New songs by Bryan Ragsdale

Wyoming Arts Council roster artist Bryan Ragsdale of Green River sends this announcement:

I have put four of the songs off of my new album, Where Cowpokes Grow, on MySpace at www.myspace.com/bryanragsdal. These are MP3 versions of the master disk that we just sent off for production. The CD will be available for purchase on the 24th of January at www.bryanragsdale.com, my new web site. The web site will be launched the same day. This is a very exciting time for me, and there are huge announcements to come so stay tuned. Please enjoy and let me know what you think.

"Going Green" tells tales of Dumpster Divers

Jeffe Kennedy in Laramie sends this news via her blog, Love, Power and Fairytale Endings:

Earth Day 2009 will see the release of the new anthology, Going Green: True Tales from Gleaners, Scavengers, and Dumpster Divers. Edited by Laura Pritchett. I'm a contributor, with my essay on "Home Recycling," as are my good friends, the writers Julianne Couch and Chavawn Kelley [also from Laramie]. Here's what the University of Oklahoma Press has to say about it: "Never mind the Ph.D. and middle-class trappings -- Laura Pritchett is a 'Dumpster Diver' and proud of it. Ever since she was old enough to navigate the contents of a metal bin, she has reveled in the treasures found in other people’s cast-offs."

Laura Pritchett of Fort Collins, Colo., was the judge for this year's creative writing fellowships in fiction. She read with the three fellowship winners at the Equality State Book Festival in Casper last September.

Web site a resource for ceramic artists

Jennifer Harnetty, managing editor of Ceramic Arts Daily, sent this press release:

Ceramic Arts Daily (www.ceramicartsdaily.org), a website dedicated to providing information about the ceramic arts to the ceramic arts community, has reached a significant milestone by signing up more than 30,000 subscribers, making it the largest subscriber-based website for
ceramic artists in the world.

Ceramic Arts Daily delivers a free email newsletter three times a week to subscribers. The emails contain tips and techniques on all facets of ceramic art and pottery, artist profiles of current and emerging ceramic artists, upcoming events of interest to artists and video clips of ceramic techniques.

One of the highlights of the site is the Free Gift section, which provides free downloadable materials for use by artists, educators and students alike. Topics include glaze recipes, artist profiles, tool and supply information, and techniques, including the Ceramic Arts Handbook, a handy text providing basic information on ceramic art and techniques.

The website is free and available to anyone with an interest in the ceramic arts. Go to www.ceramicartsdaily.org for more information or to sign up.

New web site for Ucross Foundation

The Ucross Foundation recently launched a new web site, complete with photography by some of its talented resident artists. The web site is the result of nearly a year of work on the part of Ucross staff and contractors.

Go to http://www.ucrossfoundation.org and take a look. Ucross Foundation staffers say that they would love feedback on the site.

The Wyoming Arts Council helped fund the project through a Technology in the Arts grant.

By the way, the next application deadline for 2009 fall Ucross residencies (August-December) is March 1.

Auditions Jan. 12-13 at Atlas Theatre

From Rose Wagner at the Cheyenne Little Theatre Players:

Don't forget auditions for The Sisters Rosensweig, directed by Carol A. Serelson, are coming up very fast! In fact, they're Monday, January 12, and Tuesday, January 13, at the Historic Atlas Theatre in downtown Cheyenne, 6:30 p.m.

The Sisters Rosensweig Readers Theatre will be presented on Friday, Jan. 30 at the Atlas, 7:30 p.m. $10 general admission.

FMI: http://www.cheyennelittletheatre.org.

Lander Art Center starts 2009 classes

Here's a message from Lennie Poitras, director of the Lander Art Center:

This week we started preschool and homeschool classes. If you missed them there is still time.

Starting Tuesday is Susan Grinels’ Drawing/Pastel class. It will be held from 7-9 p.m., Jan. 13-Mar. 3. Price: $40 punchcard or $8 per class.

Susan Grinels is an award winning multi-media artist who specializes in pastels. Enjoy a stimulating class aimed at developing your drawing skills and pumping up your colors with pastels. Classes will start out with short warm up drawing exercises and attendees will work from a still life or their own photos.

Monday from 1-3 p.m. will be the first afternoon Open Studio. Susan Grinels will give an introduction to drawing/painting from photos. Drop in with your art materials and enjoy the creative atmosphere.

Silversmithing class will be held on Mondays, 7-9 p.m., Jan. 19 through Mar. 9. Cost is $135, $140 nonmembers; basic materials provided.

Instructor Lennie Poitras has been working with metals for the last five years and is the owner of her own business, Botanica Bead & Jewelry. This is a basic, project-based metalworking class. Students learn to form metals by stamping, sawing, cutting, dapping, riveting and wiring using basic tools, stone setting and joining metals using torches and soldering.

Call the Lander Art Center at 332-5772; email at landerartcenter@bresnan.net

YUPO watercolor class with Nancy Brown

Mountain Standard Time at UW Jan. 14

Bluegrass band Mountain Standard Time will perform a free show Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 8 p.m. in the Wyoming Union ballroom at the University of Wyoming in Laramie.

The band is based in Nederland, Colo. As is the case with most Westerners, its six members are from different parts of the country. Mountain Standard Time has performed throughout Colorado's Front Range the past year and plans to record this spring. They will be on the road this summer for the festival season.

"Mountain Standard Time is a jamgrass band on the rise," says reporter Marc Tonglen of The Mountain-Ear in Nederland. "They ignite audiences like wildfire in urban and rural setting alike."

The Associated Student of UW Student Activities Council sponsors the concert. Individuals with disabilities needing accommodations to participate can contact Mike Lange at (307) 766-2752 or e-mail mlange@uwyo.edu.

Governor's Arts Awards just a month away

Here's the front of the invitation for the Governor's Arts Awards. The original artwork featuring the cartoon characters Elmo and Flo was done by Jerry Palen, who is one of the 2009 Governor's Arts Award recipients, along with Park County Arts Council, Cody; Diane Springford, Lander; and Tandem Productions, Sheridan.

The dinner and ceremony takes place on February 13 in Cheyenne at Little America in their new banquet room, which is absolutely beautiful, by the way.

See you there!

The Color Purple at the Buell Theatre in Denver

From blog editor Linda Coatney:

I ventured down to Denver yesterday for the 2:00 p.m. matinee performance of The Color Purple, the musical. The tickets were a Christmas present from my daughter. Great songs and wonderful vocalists/performers. The story for the stage is somewhat differently told from the movie story, but the pivotal focus of the characters' lives is all still there. Felicia P. Fields, who played Sofia, was funny and portrayed Sofia's defiant spirit perfectly. Jeannette Bayardelle played Celie and did it with great care of her character's transistion. Angela Robinson played Shug Avery in all her self-possessed, self-assured, but damaged, looking-for-love-wherever-she-can-find-it glory.

I'd highly recommend going. There are two shows daily, from today, Jan 9 through Jan 18.

Other productions coming to the Buell this year: Chicago, Feb. 3-8; The Phantom of the Opera, Feb. 25-Mar. 22; Bill Cosby, Mar. 28; Tang Concubines, Apr. 7-19; Cirque Eloize:NEBBIA, Apr. 28-29; David Copperfield: An Intimate Evening of Grand Illusion, May 8-10; Monty Python's Spamalot, May 13-17; Rent, Jun. 9-14; Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Jul. 23-26; Wicked, Oct. 7-Nov 15; Spring Awakening, Dec. 1-13; and Little House on the Prairie, Dec. 15-27.

Go to http://www.denvercenter.org/ for much more information about productions (opera, Shakespeare, drama, etc.), and tickets at the Buell as well as the other Denver Center for the Performing Arts theatres, or call (303) 893-4100.

Casper photographer's work in "ONWARD '09"

This comes from a story in the Jan. 8 Casper Star-Tribune:

Michael Flicek's photograph, "Waiting For Work, Wuhan," was accepted for the ONWARD '09 Exhibition at Project Basho Gallery in Philadelphia. The show opened Thursday and will run through Feb. 22.

According to the Project Basho Web site, "ONWARD is an annual juried photography exhibition presented by Project Basho exclusively featuring the work of emerging photographers with unique vision and talent." Peter Barberie, curator of photographs for the Alfred Stieglitz Center at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, juried the exhibition.

Flicek, of Casper, shot this photo last year as part of his "China Life 2008 Project," featuring photographic images of older neighborhoods in China cities."The kind of neighborhoods that are rapidly disappearing," Flicek said.

"Waiting For Work, Wuhan" is of a group of apparent laborers in Wuhan waiting for someone to hire them."One man appeared to be a bicycle courier while many of the others had bow saws. These saws were handy for cutting bamboo, which is commonly used for scaffolding and other construction purposes in Wuhan and
throughout China," he said.

Twenty-four images and an artist statement from this project were previously selected for an online exhibition on the portfolio page of Fotomission, a not-for-profit organization based out of South Beach, Florida. To see it, go to Fotomission.org.

This year's ONWARD competition attracted entries from 413 national and international photographers who submitted over 1600 photographs. Barberie picked
73 photographs from 69 emerging photographers.

To see more of Flicek's work, go to his Web site, www.michaelflicekgallery.com/.

Photo: "Waiting for Work, Wuhan," Michael Flicek, black-and-white photograph, 800 x 533 pixels

Teton County Library features "92Y Live"

Beginning in January, the Teton County Public Library in Jackson will host intriguing speakers in broadcasts from the 92nd Street Y Cultural Center in New York City. Lectures will be viewed live via satellite, and members of the local audience can submit questions to the speakers via e-mail. All broadcasts take place in the library’s Ordway Auditorium and are free and open to the public, thanks to sponsorship by Teton County Library Foundation.

The 92Y Live broadcast schedule for January will be:

Tuesday, Jan. 13, 92Y Live: Paul Krugman in Conversation with Bill Moyers – “Toward a Great Society," 6-8 p.m. Bill Moyers talks with Paul Krugman, the 2008 Nobel Prize-winning economist; “New York Times” op-ed columnist; and bestselling author of the book, “The Conscience of a Liberal.” Moyers is an award-winning journalist, author and host of “Bill Moyers” on PBS. Broadcast live from 92nd Street Y in New York City.

Sunday, Jan. 18, 92Y Live: Salman Rushdie. 5:30-7:30 p.m. Salman Rushdie (shown in photo) is the author of many prize-winning novels, including: “Midnight’s Children,” “The Satanic Verses,” “The Moor’s Last Sigh,” and “The Enchantress of Florence.” In 2007, the British Crown appointed him a Knight Bachelor for “services to literature.” Broadcast live.

Tuesday, Jan. 27, 92Y Live: Robert Rubin in Conversation with Sebastian Mallaby. 6-8 p.m. A White House economic adviser and Treasury Secretary under President Clinton, Robert Rubin is credited with making the system work, spurring economic growth and creating a strong American economy. Sebastian Mallaby works for the Council on Foreign Relations and as the director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and deputy director of studies. Broadcast live.

Find the entire schedule at http://www.tclib.org or call the library's Kirsten Korbett at 307-733-2164 ext. 113. For more info on 92Y Live, go to www.92Y.org/PRESS.

Cheyenne veteran finds poetic voice

Walter Reed Mellott dropped into the Wyoming Arts Council this morning with a copy of his book, "My Heart's Poetry." This is the Cheyenne resident's first book, and he was looking for ideas on marketing and promotion. Wyomingarts had several ideas for him -- this blog post was one. He's conducted book signings at a local bookstore and at the Cheyenne Veteran's Administration Hospital. Walter's a 22-year Air Force veteran who spent some time in Southeast Asia way back when. He also read one of his military-based poems at a Memorial Day ceremony last year in Cheyenne.

Walter grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania and came to Wyoming after he joined the Air Force. He made a few detours along the way, but eventually made Wyoming his home. He wrote technical manuals for Wyoming's commuter airline, and only turned to poetry as he was recovering from a major illness in 2004.

Walter said that his most successful marketing technique is "hand-selling" through one-on-one contacts with potential readers. While it's a time intensive technique, it's effective and allows you to meet new people. It may be the best marketing plan for poets since major publishers don't publish poetry anyway and small press (and P.O.D.) poetry publishers have little or no promotion money.

You can buy a copy of Walter's book through the publisher's web site at http://www.authorhouse.com/ and http://www.authortree.com/tuscarora. Contact him in Cheyenne thorough his cell phone at 307-631-1847.

Institute for artists' communities Feb. 15-17

The Emerging Program Institute is "geared toward individuals involved in the creation and establishment of new artist-in-residence programs, including founders, directors, board members, and other staff, while directors of residency programs going through significant re-establishment may also find these sessions helpful. Whether in the early planning stages or in the formative years of programming, your organization will benefit from this professional development conference."

The institute, sponsored by the Alliance of Artists Communities, will be held Feb. 15-17 in Charlotte, N.C., and Spartanburg, S.C. Hosted by the McColl Center for Visual Art in Charlotte and HUB-BUB in Spartanburg.

The institute "aims to give you the tools and resources to establish solid organizational practices from the start, other models of success, and a strong peer network. We recognize that institutional stability and strategic growth requires commitment at each level of governance; therefore, we encourage multiple staff and/or board members from an organization to participate, and we are offering a discount of $100 for each additional attendee."

Register here for institute.

Job opening: Cheyenne Little Theatre Players

Cheyenne Little Theatre Players (CLTP) is now accepting applications for a full-time Theatre Education Coordinator. Applications will be accepted until Friday, Jan. 17, 2009. Please submit a cover letter and resume.

Applications may be sent via U.S. Mail to:
Dr. Randall L. Bernhard
Managing Director
Cheyenne Little Theatre Players
P.O. Box 20087
Cheyenne, WY 82003

E-mail applications will also be accepted. Please send to: rbernhard@cheyennelittletheatre.org

CLTP will conduct interviews after Jan. 17 and plan to fill the position by Feb. 2.

Please call Dr. Randy Bernhard at (307) 638-6543 if you have any questions or need further information.

VSA arts seeks proposals, entries

Seeking proposals for art exhibitions:

VSA arts is seeking proposals for art exhibitions for production in 2009-10. Deadline for receipt is February 20, 2009

VSA arts is committed to expanding the understanding, development, and appreciation of contemporary work by artists with disabilities. VSA arts produces exhibitions that provide exposure and opportunity to emerging and established artists. Exhibitions offer a familiar and approachable setting for the public to discover and reflect on issues of disability within a contemporary art context.

VSA arts encourages curators and researchers from the cultural, university, and museum communities, including those with disabilities, to incorporate the work of artists with disabilities into their exhibitions. Individual or group proposals are acceptable. This call invites a progressive dialogue by nurturing the curatorial voice from the perspective of disability. We welcome proposals that address, challenge, and expand the discussion about disability and culture. If selected, proposed exhibitions will be produced in partnership with VSA arts to include shipping, installation and deinstallation, collaterals, marketing, publicity, and events.
A disability is defined as an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity. For more information about disabilities, please review the VSA arts’ Disability Awareness Guide, located under Resources at http://www.vsarts.org/.

Call for entries

VSA arts is seeking visual artists who are interested in participating in the VSA arts International Festival to be held in 2010. Revealing Culture will be the most comprehensive survey of international artists with disabilities brought to the United States.

Applicants from a wide range of artistic practices are encouraged to apply. Disability is a requirement for eligibility, but will not be disclosed during the jury process. Artists will be selected on the aesthetic merits of their work. Artists are asked to consider the theme Revealing Culture as it relates to their submission, but a relationship to the theme does not have to be explicit or obvious in the work itself.

VSA arts will use the exhibition to consider the influence of disability: What connections are established between the artist and the local disability community? How has the experience of disability shaped the artistic process or resulting work—if at all? These influences in conjunction with artists’ responses will help to further refine the theme of the exhibition, as well as exploring how artists negotiate the sometimes competing claims of responsibility to art and to self-identification. Revealing Culture will also examine the unique attributes of a community to disability in the artists' respective countries.

Revealing Culture will be the most comprehensive survey of international artists with disabilities brought to the United States.

The call for entries dead line is April 30, 2009, midnight (MST). Go to www.vsarts.org/ to find out more.
The exhibition will include approximately 50 artists from around the world and will be showcased at the International Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution.

Jan. 15 deadline for play-writing competition

ARTCORE is presenting a One-Act Play competition, and the winner will receive $300 and have a chance to see his or her play performed during the 2008-09 season.

The purpose is to find and give exposure to serious playwrights in Wyoming, provide ongoing encouragement for new plays and spark interest in contemporary theater.

Entries are limited to one-act plays that can be performed in an hour or less. Playwrights must be Wyoming residents at the time their entries are submitted.

To enter the contest, send your manuscript to ARTCORE at PO Box 874, Casper 82602, along with a $15 entry fee, by Jan. 15.

You may enter as many plays as you wish. Each requires a separate entry fee.

Two copies of each entry must be accompanied by cover sheets with the name of the playwright, title of the play and a statement certifying that the play has not been previously published or performed.

Manuscripts will not be returned unless sent with a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

ARTCORE’s competitions are judged by out-of-state judges.

FMI: ARTCORE at 265-1564

"Art on the Rocks" at AVA Jan. 31

In search of the real Tom Horn

Baylie Davis and Becky Orr report in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle that The History Channel's Conor McCarthy is in Cheyenne this week filming a documentary on the infamous stock detective Tom Horn.

The episode on Horn is expected to air this spring, although that could change, McCarthy said. It will feature re-creations and interviews in typical documentary style, McCarthy added, and the issue of Horn's guilt or innocence cannot be avoided.

"He's the most controversial figure in Wyoming history," Chip Carlson, a local author and expert on Horn, said.

Read the entire article at http://www.wyomingnews.com/

Call for entries: Flash fiction contest

Writer Carol Caverly, who describes herself as "a founding member of Wyoming Writers, Inc., and ex-president of many moons ago as Babbie Collins," sends news about a writing competition. She now lives in Colorado Springs and invites her Wyoming friends to e-mail her at cacaverly@juno.com

Now, the details of the writing competition:

Announcing the 2009 Pikes Peak Branch National League of American Pen Women Flash Fiction Contest. Submit a complete, but very-short story of 100 words or fewer. Postmark deadline: March 2, 2009. Entry fee: $10. Prizes: 1st, $75; 2nd, $40; Judge's Merit, $15. Theme: "Everything was perfect."

Flash fiction is a complete, but very short story of 100 words or fewer. The title is not included in the word count. The story must pertain to the theme, "Everything was perfect." All genres are welcome, and multiple entries may be submitted. A is required for each entry. No poetry. A self-addressed, stamped envelope must be included. Winners will be notified by or before April 15, 2009.

For complete rules and entry blank please go to www.nlapwcolorado.org (click Pikes Peak branch, then contests) or e-mail cacaverly@juno.com