des bonnes idées

Let me begin with a number of recommendations:

1. If you have not seen The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, do so post haste. This latest film directed by Julian Schnabel and based on a novel by the same title is honestly one of the best movies that I have seen to date. Beautifully done and heart wrenching, the film follows the story of a man who wakes up from a coma only to find himself completely paralyzed and mute. He learns to communicate through the use of his eyes and is thus able to dictate his amazing story.

2. Umai - Japanese/French fusion restaurant on Madison Ave. Absolutely delicious and rather intriguing. Sushi and duck all on the same menu, what more do you want?

3. Drive down South Main and check out the mural (located just past the Arcade restaurant along the wall of the train station) by local artist Anthony Lee. Working with the Urban Art Commission, Lee undertook this project that stretches some 700 feet depicting various contemporary signs. Images that we see constantly and yet do not always pay attention to. Lee refers to them as "modern-day hieroglyphics," asking his viewers to consider how these symbols and others will be read long after we're gone.

4. Rozelle Artist's Guild - A cool group of kids renovating an abandoned warehouse (at Rozelle and Evelyn) and doing interesting things in the community. This weekend they threw a rave/dance party/fête with djs spinning all night which attracted a pretty diverse group of people from the respective MCA, Rhodes, and Memphis crowds. People just let go and threw their hands in the air, giving into the music. Keep on the lookout for what this group gets up to next... definitely worth checking out.

With these marvelous tidbits, go forth and prosper... eat, drink, and be merry. and make art.

ambitious endeavors

As much as I would love to believe that one person can make all the difference in the world (and part of me is sure of that somehow), I have come to the more realistic conclusion that sometimes you really need an army. This is in no way a political rant mind you, but a call to arms of a dinstinctly peaceful and creative sort. In working with CODA and local artists on various arts endeavors, I have found that while one person can attract a certain amount of attention and support, it takes a lot more than that to affect any kind of social or environmental change. And in the end, I think that is what we are striving for... to help create an environment where the arts can flourish and become a vital element in daily life. For this to happen the arts must be accessible to the public (see prior post regarding the Chicago arts scene), an open forum that encourages communication and innovation.

That certainly seems like a lofty goal but one that we and a number of other Memphians have already been working towards. And it is in this vein that Katharine Gentsch, myself and Lauren Holtermann have undertaken the task of starting a group call Student Advocates for the Arts (SAA). SAA is a national organization that rallies students to take on important arts issues, be it writing Congress about NEA funding or spearheading community projects. We are working right now to start chapters at both Rhodes College and the Memphis College of Art, and intend to reach out to the University of Memphis campus as well. We hope that this group will act as a bridge between the colleges and allow the students to come together to affect real change in Memphis. It is a particularly exciting opportunity and one quite open to the community, so feel free to contact us about the chapters or what we can do to help already ongoing arts endeavors.

photographic evidence

chair o'brilliance

some NY graffiti

good view of Chicago


some more graffiti


Chris Garofalo - Chicago artist, really great
seen at Rhona Hoffman gallery

detail

Chi-town

Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate
"the Bean"

the little engine that could, we hope

CODA’s recent trip to Chicago was inspiring, astounding, and even maddening all at once. Between meeting with various directors of the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA), touring around Millennium Park and speaking with John Bryan (former CEO of the Sara Lee Corporation), it quickly became apparent that there are amazing things happening in the Chicago arts scene. To hear about the DCA’s, mostly free, arts programming and their reflections on the nature of the arts and leadership in their city was simply incredible; incredible enough, in fact, to make even an unpaid internship seem like a dream job. One of the most important discussions from that meeting was certainly that regarding the importance, or prerequisite rather, of leaders who are committed to the arts. Mayor John Daley, DCA Commissioner Lois Weisberg, and even John Bryan are wonderful examples of such leaders who have been essential in the development of the arts in Chi-town. Mayor Daley has made it a priority, Commissioner Weisberg has made a career of it, and Mr. Bryan helped make it all happen (namely through raising the necessary funds).

And while having these conversations, frolicking underneath Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate, and actually breathing on the Vermeer painting (under glass, of course) in Bryan’s study were all amazing and unforgettable experiences in their own right, I couldn’t help but to feel at a loss. How can we do this in Memphis? And is it even possible? Please understand that I love Memphis dearly for its distinctive personality and unrealized potential, but I simply do not know where to begin. Mayor Herenton is most certainly not about to follow in Richard Daley’s footsteps nor is there the kind of funding for the arts that make initiatives like Millennium Park and free arts programming happen. While the patient folks at the DCA tried to explain that the state of things in Chicago has been a decades long process, they could not seem to understand how far behind we are. But I do believe that if we keep doing the things we are doing and believing that it can work, that maybe one day in the future we will have affected even the slightest change in the art world in Memphis. Frank Gehry may never grace us with his presence, but surely great things can happen here.

And so, it looks like it’s back to the drawing board for us…