"The Morning After" exhibit at WOW features student work NOT selected for annual UW juried show

From Works of Wyoming in Laramie:

It is time for the 17th Annual Salon Des Refuse hosted by Student Art League. The Salon des Refuse will consist of fabulous artwork created by University of Wyoming art students. It will be located in the Works of Wyoming art gallery in the Laramie Plains Civic Center, Suite 271. The reception will take place the morning of Saturday, January 28 from 10am – noon. 

“The Morning After” is the opening event and title for the Salon this year. The annual Salon de Refuse is an event started by the Student Art League and consists of artwork that was not selected for the Juried University of Wyoming Student Exhibition. The Salon de Refuse was one of the first alternative art exhibitions set up by famous artists such as Manet, Cezanne, and Picasso. These artists were not yet famous in the 1800s and their works were not allowed into the traditional galleries. We invite you to come look for your own Cezanne among this fabulous work.

The Salon will be open from January 28 – February 17. Student Art League will present a $100 cash award to one artist and Works of Wyoming has donated a membership for a second artist award. 

Cindy George named new executive director of Center for the Arts in Jackson

From an article by Aaron Wallis in JH Weekly:

After six months without an ED, the Center’s board of directors has finally filled the position with a local candidate. Wilson resident Cindy George has accepted an offer to be the new executive director. George previously served on the Art Association’s board of directors and has been involved with some of the Center’s other resident organizations as a board member, consultant and volunteer.

She was also an integral component of the initial Center for the Arts Capital Campaign. When asked about the possibility of taking over as the Center’s new executive director just a day before the decision was announced, George replied, “I’m excited about this opportunity and I am looking forward to working with all the creative partners housed at the Center as well as the other arts and education organizations in the community.”

The Center’s Board should be congratulated on hiring a local instead of an out-of-town candidate. No matter how much fundraising experience a prospective candidate has, it’s really irrelevant if you don’t know the locals who have an active interest in supporting the arts. George’s deep ties in the community will surely help efforts to chart a new direction for the Center.

Read the rest at http://www.planetjh.com/news/Article.aspx?ArticleID=107989

Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest" on stage March 13 in Cody

 The Aquila Theatre Company presents Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest”                                                                  

Tuesday March 13, 2012, 7:30 pm , Wynona Thompson Auditorium, 1225 10th Street, Cody, WY

Tickets are $18 Adults  $15 Seniors/Students

“The Importance of Being Earnest” is a perennial audience favorite, a play that overflows with razor sharp wit, sublime elegance and dizzy romantic comedy.  It is the tale of Jack Worthington and Algernon Moncrieff, both young men who have taken to bending the truth to add a dash of excitement to their lives and secretly escape the social expectations of the English upper class.

Come and see why Oscar Wilde remains one of the best loved and most respected dramatists in the English language and why “The Importance of Being Earnest” is widely considered his finest play.

FMI: http://parkcountyartscouncil.org 

Paramount Cafe in Cheyenne holds Open Mic Night on Feb. 3

Open Mic Night at The Paramount Café, 1607 Capitol Ave., Cheyenne, will be held on Friday, Feb. 3, 6-9 p.m. If you would like a slot that night, call the café at 307-634-2576!

Some info:

“The café lacks a PA system but our acoustics sound great and the sound carries well. We are so excited to hear some local artists! Our only request is no profanity or vulgar language!”

Wyoming Poetry Out Loud competition takes place March 5-6

Sara Ellingrod, center, Wyoming's 2011
Poetry Out Loud champ.

If you are a teacher of 9th - 12th grades and have students that are interested in competing in Poetry Out Loud, you have until February 20 to hold a school contest. Two competitors make a contest!

The state finals will take place in Cheyenne on March 5th and 6th. The dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Historic Plains Hotel. The competition takes place at the Historic Atlas Theater, across the street from the Plains beginning at 7 p.m.

The following morning, breakfast begins at 7 a.m. Student and teacher workshops begins at 8 a.m.

At 10:30 a.m., everyone goes to the Capitol, where certificates are given to all the participants, and the winner and runner-up are announced.

Invited guests include, Jim Coppoc a performance poet from Iowa; Pat Frolander, Wyomng's Poet Laureate; and Cindy Hill, Superintendant of Public Instruction.

FMI: linda.coatney@wyo.gov or 307-777-6393

Register now for Americans for the Arts 2012 convention in San Antonio

From Americans for the Arts:

The New Normal—we hear about it every day, but what does it mean to your organization?

The 2012 Americans for the Arts Annual Convention this June 8–10 in San Antonio, TX will bring together more than 1,000 arts and community leaders to focus on how the arts field can function, change, and thrive in The New Normal—a landscape of economic uncertainty and shifting demographics.

Register before the early-bird deadline, April 27, to save up to $175! Plus, register now and receive $50 off a second registration for a colleague. Check out all the Ways to Save and book your hotel room today!

UW Art Museum holds reception this evening for spring exhibitions

The University of Wyoming Art Museum in Laramie will present its spring exhibitions during a free public reception from 6-8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 27.

"The 37th Annual Juried UW Student Exhibition" presents the creative work of UW students from all disciplines. This year's juror is Sharon Kennedy, curator of cultural and civic engagement at the University of Nebraska's Sheldon Museum of Art. An awards ceremony for standout work from the Juried UW Student Exhibition will take place at 6:30 p.m.

Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky's "The Industrial Sublime" presents masterful large-scale color images from around the world that explore the landscape of industry, consumerism and culture. 

Brian Dickerson explores the idea of "remembered landscapes" through minimal, three-dimensional paintings on wood through his exhibition, "Constructed Paintings and Drawings." The heavily layered and reworked surfaces contain hidden forms, suggesting deep emotional meaning and a sense of mystery.

"Photography from the Twentieth Century," from the Art Museum Collection, examines the creative vision of early photographers and their place in developing of an American genre. The first show is a two-part exhibition that focuses on pictorial and portrait traditions -- the basis of early photography.

Also from the Art Museum's collection, "Woven Traditions, Native American Basketry of the Southwest," shows baskets that feature traditional and contemporary designs, including turtles, spiders, butterflies and kachinas.

For additional information about the UW Art Museum call (307) 766-6622 or visit the museum's webpage at www.uwyo.edu/artmuseum or blog at www.uwartmuseum.blogspot.com . The museum is located in the Centennial Complex at 2111 Willett Drive in Laramie. Hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m-5 p.m. Admission is free.

Photo: Shelby Lee Adams' photo, "Leddie & Children," will be among the UW Art Museum spring exhibitions.

Digital Media Symposium Feb. 3 at UW

The University of Wyoming will hold a "Digital Media Symposium" on Friday, Feb. 3, in 506 Coe Library (fully tech-friendly space). Here's the schedule:

9:30 a.m.: Professor of English Craig Dworkin, curator of on-line archives of conceptual writing

10:30 a.m.: Professor of History/Director of Digital Scholarship Lab at U of Richmond Robert K. Nelson

11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: Lunch

1 p.m.: Associate Professor of New Media Studies Cheryl Ball, rhetorical studies

2 p.m.: Assistant Professor of English Brian Kim Stefans, new media poetry and poetics

3:15 p.m.: Roundtable Discussion with panelists

Given that digital production, research and dissemination permeate all fields of scholarship, creative practice and teaching, the English Department has been planning a one-day digital media symposium as a way to explore how we should integrate our traditional trainings with the transformative impact digital media has had on contemporary culture at large and on current artistic, scholarly and pedagogical practices in particular.


List of speakers:

Assistant Professor of English, Brian Kim Stefans, new media poetry and poetics

--Brian Kim Stefans has published several books of poetry and criticism, is the editor of the /ubu (”slash ubu”) series of e-books, and is the creator of arras.net, devoted to new media poetry and poetics.

Associate Professor of New Media Studies, Cheryl Ball, rhetorical studies

--Cheryl Ball is an influential teacher, editor and scholar invested in exploring contemporary genre(s), technologies, media, and modes.

Professor of English, Craig Dworkin curator of on-line archives of conceptual writing UW

--Craig Dworkin curates two on-line archives of conceptual writing and publishes widely on twentieth and twenty-first century American poetry, avant-garde and conceptual writing and literary theory.

Professor of History, Robert K. Nelson, Director of the Digital Scholarship Lab at U of Richmond

FMI: Mary P. Sheridan, 307-766-6452, msherid1@uwyo.edu

Jackson Hole Music Experience holds first WORD TO THE WISE Rap Battle Jan. 28

From JH Weekly:

Jackson Hole Music Experience hosts guitar workshops, after-school programs and rock camps for the under-21 music-loving set. This weekend the organization will host its first "Word to the Wise Rap Battle" emceed by Phonetic.

Lisel Spence, JHME’s marketing director, explains it as “a musical boxing match, where instead of throwing punches, the participants throw punchlines … It takes unbelievable wit, timing, knowledge of the language and rhythm, to be the best.”

The crowd votes for its favorite in each round and the winner gets $100. The event is open to all ages and encourages lyrical gangsters, younger and older, to come together in a place without a liquor license, cover charge or age requirement.

Spence anticipates an enthusiastic turnout and encourages registration. 

Word to the Wise Rap Battle, 7:30 to 11 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 28, at Teton County Fair Building. Free.

FMI: http://www.jhme.org.

Call for entries: "Across the Divide" at Coconino Center for the Arts in Flagstaff, AZ

Across the Divide will encompass the vast array of contemporary ceramics in the sculptural and installation genres. This exhibit uses the Continental Divide as a metaphor for the artist working in clay that has separated them from traditional techniques and stereotypes within the medium. Artists are encouraged to submit work that pushes traditional boundaries of the ceramic medium in its treatment of material and subject.

This exhibit is open to all artists, national and international. All forms of ceramic sculpture, installation and new media work are eligible. Works should have some ceramic component and can range in scale from hand held to monumental.

Juror Steven Schaeffer is a ceramic sculptor whose work has been shown nationally as well as internationally including the Florence Biennale and the Ceramic Biennial International Competition in Korea. Steve teaches Ceramics at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona.

A prize will be awarded for best of show ($500).

A $35 Entry fee covers the submission of up to 3 works of art. Work will be juried from digital images, two images per work may be submitted. Wall mounted works must not be taller than 127". Sculptural work must fit through a doorway that is 80” high x 85” wide. Weight limit of suspended pieces 15 lbs.

Postmark Deadline for submissions: April 6, 2012
Notification of acceptance: April 19, 2012
Delivery of artwork: May 14-17, 2012
Exhibit opens: June 2, 2012
Exhibit closes: July 28, 2012

Download the Call for Entries Application (.pdf)

Questions can be directed to:
Robin Cadigan
Gallery Director
Coconino Center for the Arts &
Flagstaff Cultural Partners
(928) 779-2300 x 104
rcadigan@culturalpartners.org

Photos: top Christine Golden, bottom Steven Schaeffer 

Sotto Voce Tuba Quartet -- from Brazilian syncopation to Frank Zappa songs

The Sotto Voce Tuba Quartet performs on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 7 p.m., at the WYO Theater in downtown Sheridan.

As adept at Brazilian syncopation as arrangements of Frank Zappa's music, the Sotto Voce Tuba Quartet gets around as nimbly in their repertoire as their oversized instruments. This highly acclaimed, internationally recognized quartet enthusiastically challenges preconceived notions about what tubas can do by composing, arranging, and commissioning virtuosic new works that highlight the diversity of their ensemble. Oh... did we mention they sing too?

Tickets are $15 Adults/$13 Seniors & Military/$8 Students/$5 12 & Under.

FMI: www.tubaquartet.com/about.html

Last weekend for "Messiah on the Frigidaire"

The small town of Elroy, South Carolina, is thrust into the middle of a media frenzy when the face of Jesus appears on a refrigerator in a trailer park. When Lou Ann, her husband Dwayne and best friend Betsy become the center of the evangelical spotlight, their relationships are put to the test, proving God moves in truly mysterious ways.

Run dates for Cheyenne Little Theatre Players' "Messiah on the Frigidaire" are January 26-28. Play begins at 7:30 p.m.; Jan 29 @ 2 p.m. FMI: 638-6543.

Cat Urbigkit presents "Yellowstone Wolves" at Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library Jan. 29

From a library press release:

The Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library will host author Cat Urbigkit for a free presentation about changing public attitudes about wolves. The program, presented by the Wyoming Humanities Council as part of its Humanities Forum, will be held at the Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library on Sunday, Jan. 29, 1:30 p.m. in the library’s Inner Circle.

Drawing heavily on the first few chapters of her book, Yellowstone Wolves: A Chronicle of the Animal, the People, and the Politics, Cat will lead the audience through an examination of public attitudes about wolves relying on published literature, debunking the myth of Little Red Riding Hood’s influence by demonstrating how human interactions with wolves determine public attitudes. The author will review historic accounts from different eras of western development and look at the views expressed in those accounts.

Copies of Yellowstone Wolves and other titles by the author will be available for purchase and signing after the discussion. Cat Urbigkit is an award-winning author and photographer based on a sheep ranch near Pinedale. She writes a news blog about wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains.

For more information about this news release, contact Debbie Iverson at 307-674-8585 ext. 29.

Latest issue of Jackson Hole Review now online

AddThe fall 2011 issue of the Jackson Hole Review is now online. It features two poems by Wyoming Poet Laureate Emeritus David Romtvedt, along with an interview by Editor Matthew Irwin. Also is this issue are art, stories and poems, including one by Rick Kempa of Rock Springs. Go here to read the issue online. 

Results announced for 2012 Blanchan & Doubleday creative writing competition

The Wyoming Arts Council is pleased to announce the winners and honorable mentions in the 2012 Blanchan & Doubleday writing competition.

The winner of the Neltje Blanchan award for nature writing goes to George J. Vlastos of Casper. His submission was entitled "Out There -- 9 Poems." George teaches language arts at Star Lane Academy in Casper. He stresses performance poetry in the classroom and every year brings his students to the Poetry Out Loud competition in Cheyenne. He serves as emcee for poetry slams held at the Equality State Book Festival and the Casper College Literary Conference.

Winner of the Frank Nelson Doubleday award for women writers is Mary Beth Baptiste of Laramie. Her creative nonfiction manuscript was entitled “Singing Horses.” She worked for a number of years as a wildlife biologist in Grand Teton National Park. Her work has been published in Newsweek, Vermont Literary Review, Copper Nickel and Wyoming Wildlife magazine. She also works part-time as a technical writer.

Each of the winners will receive a $1,000 prize.

Judge for the competition was Susan Tweit, a nature writer from Salida, Colo.

Honorable mentions in the Blanchan category go to poet Matt Daly of Jackson and fiction writer Rosemarie London of Laramie. Doubleday honorable mentions go to creative nonfiction writer Patricia Stuart of Powell and creative nonfiction writer Lynn Carlson of Cheyenne.

The Blanchan/Doubleday awards were established in 1989 with an endowment from Neltje, an artist and arts patron in Banner, Wyo.

They are designed to bring attention to writers who have not yet received wide recognition for their work, and to support emerging writers at crucial times in their careers. Poets, fiction writers, essayists, and script writers who have published no more than one book in each genre and who are not students or faculty members are invited to apply.

Applications are available each fall from the Wyoming Arts Council.

FMI: Contact Michael Shay, WAC individual artist program specialist, 307-777-5234 or mike.shay@wyo.gov

Lander Art Center and Lander Pet Connection join forces for Jan. 27 fund-raiser

The Lander Art Center and the Lander Pet Connection are holding a joint fund-raiser in the form of an exhibition from January 27 through February 25. The show opens Friday, January 27, 6-8 pm. The opening is free and open to the public, appetizers and drinks are served.

The exhibition is of artwork inspired by pets and pet ownership created and donated by members of our community.  All artwork will be priced between $50 and $250 and proceeds will be split 50/50 between the Lander Art Center and the Lander Pet Connection.

Although the details of our missions are different, the Lander Art Center and the Lander Pet Connection are both working hard to make Lander an even better place to live.  Expressing one’s self through the creation of art soothes one’s soul similar to spending time with your pet.

Cheyenne native Daniel Junge gets Oscar nomination for documentary "Saving Face"

Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy is co-director of a documentary film entitled “Saving Face” with Daniel Junge (second from left in photo) for HBO. The film was nominated today for an Oscar in the "best documentary short" category. 

The Denver Post reports today that Denver filmmaker (and Cheyenne native) Daniel Junge's documentary, "Saving Face," has been nominated for for an Academy Award for best documentary short. The film's co-director is Pakistani native Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy. It was produced and edited by Denver's Davis Coombe. The film chronicles the struggles of Pakistani women who are the victims of acid attacks by their abusive husbands.

Daniel's work was the focus of the first-ever Cheyenne International Film Festival in May 2010. 

Read the story on The Denver Post web site. 

Author Abbie Johnson Taylor featured at three events in Sheridan

Sheridan author Abbie Johnson Taylor will sign copies of her new collection of poems, How to Build a Better Mousetrap: Recollections and Reflections of a Family Caregiver, at Sheridan Stationery Books & Gallery on Saturday, January 28 from 1-3 p.m. and in the lobby of the Sheridan Senior Center on Tuesday, February 14, from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. She will read from her book at the Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library’s Inner Circle on Sunday, February 12 at 2 p.m. Books will be available for purchase at all events which are open to the public. FMI: http://www.abbiejohnsontaylor.com

South Dakota novelist Kent Myers speaks at WWCC in Rock Springs Feb. 3