Arts Center News

Herbert Friedson Exhibit Opens August 13, 2010
Retrospective Show Examines 60 Years of Enameling

The Lawrence Arts Center is pleased to announce its latest exhibition, 60 Years of Enameling: a Retrospective, featuring the works of Lawrence-based artist Herbert Friedson.

Herbert Friedson

Friedson was born in Cleveland, Ohio and started enameling in high school. He attended the Cleveland Institute of Art and studied with renowned enamellists Kenneth Bate and John Paul Miller before graduating with a BFA in sculpture in 1958. Friedson received an MFA in Design from the University of Kansas and was hired by KU to teach silversmithing and basic design courses in the Design department, where he introduced enameling into the curriculum.

Friedson's work has been shown in more than 120 regional, national and international exhibitions including those at the Museum of Contemporary Crafts and the Aaron Faber Gallery in New York; the Cleveland Museum of Art; the Long Beach Museum of Art, Nelson Gallery/Atkins Museum and the Biennale Internationale de Limoges in France.

60 Years of Enameling: a Retrospective is Friedson’s first solo show at the Lawrence Arts Center, where he has taught enameling for three years. The exhibition opens Friday, August 13 with a reception from 7-9pm and runs through Saturday, September 4. Friedson will give a public talk about his art on Monday, August 30 at 7pm at the Arts Center.

Website

“Mad for Dance” Scholarship Fundraiser

Aug. 26, 2010
Contact: Michelle Heffner Hayes, Department of Dance, (785) 248-6211 ‘Mad for Dance’ benefit supports student scholarships

LAWRENCE — Dance enthusiasts are invited to share their passion at the “Mad for Dance” scholarship fundraiser on Sept. 23 at the Lawrence Arts Center. The event is hosted by the Department of Dance at the University of Kansas.

Not only will audiences enjoy displays of dance, they also will be treated to musical performances including live jazz, singing and piano.

Several KU faculty, students and alumni will be featured performers. The performers include Chuck Berg, professor of film and media studies and jazz saxophonist; dance faculty Muriel Cohan, Michelle Heffner Hayes, Jerel Hilding (in a duo with pianist Hurst Coffman) and Patrick Suzeau; Deanna Doyle, Kansas City ballet dancer and KU alumna; Leslie Bennett, assistant professor of theatre and vocalist; and Jordan Wright and Matt Rodriguez, both seniors at KU.

Hayley Mac, a rhythm tap dancer, will be a special guest. Mac has a long list of professional stage credits and has been in several commercials, film productions and music videos.

“This is a truly incredible lineup, especially considering this is our first-ever scholarship fundraiser,” said Heffner Hayes, chair of the Department of Dance. “This is a night not to be missed.”

Proceeds from “Mad for Dance” will support scholarships for students in the dance department. A cash bar and hors d’oeuvres at 6:30 p.m. will precede the performance at 7:30 p.m. Advance tickets are available for $20 at the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 New Hampshire St., by phone (785) 843-2787 or online. Tickets will be $25 the day of the show.

The Department of Dance is part of KU’s School of the Arts. Housed within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the School of the Arts is home to four departments: dance, film and media studies, theatre and visual art. The School of the Arts was created through the reorganization of the former School of Fine Arts.

940 Dance Company Receives Residency

Charlotte Street Foundation Awards Group Downtown Kansas City Rehearsal Space

LAWRENCE, KS (September 2, 2010) - The 940 Dance Company, the Lawrence Arts Center’s professional, touring dance company, has been selected to be a part of the Studio Residency Program by the Charlotte Street Foundation. The dance company was awarded studio space at City Center Square in downtown Kansas City, where they will rehearse one day a week.

The Charlotte Street Fund selects visual artists and performing artists to inhabit a floor at City Center Square for one year, to encourage collaboration among artists and to support artistic excellence. This year, the organization received more applications than ever, making the selection process very competitive. “This is a wonderful honor and opens up many collaborative possibilities for the 940 Dance Company, as well as greater visibility,” said Susan Rieger, Artistic Director of 940 Dance Company. In addition to rehearsals, the company will also perform as part of the Third Friday Open Studios beginning on October 15.

The 940 Dance Company is comprised of six dancers for the 2010-2011 season: returning members Jennifer Flynn, Bobbi Foudree, Eric Tedder, and Ashley Trullinger and apprentices Justin Hundley and Michaela Sherman. The season opens with performances at 9:40pm on October 8 and 9 at the Lawrence Arts Center. Call 785/843-2787 for ticket information.

Lawrence Arts Center Announces Auditions For Holiday Show

The Snow Queen Has Opportunities for All Ages, Experience Levels

LAWRENCE, KS (September 2, 2010) – Auditions for the Lawrence Arts Center’s annual holiday production will be held on Sunday, September 19 from noon-5:00pm.

After a two-year absence, The Snow Queen is being presented once again. Revisited by the directors, this new version has a sleeker script with all the beauty and charm of Hans Christian Andersen’s strange tale of love and loyalty. The production will feature a cast of over 100 community and professional actors and dancers. It includes an original script by Ric Averill, unique choreography by Deborah Bettinger and a live orchestra performance conducted by Jeff Dearinger. Performance dates for The Snow Queen are December 10-12 and 17-19.

Auditions for dancers and actors are scheduled for Sunday, September 19th with times scheduled as follows for different age groups.

No prepared audition material is necessary. Everyone who auditions will read at least once (except the youngest group) and/or do some creative dramatic exercises, learn a dance combination, and possibly do some additional reading. Call backs, if needed, will be held on Monday, September 20. There is a participation fee of $90 for all student performers, although financial aid will be available and auditioners should not let price prevent them from auditioning.

Interested parties should contact the Lawrence Arts Center at 843-2787 with any questions.

New Members Announced For Arts Center Dance Companies

Companies Seek to Provide More Performance Opportunities for Advanced Dancers

LAWRENCE, KS (September 2, 2010) –The Lawrence Arts Center Dance program is pleased to announce the members of the Advanced Jazz Performance Ensemble and the NEW Advanced Ballet Performance Ensemble for the 2010-2011 year. Company members were selected by separate auditions on August 21.

The members of the Advanced Ballet Performance Company are: Emma Davison, Jessica Devlin, Olivia Fox, Bryn Graham, Adriana Gramly, Helen Hawkins, Shelby Steichen, and Devany West.

New this year, the Advanced Ballet Performance Company is directed by former principal dancer with the Tulsa Ballet Company, Cynthia Crews. Dancers must be in at least 9th grade and serious students and taking advanced ballet at least four times a week. Students in this new, exciting company will learn original and classical ballet choreography, perform in various dance events at the Arts Center, and perform in other venues in and around Lawrence.

The members of the Advanced Jazz Performance Ensemble are: Madi Brunkan, Nora Byers, Raul Cody, Jessica Devlin, James Fenoglio, Adriana Gramly, Helen Hawkins, Sophie Laufer, Kendra Moore, Noelle Olson, and Erin Riley.

The Advanced Jazz Performance Ensemble continues this year with Artistic Director Molly Gordon. In this performance class students will learn more choreography and work toward presenting their work at upcoming Arts Center dance events and events throughout Lawrence.

The Lawrence Arts Center dance program established these companies as a way to recognize advanced dancers and to provide a rigorous, performance-based training for those dancers.

Lawrence Arts Center Named Arts Education Leader

The Lawrence Arts Center has been named a Kansas Arts Education Leader by the Kansas Arts Commission. Organizations named Arts Education Leaders were awarded $10,000 matching grants in honor of their achievements in providing arts learning opportunities to children and youth in Kansas.

The Kansas Arts Leadership Program supports comprehensive arts-learning programs united by a cohesive educational approach. To receive the grant, the Lawrence Arts Center had to demonstrate that the education curriculum was aligned with the Kansas Arts-in-Education Program Objectives and met all seven of the Kansas Arts Commission's Arts Learning Goals.

The Lawrence Arts Center’s educational programming is the only broadly accessible, widely diverse arts curriculum available to all residents. Children are able to attend classes as early as age 2 and can continue through a sequential program that offers developmentally appropriate skills, concepts, and new learning opportunities at each stage of growth. Students are also able to step into courses at any point throughout the curriculum as they explore their personal artistic interests. With this approach, they can self-guide their Arts Center experience, engage in a variety of visual and performing arts, and see how the arts collaborate and enhance each other across the curriculum. Classes are held most days of the week throughout the year.

In this way, the Lawrence Arts Center enhances visual arts and drama programs in the USD 497 Lawrence school district. The diversity of arts opportunities and the year-long curriculum allows students to continue their arts involvement as an extracurricular pursuit and during academic breaks. Likewise, the Lawrence Arts Center’s innovative dance programming provides learning opportunities in two professional studios where the educational focus is on technique and performance.

The mission of the Lawrence Arts Center is to enrich individuals and the community by nurturing love of the arts through education, exploration, and expression.

The Kansas Arts Commission is a state agency, funded by the State of Kansas and the National Endowment for the Arts, dedicated to promoting and supporting the arts in Kansas. Its mission is to provide opportunities for the people of Kansas to experience, celebrate and value the arts throughout their lives.

Lawrence Arts Center Receives Kansas 150 Grant

The Lawrence Arts Center is the recipient of a “Kansas 150 American Masterpieces Grant” from the Kansas Arts Commission to support an exhibit of prints by four notable charter members of the Kansas-based Prairie Print Makers: Birger Sandzen, Herschel Logan, Norma Bassett Hall, and C.A. Seward. The Kansas 150 grants support public arts and cultural events relating to the Kansas 150 commemoration and featuring works by living or deceased recognized Kansas artists as part of the Kansas statewide sesquicentennial celebrations.

The Prairie Print Makers were formed in December 1930 in Lindsborg with the goal to “further the interest of both artists and laymen in printmaking and collecting.” Their contributions to Kansas art are exceptional not only because of the artistic quality and populist mission of their work, but also because of their early focus on rural Kansas landscape and heritage. The Prairie Print Makers commissioned limited prints from members and sponsored traveling exhibits featuring members' work. These low-cost exhibits were sent all over the country, exposing the printmakers to a wide audience. The group's goals were much in line with the WPA-inspired Kansas Museum Project, motivated by the belief that art should be available to all classes of people.

To complement the exhibit, the LAC will host a lecture about the legacy of the Prairie Print Makers, publish a gallery guide, and present a printmaking demonstration or workshop.

The program is sponsored by the Kansas Arts Commission, along with the National Endowment for the Arts’ American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of American Genius. A special thank you to the Kansas Historical Society for spearheading the Kansas 150 celebration. For more information on the Kansas sesquicentennial celebration, visit http://ks150.org.

The Kansas Arts Commission is a state agency, funded by the State of Kansas and the National Endowment for the Arts, dedicated to promoting and supporting the arts in Kansas . Its mission is to provide opportunities for the people of Kansas to experience, celebrate and value the arts throughout their lives. For more information on the Kansas Arts Commission, please visit the KAC website at http://arts.ks.gov.

Come Dance With Us This Fall!

Fall Dance Information

Watch for the Fall schedule in the Arts In Action. Now online and at the Arts Center August 15th - In Lawrence Journal World

Introducing Our Director of New Media: Marlo Angell

Marlo has a B.A. in Film/Video Production from University of Southern California's School of Cinema-Television. Her short film, Cigar By Car, was screened in film festivals across the country including the AFI Los Angeles Film Festival. Her feature screenplay, A Night in Armor, was a top 10 finalist in the Nevada Sreenwriting Competition and she wrote and directed the feature film, Waiting For The Son, starring Brian Aldiss and Lupe Ontiveros. Most recently, Marlo produced and edited, Mariachi Estrella, a short documentary about one of the country's first all female mariachi bands. She is currently in pre-production on "From Football to Futbol," a documentary on the evolution of soccer in western Kansas, made possible by a grant from the Kansas Humanities Council. Past teaching experience includes film production instruction at the New York Film Academy's Los Angeles office.

The Lawrence Arts Center Digital Media Lab , through the generosity of Hallmark and Hill's Pet Nutrition, is a state -of -the -art studio and classroom for Media Arts and Digital Cinema.

earthwork to premiere at Arts Center

Friday, September 10 and Saturday, September 11

This award-winning film tells the story of Kansas crop artist, Stan Herd, who in 1994 traveled from Lawrence to New York City and risked everything to create a massive environmental artwork on land owned by Donald Trump. In dealing with the difficulties of bringing his unique, rural art form to an urban canvas, Stan unexpectedly encountered the true meaning of his art and its ultimate, lasting rewards. The film, by KU alum writer/director Chris Ordal, has won a staggering number of awards at film festivals across the country. The Arts Center is proud to bring it home for its local premiere. Buy tickets at the Arts Center or online below. For additional information, see earthworkmovie.com and facebook.com/earthwork.

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  Friday, September 10, 8pm-public screening, tickets $10.50.

  
  

• Saturday, September 11—film intensive classes for youth and adults.

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  Saturday, September 11, 8pm—special event screening; Q&A with members of the cast, producers, and writer/director; reception with cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and special music by artists featured in the film; tickets $50.

  
  

Painting and Drawing with Paul Hotvedt
at the Lawrence Arts Center

Happy Preschool 25th Anniversary

The 2010-2011 school year will be the 25th Anniversary for the preschool and we are planning additional events and activities throughout the year. We're planning to make it great!!

The preschool is announcing the "Preschool Plus" class which will allow children to participate in activities at the Lawrence Arts Center following their afternoon preschool class until 5:00 p.m. Preschool Director Linda Reimond says the expanded program - which starts in the Fall 2010 semester - was created based on inquiries from parents who needed more child-care time. "The extended hours will provide some consistency for the children," says Reimond, "and remaining at the Arts Center will give them additional experiences with art and our programs in all areas."

Also, Reimond has been invited to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in May to present at the 2010 International Early Arts Summit and Conference. She and teacher Leslie McCaffrey will discuss "50 Ways to Use the Easel" while emphasizing the importance of art in early childhood education.

A few spots remain available in the Arts-Based Preschool for the 2010-2011 school year!

• Download Preschool 2010-2011 Enrollment Form
• Download Preschool Enrollment Letter
• Download "Why Art?"

Why Art?

A very good question. Think of “ the arts ” as art, music, dance, and drama. Not only is art fun, art is a perfect way to learn. Learning through the arts is a smart and fun way to enhance brain development, support individual learning, and help people prepare for success in school and in life. Arts-based learning is great for kids of all ages, but especially helpful for young children for reasons such as these listed here.

Physical Development

Large and small muscle development and coordination are important aspects of every art activity. Different muscles are exercised in different art activities. As the muscles are exercised, they grow stronger and the child gains better control over them.

Coordination of eye and hand movements follow as a child tries to control the crayon, brush, or marker in his hand to make marks that are meaningful to him. In dance and creative movement one learns control and coordination of the body is space. In these art forms, she learns to use her hands, eyes, feet, and body at the same time. She develops control over eye muscles, an important first step in learning to read. “Free drawing” rather than coloring in the lines of a coloring book, will develop the skills needed for making letters and numbers.

Mental Development

Children learn by doing. Learning concepts, language and skills are a foundation for reading, math and science. If it goes through the hands, feet, body, it goes through the brain.

Language and Literacy

Children learn through direct experience what the word “texture” means as they handle cloth with different surfaces, thick/thin while using paint.

As children talk about their art work, they are “reading” their picture. Writing a story is “written down talk”.

Dramatic play and acting-out stories make stories, actually, come alive.

Thinking Skills

Art provides opportunities for making decisions and problem solving no matter how many times a child has worked with the same medium.

Creative Development

Creativity is the ability to see, make, or perform in a new way. Making something new, being creative means taking a risk to do that “something new or different.” Making mistakes is a part of this process. Scientific thinking and creativity are difficult to separate. Maya Angelou states, “You cannot use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”

Aesthetic Development

Aesthetic awareness involves helping children see, hear, and enjoy the beauty in their world. It improves the quality of learning and helps the creative process.

Social-Emotional Development

As children work in the art center, they learn to share the materials, to accept other's ways of doing art, and to enjoy being a part of the group. Creating art affords the opportunity for release-clay, woodworking, fingerpaint, sensory tables, outdoors, and waterplay. Children learn to feel good about themselves as they learn they can do things well.

Children who feel free to make mistakes and to explore and experiment will also feel free to invent, create, and find new ways to do things. Grant the lasting gift of freedom to children - to make mistakes and learning from doing. The side benefit is that fostering creativity is rewarding and fun and gives children a zest for imagining and learning to last a lifetime.

940 Dance Company Receives Two Prestigious Grants

Lawrence, KS -- January 4, 2010 -- Lawrence Arts Center announces that 940 Dance Company has received grants from both the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation and the Francis Family Foundation in support of the company’ s 2009-2010 season.

The Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation, located in Kansas City, Missouri, has awarded grants to 940 Dance Company for the past three seasons. 940 received $7,500 this year.

The Company’ s proposal to the Francis Family Foundation was one of 87 applications and just 47 grants were awarded. While the Francis Family Foundation has funded the Arts Center previously, this is the first time it has supported the 940 Dance Company, with a $5,000 grant.

Susan Rieger

“These two foundations generously support operating costs of the company, which increases the quality and strength of our programming. The grants are a wonderful match to our earned income, which comes from out-of-town bookings and both out-of-town and local ticket sales.” said Susan Rieger, Artistic Director of the 940 Dance Company.

940 Dance Company is one of northeast Kansas’ few professional modern dance companies. For over 21 years, the Company has taken dance and educational programs to communities in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Nebraska. Their next performance will be Transformations, January 26th, 7pm at the Lawrence Arts Center. Tickets are $5.00 for all ages.

The Lawrence Arts Center, located at 940 New Hampshire, is supported in part by the Kansas Arts Commission, a state agency, the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, which believes that a great nation deserves great art and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Preschool Garden News

Kids learn gardening basics

Lindsey Slater and the 6 News crew visit the Lawrence Arts Center preschoolers and chat with Pre-School Program Director Linda Reimond about an exciting new project. Thanks to a grant from the rotary club, the Lawrence Arts Center can teach kids the ins and outs of gardening.

Arts Ed Key to 21st Century Skills

Diane E. Franken, executive director of the Iowa Alliance for Arts Education writes about the importance of arts education in the Des Moines Register.