Calls for the Visual Arts

from ARTS ALLIANCE Calendar - Read "Something To Do" Online

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Art Center at Fuller Lodge, Los Alamos, NM

Call for Fiber Artists
What: Exhibition of Art Quilts
Who: Must be a New Mexico artist to enter.
Deadline: May 9, 2008
Exhibition: June 20-July 26, 2008
More Info and Prospectus: Go to www.angelfiredesigns.compatriciagould@msn.com
or call 505-670-6364 or email
Art Gallery 66
373 Camino del Pueblo, Bernalillo
Looking for Teachers
Artists, writers and musicians to teach children or adults. All levels of teaching experience welcome.
More Info: Call 505-867-8666 or email info@artgallery66.net

The Cradle Project
Looking for Artists to Create and Donate Cradles
What: The Cradle Project is an art installation in Albuquerque in Spring 2008 of 1,000 cradles by artists from around the world. The Cradle Project promotes awareness and raises funds for orphaned children in sub-Saharan Africa.
Deadlines: April 15, 2008 for submissions and artist agreements.
More Info: Call project coordinator, Naomi Natale, at 505-699-4613 or email nnatale@cradleproject.orgwww.thecradleproject.org

or go to
International Fiber Collaborative
Calling Fiber Artists
What: Create a panel for this project
Deadline: March 15, 2008
More Info: Go to www.InternationalFiberCollaborative.com

MasterWorks of New Mexico 2008, 10th Anniversary Show
Call for Entries
When and Where: Show is April 5-25, 2008 at EXPO New Mexico, Hispanic Arts Building
Remaining Deadline: Works for the miniatures division are due at the venue March 22.
More Info and Prospectus: Call 260-9977 or go to www.masterworksnm.orgbardean@aol.com

or email Matrix Fine Art
Call for Photographers July 2008 juried exhibition
More Info and Application: Go to www.matrixfineart.com

New Mexico Film Museum
Call to Students and Teachers for Original Student Film and Photography
What: New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs is looking for New Mexico students in grades 7-12 for exhibits titled, "History Through the Eyes of Young New Mexicans."
When: Three submission windows: January 15-March 31, May 1-July 31 and September 1-November 30, 2008.
More Info: Call Pamela Pierce at 505-820-0552 or go to www.nmfilmmuseum.org/heroes

New Mexico Watercolor Society
Call for Artists for spring watercolor exhibition
Exhibition Dates: May 10-31, 2008
Where: EXPO New Mexico, Hispanic Arts Building
Eligibility: Must be a member of the NM Watercolor Society
Deadline: Friday, March 7
More Info: Call Dave Collis at 281-6935
Application: Go to www.nmwatercolorsociety.org

Ruidoso Valley Chamber of Commerce
Call for Artists
What: 37th Annual Ruidoso Art Festival, July 25-27, 2008
Where: Ruidoso Convention Center
Deadline: March 1
More Info and Application: Go to www.RuidosoNow.com/artfestival

3rd Street Arts
711 3rd St. SW
Looking for Artists and Models for Drawing Groups
Opportunity for artists to hang their work. Also looking for models for Wednesday and Thursday night drawing groups.
Fee: Exhibit fee is $150/month, includes 1-2 receptions.
More Info: Call Robin at 604-3072 or Russ at 306-0535 or email thirdstreetarts@yahoo.com

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Check out the newly released executive summary of the UNM BBER study of the Economic Importance of the Arts & Cultural Industries in Albuquerque & Bernalillo County.

Sign up for Arts Alliance Email Newsletter

EXHIBIT: 300 Years of Albuquerque History, Jan 29 - Sept 6, 2008

From NM Culture:

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The Albuquerque / Bernalillo County Library System Presents: Three Hundred Years of Albuquerque History Exhibit - Jan 29 - Sept 6, 2008

This exhibit, at the Special Collections Library, presents a large compilation of images and documents about life in Albuquerque from its founding in 1706 up to modern times. Created to celebrate the city's Tricentennial, it was assembled from treasures in the collections of the Center for Southwest Research at U.N.M. Library.

Exhibit creator Nancy Brown Martinez has provided the community with a new opportunity to view this remarkable presentation of Albuquerque's history at the:

Special Collections Library, located at 423 Central Ave. NE, (Corner of Edith and Central), in Albuquerque

Library Hours, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm, Tuesday – Saturday

For information: 848-1376 or 311 The Albuquerque / Bernalillo County Library System is a Division of the City of Albuquerque Cultural Services Department.

For accessibility information, please call 848-1376. TTY users, please call the New Mexico Relay at 1-800-659-833

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2007 Mountainair Monties

For your consideration - the nominations for the 2007 Monties are...

Welcome Signs

Nominated under "best new idea followed through" but not a new idea. Winner in revised category: "It's about time!" or best OLD idea FINALLY followed through.

Cooperation and Collaboration

Welcome Signs - getting them made, paid for, assembled and put up involved a number of people and groups not always..Kristine Lauritsen, Celeste Simon, Dennis Fulfer, Phil Archuleta and P&M Plastics, Mountainair Chamber of Commerce, Town of Mountainair, State of NM, CNME Coop

Response to Ojo Peak Fire

• Individuals who cooked food, brought bedding, clothing, raised funds
• Town of Mountainair
• Mountainair Volunteer Fire Department
• Forest Service, Mountainair District, Cibola National Forest
• Shannon DeRemer (Rescue) and Tamesa Starr (Animal Control)

Christian Alliance - Mountainair's equivalent of a Council of Churches

Best NEW idea actually followed through (naked ideas abandoned on street corners to fend for themselves or be adopted by strangers don't count)

• Mountainair Movie Night - Jubilee Committee (Edythe Romero, Kathy Anglin, Rhonda Silva, et al.
• Fall Concert Series - Ray Terhorst, Anita Soluna, MMAC, supporting businesses
• Art, etc - painting group - Shirley Simmons, Addie Draper, Ruth Ballen et alia
• ShareFest - monthly gathering, sharing, open mic, covered dish and general good time at the Dr Saul Community Center. Organized by Kay Stillion. Presented by iCreate.Org and the Town of Mountainair
  

Promoting Mountainair

Organizations/ Groups

• Mustangs, State Championship
• Mountainair Gymkhana Rodeo Association
  
• Volunteer Fire Department, State Competitions
• Salinas Pueblo National Monument, District Office and Visitors Center, Mountnainair, NPS
• Team Mountainair at NM Senior Olympics

Individuals

• Wana Beth Fox - original ornament representing Salinas Pueblo National Monuments (NPS) on the White House Christmas tree; write-ups in area and out of state press
  
• Jude Mowris - original creations featured in Altered Couture
  
• Kristine Lauritsen - writing press releases for and promoting MMAC events; grant writing
  
• Kathleen Clute - music performances in the wider world beyong Mountainair; MMAC website (despite unfortunate appropriation of page title already identified with this one)
  
• Pamela Armas - frequently featuref in Doll Art Quarterly
  

Businesses Keeping Mountainair in the News

• P&M Plastics - Phil Archuleta
  
• Lame Beaver Teading Company - Michael & Kimmy Brooks
  
• Jackass Junction - Neil & Maureen Hamilton
  
• Shaffer Hotel (all too often in spite of itself)

Brave New Businesses (opening in 2007)

• Jackass Junction
• Coffee Cup Court
• Ruthie's Flowers & Gifts
  
• The Rock Motel

Online Promotion

All the Mountainair Wired whoever and wherever they are, whatever they do on line: MySpacers (count'em), Mountainair at home in the ether with over 50 web pages (that many can't all be mine and Dennis'), web pages new or resurrected in 2007 (not counting myspace, facebook or other distributed social networks but still more than you would imagine) and last but not least UpHi Net for jump starting getting Mountainair wired for the 21st century and providing years of public access computing. I hope that even critics are honest and big-spirited enough to recognize and appreciate the contribution..

Out of Town Boosters - mostly media this year:

• area weeklies, The MountainView Journal and The Independent
• NM Culture Net
• Albuquerque Arts Alliance

Events / Activities

Best Events

• Mountainair Movie Night, series
  
• Fall Concert Series, MMAC
• Summer at the Gazebo Series, MMAC
  
• ShareFest, monthly
  
• Firecracker Jubilee, annual
  
• Gymkhana Rodeos (summer series)
• Christmas Cantata, annual
  

Best Activities/ Features (part of an event but not the whole tamale)

• Chili Cook-off - Sunflower
• children's sunflower art
• Sunflower Poetry Writing Workshop
• Jubilee parade

Survivor Award (longest running - they take a lickin' but keep on tickin')

• Poets & Writers Picnic
• Firecracker Jubilee
• Sunflower (but up for the ax in 2008)
  
• Christmas Crafts Fair

Distinguished Service to the Community

Individuals (emphasis on long standing contributions - years of service)

• Evelyn Walker - library
  
• Dorothy Cole - 3 years as Chamber president
  
• Joan Page - Christmans Crafts Fair; teaching, GED program; booth lady for so many events over the year; keeping the library going
  
• Mary Schultz - Arts Council; Cibola Arts Cooperative
  
• Bert Herrman - Arts Council; Chamber
  
• Patty Mahoney - Mountainair Community Choir
  
• Shirley Jones - Nazarene food box/ cooperative grocery purchasing program; youth activity programs' community outreach
  

Groups

• Mountainair Senior Center group
  
• Mountainair Gymkhana Rodeo
• Mountainair Volunteer Fire Department
• Art, Etc.
• Christian Alliance - 5th Sunday Sing, coordinated outreach; Easter Sunrise Service
• Deer Canyon Homeowners Association
• Jubilee Committee (Edythe Romero, Rhonda Silva, Kathy Anglin - and slow moving family members) , bringing us Jubilee, Parade, Movie Night)
• Mountainair Gymkhana Rodeo
• ASPIRE After-school & Art in the Schools Program, Anne Ravenstone
  

Special Categories:

• Whack-a-Mole - Shaffer (still hanging in there to continued amazement of betting pool) and Chuckwagon (finally seems to have lost but it wouldn't be its first time to play possum and then reopen) are in the lead
  
• Golden Road Apple
  
• Chutzpah (GRA subcategory, aka Can you imagine the cheek!)
  

Announcing in brief and an oops

TODAY
Jubilee Committee meets today 12 n, probably at Ancient Cities but not confirmed as of yesterday evening. OK - I know - I am posting this so late that you'll probably miss it. My bad. However, based on turnout at past meetings, you would anyway no matter how much notice. Your bad not mine

CORRECTION:
Apologies to ShareFest organizers, participants and boosters. Last week I announced January ShareFest as being on the 17th. My bad - not to mention deep and sincere apologies if anyone showed up to a locked community center. I've got it straight now. ShareFest was last night. It is NOT on "3rd Thursdays" as I'd been previously told BUT instead on PENULTIMATE Thursdays. More often than not, they are the same but not always. It's like 5th Sunday Sing - depends on how many in the month. If you missed last night's, try for next month. ShareFests are now correctly listed on Chamber announcements and the Community Events Calendar.

CALL FOR CALENDAR INFORMATION
Please send your (personal, business, school, organization, agency, informal group) event announcement to me at vcrary@yahoo.com or Dennis Fulfer at webaab@aol.com Include event name, information, date, time, location, description, contact information. Dennis and I are working on making the online community calendar as complete, accurate and comprehensive as possible. The community events calendar is on the Mountainair Chamber of Commerce website but is a community calendar for EVERYBODY not just for the chamber or select individuals or groups. I'll list and link the community calendar prominently here on Mountainair Arts, Here's hoping that individuals, groups and businesses with web pages will do the same. (You know though that I'll remind them if they don't... making a list, checking it twice... and stocking up on lumps of coal...)

and now for the remaining announcements in brief...

BRIEFLY (to be addressed in more detail later in separate posts)

Monties list more or less complete and in order (or facsimile thereof). To be posted TODAY mismo for your review and consideration, possibly with moderately amusing tales/rant about newest award category, Chutzpah (subcategory of Golden Road Apple)

February 9 - Haunted Adventures comes to Mountainair, program and retreat at Shaffer. Community and business involvement and other local ghosts invited to participate. Interested? Don't wait for SGHA or the Shaffer Hotel to contact you. Call 505-323-8097 and leave your name and number for Becky Mann, who will personally call back, or e-mail her directly at Research@SGHA.net. She will work with you to make sure you are included in the event.

February 11, Community Debate for Town Council candidates (election in March), 7 pm following Town Council Meeting. Mountainair residents and stakeholders are invited - heartily encouraged to submit advance questions in writing by snail or email to Dennis Fulfer at Webaab@aol.com You may also submit questions in writing that night. Guidelines forthcoming.

Council Candidates are also cordially invited to submit position statements for posting, with full credit right here on the community's not just about local arts blog.

Naming Contest: to name campgrounds, organized by the Chamber of Commerce, submissions to be tallied and presented to Town Council in late March for approval. One sincerely hopes the council will heed vox populi and that adequate but long overdue signage will follow. Send me names for blogging, post as comment and/or email to Webaab@aol.com, Look for details in your next water billing.

ASPIRE Class Information

Editor's Note:

The new ASPIRE semester starts soon. Spring Horton has submitted a description of her classes for your consideration. Pass it on too. Instructors are invited to email class information and calls for students to vcrary@yahoo.com for blogging - and to do our bit to help fill their classes. You could  post your information as a comment to this post, but a separate message would probably be more effective. If you have relevant images uploaded to the net, include addresses for the jpegs too.

I'm also asking program director Anne Ravenstone to send me current aspire information for blogging. I will post a list of classes as soon as I have it. Until then, if you teach in the program, send me information about your classes and tell your cohorts to do the same, You can learn more about the program and how to enroll in the After School Program or Family Learning Center classes, call Anne Ravenstone, 847-2231, at the elementary school or email her at aravenstone@mountainair.k12.nm.us.

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Submitted by Spring Horton, January 24

Hi there!

Well, another ASPIRE semester is about to start, so I thought I would contact you with the new information.

Another jewelry class is planned for Wednesdays at 5:30pm to 7pm. It is a family class. All ages are welcome. Classes should be starting on February 6th, but only if we have enough students. So we need people to sign up. We'll be covering lots of different techniques, including making your own beads and making jewelry out of things you'd normally throw away.

We will also be doing ballroom dancing again on Tuesday nights. Once again, it should start February 4th, but the classes have to have three or more students. This class will be a beginning/intermediate mix. Students will be learning 6 dances, cha cha, merengue, tango, waltz, foxtrot and mambo. It is an all ages class. The ones who have already taken ballroom dancing will get to learn more advanced techniques and choreograph their own pieces to performing at the end of session Open House.

So, if you could post something about this ASAP I would really appreciate it. If there aren't enough students the first week, the class start could be postponed until we have enough students, but I would like to get started as soon as we can, especially for the dance so that we have enough time to learn everything and get performances ready.

Thanks a lot!

Spring

Dale's Poetry News & Thursday Poem

submitted by Dale Harris

Happy New Year! If your resolutions included more poetry, you're in luck. Here's some upcoming poetry events and if you continue on, a poem.

Sat. Jan. 19, 1-4:30 pm Poetry Open House at the home of Billy Brown & Sandi Blanton, 2909 Monterey Ave SE (3 streets south of Coal, 3 houses east of Girard) held quarterly, bring poems to share, your own or favorites. Free, snack potluck welbert53@aol.com

Sat. Jan. 19, 7:30 pm catch Art Goodtimes on his Talking Gourds Whirlwind Tour of North Central New Mexico! Bill Nevins will host an informal Albuquerque reading, contact him for directions & details bill_nevins@yahoo.com

Sun Jan 20th, 3 pm, Anasazi Fields Winery, Placitas, NM - Duende Poetry Series presents Placitas Literary Heritage: Annual January Duende & Friends Reading, poems and writings from many voices who have called Placitas home.

Directions: Take I-25 to the Placitas exit 242, drive 6 miles east to the Village, turn left at the sign just just before the Presbyterian Church, follow Camino de los Pueblitos through two stop signs to the Winery entrance. Anasazi Fields wines will be available for tasting and purchasing. Suggested donation of $3 will pay the poets. For more info contact cirrelda@laalamedapress.com

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Looking Ahead

March 28-30 Ellen Bass Writers Retreat, Mt. Princeton Hot Springs, Colorado

Deadline to secure a spot is Jan. 18th. www.neighborhooduniversecity.com/ellenbass.php

Some on-line poetry resources:

• Poetry Tangents, www.nmpoetrytangents.com, workshops and publications, events calendar Get info on their new literary magazine "Shadows Caste"
• CCA poetry events, Santa Fe, www.ccasantafe.org. For more info or to enroll in workshops, contact Jill Battson (505) 982-1338
• Check the Abq Slams website for regular venues and special events www.abqslams.org
• Fickle Muses online journal with weekly featured poets & writers, mythic themes www.ficklemuses.com
• A site from Ken Gurney, Origami Condom, more info and submission guidelines go to origamicondom.org
• LUNAROSITY, an online literary journal, http://www.zianet.com/lunarosity
• SIN FRONTERAS: Writers Without Borders: Visit website for updated information www.zianet.com/lunarosity/sinfronteras.html
  
• SAGE TRAIL a new monthly poetry magazine from Albuquerque and Santa Barbara, CA, is looking for submissions. Send any quantitiy poems year round by email to Suzanne Frost sfrost@sagetrail.net or snail mail to Cathryn McCracken 241A Willow Road NW, Albuquerque, NM 87107. Copyrights revert to authors on publication. Subscribe for introductory price of $10. per year, send check/money order to Sage Trail, 661 Del Parque Dr., Unit D, Santa Barbara, CA 93103.

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Okay, here's the poem:

dream of dragonfly

on a winter afternoon

me a summer child

at play in a boat

hear the older children jeer

darning needle,

darning needle!

stitch up your eyes

fly far away, dragonfly!

they were abundant

on our lake

I admired their quick swoop

the long hover over water

remember my grandmother

deft hands

mending our heel worn socks

how she held a darning egg

wove the threads

sewed the holes shut

think now I never saw

such an act of grace and skill

as hers

I never did see

a dragonfly stitch

Dale Harris
2115 Aspen Avenue NW
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87104

Poetry & Music CD's at http://www.cdbaby.com/all/daleharris
"Cibola Seasons", "Once We Were Winged" & "Like A Hummingbird"

EdNote: ooops... last Thursday's news and poem, so there will be another - this week's - very soon

ShareFest, ATC trading, retreating BoD

Thursday, January 17, ShareFest
When & Where: 5:30 pm at the Dr Saul Community Center

Saturday, February, ATC Swap (2nd Saturday of month unless otherwise announced)
When & Where: 10a.m. - 12n, Rhonda's Creative Craft Center at 8214 2nd Street NW, Albuquerque, NM 87114
February theme - recycling

If anyone in  the area attended the Jan 12 'burque swap, please send me a report to blog - with pictures if you can.

Sunflower ATCs by Jude Mowris

Whatever happened to the local ATC buzz from last year and the year before? It must have packed its bags and moved to Chile with Gereé. We have card makers but none into trekking to 'burque to trade cards. Here's a thought : trade ATCs at ShareFest. So what if no other ATC makers show up. Display your cards,  visit, enjoy the live music, kick back and just have a good time.

Static Energy, ATC by Gereé

Associating ATCs or Artists Trading Cards with was a good idea and still is, so maybe its time will come. Jude Mowris, Linda Johnson, Wana Beth Fox and Meg Chobanian are still making cards. IIn the absence of local swapping opps, Jude trades hers by mail but sets up her ATC display in Art Alley for events. The prominent and attractive display always attracts interest and often nets out of town swapping partners.

If not a "real world" f2f swap, the genre should lend itself neatly to online display - a blogzibit. I'll put it on my 2008 blog resolutions list. Maybe even in time for a Feb pre-swap reminder but don't take that to the bank just yet.

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Today, MMAC board members are off somewhere bonding at a retreat slash strategic planning session. I respected request not to publish on BoD only retreat but they are, like Bilbo Baggins, back from wherever they retreated to (Casa Manzano on dit). Hopefully, a report and something on strategic plan will be forthcoming.

Last I checked, the MMAC page did not list current BoD, so FYI, here they are: Prez, Ray Terhorst; VP, Ben Steinlage; Seccy, Tomas Wolff; Treas, Judy Reynolds; At-large (but not necessarily large), Kristine Lauritsen (Stonehouse), Celeste Simon & Karen Smith (2ponyz). Also listed on unofficial MMAC page.

Folk Art from the blogosphere: Paper Cut-out Pavilion

Folk-art paper cut-out for 2010 World Expo

Concept design of the Polish Pavilion for 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, posted on The Scientific Indian ("science as a way of life"), via BLDGBLOG.

Not 'lesser' just smaller paper cut-out folk-art (if you are interested in this medium, starting more modestly would seem advisable):

• Paper Cutouts / Wycinanki - Polish Folk Art
  

• Chinese Paper Cuts (aka Scissor Cuts)

• Decorating with Handmade Paper Folk Art

• Papel picado, a traditional Mexican folk art
  

Calls for Artists - Addressing Information Gaps, Part 1

Calls for/to Artists (and other calls, announcements, etc) address information gaps but only in a limited sense by spreading information. Despite overlaps and shared interests, information needs will vary from person to person, group to group. No single website, calendar, blog will address all gaps for everyone. We are each responsible for keeping informed and for sharing information we know others can use but might not have. It's being part of a community, a network. And there are tools to manage information - avoid both gaps and overloads.

Tooling down the Infobahn, trying to avoid information overload and not to get lost can be a challenge. Selectively subscribing to online newsletters, email update and RSS feeds can help. So can bookmarking pages, adding them to your "favorites," but not unless you either organize them into folders or mark very few for revisiting. This blog tries to address information gaps with reminders, announcement, links and so on. When I add outside arts and other announcements to local interest ones, information overload threatens. Last year I announced a calendar and even posted a couple. But setting up and maintaining a calendar can be time consuming, not to mention tedious. Why reinvent the wheel when there already are so many online calendars? Besides, I already have the event calendar on the Chamber of Commerce page to keep up. Maintaining an accurate and up-to-date community arts calendar should be an arts council responsibility, not mine.

So, to address information gaps, I'm starting this series and adding a calendar section to the sidebar on the right hand side of the page. I'll still be nagging one and all about getting me information and announcements in a timely manner.

As for keeping yourself informed, the Arts Alliance emails a weekly calendar / newsletter that you can subscribe to at the Arts Alliance site, which is also packed with other arts information (tours, arts councils/organizations, artists directory, art resources and more).

Other calendars and newsletters showcasing the arts in NM include New Mexico Culture Net, The Collector's Guide. undergroundARTS. Steppin' Out (including separate calendars for Mountainair and other locations), New Mexico Magazine statewide events calendar, Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau Calendar (aka It's a Trip), Alibi, Venue (Albuquerque Journal), Inkspot (hard copy only), Albuquerque Craig's List and many others. Subscribe to what suits your information needs... and also submit information to share it and promote Mountainair (not just your event or the arts community)

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CALLS FOR THE VISUAL ARTS

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Bill Armstrong Grant
Call for Applicants
Eligibility: Organizations and projects that further education and experiences in the clay arts. Applicants must be an individual, educational institution or 501(c)3 in New Mexico.
Deadline: Proposals due by February 1, 2008.
Questions: Call Daisy Kates at 867-3790.
More Info and Application Procedure: Go to www.nmpotters.org and click on Grant.

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International Fiber Collaborative
Calling Fiber Artists
What: Create a panel for this project
Deadline: March 15, 2008
More Info: Go to www.InternationalFiberCollaborative.com

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Las Vegas Arts Council
Call for Entries
What: Faces of Woman: 18th Annual National Juried Art Exhibition
Open to all artists interested in submitting 2 or 3 dimensional original works depicting the celebration of the feminie or symbolic representational form.
Application Deadline: February 1, 2008
Exhibit: March 17-April 11, 2008 at New Mexico Highlands University
More Info and Prospectus: Call 505-425-1085 or go to www.lasvegasartscouncil.org

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MasterWorks of New Mexico 2008, 10th Anniversary Show
Call for Entries
When and Where: Show is April 5-25, 2008 at EXPO New Mexico, Hispanic Arts Building
Application Deadlines: An artist may enter one or more divisions. Digital entries for pastel, watercolor and oil/acrylic are due January 26, 2008. Works for the miniatures division are due at the venue March 22.
More Info and Prospectus: Call 260-9977 or go to www.masterworksnm.org or email bardean@aol.com

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47th Annual New Mexico Arts & Crafts Fair
Call for Entries
When and Where: June 27-29, 2008 at EXPO New Mexico
Entry Deadline: January 26, 2008
Eligibility: Open only to artists residing in New Mexico
More Info and Prospectus: Call 884-9043, email info@nmartsandcraftsfair.org or go to www.nmartsandcraftsfair.org

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New Mexico Fabrications
Call for Entries
What: An exhibition of art quilts by New Mexico artists. Open to New Mexico fiber artists. Two entries maximum per artist. $20 for first entry, $10 second entry.
Exhibition: April 4-August 22, 2008 in the Capitol Rotunda Gallery, State Capitol Building, Santa Fe
Deadline: January 18, 2008
Prospectus: Go to www.angelfiredesigns.com

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Nob Hill Gallery
7400 Montgomery Blvd. NE Suite 19
Call for Artists, Fine Craftspersons and Jewelers
Pick up an application at the gallery.
Next Jury: January 14 at 6 p.m. at the gallery.
More Info: Call Paula O'Neil at 832-5052 or the gallery at 268-9969.

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OFFCenter Community Arts Project
808 Park SW
Call for Portrait Art for Fresh Face Exhibit
What: OFFCenter is looking for portraits in any media for its portrait show that opens on Friday, February 1.
Art Delivery Dates: January 22, 23 and 24, 12-8 p.m., January 25, 1-5 p.m. and January 29, 12-8 p.m.
More Info: Call 247-1172 or go to www.offcenterarts.org

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LITERARY

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SouthWest Writers
Mystery, Mayhem and Murder Conference, presented with Croak and Dagger
Who: For mystery writers and fans.
When: Saturday, February 16, 2008
Where: UNM Continuing Ed Building, 1634 University Blvd. NE, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Evening banquet at 6:30 p.m. at the MCM Elegante Hotel, 2020 Menaul NE
More Info: Call 265-9485 or email SWWriters@juno.com or go to www.southwestwriters.com

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SouthWest Writers Classes and Workshops

The Writing Life of Writing Lives (Writing Biographies)
When: Saturday, February 2, 10 a.m.-Noon
Presenter: James McGrath Morris
Fee: Free
Where: New Life Presbyterian Church, 5540 Eubank NE

Turning Fact into Fiction: Bending the Truth to Make It Fit
When: Saturday, February 2, 1-4 p.m.
Presenter: Melody Groves
Fee: $20 members, $30 non-members. Pay at door.
Where: New Life Presbyterian Church, 5540 Eubank NE

Free Writing Classes for Seniors
When: Every Monday, 3-4:15 p.m.
Where: Bear Canyon Senior Center
More Info on any of the above listings: SWWriters@juno.com or call 265-9485 or visit www.southwestwriters.com

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Storytellers of New Mexico
Monthly Workshop or Presentation and Story Swap
When: Third Sunday of every month, 2-4 p.m.
Where: Title Wave Book Store, 1408 Eubank Blvd. NE at Constitution
Admission: Free. For all interested in storytelling.
More Info: 890-7075

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MUSIC

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Albuquerque Music Association
Monthly Workshops
Free monthly workshops to educate and empower musicians and composers from all genres. Presented by industry pros on a variety of topics.
When: First Monday of every month at 7 p.m.
Where: Audio Excellence, 2605 Princeton NE. Suite B (behind building with the address 2601)
More info: www.abqmusicassociation.com or email abqmusicassociation@yahoo.com

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Albuquerque Songwriters Series
Monthly Showcase
Presented by the City's Music Office. Each event features a changing lineup of local songwriters. The goal is to showcase songwriters from all genres by presenting an evening of exploring song craft.
When: First Thursday of the month, 7pm but NO January 2008 meeting.
Where: New Location beginning February 7, 2008, Slate Street Cafe Wine Loft, 515 Slate NW (north of Lomas between 5th and 6th).
Admission: Free
More Info: 771-3166 or email tfrouge@cabq.org
or go to www.cabq.gov/music

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AMP Concerts
January Concerts
Band of Heathens, January 12
Terri Hendrix & Lloyd Maines, January 14
Chuck Prophet, January 20
Sofia & JT Lindsay, January 27
Tickets: $15 in advance, $20 day of show at www.abqmusic.com, Bookworks and Natural Sound
More Info: Go to www.abqmusic.com

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Music in Corrales
James Newton and Jon Jang, classics and jazz on flute and piano
When: Saturday, January 19, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Historic Old San Ysidro Church
Tickets: $22 in advance, $25 at the door
More Info and Tickets: Call 877-287-0082 or go to www.musicincorrales.org

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New Mexico Symphony Orchestra
Guillermo & Grace
Conductor Guillermo Figueroa is featured soloist. Concert also salutes the NMSO's founding conductor, Grace Thompson Edmister.
When: Friday, January 18 at 8 p.m., Saturday, January 19 at 6 p.m. and Sunday, January 20 at 2 p.m.
Where: Friday and Saturday at UNM, Center for the Arts, Popejoy Hall and Sunday at the National Hispanic Cultural Center
Tickets: $12-$60. Student rush with ID $8 90 minutes prior, limit 2
More Info and Tickets: Call 881-8999 or go to www.nmso.org

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One Heartbeat Rhythm Circle
Intergenerational Music Making Experience
When: First Wednesday and third Friday of every month
Where: Fridays at Manzano Mesa Multigenerational Center, Rm. 4, 501 Elizabeth SE (behind Costco)
Admission: $8 adults, $6 seniors 55+/teens, $4 ages 8-12. Children must be accompanied by a participating adult.
More Info and To Register: Call 332-2141 or go to www.circles4drumming.com

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Weekly editions of "Something to Do" has more sections - including, among others, events, museums, classes, workshops, meetings, publications. websites. Want to keep up with what's going on in the arts in Albuquerque or post an event/ activity/ workshop? Don't count on me to remember to blog calendar (why reinvent the wheel every week?)... go the Arts Alliance website and SUBSCRIBE or bookmark to read online.

More arts related resources at http://www.abqarts.org/resources.htm

books, videos, chairs, happy cemeteries and feghoots

Today, no announcements, public service, artsy or otherwise - instead a potpourri: books; videos; Janus Array Redux; folk art; offbeat destinations; and other serendipities for your consideration, edification, delectation, usw. The Monties nomination list looks complete; I'll post it in a separate post for comments, late and such. Time enough to ponder consideration as long as I announce results by the end of January.

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Twilight of the Books - essay from the New Yorker, hardly news to textophiliacs

Not just about the decline of reading and profound effects of same - kinds of alphabets and history of reading - what happens neurologically and cognitively when we read - cultural implications - orality / literacy interfaces.

Yet the net, like film, does its part spreading the reading habit.

Internet hosted book sharing and reading sites:

• Book Crossing
• Shelfari
• Book Clubs, a comprehensive guide to discount book clubs and reading groups
• New York Times' online forum & moderated Reading Group

  Every month, the Reading Group discusses a book chosen by a vote from the readers. The authors often drop by to answer readers' questions. This list includes recent book choices, with links to the discussions and book reviews.

• Directory of Online Reading Groups

Great Adaptations, NYT Times essay by Sophie Gee. "Instead of dumbing down the classics, mass-market popularizations sometimes make them even better." Gee writes:

Mass-market adaptations make Great Books go bad. Or so conventional wisdom would have it. But every so often, plundering and pillaging a canonical text for the sake of entertainment gives it the kiss of life. Take "Beowulf" and "Paradise Lost." The unpalatable truth is that both originals are now virtually unreadable.

Beowulf

"Beowulf" is written in Old English, an inflected Germanic tongue that looks a lot less like our language than one would hope. As for Milton's epic ....[e]ven Samuel Johnson, writing 100 years after Milton, said: "'Paradise Lost' is one of the books which the reader admires and lays down, and forgets to take up again. None ever wished it longer than it is." Now, modern popularizers have come to the rescue, with striking commercial success. Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary's film version of "Beowulf" has taken in more than $180 million worldwide since its opening in November. "His Dark Materials," Philip Pullman's trilogy inspired by "Paradise Lost," has sold 15 million copies worldwide, while the film version of the first volume, "The Golden Compass," has earned more than $150 million.

A Good Mystery: Why We Read

Study Links Drop in Test Scores to a Decline in Time Spent Reading

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If not reading... then what?

Online Video Traffic Doubled in 2007 (from Mashable, 10 Jan 2008)

Pew Internet is back with one of their reports on the habits of internet users; this one shows that in 2007, 48% of internet users visited video sharing sites such as YouTube, and the traffic to these sites has doubled on a typical day. For comparison, in December 2006, only 33% of internet users said they visited video sharing sites.

This report is based on a survey of 2054 American adults. Interestingly enough, the number of women who started to frequent online video sites has risen more than the number of men. In 2006, 40% of men said they visited online video sharing sites; in 2007, this percentage rose to 53%. Only 27% of women included in the study in 2006 said they visited online video sites, but the percentage rose to 43%, which is a 59% increase. As far as age, education and social status go, numbers aren't very different, except for the fact that the youngest group, aged 18-29, was already visiting video sites very frequently in 2006, so the increase in this group wasn't drastic: from 55% to 70%.

The numbers look good for YouTube and the competition, but there's a lot more room for growth; half of Americans who use the internet aren't watching videos online. This means that there are some people in the country that aren't slacking at work watching funny videos all day, and this, obviously, needs to change.

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Janus Array Redux

100 Bites of Tasty 2007 Trivia from the BBC

If 2007 passed you by and you can't help wondering where all the trivia went, the BBC has an answer. It's compiled a list of 100 things it didn't know last year—little squibs of inconvenient, peculiar, or droll factoids, perfect for whiling away the better part of a drowsy workday or fortifying your dinner-party discourse. Here are a few of my favorites:

Brazil nuts are seeds encased in an outer shell that weighs more than 1kg.

Sleeping on the job is tolerated in Japanese work culture, as long as you remain upright and obey certain other rules. It's called inemuri.

Only about half of China's population can speak the national language, Mandarin.

from The Globalist
Eight Surprises for 2008: Will China finally lose its luster? Will the global economy stumble or soar? Here are some predictions for 2008

and obviously not from the Globalist...
2007: The Year in Cats (I kid you not)

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Folk Art

A folk art google alert for 2008 exhibit at Santa Fe's International Museum of Folk Art, "A Chair for All Reasons," led me to another art resource site worth checking out:

Art Knowledge News - articles, SUPER art links sections that will take you on virtual tours of world art museums... and more. I'll be adding it to our list of blog links (no, I am neither royalty nor have a tapeworm but do consider links here as much yours as mine)

Another folk art alert, for Happy Cemetery in Romania, took me to World66 Travel Guide - Wiki Guide to Destinations Worldwide

photos of Happy Cemetery

from Trek Earth Gallery (Sapanta, Romania)

World66 Travel Guide features a NM photo gallery and pieces on other NM destinations but nothing on Mountainair. You know how Wikis work. Consider this a call to write up Mountainair (avoiding the potboiler prose that plagued so many past mmac press releases) and post - with pictures - to World66. No reason not to write and submit follow ups on events, Shaffer, Salinas ruins, surrounding areas, events of interest, etc. At least post some pictures and get the name out. Branding sans budget for real advertising is cumulative and cooperative - everybody pitching in.

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Shaggy Dog Story Archive

Alan B. and Brian Comb's Shaggy Dog Story Archive is a fantastic website that has been around for a long time and has over 2,000 shaggy dogs, feghoots, yarns, and groaners. Some quibble over how a feghoot differs from a shaggy dog, but these are basically short stories with atrocious pun or really bad punchline (hence "groaner" - the listener invariably groan when they hear the ending!). Most of them have been around, like, forever . Chances are you've heard of some of 'em but didn't know what they're called.

What's with the title "Tarzan's Tripes Forever"? Well, here's the story (I warn you, it's a groaner - but it illustrates what a feghoot is):

Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, was innocently leaping from tree to tree one fine day, when a band of crazed cannibals ambushed and killed him. They devoured him almost immediately, except for the lining of his stomach which they stretched over a hollow log to make a bongo drum, and gave it to the son of the chief cannibal.

The boy was delighted with his new drum and played it constantly for weeks. Until one day, he came crying to his father the chief. "Daddy," he whimpered, "my bongo drum rotted away."

"Son," replied the chief, "you can't play 'Tarzan's Tripe Forever.'" (from NetHistory, which also has a few shaggy dogs)

Get it? I warned you it was a groaner!

If you haven't seen it before, or haven't visited it for a while, it's worth a visit to check out new stories!

Enjoy!