Sign up now for Wyoming Poetry Out Loud

Wyoming Poetry Out Loud champion Sara Ellingrod of Arvada-Clearmont presents "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg at the POL national finals in Washington, D.C., in May. Photo © James Kegley

The Wyoming Arts Council invites interested language arts, speech/debate and drama teachers to take part in Poetry Out Loud (POL), the national recitation and memorization contest sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. Designed specifically for students in grades 9-12, the program is a fun way to teach and reinforce language arts standards about poetry.

The sign-up deadline for Wyoming Poetry Out Loud is January 11.

The program materials are available now from the Wyoming Arts Council. The school contests will take place through mid-February, 2013. The state finals will take place in Cheyenne March 4-5. Many of the program materials are also available on the web site at http://www.poetryoutloud.org/.

POL builds on the resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, encouraging the nation’s youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance. Students can work on mastering comprehension, public speaking, acting, performance, drama and English skills while building self-confidence and internalizing our rich literary heritage.

Last year, 11 schools from across Wyoming participated in the program. Sara Ellingrod of Arvada-Clearmont, a second-time school winner, won the state finals and represented Wyoming at the national finals in Washington, D.C. She became one of only 53 students in a competition that involved 1,500 high schools and 365,000 students nationwide.

If a school is interested in participating in Wyoming’s Poetry Out Loud competition, or needs further information, please contact Linda Coatney at the WAC, 307-777-6393 or Linda.coatney@wyo.gov. 

UW Writing Project and Dept. of Ed team up for week-long writing workshop in Laramie

This info comes from a UW press release. Writing Project workshops are great because writing teachers take classes from actual writers who also have teaching experience. It's fun too, and includes an open mic session July 18 at Night Heron Books with some fine Laramie writers. The sessions start July 16 so sign up soon. Here are the details:

The Wyoming Department of Education and the University of Wyoming Writing Project have joined together to bring the Wyoming Writer’s Workshop to Laramie July 16-20, at Laramie Junior High School.

The program offers open enrollment and teachers can attend by emailing marina-barela@wyo.gov or calling (307) 631-0637.

The workshop is designed to grow teachers of writing through professional development with other writing teachers. It is a national research-based model with documented success in growing students in not only writing but also reading, says Sheryl Lain, WDE instructional leader.

“The workshop is a complete immersion into the reading and writing processes,” Lain says. “Teachers will learn by doing. They will write, revise and publish within a supportive community of fellow teachers, and they will read and discuss together, emulating the best practices proven to be successful in balanced literacy classrooms.”

Included in the training is an open microphone session from 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 18, at Night Heron Bookstore, 107 Ivinson St. Among readers are Pam Galbreath, nonfiction, an academic professional lecturer at UW with an MFA in creative writing; Aaron Graham, poetry, a UW master's candidate in English literature; Maggie Mullen, fiction, graduate student in creative writing at UW; and Diane Panozzo, fiction or nonfiction lecturer in the Honors English Colloquium at UW.

"Bronze & Printmaking" in Green River launches WAC summer classes

The Wyoming Arts Council is offering the following summer classes:
 
June 10-14, Bronze & Printmaking with Shane Steiss and Bill Yankee in Green River
July 8-10, Beginning Fused Glass with Marianne Vinich in Riverton
July 8-13, Advanced Fused Glass with Marianne Vinich in Riverton
July 23-27, Summer Teaching Institute at UW Art Museum in Laramie

First one on the schedule is Bronze & Printmaking:

Date: June 10-14, 2012

Place: Green River High School, Green River WY

Credit: 2 UW Outreach Credits or PTSB credits will be awarded. (pending approval) Outreach credit (also known as graduate) costs $50/credit and is payable at registration

Lodging: If you select a lodging option, you do not need to register at the hotel. This will be done for you. Lodging will include the night of June 9, since the class starts at 8:30 on June 10.

Meals: Breakfast is included with lodging. Lunch and snack will be provided.

Cost: $350 for the class. Lodging extra. Contact the Hampton Inn in Green River, (307) 875-5300

Mail registration form and payment to:

Wyoming Arts Council, Attn Camellia, 2320 Capitol Ave, Cheyenne, WY 82002
Fax: 307-777-5499
Payment accepted: Checks, District PO or Voucher

FMI: 307-777-5305 or the Wyoming Arts Council home page.

Anti-racist author and educator Tim Wise is keynote speaker for 16th annual UW Shepard Symposium

From a UW press release:

Tim Wise, anti-racist essayist, author and educator, is the keynote speaker Wednesday, March 28, for the University of Wyoming's 16th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice. Wise will speak from 4:30-6 p.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. "Identities: Dismantling the Boxes" is the theme of this year's Shepard Symposium, which runs March 28-31.

Wise, who is among the nation's most prominent anti-racist writers and educators, has been called "one of the most brilliant, articulate and courageous critics of white privilege in the nation," by best-selling author and Georgetown University Professor Michael Eric Dyson.

Wise is the author of six books, including the highly acclaimed memoir, "Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White"; an essay collection, "Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama"; and his recent book, "Dear White America: Letter to a New Minority."

In 1997, former UW College of Education faculty members Omawale Akintunde and Margaret Cooney organized the first symposium, then called "The Symposium for the Eradication of Social Inequality." Since then, the symposium has evolved into a major national conference that engages participants in discussion and analyses of strategies and actions that can eliminate social inequality.

Honoring the work of the Shepard family and the memory of their son, Matthew Shepard, a UW student and social activist who was murdered in 1998, the symposium's name was changed in 2002. That spring, the Shepard Symposium received funding from an anonymous endowment given to UW to pursue social justice activities throughout the campus.

The symposium is a living reminder of the need for information and dialogue about social justice concerns in America and beyond.

"We want people to deconstruct and interrupt the ways in which proscriptive identities are forced upon members of marginalized groups by society," says Chair Angela Jaime in explaining the latest theme for the symposium. "Specifically, we hope that attendees will critically examine the ways in which society forces people to identify with certain membership groups."

Various presentations will be made during the symposium. Highlights include:

Beth Loffreda, UW Department of English associate professor, will present the plenary speech, "The Consequences of Identity," at the noon luncheon Thursday, March 29, in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. She is the author of "Losing Matt Shepard."

Bridget Kisling, a junior music therapy and psychology student at Anna Maria College (Paxton, Mass.), will use a life-size version of the 1950s Barbie doll to shed light on how the media plays a significant role in shaping a young girl's sense of body image. Her presentation is Friday, March 30, 1:45-3 p.m., in the Wyoming Union Big Horn Room.

An endnote student panel discussion, "Boxed In," will be presented Friday, March 30, at 11:30 a.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. UW students will discuss complex and misunderstood identities.

The second annual Shepard Symposium Friday Night Party is from 10 p.m.-1:30 a.m. at the Library Bar and Grill. All proceeds benefit the recognized student organizations that have contributed time and efforts to the Shepard Symposium. Tickets are $5 at the door or $4 in advance, and can be purchased at the symposium.

For more information about the Shepard Symposium, visit the website at http://www.shepardsymposium.org/, or contact Jaime at (307) 766-3991 or email jaimea@uwyo.edu.

Photo: Tim Wise will be the keynote speaker for the 16th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice.

Encana purchases student-made glass art centerpieces featured at Feb. 24 Governor's Arts awards gala

Riverton High School Principal Joanne Flannigan (left) and arts teacher Marianne Vinich at Governor's Arts Awards gala Feb. 24 in Cheyenne.

From County 10 in Fremont County:

The art glass centerpieces at the 30th Annual Wyoming Governor’s Arts Awards held Friday night in Cheyenne came from the imagination of Riverton High School Art Students enrolled in the Glass Art Program there.

Eighty-seven centerpieces, including two set aside for Governor Matt Mead, were produced for the event under the guidance of art instructor Marianne Vinich. RHS Principal Joanne Flannigan and Vinich were recognized at the awards dinner for the students’ contributions. Each of the glass art discs were offered for sale at a suggested donation of $40 to help purchase new glass and supplies for the program, which is the state’s longest-running such class. However,  before any of the discs could be purchased, Encana Oil and Gas made an $80 donation per piece and gave each centerpiece away. It was up to each table as to who got claim the centerpieces.

Read the rest at http://county10.com/2012/02/27/rhs-art-glass-program-recognized-at-governors-arts-awards-encana-purchase-to-fund-supplies/ 

Christi Mitchell performs her one-woman shows Oct. 13 at the Hynds during Art Design & Dine

www.christimitchellworkshops.com

WY ceramic artists Connie Norman and Jenny Dowd featured in NCECA exhibit at Arvada Center

www.arvadacenter.org

Call for applications: Moss Foundation arts education grants

The P. Buckley Moss Foundation for Children’s Education has grants available up to $1,000 to be awarded in 2011 to educators who need assistance to further their program goals.

Applications may be made for a grant up to $1,000 to support a new or evolving program that integrates the arts into educational programming.  The purpose is to aid and support teachers who wish to establish an effective learning tool using the arts in teaching children who learn differently.

Grant applications due Sept. 30. 2011.

FMI: P. Buckley Moss Foundation, Grants Committee, 152 P. Buckley Moss Drive, Waynesboro, VA  22980; 540-932-1728;

http://mossfoundation.org/national-educators-awards-and-grants

David Klaren is living large with his dynamic drawings

David Klaren's Dire Wolf Studios is in a spacious old warehouse in Pinedale. His large drawings of dragon flies and mud crabs and pine cones and skeletal horses occupy almost every inch of wall space in the two-story building. His pen-and-ink drawings are spread out across a table. On the shelves are various fish sculptures awaiting completion. Lots of work to choose from for Wyoming Arts Council's fellowship biennial exhibit.

In his other life, David drives a truck for a drilling crew and installs floors and builds home additions and heads up Pinedale's nascent public arts program. Evidence of his construction background is evident in his two-story studio. He put in the windows and walls and floors. Stacked beneath his drawing are new wooden floors awaiting installation in the studio and at a customer's house.

He knows his materials, and can get them to do what he wants most of the time. Some drawings don't pan out. He started an ink drawing of a topographical map of Crowheart Butte and it turned out looking a bit like a Halloween decoration -- all black and white and frenetic lines. He gave it some thought and is working on a series of 3-D topo map drawings in which Crowheart Butte rises out of the paper in all of its topographical glory. Still a work in progress.

David has had exhibits all over the region, including shows in Colorado, Idaho and Nebraska. His work has been featured at the Governor's Capital Art Exhibition in Cheyenne. For the past two years, David and some of his fellow Wyoming artists have trooped to Art Basel in Miami Beach to discover ways to market their work internationally.

After the studio visit, we trooped over the the Sublette County Public Library. David showed us the fish exhibit. Fish a Titlist golf ball (complete with golf tee). Fish made from thousands of sunflower seeds. About a half-dozen of David's fish sculptures swim through the library. A very popular addition, especially with the kids.

Both the fish and the sculpture remain a big part of David's life. He was born in the old whaling town of New Bedford, Mass., but grew up in high and dry Pinedale, where trout fishing is king in the surrounding mountains. He attended one of the top sculpture programs in the U.S. at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va.

But these days, it always comes back to the drawings. A selection of them will be on display at the fellowship biennial show when it opens Nov. 4 at the Center for the Arts in Jackson.

Photos (top to bottom):

1. David Klaren and "Mud Crab," graphite on  Arches cover,  53x72 inches

2. "Black Iraq," ink on vellum, 24x18 inches

3. David Klaren shows his ink drawings to WAC fellowship biennial curator Nancy Bowen.

4. The fish sculpture section of David's Pinedale studio

Casper Star-Tribune's "Making It" series follows Jim Olm's road to the Off Broadway stage

Anyone interested in a career in musical theatre should read the "Making It" series by Margaret Matray in the Casper Star-Tribune. The series follows Casper College theatre professor Jim Olm in his quest to produce his show "The Magdalene" Off Broadway. Olm has invested many years and a lot of money in the pursuit of his dream.

Jim Olm

The musical is inspired by the Gnostic Gospels, discovered in Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945. It follows the story of Mary Magdelene as told in the Gospels of Mary and Thomas which were not included in the Christian Bible. "The Magdelene" is scheduled to run at the Theatre of St. Clement's in New York through Sept. 4. Olm co-wrote the script with J.C. Hanley. The play is directed by Casper College professor Rich Burk with Tony Award-winner Richard Maltby Jr. as creative consultant.

Olm's saga from the germ of an idea to the Off Broadway stage continues through Thursday in the CST.  

Help wanted: Lander Art Center

The Lander Art Center is looking for a part-time art teacher for Fall 2011 through Spring 2012 youth classes, 2 to 4 days/classes per week, times vary. Applicants must be motivated, flexible, and have a background or previous experience in the arts. Mail cover letter, resume, and 3 references to Lander Art Center 224 Main St. Lander, WY 82520 by July 10. Pay varies with experience.

"Figurative Art as Story, Metaphor, Presence" at UW

The University of Wyoming Art Museum's 2011 Summer Teaching Institute, "Figurative Art as Story, Metaphor, Presence," will be offered July 25-29 at the museum. All K-12 teachers and community educators are welcome.

Participants will use museum exhibitions, the Ann Simpson Artmobile exhibit, "Go Figure!" and resources from the American Heritage Centerand Coe Library to explore how figurative art can inspire educational lessons by communicating ideas and stories.

Visiting artists Ricki Klages (painting), Susan Moldenhauer (photography), Chris Amend (painting, drawing) and Matt Daly (cartooning and writing) will be available to inspire new thinking and introduce techniques.

Studio time is included every afternoon to explore new materials. This five-day workshop demonstrates how educators at all artistic levels can incorporate original art into lessons and build school and community partnerships for art education. Three credits of Professional Teaching Standards Board (PTSB) certification or UW Continuing Education credit are available to participants.

The cost is $150 for individuals, $125 for a first partner and $100 for any additional partners who register together. Daily lunch and snacks are included. For more information or to obtain a registration form, contact Wendy Bredehoft at (307) 766-3496 or wbredeho@uwyo.edu .

For additional information about the UW Art Museum call (307) 766-6622 or visit the museum's webpage atwww.uwyo.edu/artmuseum or blog at www.uwartmuseum.blogspot.com .

Located in the Centennial Complex at 2111 Willett Drive in Laramie, the museum is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Photo: Jennie Tamao's etching, "Party Hat" is among works in the Ann Simpson Artmobile exhibit, "Go Figure!" that will be featured in the 2011 Summer Teaching Institute. (Jennie Tamao)

Sarah Dahlberg leaving WOW to be elementary art teacher in Laramie schools

Sarah Dahlberg

News from Sarah Dahlberg, coordinator of Works of Wyoming in Laramie:

At the end of the month, I will be leaving WOW to take a position as an elementary art teacher here in Laramie. I would like to thank all who have been so supportive of me and WOW since I begun working here in November of 2009. It has been a wonderful experience meeting and collaborating with artists and organizations to bring quality shows, workshops and events to the community. Thank you!

Wyomingarts hates to see you go, Sarah. But best wishes in the classroom. The Wyoming Arts Council worked with WOW in May for a series of professional development workshops for visual artists. WAC hopes for more of these types of collaborative ventures in the future.

UPDATE: Handmade for Japan eBay auction

Wyomingarts has been tracking arts-oriented fund-raisers for the earthquake and tsunami victims in Japan. One Cheyenne artist and teacher, Connie Kazuko Norman, will be part of a Handmade for Japan auction on eBay. Here is the most recent information from Connie:

I sure many of have already heard of Handmade For Japan.  It is the brainchild of Ayumi Horie, and her friends, Ai Kanazawa Cheung and Kathryn Pombriant Manzella.  Handmade For Japan is an on-line benefit auction for the Japanese victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami.  I am honored to be one of the artists that are contributing to the cause.  As many of you know that I am half Japanese and I have many relatives that live in Tokyo.  I have been lucky enough to have study ceramics in Japan as well.  My Japanese heritage has always very important to me. The people of Japan really need help with disaster relief.

The auction will be held next Thursday, March 24th, 8pm EST to Sunday, March 27th, 8pm EST on eBay and they will have assured bids so check in early. Right now Handmade For Japan has a public Facebook page where a previewing of items before the auction. Even if you're not on Facebook, you can see the items. Please help us get the word out so that we can reach our goal of raising more than $25,000. 100% of the proceeds will be given to Global Giving’s Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.

The collection has grown to over 90 artists, many with well-known and respected names, and you will be astonished how many wonderful pieces of art that has been donated for the cause. 

Ayumi and her friends have been working tirelessly toward this event.  I have been amazed at every update.  Thank you guys for all your hard work!

Here are some of the media coverage we got in the last week, The New York Times, and American Craft Magazine.

UW faculty exhibit closes March 19

Wyoming Poetry Out Loud awards presentation set for 10:30 a.m. in the Capitol Rotunda

Trek on down to the Wyoming State Capitol Rotunda for the Wyoming Poetry Out Loud awards announcement at 10:30 a.m. today. State Parks and Cultural Resources Director (and musician and theatre guy) Milward Simpson will serve as emcee and Secretary of State Max Maxfield (he'll be seen as The Cat in the Hat this week reading to students at various schools) will hand out the awards. Come down to the Capitol and celebrate the arts in Wyoming.

For those who attended the state finals last night at the Historic Atlas Theatre, you know what a great batch of  competitors Wyoming had this year. The program keeps growing. If you're a teacher or a student, grades 9-12, give the Wyoming Arts Council a call at 307-777-7742 for more info. You may also e-mail Linda Coatney at lcoatn@state.wy.us.

See you at the Capitol...

Eric Lee's "Close to Interpretation" exhibit at LCCC in Cheyenne through Feb. 22

Wyomingarts finally had a chance to view Eric Lee's exhibit at the Esther and John Clay Fine Arts Gallery at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne. This "Close to Interpretation" show features Eric's painting, collage and carved cardboard, among many other media. Intriguing art by a Cheyenne arts educator at Central High School.

The show will be up through Feb. 22.

FMI: http://www.lccc.cc.wy.us/life

No Right Brain Left Behind asks for ideas on how education can meet the "creativity challenge"

According to an IBM poll of 1,500 CEOs, creativity was identified "as the number one competitive edge" of the future, meaning the "soft skills" of the right brain need to be nurtured more than ever.

No Right Brain Left Behind has come up with a "creativity challenge" to find ways to reform education to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Read the full article at Good Magazine at http://www.good.is/post/solving-the-creativity-crisis-the-no-right-brain-left-behind-challenge/ 

"Kenyan Expressions" reception Feb. 26 at Community Fine Arts Center in Rock Springs

A reception for Wyoming photographer Mike Conaway's "Kenyan Expressions" exhibit will be held on Saturday, Feb. 26, 2 p.m., at the Community Fine Arts Center, 400 C Street in Rock Springs. The event is free and open to the public.

The reception includes a presentation about the school being built in Kenya with the help of Wyoming educators.

FMI: 307-362-6212

44th annual Kinser Jazz Festival Feb. 8-9 at Casper College

The 44th Annual Kinser Jazz Festival at Casper College will host more than 60 middle and high school vocal and instrumental groups during the two-day festival Feb. 8 and 9.

Each group will have 30 minutes to set up, perform and tear down. Each 30-minute performance will include a brief clinic with an adjudicator. Following the public performance each group will receive written comments, rating scores (if required), and a digital video recording of its performance and a 30-minute private clinic with an adjudicator.

There are six adjudicators for this year’s festival – three vocal and three instrumental. The vocal adjudicators are Ayo Awosika, Robert Lawrence, and Kelsey Shiba. The instrumental adjudicators are John Davis, Tyler Gilmore, and Andrew Stonerock.

Instrumental groups scheduled to perform on Tuesday, Feb. 8 are:

o Jazz Ensemble, Campbell County High School, 7:30 a.m.
o GMS Jazz Band, Glenrock Middle School, 8 a.m.
o Jazz II, Green River High School, 8:30 a.m.
o Jazz Ensemble, Kelly Walsh High School, 9 a.m.
o Jazz Band II, Cheyenne East High School, 9:30 a.m.
o CY Jazz Band, CY Middle School, 10 a.m.
o Latin Jazz Ensemble, Riverton High School, 10:30 a.m.
o CHS Jazz Band, Cody High School, 11 a.m.
o Casper College Jazz Ensemble, 11:30 a.m.
o GHS Jazz Band, Glenrock High School, noon
o Jazz Band I, Cheyenne East High School, 12:30 p.m.
o Concert Orchestra, Johnson County High School, 1 p.m.
o Riverton Jazz Ensemble, Riverton High School, 1:30 p.m.
o Jazz I, Green River High School, 2 p.m.
o South High Orchestra, Cheyenne South High School, 2:30 p.m.

Vocal groups scheduled to perform on Tuesday, Feb. 8 are:

o Crescendos, Campbell County High School, 8 a.m.
o Happenstance, Douglas High School, 8:30 a.m.
o Harmony, Campbell County High School, 9:30 a.m.
o Hamilton Boulevard, Douglas High School, 10 a.m.
o East High Singers, Cheyenne East High School, 10:30 a.m.
o A Capella, Kelly Walsh High School, 11 a.m.
o Jazz Choir, Riverton High School, 11:30 a.m.
o Vocalocity, Billings, Mont. Catholic High School, 12:30 p.m.
o Casper College Contemporary Singers, 1 p.m.
o Concert Choir, Kelly Walsh High School, 1:30 p.m.
o Plainsman Singers, Laramie High School, 2 p.m.
o New Attitude, Glenrock High School, 2:30 p.m.

Instrumental groups scheduled to perform on Wednesday, Feb. 9 are:

o Jazz Ensemble, Riverton Middle School, 8 a.m.
o Jazz Band, Cheyenne South High School, 8:30 a.m.
o Jazz Ensemble, Natrona County High School, 9 a.m.
o Comet Combo, Dean Morgan Middle School, 9:30 a.m.
o Jazz Band, Wheatland High School, 10 a.m.
o Indian Jazz, Cheyenne Central High School, 10:30 a.m.
o Warrior Jazz, Twin Spruce Junior High School, 11 a.m.
o Casper College Jazz Ensemble, 11:30 a.m.
o University of Wyoming Lab School Jazz Band, noon
o Sage Valley Jazz, Sage Valley High School, 12:30 p.m.
o Pinedale Jazz Band I, Pinedale High School, 1 p.m.
o Jazz Combo, Natrona County High School, 1:30 p.m.
o CCHS Jazz Combo, Cheyenne Central High School, 2 p.m.
o Jazz Band, Big Horn High School, 2:30 p.m.
o Jazz Ensemble, Niobrara County High School, 3 p.m.
o Tiger Jazz Orchestra, Rock Springs High School, 3:30 p.m.
o Jazz Katz, Douglas Middle School, 4 p.m.
o Jazz Ensemble, Buffalo High School, 4:30 p.m.
o Jazz Band, Sheridan High School, 5 p.m.

Vocal groups scheduled to perform on Wednesday, Feb. 9 are:

o Encore, Kelly Walsh High School, 8 a.m.
o Balladiers, Buffalo High School, 8:30 a.m.
o 7th St. Swing, Twin Spruce Junior High School, 9 a.m.
o Mixed Jazz Choir, Rock Springs High School, 9:30 a.m.
o Jazz Choir, Pinedale High School, 10 a.m.
o NC Harmony, Natrona County High School, 11 a.m.
o Cantabile, Kelly Walsh High School, 11:30 a.m.
o Jazzco, Rawlins High School, noon
o Show Choir, Casper Classical Academy, 12:30 p.m.
o Casper College Contemporary Singers, 1 p.m.
o Vocal Jazz, McCormick Junior High School, 1:30 p.m.
o Select Choir, Twin Spruce Junior High School, 2 p.m.
o Entertainers, Wheatland High School, 2:30 p.m.
o Vocal Jazz Ensemble, Natrona County High School, 3 p.m.
o Erocne, Powell High School, 3:30 p.m.
o Centralaires, Cheyenne Central High School, 4 p.m.

The vocal groups will perform in the Roberts Commons Ballroom, located in the Roberts Commons Cafeteria, while the instrumental groups will perform in Durham Recital Hall, located in the Aley Fine Arts Center. All junior, middle and high school performances are free and open to the public