A Celebration of Irish Literature & Sights in honor of St. Patrick’s Day

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! This guest post comes to you from John McNally pictured here with his wife, Sally and their daughter on Summer Solstice 2008. They visit Ireland often; in this photo they’re touching the Lia Fáil or Stone of Destiny on the Hill of Tara at which the High Kings were crowned.

A few years ago, Sally and John McNally gave a presentation about Ireland and its culture to my college composition and literature students that included a Reader’s Theater performance of John Millington Synge’s classic Irish tragedy, Riders to the Sea. Read the play Riders to the Sea; this study guide will help you see Synge’s brilliance and this post will tell you something about the traditional language.

To celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day, and to help people appreciate the Irish people and culture, John put together a selection of Irish websites along with a brief narrative for anyone with an interest in Ireland or who may be planning a trip there. “These are my favorite places and activities,” writes John, “carefully selected and happily experienced as a result of a dozen visits to the Old Sod over the last three decades.”

John McNally’s Top 20 Places to Go in Ireland
or at least visit on the web!

Around Dublin

1) The National Museum of Archeology on Kildare Street, Dublin.   It’s free, located in central Dublin, and has artifacts from throughout Irelands history from stone age gold jewelry and mummified Bog People to the uniforms and weapons of the Irish Rebel leaders.  http://www.museum.ie/en/exhibition/irelands-gold-introduction.aspx

2) The National Library: Next door, it has with a superb exhibit on poet W. B. Yeats:  http://www.nli.ie/yeats/

3) Kilmainham Goal Tour is unsurpassed in telling the story of Ireland.  This former prison is preserved as a museum and is filled with history.  It has also been the site of several recent films. http://www.bing.com/reference/semhtml/Kilmainham_Gaol?fwd=1&src=abop&qpvt=kilmainham+gaol&q=kilmainham+gaol

4) Walking tour: the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl.  http://www.dublinpubcrawl.com/

5) Dublin Writers Museum offers an excellent one hour presentation. http://www.writersmuseum.com/

6) 1916 Rebellion Tour Another lively and informative walking tour http://1916rising.com/

7) Sinn Fein Bookshop: If you have further interest in Republican (Rebel) Ireland then visit the Sinn Fein Bookshop:   http://www.sinnfeinbookshop.com/catalog/index.php

8) Tourist Center on Suffolk Street. You may have noticed my personal interests lean towards history and literature so naturally my selections favor these enduring sites.  For a wider variety of activities visit the Tourist Center on Suffolk Street where you can find information on events, shows, and tours of all types.  http://www.visitdublin.com/seeanddo/TouristOffices/Detail.aspx?id=256&mid=2090

9) Grafton Street is a favorite with street entertainers and should not be missed.

10) Temple Bar is Dublin’s Cultural Quarter where you can find modern and traditional Irish music and art.  It’s also a handy place to stay because it’s in the center of the city so you can walk to nearly all other venues.   http://www.tascq.ie/

11) Hop-On Hop-Off Busses The best way to see central Dublin in a day or two and not worry about getting lost or paying for parking are the Hop-On Hop-Off Busses which stop at all the major attractions and are a tour in themselves.   http://www.dublinpass.ie/dublinpass/transport/default.asp?refID=

Outside of Dublin

12) The most significant attraction is Newgrange. These ancient Temples predate Egypt’s Pyramids and England’s Stonehenge.  http://newgrange.com/ Tours take small groups inside the Passage Tombs from this well run center: http://www.knowth.com/bru-na-boinne.htm

13) Brigit’s Garden is just the thing if you are a lover of Celtic Heritage and Mythology like ourselves.  http://www.galwaygarden.com/

14) Bunratty Castle and Folk Park is a living museum of rural Irish life.  http://www.group-trotter.net/ireland/places/bunratty/bunratty.html

15) Craggaunowen Nearby is my favorite pre-history site, Craggaunowen. http://www.craggaunowen.org/

16) Cliffs of Moher A virtual tour of the Cliffs of Moher shows you why you’d want to visit: http://www.cliffsofmoher.ie/TakeTheTour.aspx

17) Blarney Castle in Cork can be overcrowded with tourists but if you go anyway be sure to visit the Druid area in the nearby forest. http://www.blarneycastle.ie/

Northern Ireland

18) Black Taxi Tours are a good way to see Belfast. http://belfastcitytours.com/gallery.html

19) West Belfast is the Irish-Catholic side of the city and they offer their own tours: http://www.visitwestbelfast.com/tours.php

20) Dunluce Castle If you get up to the Antrim Coast, Dunluce Castle is unsurpassed with its rugged beauty.  http://www.travelsinireland.com/castle/dunluce.htm

Sin-e’   (That’s it)                                                                                        John McNally    March 2010

VC Students to Read in Artists Union Gallery Tonight 7:30pm

Students from Gwendolyn Alley’s English composition classes will read prose and poetry from their recently published class anthologies tonight, Tuesday Dec. 8 7:30 in  the Artists Union Gallery, 330 S. California St. Ventura California. The reading is free and all are welcome.

Pictured are students from Alley’s English 2 class at the conclusion of Eco-Fest which they organized. Christina Henderson drew the poster; an image with students and the poster graces the cover of their student publication.

Eco-Fest Success

Here are a few photos from Thursday’s successful Eco-Fest event at Ventura College organized by students in Gwendolyn Alley’s English 1A and English 2 classes.

Students had tables set up with information on growing your own food, reasons to ride bikes, a bicycle mechanic was on duty, and more.City of Ventura Environmental Services shared information about recycling, composting, worm bins and more. Kendra from VCCool encouraged people to join in climate change activism. Daniel and Jennfier Richman showed off and sold some of their handmade jewelry. Albert Hernandez dj’d the event with some help from his classmates (and his dad!)

Thanks to everyone for making the this wintry event a success!

VC Eco-Pirates Present Eco-Fest Dec. 3

Save Santa! The Ventura College Eco-Pirates Present:
Eco-Fest– A DIY Day for Action Thursday December 3, 2009 8:30am-1:30pm

Can’t go to the UN’s Conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen this December?
Join the Eco-Pirates in Ventura College quad 4667 Telegraph Road
and learn how you can “Do It Yourself” to help preserve the planet and ourselves.
Keep the North Pole from melting!

On Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009 from 8:30am-1:30pm, Ventura College students from Gwendolyn Alley’s English composition classes will offer a free “Eco-Fest: A Do It Yourself Day for Action” which they have organized over the last few weeks of the semester. Student presentations encourage cycling, gardening, ocean rescue, and self-empowerment.  All are welcome to this free event.

Students encourage participants to ride bikes or take public transportation to the event. Student and local bike mechanics will be on-hand to show cyclists how to fix their own bikes and look over bikes to make sure they are in shape for commuting.  Students will also be sharing eight reasons to ride and information about local fun rides including the monthly themed First Friday ArtRides to galleries around downtown Ventura. The next ride, the Save Santa Ride, asks: what will Santa due if the North Pole melts? (details follow)

Another student group will offer information on how to grow a salad. They will have seeds and soil so participants can begin at the event. An additional student group is concerned about women’s empowerment. In the Fireside Lounge, students will curate a film festival on these themes. Other entertainment includes art, music, handmade crafts and eco-friendly gifts.

To encourage participation at the Eco-Fest, Starbucks is donating coffee to those who bring their own cups and Noah’s Bagels will provide bagels. A small donation is requested for cream cheese. From 11:30-1pm, Milano’s is catering healthy pasta and salads for a small donation; samples will be free.

More info: http://bikergogal.wordpress.com and http://artpredator.wordpress.com

What will Santa do if  the North Pole melts due to climate change?
Join us for a Save Santa Bike Ride Fri. Dec. 5
Meet 4:45pm Ventura College corner Day/Telegraph
5-6pm Ride to Artists Union Gallery, California St & the Promenade
6-8pm Ride around downtown Ventura to open galleries
Party 8-10pm CSUCI Gallery corner of Main & CA  (unconfirmed as of 11/18/09)
for music, drinks, veggie pasta & salad from Milano’sVC

Ventura College English Class Publishes Anthology: Writers by the Sea

“Writers by the Sea”:
Creativity from Gwendolyn Alley’s English V01B
Ventura College Summer 2009

Introduction by Gwendolyn Alley

You hold in your hand work that we have selected to share with you, the reader, work that we wrote, for the most part, this summer 2009 as part of our productivity for English 1B at Ventura College. You can learn more about who we are by reading our bios at the end of this collection.

We can’t escape being influenced in our writing and our choices with what we’ve read this summer. We started out the first day of class with a poem by Nanao Sakaki, “Break the Mirror” which you can find on the next page. “Break the Mirror” set the stage for our journey this summer into Ways of Seeing including John Berger’s seminal work. What do we see? How do we see it? How does that influence how we read the world—and ourselves?

Our journey continued with three plays: “Riders to the Sea” by J.M. Synge (the title of which helped us find our title), True West by Sam Shepard, and Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Since Cal Lutheran University was producing the play this summer, director Michael Arndt spoke to our class about putting the page on the stage.

Following our sojourn into dramatic literature, we immersed ourselves in the world of Ray Carver as we read his collection, Where I’m Calling From. We also read the short stories “Yellow Woman” by Leslie Marmon Silko,  “Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich, and “Brokeback Mountain” by Annie Proulx.

Before we went deeper into fiction, we read poetry, some from handouts, but mostly poetry what students in the class found and analyzed and brought into class to share with us. Poets ranged from Sylvia Plath, Langston Hughes, Robert Frost, Sappho, Emily Dickinson, and song lyrics by Garth Brooks. We shared what we learned on our blogs which focused on diverse topics including Slam (Trevor Scott), Maya Angelou (Ariel Namm and Jordan Clegg), poetry from Guantanamo (Meghan DeSchmidt and Ana Ramirez), and the local poetry scene (Jennifer Fildes).

We finished the semester with fiction and a research project which we published on another blog. Some of us chose to read and study Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko and others did Beloved by Toni Morrison. Two research blogs covered the experiences of individuals who go through war as inspired by Ceremony and gender roles and gay rights as influenced by Brokeback Mountain.

In addition to all this, we all went to four or more literary events, including plays and poetry readings, and you will see some reviews on those events here.

We read a lot, wrote a lot, talked a lot, and even blogged a lot! Enjoy! Keep reading and writing!
Best, Gwendolyn Alley
instructor, English 1B, Ventura College

http://artpredator.wordpress.com

http://whisperdownthewritealley.wordpress.com

“Writers by the Sea”: Creativity from Gwendolyn Alley’s English V01B Summer 2009
Table of Contents

Introduction:    Gwendolyn Alley
Poetry:     Red Wine by Vernita Bashe
Review:     Macbeth Comes to Life in Cal Lutheran University by Marlene Arambula
Poetry:     “The Living God” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Presenter:      Kimberly Libman
Essay:        Riding into the West by Kristine Blando
Essay:        A Deeper look into “Brokeback Mountain” by Jordan Clegg
Poetry:    “Fable” by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Presenter:    Kalia Randall
Review:     Macbeth by Joel Velasco
Poetry:    A Sister Gone Too Soon by Jennifer Fildes
Poetry:    Shishilop Project: Surfer’s Point (September 2008) by Gwendolyn Alley
Poetry:    Where I’m From by Jordan Clegg
Poetry:    The Good Baby by Trevor Scott
Essay:        Perception by Ariel Namm
Poetry:    Sonnet XUII by Pablo Neruda
Presenter:    Ana Ramirez
Poetry:    And 2morrow by Tupac Shakur
Presenter:     Genaro Garcia
Poetry:    The State of Optimism by Gwendolyn Alley
Poetry:    “The Shoe” by Kathryn Starbuck
Presenter:     Megan DeSmidt
Poetry    :    Curiosity by Trevor Scott
Poetry:    Back to School by Jennifer Fildes
Essay:         Ways of Seeing by Jordan Lukiewski’
Poetry:    Red Pen by Kalia Randall
Poetry:    Poems by Scott Jarrid
Poetry:    Inspiration by Vernita Bashe
Contributor Biographies

to be added…

Some Ventura County mid-July Lit Events

POETRY

Ventura’s Favorite Poem Project
“Share your favorite poem with Ventura”
Tuesday, July 14 at 5:30pm-7:30pm
Zoey’s Café and Loft
no feature

Robert Peake, featured reader
Tuesday Night Poets
Tuesday, July 14 7:30pm
open mic follows

Friday on Saturday

Feature: F. Albert Salinas
Open mic to follow

Host by Friday

7:30PM Saturday, July 18th

Bell Arts Factory

432 Ventura Ave, Ventura

Broken Word Happy Hour is a spoken word reading series featuring fiction and poetry writers from around Southern California. Thursday, July 23rd at 7PM Farmer & Cook. Come enjoy a summer evening on the patio, listening to stories and poems while enjoying Farmer & Cook’s signature vegetarian snacks as well as organic beer and wine. They have THE BEST chai. More info: Broken Word website.

Theater 150 presents Hamlet

Hamlet is coming to Theater 150!
Previews July 16 and 17: 8PM
July 18: 8PM -Opening Night Gala
Runs July 19-August 8
Thursday-Saturday: 8PM, Sunday 2PM
Tickets $15-$29 Gala-$50
Sundays, as always, 2-for-1

Ojai, California, nestled in a valley seventy five miles north of Los Angeles, lures visitors from all over with its world-class spas, idyllic natural beauty, and friendly, small-town feel. In June, music lovers flock to Ojai for the famous Music Festival, art lovers come in October for the Studio Artist’s Tour, and now theater lovers have their own reason to make the trek to the village locals refer to as “Shangri-La.”

Theater 150, already well loved by Ojai residents for its top-notch local productions, recently made a bold leap into full professional status, and is mounting its first Equity production: Hamlet, opening July 18. Guest director Jessica Kubzansky calls Hamlet “The best play in the world” and promises “a thrill ride” for actors and audiences alike. The award-winning Kubzansky, Co-Artistic Director of Pasadena’s Boston Court Theater, has long dreamt of directing Hamlet. She is “…profoundly moved by the rich and deep and flawed humanity in this play” and has temporarily relocated to Ojai to bring Shakespeare’s most famous characters to new life for Theater 150 audiences.

Chris Nottoli and Deb Norton, Theater 150’s dynamic artistic team, chose Hamlet to mark the already top-notch local theater’s debut as a Small Professional Theater or SPT (the distinction the Actors’ Equity Union gives to small, emerging professional theaters), not only for its 400-year track record, but because they believe there is something very timely about the piece itself.

“It’s a story about a guy who’s perfectly happy in his ivory tower, who gets wrenched home to discover an enormous mess which doesn’t seem to bother anyone else. He isn’t prepared to deal with it. But in the course of the play, he chooses to step up and face it,” explains Nottoli. “ ‘The readiness is all,’” he quotes. “The readiness to face your destiny, to make seemingly impossible choices, to do what it takes.” Nottoli and Norton see a parallel in the challenge Hamlet faced, to the challenges facing the arts in today’s economy “People ask how we are taking these giant steps forward when many other arts organizations are forced to send up the white flag,” says Nottoli, “and it’s simply this: We only had two choices, and the other one was quit. The mission of this non-profit is to create the best possible productions in Ojai and going unequivocally pro was the next step.” The community has responded enthusiastically by tripling of the size of T150′s board of directors and contributing huge new sums of money. “This is clearly what the people want and we are honored to deliver,” says Nottoli. “As a theater, we chose to ‘take arms against the sea of troubles’ now, and step up to the call, rather than hesitate until it was too late.”

Interpretations of Hamlet and the title character have changed drastically throughout the play’s history. The Jacobeans loved Hamlet’s madness and melancholy, Restoration critics saw the play and character as primitive and lacking in decorum. In the 18th century, Hamlet was recast as a hero, a pure and brilliant man thrust into damning circumstance. By the 19th century, the Romantics loved the character for his complex internal struggles. In the twentieth century, Freudian interpretations fetishized Hamlet’s struggle as an Oedipal fixation on his mother.

Kubzansky has seen dozens of productions of Hamlet in the years she’s been waiting for the perfect chance to direct it, and her Hamlet, played, as she says, “by the truly astonishing Leo Marks,” lives in “a young and vibrant kingdom in a time when monarchies matter. He is a perpetual student who suddenly has to grapple with affairs of state.” The production is set in a world inspired by the 16th century but with a fluid modern influence, so that the people don’t feel encrusted in the past. “This is a passionate, alive, terrifying, dangerous place to be,” she says, “both in Hamlet’s head and out of it, and I want the world to be immediate, visceral, evocative.”

The 150’s black-box theater is being completely re-configured to accommodate this play. Audiences will appreciate the intimacy the new configuration offers. “We’ve done ‘theater in your lap’ and ‘tempests in a teacup,’ so why not ‘fencing at your feet?’ asks Nottoli, referring to the theater’s tiny (42 seat) original home. “We can do it safely because the actors are professionals, and they are training non-stop. There is no way to ‘fake it’ when you’re this close. I guarantee, you’ve never seen anything like it in Ojai.”

Which is why they are doing it. Nottoli and Norton, singled out by Ventana magazine as two of the forward-moving “9 for 2009” cite the words of Orson Welles as their guiding principle: “Don’t give them what they want, give them what they never thought was possible.” Their vision is to bring world-class professional theater to Ojai, both for the theater lovers of the community and the visitors who are already lured by Ojai’s international reputation as an artistic Mecca.

“Our Hamlet brings the best artists, working at the top of their game, to Ojai,” says Norton. “It’s our vision coming true.”

Those artists are finding Ojai to their liking as well. Kubzanski, when asked why she would come to Ojai to Ojai, laughed, “I can’t see why people would leave here. It’s beautiful, relaxed… and I love how many brilliant people I’ve met here.”

Leo Marks (AEA), playing Hamlet, goes for a run in the hills every morning, and says “It’s great to get out of the city [Los Angeles] to do this. It’s a huge show and we’re putting it together in a fairly short time. You can’t afford to lose any rehearsals. Ojai, allows serenity to focus you, not panic.” Tim Cummings (AEA), who plays Polonius adds: “To be living in Ojai, doing Shakespeare with Jessica Kubzansky, and getting paid for it, transposes Hamlet –our most renown tragedy– into an exhilarating fantasy.”

Theater 150 is named for the state highway that runs through town. The artistic team has plans to bring theater lovers along that highway for both a summer Classics Festival, and a winter New Works Festival. Hamlet is the summer festival’s first “shot over the bow,” explains Nottoli. Ojai embraces the 150’s vision of a world-class theater whole-heartedly. Local merchants are participating in a cross-marketing “Hamlet Trading Card” program, spreading awareness of the play and encouraging residents and visitors to visit their businesses. Several local Inns and B&B’s have gotten involved as well, offering “Play and Stay” discounts for guests coming to town to see Hamlet.

“We are really looking forward to this production” says Ojai City Council member and former Mayor, Sue Horgan, “Theater 150 already brings a lot to the community, and we are glad to have another great offering for our visitors. If you’ve been looking for a reason to visit Ojai, and you love great theater, the time is now.”

Hamlet
by William Shakespeare
Directed by: Jessica Kubzansky
Featuring Leo Marks as Hamlet

Theater 150
316 E. Matilija Street
Ojai, CA 93023
www.theater150.org

Previews July 16 and 17: 8PM
July 18: 8PM -Opening Night Gala
Runs July 19-August 8
Thursday-Saturday: 8PM
Sunday 2PM
Tickets $15-$29 Gala-$50
Sundays, as always, 2-for-1

For more information or reservations
Please call the Theater at: 805-646-4300
Or visit: www.theater150.org
HAMLET TRADING CARDS

Theater 150’s flagship professional production features a dozen of Shakespeare’s most famous characters, and soon you will be able to collect all twelve!

Participating merchants will have the trading cards available free with store purchase. Will you get Horatio? Ophelia? Laertes? Rosencrantz? Guildenstern? Claudius, Gertrude, Polonius, the Player King and Queen, and of course, the Melancholy Dane himself round out the deck. But who is on the twelfth card? For if you collect all twelve, you will be able to piece together the puzzle on the back, and collect a prize. Prizes available for certain combinations as well. Stay tuned, more details to come.

“There are more things on Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”
–Hamlet

Austin Kleon’s Mind Map of John Berger’s “Ways of Seeing”

Searching on-line for information about John Berger’s classic postmodern analysis of “reading” art and various texts, I found this brilliant and gorgeous “mind map” of the book over on Austin Kleon’s blog. He’s also got some cool “blackout poems” there some of which will be in his book coming out from Harper-Collins February 2010.

Dir Michael Arndt: Macbeth from the page to the stage plus “The 32 Second Macbeth”

Tomorrow, July 1 at 10:30am in Trailer 2 at Ventura College, Michael Arndt, Artistic Director of the Kingsmen Shakespeare Company at Cal Lutheran University, will discuss taking Macbeth from the Shakespeare’s page to the CLU stage.

In honor of this occasion, check out this 32 Second version of Macbeth, featuring many of the most memorable lines and evoking some of the most memorable scenes from the play.

The 32-second Macbeth

And, who said what?

Actors 1, 2, 3  Fair is foul and foul is fair

Actor 4  What bloody man is that?

Actor 2  A drum, a drum!  Macbeth doth come

Macbeth   So foul and fair a day I have not seen

Actor 3  All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!

Macbeth  If chance will have me king, then chance will crown me

Actor 5  Unsex me here

Macbeth  If it were done when ‘tis done

Actor 5  Screw your courage to the sticking place

Macbeth  Is this a dagger that I see before me? (Actor 4 dies)

Actor 5  A little water clears us of this deed.

Actor 6   Fly, good Fleance, fly!  (dies)

Macbeth  Blood will have blood

Actors 1, 2, 3  Double, double, toil and trouble

Actor 7   He has kill’d me, mother!  (dies)

Actor 8  Bleed, bleed, poor country!

Actor 5  Out damn’d spot!  (dies)

Macbeth  Out, out, brief candle!

Actor 8   Turn, hell-hound, turn!

Macbeth  Lay on Macduff!  (dies)

Actor 8  Hail, king of Scotland!

So who said what? What’s my line?

In Shakespeare’s time, actors didn’t receive the whole script–only their part which they received rolled up hence the word “role” to describe an actor’s part in a play.

Weds July 1: Each student will receive a “roll” with his or her lines on it. Figure out “who” you are, and prepare to tell us in class about where in the play your line can be found, what’s the context of the line, what it means, why it’s important.

Thurs. July 2: You’ll have a chance to discuss your role, lines, and scenes with someone else in the class who has the same part. We will go over some of the lines in the first half of the play, and we’ll “do” the 32 second version of the play with one cast of characters; when your character “dies” (as 5 of them do), please gratify us by falling down dead.

Mon. July 6:  We’ll “do” the 32 second version of the play with the second cast; when your character “dies” (as 5 of them do), please gratify us by falling down dead. In class, we’ll go over the rest of the scenes in the play represented by these lines.

You can write about your character for your Thursday Reading Response OR write up your notes for your presentation and put it in your portfolio. If you miss class, and don’t have a part, email me and I will let you know which one to do.

Since Macbeth has 7 lines, one person will do the first 5, and one person will do the last 5 so that there’s overlap for lines 3, 4, and 5.

Three LA Area Literary & Art Collaborations & Shakespeare too for you this summer

Shakespeare Galore plus three Visual & Literary Art Collaborations in LA Summer 2009

Summer is outdoor Shakespeare season with Will’s Words popping up all over the country, including many different performances in unusual venues all over the Los Angeles region including Topanga Canyon’s Will Geer Thetricum Botanicum.

The Kingsmen’s version of Macbeth opens tonight at 8pm on the campus of California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, in east Ventura County followed by All’s Well That Ends Well. Bring a blanket and a picnic and come early –grounds open at 5:30pm–to enjoy the pre-show entertainment and stake out a good spot on the grass.

Macbeth

• Friday, Saturday, Sunday – June 26-28, 2009
• Thursday, Friday, Sunday – July 2-3, 5, 2009
• Friday, Saturday, Sunday – July 10-12, 2009

All’s Well That Ends Well

• Friday, Saturday, Sunday – July 17-19, 2009
• Friday, Saturday, Sunday – July 24-26, 2009
• Friday, Saturday, Sunday – July 31, August 1-2, 2009

Poetry can be heard in an art gallery at Bell Arts Factory 432 Ventura Ave Saturday starting at 7:30pm; an open mic follows the feature. If it’s less traditional means of the literary arts that fascinates you, here are three events worth checking out, two of which feature my dear friend Jen Hofer:

ONE: Jen Hofer will read in Hollywood tonight, Friday June 26 from few of her brand-new hand-made tiny books which will be exhibited as part of a group show curated by Jibade-Khalil Huffman at Eighth Veil Gallery. The show is titled Wrong: A Program of Text and Image: information on the Eighth Veil website. Jen will also have on hand a hand-sewn a quilt made of papers collected on recent cross-country travels and she’ll be setting up the escritorio público (public letter-writing desk) at the opening where she charges $2 for a letter, $3 for a love letter, and $5 for an illicit love letter.

WRONG: A Program of Text and Image Curated by Jibade-Khalil Huffman
26 June 2009 – 31 July 2009 Opening reception June 26
Eighth Veil 7174 Sunset Boulevard Los Angeles, California

Featuring works by: Lucas Blalock, Mira Dancy, Zipora Fried, Charles Gaines, Jen Hofer, Jibade-Khalil Huffman, Marci MacGuffie, Eliza Newman-Saul, Mariah Robertson, Xaviera Simmons, Lawrence Weiner. Curated by artist and writer Jibade-Khalil Huffman, “Wrong: A Program of Text and Image” is a group exhibition of works concerned with the use of language in visual art. In conjunction with the show, Eighth Veil is producing “After Stanley Donen,” an anthology of art and writing edited by Huffman, available in July. Open Tuesday through Saturday, 12 – 6pm, and by appointment.

TWO: Visual artist Hillary Mushkin and Jen Hofer collaborated on Precipitation, an animated video that is part of the Oog series, an online multimedia opinion feature for the nationally distributed Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant. It can be viewed this week at http://extra.volkskrant.nl/oog/client/index.php?artworkId=271. After that it will be in the archives, http://extra.volkskrant.nl/oog/client/overview.php.  You’ll find Hillary’s images on her website, and in the near future another of collaborative projects will be published in the journal area sneaks, edited by Rita Gonzalez and Joseph Mosconi.

And THREE:

Mild Light An evening of Cantastoria from the Performance Department of The Museum of Everyday Life

“Cantastoria” is the Italian word for a traditional performance form originating in 6th Century India, involving the display of representational paintings accompanied by sung narration. Recently there has been a revival of interest in Cantastoria among performers,artists, puppeteers and activists in the West, who find that this ancient form has startlingly modern qualities and can easily be infused with fresh content. Historical, lyrical, and pathetical examples of the ancient and post-modern art of picture-story recitation will be presented by Clare Dolan, Chief Operating Philosopher of the Museum of Everyday Life (Vermont). Using examples from the permanent collection of the Museum of Everyday Life, Clare will demonstrate the versatility and immediacy of this performance form, with stories ranging from accounts of bloody crime in the 1930’s written by Bertolt Brecht, to the dilemmas of a modern-day heroine trying to make a living and achieve total happiness. In addition to the shows, a brief, entertaining and historical overview of the performance form will be presented, and refreshments will be served.July 2nd and 3rd performances will feature a special musical performance by Emily Lacy!Show Times: Thursday, July 2nd at 8pm Friday, July 3 at 8pm Friday, July 3 at 10pm Saturday, July 4th at 8pm The Manual Archives 3320 West Sunset Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90026 BUY TICKETS general admission $12 students or seniors $8 For more information please go to www.manualarchives.org The Manual Archives is a project of Automata

Native American Playwright’s Fest at LA’s Autry Center closes 6/27; Climbing Art show open to Oct. 4

The Autry National Center this summer presents a stunning exhibition, Granite Frontiers: A Century of Yosemite Climbing. For more information on The Autry, click here.

Granite Frontiers chronicles the history of modern rock climbing in Yosemite, where the towering granite walls of Yosemite Valley are the ultimate proving ground for climbers from around the globe.  Included are amazing artifacts, stunning photographs, historic video footage and interactive displays, giving you a sense of the rich history of over 100 years of climbing in Yosemite.

Photo: Pete on Sunkist by Greg Epperso from Granite Frontiers: A Century of Yosemite Climbing

KCRW members like me receive free admission plus a guest by showing a KCRW Fringe Benefits Card, Saturday, September 5, 2009 only. No Fringe Benefits Card?  Subscribe to KCRW at the $50 level or higher and start saving at nearly 1000 businesses. Click here.

Closing this weekend at the Autry: