Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Blue Man Group's Pete Simpson, Jr., returns to UW for title role in "Hamlet"

William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" will be performed on the Fine Arts Main Stage at UW in Laramie April 20-24, 7:30 p.m., and April 25, 2 p.m. Directed by Leigh Selting.

A crown jewel of English literature and the most-produced and quoted of Shakespeare’s plays, "Hamlet" has captivated audiences for over 400 years with its explorations of life, love, duty, and vengeance. Returning to court to discover his father murdered, his mother hastily remarried to his abhorrent uncle, and an enigmatic ghost demanding retribution, young Prince Hamlet struggles with the costs of pursuing justice and his own humanity.

Our production of Shakespeare’s tour-de-force features professional actor Pete Simpson, Jr., UW alumnus and a long-time member of the widely acclaimed “Blue Man Group,” in the title role, and his real-life father, UW professor emeritus Pete Simpson, Sr., as the Ghost of Hamet's father.

Get tickets here

REMINDER: Postmark deadline April 1 for WAC visual arts fellowships

Doesn't seem possible, but the postmark deadline for the 2010 visual arts fellowships is Thursday, April 1. THIS IS NOT A PRE-APRIL FOOLS' DAY JOKE! We mean it, we really do.

The printable application and guidelines are available on the Wyoming Arts Council web site. Go to http://www.wyomingartscouncil.org.

This year, the WAC will award up to three fellowships of $3,000 each to honor the work of Wyoming visual artists that reflects serious and exceptional aesthetic investigation. Painters, sculptors, printmakers, potters, media artists, craftspeople, video, film and others (see guidelines) are invited to apply by submitting images of their work.

Jurors for this year's competition are sculptor Kate Budd from Akron, Ohio; Sue Johnson, mixed-media artist from St. Mary's, Maryland; and photographer Mark Klett of Tempe, Ariz.

FMI: Michael shay at 307-777-2534 or mshay@state.wy.us

WAC hosts "Visual Arts Weekend" in Casper

The Wyoming Arts Council invites visual artists from throughout the state to attend a fellowship awards reception on Saturday, April 24, 5:30-8 p.m., at the Hilton Garden Inn, 1150 N. Poplar St., in Casper. Heavy hors d’oeuvres and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided. The winners of the WAC’s 2010 visual arts fellowships will be announced at 6 p.m.

Immediately after the reception will be an “Artists’ Roundtable” conducted by 2010 fellowship judges Kate Budd, a sculptor from Akron, Ohio; Susan Johnson, a mixed-media artist from St. Mary’s, Maryland; and Mark Klett, photographer from Tempe, Arizona. Each of these artists will talk about their work. A Q&A session will follow.

These events are free and open to the public.

Artists also are invited to participate in a 20:20 presentation on Friday, April 23, 8-10 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn. The event is being planned and presented by the UW Art Museum. If you wish to participate in the 20:20 (first 20 artists only!), contact Rachel Miller at 307.766.6621 or rmiller@uwyo.edu. 20:20 is a fast-paced presentation format whereby presenters are able to show 20 images for 20 seconds each. Deadline to submit images in a PowerPoint format is Friday, April 9.

The 20:20 event is free and open to the public. Snacks and non-alcoholic beverages will be served.

FMI: Contact Michael Shay at the WAC, 307-777-5234 or mshay@state.wy.us.

"Canvas Bag Painting" at AVA Center April 20


The AVA Community Art Center in Gillette is offering "Canvas Bag Painting" on Tuesday, April 20, 6-8 p.m.

In celebration of Earth Week, Dara Corkery is teaching this class to decorate your own reusable bag for shopping or whatever! Create your own canvas bag using a variety of paints, stencils, sponges, shapes and other cool stuff from AVA's art supply. All ages are welcome, 8 and under require parent participation in the class.

Pre-register today! Class fee is $10

Learn More

Apply now for Summer Poetry Institute for Teachers in Boston July 12-16

From a press release:

Former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky, in cooperation with the Boston University School of Education, is accepting applications from teachers and teacher/administrator teams across grade levels for the ninth annual FPP Summer Poetry Institute for Teachers, an invigorating week of poetry in Boston, July 12-16, 2010.

Participants will read and discuss poems with renowned practitioners of the art, five award-winning American poets. Past faculty include Frank Bidart, Mark Doty, Louise Gluck, Major Jackson and Heather McHugh. Robert Pinsky leads the institute. Teachers will work in groups to develop lesson plans to share with each other and bring back to their classrooms.

Visit the Favorite Poem Project Web site (link below) to learn more, or to download an application.

FMI: http://www.favoritepoem.org/forTeachers.html

Chris Paine: "Who Killed the Electric Car?"



Filmmaker Chris Paine will speak on Thursday, April 8, 7:30 p.m., in the Fine Arts Concert Hall at University of Wyoming in Laramie. His presentation is part of the Shepard Symposium on Social Justice.

Chris Paine is a filmmaker and environmentalist living in Los Angeles. "Who Killed the Electric Car?" premiered at the Sundance in 2006 before its worldwide release by Sony Pictures Classics. Chris also produced "Faster" with Ewan McGregor about the world's fastest motorcycle race, and "No Maps For These Territories," a road trip with cyberpunk author, William Gibson and featuring U2 front-man, Bono.

Outside of film, Chris was an early player in California’s dotcom boom with his firm Internet Outfitters. His company Mondo-tronics, provided materials for the Mars Pathfinder mission. Paine’s activist work includes campaigns to protect forests and to curb US nuclear programs. He supports the Black Rock Arts Foundation, the Rainforest Action Network and Plug-In America. His website is available at http://www.whokilledtheelectriccar.com/

Chris's talk is entitled, "How many lightbulbs does it take to plug in the electric car?" and is about the politics, activism, zeitgeist and cold hard business reasons for return of the electric car . This presentation begins with a quick recap of "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and the reasons for its rise and fall in 1990s California. It then picks up where the first documentary left off and presents the reason for the incredible turn of events for the electric car as we are chronicling in "Revenge of the Electric Car."

FMI: http://outreach.uwyo.edu/conferences/justice/

REMINDER: Wyoming Arts Council holds town meeting April 1 in Lander

The Wyoming Arts Council is holding a Town Meeting on Thursday, April 1, 6:30-8:30 p.m. in Conference Rooms A&B at the Fremont County Library, 451 North Second Street in Lander.

The meeting is open to the public. The WAC is holding future meetings through mid-June in other communities around the state.

WAC Manager Rita Basom urges people to attend and “bring your comments, suggestions and dreams of the future for the arts in Wyoming.”

FMI: Contact the WAC at 307-777-7742.

Cheyenne Symphony (and friends) present operatic selections April 24

The Cheyenne Chamber Singers

On April 24, 7:30 p.m., the Cheyenne Symphony (and friends) present operatic selections from Bizet's "Carmen," Verdi's "Aida," Nabucco's "Macbeth" and "Il Trovatore," Puccini's "Tosca," "La Bohème" and "Turandot," Wagner's "Tannhäuser" and "Lohengrin," and Saint-Saëns' "Samson et Delilah."

The performance will be at the Cheyenne Civic Center.

Featuring the Cheyenne Chamber Singers, Cheyenne Capital Chorale, All-City Childrens’ Chorus, U.W. Collegiate Chorale, U.W. Singing Statesmen and LCCC Cantorei Singers with special guest artists Amy Johnson, soprano, and Marc Schreiner, tenor.

This concert presents many of the greatest hits from the world of opera. Many well-known opera choruses, sung by a very large massed choir, will be featured. Come and hear the anvil chorus, the pilgrim’s chorus, the march of the Toreadors, the grand march from Aida, and others. We will welcome two outstanding opera singers to give us a taste of some of the great Puccini arias and duets. Also included are a few exciting purely orchestral selections from operas.
Listen to an excerpt from one of the selections – "Turandot" Calaf – Nessun Dorma!

Click here to read about the music and composers -- Symphony & Opera In-Concert Program Notes

FMI: http://www.cheyennesymphony.org

UW Visiting Professor explores "African/Black Resistance" at today's History Dept. Colloquium

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Jeff Lockwood interviews Mark Ritchie

"Wyoming Signatures" host Jeff Lockwood engages Mark Ritchie, UW Art Professor, in a discussion about the way in which we perceive art and the creation of illusion through art. Wyoming Signatures is produced by UWTV. Read more. See the video at http://uwyo.edu.

Shirley Brice Heath on "Moving the Eye and the Mind" today at UW

Renowned linguistic anthropologist Shirley Brice Heath will present a public program March 30 at the University of Wyoming.

On Tuesday, March 30, Heath will lead a discussion on "Moving the Human Eye and Mind: The Grounding of Cognition in Visual, Musical, and Literary Arts," from 4:15-5:30 p.m. in Room 129 of the UW Classroom Building.

A MacArthur Prize winner for exceptional creativity and author of the classic educational ethnography, "Ways with Words: Language, Life, and Work in Communities and Classrooms," Heath has studied how young children are socialized through and into language use. Her early publications focus on very young children and the ways in which their language socialization differs across cultures.

Her more recent research examines later language development in learning environments that draw older children and adolescents into collaborative project work in which peers become essential socializing influences.

For more information on Professor Heath's life and work, visit: http://www.shirleybriceheath.net/.

Photo: Shirley Brice Heath (Brown University Photo)

"Nate the Great" at CAM-PLEX April 9

From a press release:

Introducing the latest and greatest in the grand tradition of crime-solving detectives like Sherlock Holmes, Nero Wolfe and Charlie Chan... Nate! Nate the Great, that is.

This pint-size young detective has found lost balloons, books, slippers, chickens, and even a lost goldfish. But when his neighbor Annie asks for help in locating her missing painting, it takes all of Nate's derring-do to solve the toughest case of his career!

Although Nate believes that great detectives work alone, he finds that unraveling mysteries is easier (and a lot more fun!) with a partner...and a big plate of pancakes.

A new musical about teamwork and friendship (imaginary and otherwise) based on the first volume in Marjorie Weinman Sharmat's classic book series, from the creative teams behind Theatreworks USA's The Mystery of King Tut and Junie B. Jones.

Please join the CAM-PLEX Heritage Center staff for the presentation of "Nate the Great" on Friday, April 9 at the 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 for Adults, $4 for Children/Students/Seniors/Military. For more information, contact the CAM-PLEX Ticket Office at 307-682-8802, 1-877-4CAMPLEX or visit our website at http://www.cam-plex.com.

Full slate of April events at Sheridan Stationery

Upcoming events at Sheridan Stationery Books and Gallery, 206 N. Main, Sheridan:

April 6 -- Artists from Jentel Residency Program will be sharing their work at Sheridan Stationery from 5-7 p.m.

April 14 -- Wyoming native B.J. Buckley will be doing a poetry reading from her book "Moonhorses and the Red Bull" at 5 p.m. at Sheridan Stationery.

April 16 -- "Friends of the Library" Board presents Margaret Coel, author of the "Wind River Mystery Series" featuring Vickie Holden and Father John O'Malley, for a reception and booksigning at Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library on April 16, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. We will be at the library selling books, or pick them up early at the store. Limited tickets available at Fulmer Library, Clearmont, Story, and Tongue River Branch Libraries and Sheridan Stationery. Adults-$10 Students-$5 Senior Citizens (65+)-$5.

April 17 -- Book signing with Patty Hoover, author of the cookbook "The Waldorf A'Story: Famoose Recipes". This compilation stems from past employees, owners, family, and friends of the Piney Creek General Store and Restaurant in Story, Wyoming. Although the restaurant is no longer in operation, Hoover hopes to pass along the store's famous recipes in this new cookbook. Come to this event on April 17, between noon-2 p.m., to purchase your signed copy of "The Waldorf A'Story: Famoose Recipes".

Monday, March 29, 2010

Rodney Atkins coming to UW

Platinum-selling artist and Academy of Country Music Top New Male Vocalist of the Year Rodney Atkins will perform at the University of Wyoming Arts and Sciences auditorium Thursday, April 15, at 8 p.m.

Due to the nature of this concert, tickets will not be released to the general public. UW students will be required to present their Wyo-One ID card to purchase tickets and UW employees can present their faculty/staff ID or a copy of their paystub.

Reserved seating tickets go on sale to UW students Monday, March 29, at 9 a.m. for $7 and to the rest of the UW community Wednesday, March 31, at 9 a.m. for $10. Tickets can be purchased at the Wyoming Union information desk, Fine Arts Center box office or by phone at (307) 766-6666. There is a limit of six tickets per person.

In 2006, Atkins took the country music scene by storm with his platinum selling album "If You're Going Through Hell." This album earned Atkins the Academy of Music's Top New Male Vocalist award in 2008 as well as five other nominations and two Country Music Association nominations. Atkins made another strong connection with his listeners on his latest album, "It's America."

"I try to sing songs with an honest view of ourselves, of myself, of the struggle, of the laughter," Atkins says. "It's about being human."

Regional country sensation, Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band, will open the concert. The band has played honky-tonks across the western United States. Williams was raised on a ranch in northeastern Wyoming and attended UW on a rodeo scholarship, giving his music a Wyoming influence. Williams and band will play original songs from their two albums "Road Between the Rodeos" and "Honky Tonk Road."

Atkins' performance is sponsored by the ASUW Concerts and Convocations Committee. For more information, call Michael Lange at (307) 766-6340 or visit www.uwyo.edu/cac

Call for entries: Minneapolis Photo Center

Open Call for Entries for All Photographers; Black & White Photography

Submissions to this juried exhibition are limited only by your imagination and your photographic eye. Portraits, fashion, editorial, landscapes, documentary, conceptual - all of these genres, and others not named, are open for consideration.

Prints should take whatever form they need to in order to represent the continuum of gray tones that comprise your photographs. Whether the initial recording was made on film or pixels is immaterial. However, in the final assessment, prints will be judged on their merits. Qualities of form, content, and relation to traditions of black-and-white printing and visualization will be sought in the pool of submissions.

Juror: George Slade, Principal at re:photographica

Entry Fee: $35 up to 5 images; $10 each additional (no limit on number that may be submitted)

Prizes: $300 for 1st; $200 for 2nd; $100 for 3rd

Entries Due: July 23, 2010

Notice of Acceptance: August 2, 2010

Exhibition Dates: September 10 - October 25, 2010

Reception: September 10, 2010

FMI: http://www.mplsphotocenter.com/exhibits/callforentriesBW

To prepare your images for uploading, please adhere to the following image file specifications:

sRGB or RGB color space (standard) - NOT CMYK (typically used by printing industry)
Save files to 72 ppi resolution; any layers flattened, 8 bit JPEG files (16 bit will not upload.)
Sized to 1,280 pixels on the longest side, the other size width or height proportional
JPG format
JPG compression at level 7 (medium). This compression level will not affect the quality of images viewed on a monitor.
Use period preceding jpg in the file name. The following characters will lead to image uploading problems: !@#$%^&*()_+

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Jackson Hole Wildife Film Festival kicks off International Earth Week

Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival will be held on Sunday, April 18, noon-7 p.m., in the Center Theater at the Center for the Arts, 265 S. Cache St., Jackson. Free and open to the public.

The Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival kicks off Jackson Hole's local celebration of International Earth Week with a day-long EarthFilm Festival in the Center Theater.

Films will target families (noon-2 p.m.), focus on plastics (2-4 p.m.), and look at our local Sustainability Project (4-6 p.m.), including the premier screening of the film "One Less Bottle," and a screening of Teton Gravity Research’s latest film. "Generations."

Several speakers also will be presented throughout the day. Dancers' Workshop will perform a recycling/plastics-inspired piece. A student percussion ensemble will perform a work using recycled five-gallon plastic buckets. And the Art Association will lead a recycled art project for kids and sell hand-made ceramic bowls – thereby reducing the use of disposable bowls.

Jackson Whole Grocer will sell concessions throughout the day, local conservation groups will have information booths in the theater lobby, and the Jackson Sustainability Project will give an update on its progress and goals.

In addition, a small "herd" of elk (see photo above)– constructed from recycled plastic bottles by an estimated 350 students from throughout the valley – will be exhibited during the festival, before they "migrate" to the EcoFair at Powderhorn Park the following weekend, and then to the Recycling Center.

Contact the Wildlife Film Festival for additional details at http://www.jhfestival.org/ or 307-733-7016.

Marcia Hensley on the road to promote her book about women homesteaders

Nancy Curtis of High Plains Press in Glendo sends this announcement about one of her authors:

Marcia Hensley, author of STAKING HER CLAIM: WOMEN HOMESTEADING THE WEST, will be giving presentations and signing books at the Torrington Library on Monday, March 29 at 7 p.m.; at the Lusk Library Brown Bag Lunch on Tuesday, March 30, at noon; and at the Platte County Historical Society meeting at the Wheatland Library on Wednesday March 31, at 7 p.m. All events are free and open to the public.

She has a good PowerPoint presentation and her talks always draw lots of input from the audience. Those women homesteaders were something!

Award-winning filmmaker creating short film for Heart Mountain Interpretive Center


The Heart Mountain Internment Camp between Cody and Powell will be the among the first of these World War II sites to have its own interpretive center. Construction on the exterior is nearing completion. Work during the next year will focus on the interior.

The Heart Mountain Foundation has received a series of grants ever since the camps were designated National Historic Sites by the National Park Service. Wyoming Writers, Inc., will conduct a session about Heart Mountain as part of its annual conference June 4-6 in Cody. It will feature Laramie native Lee Ann Roripaugh, author of the award-winning book of poetry "Beyond Heart Mountain;" her father, Bob Roripaugh, poet, novelist and Wyoming Poet Laureate Emeritus; and his wife Yoshiko, a native of Japan. The presentation will be held 7-8 p.m. on Friday, June 4, at the Cody Holiday Inn. This session is free and open to the public (find info on conference registration at WWInc web site).

Meanwhile, good news keeps coming in for the Heart Mountain Foundation. Here's a Billings Gazette story by Ruffin Prevost:

An award-winning filmmaker with a personal connection to Heart Mountain is creating a short film to be shown at a new museum that will open next year at the site of the historic internment camp.

Steven Okazaki (shown in photo), 58, whose father was among the 11,000 internees at Heart Mountain, won an Academy Award for his 1990 documentary, “Days of Waiting.”

The film tells the story of Estelle Ishigo, a Caucasian woman who voluntarily joined her Japanese-American husband, Arthur Ishigo, in a detention camp in California and, later, at Heart Mountain. Ishigo, an artist, documented camp life in drawings and photographs, many of which Okazaki used in “Days of Waiting.”

“We’re very excited about his creativity and ability to take this subject, which is quite complex, and bring it to life for visitors,” said Dave Reetz, executive director of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation.

The nonprofit group has raised $3.5 million toward a goal of $5.3 million for an 11,000-square-foot interpretive learning center under construction at the site of the former camp.

Heart Mountain was one of 10 camps across the country where 110,000 Japanese-Americans were held during World War II. It will be the second site with a museum. The National Park Service manages an interpretive site at Manzanar, on the eastern side of California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Born in Los Angeles, Okazaki now lives in San Francisco. He won an Emmy award in 2008 for “White Light/Black Rain: The Destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.” He also has earned Oscar nominations for three other films, including “Unfinished Business.” That documentary tells the stories of three men seeking to overturn their convictions 40 years after they refused a government order to enter internment camps like Heart Mountain.

Okazaki’s new film will be about 10 minutes long, and will introduce visitors to the broad range of social issues and historical background covered at the Heart Mountain center, Reetz said.

Reetz and other foundation members have been working with Okazaki to develop key points to be covered in the film, and to integrate it with exhibits being designed by Split Rock Studios. The Minnesota-based firm has developed installations for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Los Angeles, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Visitor Center in Missoula and more than 100 other sites.

John D. Nesbitt of Torrington wins two Spur Awards from WWA


This news from Western Writers of America came out last week but it's worth repeating because writers from Wyoming fared so well.

Here's the WWA press release:

Western Writers of America announced the winners and finalists of its annual literary contest Saturday, March 20, during the National Festival of the West in Scottsdale, Ariz.

John D. Nesbitt of Torrington (shown in photo dueing book signing at Cheyenne's City News) won two Spurs, claiming his second consecutive Spur for Best Original Mass Market Paperback Novel with “Stranger in Thunder Basin” (Leisure Books) and for Best Western Short Fiction Story, “At the End of the Orchard” ( Hardboiled Magazine).

Winners and finalists will be honored at the WWA Convention, June 22-26 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Knoxville, Tennessee.

The complete list of winners and finalists:

Long Novel -- Winner: Robert Flynn, “Echoes of Glory” (TCU Press). Finalists: Bob Cherry, “One-Eyed Jacks” (Cicada Wing); Mary E. Trimble, “Tenderfoot” (Treble Heart).

Short Novel -- Winner: Robert Olmstead, “Far Bright Star” (Algonquin). Finalists: Sandi Ault, “Wild Sorrow” (Berkley Prime Crime); Robert Greer, “Spoon” (Fulcrum).

Mass Market Paperback -- Winner: John D. Nesbitt, “Stranger in Thunder Basin” (Leisure). Finalists: Lyle Brandt, “Hanging Judge” (Penguin/Berkley); William Blinn, “A Cold Place in Hell” (Pinnacle/Kensington).

Nonfiction-Biography -- Winner: David C. Humphrey, “Peg Leg” (Texas State Historical Society). Finalists: Clyde Milner and Carol O’Connor, “As Big as the West: The Pioneer Life of Granville Stuart” (Oxford University Press); Polly Aird, “Mormon Convert/Mormon Defector: A Scottish Immigrant in the American West (Arthur H. Clark).

Nonfiction-Historical -- Winner: Douglas C. McChristian, “Fort Laramie” (Arthur H. Clark). Finalists: William B. Schillingberg, “Dodge City: The Early Years, 1872-1886” (Arthur H. Clark); Paul Horsted, Ernest Grafe and Jon Nelson, “Crossing the Plains with Custer (Golden Valley Press).

Nonfiction-Contemporary -- Winner: Charles H. Harris III and Louis R. Sadler, “The Secret War in El Paso: Mexican Revolutionary Intrigue, 1906-1920” (University of New Mexico Press). Finalists: Katherine Benton-Cohen, “Borderline Americans: Racial Division and Labor War in the Arizona Borderlands” (Harvard University Press); Timothy Egan, “The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt).

Short Nonfiction -- Winner: Roger Di Silvestro, “Teddy’s Ride to Recovery” (Wild West). Finalists: Kerry Oman, “Rejoicing in the Beauties of Nature: The Image of the Western Landscape During the Fur Trade” (Great Plains Quarterly); Michael A. Amundson, “These Men Play Real Polo: An Elite Sport in the Cowboy State, 1890-1930” (Montana: The Magazine of Western History).

Short Fiction -- Winner: John D. Nesbitt, “At the End of the Orchard” (Hardboiled Magazine). Finalists: Matthew Mayo, “Half a Pig” (Express Westerns); J.J. Clark, “As Is” (High Desert Journal).

Juvenile Fiction -- Winner: Johnny D. Boggs, “Hard Winter” (Five Star). Finalists: Victoria McKernan, “The Devil’s Paintbox” (Knopf); Melodie Cuate, “Journey to Goliad” (Texas Tech University Press).

Juvenile Nonfiction -- Winner: Nancy Plain, “With One Sky Above Us” (Mondo Publishing). Finalists: Annica Benning, “Arizona: Nations and Arts” (Walnut Canyon Press); Charles C. Mann, “Before Columbus: The Americas of 1491” (Atheneum/Simon & Schuster).

Storyteller -- Winner: Sandra Day O'Connor (author) and Tom Pohrt (illustrator), “Finding Susie” (Random House); Finalists: Joe Gribnau (author) and Adrian Tans (illustrator), “Kick the Cowboy” (Pelican); Vaunda Micheaux Nelson (author) and R. Gregory Christie (illustrator), “Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal” (Lerner Publishing).

Documentary -- Winner: Candy Moulton, “In Pursuit of a Dream” (Boston Productions Inc.). Finalists: Ric Burns, “We Shall Remain: Tecumseh’s Vision” (WGBH); Lyman Hafen, “Born to Ride” (Southern Utah University).

Poem -- Winner: Paul Zarzyski, “Bob Dylan Bronc Song” (Two Medicine). Finalists: David Memmott, “Where the Yellow Brick Road Turns West” (Wordcraft of Oregon); Larry D. Thomas, “Glass Mountains” (Southwestern American Literature).

Audiobook -- Winner: Gary McCarthy, “River Thunder” (Books in Motion). Finalists: Monty McCord, Mundy’s Law (Books in Motion); Phil Mills Jr., “Where a Good Wind Blows” (Books in Motion).

Song -- Winner: Wylie Gustafson and Paul Zarzyski, “Hang-n-Rattle: (Two Medicine Music/Bucking Horse Moon Music). Finalists: Steve Moulton, “Steamboat” (Butch Hause/The Ranger Station); Daron Little, “Pete French” (self-published).

Friday, March 26, 2010

WY's Greenhorse and CO's Kosmos in concert

Call for proposals: Gallery 211 in Laramie

Gallery 211, located in downtown Laramie at 211 S. 1st Street, is accepting exhibition proposals for summer 2010. Exhibitions will take place from July 15 – August 15. Gallery 211 is an exhibition space used for display of artwork by local, national, and international artists at all stages in their careers. Gallery 211’s primary mission is to provide a non-commercial venue dedicated to contemporary art and culture.

Eligibility:
Any artist based in Wyoming over the age of 18 can submit a proposal for review. Students, educators, professional, and non-professional artists are all eligible to apply. Artists can apply for solo, collaborative, or group exhibitions. There are no limitations on the type of work that can be proposed, although artists must be able to cover the cost of materials, fabrication, transportation, and peripheral devices. Gallery 211 will not be able to provide monitors, projectors, or sound equipment. Artists interested in incorporating technology must supply their own devices.

Requirements:
Please submit the following items. Only digital submissions will be accepted.
CV Artist statement(s) Exhibition proposal 10 images of work that is representative of what you wish to exhibit. Images should be labeled as such: lastname.firstname_1.jpg (for example: gardner.james_1.jpg). Images should be 72 dpi and 6 inches in the longest direction. A numbered image list that corresponds to the digital files.
Deadline:

All proposals are due April 16th. Artists will be notified of results by April 23rd.

Materials should be emailed to Diana Baumbach, dbaumbac@uwyo.edu.
Please direct all questions to Diana Baumbach, dbaumbac@uwyo.edu or 307-766-3049.

Artists invited to awards reception, artists’ roundtable and 20:20 presentation April 23-24 in Casper

Artists from around the state are encouraged to attend an awards reception for the Wyoming Arts Council’s 2010 visual arts fellowship winners. The event will be held on Saturday, April 24, 5:30-8 p.m., at the Hilton Garden Inn, 1150 N. Poplar St., Casper. This free event features heavy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar.

Following the awards presentation, the 2010 fellowship judges will conduct an artists’ roundtable to discuss their own work. Judges are sculptor Kate Budd from Akron, Ohio; Sue Johnson, mixed-media artist from St. Mary's, Maryland; and photographer Mark Klett of Tempe, Ariz.

On Friday, April 23, 8-10 p.m., at the Hilton Garden Inn, the UW Art Museum is holding a 20:20 presentation for Wyoming artists. 20:20 is a fast-paced presentation format whereby presenters are able to show 20 images for 20 seconds each. If you wish to participate in the 20:20 (first 20 artists only!), contact Rachel Miller, UW Art Museum, at 307.766.6621 or rmiller@uwyo.edu. Deadline to submit images in a PowerPoint format is Friday, April 9.

For more information about the April 23-24 events, contact Michael Shay, Wyoming Arts Council, 307-777-5234 or mshay@state.wy.us.

WAC town meeting set for Lander April 1

The Wyoming Arts Council is holding a Town Meeting on Thursday, April 1, 6:30-8:30 p.m. in Conference Rooms A&B at the Fremont County Library, 451 North Second Street in Lander.

The meeting is open to the public. The WAC is holding future meetings through mid-June in other communities around the state.

WAC Manager Rita Basom urges people to attend and “bring your comments, suggestions and dreams of the future for the arts in Wyoming.”

The state agency conducts these meetings every five years in order to develop a long-range plan for the arts in Wyoming. Statewide meetings conducted in 2005 led to a return of the WAC’s print newsletter, biennial arts summit gatherings in Casper and Cheyenne, professional development grants for individual artists, statewide meetings for artists and writers, increases in granting budgets and a revision of the matching requirements for the WAC’s smaller grant programs.

The agency also revamped staff responsibilities, hiring specialists for folk arts and community development and the arts.

“The Arts Council looks a lot different now than it did in 2005,” said Basom. “We listen to your comments and act on them.”

For more information, contact the WAC at 307-777-7742.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Shepard Symposium on Social Justice addresses environmental topics


From a UW press release:

World-renowned physicist and environmental leader Vandana Shiva is the keynote speaker for the 14th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice, April 7-9, at the University of Wyoming.

All symposium events are free and open to the public and registration is recommended.

Shiva will discuss "Soil Not Oil: Food Security in Times of Climate Change" at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 7, in the Fine Arts concert hall. A reception and book signing follow the presentation.

Recipient of the 1993 Alternative Nobel Peace Prize (the Right Livelihood Award), Shiva is known as one of the world's most passionate and knowledgeable spokespersons for environmental and economic justice.

In her keynote address and in her most recent book, "Soil Not Oil," Shiva discusses socially-just and environmentally-sound principles for feeding the planet . She expands her analysis to broader issues of globalization and climate change, saying that a healthy environment and a just world go hand in hand. Shiva proposes a solution based on self-organization, sustainability and community rather than corporate power and profits.

"The Shepard Symposium has never highlighted environmental issues before," says Kate Muir Welsh, UW Department of Elementary Education professor and the event's chairperson. She says "eco-justice" includes issues of access to things that sustain the world's population -- clean drinking water, inhabitable land, breathable air and plentiful, healthy food.

"Sadly more and more of the world's population do not have such access," Muir says. "This year's symposium and the many workshops and presentations will provide an opportunity for participants to exchange information and engage in dialogue about these social justice concerns."

A physicist, ecologist, activist, feminist, editor and author of many best-selling books, Shiva established Navdanya, a movement for biodiversity conservation and rights in India that supports local farmers, rescues and conserves crops and plants that are being pushed to extinction and makes them available directly to farmers. She is the founding director of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, a network of participatory researchers specializing in ecology, health and sustainability.

Numerous concurrent sessions begin Thursday April 8, beginning at 9:35 a.m. and Friday, April 9, starting at 8 a.m. All sessions are in the Wyoming Union.

La Vida Loca, a one-man show that tells the story of a Mexican immigrant, will be performed by Carlos Manuel in the Fine Arts studio theater at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Chris Paine, director of the 2006 film "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and the forthcoming "Revenge of the Electric Car," is Thursday's keynote presenter. His presentation is at 7:30 p.m. in the Fine Arts Concert Hall.

A hip-hop event that features Molina Soleil and Aju is scheduled from 9-11 p.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom that evening.

UW faculty member Jessica Smith is the endnote speaker. She will discuss the relationship between Wyoming's energy development and environmental social justice at 11 a.m. Friday in the Wyoming Union Ballroom.

An event to benefit the Matthew Shepard Foundation in the Wyoming Union Ballroom that evening closes the symposium.

A complete symposium schedule is available at http://shepardsymposium.org/.

For more information, contact Sylvia Parker, UW Science and Mathematics Teaching Center, at (307)766-6671 or e-mail sparker@uwyo.edu.

Photo: Vandana Shiva is the keynote speaker for the 14th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice, April 7-9, at the University of Wyoming.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

First two WAC town meetings set for Cheyenne and Lander

Bring your comments, suggestions, and dreams
for the future of the arts in Wyoming!

Southeast Region Town Meeting.
March 25, 2010
6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Sunflower Room, 3rd Floor
Laramie County Library
2200 Pioneer, Cheyenne

Fremont/Hot Springs Region Town Meeting
Thursday, April 1, 2010
6:30 8:30 pm
Conference Rooms A&B, Second Floor
Lander Branch Library
200 Amoretti St, Lander

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

"Ductogami" at Carbon Co. Library in Saratoga

Artwork selected for tenth annual Governor's Capitol Art Exhibition

BREAKING NEWS (as they say on TV):

Works by 40 of Wyoming’s best artists have been selected for inclusion in the Tenth Annual Governor’s Capitol Art Exhibition, and will be on display at the Wyoming State Museum in Cheyenne from May 8 through June 5.

An opening reception will be held at the State Museum on May 21 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Governor Dave Freudenthal will be on hand to present this year’s purchase awards. The Bobby Hathaway Juror’s Choice and People’s Choice awards will also be presented. The reception is free and open to the public.

Overall, this year’s show features 40 artistic pieces selected by juror Deborah Mitchell, director of the Apex Gallery and faculty member in the Humanities Department at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.

The Governor’s Capitol Art Exhibition is produced through the cooperative efforts of the offices of the five elected officials, the Department of State Parks and
Cultural Resources, the Wyoming Arts Council, the Wyoming Business Council and the Division of Travel and Tourism.

The exhibition promotes and encourages Wyoming artists while building an art collection available for public officials to exhibit state talent in their offices. To date, the collection has over 110 pieces loaned out for one year, then rotated. Purchase awards have averaged more than $11,000 each year; in addition, the public makes purchases from the exhibit.

The Governor’s Capitol Art Exhibition is sponsored by Wal-Mart, Anadarko Petroleum, McMurry Foundation, Cheyenne Light Fuel and Power, Peabody Energy and Capital Lumber Company.

Artists selected this year are Joe Arnold, Ronald Hansen, Daniel Hayward, Travis Ivey, Patrick Kikut, Crystal Lawrence, Linda Lillegraven, Ginnie Madsen, Jon Madsen and Jeanie Schlump of Laramie.

Joshua Eastman, Lynn Newman, Justin Richards, Kevin Robinett, Georgia Rowswell and Gail Sundell of Cheyenne; Ann Arndt, Don Butler, Danna Hildebrand, Margie Newman and Dianne Wyatt of Sheridan

Brad Cool, Christianna Dvarishkis, Barbara Kuxhausen and Carol Swinney of Casper; Jenny Dowd of Alpine; Robert Vore of Beulah; Trudy Schoonover of Buffalo; Cindy Bennett and Elijah Cobb of Cody; Mike Conaway of Evanston; Edie Reno and Joan Sowada of Gillette; Valerie Seaberg of Jackson; Jane Woods of Powell; Paul Ng of Rock Springs; Jerry Palen of Saratoga; Karyne Dunbar of Shell and Miga Rossetti and Shannon Troxler of Wilson.

Artspace launches toolkit to help communities find affordable space for the arts

Representatives from Minneapolis-based Artspace spoke at the "Living Upstairs in Wyoming" conference last spring in Sheridan and at the September 2009 Arts Summit in Cheyenne. They also conducted a site visit a few years ago in Casper.

Artspace now has designed a toolkit for communities to use as they investigate affordable spaces for the arts.

Here are some details from a press release:

Artspace Projects, the country’s leading nonprofit real estate developer for the arts, is pleased to announce the launch of its Consulting Toolkit. This comprehensive resource will help arts organizations and advocates, community development professionals, and municipal leaders, effectively explore the process and options for development of affordable space for the arts in their communities.

With more than 25 properties developed nationwide, Artspace has long been recognized for setting the standard in creating affordable space for artists and arts organizations. Artspace’s projects are frequently cited as playing a critical role in bringing economic and physical rejuvenation to city centers large and small, while providing affordable space for area artists and arts organizations.

Artspace’s Consulting and New Projects division is in high demand as communities seek their expertise. In light of this demand, and in lieu of embarking on a full-scale consulting contract, Artspace’s Consulting and New Projects’ staff now has the Consulting Toolkit to offer as a next-step for some communities.

The Artspace Consulting Toolkit is an online tool, designed to help communities clarify their interest and determine the feasibility of creating affordable space for the arts. The Toolkit is self-guided, cost-effective, and offers a wide range of information including downloadable documents, relevant website links, and robust descriptions of steps to complete the entire process. Topics such as How to Survey Your Market, How to Analyze a Site, How to Identify Funding Sources and How to Identify and Cultivate Local Leaders are all covered as part of the Consulting Toolkit.

--snip--

“We hope people will look into this new tool,” said Wendy Holmes, Artspace vice president for consulting and resource development. “If an organization is interested, they can simply fill out the online questionnaire, and one of our staff consultants will contact them within five working days to discuss whether the Consulting Toolkit is the right resource to help them maximize their community’s opportunity.”

For more information on the Artspace Consulting Toolkit visit www.artspace.org and click on “Consulting.”

Monday, March 22, 2010

Call for entries: Copper Nickel literary journal

This contest announcement comes from Copper Nickel, the University of Colorado at Denver literary journal:

Copper Nickel is pleased to announce its first-ever contests in poetry and fiction.

The poetry contest will be judged by Natasha Trethewey, Pulitzer-Prize Winning author of Native Guard. The winner will receive $1000 and publication in Copper Nickel 15 in Spring 2011.

The fiction contest will be judged by Ron Carlson, author of At the Jim Bridger. The winner will receive $1000 and publication in Copper Nickel 15 in Spring 2011.

The contest is open to anyone. Writers may submit either one story or up to three poems with an entry fee. Each entrant also receives a one year subscription to Copper Nickel with each entry. For writers living in the United States or Canada the fee is $15 US.

Writers living outside the US or Canada, please contact us via e-mail at element29[at]copper-nickel[dot]org for a fee schedule and alternative payment methods.

We will accept entries until May 15th.

Finalists will be announced June 15th, winners by August 15th.

HOW TO SUBMIT

Step One: submit your manuscript using our submission manager system, accessible here: http://www.copper-nickel.org/contest/smgr/index.php.

Even if you have submitted to Copper Nickel before, you will have to re-register to submit to the contest. This only takes about 2 minutes, and it ensures your manuscript will not be lost.

Step Two: Once you've submitted your manuscript via Submission Manger, you will need to mail your entry fee, as a check or money order in US dollars made payable to "University of Colorado," to us here:

Copper Nickel
Campus Box 175 P O Box 173364
Denver CO 80217-3364

Please write the title/s of your entry on the memo line of your check.

Vicki Lindner conducts reading and workshop March 26 in Rock Springs

Vicki Lindner, mentor to an entire generation of writers in Wyoming, will be returning to the state for a March 26 event in Rock Springs. Vicki retired from University of Wtyoming a few years ago. She's the recipient of two creative writing fellowships (1991 and 2005) from the Wyoming Arts Council.

Here's a press release about the event:

Journalist and fiction writer Vicki Lindner will read from her work on Friday, March 26 at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs. The event will take place in Room 1302 at 7:00 p.m. It is free and open to the public.

Lindner has published a novel, Outlaw Games, and many short stories, essays, magazine and newspaper articles. In these different genres she has written about cooking, bird watching, loneliness, dinosaurs, sculpture, not having children, travel, and medical malpractice. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals and anthologies, including The Paris Review, Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, American Nature Writing, and The Seneca Review. Her short story about karate, “Barefoot to the Bridge in Winter,” was the Fiction Premiere for New York Woman.

Before moving West, Lindner worked as a freelance writer for publishing companies and magazines in New York City. Her collaborative project, The Money Mirror: How Money Reflects Women’s Dreams, Fears, and Desires, with psychotherapist, Annette Lieberman, was published in three different editions and featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show. An Associate Professor Emeritus at the University of Wyoming, where she taught creative writing for twenty years, she is presently on the faculty of Lighthouse Writers in Denver.

Lindner has won awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State, the PEN/NEA Syndicated Fiction Project, and the Wyoming Arts Council. She is presently working on Baby, It’s You, a memoir about her romance with the only black athlete in her New Jersey high school in the early sixties. She lives on Capitol Hill in Denver and spends summers in her cabin near Dubois.

The event is made possible by the support of the Arlene and Louise Wesswick Foundation.

Lindner will also be offering a workshop for writers on Friday, March 26 from 2-5 p.m. in Room 1408 on the WWCC Rock Springs campus.

For more information, contact WWCC Associate Professor of English Rick Kempa at rkempa@wwcc.wy.edu or 307-382-1731.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Spragg's "Bone Fire" reviewed in Oregonian

Fiction review: "Bone Fire" by Mark Spragg
Special to The Oregonian

Wyoming is a serious place. It's home to Devils Tower, the Grand Tetons and Dick Cheney -- you can't get more serious than that. And according to "Bone Fire," Mark Spragg's latest novel, Wyoming is a place where serious people are scrabbling to find happiness in a barren emotional landscape.


For entire review, go to
http://www.oregonlive.com/books/index.ssf/2010/03/fiction_review_bone_fire_by_ma.html

Friday, March 19, 2010

Details announced for Wyoming Arts Council's town meeting in Cheyenne

The Wyoming Arts Council is holding its Southeast Region Town Meeting on Thursday, 6:30-8:30 p.m., in the Sunflower Room on the third floor of the Laramie County Library, 2200 Pioneer, Cheyenne.

The meeting is open to residents of Laramie, Albany, Platte and Goshen counties. The WAC is holding future meetings through mid-June in other communities around the state.

WAC Manager Rita Basom urges people to attend and “bring your comments, suggestions and dreams of the future for the arts in Wyoming.”

The state agency conducts these meetings every five years in order to develop a long-range plan for the arts in Wyoming. Statewide meetings conducted in 2005 led to a return of the WAC’s print newsletter, biennial arts summit gatherings in Casper and Cheyenne, professional development grants for individual artists, statewide meetings for artists and writers, increases in granting budgets and a revision of the matching requirements for the WAC’s smaller grant programs.

The agency also revamped staff responsibilities, hiring specialists for folk arts and community development and the arts.

“The Arts Council looks a lot different now than it did in 2005,” said Basom. “We listen to your comments and act on them.”

For more information, contact the WAC at 307-777-7742.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

The Spragg & Bell book barnstorming tour travels to Utah

Cody's Mark Spragg and Laura Bell interviewed by Doug Fabrizio for Salt Lake City's KUER http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kuer/news.newsmain/article/0/184/1625146/RadioWest/31810.Writing.the.West

Blurb from KUER:

Wyoming writers Mark Spragg and Laura Bell are both inspired by the West - though they are writing from different perspectives. Spragg is a novelist. His books include "An Unfinished Life" and his latest "Bone Fire." Bell has just published a memoir called "Claiming Ground." They're on tour together, talking about the influence of the land on their characters and stories. Spragg and Bell are coming to Utah this weekend, and Thursday, they'll join us.

Friday, March 19th at 7:00 p.m., the King's English Bookshop and the Stegner Centerwill host Mark Spragg and Laura Bell at the Rowland Hall Upper School (843 Lincoln St, Salt Lake City). Their reading will be followed by a Q&A and book signing. For more information, call the store at 801-484-9100 or click here

WyoPoets workshop Saturday, April 24 in Casper

WyoPoets will sponsor its annual poetry workshop this year in Casper at the Hilton Garden Inn. Workshop presenter will be Sophia Puccini from Saratoga. She has published in The Literary Review and The Sun, and in the the anthology series, Woven on the Wind and Crazy Woman Creek. Sophia will guide participants in approaching a poem through word gathering, breathing and movement exercises.

Early registration is $40, after April 5, $45. Lunch is included. You can have a poem critiqued with early registration.

Visit the WyoPoets website at www.wyopoets.org for more information, print brochure or find other info, or about joining WyoPoets.

WAC holds town meeting 3/25 in Cheyenne

The Wyoming Arts Council is holding its Southeast Region Town Meeting on Thursday, March 25, 6:30-8:30 p.m., in the Sunflower Room on the third floor of the Laramie County Library, 2200 Pioneer, Cheyenne.

More info later...

From Wyoming Tribune-Eagle: East High performs "Guys and Dolls"

Interesting article this morning about Cheyenne East High School's production of "Guys and Dolls.."

The play opens on Friday, March 19, 7 p.m. Performances continue at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

For more, go to East High performs "Guys and Dolls"

WAC announces new OSG grant category

The Wyoming Arts Council announces its new Operating Support Grant program (OSG). This grant program will help fund the ongoing work of Wyoming’s established non-profit arts organizations. OSG funding may be used by organizations to support any of their general operating expenses, including salaries, marketing, rent, utilities, insurance, supplies, exhibits or artistic fees. Based upon the organization’s total operating budget, this program will allow requests to range from $7,000.00 to $15,000.00 per applicant organization. The application process will be conducted online with an application deadline of April 12, 2010. The funding requested must be for operating support and arts projects beginning July 1, 2010 and ending June 30, 2011.

Because of the wide range of expenses the grant can include, OSG applicants are required to submit more detailed information than other WAC grant applicants. The additional information allows the WAC grant review panel and board members to get a more detailed picture of the applicant organization’s overall structure,management practices, fiscal stability and activities.

A Wyoming based, non-profit arts organization may apply for an Operating Support Grant. Organizations may not use a fiscal sponsor in this grant category. All applicants to this grant program must have tax-exempt status under section 501 (c) 3 of the IRS code, must have held that status for at least two years, and must also comply with certain other requirements.

Wyoming non-profit arts organizations are limited to receiving either an Operating Support Grant OR Grants to Organizations funding each fiscal year. Organizations may apply through both programs this year, but will only be awarded the higher of the two grant awards. No first-time applicants will be accepted into this grant program.

All grant applicants are strongly encouraged to contact WAC staff to determine which grant category will best support their arts organization or arts projects.

For assistance with the Operating Support Grant Program call Randy Oestman at (307) 777-7109; FAX (307) 777-5499; TDD (307) 777-5964.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Call for entries (updated): Wyoming Writers, Inc., annual writing contest

Here's a revised press release about the Wyoming Writers contest. Notice there is some prize money added to the pot now.

Wyoming Writers Inc. is seeking participants to enter its Annual Writing Contest.

Prose entries are limited to 3,000 words. Categories are:
  • Adult Fiction (including science-fiction, mystery, romance, NO horror or erotica)
  • Fiction for Children
  • Novel Segments (maximum of three)
  • Humor
  • Non-fiction (includes articles, essays, and creative non-fiction)

    Poetry entries have 40-line limit. Categories are:
  • Traditional Poetry
  • Free Verse.

    Entry fees are $2 per entry for WWInc. members, $5 for non-members. All entries must include a cover sheet and be postmarked by Friday, April 2, 2010.

    Mail entries to:
    Chris Williams
    WWInc. Contest
    3229 NW Gumwood Ave.
    Corvallis, OR 97330.

    NO ENTRIES WILL BE RETURNED.

    Winners will be announced at the WWInc. 2010 conference at the Holiday Inn in Cody. Certificates and monetary prizes (minimums for 1st - $25, 2nd - $10, and 3rd - $5) will be awarded, the winning entries will be published on the WWInc. website,
    www.wyowriters.org.

    Find contest rules and entry form on the Wyoming Writers Inc., web site, http://www.wyowriters.org/events.html.
  • Tuesday, March 16, 2010

    Visual artists: Sign up now for Casper 20:20

    The UW Art Museum is pleased to announce its fifth 20:20 event.

    20:20 is a fast-paced presentation format whereby presenters are able to show 20 images for 20 seconds each. The total presentation time is only 6 minutes and 40 seconds. Advance sign-up is required and offered on a first come, first served basis.

    20:20 Statewide is scheduled at the Hilton Garden Inn, Casper on Friday, April 23, 8-10 pm. It is open to statewide visual artists. The deadline to submit images in a PowerPoint format is Friday, April 9.

    This is part of a weekend of arts events that includes a Saturday evening reception to announce the recipients of the 2010 Wyoming Arts Council visual arts fellowship. That will be followed by an artists' roundtable featuring the three fellowship judges. (More info later on these events.)

    20:20 is an opportunity to share accomplishments in the arts, ideas, new work and images. The program is meant to foster open dialogue and communication among student artists and to provide an opportunity for networking with colleagues.

    The format of 20:20 is borrowed from a program that was first developed in Japan by two architects who were looking for a new way to present design ideas in an upbeat and exciting way. Events like 20:20 now occur internationally as specially organized evening events where the focus is on sharing information and community participation.

    For more information on 20:20, or to sign up, please contact UW Art Museum Assistant Curator Rachel Miller at 307.766.6621 or rmiller@uwyo.edu.

    CLTP announces 2010-2011 season March 25

    From the Cheyenne Little Theatre Players in Cheyenne:

    Please join us for the announcement of the 2010-2011 Season on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at the Historic Atlas Theatre in downtown Cheyenne. Refreshments will begin at 5 p.m. and the program will start at approximately 6 p.m. Following the program, you will be able to purchase your 2010-2011 season membership. If you purchase your membership on-site, you will also receive a coupon good for one free ticket to any show.

    FMI: 307-638-6543

    Emerging Writers Mini-Symposium

    Emerging Writers Mini-Symposium
    The University of Wyoming MFA program's Visiting Writers Series is pleased to announce an evening of new poetry, fiction, and non-fiction by three writers on the rise. Gaby Calvocoressi, Nicole Walker, and Glen Pourciau will read their work on March 27th at 5 pm, at Second Story Books, 105 Ivinson Avenue. The event, which is free and open to the public, will feature a reception and book-signing with the authors after the reading.

    Summer Theatre Academy Enrolling now for all ages in Cheyenne Little Theatre

    Cheyenne Little Theatre will be providing different classes for different ages (from age five to fifteen) this summer. For more information and registration, go to http://www.cheyennelittletheatre.org/academy.asp. CALL NOW TO REGISTER!! Phone: (307) 638-6543
    OR
    Mail Your Payment To:CLTP Theatre AcademyPO Box 20087Cheyenne, WY 82003
    OR
    Pay At The Theatre:Mary Godfrey Playhouse2706 E Pershing Blvd.Mon-Friday 9am-

    4pm
    The Cheyenne Little Theatre's
    Goals of Theatre Education Program:
    1. To offer consistent and focused management of the theatre education programs of CLTP through hiring a full time Theatre Education Coordinator.
    2. To provide theatre education opportunities and training for learners of all ages.
    To provide systematic training for elementary and junior high school-aged children through year-round classes, workshops and training.
    3. To provide more performance opportunities for elementary and junior high school-aged children through producing a fall play and winter play each season for that age group.
    4. To attract younger audiences for CLTP productions and events (children and their parents).
    5. To provide learning opportunities for high school and college students through serving as interns with teachers and taking adult theatre classes.
    6. To continually enhance the artistic quality of what we do through on-going education and training of our volunteers.
    7. To increase existing education revenue streams and to develop & implement new ones.

    Laramie writer publishes first novel

    Laramie writer and artist John A. Guthrie has just released his first book.

    According to John, "Edge of Heaven" is the first in a post-apocalyptic series of six novels.

    Each signed and numbered first edition copy includes a sample of the author's DNA on the signature page. This figures prominently in the fifth book in the series, "John-Tar," in which a 21st century sci-fi author's DNA is grown into an avatar in the 28th century.

    The book is available at bookstores in Laramie, Cheyenne and Jackson in Wyoming and Fort Collins, Colo. Find out more about "Edge of Heaven" at http://www.edgeofheavenbook.com/

    "The Accidental Activist" series at UW features writer Alexandra Fuller

    From a UW press release:

    Nationally acclaimed Author Alexandra Fuller will discuss her book, "The Legend of Colton Bryant" Wednesday, March 24, at 6 p.m. in the University of Wyoming College of Education auditorium.

    She is the first speaker in a three-part series, "The Accidental Activist," that will showcase the extraordinary efforts of individuals who fell into their roles as activists. The Good Mule Project sponsors the series.

    Fuller will speak on behalf of her campaign to gain greater safety protections for workers in Wyoming's extractive industries and touch on topics of social justice and activism in the state. Her book details the life of Colton Bryant, a young Wyoming oil worker who in 2006 fell to his death from a drilling platform.

    A reception will follow the talk.

    For more information visit thegoodmule.org, e-mail thegoodmule@gmail.com, or call the UW Center for Volunteer Service at (307) 766-3117.

    The talks are supported by the UW Master of Fine Arts Program, the Ellbogen Center for Teaching and Learning, the Center for Volunteer Service and ASUW.

    Photo: Author Alexandra Fuller will speak March 24 at 6 p.m. in the University of Wyoming College of Education auditorium. (Henry Dombey Face Collective)

    Wolverines: The Inside Story

    Art After Hours: Conserving the Most Elusive Carnivore in the Northern Rockies: The Wolverines of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

    Tuesday, March 16, 7:30 p.m., at the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson. Free.

    Presenter is Bob Inman. He has 12 years of experience working on wildlife projects with diverse areas of emphasis including carnivore research, state game management, neo-tropical songbird inventory and monitoring, endangered species management, and habitat quantification.

    Monday, March 15, 2010

    Teton County teens invited to submit poems

    In celebration of National Poetry Month --

    The Teton County Public Library in Jackson is sponsoring a Teen Poetry Contest.

    Teens are invited to submit original poems for judging by the library's panel of judges, and prepare to recite them aloud at the Poetry Slam in May.

    Contact: Teen Program Coordinator, Steve Whisenand, 733-2164 ext. 247.

    Holly Turner retires as Nicolaysen director

    This was in Saturday's Casper Star-Tribune:

    The executive director of the Nicolaysen Art Museum & Discovery Center in Casper has retired after eight years as head of the museum.

    Holly Turner's last day at the museum was Friday.

    Valerie Innella is chairwoman of the museum's board.

    She says the board is moving forward with naming an acting director before beginning the search for a permanent replacement.

    Turner says she has attained her goals at the museum, including the museum achieving accreditation from the American Association of Museums.

    More info -- and links -- for WWInc conference

    The 36th Annual Wyoming Writers, Inc. Writers Conference will be held in Cody June 4-6. The host facility this year is the Buffalo Bill Resort which includes The Holiday Inn, The Comfort Inn, and The Buffalo Bill Cabins. Nearby is the Buffalo Bill Historic Center with five museums.

    Our conference features workshops and round table discussions with renown Spur Award-winning author and investigative journalist, Max McCoy; former Wyoming Poet Laureate and award-winning novelist, Robert Roripaugh; winner of the National Poetry Series and English Professor at University of South Dakota, Lee Ann Roripaugh (shown in photo); and literary agents Gordon Warnock from Andrea Hurst Literary and Suzie Townsend from FinePrint.

    Our opening evening event includes a discussion of the Heart Mountain Relocation Camp, located near Cody and where thousands of Japanese-Americans were interred during World War II. Speakers during this event will be members of the Roripaugh Family.

    Our Keynote Speaker on Saturday evening, June 5, will be Max McCoy. With two coveted Spur Awards for his Western novels and years as an investigative journalist, McCoy brings immense experience to the table.

    Literary agents Suzie Townsend and Gordon Warnock look forward to meeting authors and discussing their work with an eye toward possible representation. Both agents will be conducting six-minute pitch sessions at this conference.

    Closing session on Sunday will feature a talk by Bruce Richardson, University of Wyoming professor and chairman of the Wyoming Arts Council board. Bruce will address the Wyoming arts scene -- and the role that poets and writers play in it.

    Register now at http://www.wyowriters.org/.

    See what WWInc members are up to on the org's Facebook site at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=281346116621 or on Twitter at http://twitter.com/WyomingWriters

    Newsweek: NEA Chair Rocco Landesman uses Broadway skills to promote the arts

    This profile of National Endowment for the Arts Chair Rocco Landesman, "Medici in Chief," appeared more than a month ago in Newsweek. But it's worth reading for insights on new directions for arts funding across the U.S. As many of you know, the Wyoming Arts Council gets approximately 40 percent of its budget from the Arts Endowment.

    Read the entire article at http://www.newsweek.com/id/233404.

    Here's an excerpt:

    The just-announced "Our Town" program will use small, targeted grants to help arts organizations revitalize their communities. It draws on research showing that investments focused narrowly at the neighborhood level can produce social ties and a healthier local economy. In next year's budget request, the agency asks for $5 million to start work in 35 or so locations around the country: developing arts districts, sponsoring festivals, and commissioning murals and sculptures.

    While the unusually large 2010 budget of $168 million gives Landesman more funding options than any chairman has had in more than a decade, he still calls the level "pathetic" and "embarrassing"—language that risks insulting people in and around Congress who sweat to secure even that much. (It sure seems to unnerve the NEA staff. Landesman says he had to call a meeting recently to insist once and for all that he's not going to tone down his rhetoric. "I said, 'Look, get on the page with me, because I'm not getting on the page with you.' ") Beyond limiting how much Our Town and the agency's other grants can accomplish, the small budget doesn't suit someone with Landesman's rapid metabolism. His options, he told me, are "either to tilt against the windmills and try to get our budget expanded when everybody's been cut back because of the deficit—that's unrealistic—or just pad around the agency and decide that Pacific Opera should get X and New York City Opera Y. Anybody can do that. Don't you think there are a lot of people who could do that just as well?"

    Friday, March 12, 2010

    UW Chicano Studies opens baseball season with stories from the "Sugar Beet League"

    From a press release:

    The University of Wyoming's Chicano Studies Program will host a public event April 1, celebrating Hispanic contributions to baseball at both the regional and national levels -- a start to the Major League Baseball season.

    Adrian Burgos Jr., University of Illinois associate professor of history and author of "Playing America's Game: Baseball, Latinos, and the Color Line," will give a public lecture about sports promoter Alex Pompez at 5 p.m. in the Wyoming Union West Ballroom in Laramie. Pompez helped hundreds of young baseball players from the Caribbean make the leap from sugar cane fields to major league ball fields.

    Following Burgos' lecture, Gabe and Jody Lopez, finalists for the 2009 Colorado Rockies Adult Hispanic Leadership Award, will open in Ross Hall their exhibit "From Sugar Beet Fields to Fields of Dreams: Mexican/Spanish Contributions to America's Favorite Pastime."

    The exhibit documents the history of the Rocky Mountain Semipro Baseball League, which got its start among Hispanic agricultural workers in the 1920s and quickly spread throughout northern Colorado, southeast Wyoming and western Nebraska.

    "It was dubbed the ‘sugar beet league' because it came out of the Spanish colonies built by the Great Western Sugar Company beet field laborers," says Ed Munoz, UW Chicano Studies Program director.

    A reception and book signing will take place in Room 109 of Ross Hall, where books by Burgos and the Lopezes will be available for purchase.

    "Mexican baseball teams helped solidify Chicano communities during the 20th century," Munoz says. "They provided a break from hard work in the fields or on the railroad and they also served as social and political outlets for the players and their fans."

    Through research, the Lopezes have located information about Wyoming baseball teams in Albin, Bitter Creek, Burns, Carpenter, Casper, Cheyenne, Cody, Creston Junction, Hanna, Laramie, Lusk, Newcastle, Piker Spring, Pine Bluffs, Rawlins, Riverton, Sinclair, Superior, Torrington, Wamsutter, Wheatland, Worland and Yoder. The exhibit will be expanded to include some of this information.

    "We invite the players and their families to the exhibit to relive their playing days," Gabe Lopez says. "We want to hear their stories."

    Event sponsors are the Wyoming Humanities Council, the UW Office of Diversity, Multicultural Affairs, Sigma Lambda Gamma, MEChA, Associated Students of UW, the Social Justice Research Center and KOCA 93.5 FM La Radio Montanesa.

    FMI: Contact the UW Chicano Studies Program at Chicano_Studies@uwyo.edu or 307-766-4127.

    Photo: The 1943 Cheyenne Lobos played in the Rocky Mountain League.

    "A Mile of Quarters" to buy a kiln for AVA

    From a press release:

    AVA Community Art Center in Gillette is raising the remaining funds needed to build an outdoor downdraft car gas kiln at AVA. We will also be building a protective structure that is necessary to ensure the integrity of the kiln in our Wyoming weather.

    The kiln will be available to schools, local and regional artists, classes at the art center, and numerous service organizations throughout our community.

    AVA has received funding from The City of Gillette, The Wyoming Arts Council and some generous private donations. In order to complete our funding needs for the kiln AVA will be collecting quarters for "A Mile of Quarters" to raise additional funds to complete this project in 2010.

    The Mile of Quarters campaign will begin within the month and your support is needed.

    HOW CAN YOU HELP?
    -Bring quarters to AVA Community Art Center
    (If you wish to give more then quarters we are open to that too!)
    -Send quarters to school with your school children when you receive the Got Quarters? Flyer from their Art Teachers

    YOU'RE A POTTER AND WANT TO GET INVOLVED?
    -Ask about joining the pottery committee
    -Do you have pottery that can be used to collect quarters in? AVA would like to borrow them from you.
    (Please do not loan us anything that we would worry about damaging or being stolen & make sure that you have your name and phone number taped on the bottom of the pottery)

    FMI: http://www.avacenter.org/ or 307-682-9133

    UW alum Harold Garde returns for art exhibit

    From a UW press release:

    Harold Garde, a 1940s University of Wyoming art student, will be featured in several public programs in conjunction with his exhibition, "Harold Garde. painting. 50 years.," that opens Saturday, March 27, in the UW Art Museum.

    As an abstract expressionist, his exhibition includes paintings from various subjects he has explored over the years including kimono images in the form of his own unique printmaking technique, strappo. Garde invented this printmaking process that transfers dried paint onto paper.

    "I am interested in what paint can do, making marks that expressively respond to my thoughts and actions," Garde said.

    Garde received his BFA from UW in 1949. He studied art with surrealist Leon Kelly, abstract expressionist George McNeil and geometric abstractionist Ilya Bolotowsky.

    The following events will accompany the opening of Garde's exhibition:

    Monday, March 22, 7 p.m. -- Film screening of Harold Garde, Working Artist, at the UW Art Department's new Gallery 211.

    Monday, March 29, 10:30 a.m. -- Gallery walk through with Garde and Jeannie Dowis, the exhibition's curator.

    Monday, March 29, 6 p.m. -- An opening reception will be followed by an Art Talk by Garde and Dowis.

    Tuesday, March 30, 10:30 a.m. -- Garde will present a two-part demonstration of his strappo technique at Laramie High School. Part-two of the demonstration will continue Wednesday, March 31, at the same time.

    For more information, call the UW Art Museum at (307) 766-6622, visit www.uwyo.edu/artmuseum or blog at http://www.uwartmuseum.blogspot.com/.

    Photo: Harold Garde's 1997 acrylic on canvas piece, "Samurai Kimono."

    Thursday, March 11, 2010

    Cody's Shirley Barhaug will judge Rocky Mountain Regional Juried Exhibition

    From the Carbon County Arts Guild in Red Lodge, Mont.:

    Apr 1-30: Rocky Mountain Regional Juried Exhibition. This annual competition is open to artists in 7 Western states. Artists compete for entrance to the exhibit then vie for cash prizes once accepted into the show. Judge and juror this year is Cody, Wyoming artist and President of the Cody Country Art League, Shirley Barhaug. Exhibit is free and open to everyone during normal Arts Guild hours. For more information on the competition, call the Arts Guild in Red Lodge at (406) 446-1370.

    Apr 9: Rocky Mountain Regional Juried Exhibit Reception and Awards Ceremony. Join the artists who have artwork entered into the competition for an early evening reception from 4-6 pm at the Arts Guild in Red Lodge. Awards will be announced at 5pm. Refreshments will be served. Open to everyone. Free. For more information, call the Arts Guild at (406) 446-1370.

    Native American Business Expo in Lander

    The Wind River Development Fund in Fort Washakie presents the Native American Business Expo & Wind River Business Conference on Thursday, April 22, 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m. at the Best Western Inn in Lander.

    The Wind River Development Fund (WRDF) provides local entrepreneurs and businesses with small business training, counseling, and business loans.

    FMI: 307.335.7330 or toll free 877.253.3824 •

    Shaffer photo selected for Fort Collins exhibit

    “Red and Green,” a photograph by Tom Shaffer of Cheyenne, has been selected for inclusion in The Center for Fine Art Photography’s “Red” show. Photos from 43 artists were selected by juror Amber Terranova, photo editor for Photo District News.

    “Red” will be on display in the Center’s online gallery and physical gallery from April 23 – May 22, 2010 with artists’ and public reception on May 7 from 6-9 p.m.
    The Center for Fine Art Photography, Inc., is located in the Poudre River Arts Center, 400 North College Avenue, Fort Collins, Colo. Gallery Hours: Tue - Fri: 10am to 5pm; Saturday: 10am to 3pm; Sunday: Closed.

    FMI: 970. 224.1010; http://www.c4fap.org/

    Bell & Spragg launch book tours

    Cody writers Mark Spragg and Laura Bell teamed up to launch their book tours Tuesday at Cody's The Thistle Book Store. Poster for Laura's first book, "Claiming Ground," is in the background. Mark's new book is "Bone Fire."

    Register now for Wyoming Writers, Inc., annual conference in Cody

    Wyoming Writers, Inc., opens registration for annual conference in Cody:

    Since 1974, Wyoming Writers, Inc. has educated, inspired, and connected a generation of writers in the American West. Join us in Cody, Wyoming at the Holiday Inn for our 36th Annual Conference, June 4-6, 2010.

    The city of Cody—named in honor of famed Wild West showman, Buffalo Bill—is located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, and is less than fifty miles from Yellowstone: America’s first and most-spectacular national park. Cody is home to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center and its five museums, all located under one roof. Art galleries and shops abound, as do attractions devoted to local history. Old Trail Town is located just west of the city.

    Fifteen miles east is the Heart Mountain Relocation Camp and Memorial. Once sagebrush-covered prairie, the Heart Mountain area was transformed into the third largest city in Wyoming when thousands of Japanese-Americans were ‘relocated’ there following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The camp and its history will be the topic for our opening presentation on June 4th.

    With the majesty of Yellowstone at its doorstep, Cody is a slice of the Old West—of America—not to be missed. We hope you’ll join us here in June.

    Find the list of presenters and more info at: http://www.wyowriters.org/

    Print out this form -- or cut and paste into a Word doc -- fill out, enclose check, and send to the address at the bottom of the form

    Wyoming Writers Conference Registration
    Holiday Inn at The Buffalo Bill Resort
    June 4-6, 2010; Cody, Wyoming

    Name _______________________________

    Address______________________________

    City, State, Zip_________________________

    Phone _______________________________

    Email _______________________________

    Website______________________________

    NOTE: Conference Registration includes all meals on Saturday, including the Banquet, and Sunday Breakfast.

    Early Bird Registration postmarked by MAY 4, 2010:
    Members: $155 x ______ persons = $________
    Non-members: $170 x ______ persons = $________
    Not a member??? Join below, get member benefits and take the member discount!

    Registration AFTER May 4, 2010:
    Members $175 x ________ persons = $________
    Non-members: $200 x ________ persons = $________

    Guest Meal Tickets – for those not registered for the conference:
    Saturday Breakfast $15.00 x ________ persons = $ ________
    Saturday Lunch $17.00 x ________ persons = $ ________
    Saturday Banquet $25.00 x ________ persons = $ ________
    Sunday Breakfast $15.00 x ________ persons = $ ________

    Annual Membership Dues:

    For fiscal year July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011
    Membership types: Regular $35. Sustaining Membership $75; Patron $250; Student $10. Student fee must be accompanied by student ID or other proof of status.

    Type of Membership (select one):

    Regular ($35) ____ Sustaining ($75) _____ Patron ($250) _____ Student ($10) _____

    Add all costs you have selected on this page. TOTAL ENCLOSED _____________

    Make checks payable to Wyoming Writers, Inc. and mail with this form to:
    Pat Frolander; 19652 Hwy 14; Sundance, WY 82729

    Wednesday, March 10, 2010

    Call for entries: Spring Into Art Festival

    From a press release:

    Calling all Artists & Crafters!

    Spring into Art Festival, May 1- 2, 2010

    Makers of Special Things and Spring Specialties ! Booths available for Spring Gift Market
    at Unitarian Universalist Church of Cheyenne.

    Open to all artists, craftspeople and other vendors of hand-made items.. Booth and/or table fee $ 60. and shared booths for $75. Reservation forms & fees due by April 24th.

    Entry form download & info: www.uucheyenne.org/artfest/

    May 1, Saturday 9 am - 5 pm & May 2, Sunday 10 am - 1 pm, with a opening reception/preview on April 30, Friday, 4:30 - 6:30 pm

    In the UUCC Social Hall, 3005 Thomes Avenue, Cheyenne

    Special exhibition in the Sanctuary with an opening reception/preview on Friday, April 30, 4:30- 6:30 p.m.

    For booth/table reservations & info, contact Terry Kreuzer at 214-3932 or kreuzer@terrykreuzer.com or Andrea Heater at 638-4554 or administrator@uucheyenne.org.

    Call for entries: Jackson Hole Writers Conference scholarship contest

    An announcement from the Jackson Hole Writers Conference:

    Win a scholarship to this summer's Writers' Conference

    This year we're adding poetry, giving you two chances to win a Conference scholarship and have your work printed in the Jackson Hole News & Guide.

    Submission Guidelines:

    Flash Fiction - 600 words or less — AND/OR poem of no more than 20 lines, by April 7, 2010.

    One entry per category. Previously published work, ok. No fee to enter.

    Entries will be judged by a panel of JHWC faculty.

    Entries can be mysterious, funny, sorrowful, adventurous, reflective, villanelle, free verse, lyrical, or anything in between.

    Winner to be announced on May 7, 2010, at the Mark Spragg and Laura Bell reading at the Center for the Arts. That event is also free and open to the public.

    For full information about how to submit your entry, here.

    Ready, set, write!

    Funeral details for Karol Griffin

    Thanks to Riverton writer Carol Deering for this info:

    Karol Griffin’s funeral will be Friday, March 12, at 1 p.m. at the Davis Funeral Home, 2203 W. Main St., Riverton. Visiting hours will be 6-8 p.m Thursday, March 11, at the same place.

    FMI: 307-856-3217 or http://www.thedavisfuneralhome.com. Also see previous Wyomingarts post.

    In memoriam: Karol Griffin, writer

    Writer Karol Griffin of Riverton passed away March 4 due to renal failure.

    No details yet about a memorial service.

    But colleague Jeffe Kennedy wrote a fine post on her blog. Read it at http://lovepowerandfairytaleendings.blogspot.com/

    Karol was awarded a 2000 Frank Nelson Doubleday Memorial Award for women writers. She was the author of the memoir, "Skin Deep: Tattoos, the Disappearing West, Very Bad Men, and My Deep Love for Them All." When she lived in Laramie, she was a member of the Silver Sage Writers Alliance. The group spawned a number of talented writers, including Jeffe, who now lives in Santa Fe, N.M.

    Wyomingarts will pass on more information as it becomes available.

    Other readers who've penned memorials to Karol may e-mail them (or links) to mshay@state.wy.us.

    Tuesday, March 9, 2010

    Brazilian pianist Hamilton Tescarollo in concert

    From a UW press release:

    Brazilian pianist Hamilton Tescarollo will perform a free concert Friday, March 12, at 7:30 p.m. in the University of Wyoming Fine Arts Center concert hall in Laramie.

    Tescarollo's performance will include the complete "24 Preudes" by F. Chopin, "Variations in F" by Haydn, "Jeux d' eau" by Ravel and "Tango for four-hand piano" by Miranda, featuring Rubia Santos, UW assistant professor of piano and collaborative arts.

    He had his orchestral debut with the Sao Paulo State Symphony Orchestra as a winner of its prestigious Young Soloists National Competition. Tescarollos was named "Teacher of the Year" at the 2001 Schimmel-AZ Piano Young Artist Piano Competition.

    Now an assistant professor of piano and director of keyboard studies at Indiana University-Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Tescarollo has performed both as a soloist and as a chamber musician in the United States, Canada, Europe and South America.

    The concert is supported by the Luso-Brazilian Club Student Organization. For more information, call Santos at (307) 766-5394.