Thursday, December 9 at 7:30 PM
Lincoln Hall, Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford

The Hartt School of Music presents the Bang on a Can All-Stars, the internationally celebrated new-music ensemble. The program will include music by Colon Nancarrow, Louis Andriessen, David Longstreth of the Dirty Projectors and many more.

.: More information and ticket prices available here

Right now we're going through changes in the way we see moving images that haven't been seen since the dawn of cinema in the late 19th century and the early 20th.

In between Edison, Pathe and D.W. Griffith we've certainly had bells and whistles added, but the main "delivery system", celluloid film stock and a motion picture projector with a light source has been a constant.

What you've been seeing (and how you see it).

Early cinema machines were all based on persistence of vision. We see moving images by an illusion created by a series of still pictures. The still pictures, moved fast enough, simulate motion. This was so with parlor toys like thaumatropes, praxinoscopes, phenakistoscopes, flip books and zoetropes that predated nickelodeons and movie theaters.

Francis Coppola called his first film studio Zoetrope. If you're as interested as Francis was you can buy these clever machines pretty cheaply and well made here.

They're still a lot of fun, though not as miraculous as they were to pre-motion picture theater users. They're also a great way to teach children about the "art of seeing".

What's common to all of these devices is "persistence of vision". Each allows you to see motion by interspersing the still pictures with an ever so brief black interlude allowing you to process one image moving to another. Film projection uses this same principle.

The film you see in theaters now moves at 24 frames (pictures) per second. While these go by, driven by a precise clock work motion that pulls them one by one through the film gate, a shutter, much like a fan blade, douses the light for a millisecond allowing your eye to rest and your brain to process.

If you see a slight upward or downward flare when, say, white titles appear on black, that shutter is mistimed and what you're seeing is one image blurring into another rather than a crisp transition (don't use this information to scold a projectionist—shutter timing takes a lot of time using a test pattern not a quick turn of the knob).

The projectors you see in use today have not substantially changed since the days of the silent films. When optical sound came into common use in the 1930's, manufacturers simply added on a "sound head" to the "projector head". They still are manufactured as separate pieces, bolted together to make one projector. Here's a good Wikipedia article on film projection.

Film scholars point out that there have been no new film inventions since 1925. Hard to believe? Well, sound was actually available through Edison’s recordings. It was never developed earlier than the 1930’s because people were quite happy with silent films with live music. Chaplin resisted sound until he began to use it in Modern Times, a “silent” film made in 1936.

But the tramp character didn't speak until The Great Dictator in 1940. In Japan, where the film action was narrated live by benshi, sound was very late in coming. Benshi narrated the films live dictated by certain conventions. The benshi were as popular as the film. There were revered ones and mediocre ones. People had a tough time letting them go, making Japanese cinema one of the last national cinemas to move into sound film.

Stereo sound, wide screen and split screen were all used by France's Abel Gance in the 20's. Gance also tied film cameras to horses or threw them around to create the first "shaky cam" pictures we think of as starting with The Blair Witch Project to the chagrin of those viewers with vertigo.

If you think about it, Gance also created an effect very like Cinerama, that seemed to be the latest invention in the 1950's and early 60's. May I digress for a minute about my favorite silent film director? Here's a clip of a performance of the reconstructed Napoleon at an Italian screening with a full orchestra conducted by Carmen Coppola, with Coppola's masterful score:

Color, from hand painting, to the Technicolor dye process was used extensively in silent films, mostly as special sequences. Silent films from the teens through the 20’s also used tinting and toning to augment the black and white film, using yellow for desert scenes or sunlight, blue for night, red for fire, even green to evoke jealousy. In fact, very few silent films were fully black and white. Again, full color wasn’t used earlier because the audience only considered it as a gimmick not a necessity. Even Cinemascope, that wonder of the 50’s came from a process used in Da Vinci’s time with an anamorphic painting that looked like only faintly like a picture, changed to a beautiful painting by the use of concave mirrors.

What you're seeing now and what is soon to come

We're at the end of the age in which the not-since-1925 theory works. Digital cinema is here to stay, no longer the province of YouTube and DVDs on your computer and TV. There's a large cinema in my area—probably about 1000 seats and a single screen—that plays only the big screen blockbusters. I was shocked to find out a few months ago that they pulled out their 35mm projectors and went totally digital. Large chain theaters are quickly moving into digital download projection as a delivery system.

In the early days of film, format was also—briefly—a problem. Inventors sold projectors that were essentially the same, but film gauges and eccentrically designed projectors stymied early movie theater operators. Here's an article that engagingly explains the confusion that assorted formats had for filmmakers.

Edison's machines almost won the day when he joined a trust that, with the purpose of having a unified presentation system, independents were being forced out of the film market. The "patent wars" on the East Coast forced many movie studios to move to California. Hollywood was partially created by the simple fact of film gauge consistency. This wonderful essay goes through just this small part of film history. A history, by the way, that seems to be repeating itself at the dawn of the digital projection age.

Like the dust that settled on 24 frames per second and 35mm film with sprocket holes on both sides, we may be coming to a consistent format that only could have happened with computers and wireless internet. There's a new standard, "DCI Compliant", developed by the 6 major film studios and it's coming to a theater near you, slowly but inevitably. Right now digital theaters use a "2K" system. The DCI parameters are trying to head off the past problems with multiple formats, that would make the universal acceptance of digital projection impossible. This way filmmakers will To stymie piracy these systems will also be encrypted just as secure internet systems are.

There will always be 35mm for the purist, just as vinyl is for music fans. It's clarity, softness and familiarity, however, is trumped by it's ephemeral nature. In short, 35mm fades, scratches, warps, bends, tears, and just plain wears out. And, as the traditional cinema gives away to home viewing more than the years of the introduction of television, cost becomes paramount. What's easier to ship—a 50-75 pound 35mm print in a heavy container, sometimes lost by the shipper causing chaos at the theater, or a film transmitted by a sophisticated internet process for free? Or a disc or encoded hard drive that weighs almost nothing.

What does this mean for you, the audience?

Aesthetics cast aside for the moment, most all of the news is good. 3D is here to stay this time because it's digital, not some arcane process involving lenses and complex synchronization. It won't be all good 3D like Avatar, but it will be 3D. There won't be moments of panic in the projection booth when film burns or tears, or that timing mechanism breaks and the film looks like a waterfall. It will enable theater operators to spend their money on better seats, innovative presentations, series that feature multi-films that were prohibitive because of shipping.

For art theaters like Real Art Ways it will mean the opening out to a wider range of filmmakers: Skype Q&As with directors who would never be able to come to a small theater; live presentations of opera and theater brought from big production companies on the East and West Coasts—and even Philadelphia. And to the semi-purist it will mean that archival films, preserved in the more stable (and easily reproducible) format can be shown in digitally restored presentations bringing the full power of their art to audiences without the dings and dents of age.

Of course, nothing is perfect. Electronics fail less often than mechanical systems do, but they do fail. Digital lacks the depth-of-field beauty of a photographic image projected. Movie making will probably get sloppy when it costs less to produce the films (it already has). Presentation will no longer be done by trained professionals (which was changing already with the demise of projectionists' unions and state licensing), to be replaced by computer geeks who know systems but seldom have visual acuity. As a former licensed projectionist who first worked with old carbon arc light projectors I'll miss the clickety clack of the projection booth replaced with the silent computer chips just sitting there inscrutably and the cushioned cooling fans that emit hardly any heat. No more grease and oil to clean up or the smell of film cleaning fluid.

Digital will make for a healthier workplace. No backs put out by lifting heavy cans and reels. No potential cancers from cleaning fluid and small particles of celluloid floating in the warm air. No cuts on hands from handling the sharp edges of film stock. Shocks from DC power supplies. Here's an article on the perils of film archiving through all the hidden dangers of handling old film.

Moving into the future patience is required on both sides of the projection booth glass. For a while yet audiences will still be seeing multiple format presentations that are sometimes not as perfect and flawed by what are still the degradable carriers of the images like DVD and tape. Money strapped film festivals find themselves scurrying for expensive digital decks that play all kinds of formats—BetaSP, DigiBeta, DigiCam, Blu Ray, HDCam, HD, MiniCam, DVCam—as filmmakers struggle to settle on a format for presentation. Each one of these decks cost 10's of thousands of dollars so many festivals only rent the decks. Digital download systems that are DCI compliant are extremely expensive right now. Refitting a projection booth can cost up to $150,000.

On the other side of the camera there is a mixed reaction to DCI compliance and the dreaded VOD or video on demand that is starting to limit independent filmmakers' access to cinema audiences. Here's an insider's view of this that I happen to agree with (there is a great deal of angry use of the F-word so gentle readers beware).

The revolution is coming, but in a fast moving world it may not be coming fast enough for everyone. But it will be commonplace in 5 years or less and it will be way beyond 1925 technology. It will be replaced by the theory that as computers get smaller they become more powerful. Let's see how that plays out in the next 85 years.

Some books suggestions:

The Parade's Gone By, Kevin Brownlow, Ballantine Books

If you never read anything else about film, Brownlow's book must be read. He chronicles the greats of silent film through in-person interviews, descriptions of the era, photos and filmographies. It reads like the best magazine articles, quick and entertaining but so informative.

Ways of Seeing, by John Berger, Penguin Books

An essential work for many filmmakers, Berger defined cinema for the directors who became art house favorites.

The Best Remaining Seats, Ben M. Hall

This is out of print but can still be found online. Hall's exhaustive and entertaining book is all about the movie halls and palaces from the 1890's rise through the 1950's decline. Great anecdotal material.

Seeing the Unseen, Dr. Harold Edgerton et al., Geo. Eastman House Publication &
Foundations of Stereoscopic Cinema, Lenny Lipton, Van Nostrand Press

Both books are technical, but fascinating for photographers and film geeks.

Before Hollywood:Turn-of-the-century American Film, various authors,
Hudson Hill Press

If you want to read about proto-cinema or just have fun looking at the pictures.

Spellbound In Darkness, New York Graphic Society.

A wonderful look at silent films you'll never see (only 10% of films made in the silent era still exist including some very important ones). With reviews of the time and synopses as well as exquisite photos.

Picturing Time, Marta Braun, Chicago Press

A study of filmmaker Etiene-Jules Marey who worked from 1830-1904. A great introduction into the dawn of cinema.

The Magician and the Cinema, Erik Barnouw, Oxford Press

Many of the first filmmakers were magicians and their films were used in their acts in Grand Tours around the world.

The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Painting by Craig Barron and Mark Cotta Vaz, Chronicle Book

Barron, who is a special digital effects master working in movies today, chronicles the great artists who made films come alive in bygone eras. A gas to read and illustrations that defy the eye.

The Dreams Our Stuff Is Made Of, Thomas M. Disch, Touchstone

Disch's thesis is that the way we look at our world was defined by science fiction book, movies and comics. He is a master at this and his book is both lovingly nostalgic and defines our conceptions and preconceptions about the future.

Applications are available online for a new fellowship program for low-income writers from Greater Hartford to attend a retreat center in Litchfield.

The new Wisdom House Writers Fellowship Program was developed to encourage the work of writers in the 29-town region. Fellowships are available to stay at the Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center in Litchfield. The fellowships, which cover accommodations and meals, are funded by a grant from the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

.: More information available here

Recently, we collaborated for two days with Heads Up! Hartford (HUH), a faith-based camp for urban and suburban high school students in the Greater Hartford area.  I’ve got a special connection with one of the campers - my son.  
 
He’s the reason we had the opportunity to work with these youth who provide community service in Hartford and surrounding towns.  And they’re the reason that, as the teens boarded their bus in front of Arbor Arts Center to leave Real Art Ways, several of the neighborhood children who had met them through their efforts in Day Park, yelled, “Bye, church people!”
 
Located across the street from our building, Day Park is the only green area in Parkville, and host to our ParkArt program.  Created for the enjoyment and creative self-expression of elementary school-aged children in the Real Art Ways’ community, ParkArt is now in its second decade.  
 
Featuring hands-on activities exploring Environmental Arts, Nature, Technology, Dance, Literary Arts, Poetry and Live Music, it brings seven weeks of daily workshops to our young neighbors.  ParkArt is made possible with the generous support of Real Art Ways Members, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the Knox Foundation, and Bank of America.
 
On the first day of HUH’s visit, 18 teens and advisors arrived on the scene at 8:30am to clean and beautify the park.  They collected trash and broken glass from the fountain area and playground where Parkville children run barefoot during the summer.
 
While the teens worked, a crew from Knox Parks Foundation cleaned graffiti from the playscape.  (Did I mention they all worked together in 99-degree weather?)  The foundation also generously provided brooms, rakes, litter pickers, gardening supplies, and perennials to plant in large planters, which they donated for the park.
 
Good news and bad news.  Good:  one of the planters was painted by the ParkArt children with brightly colored designs and placed at one of two entrances to the park.   Bad:  the second planter was destroyed and has gone missing.  We’re in the process of replacing the planter because the children are excited to paint and plant again.  
 
Come see how they’ve beautified their neighborhood at an exhibition from this year's ParkArt program on Thursday, August 19, from 12 - 5pm.  Enjoy the artwork with a performance by local musician Stephen Haynes.
 
When HUH’s first day of work was completed, the teens cooled down in our cinema.  They ate lunch while watching Mighty Times: The Children’s March, from our Film FieldTrips program.  Distributed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, it tells the story of the youth of Birmingham, Alabama whose efforts helped bring an end to segregation 1963.  
 
Sharing common goals of promoting diversity and developing leadership, Real Art Ways’ educational program and HUH are a good match.
 
On the second day, another HUH group got to work freshening up Real Art Ways’ interior.  Next time you freshen up in our restrooms, check out the new paint colors.  With LB’s guidance, the campers spackled, sanded, taped, and painted throughout the morning. Then, as the group did the day before, they enjoyed lunch as they watched Mighty Times: The Children’s March.
 
Feedback from the campers about their experiences has been very positive. They took great pride in making Day Park a cleaner and safer place for Parkville’s children, and, having heard the word “cool” as they walked through our space, I’m pretty sure they liked being introduced to Real Art Ways.  
 
Plus, I had my own “Bring Your Child To Work” day - my child and 29 others!

That’s “cool,” too, huh?

.: ParkArt at Real Art Ways: final exhibition 8/19/10, 12 - 5 PM

We’re pretty excited about showing the final 4 World Cup games in the Cinema this week. I am hoping that I might be able to catch a glimpse of my brother, Michael, who is actually in South Africa for the games. He’s been keeping us updated on his (and his buddy Joel’s) travels via lengthy postings Facebook and it has been amazing to follow his adventures. Here’s what he writes from Cape Town:
 
So I'll get to tonight's game in a bit and to be honest it's kind of hard for me to focus on anything else (well almost) but I'll try.
 
So a couple of days ago Joel decided to go shark diving. On the list of things I want to do before I die, that is not even on it so I declined, but he said it was amazing. The day worked out pretty well for both of us. I needed a little extra time to recover from the previous nights events. When I got up I decided I would walk as much of Cape Town as I could and just grabbed my bag and went for a walk. Nothing too eventful, just took in a lot of sights in this beautiful city. Joel and I met back at the place and although it was Sunday, we found a few cool places open and had a relatively relaxing night watching Mexico play Argentina and seeing the goal of the tournament smashed home by Carlos Tevez.
 
As we got up on Monday, Joel and I both were anticipating that we'd be in for a pretty good day. The weather was to be near perfect and the itinerary was full. I don't think we had any idea what we were in for. As we left the hostel at 10:00 to catch our ferry over to Robben Island we made the great decision to walk the 25-30 minutes to the Harbor. We arrived at the Harbor and for the first time on this trip our reservations were in perfect order. We're not sure what they do around here but it's always a clusterf---. Anyway, we boarded a boat that's like the high speed ferry to Block Island from New London and it was packed.(Quick Pause: For those of you who don't know, Robben Island is most notably know as the place where Nelson Mandela and so many black political prisoners were imprisoned during Apartheid era South Africa)
 
We boarded buses to begin a bus tour and had the misfortune of being on the same bus as a group of Dutch supporters, two of whom were wearing these orange clog things that one wears over their shoes but nonetheless make the same ridiculously annoying noise. Not only were their shoes loud, they also talked through a good part of the guided tour. Thankfully, or not, the volume was turned up on the bus and the guy shouted out all of his details. I seriously can't hear anything anymore between the vuvuzelas, the volume on the bus and the volume at which so many people here talk.
 
The tour was great! Not only is it a pretty island with amazing views of Cape Town and the stadium we'll be in tonight (YAY!) there is a wealth of history that most of us never knew. One memorable story that a lot of time was devoted to was the story of Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe. We hear so much about Mandela's struggles but this guy was really put through terrible atrocities.
 
As we finally entered the maximum security prison, we were met by a former political prisoner on Robben Island from 1986-1990. As he described it, he "ONLY spent 4 years here" which immediately triggered the beginning of the goose bumps. We went through various cellblocks as he described the transformation of the prison through the years. They have an awesome exhibit in each tiny cell where the actual prisoner wrote something about an article that is preserved (Like special shoes that were rabbit fur lined after years of suffering from arthritis in the very cold winters here).
 
I'm not quite sure how I feel about seeing Mandela's cell yet so I may have some thoughts on this later but for now I'll say that the silent reverence was very powerful.
 
On the way back we all walked instead of riding to simulate the walk to freedom that the political prisoners all experienced upon their final release.
 
Just before we got back on the ferry, we had a chance to shop or go to check out the penguins. I was all over the penguins!! While they weren't as close as I would have liked, it was very cool to see them in the wild. Big fan of penguins.
 
Then it was a quick bite at Victoria's Wharf and a check on the rental car status (we're good) and on to Table Mountain. Table Mountain is this large but beautiful landmark that can be seen from just about everywhere in Cape Town. It stands roughly 3500 ft above sea level and is a must do in CT. As we rapidly ascended the mountain in a rotating cable car, Table's majestic view over Cape Town really began to take on a new form. It was breathtaking to look out over this gorgeous city we had just walked so much of just a few short hours ago. We were greeted by a stinging wind that chilled to your core and still there were people in tiny shorts and short sleeves. Crazy! As we began to walk around and realize that clouds were now ascending up to us, Joel and I were both struck with by what a special place this was and how fortunate we both were to be having this experience. It was phenomenal in the truest sense of the word and the views would have been breathtaking if the wind wasn't blowing so hard straight in our mouths. As we walked to different points, sometimes doing a Chicago wind-lean, over and over again we found ourselves speechless. As the sun set over the clouds it was an opportunity to take in the wonder and awe of nature with nothing but the soundtrack of the wind as it whizzed by our ears. Thankfully no vuvuzelas! We took tons of pictures, none of which will truly capture the true beauty of the views.
 
After such a great day, there was only one thing left for us to do! Eat some traditional African cuisine with plenty of meat so we went to Mama Africa's a few blocks from the hostel. It was fantastic. Just after learning that Holland had secured their way on to the quarterfinal that we have tickets to, the waiter brought a glass of wine and Kudu Poitje (A traditional African meal pronounced Poitkie). (Btw, Kudu is like antelope or a kind of antelope.) It was so good and a perfect way to end our uniquely South African experience of the day.
 
Well not quite end. There was the minor order of ensuring Brazil's place in the quarterfinal match in Port Elizabeth on July 2nd. So we made our way down to the fan fest in Cape Town center where there were a number of Brazilian and Portuguese fans cheering on Brazil. Although the Slovak's got off to a good start, quieting the partisan crowd, the beautiful game was quickly restored to its rightful place by the Selecao. The game looked more and more in hand, so we went to a bar called Bob's because Joel really wanted to drink Boston Lager. This far away to drink Boston Lager? I know, but who am I to judge, so I went along for the trek. It was awesome. Joel got into a typical Joel conversation with a guy that became an engaging debate that I missed because I made the mistake of saying that my Brazil Ronaldo jersey represented the only real Ronaldo to a woman who clearly had had too many to drink but definitely had no reason to have allegiance to the Portuguese player with the same name. I don't really know everything that she was saying, but it sure was loud. We called it a relatively early night after swinging through a couple more clubs and grabbing what has now become our obligatory evening Shawarma. It was pretty great day.
 
Real Art Ways is showing the Semi-finals on Tuesday the 6th and Wednesday the 7th at 2:30 pm, the Third place game on Saturday the 10th and the Finals on Sunday the 11th, both at 3:30 pm. Admission is free and the café will be open for beer, wine, soda and popcorn.

.: link to article

Laura Nova, a native of West Hartford and a resident of New York City, recently completed a two-week residency at Real Art Ways as part of her exhibition Limited Run. Those that have had the opportunity to experience her show will be able to testify to its uniqueness. It is not often that one gets approval, in fact encouragement, to run around an art gallery. Nova even provides an incentive to run: a celebratory bell rings at the completion of each lap.

During her time in Hartford, Laura had the opportunity to discuss her work and influences with all ages, our youngest visitor crawling repeatedly over the finish line, connecting the cause and effect of her movements to the dinging sound of the bell. Young children and junior high students raced around the track laughing while the adults, barefoot or in stocking feet, formed their own relay “teams” in an attempt to get as many people on the track as possible. Even the most senior of our members enjoyed a stroll between the white lane lines.
 
More than once I was told “I don’t get it as art, but I’m having a lot of fun!” With a smile I would tell that that they in fact do get it, that they are the art as Nova had intended. It is an experience that most want to share with others, but can experience alone. While Nova’s work embodies the desire of the self to overcome the physical with the mental, Limited Run has been an enlivening experience for both our visitors and the artist.

Laura Nova’s work continues its exhibition through Saturday, July 3 – more than enough time to put on your running shoes and take a few laps, yourself.

[photo by John Groo]

.:Laura Nova in Running Times
.: limitedrunproject.com

Nice story on the front page of New York Times Saturday Arts section, featuring Kate Gilmore.  Kate had a solo exhibition at Real Art Ways in 2005; she was selected during the first round of our open call for emerging artists.   You may remember the videos of her hammering away to free her foot from a concrete anchor, walking in high heels and plunging through the fiberboard floor, and taking a barrage of tomatoes in the kisser.

[Kate Gilmore's exhibition brochure - PDF]

Now she is doing a public project in Bryant Park, via the Public Art Fund, whose curator, Nicholas Baume, is also an old friend via the Athenaeum and the ICA Boston.  She is also in the current Whitney Biennial.

The idea behind our annual open call is to give 6 emerging artists a boost of visibility and experience.

Our next two exhibitions, opening during Creative Cocktail Hour on May 20, feature artists from the most recent open call. They are:

.: Laura Nova: Limited Run
.: Bohyun Yoon: Structure of Shadow

Macradenous
1. being peculiarly susceptible to grandiose schemes
2. having large glands
3. having the quality of ostentatious redundancy
4. describing a diet that depends on macaroni and cheese

One of these answers is correct.  The other three I made up.  But it’s kind of ridiculous to attempt to play Dictionary by yourself.  That’s not what it’s about.

Here’s the gist: someone chooses a difficult word from a dictionary. Every other player writes down a definition – it could be a guess, a bluff, or the real meaning of the word.  The person who chose the word writes down the definition as it appears in the dictionary.  People guess which definition is real.  You get a point if:

• someone selects your definition

• your definition is correct

• you select the correct definition
  

Dictionary is a game of bluffs and vulnerabilities.  It doesn’t require gadgets or small pieces or much of anything other than a dictionary, scraps of paper, and pencils.  It stands on the inventiveness, humor, and creativity of its participants.  Because of this, it does what good games should do – it makes you come away from it not having merely spent time with people, but knowing something about them.

I come from a household of well-thumbed dictionaries and atlases and encyclopedias.  That kind of demi-narrative or non-narrative reading – especially the fact that we did it as a group – shaped the way I think about information, the way I think about communicating it with others.  I’m not good at hand-wringing.  I don’t like doing it.  But I do wonder how we will change, how our common references and discourses and methods of interaction will adjust to this more solitary, web-based way of consuming information.

On Thursday, April 29, at 6:30PM Ammon Shea and Peter Sokolowski will be at Real Art Ways to talk about the future of dictionaries and to lead us through a game of Dictionary.  I hope you’ll join us.

The Odd Ball 2010 both rocked and rolled, as over 400 people invaded Real Art Ways in their oddest finery. As Anonymous Intern 40860594C I helped out by greeting people at the door (and by greeting people at the door, I mean mishearing both first and last names and struggling to put on VOP bracelets). The coveted position of Anonymous Intern 40860594C/Door-Greeter did, however, allow me to check out all the costumes prior to the parade, and they truly ranged from strange to stranger. Check out some photos here, and click here for more photos taken by esteemed photographer Steven Laschever.

We’ve already received lots of photos from guests, and we welcome more, as well as your oddest stories and memories from the night. Also, feel free to write to Meghan and Abby (who rule kindly and benevolently over Anonymous Intern 40860594C) with tall tales about how competent I was!

.: Images, words, and video from Odd Ball 2010

Note: We don't actually refer to all of our interns by number. But this particular intern wishes not to be named. She's left some clues, however, so you might be able to figure it out on your own!

So you’ve received the Odd Ball invitation, but you think all the hype may be… a little over-inflated. Think again – the surprises in store for the Odd Ball (just over two weeks away!) will definitely bowl you over. But what to wear to such a fantastic event?
 
The Odd Ball is a costume ball for all. We’re not into rules at Real Art Ways, so if you don’t want to dress up, feel free to come as yourself. If you do want to dress up but just haven’t found the right idea… don’t steal our ideas, but let them inspire you!
 
One of the two people sitting closest to me is traveling back in time, 50 years and a few hours before the Odd Ball.  She’s desperately trying to make it to the Odd Ball on time, but her hair hasn’t set yet, and the kids won’t turn off Captain Kangaroo and go to bed. Will she make it to the ball after all? The second person in the room got her costume idea through divine guidance – an idea so hot, it’s as if someone set it on fire. Confused? Intrigued? You’ll just have to come to the Odd Ball to figure it all out. As for me? I’m going to try to figure out how to turn my hair into a telephone a la Lady Gaga. If that fails, I guess I’ll come as Miss Fairfield County – but will that count as a costume?

.: Get Odd Ball tickets before the price goes up!

Our Director of Visual Arts, Kristina Newman-Scott, has written the Times Square Alliance in support of Sofia Maldonado's Times Square mural, commissioned by the Alliance.

Sofia was one of four artists who created works of public art in Hartford's Frog Hollow and Parkville neighborhoods for our Real Public initiative in the summer of 2009. Her mural, on the Pelican Tattoo building in Frog Hollow, recieved a lot of support from the community here.

In New York City, it's been a different story: Last Wednesday, a small protest demanded the removal of her work. Others have asserted that Sofia's work represents negative Latina stereotypes. While many have been supportive, It's clear that Sofia's mural has hit a nerve.

"42nd Street Mural" - NY reactions from Mykwain Gainey on Vimeo.

The following is Kristina's letter to the Times Square Alliance:

Glenn Weiss
Manager of Public Art and Design
Times Square Alliance
1560 Broadway
New York, NY 10036

Tuesday, March 23, 2010
 
Dear Mr. Weiss,

Last summer, I had the pleasure of working with Sofia Maldonado as part of Real Public, four public art projects commissioned by Real Art Ways in Hartford, Connecticut. Sofia created a mural on the façade of the Pelican Tattoo building in the Frog Hollow neighborhood titled Hey Shorty! Tu tienes novio? (Do you have a boyfriend?). The mural’s intent was to portray the rural and floral landscapes of Puerto Rico and Latin America while celebrating the diversity of the women in the community. She thought of this project as a way to revive the female attitude towards life, youth, motherhood, and community recreation.

Frog Hollow is a predominantly Puerto Rican neighborhood. Before creating her mural, Sofia spent over a month in the community meeting with residents and local business people. She invited women from the Lily Nail Salon to adorn the exaggerated nails on her wooden cut-outs before they were installed on the Pelican Tattoo building. There was such excitement about her project in the community. Many of the residents and business owners would come outside to watch her as she worked. Her work truly exemplified community spirit.  Within this community, the mural’s depiction of women was a non-issue.

In a place like New York City where diversity is celebrated for Sofia’s mural to evoke such a negative response is surprising and disappointing. Sofia’s work is not limited by mainstream expectations of positive representations of women, but instead reaches deep into communities to find strong women who DON’T conform to those stereotypes.
 
I commend you for your support of Sofia’s work. Organizations such as yours ensure that artists can stay true to their intentions and express their ideas in unexpected, sometimes controversial ways.  
 

Sincerely,
Kristina Newman-Scott
Director of Visual Arts

Read More:

.: VIDEO: "42nd Street Mural" - NY Reactions - includes some dramatic conversations about the work. Shot during the Wednesday, March 17th protest of the mural.
.: Interview with Maldonado in The Daily Voice: "Artist defends 42nd Street mural under fire"
.: "I like the damn mural." The Candy Report.
.: "Uproar in NYC over Controversial Mural:" WCBS TV
.: "Boricua Hipster Romanticizes NY Latinas; (Unsuprisingly) Gets In Trouble" NY Remezcla
.: Sofia Maldonado's Blog

Writer, DISH Host, and man about town Rand Richards Cooper is miffed.

In fact, he’s so miffed that he wrote a piece for the New York Times about it.

About a month ago, I received a very well-written, witty email invitation to a literary event in which Rand was taking part with Gary Greenberg and Deb Olin Unferth.  The event was to be held in Willimantic, a town close to my heart, in a new restaurant/venue called The Thirsty Frog (in typical Willimantic fashion).  The invitation mentioned several other things of which I am particularly fond:

1. Literature
2. Live Music
3. Food
4. Alcohol
5. 1, 2, 3, and 4 all for FREE
   

I immediately checked my calendar and wrote back* saying, “Well, yes, of course, I’d like to come.  Thank you so much for inviting me.”

It felt like a present.

Apparently others weren’t so quick to respond.  As Rand says, “days before the event I had a paltry 23.  Not 23 who planned to come, but 23 who had bothered to respond.  Half of my invitees had blown me off.”

So, he came up with a new tactic: “something still French but a bit more...frank — the R.V.O.M.: Répondez Vite — ou Mourir!”

And, really, aside from the obvious motivation of avoiding death, who would want to miss a literary event in a place lit like this:

Not me.

---

* I’m not going to miss this opportunity to boast — I was, Rand tells me — the first to respond.

.: "It's My Party, and You Have To Answer" by Rand Richards Cooper | The New York Times

The Odd Ball is all about secrets. What are your plans? Sorry. Can’t tell. What are you wearing? Sorry. Won’t tell. But this latest news is just too good not to spill.

The WHAT CHEER BRIGADE is playing the ODD BALL!

[watch: The What Cheer Brigade]

How to describe the What Cheer Brigade? Imagine a naughty, raucous, punk rock brass marching band. 19 of ‘em. Loud. Fast. Fun. They’re originally from Providence – my other favorite, criminally misunderstood small New England city – and somewhere between Lollapalooza and touring Europe, they’re coming to Hartford.

Prefix magazine recently said, “Gogol Bordello look and sound like a church band compared to these guys,” which seems a little harsh given my current obsession with Eugene Hütz. But it does explain why I had to step away from my desk to do a little dance when I got the thumbs up from the What Cheer Brigade. I will spare you the description of to what lengths I went to woo them. Let me just say, Odd Ball 2010 is shaping up to be a massive juggernaut of WOW!

The Odd Ball is Saturday April 10th. Get your costumes ready! And buy a ticket now – the price goes up at the door! Click HERE for more info.

LB Muñoz is Real Art Ways' Hospitality Manager. Ever been to Creative Cocktail Hour? She's the one running around like a crazy lady making all sorts of magic happen.

Hank Hoffman at CT Art Scene spent three long visits at Real Art Ways before writing this review of Rockstone & Bootheel: Contemporary West Indian Art.

Here's an excerpt:

"Rockstone & Bootheel, the show of contemporary West Indian art on display at Real Art Ways is a glorious, overwhelming labor of love. Real Art Ways Director of Visual Arts Kristina Newman-Scott, who co-curated the show with Yona Backer, is originally from Jamaica. The exhibition features the work of almost 40 artists from the West Indies—the English-speaking Caribbean islands—and the diaspora. More than half the artists are being shown in the United States for the first time. Real Art Ways is a fitting venue for the show as Hartford has the third largest West Indian population in the United States (after New York city and Miami).

There is no overarching theme but there is an organizing principle: the mashup. Newman-Scott says the use of the mashup aesthetic for the exhibit appropriately reflects life on the islands. Culture in its various manifestations—visual arts, music—is woven into the fabric of daily existence.

This curatorial decision makes for a challenging viewing experience. Videos run on continuous loops, offering a nonstop soundtrack of background noise not always conducive to concentration. (A Rasta man's declamation's in Jayson Keeling's wall-projected video "Listen Without Prejudice" makes particularly insistent claims on one's attention.) I had walked through the show at the opening and returned for an extended view last November. Even then, having the gallery to myself for an hour or more, felt insufficient. To do justice to this exhibit necessitated a return visit the beginning of this month." -Hank Hoffman

.: read the full review at ctartscene

The Wall Street Journal recently visited the collection of Hudson River School paintings in the newly renovated Huntington Galleries at Wadsworth Atheneum, our neighbors in Hartford. The Wadsworth Atheneum – the United States' oldest public art museum – has one of the finest collections of Hudson River School art. Major painters include Thomas Cole, Frederic Edwin Church, and Albert Bierstadt. Wadsworth was built by Daniel Wadsworth himself and by Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, of the Colt Factory (another Hartford landmark). 

Critic Barrymore Laurence Scherer writes: 
"Most invaluable for in-depth comparison are the multiple works of several major figures. For example, on one wall hang Albert Bierstadt's "In the Yosemite Valley" (1866), "In the Mountains" (1867) and "The Hetch-Hetchy Valley" (c. 1874-80). All three are dramatic views Bierstadt worked up in New York from sketches he made during an 1863 expedition to California. Being able to study all three in a row lets the viewer see that while each alone is profoundly beautiful, the spacious sweep and unimpeded visual proportions of "In the Mountains" make it the strongest composition of the three. This kind of concentrated richness makes the Wadsworth Atheneum's American collection one of the nation's best."

The Wadsworth Atheneum hopes to finish its restoration projects by 2012.