art

Submitted artwork by thangka artist Joanna Angie as featured in new exhibit at GCC's Roz Steiner Gallery called "Meditation."

Press release:

The schedule is now in place for artists and exhibits that will be featured in the Rosalie "Roz" Steiner Art Gallery this fall at Genesee Community College, and thangka (Tibetan buddhist painting) artist Joanna Angie will display her works from Aug. 22 – Sept. 24 to begin the season.

Evident in her artwork, Angie has a strong sense of connection to Tibetan spiritual practice. Through thangka, a traditional Tibetan form of religious art dating back to the 11th century, Joanna seeks to convey images of compassion, community and knowledge.

"What I found in the Tibetan spiritual practice and thangka paintings was a natural sense of connection," Angie said. "The images stand for qualities we can develop such as compassion, community and knowledge, knowing there was no good judging me, just cause and effect."

Angie is the daughter of an Italian immigrant who escaped Mussolini's wrath and was proud of his American citizenship. After her father's death when she was just 14 years old, faith slowly came to her and school teachers and college professors became new guides in her life. After graduating Bennett College, Angie opened a gourmet food business, but became very sick by the age of 28. Relocation to Massachusetts exposed her to a Tibetan healer and a hatha yoga teacher, giving her new opportunities to heal and figured immensely into her healing process.

As a community-engaged artist, Joanna has worked on numerous projects including the public art project to commemorate the Centennial of the Pan-American Exposition in 2001. She was an active member of the Community Outreach Committee for the 2006 visit to Buffalo by His Holiness, the Dalai Lama and in 2005, 2007 and 2010; she was an active participant in Beyond/In WNY Exhibitions, collaboration between visual arts organizations in the Western New York Region. Her mural commissions include work at Carnegie Hall Towers and William Hurt's residence in New York City and at St. Paul's Cathedral and The Buffalo Club in Buffalo.

Founder of the Buffalo Arts Studio and acting director from 1991-2012, Angie has exhibited her work at galleries in Buffalo, including Anderson Gallery, Buffalo Arts Studio, CEPA, El Museo, Hallwalls, Contemporary Arts Center, Himalayan Institute of Buffalo, Insight Gallery; as well as the Kenan Center in Lockport, Olean Public Library Art Gallery and the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn.

In addition to its aesthetic beauty as a work of art, thangka serves as an object of devotion, an aid to spiritual practice, and a source of blessings to those who meditate upon it. Joanna's exhibition "Mediation" will be shown Aug. 22 – Sept. 24 and an opening reception is planned for Sept. 8 beginning at 1 p.m. The exhibition will close with a reception on Sept. 24 beginning at 1 p.m. during GCC's Homecoming festivities.

The Roz Steiner Art Gallery will continue to host natural and historical works through the fall with the following exhibits:

• Oct. 6 – 28 -- "On Watch": A curiosity in the process of knowledge formation drives the conceptual framework for Timothy Frerichs' artwork. Through his site-specific installations, he seeks to address and inform ways of responding to and observing the natural world. With the idea that "to categorize is to know," he explores how gathering objects for information and the creation of knowledge constitutes and develops into a reality, particularly in terms of how culturally accepted concepts evolve and become mainstream.

The Exhibition will begin with an opening lecture and reception at 12:30 p.m. on Oct. 6.

• Nov. 10 – Dec. 16: "A Celebration of Native American Heritage": A comprehensive survey of Native American Heritage spanning 150+ years, this exhibit features a diverse collection of regional artifacts on loan from the Rochester Museum and Science Center as well as artwork from contemporary Native American artist Carson Waterman. Waterman's art and public murals can be found in and around Western New York, as well as at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.

Gallery hours are Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. For more information on all upcoming events at the Roz Steiner Art Gallery visit www.genesee.edu/gallery or www.facebook.com/gccgallery

Press release:

The Genesee Community College Center for the Arts will welcome Beaver Alley Studios, Inc., and the Western New York Film, Art and Music Event (FAME) from Friday, Aug. 12, until Sunday, Aug. 14, for a three-day festival that will include local and international films, performances, art displays, educational workshops, vendors and networking.

As filmmakers, FAME understands the burden of high festival fees and the frustration of low audience turn out. The group keeps fees low and has created an event with mass appeal. The festival treats film makers, musicians and artists like celebrities with an audience Q&A or panel discussion and encourages active audience participation by allowing attendees to choose some of the awards. Festivalgoers can also take a break to get food, browse vendors, sit in on workshops, or join in the music festival fun.

The mid-August festival at GCC has already received nearly 300 film, music and photography entries from all over the world. The deadline for submissions is June 15. The organization is also seeking workshop presenters, sponsors and vendors. Vendor tables cost $100 for three days, but are discounted to $75 if booked by June 30th.

Tickets for the event are available on a per-block or workshop basis all the way to full VIP all-access. Tickets range from $10 – $60 and more information can be found on the festival Facebook page and the Film Freeway website: http://www.facebook.com/WNYAFAME/; http://filmfreeway.com/festival/WNYFilmArtandMusicEventFame. The contact phone number is 585-798-2815 or e-mail: rhonda@beaveralleystudios.com

The festival schedule is as follows (subject to change):

Friday, Aug. 12 -- Fright Night -- Scary and Bloody Films:

• 4:00 -- Vendors Open- Opening Band TBD

• 4:15 -- Dmon Productions (Zombie Face painting)

• 4:30 -- Documentary Block

• 5:00 -- Movie Block 1

• 6:30 -- Band - Kamp Crystal Lake

• 7:00 -- Movie Block 2

• 9:00- After Party – at TBD

Saturday, Aug. 13 -- "Girl Power" A focus on films by female writer/directors or strong female leads:

• 11:00 -- Vendors open

• 11:30 -- Workshop -- Shawn Essler -- Becoming a Filmmaker.

• 12:00 -- Movie Block 3

• 1:00 -- Band -- Creative Spirit

• 1:30 -- Workshop B

• 2:00 -- Movie Block 4

• 3:00 -- Band -- Jim Candytree

• 3:30 -- Workshop C

• 4:00 -- Movie Block 5

• 5:00 -- Band -- Anonymous Willpower

• 5:30 -- Documentary Block in Classroom

• 6:00 -- Movie Block 6

• 8:00 -- After Party at TBD Band "The Lonely Ones"

Sunday, Aug. 14 -- WNY films and Family Friendly Films:

• 11:00 -- Vendors open

• 11:15 -- Cosplay Trivia Contest

• 11:30 -- Workshop D

• 12:00 -- Movie Block 7

• 12:15 -- Dmon Productions (Face painting)

• 1:00 -- Band -- The Nigh

• 1:30 -- Workshop E

• 2:00 -- Movie Block 8

• 3:00 -- Band -- Genesee Johnny

• 4:00 -- Movie Block 9 and Awards and Raffles/ Costume Contest

• 6:00 -- Movie Block 10 -- Beaver Alley Studios, Inc., Film "Lonely Bananas"

Beaver Alley Studios, Inc., is a nonprofit organization established for the purpose of facilitating the production, promotion, distribution, exhibition and celebration of independent art in all forms, especially art from a female perspective. The organization offers services such as screenwriting and script consultation, cinematography, editing, film reviews, film school, and packages for events, commercial use, music videos and short films.

Beaver Alley Studios, Inc., was founded by Rhonda L. Parker, a recent GCC graduate who earned degrees in Communications and Media Arts and as well as Paralegal Studies. She graduated with President's List Honors earning a GPA of 3.75 or higher. A resident of Albion, Parker is an active filmmaker and produced the full length movie, "Friends Don't Let Friends - Date Friends" in 2014. She has also written and produced the feature films "Lonely Bananas," "Message in a Bottle," a number of short films, and appeared as a "Walmart mom" in a television commercial.

"We are very excited about hosting an event like no other," Parker said. "Three days of regional and international films, performances from local singers and songwriters, art displays, educational workshops-and of course, the all-important networking giving all attendees the opportunity to explore, exchange and share ideas and inspiring artists to continue their work."

Anyone under the age of 18 will not be admitted without an adult and children must be supervised at all times.

The Batavia Society of Artists 2016 Spring Art Exhibit will be held at Richmond Memorial Library from May 9 to May 29.

The Opening Reception with artists will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 12. At 7 o'clock that night, the society will present the Virginia Carr Mumford Memorial Scholarship to a student from Genesee Community College.

Carr Mumford was a long-standing member of the society and over the years her family has graciously continued the yearly scholarship.

In addition, at the reception there will be award recognitions for the 2016 show and the drawing of a raffle winner of Brian Kemp's demo painting. It is a collaborative abstract painting titled "#17." Raffle tickets will be availble for sale until 7 p.m. They are $5 each or three for $10.

All proceeds will help the society to hold more art demos.

For additional information, contact Terry Weber at 993-0509 or ebgs55@yahoo.com.

Richmond Memorial Library is located at 19 Ross St. in the City of Batavia.

Angelina Miconi, a Batavia High School student, was announced this morning as winner of the annual Congressional Art Contest for New York's 27th District, represented by Chris Collins.

Miconi was tops among 85 entrants (more than 30 attended today) from high schools throughout the district.

While each district in the United States has 750,000 residents, Collins said the NY-27th has one of the highest participation rates in the contest. Some districts get as few as 10 entries, he said.

The winning pictures will be displayed in the halls of Congress for the next 12 months and Miconi and a parent will be flown to Washington, D.C., for an art show opening.

The reception today was held at Genesee Community College.

(Photos by Steve Ognibene.) (Above, 6-year-old Lilian Gary paints a clay mushroom.)

During the school Spring Break, some families go out of town and some stay local to enjoy with friends and family from out of town. Parents are still working during the day and looking for an opportunity for learning something new.

This week GO ART! offered its first Creative Arts Camp in the Seymour Place buildingin Downtown Batavia and hopes many others will follow.

The camp sold out. All this week, 28 students in grades two to six participated in many different activities like: drumming, Colombian dance, steel drums, photography class, drawing and theater.

Director Jennifer Gray said they wanted to give kids a small snippet of a little bit of everything in the creative world and include different tastes of performing arts, music, dance and visual arts as part of it. If parents are not aware coming from an arts background, this camp offers what they might not get in school and pique some future interests for the students.

(Above, Director Jennifer Gray giving a drawing lesson to 11-year-old Hunter Kelsey on a graphic abstract.)

GO ART! also plans to offer one-day drop-in camps during the summer and they are looking to offer a younger camp for toddler, pre-K to second-grade kids, and perhaps one for middle school students.

They want to thank generous sponsors for this event: Applied Business Systems -- ABS, T-Shirts Etc., Art Ah La Carte, Design by the Hour, and Glass Roots.

For more details on this event go to: http://www.goart.org/

Also Facebook page: GO ART!

Above, 10-year-old John Riley participating in a Performance Theater segment taught by Assisant Director Gregory Hallock.

Above, Director Gray teaching painting on model clay to elementary students.

Press release:

Congressman Chris Collins today released the following statement announcing this year's Congressional Art Competition and encouraging local high school students in New York's 27th District to participate.

"It is a tremendous experience for members of Congress and the hundreds of thousands of capitol visitors to view the artwork submitted by high school students from around the country as a result of this competition," Collins said. "I always look forward to seeing the artwork submitted by the talented students of NY-27 and the opportunity to welcome our winning artist to Washington."

Last year there were more than 85 submissions. The winning artist will receive a roundtrip flight to Washington, D.C., to see their artwork in the U.S. Capitol, where it will be on display for one year.

Now in its 34th year, the competition is open to all high school students in New York's 27th Congressional District. Submissions are due to either of Congressman Collins's two district offices by April 4. A reception and award ceremony will be held on Saturday, April 9, at Genesee Community College in Batavia. Local high schools have been notified regarding contest rules and submission guidelines.

Interested students should see their art teacher for details or contact Chris Catt from Congressman Collins's office at (585) 519-4002.

The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council announces a call for artists to submit their work in all media for the fifth annual Members Exhibition.

The works selected will be on display for March -- Arts Awareness Month -- and remain in place at the GO ART! Bank of Castile Main Gallery in Downtown Batavia until April 22.

Artwork can be dropped off between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Feb. 24-26. Remember to include the completed exhibition registration form with work that is dropped off. (The gallery is equipped with the Walker Hanging System.)

The opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday, March 11. 

For the second year in a row, there will be an Audience Favorite Award designated.

Artwork pickup will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 26-28.

For general guidelines and additional details, visit the GO ART! Web site, call 343-9313, or e-mail:  info@GOart.org

Karen Crittenden, owner of Karen's Yarn, Paper and Scissors, was the guest instructor tonight at the regular meeting of the Batavia Society of Artists at GO Art!. Crittenden's class tonight was a new art form known as Zentangle. Zentangle is described as an easy to learn method of creating beautiful images from repetitive patterns that is fun and relaxing. It was invented by Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts.

For most of his life, Gary Harkness has been collecting the curios of Genesee County. A locally produced bottle here, a knickknack there, anything, really that could be tied to his home community.

This collection, of course, includes pictures, lots and lots of pictures, from rare photos to unique posters and advertising broadsides.

GO ART! has helped Harkness curate this collection into a show at its Batavia gallery for the month of September.

There is an open house for the show at 5 p.m., Friday.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) today announced that applications are now available for municipalities and not-for-profits seeking grant money for historical and art preservation projects through the Technical Assistance Grant Program.

Grants will not exceed $3,000 per project and are only available for short-term, stand-alone ventures that seek to preserve cultural and historical heritage.

“I am excited to announce that applications have been released for this grant program,” Hawley said. “New York is one of the most historically rich states in the nation with structures and stories dating back to our existence as one of the original thirteen colonies.

"As a supporter of history and arts in our schools, I am proud to promote this endeavor and thank the New York State Council on the Arts and Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor for their support. I encourage local historical groups and municipalities to take advantage of this opportunity and continue their tradition of preserving New York’s amazing history.”

The deadline for fall 2015 grant applications is Sept. 8th and interested applicants are required to call the Preservation League of New York State at 518-462-5658, ext. 10, to discuss potential projects. More information on the grant application process can be found at http://www.preservenys.org/tag-2015.html

Donna Rae Sutherland sent in these photos of what she describes as a sculpture built off Transit Road, south of Route 63, Bethany, that will be transported tomorrow to Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.

Burning Man, established in 1986, is a month-long festival of art, radical self-expression, and radical self-reliance.

The location of the sculpture is Emerald Models, which we've written about before.

Press release:

The Genesee Community College Center for the Arts is prepared for another exciting year of events offering a wide range of entertainment including jazz music, graffiti art and dinner theatre. The community is enthusiastically welcome to all events which are listed in chronological order.

The Roz Steiner Art Gallery will host and display "Impromptus," paintings by Jonathon Langfield from Aug. 27 – Sept. 25. Langfield carries on the tradition of American abstraction while infusing an element of graffiti. Utilizing the ideological framework of modernism, his art is executed in a spirit of improvisation. The result is a painterly impromptu. Opening receptions are planned for Thursday, Aug. 27, at 12:30 - 2 p.m. and 5 - 7 p.m.

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra presents a "Fall Festival" performance on Sunday, Sept. 27, at 4 p.m. in the Stuart Steiner Theatre with S. Shade Zajac conducting. Guest soloist Raymond Feng, winner of the GSO Young Artist Competition will perform Greig's Piano Concerto in A Minor, Movement 1. The GSO hosts world-class artists and composers as well as a multitude of well-known local soloists that give audiences a professional-level musical experience. Tickets can be purchased in Batavia at the Senior Center, Roxy's Music and GO ART!, and at the Bank of Castile in Le Roy.

The Kazzrie Jaxen Quartet will take the stage on Friday, Oct. 2, at 7:30 p.m. and bring together the elemental qualities of four creative jazz musicians: the buoyant swing of Bill Chattin's drums; the melodic pulsations of Don Messina's bass; the oceanic depth of Charley Krachy's tenor; and the fiery adventurousness of Kazzrie Jaxen's piano.

Honoring jazz tradition with straight-ahead swing and spontaneous improvisation, the band draws from the collective inspiration from jazz greats such as Lennie Tristano and Sal Mosca, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Bud Powell, Warne Marsh and many others. The quartet plays standard tunes, jazz lines, originals and occasional excursions into the abstract stretching the music in unique and complex directions.

Tickets to the event in the Stuart Steiner Theatre are $8 for adults, $5 for seniors (55+), students (16+) and GCC faculty/staff and $3 for GCC students with ID. GCC alum with ID will receive a $2 discount. Go to http://www.kazzriejaxenquartet.com/ for photos and further information.

Mixed media paintings by Nate Hodge will be displayed in the gallery from Oct. 8 – Nov. 25. The "Everything Flows" exhibit can be viewed during regular gallery hours, which are Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. For more information on all upcoming events at the Roz Steiner Art Gallery visit www.genesee.edu/gallery or www.facebook.com/gccgallery.

In November, audiences are asked to take a trip back in time to a lively Victorian musical hall for a night of dinner theatre where a distinguished ensemble of actors, the Music Hall Royale, stages its flamboyant rendition of an unfinished Dickens' mystery, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood." The show tells the story of the upstanding young Edwin Drood who mysteriously disappears and is presumably murdered. But who the Dickens did it? In the end, the audience gets to decide! The dinner theatre shows will run Nov. 12-15, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, at 7 p.m. and Sunday Matinee at 2 p.m. All tickets are $30 and will include a pasta buffet dinner. The production will benefit the Mental Health Association in Genesee County and advance reservations are required.

"The Mystery of Edwin Drood" is a musical by Rupert Holmes and the original Broadway production was produced by The New York Shakespeare Festival with Joseph Papp as producer and the arrangement by TAMS-WITTMARK MUSIC LIBRARY, Inc., 560 Lexington Ave., New York, NY 10022.

For ticket reservations for "The Mystery of Edwin Drood," or for further information, contact the Genesee Center for the Arts box office at (585) 345-6814 or via e-mail: boxoffice@genesee.edu. Information can also be found online at www.genesee.edu/campuslife/arts or www.facebook.com/GCCTheatre.

It's never too soon to mark your calendars for not-to-miss events already scheduled for 2016.

•    Jan. 29, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. -- The Rochester Rat Pack invites you to join us in the cocktail lounges of the world as we laugh and dance the night away to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Keely Smith, Etta James, Jimmy Durante, Bobby Darin, Judy Garland, Jerry Lewis and the gang.

•    Feb. 12, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. -- Etta Mae -- an evening of laughter with the reigning "Queen of Southern Sass" and winner of American Comedy Awards: "Stand-Up Comic of the Year." (www.ettamae.com)

•    Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016 at 4 p.m. -- Genesee Symphony Orchestra Mid-Winter Concert at GCC's Stuart Steiner Theatre.

As we reported earlier, local artist Brandi Bruggman was invited to be featured at a show in New York City. Brandi sent us this picture and I asked her to write something up about her experience:

RAW Artist's event Glimpse at the Highline Ballroom in Manhattan last night was met with a great success! Two live bands were followed by five fashion shows, live special FX makeup artists, and two floors of showcasing artists and photographers.

Brandi Bruggman, a local multimedia artist who was showcasing her fine art recapped the event in saying, "I had so much fun! My artwork was well received by a wide variety of people there. I made new friends, received a lot of responses, and sold some great artwork! It was an incredible first-time showcasing experience!"

Bruggman will continue to create fine artwork and ship it internationally. She currently has a full collection up for viewing for the summer inside West End Bagels in Clifton Park.

Brandi Bruggman, a multimedia artist from Batavia, will be showcasing her fine art pieces at one of the largest exhibits in Manhattan tonight.

"Glimpse" is a one-night art show at the Highline Ballroom. The multifaceted art show features work from visual artists, musicians and makeup artists.

RAW, an international arts organization, presents the show and has invited emerging independent artists from all over New York to showcase their work. The organization holds art shows in 60 cities across the United States.

"This is my first big art show in New York City that I have participated in with a whole showcase," Bruggman said. "It's a good social networking event and an opportunity for me to sell my work as well."

 ("Be Love" is one of Brandi Bruggman's paintings showcased at the art show in Manhattan. Her full showcase includes 10 paintings, sample glassware and a book of prints.)

RAW found Bruggman's work on Etsy and recruited her for the show a month ago. Due to the short notice, she has been working diligently to finish her paintings and organize a print book. All of the paintings featured in her showcase are new and made within the last 60 days.

Bruggman has owned her art business for six years. She first started her business producing Bruggies, a line of soft goods, in her college dorm room. Now her main focus is on fine arts. She does a variety of paintings and murals for local businesses but also ships her work all over the country and to England and Canada.

A local quilter is getting some posthumous recognition in a place far from home -- Guayaquil, Ecuador.

The daughter of Toni Fietz, a Bethany native, is the U.S. Consul General posted in Guayaquil. Tricia Fietz arranged for the show as part of a celebration sponsored by the Embassy for U.S.'s 239th birthday.

The show is being held through July 24 at Museum of Modern Art and Anthropology (Museo Antropologico y de Arte Contemporanea) and an opening reception was attended by U.S. Ambassador Adam Namm.

The exhibition features eight large quilts, seven wall-hangings, a quilted tablecloth and a work-in-progress on a quilting frame to illustrate the process.

Toni Fietz, who passed away in July 2012, became an avid quilter after a visit to the Genesee Country Museum in Mumford, where she saw quilting being demonstrated. She was a member of the (Holland Land Office) Museum Quilt Guild and the Log Cabin Quilt Guild.