ArtsErie Blog

The Erie Community Foundation is receiving grant applications for their 2013 special initiative, Our Kids, Our Neighborhoods, Our Future, developed  in response to the increasing levels of community violence.

This grants program will quickly provide mini-grants, up to $1,000, to strengthen families and neighborhoods.
Applications will be accepted immediately, and grants will be awarded in early June.

For more information, please click here to view the press release.

Erie Yesterday, ArtsErie, The Nonprofit Partnership, and the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority will present a Public Relations Boot Camp on Saturday, April 27, 2013 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. in the Jordan Room at Knowledge Center, 5240 Knowledge Parkway, Erie, PA. Click here to register online, call (814) 454-8800, or send an email to tnp@thenonprofitpartnership.org to register for this training session.

Supplemental Materials:

Click here to download a PDF of the PR Boot Camp Poster.

Click here to download a PDF of the PR Boot Camp Brochure.

by Stephanie Westley, ArtsErie Program Assistant

One Friday evening, I dropped in to the Neighborhood Partnership Center (formerly the Bethany Center) at 254 E 10th Street to check out the end of a robotics class at the Box of Light Studio. After class, I got a chance to chat with Box of Light instructors, Jude Shingle and Annie Schmitt. I spoke separately with Box of Light mastermind Rand Whipple a few days later for his perspective.

Lego builds are only one of the fun activities at Box of Light.

Stephanie Westley: What is Box of Light?

Rand Whipple: It is a digital arts studio. Box of Light lives where technology and art meet. We do animation and film; we work with computers and cameras. We ensure that it is a studio that teaches people to make their own media and see themselves in the films they make.

SW: Box of Light just opened its new Erie studio in March after holding its classes at the Erie Art Museum. What are you most looking forward to being here in your new studio?

RW: Going to the studio for our opening night was fun and exciting. I drove out to Erie from my hometown of Bloomsburg where I first started Box of Light ten years ago. The kids were there with their families and they showed up. I heard people might not go to east Erie, but it is a block from the stadium. Opening the studio on March 2nd was a fun happy time for me.

Jude Shingle: Making a really cool space where kids can come and hang out. We want to make it comfortable and fun. It fosters good relationships where ideas are not discouraged. We guide things and everyone is encouraged.

Annie Schmitt: It’s a fun, safe place to play.

SW: What classes do you offer now?

JS: Lego animation, robotics, KidTV which is where kids make their own TV show, comic book drawing where kids learn drawing through comic book making, and Claymation.

SW: What ages are appropriate for your classes?

JS: We have children as young as 6 up to 14. The classes work for all ages because it’s based on the child, what they're capable of and interested in, and we create a path that’s rewarding for them.
 

SW: What are the projects you will be working on for your summer camps?

JS: The best answer is on our online summer schedule. But they will include Claymation animation, robotics, Lego animation, costume making, monster movie madness, and a one-day camp called the Greatest Art Making Ever where in three hours, we will travel through time and visit the coolest art making techniques known to man.

SW: What skills do your classes instill in participants?

RW: Computers are tools for expression, for you to look at your life, decide what you want to say and create with words, images and sound. Students get computer skills and media literacy which is understanding how to bring in an image or sound, manipulate it or filter it, and use it to say something to the world.

AS: With robotics it’s very much about logic and everything is about problem solving.

JS: The biggest thing is building up resilience when you are in the face of failure. We teach how to persevere and think about something, break it down into steps so you know how to approach it, and really problem solve.

SW: What is some of the feedback you’ve heard from parents?

JS: Very positive. They’ve said that they have been looking for something like this, and we are it. One said her nephew loved it and he wants to come back. Another parent who overheard said, “Yeah, that happens.” You won’t have a choice; kids always want to come back. Any parent who has observed the class understands that learning is happening and that makes them even more thrilled.

AS: Getting kids to work together in groups has been very helpful for shy kids. Parents that are nervous about their kids not working with others come and they are fine.

SW: If you were a kid and you wanted to come to Box of Light classes, what classes would you take and what would you say to your parents?

AS: I would do KidTV because I’m a ham.

JS: I would tell my parents to let me sleep here every day. If you ask the parents, that’s what most of them say. The kids ask, “What are we doing tomorrow?” And the parents say, “Sorry, we aren’t coming here tomorrow.”

I would do everything here.

I would live here.

Want to check out Box of Light for yourself?
Come to the Studio Open House
on Saturday, April 6th at 1 p.m.
for a Lego Build and Film Event!
 

South Hills students reenact Diego Rivera’s Detroit Institute of Arts mural, 1932, through dance and movement.
Click each image for a larger view.

The kindergarten class at South Hills Child Development Center experienced an artist in residence, dancer Sioban Peterson-Walsh, thanks in part to the ArtsErie Arts in Education Partnership and the parents of South Hills’ students. Sioban worked with the students for four days where they explored connections between movement and learning. The children looked forward to the residency and spent a large part of their mornings using their imaginations and bodies.

South Hills administrator Connie Kerr Vogt stated: “I was so pleased to see children, who typically are shy about joining in group activities, dancing about the room; children who have difficulty focusing, listening intently and creating imaginative dances about the room; children who were reluctant to participate and sat through the first day, suddenly fly with confidence about the classroom for the rest of the week!”

The children’s activities included ‘dance’ paintings, inspired by Diego Rivera’s industrial mural, painted in 1932 at the Detroit Institute of Arts. They observed the activities in the work, described what they saw, and interpreted their observations through dance and movement: pulling, pushing, reaching, winding, hammering, twisting, carrying, and riveting. Kerr Vogt observed: “They learned about exaggeration with their bodies to better convey their movements. And they practiced open and closed movements with their bodies and how that might be used as they conveyed the words derived from the painting.”

Through this residency, the children participated in Action Based Learning to increase their movement skills and core balance with the additional dimension of creativity and imagination. The residency is not totally paid for at this point. Donations can be made to ArtsErie to support arts in education and the South Hills residency.

Students from a Penn State Behrend Marketing Class are presenting a concert to benefit ArtsErie. The show will take place on Sunday, March 24 at 6:30 p.m. at Basement Transmissions, 1501 State Street, Erie. The cost is $5 at the door. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/396556033773183/ for event details. Thanks for your support!

Megan Sabatini, Union City Art Teacher and Art in Action partnering teacher, will attend and present at the National Art Education Association (NAEA) Convention in Dallas/Ft. Worth Texas in March 7 - 10, 2013.

Megan will be presenting with Boston University Department of Art Education head, Dr. Judith Simpson , about place based teaching. Megan's students at Union City Elementary School designed three Sense of Place murals that were interdisciplinary and connected to their community. This body of work grew out of a residency with ArtsErie's Art in Action program.

As an educator presenting at the NAEA conference, Megan will witness firsthand the emerging research and practices in art education. Also, her participation in the NAEA National Convention aligns with Union City Elementary’s, and Art in Action's, learning objectives which encompass interdisciplinary education, infusing the arts in teaching, teaching 21st century skills, and developing meaningful instruction that is connected to the lives of students.

The convention is themed "Drawing Community Connections," which emphasizes the importance of utilizing community connections and taking advantage of local resources. This theme will be seen throughout the National Convention in various lectures, workshops, and presentations. The convention theme also aligns with ArtsErie's mission and vision of promoting the arts throughout the community with local artists and art organizations. ArtsErie supports arts infusion and interdisciplinary education, two areas that are highlighted in the National Convention. Megan will share her experiences at the NAEA Convention with the ArtsErie community through her blog.

NAEA Conference Info:
The NAEA National Convention is an annual event providing substantive professional development services that include the advancement of knowledge in all sessions, events, and activities for the purpose of improving visual arts instruction in American schools. As such, it is the world's largest art education convention.

The four-day convention includes over 1,000 participatory workshops, panels, seminars for job-alike groups; research reports, discussions, exhibits, and tours; keynote addresses by world-acclaimed educators, artists, researchers, and scholars with the opportunity to connect with your colleagues from all over the world. Each year some 140-200 exhibitor booths displaying the latest art textbooks, high-tech software, prints, slides, curriculum materials, equipment, and programs, as well as the latest studio and art history media are made available for examination and review to art educator delegates.

The Erie Times-News published its Erie 2013 annual economic report on Sunday, February 19. The report, also published online, included a section on Erie Vital Signs, the community collaboration that tracks indicators that reflect and measure our county's well-being in eight topical areas including Brain Gain and Cultural Vitality.

Two articles in this section are of particular interest to arts and culture audiences: Create prosperity with class and New studies paint picture of arts. Both articles discuss how the arts drive economic prosperity and community vitality -- key points of CultureSpark, the Erie County Cultural Master Plan.

ArtsErie offices will close at 1 p.m. on Christmas Eve (Monday, December 24, 2012) and New Year's Eve (Monday, December 31, 2012). Our offices will also close on Christmas Day (Tuesday, December 25, 2012) and New Year's Day (Tuesday, January 1, 2013).

Enjoy your holidays!

Join us on November 15 from 2-6 p.m. at the Erie Art Museum (Enter on East 5th Street between State and French) for the Knowing and Growing Erie's New Creative Economy Symposium, part of Global Entrepreneur Week. The emphasis for the day is how to capitalize on creativity to spark business, innovation and growth. ArtsErie will announce and discuss the results of the Local Arts Index and Arts & Economic Prosperity IV reports. The event is free and open to all.

The Knowing and Growing our New Creative Economy symposium will include presentations of the Creative Class Group's research on Erie’s position and talent cluster analysis. Both local and national leaders in creative class research will speak regarding their expertise.

2 p.m. -- Steve Pedigo, Director of Research at Creative Class Group, will explain Erie’s creative economy positioning. He provides analysis of economic and consumer trends for the Creative Class Group and works with communities like Erie to establish initiatives to attract and retain talent.  His research has been featured in publications as The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Dallas Morning News.

2:45 p.m. -- Susan Breon, Interim Executive Director, ArtsErie, will address local arts assets and industry. Susan previously served on the board of the Arts Council of Erie (now ArtsErie) and currently serves on the board of the North East Arts Council. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

3 p.m. -- Anne Katz, Executive Director, Arts Wisconsin, will suggest how to attract, grow and retain creative industries. She is the first executive director of this nonprofit statewide community arts action and development organization. She guides Arts Wisconsin’s programs and activities, serves Wisconsin’s diverse and ever-expanding creative community and advocates and builds partnerships in the public and private sectors for the arts and creative industries on the local level.

3:45 p.m. -- Amber Liggitt, founder of Amber’s Amazing Balloons and Larry Jutte, CEO, Ernie Green Industries Inc., two entrepreneurs from the Uncommon Individual Foundation will discuss their businesses.  They will explain how they transformed their ideas into the businesses they are today.

4 p.m. -- Two successful StARTup Incubator entrepreneurs, Karen Rzpecki, ReCap, and Todd Scalise, Scalise Graphic Design, will also share their stories.

4:30 p.m. -- Ray Leach, CEO, Jump Start Inc., will present Entrepreneurial Ecosystems 101.  He is leading JumpStart America’s effort to build public, private, and philanthropic partnerships across the country to develop and grow entrepreneurial ecosystems and transform regional economies.

The symposium will close with a moderated panel discussion.

The Symposium is sponsored by Erie Vital Signs, StARTup Incubator, ArtsErie, Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership, ECGRA - Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, Erie Art Museum, J.L. Nick Associates, Inc. and BlueTree Allied Angels.

For more information contact Beth Zimmer at 814.454.4322 ext. 224.

ArtsErie has embarked on a search for a new executive director. The job description and application information have been posted on the employment opportunities page of this website. Application materials are due by September 30, 2012. Please click here for more information.