THEATRE Flying on the Wings of Imagination by Regi Carpenter
VISUAL ART Unsung Heroes: African American Soldiers in the Civil War by William Earle Williams
DANCE Cadances by Battleworks Dance Company Cadances, a newly commissioned dance work created by Robert Battle and sponsored by the Mohawk Valley Dance Partnership (comprised of the Arts in Education Institute, Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute and Hamilton College) will be presented this summer and premiered in November.
VISUAL ART Routes of Dislocation: Joan Carlon
Joan Carlon's desire to create ink drawings based on stories of forced emigration was first motivated by the power of the stories themselves. Impacted by personal experiences, Carlon reveals: "It seemed natural for me to become interested in history and in the stories of civilians whose lives are irrevocably changed by war; the Vietnamese, Cubans, Bosnians and now Africans from Sudan, Somalia and Liberia. It is the stories of these people that I have collected and that have inspired this group of drawings." The stories come from a collection of tales from newspapers and personal narratives told directly to Carlon. The drawings themselves balance the raw subject matter with Carlon's interest in space, rhythm and strong contrast. As she writes, "The drawings string silhouetted black images, areas of grey wash and graphite pencil across the picture plane and empty spaces. The most recent drawings incorporate pieces of stories, clothing, and bodies moving in clusters that simultaneously hold together and fly apart, echoing the disharmony of the refugee experience.”
MUSIC Paul Carlon Octet- Sabor Latino: The Afro-Cuban Music of the Paul Carlon Octet
The Paul Carlon Octet (PCO) brings together musicians of various backgrounds in a combination that is both Afro-Cuban, jazz-inflected, innovative and evocative of the American experience. Featuring African mbira (also known as the kalimba), a collection of brass and woodwinds, and a traditional jazz rhythm section, this ensemble’s collective voice speaks of the funk of Bootsy Collins, and the Latin influences of Cuba, Brazil, and Colombia. Attesting to his composing virtuosity, Paul Oberlin proclaimed in Jazz Review that: “Carlon has succeeded in combining a plethora of musical art forms, creating a lush atmosphere that both swings and energizes”.
THEATRE Flying on the Wings of Imagination by Regi Carpenter
Regi was raised in the same small upstate New York town as her great-grandfather Samuel, her grandfather Benjamin, and her father Carl on the St. Lawrence River. She was raised on stories of a magnificent river and the people who settled at its shores. Life on the river was anything but ordinary. Underwater tea parties in the summer and strolls across the water's icy dress in the winter give a child a unique perspective on life.
VISUAL ART Unsung Heroes: African American Soldiers in the Civil War -by William Earle Williams
Until the release of the motion picture Glory in 1989, it was not well known that more than 180,000 black soldiers served in the Civil War. The exhibition Unsung Heroes: African American Soldiers in the Civil War features over forty stunning black-and-white photographs by William Earle Williams. The images call attention to the sites made special through these soldiers' contributions, so that their story becomes a part of our American story. Williams has been pursuing this series for over ten years. He has photographed significant Civil War sites in the South and North, recording both historically recognizable as well as forgotten locations.
