Commotion in the Alley

Arts in the Alley came alive last night (Dec 3) with lots of gallery openings and activities in the South Campus Gateway alley. Sarah Weinstock (above with Dance's Dave Covey) celebrated the opening of her solo exhibition In the Overlap installed in the Arts Initiative space, while Jenai Cutcher's OSU tap dance class (below) broke in the new wood, sprung dance floor there, with tunes provided by DJ Lisa McLymont.Across the alley at the Ohio Art League gallery, the popular annual Thumb Box Show opened with a wide variety of works -- all 6 x 6 x 6 inches or smaller -- on display (right). And in The Shoebox (below), large-scale photographs from featured artist Dave Kube were on display along with artwork from ARTillery member artists and an interactive arts activity from (Mix)ed Media.
Notable News

The Emerging Artist Studio -- a short, weekly radio feature from the Arts Initiative on WOSU's new Capital City Radio -- has begun airing on Fridays at 7:40 am and 12:33 pm. The shows, hosted by Karen Bell, each feature an interview with a local emerging artist. They're also available in podcast form; you can listen to the first four features here.

The 10,000 square foot former Skye Bar at South Campus Gateway is being revamped into ARTillery's first annual Holiday Art Market on Dec 12 and 19, noon - 6 pm. Enjoy live music, unique gifts and original artwork from more than 35 local artists, from ceramics, glass and jewelry to photography, fibers, ornaments and more. Prices starting at only $1! The first 30 shoppers will receive free tickets for the Art Market raffle, featuring artwork donated by local artists. Bring the whole family for Kids Holiday Craft Workshops and Holiday Movies taking place in The Shoebox during the sale, and stick around on the 19th for the Ohio Art League Holiday Mirror Ball in the Skye Bar at 8 pm. The Holiday Art Market is brought to you by Allied Arts in the Shoebox, a program of the Arts Initiative.

ARTillery is currently accepting applications for its featured artist program for 2010. Featured artists show their work in a solo exhibition within The Shoebox space, with an opening reception on Arts in the Alley First Thursdays (corresponding with receptions at Ohio Art League and the Ohio Arts Initiative) and have the opportunity to participate in ARTillery's artist lecture series. For complete application details and to apply, please go here. Deadline Dec 31. Contact Kate Dowell at artilleryohio@gmail.com with questions.

Royal Visit

Eight educators and actors from the UK's Royal Shakespeare Company were in town last week to work with teachers in local schools and take part in a public panel discussion hosted by Karen Bell, associate vice president and head of the Arts Initiative (above). More than 80 people from the university and community attended the Thursday evening event at South Campus Gateway. The panel included Jacqui O'Hanlon, RSC; Brian Edmiston, OSU; Amy McKibben, Reynoldsburg teacher; and David Rubin, RSC. The discussion focused on the partnership between OSU and the RSC, and the 20 local school teachers who are taking part in a three-year teacher leadership program based on the RSC's Stand Up for Shakespeare program. They posed, below, under the Gateway movie theatre marquis that touted their visit.

While in town, the RSC guests spent time with the participating teachers in a Reynoldsburg elementary school, at Linden McKinley High School and at Metro High School. The British guests also spent an afternoon with the OSU Department of Theatre's new class of MFA actors (below), who are gearing up to be involved in the partnership by working with the teachers and schools.

Notable News

WOSU's ArtZine, produced by Cindy Gaillard, shot a video introduction for a feature about the OSU/RSC partnership (above), with host Charlene Brown (left) interviewing Jacqui O'Hanlon, director of education at the RSC, and Karen Bell, the Arts Initiative at Ohio State. The feature included the video about the unique international partnership that's airing on OSU's main web page.

WOSU theatre critic Joy Reilly interviewed Bell and O'Hanlon for a feature that aired last Thursday. You can listen to the interview here.

Head to Arts in the Alley at South Campus Gateway on Thursday, Dec 3, for lots of arts activities! An opening reception will be held that night 6-9 pm for the solo show Sarah Weinstock: In the Overlap, with drawings and paintings (left) by the local artist and OSU alumna in the Arts Initiative space, 1568 N High St. Her show continues until Jan 22. That same night, Take the Floor will be part of the festivities at the Arts Initiative to celebrate our new wood, sprung floor. Surprise performances to celebrate the floor and join-in-the-fun sock-hop dance party will be part of the evening, says organizer Jenai Cutcher of JamJam Productions.

Across the alley at the Ohio Art League Gallery, the popular Annual Thumb Box Exhibition kicks off the same evening, showcasing small works by OAL members. That show continues until Dec 29. All pieces, available for sale, will be 6 x 6 x 6 inches or less.

The Shoebox, 1570 N High St, next door to the Arts Initiative, launches its featured artist program Dec 3, with an opening reception 6-9 pm for photographer Dave Kube's series Queering the Landscape (above).

Also in the South Campus Gateway community, Dec 3 is a special holiday shopping event at Aveda Institute, 1581 N High St, with all sorts of holiday specials 6:30-9:30 pm.

Looking ahead, ARTillery, the emerging visual artists who are part of the Shoebox space, will host a Holiday Art Market Dec 12 and 19, from noon to 6 pm each day, at the former Skye Bar space in South Campus Gateway. The group is still seeking vendors for those events; to apply go to the website.

Glass Axis, a not-for-profit community glass studio in Columbus, is currently seeking candidates for the new position of executive director. For more information, go to the website.

A panel discussion -- "Catching the Glass Bug: Life as a Glass Blower" kicks off a new series of presentations at Franklin Park Conservatory, co-sponsored by Arts and Sciences and the Institute for Collaborative Research and Public Humanities. The presentation, Weds, Dec 2, 6-7 pm, will be moderated by Kelly Stevelt Kaser, and will include artists Richard Harned, Adam Kaser, Kami Meighan and Dan Schreiber.

Sprucing up the Alley

Arts in the Alley -- the new arts community at South Campus Gateway -- has a brand new look! Banners were installed this week along buildings in the alley and along High Street to draw attention to the area. The installation, created by artist Adam Brouillette, pairs images of passers-by with artwork by local artists, and ask questions such as "Are you paying attention?" and "Does art make your community better?" Arts in the Alley is a forward-thinking collaboration with South Campus Gateway and the Arts Initiative that brings together arts and entertainment organizations within a commercial development, creating a vibrant and open community dedicated to learning, commerce and the arts. Stop down at the Gateway and take a look!


Notable News

Dispatch theatre critic Michael Grossberg devoted his theatre blog to news about the OSU/Royal Shakespeare Company partnership and this week's visit by eight RSC guests to campus. Take a look here.

The Arts Initiative welcomes the Wexner Center to South Campus Gateway! The Wex's just-announced film collaboration with Campus Partners at the Gateway Film Center will bring innovative programming and add to the energy in the Arts in the Alley community.

ARTillery is currently seeking vendors to participate in the Allied Arts Holiday Extravaganza, a two-day event Dec 12 and 19, designed to provide local artists with a venue to sell their work before the holidays arrive. The group -- which recently took up residence in the Shoebox at South Campus Gateway -- is looking for energized and motivated artists who produce quality objects for sale including ceramics, jewelry, photography, painting, printmaking, sculpture and wearable items. The event will be at the former Skye Bar space at South Campus Gateway both days noon-6 pm. For details, click here. ARTillery is a program of Allied Arts sponsored by the Arts Initiative and South Campus Gateway.

Learn the Shim Sham! Talented tap dancer Jenai Cutcher (above) is offering adult beginner tap dance classes every Weds at 5:30 at the Shoebox in the South Campus Gateway as part of the Arts in the Alley activities. Come when you can, pay what you can. More details on Jenai's JamJam Productions website.

Please join the Arts Initiative at Ohio State for A Talk with the Royal Shakespeare Company: "Building Ensemble with Ohio Teachers” on Thursday, Nov 19, 4:30-6 pm, at the Event Place at South Campus Gateway. Karen Bell, associate vice president, OSU, will moderate a panel discussion and open conversation with representatives from the UK’s Royal Shakespeare Company, Ohio State and local schools. A casual reception follows the program. Panel members include Jacqui O’Hanlon, director of education and David Rubin, actor, Royal Shakespeare Company, along with Brian Edmiston, associate professor, OSU, and Amy McKibben, middle school teacher from Reynoldsburg. Admission is free but space is limited.
Please RSVP to ellwood.1@osu.edu.

OSU's Royal Web Feature!

The main page of the OSU website is curently running a video and story about the Arts Initiative’s collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company. The feature follows the first group of local school teachers (above) working with the RSC over the summer, and highlights the university’s commitment to the arts, outreach to local public school children, education and building international relationships.

The piece was beautifully produced by Kristen Convery and Jake Housh in Ohio State’s New Media Unit. It will also be promoted via Ohio State’s social media platforms, and in Connect, the e-newsletter for OSU alumni and donors.

Notable News

Please join the Arts Initiative at Ohio State for A Talk with the Royal Shakespeare Company: "Building Ensemble with Ohio Teachers” on Thursday, Nov 19, 4:30-6 pm, at the Event Place at South Campus Gateway. Karen Bell, associate vice president, OSU, will moderate a panel discussion and open conversation with representatives from the UK’s Royal Shakespeare Company, Ohio State and local schools. A casual reception follows the program. Panel members include Jacqui O’Hanlon, director of education and David Rubin, actor, Royal Shakespeare Company, along with Brian Edmiston, associate professor, OSU, and Amy McKibben, middle school teacher from Reynoldsburg. Admission is free but space is limited.
Please RSVP by Nov 11 to ellwood.1@osu.edu.

Check out the activities in Arts in the Alley this Thursday, Nov 5, 6-9 pm. A number of events are planned that evening in the arts community that's sponsored by South Campus Gateway and the Arts Initiative. The Ohio Art League gallery presents the opening reception of Effervescent, works by Laura Alexander, curated by Somer Mager. The exhibition continues in the gallery until Nov 28. The same evening, the Allied Arts in the Shoebox, across the Alley from OAL, will come to life with music and a DJ, along with a wide range of artwork for sale from local, emerging artists. The Arts Initiative space -- also in the Alley -- will be open with large-scale work by Ian Magargee.

Alley Activity

The grand opening of Arts in the Alley -- the new arts community sponsored by the Arts Initiative at Ohio State and South Campus Gateway -- on Oct 8 attracted big crowds and lots of activity. The festive evening welcomed new partners to the area, including the Ohio Art League (below), Couchfire Collective and emerging artists taking up residence in the Shoebox, all in the alley at the Gateway on High Street at 10th Avenue. Some of the evening's activities included a tap dance class doing the Shim Sham (above), along with a DJ and VJ, a wide range of artwork for sale and two solo exhibitions.


Works by Joey Monsoon (above) were featured in the Ohio Art League gallery, while the Arts Initiative spotlighted paintings by Ian Magargee (below), who chatted with special guest, OSU President Gordon Gee.
Notable News

The Shoebox -- part of Arts in the Alley at South Campus Gateway -- is gearing up with all sorts of events and activities. The space came to be after local artists submitted proposals for the space, outlining their vision to perform, teach, display and sell artwork that will energize the neighborhood. The groups that are collaborating together within the Shoebox space (below) are ARTillery (artilleryohio@gmail.com), JamJam Productions (http://jamjamproductions.org/), (Mix)ed Media (http://learnmakeshare.com) and Whistling in the Dark Theatre Co. (http://www.whistlingtheatre.com).

A few upcoming Shoebox activities include:

• Monster Mash, Weds, Oct 28, door opens at 6:30 pm, screening of Psycho at 8. Halloween mixer with live DJ spinning spooky tunes, VJ mixing monster mashups, and a goblin-themed art market, followed by an 8 pm screening of Hitchcock’s Psycho. $5 donation suggested. More info at: www.learnmakeshare.com.

• The Howlariouis Hahalloween Puntastic Sketch Show, Oct 31, 7 pm. Sketch by Number, a sketch comedy troupe of young Ohioans committed to new, exciting, observational comedy is haunting the Gateway. Stop by on your way to High Ball in the Short North. After this, Sketch by Number will be presented every Thursday night at 11 pm. $5 suggested donation.

• Workshop: DVDesign, Weds, Nov 11, 7 pm. Looking for a way to organize your digital photos and video? This hands-on workshop in basic DVD design will help you make a keepsake DVD of your favorite digital files. $15. For more info and to sign up, go to www.learnmakeshare.com.

• William Shakespeare’s classic Macbeth, Nov 15, 7 pm. Directed by Kal Poole, the inaugural ShoeboxSundays@7 is a staged reading of the most horrifying Scottish tragedy ever written for King James I of England. Sundays@7 is a series of staged readings of new plays, classics, slam poetry and live radio dramas offered in the Shoebox every Sunday at 7pm. $3.

ARTillery also has regular gallery hours at the Shoebox with an ever-changing inventory of original works of art. Hours are Tuesdays and Fridays 11 am-7 pm, Wednesdays and Thursdays 11 am-2 pm, and Saturdays 11 am-4 pm.

For more, go to http://artsinitiative.osu.edu and click on Arts in the Alley.

Photo Op! Photographers were snapping pics of lots of passers-by in Arts in the Alley on Oct 26. Why all the shooting? The banners hanging on some of the store fronts in the alley are getting spruced up. Watch for the area's brand new look in a few weeks.

Arts in the Alley Grand Opening!

Don't miss the Oct 8 inaugural celebration of Arts in the Alley -- the new arts community sponsored by the Arts Initiative at Ohio State and South Campus Gateway. The two organizations welcome new partners -- including the Ohio Art League, Couchfire Collective and a group of local emerging artists -- in storefront spaces in the Gateway Alley, an arts and entertainment district just off High Street between 9th and 11th Avenues.

The evening includes the 6-9 pm opening reception for Works by Ian Magargee (below) in the Arts Initiative offices, 1568 N High St. The solo exhibition features large scale, geometric paintings by Magargee, a recent OSU MFA graduate. At the same time that evening, the Ohio Art League opens its doors in its new space just across the alley (1552 N High St) with an opening reception for Dreamsters Union, works by Joey Monsoon.

Also that evening, three teams of emerging artists converge in their new space at 1570 N High St in the Alley. They’ll present multimedia art with a live DJ, VJ and live feed, along with visual artwork for sale and a range of short, live performances.

See what The Other Paper has to say about Arts in the Alley here.
Notable News

Speaking of Arts in the Alley and good things happening in the arts. . . check out what Chris Purdy has to say on his WOSU blog in his piece, The Arts are Thriving in Columbus, Ohio.

The OSU Faculty Club presents Curtis Goldstein: Paintings through Oct 23. A reception is planned at the Faculty Club, 181 S Oval Dr on campus, on Friday, Oct 2, 6:30-8:30 pm. Goldstein is a Columbus artist and OSU alum who expresses his Ohio roots through his paintings of city scenes (below). He also is known for his large murals in Columbus.

OSU Art faculty members Ann Hamilton and Michael Mercil announce the opening Oct 4 of Murmeration, a sound installation at Teardrop Park, Battery Park City, in New York. The unique installation brings the calls of more than 350 wild bird species, which reside in or are migratory visitors to New York City, to the park. Their avian calls mix with sounds from frogs, crickets and spring peepers, audible to visitors through speakers placed within resonant chambers of five drainage basins scattered throughout the park. The installation also involved Ben Rubin and clarinetist Ned Rothenberg.

All Ohio State students, faculty, staff and visiting scholars are invited to submit photos to the 2009 International Photography Competition. All entries must have been taken outside the US and should be creative, original, and of high quality. A Best of Show will be selected, as well as 1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards in the following categories: People, Places and Food. Winning photographs will be exhibited in Bricker Hall Nov 16 - Dec 31. Deadline for entries is 5 pm, Wednesday, Oct 16.

Musician, Inc.: The Working Artist is a free half-day conference Friday, Oct 9, for students, faculty or staff interested in the law, technology and business of the music industry. Speakers cover topics including recording, press, booking, law and business as they relate to musicians. Marti Dodson from Saving Jane will be one of the panelists. The event is from 1 to 5 pm at RPAC, 337 W 17th Ave, on campus. It's organized by the Sports and Entertainment Law Association. For info, contact Kristi Wilcox, wilcox.164@buckeyemail.osu.edu

A Bridge Life: Finding our Way Home is a documentary film by Josh Grossberg, with a musical score composed by OSU's Steven Glaser, that will be screened at 7 pm Weds, Oct 7, at the Wexner Center. Grossberg and Glaser will introduce the film, which follows Dan Sheffer, a Florida loan officer, who traveled to the Houston Astrodome to bring Hurricane Katrina victims back to Florida.

Arts Alley Invites Proposals

The Arts Initiative and South Campus Gateway are teaming up to create "Arts Alley," part of the Arts Initiative's emerging artist program designed to help creative, talented entrepreneurial artists compose their lives and create work in Columbus. The partnership provides emerging artists with programming and studio space in the Gateway, starting this fall, with the intention of artists building community, exhibiting and selling artwork, performing, teaching and offering public lectures and/or studio talks. An application for available space for emerging artists is available now; deadline for proposals is Sept 7. To access the application and related list of guidelines, click here.

Notable News

Twenty Ohio public school teachers are back from their trip to Stratford-upon-Avon, UK, (above) where they spent a week exploring experiential education techniques with the Royal Shakespeare Company actors and educators. Their trip, and a related week of workshops at Ohio State, are part of the partnership between OSU and the RSC. If you haven't seen the blog detailing their experiences, click here.

An opening reception for Window of Hope, an exhibition at the Fresh A.I.R. Gallery in downtown Columbus, is tonight (Aug 24), 5:30-7 pm. The show includes works by 16 women living at the YWCA Columbus Women's Residency, and is a window for sharing images of their hope, survival and strength. The exhibition runs through Aug 28 at the gallery, 131 N High St. For info, call 744-8110.

Feed your Soul, a benefit for Available Light Theatre, is Sat, Aug 29, 6:30-9:30 pm at the Riffe Center's Studio 2. Hors d'oeuvres, performances and a silent auction are included; performance emcee is Karen Bell, associate vice president, the Arts Initiative. For ticket information, click here.

Cartoon Art Exhibitions

Don't miss two summer exhibitions from Ohio State's International Museum of Cartoon Art. From the Yellow Kid to Conan: American Cartoons from the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection (through August 7) is on view at Hopkins Gallery + Corridor, 10:30-4:30 M-F. For group tours, call 614-262-6493. The other show is Hogarth and Beyond: Global Cartoons from the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection (though August 31) at the Cartoon Library & Museum Reading Room Gallery, 27 West 17th Avenue Mall, 9-5 M-F. The image above is by Richard Felton Outcault, 1863-1928, Hogan’s Alley, April 4, 1897, ink and watercolor on paper. Outcault was a native of Lancaster, Ohio, and is credited with creating Hogan’s Alley, the first commercially successful American comic strip.

Notable News

Shakespeare program kicks off! The OSU / Royal Shakespeare Company partnership starts up in earnest this week when 20 Ohio public schoolteachers travel to Stratford for a week of intensive teacher education with the RSC actors and educators. The teachers are a very diverse group — representing grades 3 to 12, and including everything from science, math and English teachers to music instructors, intervention specialists, ESL teachers and more. They will work with the RSC in Stratford, then with OSU faculty and staff for a week on campus. Throughout the year, they will work with OSU faculty, researchers and Theatre/English students to embrace the RSC’s “Stand Up for Shakespeare” program in their schools, ultimately impacting hundreds of young students. Participating schools include Metro High School, Linden-McKinley High School and its feeder schools, and Reynoldsburg City Schools. A separate blog will be updated daily while they participate in the training with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford.

Through Aug 28, The OSU Faculty Club features Leaders in Glass: Selected Glass Artists from The Ohio State University, curated by Joel O'Dorisio. Fourteen nationally recognized glass artists present their works in glass, a show designed to offer an examnination of the breadth of talent developed through Ohio State's glass art program. Artists include Scott Benefield, Bridgit Boss, Matt Carmean, Martha Croasdale, Scott Darlington, John Drury, Roberta Eichenberg, David King, Tom Kreager, Jonathan Tepperman, Kami Meighan, Ed Schmid, Aimee Sones and Joel O'Dorisio.

'Marriage' comes to Mershon

OSU Opera and the Department of Theatre present Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30 at 8 pm in Mershon Auditorium. Set in an English manor in the late 20th century, this updated version of a timeless love story will be sung in Italian with English surtitles. Discount ticket prices for students, senior citizens, OSU faculty and staff (with ID). Above, students Amedee Moore and David Wilson rehearse.

Notable News

Ohio choreographers are invited to submit works for a new project that's a partnership of the Dublin Arts Council, OSU Department of Dance and OhioDance. The project involves the development and performance of a site-specific outdoor contemporary dance work. A chosen choreographer will create the work, using the Dublin Arts Council grounds, a grassy sloping location with a rolling hill descending to the Scioto River. For more information contact Jane D'Angelo at ohiodance@hotmail.com or find the invitaiton for submission here (scroll down to Sept events).

The Arts Initiative's offices present a new exhibition May 29-June 19 -- One Year in a Lifetime: A Celebration of First Grade. OSU alum Cavin Bodouin, first grade teacher at New Albany Elementary presents large-scale murals created by his 23 students as they explored a wide variety of subject matter throughout their first grade year. Opening reception is Friday, May 29, 5-7 pm.

Ohio State's popular Percussion Ensemble Pops Concert takes place on the Oval on Tuesday, May 26, at 6:30 pm. Bring a lawn chair or blanket to this free outdoor concert and enjoy the School of Music's Mallet Ensemble with music from the Ragtime era and the golden age of the xylophone.

ART Party with President Gee

The Ohio Union sponsored a special event, "ARen'T you glad you're with Dr Gee" at the Arts Initiative office at South Campus Gateway last Friday. Ohio State students with "ART" in their names -- like Arthur and Martha -- were invited to the evening event where students mingled with President E Gordon Gee and painted sun visors and bow ties. . . and even got a lesson in how to tie a bow tie. The winning bow tie was chosen by Dr Gee and will be framed and presented to him later. The event was held in conjunction with Big Arts Week, and South Campus Gateway was hopping with the sounds of live music on the plaza. Photos courtesy of Ohio Union.

Notable News

Apply for a Digital Storytelling Workshop by May 4. Would you like to tell the story of your teaching, research or outreach through a video or audio project? OSU's Digital Storytelling team invites you to apply for an intensive, hands-on Digital Storytelling Workshop to be presented Tuesday, June 16 through Thursday, June 18. Project ideas related to teaching, research or outreach will be given preference according to Liv Gjestvang, coordinater, Digital Union. Apply online here or read more here. Application deadline is May 4.

Walkscape OSU -- Join the campus-wide experiment in creative bipedalism by going for a walk. Visit new places, take new routes, look with a fresh eye. Walk by yourself, in pairs, in small groups, en masse. Document your experience with words, images, objects or sounds and contribute to the Walkscape Scroll that will be on the Oval May 20, 10 am – 4 pm. Sponsored by the Institute for Collaborative Research and Public Humanities and the Arts Initiative at Ohio State to inspire creativity on campus. For ideas, suggestions or to leave a comment, visit the walkscape blog or email livingston.28@osu.edu.

Day by Day....

The Ohio State Department of Theatre partners with CAPA to present the musical Godspell April 16-19 at the historic Southern Theatre in downtown Columbus. Originally conceived by John-Michael Tebelak, with music and new lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, the Ohio State production is directed by Mandy Fox. For tickets call (614) 292-2295. Above, (l-r) Kristen Russell, Meredith Lark, Danny Ferguson and Gabriel Lopez rehearse a scene. Photo by Eric Mayer.

Notable News

The Organization of Art School Students Union (OASSU) will host an artist talk with Chris Martin at 4 pm Weds, April 15, in room 262, Hopkins Hall. Martin is an abstract painter who creates poetic works bursting with color, employing elements of collage and landscape imagery.

The Wexner Center will announce its slate of summer films -- indoor and outdoor series -- on Weds, April 15, at 2 pm via live streaming video.

Don't forget about Big Arts Week at Ohio State next week -- with a whole slate of events planned on and around campus. Enjoy performances, art exhibitions, improv, films, jazz, dance, bands and more!

Got an interest in the relationship of the cosmos and the psyche? Richard Tarnas, professor of philosophy and cultural history at the California Institute of Integral Studies, presents a lecture and workshop Fri, April 17, and Sat, April 18, at First Community Church in Columbus. The events are sponsored by the Jung Association of Central Ohio. Full time students may attend the Fri lecture for free; bring ID. For details, click here.

Synchronous Objects Launched

It was a packed house at a symposium April 1 at Ohio State celebrating the launch of the interactive web project Synchronous Objects for One Flat Thing, reproduced. The symposium featured choreographer William Forsythe and web project collaborators Maria Palazzi (ACCAD), Norah Zuniga Shaw (Dance) and other Ohio State researchers from a wide range of disciplines. It was held at the Wexner Center, concurrent with the opening of the exhibition William Forsythe: Transfigurations. The interactive web project (above), now available to the public, is the result of a multi-year collaboration with The Forsythe Company, based in Germany, and Ohio State. The project presents an original collection of screen-based visualizations (video, digital artwork, animation and interactive graphics) that reveal interlocking systems of organization in the choreography. It has been featured in the New York Times, the Columbus Dispatch and the online site Information Aesthetics.

Notable News

It's never hard to find things to do around the Ohio State campus . . . but for one week in late April, there's a big bunch of arts events all going on at once! We're calling it Big Arts Week and it includes everything from a student organization-sponsored arts festival to exhibitions, a film fest, variety show and the always popular OSU Jazz Festival.

Call for artists! The second annual Art Al Fresco, a day-long event in the Short North to spotlight the power of public art, is seeking entries for this year's event, scheduled for Aug 15. Last year, the outdoor event drew over 10,000 people. Up to 50 artists will create temporary public art installations in outdoor venues, from parks and courtyards to rooftops and sidewalks. Applications, due May 22, are available online.

Student filmmakers take note! InMyShorts.com is seeking submissions for an online film festival. Submit your work online by April 11 and compete with other OSU students for prizes and recognition. Top-rated films will be shown at the Landmark Gateway Theatre on April 11 at 7 pm. Go to the website, "join" the Ohio State University group and upload your video to enter the competition. Videos must be under 10 minutes and under 50 mbs. All categories are accepted, and can be anything from experimental to musicals to Hollywood!

The media-savvy Builders Association returns to the Wexner Center April 16-18 for Continuous City, a show that looks at how our "networked selves" are stretched to occupy multiple locations. Sequences filmed in Columbus will be integrated in Continuous City's globe-spanning dreamscape.

Student Musicians Wow Crowd

An audience of more than 300 community leaders enjoyed the talents of more than 20 Ohio State students and faculty from the School of Music at last week’s Columbus Council on World Affairs awards luncheon at the convention center. Ohio State was recognized at the event as the International Organization of the Year; President E. Gordon Gee accepted the award and was keynote speaker. A student jazz combo (left) played cool jazz tunes as people registered and networked in a reception area. Percussion students (above) – led by Susan Powell and Joe Krygier (Music) – provided upbeat entertainment on stage during the event, as did 11 opera singers (below) – directed by Peter Kozma and accompanied by Edward Bak – who belted out the finale from the Marriage of Figaro.

The OSU Urban Arts Space and its February 2008 grand opening event (below) and opening exhibition, Midnight Robbers: The Artists of Notting Hill Carnival (co-curated by Lesley Ferris, Theatre) were honored last week with the Artistic Excellence award by the Greater Columbus Arts Council. The $10,000 prize is given annually to an arts organization that has demonstrated innovation, risk and artistic excellence. Several of the other nominees have close ties to Ohio State too – including the Columbus Museum of Art, led by alumna Nannette Maciejunes (Art History), and its Objects of Wonder exhibition, curated by alumna Melissa Wolfe (Art History), and the Columbus Dance Theater, headed by Dance alum Tim Veach.

Twenty school teachers from central Ohio public schools – including Metro High School, Linden-McKinley High School and its feeder schools, and Reynoldsburg City Schools – have been chosen as the first participants in the Ohio State / Royal Shakespeare Company Partnership. They include 11 high school, 2 middle school and 7 elementary school teachers. Starting this summer, the group will work with RSC actors and educators and OSU faculty in an intensive teacher education program based upon the Stand Up for Shakespeare experiential learning program. Plans are also underway for a one-day workshop next fall for teachers from a wider range of schools.

Speaking of the Royal Shakespeare Company, you can catch its production of King Lear, starring Sir Ian McKellen, on WOSU TV/HD at 8 pm March 25 and on WOSU PLUS digital channel at 8 pm March 26. The 3-hour show is presented by Great Performances.

There’s never a shortage of arts events on campus. . . but the area around campus is ripe with live music and arts events too. One newcomer to the university area is Wild Goose Creative, an organization committed to “creativity, hospitality, education and community.” Formed by six friends who went to college together in Michigan – including Nick Dekker and Jessie Boettcher (Theatre) and alum Beth Dekker – the group recently moved into space at Summit and Hudson Streets. Wild Goose Creative hosts a Third Thursday group – where an artist is invited to share his or her work – as well as a painters’ and writers' groups, a Shakespeare group and more.

Voting has begun in the Music Video Challenge sponsored by the Ohio Film Office. You can give your opinion by logging on the YouTube site and casting your vote.

Guggenheim Features Hamilton Work

Ann Hamilton (Art) has an installation -- human carriage -- in a new exhibition, The Third Mind: American Artists Contemplate Asia: 1860-1989, at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. The exhibition, which opened Jan 30 and continues until April 19, features 250 works by 100 artists and literary figures in a broad range of media, including the site-specific commission by Hamilton. The show explores the impact of Asian art, literature, music and philosophical concepts on American art. Hamilton's piece was created for the Guggenheim's rotunda. Focusing on themes of transmission and transformation, she devised a mechanism that traverses the entire Guggenheim balustrade, in the form of a white silk "bell carriage" with Tibetan bells inside. As the cage spirals down, the purifying bells ring. The system is propelled by a pully system and weights composed of thousands of cut-up books. According to Hamilton, the elements of human carriage compose a visual metaphor for the processes of "reading which leaves no material trace but which might forever change you."

Notable News

Drums Downtown VI comes to the Riffe Center's Capitol Theater this Fri, Feb 27, and Sat, Feb 28 at 8 pm. The popular production features percussion, dance, art and multimedia, with OSU’s Percussion Ensemble and guest students and faculty from OSU Dance—a tour de force collaboration! Click here for details and ticket info.

Calling artists! Ohio Staters Inc. and Major Campus Events Committee (MCEC) are interested in your talents. During the week of April 20, the groups will host Festival of the Finest to showcase the artistic variety and skills of OSU students and student groups. Any and all mediums, from fine art to performance, are welcome to apply. Click here for guidelines and an application. Submissions and questions should be directed to applications.osu@gmail.com by 5 pm March 6.

The Ohio Film Office launched the Ohio Film Music Video Challenge Feb 18. A production team has 3 weeks to partner with a musical act, create a concept, shoot the music video and post it (to be judged) on the official YouTube challenge site. Winners will be selected from a panel of professionals in the music and film/video industries.

Central Ohio Schools Join RSC Partnership

A group of about 20 Ohio public school teachers will be the first to participate in an extensive teacher leadership education program that’s at the core of a new partnership between The Ohio State University and UK’s Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), according to Karen Bell, associate vice president, The Arts Initiative at Ohio State. The first cohort of teachers will come from Franklin County’s Metro High School; Columbus City Schools’ Linden-McKinley High School and its feeder schools; and Reynoldsburg City Schools. The schools are STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) schools affiliated with the Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN).

“We’re delighted to be working with these central Ohio schools in the venture with the RSC,” says Bell. “At first it may seem like a surprising fit to explore Shakespeare in STEM schools, but in fact it’s a perfect fit. Like scientific investigation, the RSC’s drama education program is all about creative learning, experiencing and exploring.” For the entire story, click here. (Photo of the RSC's Stand Up for Shakespeare program by Ellie Kurrtz.)

Notable News

Art Ed alumna Ivy Chevers (PhD) has orchestrated upcoming events celebrating the life and music of Bob Marley, at the King Arts Complex in Columbus. Events include a documentary film on Fri, Feb 6, at 6:30 and 9 pm, and a Marley tribute concert at 8 pm Sat, Feb 7. For info, click here.

The Ohio Art League presents its 98th Annual Spring Juried Exhibition at the OSU Urban Arts Space in downtown Columbus through March 27. The exhibition features works -- including this one by Ardine Nelson -- selected by juror David Pagel. For more, see the OAL website.

John Hemingway, grandson of Nobel Laureate Ernest Hemingway will read from and discuss his new memoir, Strange Tribe -- which explores the similarities between his transsexual father (Hemingway's youngest son) and Ernest Hemingway -- at a talk on Tues, Feb. 17 at 7 pm in the Wexner Center Film and Video Theatre. This talk is co-sponsored by the Department of English, OSU Sexuality Studies Program, Institute for Collaborative Research and Public Humanities and the Wexner Center for the Arts.

A community choir based at the campus-area church Summit on 16th will join forces with choir and band students from Indianola Middle School to present a short concert (and lots of chocolate) on Sat, Feb 14, 6 pm, at Indianola Middle School, 420 E 19th Ave. The community choir of about 25 singers under the direction of Sheena Phillips will sing choral arrangements of love songs by the Beatles, Elton John, Cole Porter and George Gershwin, and some up-tempo gospel music. Admission is free; donations will benefit the music program at Indianola.

Alum Presents Dance at King Arts Complex

Photo of the Week

Dance alumna Kristina Isabelle's Dance Company presents Levels & Lines this Saturday (Jan 24) at the King Arts Complex in downtown Columbus. The performance is a multi-dimensional exploration in movement, video, light and sound, inspired by abstract expressionist painter Joan Mitchell. The evening length production incorporates "dynamic dancing on the ground, in the air and in all the space in-between." In honor of the inauguration of the country's new president and to reaffirm a commitment to the community, the King Arts Complex is offering admission to the performance on a "pay what you can" basis. Above, dancers are Jeff Fouch, Zoe Rabinowitz, Maggie Page, Jessica McKelvey and Kristina Isabelle. Photo by Stephanie Matthews.

Notable News

The Andy Warhol show at the Wexner Center continues to draw big crowds. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) recently called the show "deeply illuminating" and "easily one of the major cultural events in Ohio at the moment." Check out the show before it leaves Feb 15. Upcoming events include a talk by Susan Rossi-Wilcox about a Warhol cookbook on Jan 28, the next First Sunday on Feb 1 and several closing events. Thursdays feature free admission 4-8 pm.


Ohio State’s Cartoon Research Library has a new name -- the Cartoon Library and Museum. The new designation comes on the heels of the acquisition of the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, which brings its holdings to more than 400, 000 original works of art used in its active exhibition program. The Cartoon Library and Museum is exploring options for a possible new location with museum-quality galleries and additional storage for its rapidly-growing collection. (No Honest Man Need Fear Cartoons, Homer Davenport, 19th century. From RSWCGA - Richard Samuel West Collection.)

Jan 25 is the last day for the Non Fiction Design Collective exhibition Shakespeare Wooden Minnow at the Clay Studio in Philadelphia. The Columbus-based collective is a group of four artists working together: Rebecca Harvey and Steve Thurston (Art) and alumni Guy Michael Davis and Katie Parker, who join forces in the creation of tableware, bricks, lighting and other objects. The show is the first to come from the Clay Studio's call for curatorial proposals.

ACCAD Brings Thurber Dogs to Life

Students at Ohio State’s Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD) have been busy bringing the beloved drawings of dogs by humorist James Thurber to life via animation. The animated illustrations will be projected during a concert performed by Columbus’s ProMusica Chamber Orchestra on Jan 10—11, and will accompany Peter Schickele’s Thurber’s Dogs – Suite for Orchestra, a piece originally commissioned by ProMusica in 1994. The musical composition is based on six of Thurber’s short stories that incorporate his much-loved line drawings of dogs. The project is a collaboration with ACCAD, ProMusica and Thurber House.

Nine Ohio State graduate students worked as a team to animate six sequences involving the dogs. The students built the animations around the music, tightly timing them to the piece. Using research, storyboards, 3D modeling and animation, the group spent months creating character movement that simulated hand-drawn animation and remained true to Thurber’s unique style. The project was directed by Vita Berezina-Blackburn, animation specialist. For an overview of the project, visit the website.

Notable News

Ohio State folks can see the preview of the Evolution Theatre Company production of Frozen -- Bryony Lavery's award-winning British drama -- on Jan 14 at 8 pm. Anyone with a BuckID (students, faculty, staff) can get tickets for that show for $2.50. The production features OSU's Mandy Fox and is directed by Jimmy Bohr (Theatre), and is presented at the Columbus Performing Arts Center downtown. Artistic director of the new theatre company is Theatre PhD student and Music staffer Paul Lockwood. Tickets can be purchased (cash only) at the door, or email lockwood.38@osu.edu. For more details, go to Evolution's website.

Cinema Latino kicks off at the Wexner Center for the Arts. For the third year, the Wexner Center is presenting Cinema Latino, with the best in new film from Latin America. The acclaimed Pope’s Toilet kicks it off, a Uruguayan film about a poor town preparing for the Pope’s visit, called “alternately heartbreaking and hilarious” by the Village Voice. It’s showing Friday night (Jan 9) at 7 pm, with a free public reception prior to the screening. Another featured film is Silent Light on Feb 15, about German-speaking Mennonite farmers in Mexico, called dazzling by the New York Times. “To miss this film would be a sin,” wrote critic AO Scott. For the full schedule, click here.

OSU alumnus Tom Harbrecht has an exhibit -- Landscapes and Seascapes -- opening Jan 8 and continuing until Feb 20 at the OSU Faculty Club. A reception is planned Jan 16, 6:30-8:30 pm. The paintings include scenes from central and southeastern Ohio, and rural Florida.

Michael Layne, a Jamaican student in Art Education's "mostly online MA" program sends photos of a community mural his high school students completed in Port Antonio, Jamaica (above). The mural, which garnered the attention of Jamaica's minister of education, is one of several the group is creating. The MA program is a partnership with the Edna Manley College of the Arts in Kingston.