CricketToes

Bill T. Jones & The Dance Of History

History, it is said, does not recognize itself until it sees its own reflection in the eyes of the future. Occasionally, however, a time arrives when history is fully aware of its existence and its urgency is deeply felt by those living within it. In the midst of such a time did Abraham Lincoln become the 16th President of the United States, and the legacy of his leadership and determination to preserve the Union still resonates with profundity today.

But the story of history is often skewed by the perspective of those who tell it. In the case of Lincoln and The Civil War, the sheer immensity of scope, the complexity of actions and reactions, and the enormous number of lives involved, make telling the whole tale an exceedingly difficult and challenging undertaking.

Given this fact, should we not then explore the very essence of what we call history? Indeed we should, and one artist has created the vehicle with which we may do so. That artist's name is Bill T. Jones and his masterpiece is entitled Serenade/The Proposition:

Wow. Just wow.

Celebrated the world over, Bill T. Jones carries many titles--dancer, choreographer, artistic director and co-founder of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company--and has deservedly received numerous awards, including a 1994 MacArthur Fellowship and a 2007 Tony Award for his choreography for Spring Awakening--remember that joyous romp into adolescent frustration and angst? Sure ya do.

As is the duty of Alverno Presents to bring Milwaukee the very best the planet has to offer, they'll be welcoming Jones and his company for a 3PM performance of Serenade/The Proposition this Sunday, February 28. Tickets are $40 a peep, but anything this gorgeous and brainy is well worth every penny.

Buy tickets now and let history rightly judge you for the magnificent genius you are!

Related:
Now Is The Spring Of Our Discontent--The Musical!

Catching Up With Mary DiBiasio--Just Barely

It's been nine months since artist Mary DiBiasio took leave of our humble Miltown for an obscure little burg called New York City. During that time, she's made a dramatic shift from the very physical, room-consuming medium of printmaking--some of those presses are huge, kids!--to the more small-space friendly medium of digital imaging. This change of artistic agent, however, has not diminished her copious flow of creativity in any way, shape or form. In fact, she's so near to bursting her braincase with artsy ideas, it was all I could do to keep pace with her as we chatted on the phone some two weeks back.

For those unfamiliar with DiBiasio's life and talent, we offer a brief rundown. Born and raised in Chicago, IL, she soon found her way north, obtaining her BFA at Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) and teaching at various educational levels. While still a young artisan, she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic and progressively debilitating disease effecting the joints. Those of us well acquainted with RA never underestimate its painful cruelty, and for a printmaker--or anyone whose work demands physicality--it is a brutal blow indeed to receive such news.

But DiBiasio is not an ailment, she is an artist. She cannot deny her innate need for creative exploration nor halt the conceptual flood. Art is idea and, boy howdy, has she got plenty of that!

Her journey into digital has resulted in some truly bold yet oddly quiet images, collectively entitled The Still Life Series. Combining shots of windows, tables, chairs, and everyday objects, the manipulated images of domestic space speak to the specificity of each home and those who inhabit it. For me, the shots looking out through the widows also tell of the particular and sometimes peculiar view we have of the world based on our distinctive location.

In describing the work--which, btw, showed last month as projected images at The Green Gallery West--DiBiasio stated:

"I've always been interested in people living next to each other and with each other and the temporal nature of certain stability such as a home... the work was about change, about how my loved one's lives have changed in a year, the way my mother's apartment never really changes, the way we move from one place to another. It was also a meditation I think, for me as I was making them, on how people create their own little homes."

She went further, telling me that some of her friends who had been together when she took these images have separated, hence, they are a documentation of coexistence that no longer exists. Ya can't get more temporal than that, can ya?

DiBiasio is thinking about cobbling together a book of her Still Life Series, and I wish to heartily encourage her in pursuit of that endeavor. Frankly, I think any artsy publisher would be loony not to jump on it posthaste. She's also playing around with the notion of creating images on commission, whereby folks would hire her to document their domiciles, noting the changes that occur over time. Another sweet idea!

In addition to digital image making, DiBiasio is finding that ideas can spring from anywhere, even from places you'd least expect, like her day job at Rockefeller Center's Anthropologie--hey, girl's gotta eat, don't she? Course she does. Though I'm not at liberty to divulge the details as the project is still in its development stages, let's just say it's storytelling through the arrangement and display of objects and/or merchandise. Ooh, got ya all aquiver with that one, didn't we?

Link (Thanks, Mary!)

Article On New NEA Chair Makes Old-Timey Mag Temporarily Relevant

Raise your hand if you remember Newsweek. Hmm, not many of ya do, I see, meaning you were either born after 1980 and too wrapped up in the riveting dramas unfolding in the Barbies vs Transformers saga to take notice or your birth occurred before 1980 but the magazine's precipitous slide toward blisteringly boring and hackneyed content was seared from your memory in an effort to save the rest of your gray matter.

Well, kids, it seems that salvation has finally come to Newsweek's beleaguered editors--at least for now--in the form of Jeremy McCarter's piece on the new chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), Rocco Landesman, due out in print next Monday. Ink on paper gods be praised!

Available online now, the article bucks the mag's trademark milquetoasty tone, presenting a refreshing mix of the factual and the anecdotal. It could very well be that the energetic, outspoken Landesman is truly what makes this piece move, but I for one think McCarter did one hell of a good job.

To be honest, I didn't know Newsweek still existed until I stumbled across this article. Maybe if they can keep it up they can expand on their ginormous subscription base of just over 4 million--haha!

Link (via Thomas Cott's "You've Cott Mail")

Local Photog Makes Good, Image & Word Nerds Cheer!

For the artistic photographer, scoring a solo show while your heart still beats with gusto is an achievement of monumental proportions. And so it is that we are pleased as booze-infused punch to inform y'all that Miltown's own William "Bill" Zuback will open his Book Passages Exhibit this Friday, February 12, at the 10th Street Gallery. Fan-frickin'-tastic!

It was exactly one year ago today that Bill began posting his visual interpretations of the written word on his blog and the series has produced 20 striking and evocative images. Almost all excerpts were suggested by those who frequent his blog, though he reserved the right to pick his own, as he did with the last.

He also very kindly asked me to provide him with a short passage from my novel with the super secret title due out, oh I dunno, let's say some time in the next decade or so. Called Blinded by the Light, I was thrilled with the result! No kidding, I really was.

Okay, so the opening of the Book Passages Exhibit on Friday will commence promptly at 6PM and run to 8PM at the 10th Street Gallery. Those who can't make it that night have until April 9 to get their keisters over there to view the series. 10% of all art sales will go to support the Adult Literacy Program at Journey House.

On another exciting note, an interview with Bill will air tomorrow on WUWM Milwaukee Public Radio's Lake Effect from 10-11AM, with a rebroadcast at 11PM. The show will also be archived at its website later.

Good show, Bill! May this exhibit mark the beginning a fabulously artsy time for you.

Related:
17 Is My New Lucky Number
An Invitation to Beautiful Madness
Image of the Word in Black & White

The Macro-Good Of Micro-Funding

Here's something rarely shouted to a crowd of lovable ADD rattled artists: "Hey, kids, let's talk about economics!" I know, pinch me, right? It's like yelling, "Hey, kids, let's listen to a reading of the collected poems of Sylvia Plath!" in the middle of a raging New Year's Eve party.

Well today, right here on CricketToes, we're gonna talk about economics, specifically micro-economics--Yippee and Happy Tuesday! To those about to click away in search of sickeningly cute animal videos, we salute you. Come on back later when you're good-n-tight, though, 'cause talkin' money is even more of a hoot when you're all liquored up.

As is known by all with an interest in the study of economics, the concept of micro-lending has been around from the moment that members of the Homo genus began to place value on stuff within a communal setting. For example, waaaay back in the day if you managed to squeeze through the pile of humanity tearing away at the latest kill only to find there was nothing left to calm your hunger, you'd turn to your buddy Zog and tell him, "If you give me some of your meat now, I'll give you some of mine later." Thusly a deal was struck, with Zog becoming a micro-lender and you becoming a micro-lendee. Eureka!

Least we arrogantly believe ourselves to be the sole smarties on this planet, other social mammals--primarily primates--have been documented as engaging in activities similar to this. The only thing that truly separates our lending practices from theirs is the concept of getting back more than the amount lent. We benignly call this "interest" but its potential for nefarious abuse is strong and the real implementation of that abuse is widespread.

Micro-funding, on the other hand, has historically been more difficult to come by. Sure, individuals and small groups have given funds to artists and causes of worth throughout the centuries, but they tended to be rich folks who attached a significant number of clauses, catches and here's-what-we'd-like-to-sees. This largely remains the case today, buoyed up by well-intentioned worker bees within the organizations and institutions meant to benefit the artists/causes.

With the help of The Mighty Internets™, its sundry websites, blogs and social media hangouts, and advances in telecommunications, the democratization of micro-funding has already begun in earnest, allowing regular peeps from every background to chip-in what they can for a project they believe in. And they're doin' it right in plain sight of those who still think of themselves as The Grand Puppet Masters. Whoot!

Miltown played host to one of these beacons of funding freedom on January 23 with The Soup Chronicles: Micro Funding For Artists, sponsored by African-American Artists Beginning To Educate Americans About African American Art (ABEA). The result of this gathering was a highly uncommon one: The artist whose proposed project garnered the most votes of those in attendance received 90% of the donations collected. Did ya hear that, people? 90%! With 10% reserved for the next round.

As Della Wells, artist and founder of ABEA, expressed to me last week during a phone chat, the goal of The Soup Chronicles is to keep artsy money giving as simple as possible. No frivolous administrative costs cutting into the funding, no long-drawn-out selection process, no 80 pound submission packet detailing every actual and/or padded accomplishment of your artistic life required. Just a 500 word project proposal to be presented to the masses. That's it, that's all, that's awesome!

During this initial round, two artists, Monika Harris and June Schumacher, presented their ideas to the assembled crowd enjoying soup and bread for a minimum donation of a mere $5 per mouth. Doesn't sound like much, does it? But added all together ya end up with a fairly nice kitty--in this case $173--to begin or further a project that otherwise may never see the light of day. Also, it lowers the winning artist's blood pressure--hehe, get it? Course ya do.

Monika Harris got the most votes for the first ever Soup Chronicles, enabling her to launch a zine designed to empower women of color. Harris was brought to grateful tears upon hearing that she had secured the thumbs-up from those in attendance, providing her with the encouragement she needs and giving her the determination to move forward on a worthy project. Della told me that June Schumacher was just as pleased, recognizing that her participation in the event brought attention to her project as well. Hurray!

So besides the monetary assistance to the artist getting the most votes and the promotional benefit for all involved, how does a this type of micro-funding serve the macro-good? Hey, I'm glad ya asked 'cause--surprise!--I've got a few thoughts on that. Ready? Here we go.

As a practical matter, the money received by the artist will find its way into the larger, hopefully local, economy through purchases of supplies and/or services needed for the project, helping to sustain businesses and jobs. It's inarguably a small amount, but money is money, people, and every little bit counts. The day we start turning our noses up at a nickel here and a dime there is the day we no longer understand how a sustainable, good-for-everyone economy works, and that means curtains for us.

On a more intangible yet equally important level, an intimate setting like The Soup Chronicles encourages direct interaction between artists and the general population, creating a sense of involvement and cooperation that quite frankly does not exist in the funding game of the establishment--ya know, the ones where judges hold up a sign reading, "You must be this tall in the art world to enter," and nobody else has a say in which projects will get the dough. It is this deliberate distancing by the artsy elite that has fostered the alienation and disinterest in art that we now live with and suffer from, and any endeavor that can break through that ickiness is a welcome one indeed.

Of course, not everyone had a no-holds-barred positive reaction to the inaugural Soup Chronicles. Lisa Townsel of ThirdCoast Digest took a decidedly meh tone about the event in her piece posted on January 25:

"In a perfect world, such a fundraising idea would be ingenious. Simply put, patrons bring along their own bowls and dish out a $5 entry fee. In exchange, they hear about the artists’ backgrounds, see their work, get two ladles of soup and a slice of bread (juice, too, for an additional donation) and before the event ends, they select one artist to win the day’s money pot...

That’s in a perfect world. But on Saturday, it was apparent that this project could use a bit of smoothing out. While each artist spoke enthusiastically and coherently about artistic dreams and ambitions neither actually presented works for the audience to see."

Okay, unattainable "perfect world" aside, whaddya really think?

I asked Della about this criticism that the artists didn't provide visuals in their presentations. Her response was elegant and down-to-earth, pointing to the reality that not every artist has the money to create a mock-up or get their hands on a fancy laptop to blow the collective mind of the audience--and, btw, Schumacher did bring something to show, but she unfortunately experienced technical difficulties. Also, neither Della nor anyone else involved at the organizational level wants to interfere with the artistic vision of those applying. As she wisely stated, "Some people can talk their way into anything," and no amount of eye candy can replace good old-fashioned salesman- or womanship.

Anyhoo, there are obviously other benefits that come from micro-funding of this kind, but lemme end it here for the sake of all our eyeballs. I'd like to know your thoughts on the matter though, kids, so leave a comment, a question or a stream of consciousness tome for all to see.

For those who'd like to apply for the next round of The Soup Chronicles coming up in June, send your project proposal of 500 words or less to Della Wells via email wellsdella at yahoo dot com, or mail it to:
ABEA
631 East Hadley # 2
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212

Applicants should be 18 years or older and a resident of this here state, a.k.a. Wisconsin. If ya don't win, you're free to apply again. Those who walk away with the most votes can reapply after one year.

(Thanks, Della!)

Related:
The Soup Chronicles: Cast Your Vote For The Tastiest Project
Breaking: Soup Can Nourish Art

Academic Writes Something Readable, Masses Stunned

Guest blogger Matthew Trussoni, assistant professor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering’s Architectural Engineering Department and holder of several highfalutin degrees, posted a short piece on Urban Milwaukee yesterday that's not only interesting and thoughtful but very readable--a rare triumph indeed for most academics, don't cha know.

In his post, Trussoni makes the case that, compared to other burgs of the same age, Downtown Miltown's still-standing "historic cores" offer us a unique opportunity to marry the architectural past with a sustainable urban development future. This, in turn, would allow us to draw more visitors than the usual architectural history geeks--who, btw, insist on standing in the middle of the narrow sidewalks of The Third Ward, gawking upwards and forcing me to walk in the gutter--and help to solidify our identity.

Well, hey, that sounds like a stellar idea that we should probably adopt as we move forward, no? Yes!

My only criticism of the piece--and I cannot believe I'm saying this--is that it isn't longer. I mean, if you're gonna dangle a tantalizing argument like that out in front of me, can ya at least give me a tad more to chew on? More, more, I'm still not satisfied!

Here's hoping Trussoni is invited back so he can wax on about this important issue.

Link

The Ultimate Wisco Art & Craft Fair Directory Has Arrived

There's no denying that one of the best ways for many artisans to get their work noticed by members of the general population is through annual fairs. Whether fine art or DIY craft, jewelry or handmade furniture, a large percentage of folks who attend each individual fair are not just there to browse, they're lookin' to slap down some serious dough for the one, two, maybe even three things that serenade them with the irresistible "Love Me, Buy Me" siren song.

The sheer number of these potentially profitable events scheduled throughout the year makes it a daunting, mind-exploding task for any artsy and/or craftsy type to keep track of 'em all. Luckily the Wisconsin Arts Board (WAB) has got your back with its 2010 Wisconsin Art & Craft Fair Directory, saving you a messy braincase cleanup job.

Since 1976, WAB has been publishing this statewide directory for the consumption and edification of artists, arts organizations and art/craft loving peeps. The 2010 edition is now available to all via download or upon snail mail request. Featured on this year's cover is an acrylic on canvas work by Milwaukee's stunningly prolific Reginald Baylor, a WAB Artist Fellowship Award recipient.

The directory is organized chronologically, and by city and county, offering a list of close to 250 fairs held around the state, complete with submission deadlines and contact info. It's the ultimate resource for Wisco-based artisans seeking strut-your-stuff opportunities!

Best of all, WAB has managed to do what other governmental entities can only dream of: Pulling off a project that pays for itself. That's right, kids, WAB produced this directory at absolutootly, posilootly no cost to you, the Wisconsin taxpayer, covering it all through listing fees. Now that's an accomplishment truly deserving of a resounding Whoozzah!

Download the 2010 Wisconsin Art & Craft Fair Directory here, or call the Wisconsin Department of Tourism at 1-800-432-TRIP (8747) to request a printed copy.

(Thanks, Jeri!)