Design and style

Got your MayDay cape flowing?

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:19:30 +0000

Alan Wilfahrt

So far this month, there have been three weeks worth of MayDay Public Workshops. The first Sunday in May is this coming weekend. Tradition has held that the MayDay Parade and Ceremony and the MayDay festival is held on the first Sunday of May. Last year the event was delayed a week due to rain fall. MayDay will resume the tradition on this First Sunday of May, May 5 in 2013.

No tradition is sacred when you are constructing MayDay floats and costumes. Tips and tricks of obtaining a theatrical presence and flourish can be gleaned from every corner of the workshop space. How to get good results — quickly and at low cost. Projects spread out in all directions. Ideas flow from all the participants; methods improve with input from, and by observing, others. MayDay is sharing magic.

Stencils applied to fabric with latex paint makes quick cape decoration.

Stencils on t-shirts, and fabric swatches to be pinned on paraders.

Activity is MayDay 2013 brisk and swift.

MayDay bright and MayDay shinny.

Fabric flourishes.

Even dogs might display a cape in the MayDay Parade and at the MayDay Festival. That is how We are MayDay.

MayDay Parade starts at 1:00 pm, MayDay Ceremony about 3:00 pm after the Parade concludes.

the public recluse

The Public Recluse

Obsidian Arts spotlights cutting-edge black visual culture

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:37:43 +0000

Jay Gabler

Front Row Seat

"I'm white and I have a lot to learn about black art," I wrote in February, "but I believe I could contribute valuable insight to Obsidian Arts in an advisory capacity." That was how I found myself sitting in a conference room at Pillsbury House last week, joining a conversation as part of the nonprofit arts organization's newly-formed advisory panel.

The seed of Obsidian Arts, I learned, was planted in 1994 when the artist John Biggers was commissioned to create a mural—with 17 emerging artists—on a North Minneapolis freeway wall. The mural was torn down for construction in 2001, just a few months after the artist's death, but the community organization that had come together as part of the mural's creation was going strong, taking the name Obsidian Arts in 2003 with a mission to promote and examine African-American visual culture in all its forms: painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, fashion, design, dance, and more.

The organization's many innovative exhibits and programs have included shows inspired by protest, gumbo (yes, the stew), Afro-futurism, ideas of God, sagging clothes, and the beloved Minneapolis ZIP code of 55407. Obsidian Arts has also become well-known for the national and international tours it organizes to visit landmark sites of African history and black visual culture around the world.

Just learning about the busy organization's work was enough for one night; the panel will reconvene soon to discuss ways that Obsidian Arts can continue to grow and to engage diverse new audiences in the ongoing story of African-American art and visual culture.

Also read "Obsidian Arts shares richness of black art with the community" (Susan Budig, 2006), "Black culture is right 'under our nose'" (Jimmy Stroud, 2008), and "Afro Art Trippin': Obsidian Arts broadens local perspectives on black culture" (Makula Dunbar, 2012).

COMMUNITY VOICES | Embedded: With the Mosaic Quilting Project in Minneapolis's Kingfield neighborhood

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:16:19 +0000

Francesca Davis...

Community Voices

I am not the craft-making type. I am a klutz, with an X-Acto blade scar on my thigh to prove it. I agreed, however, to be an embedded journalist--on hand to observe, not to participate--in a public art project in south Minneapolis called the Mosaic Quilting Project.

Mosaics are made of little pieces of cut glass, arranged to make a picture. Glass is dangerous. Ancient people made arrowheads out of glass, and modern people hit each other with beer bottles.

"We don't eat at the tables where we're gluing down the glass pieces," one of the mosaic project coordinators, Mary Ann Schoenberger, told me. "We don't want to spill on the mosaic, but we also don't want anyone to swallow any glass."

Schoenberger is the director of the Southwest Senior Center. Along with Sarah Linnes-Robinson, director of the Kingfield Neighborhood Association, she recruited more than 300 volunteers to make the mosaic. At community workshops, they cut and glued thousands of bits of glass. The volunteers ranged from 3 to 94 years old and spoke languages including English, Hmong, and Spanish.

Some even speak mosaic. Three year old Milo, the son of artist Sharra Frank, who designed the mosaic, came to many workshops. One morning he woke his mother up, patting her face and saying, "Mommy, you're so pretty and sparkly...."

Frank based her "pretty and sparkly" glass designs on fabric arts of different cultures. The ten 4’ x 4’ panels will be permanently bolted onto the outside of the recreation building at the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Park. "It's a visual way of saying all are welcome here," Linnes-Robinson said.

The public is invited to view the completed mosaic quilt on Saturday, April 27, 2013, at MLK Park, 4055 Nicollet Ave. S. The celebration starts with free food and music at 1 p.m., followed by the grand unveiling at 2 p.m.

I attended a workshop in February, on the invitation of the Southwest Senior Center. A dozen or so of the most experienced volunteers were fine tuning the almost-finished mosaic panels. They worked at round tables that during the day host everything from lunch to Brain Games for seniors. The ergonomics weren't great, and some volunteers had stacked two chairs on top of each other. The resulting higher seat gave them a longer reach at less cost to their backs.

Safety glasses on, workers cut and shaped the glass. Glass cutters look like sheers with tiny pizza cutters for blades. The uncut sheets of glass look as smooth as cake frosting. I touched them. Their edges were sharp.

Mosaic making is not dangerous, Lori Olson said, as I watched her apply Tacky Glue to a bit of glass. Or difficult. "The key is, you can't be intimidated," she said, pressing the glass onto a piece of fiberglass mesh. She was finishing a swirling pattern called the Elephant Foot, from the Hmong people of Southeast Asia. "The whole beauty of the project is that people of all ages and skills can do it. It's okay if it's crooked: it's a crazy quilt."

One of the "glass quilts" is, in fact, a Crazy Quilt design. This is not a formal pattern but, rather, a way quilters from a variety of cultures use up irregular scraps of fabric.

A pleasing jumble of colors and shapes, the Crazy Quilt is a fitting metaphor for the mosaic project. The project arose, in part, out of a dispute over plans to establish an off-leash dog area at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, in the Kingfield neighborhood more than a year ago.

Sarah Linnes-Robinson, director of the neighborhood association, was present for heated meetings about the proposal. To many elders of the African American community, the idea of a dog park in a place named for Dr. King was all wrong. It called up memories of police setting their dogs on black protestors during the Civil Rights era. Many younger, white proponents of the dog park didn't see it that way and were reluctant to give up their vision.

Eventually another site was found for the dog park, and a neighborhood group called Building Bridges formed to talk about race. After all, Linnes-Robinson said, "How can we create a sense of community if we don't understand where other people are coming from?" With the Martin Luther King Legacy Council, they sought to find a fitting way to honor Dr. King and to bring neighbors together.

In the conversations that followed, Linnes-Robinson said, "the quilting metaphor came up over and over. All the cultures of the neighborhood have some kind of quilt or textile traditions."

Meanwhile, the Senior Center, which had already hosted two mosaic projects, was thinking about doing another. Quilts and mosaics "looked like a perfect fit," Linnes-Robinson said. Grants from the Metropolitan Regional Art Council and the City of Minneapolis made the Mosaic Quilting Project possible.

Thirty people attended the project’s first workshop in October, 2012. By the time I attended my first workshop four months later, volunteers had already put in almost 1,500 hours.

"The process is rewarding in its futziness," volunteer Mark Yeazel said. Darrick Hills added, "and if you do a piece and it's not really that great, someone else can come along and make it better."

Encouraged, I decided to give it a try. Only tricky bits were left at this stage, however, and the trickiest bits of a mosaic are the curves. It took me half an hour to shape the round end of one bird feather. It was part of a design based on a mola--a textile art form of the Kuna people of Central America.

I came back two weeks later. Volunteers had in the meantime attached the glass-loaded mesh pieces onto firm backing boards, with mortar. The panels were waiting for the final step: grouting. Schoenberger delivered a bucket of gloppy black grout to a table, where the mola panel I'd worked on lay. "Plop it on," she said, and three people in blue medical gloves proceeded to spread the gritty stuff all over the glass.

“This is when the magic happens,” Schoenberger said. Once the spaces between the glass were filled, the workers began to wipe the grout off with sponges and to buff the surface with torn up T-shirts. Emerging from the gunk, the fragmented glass pieces now formed a unified picture. Out of many, one.

I looked closely at the big bird. I found the blue rounded feather I'd worked on. It seemed, however, that my work had been found "really not that great" and someone had indeed come along and made it better, because I couldn't find any of the glass bits I cut.

But, wait. That distinctive sliver of glass? I was sure it was mine. Thousands of pieces of glass, and I was responsible for that one.

"Look! Look!’ I said. "I did that!" I pointed out my contribution to the people around me, the ones who'd been there all along. They smiled kindly.

For further information about the unveiling or about other programs and activities at the Center, contact Mary Ann Schoenberger, Southwest Senior Center Director at mschoenberger [at] voamn [dot] org or 612-822-3194. The Center is located at 3612 Bryant Avenue S. and serves people fifty and up through its social work, exercise, senior dining, nutrition, wellness, and health and educational programs.

The mission of the Kingfield Neighborhood Association is to demonstrate and encourage neighborhood leadership, provide a forum for community participation, and a structure to promote the vision and aspiration of the neighborhood. In everything the organization does it strives to connect neighbors to each other in an effort to build a stronger community where together neighbors work to address real issues, as well as create a unique, fun, vibrant and safe neighborhood and City. For further info on KFNA contact Sarah Linnes-Robinson Executive Director at 612.823.5980 or sarah [at] kingfield [dot] org.

Volunteers of America–Minnesota’s Southwest Senior Center and the Kingfield Neighborhood Association organized the project. Minnesota's voters made it possible through grants from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund). The City of Minneapolis Innovative Graffiti Micro-Grant also supplied funds.

Mosaics are made of little pieces of cut glass, arranged to make a picture. Glass is dangerous. Ancient people made arrowheads out of glass, and modern people hit each other with beer bottles.

One of the "glass quilts" is, in fact, a Crazy Quilt design. This is not a formal pattern but, rather, a way quilters from a variety of cultures use up irregular scraps of fabric.

In the conversations that followed, Linnes-Robinson said, "the quilting metaphor came up over and over. All the cultures of the neighborhood have some kind of quilt or textile traditions."

Thirty people attended the project’s first workshop in October, 2012. By the time I attended my first workshop four months later, volunteers had already put in almost 1,500 hours.

"The process is rewarding in its futziness," volunteer Mark Yeazel said. Darrick Hills added, "and if you do a piece and it's not really that great, someone else can come along and make it better."

But, wait. That distinctive sliver of glass? I was sure it was mine. Thousands of pieces of glass, and I was responsible for that one.

"Look! Look!’ I said. "I did that!" I pointed out my contribution to the people around me, the ones who'd been there all along. They smiled kindly.

Volunteers of America–Minnesota’s Southwest Senior Center and the Kingfield Neighborhood Association organized the project. Minnesota's voters made it possible through grants from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund). The City of Minneapolis Innovative Graffiti Micro-Grant also supplied funds.

TCDP TOP PICK | Mosaic Quilt Unveiling Celebration at Martin Luther King Jr. Park

MayDay 2013 more vibrant with every workshop

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 02:48:17 +0000

Alan Wilfahrt

There are still appeals for participants in any and all of MayDay. After this week of workshops, rehearsals for the Ceremony will commence. So if the Ceremony stage is your aspiration, you need to join in quickly. For pageantry of a lower key, you will still want to stop in to get an idea of the costuming themes that are developing. Making a mask for your Parade Persona may take a few workshops. There are unlimited number of opportunities to Parade, and a great number of volunteer positions far from the glare of the spotlight. Help Build MayDay with your unique contribution.

Consider this an invitation;

We Need Dancers!

You get to dress fancy + have fun

No Experience needed!

In this section;

you can be a GRAMMA or GRAMPA (mask)

a BEAR or OWL Grandparent

an ANCESTOR ANIMAL of your choice

we need some people!

The public workshops of MayDay are invitations to join a crowd of well wishers. During this April, each Tuesday and Thursday from 7-9pm and Saturdays 9-11am (mornings), and 1-3pm (afternoons), the artists at In The Heart of the Beast Theatre (HOBT.org) welcome you to come and help make MayDay. There are two parts; the MayDay Parade; followed the MayDay Ceremony; and the entire day in Powderhorn Park is the MayDay Festival. You may parade down Bloomington during the Parade, be a parade spectator and just partake of the Festival on MayDay. MayDay is an immense community effort guided by In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre.

The hobt.org website has a whole page of volunteer positions and suggestions. You can Build MayDay. Following are some images of volunteers who helped Make MayDay in past years.

There are trucks to be loaded and unloaded both before the MayDay Festival and right at the end of the day.

Setting up and taking down booths.

Block sponsors and Parade Marshals assist the paraders and the spectators in enjoying the day safely.

Assist in one of the HOBT MayDay booths.

Positions, such as Sun Runners, may still be available, and of course the pageant audience is open to everyone.

Some of the most wonderful volunteers are those who help with cleanup. Together, all the volunteers Make MayDay.

Help Build MayDay

Some photo essays from previous years;

2012 posts about MayDay;

MayDay 2012 will try for the Second Sunday of May

MayDay 2012 In motion

MayDay 2012, still time to lend a hand

MayDay magic in Minneapolis — it's happening again!

MayDay — calling all MayDay people

MayDay 2011 posts;

MayDay 2011 Caws to Unite

MayDay: Moving toward Sunday's celebration of people working and playing together

MayDay 2011 workshops can recycle your hat—and more

MayDay 2011 workshops - Universe of Union

MayDay 2011 workshops and you

MayDay 2011 workshops voice your concern

MayDay 2011 workshops forward -backwards!

MayDay 2011 workshops Pay Up!

MayDay 2011 workshops begin

the public recluse

The Public Recluse

Q&A with Minneapolis fashion designer Brianna Westlund

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:30:27 +0000

Rebekah Peterson

My Broadsheet

Brianna Westlund is a young fashion designer from Longfellow who is having her first independent show, Vintage Vixen, this Saturday at T’s Place on East Lake Street. In February, she was one of four designers to be included in MN Fashion’s Emerging Designer’s Showcase during Fashion Week. Her designs have been described as “feminine and classic…not only wearable, but meticulously constructed” by l’etoile, a Minnesota arts magazine.

We wanted to learn more about Westlund, her designs, and plans for growing her design business SIX25designs.

MB: When did you first become interested in pursuing fashion design?

BW: I have approached the world from a design perspective since I was a very young child and, as my family often reminds me, the signs were there from very early on that I would follow this path. It wasn’t until my sophomore year of high-school that I realized that I could pursue design as a career choice however. Once I became aware of it that was kind of it for me, I knew from then on that I would work towards this and here I am incredibly sleep deprived but elated to know that I have the skills and determination to move forwards with this venture. I couldn’t be happier to be showing my fist commercial collection Vintage Vixen this weekend and I am excited to see what the future holds.

MB: What do you hope to accomplish with your work?

BW: I do this because I love it and like most designers my primary goal is simply to figure out how I can keep doing this. That means figuring out how to make SIX25designs a self-sustaining and profitable business with potential for growth and future development. It would sound cliche to say that I want to be the next great American designer, and I won’t say that, but I would really like to be recognized for my work and see my garments on the women I have designed them for. My ultimate goal is to develop SIX25designs into a lifestyle brand and address a wider spectrum of daily life.

MB: What’s the best part about fashion design?

BW: I find the best part of designs is usually when I finally get to see the clothes come together on the models. That’s when the designs ultimately feel as though they have been brought to life.

MB: What’s the most challenging?

BW: The most challenging part is often simply dealing with the constraints of how much you can do or show in one collection and wrestling with the limitations of your time or your budget.

MB: Who do you have in mind when designing your pieces?

BW: To describe my aesthetic in three words I say it is edgy, elegant and effortless. I would also use these three words to describe the woman wearing my clothes. For this collection I imagined I was exploring the wardrobe of the goddess Artemis (otherwise known as Diana of the Hunt) if she were to have been re-incarnated over the centuries as a human woman. I was drawn to her as a understated but elegant figure in Greek and Roman Mythos with a strong connection to nature and felt she represented a sense of balance and clarity that I could see reflected in the women that I design for today. The most significant aspect of my clothes; and what distinguishes my customer from your average fashionista is a sense of timeless style. I felt this was the best way to explore that concept for this collection.

MB: What can people expect to see at your show?

BW: Vintage Vixen represents a classic mix of period inspiration and modern flair. This collection takes inspiration from unique textiles and fabrics playing up contrasts in color, texture and pattern. I will be showing a range of styles from my classic wide-leg trousers perfect for the office to little shift dresses perfect for cocktails. People will see the vintage influences throughout the collection but they might be surprised at how modern some of the clothes still are. What I am most excited about however is the fresh and perhaps somewhat surprising color pallet I have cooked up for winter 2013. This collection will have the largest range in colors, styles and fabrics that I have incorporated so far and I can’t wait to share it.

MB: Are your pieces available for purchase? If so, where can people find them?

BW: I am currently available for special projects, commissions and collaborations. This collection marks the preview of my first commercial collection which I plan to produce for sale this fall. I will likely sell both through a local boutique(s) and online when my line does go up for sale. If someone wants to special order a piece for themselves in the meantime however the best way to contact me is by email or through my Facebook design page.

MB: What’s next for you and SIX25designs?

BW: The next step for me is working on getting my line ready for production so I can begin to sell to the public next fall. This will be the first time I am able to offer my clothes for purchase in a range of sizes and styles, and my present goal is to begin selling pieces from this collection in several local boutiques this fall. In the meantime, I will be preparing a collection for spring/summer 2014, which will include pieces for SIX25Signature as well as my new lower priced SIX25Street line, which I hope to debut sometime this summer. If SIX25Signature and SIX25Street are a commercial success I hope to continue building on both lines in the coming seasons.

The Vintage Vixen fashion show is this Saturday from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. at T’s Place on East Lake Street. Details are on the calendar. Learn more about Westlund and SIX25designs on Facebook.

Photos courtesy of Brianna Westlund. Photography by Rhea Pappas, Hair and Makeup by the Beauty Lounge, Models are Sherita Moss and Lindsey Kuehl.

We wanted to learn more about Westlund, her designs, and plans for growing her design business SIX25designs.

MB: When did you first become interested in pursuing fashion design?

MB: What do you hope to accomplish with your work?

MB: What’s the best part about fashion design?

BW: I find the best part of designs is usually when I finally get to see the clothes come together on the models. That’s when the designs ultimately feel as though they have been brought to life.

MB: What’s the most challenging?

BW: The most challenging part is often simply dealing with the constraints of how much you can do or show in one collection and wrestling with the limitations of your time or your budget.

MB: Who do you have in mind when designing your pieces?

MB: What can people expect to see at your show?

MB: Are your pieces available for purchase? If so, where can people find them?

MB: What’s next for you and SIX25designs?

The Vintage Vixen fashion show is this Saturday from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. at T’s Place on East Lake Street. Details are on the calendar. Learn more about Westlund and SIX25designs on Facebook.

Photos courtesy of Brianna Westlund. Photography by Rhea Pappas, Hair and Makeup by the Beauty Lounge, Models are Sherita Moss and Lindsey Kuehl.

MayDay 2013 magic germinates with each workshop

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 00:57:27 +0000

Alan Wilfahrt

A week of six free Public Workshops has passed. The chaos has spurred on development. Mirth continued building and theater was everywhere. The artists of each Parade section has plans and concepts for embellishing the storyline. Every Parade section and the Ceremony group request more people to participate in performance, in building props and costumes, and aid in backroom work that is done to Make MayDay. Whimsey meet well meaning. It takes no talent other then an open heart to Help Build MayDay.

The public workshops of MayDay are a good introduction to the magic that happens. During this April, each Tuesday and Thursday from 7-9pm and Saturdays 9-11am (mornings), and 1-3pm (afternoons), the story guides help you to get ready for MayDay. The guides are artists at In The Heart of the Beast Theatre (HOBT.org). You are welcome to come and help make MayDay. There are parts to play in the MayDay Ceremony. You may parade down Bloomington during the Parade, or just partake of the Festival on MayDay. Or just contribute you talents behind the scenes. You will easily contribute to this happiness.

Maybe help paint a sign.

Or paint a watering pot. Or papermache.

Learn by watching the experienced.

In an atmosphere of sharing.

Help make props for the paraders.

Or if more mechanical, help with float construction.

The hobt.org website has a whole page of volunteer positions and suggestions. You can Build MayDay.

Design your costume, with practical help from illusion experts.

Help Build MayDay

the public recluse

The Public Recluse

Minne-Faire 2013 - A Maker and DIY Exposition

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:12:53 +0000

Alan Wilfahrt

Paper Craft Helmets

Steam Punk Weapons

It is Science, It is Art, It is Fun, It is done by people like us! April 13 and 14, 2013, TC Makers are conducting a Minne-Faire. The TC Makers are a collection of DIY artists that explore their world using any combination of electronics, 3-D printing, metelworking, woodworking, textiles and other mediums. They have shared workspace and awesome manufacturing equipment. Classes and instructions are available and the atmosphere is of sharing and learning. Check out TCMaker.org for more information. If you read this in time for the Sunday events you might discover a world of delightful innovation.

I stopped in on Saturday the 13th, after photographing at the MayDay morning workshop. Oh so very much to photograph in both places.

I really do like Steam Punk.

Spinning mirrors bounce a laser light. Adjust the speed of the motors and the pattern traced by the laser changes.

A can crusher, a result of a 48-hour design contest.

In the Seward neighborhood of Minneapolis. The Hack Factory is located at: 3119 E. 26th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55406.

The food for sale held a lot of interest for some young ones. Some hand-crafted material was offered for sale in some booths. Art projects were everywhere and filled booths. This art was grounded in metal fabrications, or serious woodworking, maybe controlled with micro-switches and electronic circuitry. Artistic sensibilities, with grease under the fingernails. Enthusiasm was spread around lavishly by youth and the aged over many projects.

The Beez Kneez displayed their "Honey Bee-Cycle"

first ever pedal-powered honey extractor (harvester)

Some complex, yet simple machines.

Kits of electronic projects were availabe for the begining builders.

motors and lights

found in the lounge

Building all sorts of stuff, with all sorts of material and wilth mutltiple processes.

It is about learning. It is about sharing. It is about making.

Many other sights recorded but not posted here.

the public recluse

The Public Recluse

MayDay 2013 workshops begin

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 04:12:23 +0000

Alan Wilfahrt

April 2013; and of the 30 Days of Biking, I have 11 dates already assigned with a biking destination. For me HOBT is a good draw, the most wonderful sights, a collection of the most interesting people, and a progression of meaningful content. I think of the old Our Gang hey-kids-let's-put-on-a-show.

The public workshops of MayDay began last Saturday. During this April, each Tuesday and Thursday from 7-9pm and Saturdays 9-11am (mornings), and 1-3pm (afternoons), the gang gathers at In The heart of the Beast Theatre (HOBT.org) to get ready for MayDay. You are welcome to come and help make MayDay. There are parts to play in the MayDay Ceremony. You may parade down Bloomington during the Parade, or partake of the Festival on MayDay. The shy may just contribute you talents behind the scenes. You will easily fit in with this gang.

EDITOR'S NOTE: May Day dos not have city or state funding — and HOTB director Sandy Spieler is appealing for public support. "This year has me worried, though. As we crafted our theatre’s finances for 2013, our executive director Loren Niemi suggested we not “do MayDay” this year; our budget would not support it. …What? Not do MayDay?! After much discussion, our Board and staff agreed instead to do MayDay with a budget 33% less than previous years, while making a commitment to build a broader base of public fiscal support for this very public event." To find out how you can help, click here.

The Parade and the Ceremony have a theme and storyline each year. Community input and staff from In the Heart of the Beast Theatre construct a general "play". That story is what makes MayDay, and you are invited to attend the creation. Come and get your hands in clay, and wet glue paper. See inspiring pieces everywhere, learn, teach, contribute, take away a vibe. Wear painting clothes.

In the front foyer, you may listen to the tale of this year's MayDay. Some part of the suggested Parade costuming or themes may resonate with you immediately, or you may envision your self in any number of flights of theatrical fantasy, especially when you see other's projects. The more practical of us, relish the production techniques and illusions that transpire throughout the MayDay build.

A synopsis (as I am understanding at this writing - Bread & Puppet from Glover, VT HALLELUJAH);

See The World

When you sow seeds on it

and when you pour water on it

and let the sun shine on it

it will grow

and the birds will feed on it

and the children will eat it

and the grandmas and the grandpas sing hallelujah

but

When you put fire to the world

and when you poison it

the world will cry

and the children will die

Being that this is theater, liberties will be taken, as the order in the Parade and Ceremony will be different, and joyfulness will dominate over gloom. Think of the Drama! Come and be a player or maybe a musician. There are many parts and MayDay is built by our gang.

wish lists (here);

Come to help build MayDay.

Sandy Spieler talks about Powderhorn Puppet Theater and In the Heart of the Beast

the public recluse

The Public Recluse

Challenge America: National Endowment for the Arts offers a "Fast Track" for arts projects reaching underserved populations

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 18:21:46 +0000

Jay Gabler

Front Row Seat

If you're working for or with a small or mid-sized arts organization and you've been looking for funding to make your programming more accessible to underserved audiences, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) wants to hear from you.

The NEA's Challenge America Fast Track (CAFT) program offers $10,000 grants to organizations reaching out to underserved populations: "those whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability." The fine print: the grant must be matched with the same amount from other sources.

Examples of projects that have received CAFT grants in the past include "a multidisciplinary piece incorporating South Indian classical (Carnatic) and Chinese music traditions" (API Cultural Center in Oakland, California); "a multidisciplinary series of performances, film screenings, and workshops" (Sociedad Latina in Roxbury, Massachusetts); and the New York Arab and South Asian Film Festival.

More information is available at the NEA's website; an April 3 webinar is recommended for organizations interested in applying. The application deadline is May 23.

University of Minnesota Senior Fashion Show GIFs, Part 3

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:20:21 +0000

Jay Gabler

Front Row Seat

On February 16, graduating seniors in the University of Minnesota's apparel design program showcased their best work in a fashion show. Here are GIFs of four designers' work, with descriptions from the show program.

Mai Yang: "Her collection consists of classic silhouettes and tailoring techniques paired with beautiful fabrics, such as gold brocades and Chantilly lace in order to embody luxury."

Lucie Jane Mulligan: "For this evening collection, Lucie Jane drew inspiration from the Irish coastline, with its hard structured cliffs and smooth flowing waves."

Rika Van Heerde: "This collection was inspired by images that present themselves at first as romantic, feminine and poetic. However, with a lingering look, the haunting details of the images reveal a darker side to the viewer, these images are simultaneously strikingly beautiful and deeply disquieting."

Khampasith Davison: "Khampasith's senior line focuses on a bridal party inspired by organic forms and their lavishness of artwork, architecture, and interior decorations of the Baroque period."

See other collections from this show: Part 1 and Part 2.

Coverage of issues and events affecting Central Corridor communities is funded in part by a grant from the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative.

Mai Yang: "Her collection consists of classic silhouettes and tailoring techniques paired with beautiful fabrics, such as gold brocades and Chantilly lace in order to embody luxury."

Lucie Jane Mulligan: "For this evening collection, Lucie Jane drew inspiration from the Irish coastline, with its hard structured cliffs and smooth flowing waves."

Khampasith Davison: "Khampasith's senior line focuses on a bridal party inspired by organic forms and their lavishness of artwork, architecture, and interior decorations of the Baroque period."

See other collections from this show: Part 1 and Part 2.

Coverage of issues and events affecting Central Corridor communities is funded in part by a grant from the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative.