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Artists

Wright Dunbar Call To Artists

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Wright Dunbar, Inc. is asking for artists to submit designs that will be used to beautify the Historic Commercial District, by wrapping the “silver” utility boxes!  Four different designs will be chosen.  The designs should be Wright Brothers/Aviation inspired, Paul Laurence Dunbar inspired or an inductee listed on the Walk of Fame www.daytonregionwalkoffame.org!   

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Each artist that has a design chosen will receive $500 & credit for the design, be listed on marketing materials & receive a spotlight on the Wright Dunbar Business District Association website www.wdbd.org. The top 10 designs will be chosen through voting on social media.  The final designs will be chosen by Wright Dunbar, Inc. and then approved by the City of Dayton. 

Artists must be Ohio residents to submit. Artists under the age of 18 will need their parents’ permission to enter their design. Designs should be submitted in Resolution 300 dpi (scale image/ require) or 150 dpi resolution (full image/accepted) in PDF format.  Each utility box is a different size and the artwork will need to be resized to accommodate vents, hinges, doors and knobs. If your design is chosen we will provide a template for your particular box.  One design submitted per artist.  No logos, advertisements or names can be on the design.  We encourage artists to submit their design to [email protected]. The deadline for submissions is 11:59 pm Thursday, May 1st.  The chosen designs will be announced Wednesday, May 7th. 

This beautification project is being funded by the City of Dayton Mini Grant Program & the National Aviation Heritage Alliance Small Grant Program. 

For more information, contact Erica Hubler at [email protected]. 

Call For Artwork for New Trotwood Branch Library

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The Dayton Metro Library and The Dayton Art Institute seek to commission site-specific artwork for the new Trotwood Branch Library, which will be located at 855 E. Main Street in Trotwood. Proposals will be accepted August 12 through October 15, and the commissions will be announced in November.

ReImagining Works is a partnership between the Library and the DAI to acquire original artwork for each of the Dayton Metro Library’s new or renovated locations. Susan Anable is The Dayton Art Institute’s project manager for ReImagining Works.

 

“We are excited to share the latest RFP for the Trotwood Branch, which offers four highly visible spaces for artwork,” said Anable. “Since the project began in 2014, we have commissioned 32 works of art to enhance the vibrancy of our new and remodeled Dayton Metro Libraries.”

 

For the Trotwood Branch, regional artists (within a 250-mile radius of Dayton, Ohio) are invited to propose new artwork in response to two inspirational pieces in the DAI’s permanent collection: Centerpiece by Wiener Werkstätte, and Pathway by John Safer. These pieces were chosen by community vote, particularly by patrons of the Trotwood Branch Library, to represent their unique community and Library.

 

An informational meeting for artists is scheduled for Saturday, August 25, 11:00 am at the DAI.  Ruetschle Architects will be on hand to review the building plans and answer questions.

 

“This is a great opportunity for artists to gain a better understanding of the building space and art locations, and also see the DAI inspiration pieces in person,” said Anable, who is also available for individual phone conversation with artists on Monday, August 27, between 4:00 and 6:00 pm.

 

The newly designed 13,000 square foot Trotwood Branch Library has a targeted opening date of January 2020. The architecture employs geometric expression with a cozy interior. Amenities include a quiet reading room, dedicated teen space, a larger children’s area, study rooms, an information commons, and an after-hours accessible community meeting room.

 

Proposed artwork should reflect the distinctive personality of this location; resonate with people of all ages and backgrounds; inspire collaboration, learning and creativity; and contribute to an inviting, engaging, stimulating environment. The ReImagining Works Committee welcomes submissions that relate to the mission of Dayton Metro Library or that provide a springboard for educational programming or collaborative learning opportunities.

 

“Supporting our community of artists while making our libraries warmer and more inviting places is a win-win for our city,” said Anable. “What a great legacy for an artist to have their work on view in a public space in their hometown.”

 

Questions prior to the DAI meeting can be emailed to Susan Anable at [email protected]. R.S.V.P. for the meeting or schedule a time to discuss proposals by emailing [email protected].

 

ReImagining Works is made possible by an anonymous bequest. More information about the project, including photos of installations at completed Libraries, can be found at DaytonMetroLibrary.org/Works.

 

 

Call For Artists

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Call for proposal for the East End Community Mural Project is now OPEN! This project will create five neighborhood murals to welcome visitors to the Twin Towers Neighborhood. The public art is meant to change negative perceptions of the area and re-imagine it as ‘Green, Creative and Diverse’, with images depicting urban farms, artistic assets, and rich cultural diversity.

Download the Request For Proposals Here:  EEC Mural RFP

Informative Meeting/ Q& A with Danielle Weickert and Colleen Kelsey:
When: Saturday, January 13, 2 PM
Where: Dayton Society of Artists, 48 High St. Dayton, OH 45419

 

PROJECT CALENDAR:

 Saturday, January 13, 2 PM
Q & A Meeting with  Danielle Weickert and Colleen Kelsey
with the public at the Dayton Society of Artists:

 Sunday, February 4, 2018
Deadline for Submission: Sunday, February 4, 2018

Monday, February 26, 2018
Notification of selected artists

Friday, March 2, 2018
Notification to public

Friday, March 9, 2018
Finalists present community engagement and mural proposals

Artist and Teams are asked to engage in a spirit of collaboration with the community by reflecting on community responses during this meeting.

 March 1 – May 31
Production Phase

May 31
Deadline for Mural Completion:

TBD
Dedication of public murals:

ELIGIBILITY
This call is open to established and emerging artists, or artists team, living in the Miami Valley area and who are 18 years or older. Priority is given to artists who have demonstrated experience in managing similar projects.

Montgomery County Grants For Artists

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Culture Works and the Montgomery County Arts and Cultural District (MCACD) are pleased to announce the return of the Artist Opportunity Grant program for 2017.

The program, which is funded by MCACD and administered by Culture Works, provides grants to help artists take advantage of specific, imminent opportunities for professional development and the creation or completion of new work. Individual artists of all disciplines–writers, painters, photographers, actors, musicians, dancers, sculptors, film makers and more–are invited to apply. Applicants must reside in Montgomery County, and grant funded-activities must be completed during calendar year 2018.

$30,000 in funding is available for the 2017 grant cycle. Awards are expected to range from $250-$2,500 and cannot exceed $3,000. Artists can apply through the Culture Works website from August 1 through September 30, 2017. Applications will be reviewed by an independent panel later in the fall.

In 2016, the first year of the grant program, six artists received funding to complete local and international exhibitions, artist residencies, and professional training in music and theatre.

“MCACD is happy to support individual artists through this partnership with Culture Works,” said Matt Dunn, Executive Director. “The District and the County Commissioners recognize the richness individual artists and arts organizations add to our quality of life. Artists can choose to live anywhere and we want them to live here and to thrive,” said Dunn.

“For the arts to flourish and enhance community life, there must be ideas, energy, and drive of individual artists. Artists cannot make these contributions without unhampered creative time,” said Culture Works Executive Director Lisa Hanson. “This is a remarkable opportunity for individual artists in Montgomery County. I look forward to seeing the life-inspiring work that these grants will help support.”

More details about the competitive grant process are available on cultureworks.org/artistgrants.

 

For the Love of Local Art

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Did you miss the Dayton Visual Art Center (DVAC) Art Auction this year? If so, you missed out.

Billed as “Dayton’s biggest art party of the year,” the number of artists, art pieces, and active art IMG_1934lovers filling the space at the Ponitz Center confirm the hype. While the silent auction allows more tentative bidders (yours truly) to explore fascinating pieces by local artists, and raise the price in $10 increments, the live auction (hosted by Doug Sorrell) is always a treat. This year – especially so – as a beautiful piece from John Emery raised a IMG_1935whopping $6,100 for the cause!

Food, drink, music, fun, great conversation, and competitive art bidding (don’t worry – if $6,100 isn’t in your budget, you can get much more affordable pieces through the silent auction) makes this a night to remember.

But – that was last weekend. You might have missed out! How, dear friend, are you to get your own local art fix? Fear not! You can still support Dayton Visual Arts Center and talented, local artists here in Dayton by purchasing a share of the CSA (Community Supported ART!). For $650, you “buy into” the community and your share acts as seed funding to support six artists as they make fabulous work for you! Take a look at the artists and the type of work you may be able to expect.

 

ArtPrize 2013 Day 1 & 2

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imageAmway/Rick DeVos funded (1 prize $250k to 1 artist; 20k to most popularly voted venue, 560k in prize money total) + 1,524 artists and 168 venues who sign-up to partner via a to a “speed-date system + vibrant, walkable downtown who welcome an additional 500k visitors for 2 weeks (bringing an estimated 15m economic impact) + ANYBODY can vote for their fave, not once (“ugh, don’t make me feel dumb by asking me to pick the best work of art!”) but vote for as many things that float your boat + really high production value in graphics, wayfinding, “info hubs,” and apps (google Grand Rapids impact history of design) + a guiding principle to spark conversations about and around art = a one of a kind art experience / social experiment. That’s gotta be good right?

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But what about the art?

I arrive in Grand Rapids Thursday afternoon by driving up one of the main drags downtown that curves around right in front of the Grand Rapids Art Museum – a very modern multi-level glass and angled thing sprawled in the center of park, nestled with food trucks, a Maya Lynn public amphitheater and bustling small town/downtown city sidewalks. And I mean bustling. Folks with maps in their hands. Wait. With smartphones in their hands. Hundreds of “em. Voting via the geo-targeting ArtPrize app. Right there in broad daylight in the middle of the street.

And thus begins the adventure.

As a guest of my former colleague (read: my old boss invited me to tag along) I enter the staff side of the museum, intros all around and we’re off. Up the street we run, past many more Amway-funded entities to DeVos Hall – basically a convention center filled with art. Atrium, hallways, you name it. Hours. Hundreds of pieces. Hundreds of people voting. Everywhere.

On a Thursday afternoon. Some artists sitting near their works like at art shows/festivals, some with short list, top 25, popular and guest juror designee signage. All with clear, distinct signage, artist info (international but 90% of what I saw US/Midwest) artists statement, info about media. Some good art. Some bad art. Some artists I recognize. Or recognize what they are trying to do. I’m told the first few years works had to be no more than 1 year old to keep things fresh, contemporary.

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After a few enterprising artists re-purposed works year after year, organizers figured screw it and opened it up to any year by living artists. Nice dinner with a group of collectors and then a pub tour of sorts, including stops at a burning man type outdoor street party and a few brew pubs (note Dayton: GR calls it self the beer city). Did I mention hundreds of people voting? everywhere. After a walk back to the hotel, a nightcap and a slide show to complete strangers in the hotel bar of my top 40 of the day, I called it a night.

Friday began with a tour of GRAMs Top 25 ArtPrize show in which contenders were paired w notable works from the collection, a brunch with the artists and ArtPrize DirectorChristian Gaines (4 mos new from the LA independent film scene) and we’re off again. This time via trolley to Kendall College, a stop to see last year’s winner “Elephants,” a monumental graphite on paper allegorical “Peaceable Kingdom” type drawing (installed amidst a plethora of clever merchandising (My 2 cents about that maybe tomw)), to the sleek, expansive LaFontsee Galleries (good regional contemporary, framing and design-y merch and then to meld food and art culture at the Downtown Market (25 varieties of pink salt and almond biscotti ice cream).

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We finished our evening at the home of the city’s most eclectic private art collection. What can you say about collectors like this? Old masters hung salon style along side graffiti art above a custom case of Japanese netsuke, a Van Gogh drawing in the atrium a Wolf Kahn in the bedroom and rows upon rows of unknown, but compelling to the owners small, medium large, accomplished and a bit raw, paintings. My favorite kind of collector is what I say. Just a great reminder of living with art you love.

So. Wildly liberating to view art in museums, galleries, hotel lobbies, an auto-body shop, a few brew pubs, a yoga studio, cathedrals, community centers, sidewalks, Starbucks, pizza joints, a sports arena,

city parks, Buffalo Wild Wings, a courthouse, a presidential museum, a bank and a nice cream parlor, huh? And did I mention hundreds of people … you know.

Here’s a smattering of pics in no order. See what you thin and tom’w Ill tell you more about what the artists think of all this and how it all may benefit Dayton.image

 

Impressed

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Press Coffee Bar To Hold Premier Art Opening

Black as the Devil, Hot as Hell,
Pure as an Angel, Sweet as Love.
~Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord

There are things that are serendipitous. There are things that smack of predestination. Then there are things that are just pretty damn creepy. I’m not sure which category this story falls under.

Artwork by Josh Flohre

Artwork by Josh Florhe

To introduce this story, I have to backtrack to October of last year when I received a call from my friend, Emanuel, telling me that I had to get down to the old home décor place at the corner of Wayne Ave. and E. Third St. and check out this gallery showing. I made it down there as soon as I could and…no Emanuel…but his phone call had led me to some of the most original artwork I had seen in quite some time. It was a mélange of media ranging from the contrasting screen print designs by Jannell Barker to the found art of Josh Florhe which held the moment of another age within its imagery.

I toured the gallery showing, tellingly titled Shut Up Art, and was amazed at the innate talent that the artists imbued. I began speaking with Janell about various topics, such as , how the exhibition came to be, bartending and even meandering over some of the technical aspects of silk-screening. Before leaving, I promised Janell that I would contact her (as well as some of the other featured artists) soon and we would get something down in print for the group. It was a promise that I fully intended to keep…right up until the moment that life got in my way.

It’s one of those things where unforeseen circumstances throw walls up in front of you and then, the momentum of the moment is lost until, one day, you are paging through one of your notebooks and you see a phone number and a pang of guilt forces you to close the book quickly.

Photo by Brooke Medlin

Fast forward to last week…Wednesday December 29th to be precise. I was to meet DMM’s Brooke Medlin at a new coffee house called Press Coffee Bar to cover an art exhibition that they were planning. As I ducked inside the building, escaping from the gloomy day above, I was taken in by the warmth of the newly laid wooden floor and the expansive invitation of the room itself. I saw Brooke and another woman crouched in the loft at the rear of the building, which looked out over the whole storefront. I said hello to the bearded gentleman behind the counter and waited for Brooke to come downstairs and fill me in on the details. As I waited, I took in the freshness of the interior. New floors. A newly constructed and conformingly curved coffee bar whose coiled shape and muted tone was a wild variation from the gleaming utilitarian sharpness of the state of the art cappuccino machine. A bearded man behind the counter (who has a name which happens to be Brett Barker) informed me that the machine was made in Florence, Italy and was temperature controlled by a PID computer module that collected data from various sensors and made self correcting adjustments and that it had been used as a demo model at a Seattle coffee festival before arriving in Dayton.

Hearing Brooke and the other woman descending the stairs, I turned around to see…Janell Barker. Dammit, dammit, dammit! I could just hear the snarky remarks that may have been running through her head, remarks that she never said (but justifiably could have!) such as, ‘Do you think you could get this article done in time?’ or saying something to Brooke like, ‘This is the best you could do?’ or even, ‘You’re never going to amount to anything, so you might as well get used to digging ditches!’…sorry, that last one was me channeling my sophomore guidance counselor.

Photo by Brooke Medlin

Apparently harboring no ill will, Janell began preparing a freshly ground cup of coffee for me, which made me groan inwardly, knowing that in moments, I would have to admit that I couldn’t stand the taste of coffee. Telling someone something that will disappoint them after you have already disappointed them is hard. Telling someone something that will disappoint them after you have already disappointed them as they approach you with a scalding hot cup of coffee is just plain scary. I began to quickly understand Al Green’s aversion to grits.

After I made my embarrassing admission, Brett began talking about the types of coffee they would be using, the type of rotating and artisan roasters they would be utilizing and then onto one of Press’ previous events, which was a coffee tasting experience that they call ‘Coffee Cupping.’ These things I will save for a future article, such as the circular pouring of water through a Hario V60 single cup coffee filter to make a perfect cup of java or how one should, “slurp” vigorously when tasting a new coffee to completely saturate the tongue all at once. These things will come later. The thing to concentrate on now is their Premier Opening Art Show.

As Brett and Janell detailed the type of art and the artists that would be showcased, I looked around the vaulted room, taking in the rough edges of the remodeling that had yet to be polished, looking upwards at the newly painted, bare walls, knowing that soon, a clamorous collection of artwork would peer down at the patrons of this little coffee shop, inspiring them with a thirst larger than the one to be quenched by any fancy French pressed brew. The artwork is what motivates us, that brings us together, that allows us to appreciate and accept without the burden of being deigned acceptable by others. The artwork is there as a vehicle for our muse to move us forward. The coffee is there to make us savor the moment.

This is a coffee shop that aspires to be more than just a retail establishment. They want to be part of the community and this art show is the first step in that direction. The Premier Opening Art Show will be held on Friday, January 7th from 4pm until 12pm at Press, located at 257 Wayne Ave. The show will feature artwork by Rueben Briggs, Eric Patton, Josh Florhe, Kasey Henneman, Jason Watkins, Jeff Richards, Mike Guidone, Jason Goad and Zach Armstrong. Regular store hours will be Monday through Friday from 7am until 8pm and Saturday and Sunday from 9am until 8pm.

Detroit Lives… Dayton Next?

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Detroit is the poster child for failed rust belt cities, having lost over a million people in the past few decades – not to mention auto manufacturing jobs and possibly the city’s soul itself .  The massive scale of abandonment combined with the stunning architecture from a golden era long gone has made Detroit a ground zero for photography and documentary films in what has been called “ruin porn”, but there is much more to the story that hasn’t been told nearly as much.  A fashion company called Palladium Boots decided to (in a possibly genius buzz marketing strategy) tell the other story of Detroit by producing a short film series that may leave you with a much more optimistic feeling about the future of this once great city.

Before you watch the videos (below), consider the parallels between Detroit and Dayton you may have heard others talk about.  Some claim Dayton to be a smaller version of Detroit, with its own rich manufacturing legacy and subsequent decline and abandonment.  Like Detroit, many have given up on Dayton altogether and have left for other cities or have retreated to the burbs where jobs, shopping and entertainment have followed to the point that many no longer have a reason to go into the city-proper.  Yet while many have given up on Dayton, there are others who have figured out that they can do things in this city that are almost impossible in most other cities – like pursuing creative passions while enjoying an extremely low cost of living, being part of an inviting community of like-minded urban dwellers, or getting involved and being able to make a real impact on the reinvention of the city.

Watching “Detroit Lives”, I saw many similarities in some of the cool things happening in Detroit and Dayton.  Russell Industrial is Detroit’s version of Front Street in Dayton.  Northend Studios is Detroit’s version of c{space in Dayton.  Greg Willerer of Brother Nature Produce is doing in Detroit what Ken Carman and Feed Dayton are doing in Dayton.  Yes, the parallels are there indeed, though I did notice the differences that may give Detroit the advantage.  It seems as though many of Detroit’s young creatives (most from other cities) have moved into abandoned neighborhoods where they can buy a house for less than the price of a used car; Dayton has certainly seen its share of abandonment but young creatives are nowhere to be found in Dayton’s empty neighborhoods, instead choosing to live in historic districts that are vibrantly thriving in comparison but sometimes with entrenched “you can’t do that here” attitudes.  And while Dayton’s government is struggling with perhaps its worst budget crisis ever, there are still at least for now enough resources to make sure that strict downtown building codes are enforced – making efforts such as c{space still enormously difficult if not impossible without large amounts of money.  I’m not suggesting that building codes shouldn’t be enforced but I sense that Detroit’s lack of enforcement resources compared to its massive size (not to mention decades of corrupt and inept government) has allowed for the DIY creative culture there to thrive in an almost wild wild west environment.  It is ironic that Dayton may have failed to fail enough to become known as a creative magnet like Detroit!

Still, after watching Detroit Lives I was left with a new optimism for the future possibilities in Dayton.  That optimism has been a series of ebbs and flows in my seven years of living downtown (with the past couple years being the most challenging) but I continue to be energized by the MANY people who have planted their stakes in the ground here and fight to make Dayton into what we all know it can be.  And for non-believers who say it is impossible, just take a look at what people are doing to bring back Detroit – it can happen here.

(more interesting commentary about Detroit at the excellent blog The Urbanophile, including this money-quote: “Though a lot of the examples in the film are old hat, it is very exciting to see the Urban Laboratory/New American Frontier/Rust Belt Chic meme continuing to spread like crazy. I’m telling you, for many people now is the time to be alive in many of these Rust Belt cities. How often do you have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor like this, to be a pioneer, to be a founder? This is the generation and these are the people that will be written about in tomorrow’s history books. The call of being able to shape history is worth more than all the triple soy half-caf lattes you could sip by the light rail in some other city where your presence won’t make one bit of difference good or bad.“)