culture
Page 10 / June 25-July 1, 2012
New Mexico Daily Lobo
Statewide talent drives long-lived arts fair by Nicole Perez
nicole11@unm.edu
Glass dogs strummed on guitars and howled at the moon, a heron flew across a Chinese-style pot and a red papier-mâché woman somersaulted through the air at the New Mexico Arts & Crafts Fair last weekend. These are just a few of the pieces featured at New Mexico’s oldest craft fair, which began 50 years ago in Old Town and later relocated to the fairgrounds. The fair exhibits only New Mexico artists, which Executive Director Ron Behrmann said distinguishes it from other art festivals of its size. “If they (artists) show up for registration and they don’t have a New Mexico driver’s license, then they’re not accepted,” Behrmann said. “There’s so much talent here, there’s no need to bring people from out of state. The way I look
at it, it puts more dollars in our economy, and that kind of thing.” Inside the rows of booths, a man wearing a purple top hat with an orange ribbon sells glassware. At the front of the Manuel Lujan building, a young man demonstrates how to use a potter’s wheel as clay splatters his jeans. In Exhibit Hall C, the “recycle man” plays instruments made from buckets, pot lids and a Simpsons drink bottle. Behrmann said many famous artists have shown their work at the fair, and that it’s an important venue for young artists, some of whom never leave. “Everybody who’s cutting their teeth, getting started in art, starts here,” he said. “Then they move on, but we have artists who have shown with us for 35 years. A few of them, that’s all they do, they do one show a year and then ours.”
Britney King / Daily Lobo Sarena Mann looks at her papier-mâché flying female figurines that were for sale in the 50th anniversary of the New Mexico Arts & Crafts Fair. Only New Mexican artists were featured in the fair, and about 232 artists attended.
DAILY LOBO new mexico
CAMPUS EXHIBITS
Creative minds ditched suits for smocks to hone crafts
SANTA FE Mitchell Berg—wired glass Berg is a former journalist, bartender and antique rug seller who now collects trash from the banks of the Santa Fe River and turns it into whimsical wall hangings. “I turned all my weird little talents that were useless into one thing that, now in this context, there isn’t anything like it,” he said. “I found my place; it’s like the land of misfit toys, you know? I didn’t even know who I was until I started making this.” He said like-minded people are drawn to his art, and he loves talking to them. “I draw weird people to my booth; people looking for fine paintings are not coming into my booth,” he said. “I draw people who pick things off the ground and think that a cigarette butt is interesting. We’re a tribe and get together again.” Berg said his previous jobs put a lot of pressure on him to do things the “correct” way, so his art purposely defies structure and boundaries. “I work with materials, like it’s junk,” he said. “You can’t ruin that, you can only make it better. I can’t make a mistake, and I used to always be afraid of making a mistake.”
MOUNTAINAIR Anne Ravenstone—decorative tinwork on weathered wood Ravenstone takes weathered wood from torn-down tool sheds and fences and decorates it with tin. “I never know what I’m going to do with the wood until I look at it, and then it decides how it gets decorated,” she said. Her work ranges from small decorative boxes to large bookshelves; mirrors are the most popular item. A former dancer and choreographer, Ravenstone said her past career influences her work. “Compared to other tinworkers, the designs in my tin have more movement, more spirals, and I think that’s probably just from all my years as a dancer,” she said. “I didn’t consciously think that, but I’ve decided that’s why.”
LOBO LIFE
Human Rights and Social Justice: Work by Taller de Grafica Popular (TGP) Open daily during Zimmerman hours through July 13 Location: Herzstein Latin American Gallery , 2nd floor of Zimmerman Libray Free and open to the public As activists, the TGP demonstrated and lobbied for the improvement of social and political conditions in Mexico including progressive labor laws, access to education, and the control of natural resources. Civil War Medicine 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM, Monday-Friday through August 31 Location: Domenici Center Free and open to the public Civil War Medicine exhibit provides int Civil War-era medicine, surgery, nursing and public health. Reconsidering the Photographic Masterpiece 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Tuesday-Saturday through July 28 Location: University Art Museum Free and open to the public ($5 suggested donation) Approximately 100 works chosen from the museum’s permanent collection—some on view for the first time—that encompasses the history of photography from 1843 to 2011. The exhibition centers upon the idea of an artist’s signature or iconic image from an evolving and changed, historical perspective. CAS Prize 2012 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Tuesday-Saturday through July 28 Location: Raymond Jonson Gallery, University Art Museum Free and open to the public ($5 suggested donation) University Art Museum sponsors the first Contemporary Art Society of New Mexico (CAS) juried exhibition.
An Inquisitive Eye, Seeing Into Prints 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Tuesday-Saturday through June 30 Location: Clinton Adams Gallery, University Art Museum Free and open to the public ($5 suggested donation) View significant prints and printed books from the museum’s permanent collection, which numbers over ten thousand and spans the history of printmaking from 1493 to the present.
New Student Orientation Parents Seminar 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Location: Sub Theater
Afro: Black Identity in America and Brazil 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Monday-Friday Location: Tamarind Institute through August 31 Free and open to the public A group exhibition highlighting work by three Afro Brazilian artists & three African American artists who have been invited to create lithographs exploring the complexities of racial identity in Brazil and the United States.
WEDNESDAY 6/27 CAMPUS EVENTS
MONDAY 6/25 CAMPUS EVENTS PrideWeek Brunch Kickoff Starts at: 11:00 AM Location: LGBTQ Resource Center UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event.
COMMUNITY EVENTS Isotopes Baseball Game Starts at: 7:05pm Location: Isotopes Park Isotopes versus Nashville Sounds. Gates open at 6:00pm.
TUESDAY 6/26 CAMPUS EVENTS The History of Pride Starts at: 12:00 PM Location: Sub Mirage-Thunderbird UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event. Graduate Students Meeting 10:00am-12:00pm Location: SUB Lobo
COMMUNITY EVENTS Isotopes Baseball Game Starts at: 7:05pm Location: Isotopes Park Isotopes versus Nashville Sounds. Gates open at 6:00pm.
UEFA European Soccer Championship Semifinals Starts at: 12:30 PM Location: SUB Atrium Join us in the SUB Atrium to watch the EUFA Semifinal match: Portugal vs Germany. Alcoholics Anonymous-- AA 101 Study Group 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM Location: UNM Women’s Resource Center For women and men to share their experiences, strengths and hope with each other so that they may solve their common problems and help others recover from alcoholism. Meets every Wednesday. Pride Lunchtime BBQ Starts at: 12:00 PM Location: Mesa Vista Courtyard UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event. New Student Orientation Parents Seminar 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Location: Sub Theater
THURSDAY 6/28 CAMPUS EVENTS UEFA European Soccer Championship Semifinals Starts at: 12:30 PM Location: SUB Atrium Join us in the SUB Atrium to watch the EUFA Semifinal match: Spain vs England.
ANGEL FIRE Jennifer Cavan—oil pastels Cavan paints old adobe buildings and landscapes, and tries to capture the “essence” of the place instead of the physical likeness. Her work features bright reds, greens and blues, and she was selected to be a featured artist at the Arts and Crafts Fair. She said she’s been painting similar subject matter since she first entered the fair more than nine years ago. “We basically dropped out, quit our jobs, moved to New Mexico (from Chicago), bought an old fixer-upper and a few years later I figured out this style,” she said. She said her art is appealing to locals, and that she sold many pieces. “I think my subject matter is appealing to people who live in New Mexico because it’s very New Mexican,” she said. “Everybody here is from New Mexico; most of the shows I do is people from all over the country or all over the world.”
PLACITAS Sarena Mann—papier-mâché Mann creates small, brightly colored female figures that hang from the ceiling in dance-like poses. Her booth assistant Susan Kerr said Mann attended UNM, but never graduated. “I think she spent about 10 years and never graduated — she was busy doing art,” Kerr said. Kerr said Mann first made an acrobat figurine to give to a friend’s baby, and soon other friends were asking for them. She now sells her work throughout Albuquerque, including inside the Sunport. She said Mann’s main audience is middle-aged women. “In my opinion, it’s a funny combination of they look fragile, but they also look strong and free,” Kerr said. “So we sell mostly to adult women, and it sort of captures that sense for women especially. And younger people are fascinated by the movement.”
Event Calendar
Planning your week has never been easier! Al-Anon 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Location: UNM Women’s Resource Center Friends and family members of those struggling with someone else’s drinking can find support in a safe and confidential environment. Every Thursday.
Technology Days 2012 Starts at: 9:00 AM Location: SUB UNM IT presents Technology Today with keynote speaker Bob Frank. For a list of sessions and to register: http://techdays.unm.edu
Pride Field Day Starts at: 11:00 AM Location: Anthropology Grassy Area UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event.
Zoo Music—The Elders Starts at: 7:30 PM Location: Albuquerqe BioPark Zoo Zoo Music Concert Series present The Elders. This band’s high-energy Celtic rock has earned popular and critical acclaim. Doors open at 6.
Graduate Students Meeting 10:00am-12:00pm Location: SUB Lobo Technology Days 2012 Starts at: 9:00 AM Location: SUB UNM IT presents Technology Today with keynote speaker Gil Gonzales. For a list of sessions and to register: http://techdays.unm. edu.
COMMUNITY EVENTS Liquid Currency 2012: Spend it like Water 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Location: South Broadway Cultural Center Opening Art Reception. Art Exhibit and dialogue about our most essential resource. Music, Spoken Word, and Art. Free and open to the public. Botanic Garden Concert—Lori McKenna Starts at: 7:30 PM Location: Albuquerqe BioPark Botanic Garden Summer Nights Concert Series present Lori McKenna, country singer/songwriter. Doors open at 6.
FRIDAY 6/29 CAMPUS EVENTS Pride Float Construction Starts at: 11:00 AM Location: LGBTQ Resource Center UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
SATURDAY 6/30 CAMPUS EVENTS Albuquerque Pride Parade Starts at: 9:00 AM Location: Johnson Field UNM Comes out for Pride PrideFest event. Texico Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM Location: Sub Palestine and Israel: A Question of Statehood 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Location: Dane Smith Hall Rm 123 Lecture and discussoin by Dr. Les Field, Professor of Anthropology and Director, Peace Studies.
COMMUNITY EVENTS Animal Humane & Albuquerqe Pride Pet Park 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM Location: Expo NM Bring your whole family to PrideFest for an afternoon of fun with hydration stations, dog treats and a puppy kissing booth! Use our link to purchase tickets, and Animal Humane will receive 10% of the proceeds! http://bit. ly/NeaiU5