithcouncil.org


We Are OneART
Through December 10 - Caldcleugh Multicultural Arts Center - Greensboro
We Are One, Caldcleugh Center's performing arts program extends its scope with its new visual arts program for youth ages 10 and older. Instructed by Floyd Newkirk, nationally known muralist and illustrator, will guide young artists in an exploration of medium, technique, and forms. This semester young artists will create backdrops for We Are One's winter performance.

The Winston-Salem Symphony Partners with African Library Project

As many symphony orchestras struggle to stay relevant in our constantly evolving society, the Winston-Salem Symphony has chosen to take the lead and institute an innovative educational program that will elicit social and cultural change on the local and global level. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Mary Starling In-School Education Program and will be centered around the theme of storytelling and music. In conjunction with this theme, the issue of literacy will be addressed through a book drive for the African Library Project at local schools; a short story competition with winners being awarded brand new violins, and lessons for an entire school year with WSS musicians; and a concert featuring the great stories in classical music.


The Mary Starling Program is the Winston-Salem Symphony’s single largest educational program in Forsyth County for students ages 9-12. Named in honor of a former Symphony Guild member with a passion for music education, the Mary Starling Program offers an introduction to orchestral music for the students of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools through a combination of intimate ensemble performances culminating with a full orchestra concert. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, the program will continue to reach all 4th and 5th students enrolled in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools free of charge.

Elsewhere's SEA program preserves and connects South Elm Street neighborhood

Over the course of this year, Elsewhere Artist Collaborative--a living museum set within a former thrift store in downtown Greensboro--has been creating connections within its growing downtown urban neighborhood. With the new Mellow Mushroom and advancing economic development in our downtown "arts and antiques" district, Elsewhere wanted to ensure that neighbors who live, work, and use the South Elm neighborhood had a forum for discussing the growth of their city and transformations of their urban surroundings. We have always been especially interested in our neighborhood's ability to link people across generations, ethnic backgrounds, race, and economic status--from the diverse businesses on our block, to its historic aesthetic character, to a playful culture of passer-bys and players. We set out to create a way to converse and explore these unique connections of the fabulous people who compose our city character.

This spring, with the help of the United Arts Council's PTICA initiative and The Building Stronger Neighborhoods of the Community Foundation of Greensboro, Elsewhere set out to strengthen our neighborhood community while preserving the unique diversity of our downtown district. We launched an ongoing project called SEA (the South Elm Alliance) which hosted and continues to host various events that provide create forums for community exchange (check out the blog here). We held two town hall meetings about the development of our neighborhood, investigated our neighborhood through a mapping photo project and posted on Googlemaps, joined Charlie and Ruth Jones of Greensboro Grub in producing a neighborhood dinner, enjoyed an evening of a free coffee cafe on our block for our neighbors and passerbys, and offered a street screen-printing event so that neighbors could wear the SEA logo around town. We have also held monthly episodes of our performance game CITY, which re-imagines our museum as a pretend city. Participants given visas and are invited to play a variety of characters, run CITY institutions like the library, bank, department store, skyscraper, motel, and more, and generally explore a collaborative game of pretend. We are interested in how this shared story, or fiction, can examine and expose real issues in our surrounding neighborhood. Anyone can play, even if you've never performed before. This year, we've been opening CITY up to many more participants, while continuing to film each event and transform them into movies on youtube.

We have two more events planned before Elsewhere goes on hiatus for the winter (we close the museum from november to march due to lack of heat in our very old building). The first is our living room lecture series on friday october 9th. Anyone is invited to give a 20 minute lecture on something they know anything about. Then the next friday, october 16th, we'll have the finale of our CITY games for the season. Come over and play. Be a farmer a baker a tourist, anyone really. Hope to see you here!

NC Museum of Art Responds to the Environment

The North Carolina Museum of Art Museum Park is a 164 acre stretch of woodlands, trails, creeks, and outdoor art pieces. At the park, visitors experience both art and the environment together and gain an understanding of how the two can respond to each other. Some of the pieces even seem to have a moral message about where items of everyday use, such as newspapers in the following piece, come from and how these relate directly to our environment. The piece, made of newspapers, will eventually decay, becoming a natural part of the cycles of the forest.

The park is also interwoven with information on the local ecology, and the museum works to preserve the natural environment.

"To see Jennie smile" by Steven Siegel. www.ncartmuseum.org

Below is an example of art that is inherently a part of the natural environment. "Pooktre art" by Peter Cook and Becky Northey benefits the environment by absorbing greenhouse gases and fostering other natural cycles of nature. It would be interesting to see what other artists have done that utilize growing, living things to create art.

Pooktre by Peter Cook and Becky Northey. www.pooktre.com

U.S. Artists' Response to Climate Change

Activity in community arts does not have to be introduced by artists.

Years ago, Bill McKibben, renown environmentalist and author, called for U.S. artists to focus on climate age and environmental issues in their work. Artists answered his call. Recently, McKibben discussed his favorite environmental artists in the U.S. in Grist, an online snarky-but-fun environmental newsletter.

A personal (nonlocal) favorite of mine is James Griffioen who documents nature's resilience in response to man-made structures. Check out his series titled "Be Patient."

Apartment Building, Detroit 2007 by James Griffioen
Jamesgriffioen.net

Global Examples of Environmental Art Can Create Local Change

As humans effect on the environment becomes more and more apparent, environmental art has moved from landscape painting to socially engaging art with vivid messages on climate change.

I've heard so much buzz about environmental art lately, I'd like to put forth a few things over the next couple days that I've come across, both near and far. We'll start with the farthest away and move closer. The following piece is located in Beijing, a place on the other side of the world. The piece is a tool of communication on the future of China's population. In my own discoveries, as I move closer to the Triad, the lessons to be learned from these artists and activists become more concrete. I've realized that environmental art can function as more than a tool of communication; it can also be an active method for improving our local ecology.

Beijing


I ran across this piece at one of my favorite blogs, Inhabitat. To prepare for this year's Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen, the TckTckTck campaign positioned 100 sculptures of children carved in ice to represent the 1 billion lives that will be lost in China due to water shortages. Ice sculptures sounding cheesy as well? Check out photos of this piece, and you will see it is anything but. It is actually very beautiful and direct.


Here is a video by The Guardian which features some nice shots of the piece.

Sheboygan Students Find Postive Outlet for Anxieties in Composing Raps

A summer school music class which 10 Sheboygan students signed up for is coming to a close. Read in the Sheboygan Press about the students process of learning to channel their frustration and personal experiences into the composition of raps. The songs were then produced by local music artist J Rilla.

If you know of any local programs that use an artistic medium, whether it be painting, acting, writing, etc., please send them along or add them in the comments.

Upcoming September Events

Dream Machines: The Impossible Happens Thursday
Open Dream Ensemble World Premiere
September 3 - 6:30 PM - Stevens Center - Winston-Salem
Comprised of professional dancers, actors, and musicians trained at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Open Dream Ensemble combines these artists talents, performing original, multidisciplinary works for youth with live music, dance, and drama that highlight the importance of learning, teamwork, determination, and the imagination. The Open Dream Ensemble is a project of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Dream Machines: The Impossible Happens tells the amazing story of the advancements in travel at the turn of the 20th century through dance, music and drama. Told through the eyes of the Wright Brothers’ sister Katharine, Dream Machines follows Orville, Wilbur and Katharine as they pursue their dream of flying. The story connects their endeavors with Henry Ford’s dreams of automobiles and Octave Chanute’s fascination with trains. Geared to grades K-5.
Cost: free. 336.721-0712

Peril on the Red Planet
Open Dream Ensemble World Premiere
September 3 - 7:30 PM - Stevens Center - Winston-Salem
Comprised of professional dancers, actors, and musicians trained at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Open Dream Ensemble combines these artists talents, performing original, multidisciplinary works for youth with live music, dance, and drama that highlight the importance of learning, teamwork, determination, and the imagination. The Open Dream Ensemble is a project of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Peril on the Red Planet, set in the future, tells the story of 13 year-old Diana as she works to end famine on Mars. She reconstructs the machine that made human habitation possible on Mars and unexpectedly unleashes more problems. Her efforts to save life on Mars lead her on an important quest, during which she learns life lessons about community, responsibility, teamwork and sacrifice. Geared to grades 3-8.
Cost: free. 336.721-0712

Co-Curators' Gallery Talk: Xandra Eden and Lee Walton
September 3 - 5:30 PM - Weatherspoon Art Museum - Greensboro
Xandra Eden, Curator of Exhibitions, and Lee Walton, Assistant Professor, UNCG Department of Art, talk about Our Subject is You and new trends in participatory art.
336.334.5770

BookWorks: Sculptures by Leo Morrissey
September 4 - 7 PM - Artists on Liberty Building - Winston-Salem
This solo exhibition is comprised of sculptural work that is created from actual books. An opening reception will be held during Gallery Hop on September 4th from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. with the show on view through September 29th. We will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday September 12th to coincide with BookMARKS Book Festival. For additional information about the artist or to schedule a gallery appointment
Cost: free. 503.888.5930

Culture of Color Saturdays
September 5 - 26 - Greensboro Children's Museum - Greensboro
Join the museum each Saturday to celebrate East Indian culture. Culture of Color is a new series by the museum. Activities may include learning new words, dressing in cultural costumes, sampling new foods, learning dance, and doing art.
336.574.2898

We Are One
September 10 - December 10 - 6:00 - 8:00 PM - Caldcleugh Multicultural Arts Center - Greensboro
We Are One, Caldcleugh Center's performing arts program extends its scope with its new visual arts program for youth ages 10 and older. Instructed by Floyd Newkirk, nationally known muralist and illustrator will guide young artists in an exploration of medium, technique, and forms. This semester young artist will create backdrops for We Are One's winter performance.
Cost: $20 per month
336.373.5881

Found Objects, Recycled Materials, and Pastels
September 13 - October 10 - 3 PM - Electric Moustache Gallery - Winston-Salem
Opening reception
336.413.3690

Sculpture Garden Unveiling
September 25 - 6 PM - Gateway Gallery - Winston-Salem
336.777.0076 x238

A Mixed Bag
September 26 - November 21 - 11 AM - Gateway Gallery - Winston-Salem
336.777.0076 x238

Write Place, Write Time: Workshop for Young Women
September 26 - 1 PM - Salem Fine Arts Center -Winston-Salem
Young women enrolled in grades 9-12 are invited for a writing experience in which the perils and pleasures of the short-short story will be explored.
Cost: free. 336.721.2739.

Community Creates!
September 26 - 7 PM - Arts Based Elementary School - Winston-Salem
Live auction of work by our local community. This event features a live auciton, raffle, original art, great good, danceing, etc. All proceeds benefit the Arts Based Elementary School's Artist-in-Residency program.
Cost: $30/person, $50/couple.
336.748.4116

Art's Role in Greensboro Economic Development

"...when we support the arts, we not only enhance our quality of life, but we also invest in Guilford County’s economic well-being."
-from Arts and Economic Prosperity III, a study by Americans for the Arts

The nonprofit/arts industry in Greensboro generates $30.73 million in local economic activity. Read more about this study at the United Arts Council of Greater Greensboro's website.

Upcoming August Events

All-Arts, Sciences & Technology Camp 2009
July 26-31 - UNCG Division of Continual Learning - Greensboro
A weeklong, residential summer camp for ages 7-15. Designed to give in-depth and experiential instruction in the arts and sciences, the camp also includes recreation, multi-cultural entertainment, and a wide variety of activities that suit individual tastes and preferences. Find 866.334.2255

Authoring Action
July 30 - August 2 - 7 pm - Bethabara Moravian Church - Winston-Salem
Authoring Action (formerly the Winston-Salem Youth Arts Institute) presents its Commencement Engagement by the Authoring Action Ensemble. Authoring Action is a live experience, where teens present uncensored, original and true works of poetry, monologues, raps, lyrics and short films from their perspective. We engage our audience, not for applause, or standing ovations, but to change your life and make a difference. The thirty teens participating in this Summer's Institute invite the public to experience their words as a force for change. Admission is $10 and tickets will be available at the door. Reservations are recommended.
336.749.1317

Bearing Witness: The Tree
July 31 - 7 pm - Reynolda House Museum - Winston-Salem
Opens with a reception and ballet performance by the Winston-Salem Festival Ballet, a new funded partner of the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. Bearing Witness is choreographed by Gary Taylor with music by North Carolina composer Rob Sharer. It celebrates the tree, a symbol of permanence arching over generations of our lives. R.s.v.p. to Claudia Clark.
336.758.5889 or clarkcm@reynoldahouse.org

Culture of Color Saturdays
August 1-August 29 - Greensboro Children's Museum - Greensboro
Saturdays, August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, (2:00pm) Join GCM each Saturday this summer as we celebrate the Eastern Indian culture in our new series called the Culture of Color! Activities may include learning new words, dressing in cultural costumes, sampling different foods, learn dance and doing art.
336.574.2898

National Black Theatre Festival
August 4 - 8 - Various Times - National Black Repertory Company - Winston-Salem
The festival is an outreach program of National Black Repertory Company, which unites African American theatre companies across the country and showcases over 100 performers. Performances to be held at the Reynolda House, Reynolds Auditorium, the Stevens Center, Wake Forest University campus, Salem College campus, UNCSA campus, Benton Convention Center, Winston-Salem State University campus, etc. Accompanying activities include the NBTF Film Fest, Youth Celebrity project, National Youth Talent Showcase, TeenTastic program, Readers' Theatre, Artist Networking Showcase, NBTF Poetry Jam, workshops and seminars, International Colloquium, vendors' market and celebrity receptions. Full schedule online.
336.723.2266

SECCA Presents Inside Out with artist Kianga Ford and the music of Turbo Pro Project
August 5 - 6 pm - The Garage - Winston-Salem
As part of its 2009 public art program Inside Out: Artists in the Community II, the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (SECCA) is proud to launch Kianga Ford’s 34 x 52 x 40. In the next chapter of Ford’s ongoing The Story of this Place series, the title of this project refers to Forsyth County as the 34th County of North Carolina (in slang, the “Tres-Fo”) and its evolving relationship with the major North / South highway (52) and the major East / West highway (40) of Winston-Salem. In conjunction with the National Black Theatre Festival, and in ongoing partnership with the Delta Arts Center, the special August 5th launch event will celebrate the work’s provocative marriage of theatre, music, and spoken word. Over the past half-year, Ford has explored Winston-Salem to research its history, speak with members of the community, walk its neighborhoods, and imagine lives shaped by the city’s patterns of settlement, desegregation, and industrialization. She will shape this material into a series of audio-guided routes/walks, and on Wednesday night audiences can hear a selection of these narratives set to musical accompaniment. As part of 34 x 52 x 40, Ford has collaborated with the experimental, North Carolina-based band The Turbo Pro Project, described as a fusion of Americana, Bluegrass Banjo, Hip Hop, and R&B.
336.725.1904

A Taste of the Blues
August 6 - 5:30 pm - Millennium Center - Winston Salem
Live Blues Music, Southern Cuisine, NC Wine and Beer Tastings and Tony Award Winning Play Featured at First Annual Event to Benefit Authoring Action Organization and North Carolina Black Repertory Company
Cost: $50/$75
336. 397.5591

Wisteria & HOPE
August 6-7 - Salem Fine Arts Center, Salem College - Winston-Salem
In conjuction with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, the National Black Theatre Festival's feature presentation is drawn from the stunning poetry of Kwame Dawes and the music of Kevin Simmonds, Wisteria & HOPE is a multimedia music/spoken word performance that opens up two disparate worlds—of African American women recalling life in the Jim Crow South, in Wisteria, and in HOPE the struggles and grace of individuals dealing with HIV/AIDS.
336.723.2266

Friends Around the World' Day
August 16 - 1-5 pm - Greensboro Children's Museum - Greensboro
Join us the 3rd Sunday of each month as we welcome our friends from all around the world to the Museum for a day of fun and play! We will enjoy a variety of multicultural activities, while making new friends from new places.
336.574.2898

Artist's Talk: Sherri Lynn Wood
August 20 - 5:30 pm - Weatherspoon Art Museum - Greensboro
Sherri Lynn Wood’s “Mantra Trailer” is featured in the exhibition Our Subject Is You at the Weatherspoon. In addition to this, her most recent work, the artist has been involved for many years in making participatory art works. Wood’s recent projects include: Passage Quilts, working with the bereaved to make improvisational quilts from the clothing of the deceased; Prayer Banner: REPENT / MERCY / …, a communal mourning project concerning the war in Iraq; The Piñata Anchor of Hope, a geo-psychic, temporary public art project for the City of Durham during a time of upheaval and rapid development; and 1200 Hats, a collaboration with residents of the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women. Sherri Lynn Wood is an interdisciplinary artist, activist, and healer, based in Durham, NC and San Francisco, CA. She combines her knowledge of craft, theology, sculpture, and systems centered theory to invent and facilitate aesthetic vehicles of intervention for healing and social exchange.
336.334.5770

Image from the archives of threewalls

Workshop: Group Stitching Mantra with Sherri Lynn Wood
August 22 - 2 pm - Weatherspoon Art Museum - Greensboro
Join artist Sherri Lynn Wood on an imaginative, communal, meditative journey that merges the Eastern spiritual practices of mudras, mandalas and mantras with the simple act of stitching. These programs are sponsored, in part, by the Hillsdale Fund. Fee: $10 members/ $20 non-members. Register by e-mail: t_dowell@uncg.edu.
336.256.1449

Artist's Talk: Steve Lambert
August 27 - 4 pm - Weatherspoon Art Museum - Greensboro
Steve Lambert talks about bridging the divide between museum visitors and his own practice. Lambert's, I Will Talk With Anyone About Anything, 2006/2009 is currently featured in Our Subject is You.

Image from visitsteve.com

Snap Shot City

Heard about this from Winston-Salem blogger: SueMo.

Snap-Shot-City is a community development project of sorts that encourages us to explore our local communities and to share what we love about them globally (via the internet). On a preassigned day, people, usually in teams, all over the world snap photos around their community of a certain theme, which Snap-Shot-City chooses. The photos must be uploaded by 8 P.M. Awards will be given out following the deadline. Sign up your team.

Here are two photos from the theme "Multicultural."

Snapped in London, England.

Snapped in Nottingham, England.

Welcome to the WORD project

Piedmont Triad Initiative for Community Arts offers welcome to the WORD project, the newest addition to our registry of community and arts organizations (listed on right).

the WORD project (TWP) "gives people the platform and tools to find their own voice and create their own poems. It is is designed to engage persons to tap into their creative spirit and find their authentic self. Whether it’s a business leadership retreat or a an after-school program for youth, whether is a one time 2-hour workshop or a 12-week workshop series, TWP encourages participants to speak their personal truth through creative writing in a non-intimidating atmosphere."

In terms of community arts collaboration, TWP is interested in K-12 education (e.g., literacy, graduation rates, achievement gap), civic engagement (e.g., community leadership, voting), community development (e.g., gang prevention, neighborhood improvement), and social capital (developing/enhancing personal relationships). TWP enjoys working with children, the elderly, and women.

Check out the list of past participants.

ARTStem Documentary Screening

ARTStem is a new year-long initiative bringing UNCSA faculty together with public school educators to explore teaching and learning at the intersection of the arts and STEM disciplines of science, math, engineering, and technology.

Between the Folds
July 30 - 1-2 PM - Gold Theatre of the UNCSA film village.
Free and open to the community.

Vanessa Gould writes in the Director’s Statement: “At its heart, Between The Folds is a film about potential. The potential of an uncut paper square. The potential of a wild scientific idea. The potential to see things differently. For as long as I can remember, the concepts of art, science and math have seemed deeply connected - three ways of interpreting our experiences in a language that's universal. When I first learned about the strange phenomenon of artists, scientists and mathematicians from all over the world working in the very same medium of origami, I knew there had to be something special about it - that in the simplicity of a square must be hiding some untold potential for creativity and new ideas . . .”

Join Our Facebook Group!

Who else in the Triad is interested in community arts? If you would like to know, join the facebook group. Search "Piedmont Triad Initiative for Community Arts" on facebook and join up. It's a piece of cake.

Study Community Arts in Graduate School- RISD Masters in Arts and Design Education

For those who are interested in going back to school and don't mind traveling far, here is a program recommended by the Community Arts Network.

Rhode Island School of Design: MA in Arts and Design Education
Community Arts Education Track

The MA Community Arts Education option is designed to provide a professional qualification for the "teaching artist" who sees a career in the expanding field of arts learning in community-based arts centers and organizations and in out-of-school time programming. In addition to the MA program’s set of core courses, a Community Arts Education student’s program of study includes professional practice internships which take place in one of a number of community arts organizations or agencies in Providence or in surrounding communities.

These include AS220, New Urban Arts, RiverzEdge, and CityArts for Youth. Additionally, studies include studio, graduate seminars, and liberal arts. The selection is dependent on personal interests and requirements specified for the track.

Image of RISD from Business Week

Fun Facts about RISD:

1. RISD is located in Providence, Population 175,000. The city has been dubbed a "Renaissance City" because of the nurturing environment it now offers to artists.

2. RISD brings over 200 prominent artists to campus each year.

3. Education is interdisciplinary. Students are encouraged to take classes outside their area of study.

4. Student body is about 2,300 people.

5. 94% of RISD students are employed after graduation, over 65% in their direct field of study. 6. Ongoing projects of interest at RISD include the design and construction of alternative housing for Pakistani refugees and the design of super-efficient homes.

7. The RISD Museum of Art has collections in Ancient Art, Asian Art, Contemporary Art, Textiles, Painting/Sculpture, Decorative Arts, and Prints/Drawings/Photographs.

Life in Forsyth: Local Sidewalk

"Untitled" by Maurice Scott

An event for the children of prisoners that I saw posted at Life in Forsyth reminded me of this artist's piece that really struck me the first time I saw it. It is featured on the website of the Prison Arts Creative, an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based organization, which collaborates with incarcerated adults, incarcerated youth, and the formerly incarcerated to strengthen community through creative expression. The website has a collection of pieces by ten or fifteen artists, so please check them out. I'm curious what types of enrichment activities are done in Triad jails...

Here is Maurice Scott's artist statement:

He sat there fingering the thin blades of grass growing sparsely around his favorite stump.

He could hear, it seemed. His mother's voice in the distance. "Maurice you're going to be a preacher when you grow up."

He would laugh and roll in the deep red earth. For hours he lay there alone drawing in the dirt. This time the earth said, "the preacher is in your hands."

Upcoming July Events

Culture of Color Saturdays
July 11 - 25 - Greensboro Children's Museum - Greensboro
Saturdays, July 11, 18, 25, 2pm Join GCM each Saturday this summer as we celebrate the Eastern Indian culture in our new series called the Culture of Color! Activities may include learning new words, dressing in cultural costumes, sampling different foods, learn dance and doing art. Activities free with admission/membership.
336.574.2898

African American Heritage Day
July 18 - 11 am - 4 pm - Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum - Burlington
Josephus III, local poet; Ohemanna, Gospel Choir; Kummbia African Dancers; Fred Motley, storyteller; and Boo Hanks from Music Maker Relief Foundation will perform WFMY’s Carol Andrews and Sonya Correll Cook will read their children’s books. Numerous demonstrators and exhibitors plus vendors will take part in this exciting FREE event.
336-449-4846.


'Friends Around the World' Day
July 19 - Greensboro Children's Museum - Greensboro
Join us the 3rd Sunday of each month as we welcome our friends from all around the world to the Museum for a day of fun and play! We will enjoy a variety of multicultural activities, while making new friends from new places. Children’s author, GAMMA JAM, will be here to share her stories. Free with admission/membership.
336.574.2898

Enrichment via the Arts
July 20 - 30 - Creative Learning Center for Very Young Children - Winston-Salem
Summer art activities at CLC allow the children to experiment with a variety of media and forms. Music activities include listening, singing, playing instruments, and even making instruments! Dance delights CLC children, who have opportunities to invent their own dances to accompany music and to watch students at the School of the Arts practice and perform ballet, jazz, or contemporary dance. Othella Johnson began the Creative Learning Center in 1972 on the campus of the North Carolina School of the Arts.
336.773.0017

Color Texture Abstractions
July 24 - 6 PM - Gateway Gallery - Winston-Salem
Gateway Gallery wil open the exhibit "Color Texture Abstractions" with a reception on Friday, July 24, 6-8:30pm. The exhibition features abstract paintings by Pat Spainour and Jack Hernon and pottery by Kenneth McMahan and Jonathan Lindsay. Guitarist and vocalist Drake Duffer will perform during the reception. The exhibition will be on display through September 19.
336.777.0076 x238

“Our Subject is You” Exhibit
Through September 13 – Weatherspoon Art Museum – Greensboro
“Our Subject is You” is the first exhibition organized by the Weatherspoon Art Museum to focus on participatory art. The artists in the exhibition rely on the involvement of the public in order for their work to be realized. They form avenues for meaningful engagement within the context of the gallery, inviting museum visitors to contribute to the creation of artwork through social interaction, collaboration, and/or performativity. Artists included in the show are Tonico Lemos Auad (Brazil/UK), Harrell Fletcher (USA), Nina Katchadourian (USA), San Keller (Switzerland), Steve Lambert (USA), Darren O’Donnell (Canada), Sherri Lynn Wood (USA) and Erwin Wurm (Austria). In the exhibition, museum visitors will take part in the formation of artwork and through special live participatory events at the June 19th opening.
336.334.5770

One Significant Cup of Joe

"In the Face of Strange Fruit" by Derrick Monk

To expand on some information mentioned in the last post about artist Derrick Monk, here is a piece by Monk from a recently opened installation of eight bronze-cast coffee cups around Greensboro. These cups were sculpted by the "Coffee Cup Collaborative," a group of eight local artists.

These mugs commemorate the moment in civil rights history when a few African American men sat down at a whites-only lunch counter and asked for a cup of coffee. Be sure to check out the full article in the Greensboro News & Record, which beautifully explains the project as well as the significant history behind it.

Community Arts Sightings: Our Subject Is You, Gumbo

Two public events happened this past weekend that deserve mentioning.

1. Juneteenth Festival- There were a number of Juneteenth events around the Triad this past Saturday and Sunday. Juneteenth celebrates the nineteenth of June in 1865 when the last slaves in Galveston, Texas found out that they were free. Celebrations today usually focus on achievement, education, and the arts.
Derrick Monk and Derek Stallings, two local artists who practice as muralists and have done public art pieces around the Triad were present and did one of the programs they are becoming very popular for in which they rap and paint simultaneously. Unfortunately I forgot my camera and was unable to take any pictures. But you can see them again at Gumbo, the next program the two will be putting on, this Friday night at Krankies Coffee at 9 pm. There is a $5 cover to get in.

2. "Our Subject Is You" at the Weatherspoon in Greensboro- This past Friday citizens of Greensboro were invited to become a part of and participate in several art projects. The Weatherspoon writes that "the artists in the exhibition rely on the involvement of the public in order for their work to be realized." The exhibit features the pieces that were created in the opening and will be up until September 13, 2009- check it out. Hopefully I'll be able to take some pictures of the pieces and post them on the blog.

Serve America Act

Community Arts Supporters-

Earlier this year, Obama signed the Serve America Act, which will expand service opportunities primarily through Americorps and focus on such targeted areas as veterans services, the environment, disaster relief, and education.

The Education Corps includes programs that provide “skilled artists to promote greater community unity through the use of music and arts education and engagement through work in low-income communities, and education, health care, and therapeutic settings, and other work in the public domain.”

Our job now is to lobby Americorps and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to fully support and roll out this program. There are five potential specialized service corps, and only two can be supported at a time, so please visit the CNCS website to vocalize why you believe the arts are important to education.

There are many strong local and national examples of how the arts create a more fulfilling learning experience and an active environment for students. If you would like to check out a couple to get some inspiration for your suggestions, visit the following organizations.

Manchester Craftsmen's Guild in Pittsburgh

Arts-Based Elementary School (W-S)

Community Issue: Enabling the Aging

Today I'm featuring a program from the culturally rich city of New Orleans that I found while surfing the blogosphere. "Voices Not Forgotten"is a program of the Ashé Cultural Arts Center, which is a neighborhood-focused nonprofit that combines local creative forces to contribute to the revitalization of their community.

"Voices Not Forgotten" is put on by seniors at the Central City Senior Center who regularly do performances around the city that include singing, dancing, and sharing of personal stories.

The reason I draw upon them is that "Voices Not Forgotten" focuses on a marginalized population that almost all of us have a close connection to: the elderly.

Aging parents and grandparents have traditionally been cared for by family members. But as society changes, so do the trends for who cares for the elderly. Now eldercare is often provided by nursing home facilities or in-home caregivers. The 65+ demographic is growing fast in the United States, so this means more and more people cared for in sometimes impersonal settings or environments that may be less personally enriching than that of a home. In addition, the aged sometimes feel that they have moved past their time to think creatively or produce something for the world. This feeling does not have to be the case, as is demonstrated by "Voices Not Forgotten" and the following local nonprofit.

The Center for Creative Aging (CCA) in Greensboro provides arts-based programs for the elderly. These programs have a number of benefits that I could list off, but I think that the CCA puts it best:

Enabling older North Carolinians to create works that honor their life history and creative vision is a powerful step in validating their very existence. Creative self-expression stimulates thought, provides purpose, and offers a process of healing otherwise unknown.

Here is an example of one of their programs also taken from their website:

TimeSlips - a group storytelling process led by one or more trained facilitators. The program marks a fundamental shift away from focusing on memory and reminiscence, toward encouraging people with memory loss to exercise their imaginations and creativity. Developed by Anne Basting (PhD) in 1998, the TimeSlips Project has generated hundreds of stories that are used to produce plays and art exhibits, and to rekindle the hope for human connection among people living with Alzheimer's and related dementia.

Let us know via comment if you have heard of any other similar local programs. Often churches and other social organizations will have similar programming that isn't necessarily posted on the web.

Ars urbi serviat - Public Art in Winston-Salem: If life is a blank book, shouldn't we put art in it?

Here is a link back to a post from another local blog Ars urbi serviat on an art program that the Forsyth County Public Library is currently promoting.

Ars urbi serviat - Public Art in Winston-Salem: If life is a blank book, shouldn't we put art in it?

The Forsyth County Public Library is kicking off its Summer Reading Program with a public community arts project that encourages kids and teens to "leave their mark" by writing, sewing, drawing, painting, and/or adding photographs and stickers to several bound books put together by library staff. Books can be checked out under several themes including "Memories," "Dreams," "Winston-Salem," "Love," and more.

A vital benefit of public art- why we all want it so much- is that the beauty it produces builds our community. It gives our city a sense of place and its residents a feeling of belonging. These books, though not quite so public, also create a community identity by recording the thoughts, emotions, and artistic expressions of our local residents. This collaborative art project will serve as an artistic expression of W-S in 2009 for years to come. Libraries are such great archives for this type of thing- we should really be thinking more about how we can inject our local community into our library.

Upcoming June Events

ReCycle-ReUse-ReNew- Group Art Exhibit
June 7 – 29 – Marshall Art Gallery – Greensboro
This group art exhibit features unique way “ReCycle “discarded materials. Metal, glass, wood, paper, fabric and more are “ReUsed” to create “ReNewed” art. Participating artist include: Dawn Ashby, Jerry Cartwright, Dian Felder, Lawrence Fier, Ray Martin and Betty Trotter. Join us for the opening reception on Sunday, June 7th from 1-4PM. This exhibit will run through Monday, June 29th.
336-545-8268

OUT at the Movies presents Pedro
June 13 at 8 pm - UNC School of the Arts - Winston-Salem
OUT at the Movies, Winston-Salem and the Triad’s GLBT Film Series will screen “Pedro” on June 13th at 8:00 PM. “Pedro”, written by Dustin Lance Black (”Milk”) celebrates the life of Pedro Zamora, who found out he was HIV + at the age of 17, became an AIDS activist/educator and starred in MTV’s “The Real World”. All of the proceeds benefit the Adam Foundation and UNCSA’s School of Filmmaking.
Cost: $5.00

My Voice – My Vision 3 Day Residential Teen Girls Summit
June 17-20 – Girls Incorporated of Guilford County – Greensboro
For rising middle through high school girls. Teen Girls will take part in a project where girls explore “points of view”. Girls have the opportunity to address many of the issues that we face today and get answers that will help us make good choices in our lives. If you love creating, we will be expressing our views using journaling, poetry, posters, photography and video. Project will end with presentations and a luncheon on Saturday June 20th with Mayor Yvonne Johnson as our guest speaker. Commuters are welcome on Saturday.
336.790.4214

Greensboro 48 Hour Film Project
June 19-June 21, 2009
The 48 Hour Film Project is coming to Greensboro! In a wild, sleepless weekend, you and a team will make a movie–write, shoot, edit and score it. From scratch. In 48 hours. On Friday, June 19, you’ll get a character, a prop, a line of dialogue and a genre, all to include in your movie. By Sunday, June 21, the movie must be complete. It will show at the Carousel Cinema at a screening in the next week.

“Our Subject is You” Exhibition Opening + 6th Annual Summer Solstice Party
June 19, 2009 – Weatherspoon Art Museum – Greensboro
“Our Subject is You” is the first exhibition organized by the Weatherspoon Art Museum to focus on participatory art. The artists in the exhibition rely on the involvement of the public in order for their work to be realized. They form avenues for meaningful engagement within the context of the gallery, inviting museum visitors to contribute to the creation of artwork through social interaction, collaboration, and/or performativity. Artists included in the show are Tonico Lemos Auad (Brazil/UK), Harrell Fletcher (USA), Nina Katchadourian (USA), San Keller (Switzerland), Steve Lambert (USA), Darren O’Donnell (Canada), Sherri Lynn Wood (USA) and Erwin Wurm (Austria). In the exhibition, museum visitors will take part in the formation of artwork and through special live participatory events at the June 19th opening.
336.334.5770

Juneteenth Festival
June 20 - 12pm – Winston Lake Park 3535 Winston Lake Road - Winston-Salem
The Triad Juneteenth Festival will be held Saturday, June 20, at Winston Lake Park from noon - 7:00 pm. Juneteenth is the celebration of the end of slavery in the United States. African American Heritage will come alive through live music, dancing, and drama. Festival highlights include: an opening ceremony, performances, youth activities, history, books artifacts, art gallery, food and merchandise vendors. The festival is free and open to the public.

Project Spotlight: StoryLine

"Sing me that tuneless hum you always sing."

What a line between friends. It's full of comfort, nostalgia, and frank appreciation. This line between Dudley Shearburn and Emily Wilson is just one line from the many exchanges already collected by the StoryLine Project.

StoryLine is a storytelling initiative that works to illuminate the rich diversity of voices in the Winston-Salem community and to celebrate our common humanity. This volunteer-led program uses a mobile recording studio to collect stories from the community. StoryLine believes that listening carefully to the stories of others will hep all people to see their similarities and appreciate their differences. StoryLine hopes the sharing of these stories thorugh radio will create a culture of inclusion in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County in which residents thorughout the community will become more understanding, trusting, and respectful of one another.

This project exemplifies community arts at its best. Community arts projects utilize the arts to tackle a community issue. In a community where studies have been done that show Winston-Salem residents of differing backgrounds often lack bonds of trust in each other, StoryLine works to grow social capital. The stories that StoryLine collects are intended to expose to people of all backgrounds what we share in common-- friendship, family, sadness, courage, adventure, etc.

Another plus of this project is that community members are the creators of the project's contents. StoryLine's recordings are 100% indigenous to Winston-Salem because they come from our residents. And there isn't even an interviewer that guides the conversation. Instead, StoryLine invites participants to share their stories in pairs so that the two can share their memories together rather than answer questions from an interviewer. StoryLine deliberately calls each recording a "conversation" rather than an interview.

StoryLine's 35+ year old mobile recording studio (formerly an ice cream truck) roams Winston-Salem streets while preserving oral history. At the end of the recording, each pair receives a CD recording of their conversation to share their with their families and friends.

So to summarize, we have three things going on: 1. Winston-Salemites gain trust in each other by listening to each other's stories. 2. The creators of the work which we gain this trust from are community members, making each storyteller an active participant in the creation of social capital in Winston-Salem. 3. Local people have the direct benefit of preserving their personal histories through professional studio recordings of their stories.