Tom Kelly : The greatest thing on the black earth

@ It Looks Like It's Open Studio

Reception Saturday, April 21 7-9pm

Gallery Hours Sunday, April 22 1-3pm
2012

The greatest thing on the black earth is a collection of new paintings on canvas and paper by Tom Kelly based on the lyric writing of the Greek poet Sappho. Despite her reputation as one of the greatest original voices in antiquity her work today survives in only a few complete poems and a selection of incomplete fragments of vivid imagery. The vagaries of time, censorship, translation and changing cultural perceptions have variously supressed and celebrated her work.

Using these fragments Kelly produces multiple visual representations of a single idea or literary metaphor to explore the area between a source of inspiration and its expression as visual art. The paintings in this show evoke worn wall surfaces whose original appearance has been altered by time, elements, reparation efforts, and re-surfacing.

Columbus based musician Keith Novicki will be on hand during the reception playing original compositions for guitar and improvisational variations based on loops, distortion and delay effects.

Tom Kelly is a self-taught visual artist living and working in Columbus, Ohio. His work has been shown regionally in independent arts spaces, art centers, museums, benefits, educational institutions and commercial galleries since 2004. In 2011 he was named a finalist for a Greater Columbus Arts Council Visual Arts Fellowship. The work in the greatest thing on the black earth was funded in part with an Artist in the Community Supply Grant, also from the Greater Columbus Arts Council.

Women's Safe House in Liberia

Fundraiser/Dinner/Puppet Workshop/Discussion with Rebecca Riley

Friday, April 13th, 6-8pm

$10-20 Donation 

Just this January, I was given a strange invitation: to travel to Liberia for six weeks with a friend and mentor to set up a Safe House for at risk young women. My good friend Maggie Muldoon, who I've known for almost a decade, was invited by the founder of the non-profit group More Than Me to get together a team of artists and educators to build an After School Arts program for the Safe House. Maggie personally invited me, knowing my experience with collaborative puppet making and my recent experience with educating young people.


More Than Me is a small non-profit that uses all of the money it raises to provide scholarships to young women in Monrovia, so that they can go to school and learn the skills necessary to challenge the endemic poverty, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation that threatens their neighborhood of West Point. Education for these women is about survival, it is about building self-worth and stoking the fire in their hearts. More Than Me has a Global Giving rating of five stars, which means they carefully use every dollar donated to make the most meaningful change they can.

During our short time in Monrovia, Liberia, we will work with the young women who are provided scholarships by More Than Me to design a program that is student directed and focused on self-expression. The girls will give most of the direction to the program, and we will train the long-term adult volunteers who live in Monrovia to continue facilitating the artistic growth of these women. 

I feel incredibly honored to have the opportunity to volunteer on this program, and I am raising $3500 to cover the cost of my travel and stay in Monrovia, as well as money to invest in materials for the program. I am also excited to use what I have learned about Art and Music Therapy at my job at the Helping Hands Center for Special Needs Children in Columbus, Ohio. I know that by growing the girls' storytelling and self-expression through art and music, we will also see them grow in their capacity to resist the intense poverty and threat of sexual exploitation that is a result of nearly two decades of civil war in their country. 

I am asking my friends now to help me throw benefit dinners so I can talk more about this program and meet my fundraising goal, and ultimately so I can help empower a new generation of strong, literate, and earthshaking women in Liberia.   - Rebecca

For more information, or to donate now online, please visit: http://www.indiegogo.com/artsprogramliberia

Bear Trance : Spirits of Healing : Workshop with Susan Josephson

Saturday, April 7, 2012

7:00pm until 9:00pm

In response to the request of a community member on the brink of a major life change, Susan G. Josephson will lead a session of 'ecstatic trance,' for anyone interested, on April 7th.

Through ritual body posture and sound, subconscious realms can open, and latent powers can emerge. Susan's technique for calling the spirits is based on the work of her late mother, anthropologist and spiritual teacher, Felicitas D. Goodman. (Her work lives on in an organized fashion in New Mexico at the Cuyamungue Institute <http://www.cuyamungueinstitute.com/> and in Germany at the Felicitas-Goodman Insitut <http://www.cuyamungue-institut.de/>, and in numerous books and articles.) Those who participated in Susan's "Technologies of the Self" event will be familiar with basic format used here.

"I have been doing these trances with people for something like 30 years. The trances wake people up. They release deeper levels of consciousness and open people up to deeper understandings." -Susan

We will settle into two postures for this session. The first, the Singing Shaman, will incorporate vocalization and is intended to open the door to the unseen realm. The second, and central posture for this session, will be that of the Bear. This trance is intended to provide participants with spiritual and psychological healing.

Young adults welcome.

Susan Josephson is an artist, philosopher, and educator, currently residing in central Ohio.

***Instructions for participation: Please arrive on time, the door will be closed at 7:15 so that the session can begin without interruption. Fasting will enhance the experience, but is not required. For best results, do not eat at least 30 minutes prior to the session. Wear loose-fitting clothing and avoid wearing metal. In this folk tradition, metals on the body, excepting gold and silver, are believed to interfere with the experience.

***Susan is not expecting payment so this session is by donation. Feel free to contribute to her visit and the maintenance of the studio space with a small contribution.

Welcoming the Equinox

itlookslikeitsopen provides a clear space full of possibilities. This saturday some local Neo-Pagans will make it the center of Earth connection. Their notice below:

Spring Equinox Ritual, Saturday, March 24.
This will be a basic Ostara ritual, held at a private studio space in Clintonville. The focus of the ritual will be on celebrating the greening of Nature and welcoming abundance into our lives. If you have seeds or seedlings to plant, bring them for blessing. Please also bring additional seeds, or a special rock, to charge for prosperity. Space is limited so participants will be accepted on a first come, first served basis. (See below.) There is a $5 suggested donation for this ritual; donations will also be accepted for the use of the studio space. Facilitated by Psyche North Torok. Saturday, March 24, 7:45 p.m.

Pre-registration required, ages 16 and over, please. To register please reply to this email [psyche@flybynightbookstore.com].

About the Spring Equinox

The word equinox is derived from the Latin "aequus," (equal) and "nox,"
(night). Although we think of the equinoxes as being the time when day and
night are exactly equal, technically the day is just slightly longer. The
Spring Equinox occurs some time between March 20-22 each year. [This year
it is on March 20.]

To many Neo-Pagans, this holiday is known as Eostar or Ostara. Ostara is
often seen as the time when the young god, growing and maturing after his
birth at the winter solstice, dances with the Goddess in her maiden
aspect. Courtship rites and dances are in order. So too is it a good time
to bless seeds that you will be planting shortly.

The well-known Easter egg and Easter bunny are, of course, ancient symbols
of fertility and magic. Eggs were used in Equinox celebrations by a number
of peoples, including the Hebrews and Persians. The rabbit or hare was
probably derived from the tribes of Western and Central Europe, for whom
the animal bore tribal and totemic significance.
* * * * * * *

Open Meditation : Sonic Mindscapes

This month, our regular, second-Sunday, Open Meditation will an experimental collaboration with sound artist, Mike Shiflet of Monumental Documents <http://www.facebook.com/pages/Monumental-Documents/152447434822153>

We will begin with one 25min silent session, a short walking, and a second 25min sit with live sonic accompaniment. The intention is to create an atmosphere unlike a typical musical performance. Here, the emphasis will be on the somatic and cognitive experience of the participants. It will also not be a typical group meditation session. New and practiced meditators can explore the spaces their attention uncovers as waves of full spectrum sound textures roll over their consciousness.

All meditation styles welcome. Discussion will proceed and follow the session. And there will be tea!