The Artful Mind - April 2010

THE ARTFUL MIND Berkshire Artzine

APRIL 2010

CAROLINA MONNERAT, Dancer

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JULIE MCCARTHY

From the series “Poem Without Words”

Photography for Memorable Occasions by

Julie McCarthy Photographer 2

Please call for an appointment 413. 298. 3370 jwmcarth@bcn.net •www.juliewmccarthy.com

STEPHEN FILMUS 413-528-1253

www.stephenfilmus.com

“Lakeside Birches” 40” x 40” Oil

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APRIL 2010 ~ THE ARTFUL MIND • 1

S C H A N TZ G A LLER I ES c o n t e m p o r a r y

g l a s s

John Sideli

Preston Singletary

Powerball, 21 x 16 x 4”

Altered States 1 April - 31 May 2010 Artist Reception: Saturday, April 10 4 - 6pm Eagle Warrior 19 x 14 x 14”

3 Elm Street, Stockgridge, MA 01262 413-298-3044 www.schantzgalleries.com 2 • THE ARTFUL MIND

APRIL 2010

PARK ROW GALLERY 2 Park Row, Chatham, New York 12037 518-392-4800 www.parkrowgallery.com

MUSEUMS & GALLERIES

S PRING / A PRIL .2010. / C ALENDAR

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS WITH MUSIC The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center • 413-528-0100 / 800-843-0778 / www.cewm.org Chopin and His Circle, Sat, Apr 24, 6pm; Prague Spring - Czech Idyll, Sat, June 5, 6 @ 6pm

ALBANY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Albany International Gallery, 3rd fl, 7am-11pm daily Material Witness, thru June 20.

CRESCENDO www.worldclassmusic.org . email sales@crescendoberkshires .org or call 860-435-4866 The concerts will be held at the First Congregational Church, 251 Main St., Great Barrington, at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 17 and at Trinity Church, 484 Lime Rock Rd., Lakeville, at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 18. A talk about Latin American music will be held 30 minutes before each concert by Juliet Mattila. Tickets are $25, $10 for children under 18. (A group rate is available for the Great Barrington concert.)

BERKSHIRE ART GALLERY 80 Railroad St, Gt Barrington, MA • 528-2690 www.berkshireartgallery.com 19th and early 20th Century American & European art and sculpture, contemporary artists

BERKSHIRE ART KITCHEN CREATIVITY / CONNECTION / CHANGE 400 Main St, Gt Barrington, MA • 413-717-0031 www.berkshireartkitchen.com Mon - Fri, 3:30-5:30, Sat 12-5, & by appt.

Exhibition of mail art by Karen Arp Sandel and Suzi Banks Baum, Mar April.

BERKSHIRE GOLD AND SILVERSMITH THE GALLERY 152 Main St, Gt Barrington, MA • 528-5227 Beverly Bourassa, watercolorist

THE EGG Albany, NY John Pinette, comedian, April 17

JUSTIN KIM, ADAM & EVE (DETAIL) APRIL 29 - MAY 30 AT THE OXBOW GALLERY 275 PLEASANT ST, NORTHAMPTON, MA WWW.OXBOWGALLERY.COM OPENING RECEPTION MAY 1, 1 -5PM THURSDAY - SUNDAY 12 - 6PM

CARRIE HADDAD GALLERY 622 Warren St, Hudson, NY • 518-828-1915 Painted Cities, group show, Mar 4 - April 11.

CARRIE HADDAD PHOTOGRAPHS 318 Warren St, Hudson, NY • 518-828-7655 Ida Weygandt & Eliot Kaufman, Mar 1 April 18. Polaroids: Works

by William Wegman, Mark Beard, John Dugdale, Melinda McDaniel and Tanya Marcuse. April 22 - May 30. Opening reception April 24, 6 - 8pm.

CHURCH STREET ART GALLERY 34 Church St, Lenox, MA • 637-9600 Significant folk art pieces. Also works by David Eddy, Paul Graubard, Paul Jarvis and Larry Zingale.

(Fri-Mon, 11am-4:30pm or by appointment)

CRIMI STUDIO Located 2 miles from the Ancram/Hudson exit of the Taconic State Parkway. • Viewing by appointment 518-851-7904 Paintings of rich color and form. Crimi studio in idyllic setting.

DON MULLER GALLERY 40 Main St, Northampton, MA • 586-1119 Beautiful American crafts, jewelry and glass, more

FRONT STREET GALLERY Front St, Housatonic, MA • 413-274-6607 www.kateknappartist.com

FULTON STREET GALLERY 408 Fulton St, Troy, NY • 518-274-8464 Call for Entries: 32nd Photo Regional, Mar 26-May 22; Juror: Carrie Haddad; 150 mile radius of the capital region; up to 5 slide submissions. Details: photoregional@gmail.com

GLORIA MALCOLM ARNOLD FINE ART Upstairs at 69 Church St, Lenox, MA • 637-2400 Realistic art that never goes out of style, artwork that evokes the mood and memories of yesterday. Rotating exhibitions of scratchboard by Lois I. Ryder and oils and watercolors by Gloria Malcolm Arnold. Open year round.

HOFFMAN POTTERY 103 Rte 41, W. Stockbridge, MA • 232-4646 www.EHoffmanPottery.com Pottery by by Elaine Hoffman, also Tom Lynn’s cast aluminum blue jays and ravens, Ted Keller’s mosaic mirrors, and more.

HUDSON VALLEY ARTS CENTER 337 Warren St, Hudson, NY • 800-456-0507 Regional and nationally-known artisans

LAUREN CLARK FINE ART GALLERY 402 Park St, Housatonic, MA • 274-1432 www.LaurenClarkFineArt.com Fine art and contemporary crafts and framing service.

(Open Wed-Mon 11-5:30, Sun Noon-4, year-round)

MARGUERITE BRIDE STUDIO www.margebride.com Custom House and Business Portraits, “Local Color”, watercolor scenes of the Berkshires, New England and Tuscany. Original watercolors and Fine Art Reproductions. Visit website for exhibit schedule

OXBOW GALLERY 275 Pleasant St, Northampton, MA Harriet Diamond’s exhibit of sculpture and drawing The Pit, opens April 1, reception April 9, 5-8pm. Concurrently, Gary Niswonger will show paintings in the backroom, closing April 28, 2-5pm

PARK ROW GALLERY 2 Park Row, Chatham, NY • 518-392-4800 John Sideli, Altered States. April 1 - May 31. Reception for artist April 10, 4 -6pm

PASKO FRAME & GIFT CENTER 243 North St., Pittsfield, MA Variety of artists on display; also framing service

SCHANTZ GALLERIES 3 Elm St, Stockbridge, MA • 413-298-3044 Over 30 years of providing representation to internationally recognized artists to exhibit their work and share it with the world. (Open 11-5 daily.)

THE LENOX GALLERY OF FINE ART 69 Church St, Lenox, MA • 413-637-2276 Featuring artists such as Stephen Filmus along with many others including Paula Stern, Sculpture WILLIAM BACZEK FINE ARTS 36 Main St, Northampton, MA wmbacsek@wbfinearts.com Robert Sweeney, solo exhibition, Mar 17 thru April 17.

MUSIC, THEATRE AND DANCE

COLUMBIA FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA St. James Church, Chatham, NY Intimate Voices, a new string quartet. Fri April 23, 6:30-8pm.

Haydn, Op. 76 No. 1 in G Major, Dvorak, Op. 96 in F Major (“American”), Vivaldi, Op. 8 No. 2, SUmmer in G Major, Allegro

THE MUSEUM AT BETHEL WOODS Bethel, Rte 17, Exit 104, NY • bethelwoodscenter.org The Story of the ‘60s and Woodstock. Museum located at the site of the 1969 Woodstock Festival.

WORKSHOPS & LECTURES

INKBERRY AND PAPYRI BOOKS 45 Eagle St, North Adams, MA • 413-664-0775 Wordplay, a monthly reading series

is183 ART SCHOOL OF THE BERKSHIRES Stockbridge MA • 413-298-5252 / www.is183.org A weekend workshop “Exploring the World of Colored Clay,” with instructor Naomi Lindenfeld, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, April 17 and 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A weekend workshop “Venetian Lampwork Beads,” with instructor Stephanie Maddalena, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 1 and 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. One of many fine workshops this upcoming season.

KATE KNAPP FRONT STREET GALLERY Housatonic, MA (next to the Corner Market) • 274-6607 www.kateknappartist.com Through April “ Portraits …All the people I loved to paint” 40 or more paintings ,oils and watercolors, of men women and children friends, family and members of the community, come see who’s here! through April; also ongoing painting classes Mon, Wed & Thurs 9:30am (gallery hrs: Sat & Sun 12-5, and by appt.)

SABINE VOLLMER VON FALKEN PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP The Norman Rockwell Museum, Rte. 183, Stockbridge, MA April 17 at 10 am: Workshop to help amateurs navigate their digital camera to achieve better results. A talk called "Get More Out of Your Digital Camera". A clinic will follow until 1 pm.

SPECIAL EVENTS

THE RED LION INN Stockbridge, MA • 413-298-5545 Culinary arts program dinner, April 12, 6pm. Celebrating the great city of New Orleans with a cajun-style family menu, live jazz music and raffle drawing. Prepared by students from the prominent Berkshire Culinary Arts Program, under the fantastic direction of Red Lion Inn Executive Chef Dan Brian Alberg, BRIX’s Daire Rooney, and John Andrew’s Dan Smith.

FILM

IMAGES CINEMA Williamstown, MA • 413-458-1039 www.imagescinema.org Documentary film series, Garbage Docs, Apr 12 - 26, 7:30pm. No Impact Man, Gargage Worrior, Marina of the Zabbaleen, discuss how garbage impacts the world around us.

Deadline for calendar listings: April 15 for May

WWW.ARFULMIND.NET THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 • 3

The Artful Mind TAM into APRIL 2010

BERKSHIRE DIGITAL

Carolina Monnerat, Dancer / Photographer Julie McCarthy

Carolina Monnerat Dance Nanci Race 10 Planet Waves Astrology Eric Francis 12

Greater Backfish Roundup Bob Balogh 18

Architecture & Arcadia Stephen Dietemann 19

Altered States: An interview with John Sideli Terri E. Sisson 21

As Berkshire Digital begins its fourth year of operation, it is celebrating the gallery openings of three local artists, two painters and one photographer, for whom it made all of the Giclée prints hanging in the shows. Capable of producing archival, museum quality prints on a variety of surfaces up to 42x96 inches, BD also offers complete photography services to capture artwork of any medium.

To further help artists, BD offers graphic design capabilities, to create show announcements, posters and collateral materials.

In addition to its printing services, Berkshire Digital also provides Photoshop™ tutoring and consulting for people who want to get a better understanding of the digital workflow from camera to computer to printer in their workspace as well as manage and manipulate their own images.

The owner, Fred Collins, has been a photographer for 30 years with studios in Boston and the metro New York area. Fifteen years ago, he began working with Photoshop™ and gradually added extensive retouching capabilities to help with his clients needs. His commercial work for corporations has taken him around the world. His wife Alison owns The Iris Gallery, above Pearls, in Great Barrington. Berkshire Digital: 413-6449663, www.BerkshireDigital.com

BEVERLY BOURASSA GALLERY AT THE BERKSHIRE GOLD AND SILVERSMITH

LILY POND, BEVERLY BOURASSA, WATERCOLOR, 2007

An exhibit of watercolors by Beverly Bourassa will be on exhibit at the Gallery at the Berkshire Gold and Silversmith in Great Barrington throughout the month of April. Bourassa is a self-taught artist and a true nature lover. Her exhibit includes about 30 pieces in a variety of themes, including florals, landscapes and seascapes.

Bourassa, a long time Pittsfield resident is a frequent exhibitor at Berkshire art shows, and has also exhibited in numerous juried shows, solo exhibits and a few national shows. Her work is in private and corporate collections throughout the United States. Bourassa recently received the Award of Excellence from Kent Artist Association.

An active member of the Housatonic Valley Art League, Bourassa has also served as co-chair of the art league’s very successful Small Works Art Show held each year in the fall at the Welles Gallery in Lenox.

“I find the characteristics of watercolor to be very exciting.

It dries quickly, looks fresh, fluid and I can work with it quickly.

My goal is always try to capture the essence of the place I am painting. I do not limit myself to landscapes alone. I enjoy painting seascapes and florals as well.”

Gallery at the Berkshire Gold and Silversmith, 152 Main St, Great Barrington, MA (413) 528-0013.

THE ARTFUL MIND www.artfulmind.net

PUBLISHER Harryet Candee COPY EDITOR Marguerite Bride PROOFREADER: Rae A. Eastman & Deborah Davis ADVERTISING AND LAYOUT DESIGN Harryet Candee

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND MONTHLY COLUMNISTS Bob Balogh, Harryet Candee, Stephen Gerard Dietemann, Rae Eastman, Eric Francis, Nanci Race, Kimberly Rawson PHOTOGRAPHERS Julie McCarthy Sabine Vollmer von Falken DISTRIBUTION R. Dadook, John Cardillo

120 PIXLEY ROAD, GREAT BARRINGTON, MA 01230

HARRYET@ARTFULMIND.NET

WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET 413-528-5628

Deadline for the MAY issue is APRIL 15, 2010

FYI: ©Copyright laws in effect throughout The Artful Mind for logo & all graphics including text material. Copyright laws for photographers and writers throughout The Artful Mind. Permission to reprint is required in all instances

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Our Art....Our way

THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

“No art was ever less spontaneous than mine.

What I do is the result of reflection and study.”

-Edgar Degas

JOSEPH GALLO, VIOLINIST

JOSEPH GALLO, VIOLINIST

THE VIOLIN...

PLAYING TWO NOTES IN A ROW...BEAUTIFULLY!

By Joseph V. Gallo

Is it a lost concept? Based upon the quality of too many musical performances of the last few decades, the answer seems to be, generally, “yes.” At concerts, I have seen “knee-jerk” standing ovations for not much more than displays of technique, grimaces and gyrations. But for too long now, I’ve been asking myself: “Where’s the poetry?” “Where’s the magic?” In our high-tech, over-stimulated world, is poetic performance now rated as too low on the decibel scale? Is it not sufficiently “awesome” for audiences?

The world may be changing and moving fast, but people are still pretty much the same as they always were. All this technology has opened up new possibilities, but in many ways has left us more isolated and wanting for someone or something to “touch” us. This is where music comes in. Sure, we all like to be wowed by a brilliant Paganini caprice or a Sarasate showpiece. But I believe that what we are really looking for when

we go to a concert is for someone to reach our hearts and minds, lift us to a higher place. That’s our challenge and privilege as performers.

What does all this have to do with playing two notes in a row beautifully? There is no shortage of technique today. Lots of violinists are able to fly all over the violin, but when asked to play a simple melody, many fall flat - dazzling first and third movements, but second movements filled with missed opportunities. However, it is precisely in these slow movements and simple, lyrical pieces, where there is no place to hide, that a performer’s basic artistry is disclosed. When you put that violin under your chin, you must dare to wear your heart on your sleeve! Scary, but exciting, and the reason we are musicians in the first place.

So, how to play beautiful notes one after the other? I suggest you make a project of revisiting your slow movements and (deceptively simple) lyrical pieces. “Dig deeper” into the well of beauty of each note. Live there longer. Experiment. Approach and leave each note differently. Discover the “after-life” of each note and its inherent opportunities! First, you must think the sound before you can produce it. Take a piece such as Clare De Lune or any concerto slow movement. Analyze it. What does it say? How does it start? What happens along the way and how does it end? What is the overall timbre? Keep the piano copy handy. You’ll want to know what “the orchestra” is doing so that you can better decide upon phrasings, bowings, fingerings and dynamics. To start, play a few bars and decide upon the “must-have” fingerings and bowings that will satisfy your expressive goals. Then go back and fill in with accommodating markings. Continue to work the whole piece in this manner.

Test, make changes, listen to the different results. Which finger sounds best? Tips or flat? Does the phrase sound better in first or in upper position? What about shifting? From which finger to which finger? Better to do so at the frog or tip? Up bow, down bow? Should you cross strings in high position for convenience, or should you risk a leap to a note from first position for best effect? How long will you “live” there? Will it be worth the effort? Let your best sound be your guide, not your earlier teachings!

The spaces between notes are beauty “opportunities.” It is vital that you maintain your vibrato (your purr-machine!) from note to note in a manner that dovetails sounds seamlessly. Keep vibrating the note after the bow leaves the string! Also, think of your left hand as the note-finder and the note-player! Re-train your left hand to produce the note as if it had no bow as a partner (the audience doesn’t care that – or how – you use a bow!). Try it, but do not snap your fingers down.

Rather, for each note, softly place your “cushion” into the string, lightly roll your finger, “scoop out” the note and “send the sound” directly to the listeners’ ears. Simple “magic!” Eventually, bring on your bow. What luxury! You will hear

more character and sound projection with your new left-hand “reconsideration.” In lyrical passages, especially, try to keep solid bow contact with strings, even when you change bows or cross strings. There should be no aural spaces between notes, only the “fat” sound carried over from the preceding note. Think of your right hand as “capturing” the product of your left hand.

Do it in a manner that assures smooth transfer of the beautiful sound that is already available in your hands – to your violin – to your audience. You just need to think it, do it and give it away, free – and you’ll still own “your sound!” Welcome to the world of left and right hand legato! It is a real concept and a key to seamless, beautiful sound.

In the beginning stages of your new approach to playing beautifully, you must think and listen as perhaps never before.

Eventually, like walking, your beautiful notes will come automatically – because you will like it! Have a good time in your explorations. If you do, your listeners will also enjoy your musical communication. Know that only you (perhaps with the guidance of a teacher/coach who is sympathetic with this concept) can open “new doors” to the magic of beautiful sound. As violin players, we are lucky to have such tactile instruments under our chins. It allows for a most natural extension and expression of our body and mind. Enjoy it!

In closing, remember: Your audience couldn’t care less about how hard you work, what markings you use or how “properly” you play. What they want is to be reached emotionally and intellectually. So when you perform, free your mind to follow only your most naturally beautiful instincts. Your hands will follow, and your audience will respond – this time with a standing ovation that is well-deserved!

Joseph Gallo is a Juilliard graduate and has also studied privately with Mischa Mischakoff (concert violinist and concert master of the NBC Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Arturo Toscanini), as well as with Harry Shub, world-renowned concert violinist. His entire professional career has been in NYC performing in a wide range of musical venues, including the classical, pops, film & recording fields. He is founder/director of The Black Tie Strings and Orchestra, including several string quartets. Mr. Gallo now resides in Williamstown, MA, where he also teaches the violin. He would welcome your thoughts and questions. Tel: (413)458-1984.

All Things Musical

“When you see somebody dead for the first time, you can’t resist making notes on the way you yourself feel, to use when poignancy is called for.”

-John Gielgud

Music Store The

on Railroad Street

Unusual Instruments Fine Instruments Accessories

Crystal Flutes

Orchestral & Band Instruments

More than 100 guitars in stock Classical, Folk, Electric, Handmade

Something for Everyone - All levels, All budgets!

Open Daily Except Mondays

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87 RAILROAD STREET, Gt Barrington 413-528-2460

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THE ARTFUL MIND

APRIL 2010 • 5

CRESCENDO

A PIÑATA OF LATIN AMERICAN CHORAL MUSIC

From the Spanish conquest onward, European and native Latin American musical traditions, and instruments, have converged to create a startlingly varied body of compositions and performing styles.

In April, Crescendo, whose music director, Christine Gevert, is a native of Chile, will present two concerts in Great Barrington and Lakeville featuring this music and a number of exotic instruments, including the charango (a small very bright guitar), the bombo (an Andean bass drum) and the zampoña (a Peruvian panpipe in use for more than 2,000 years).

The program, “Hidden Treasures of Latin American Choral Music,” ranges from the contemplative to the rousing, and includes both sacred and secular pieces. One of the oldest is “Xicochi,” a setting of a villancico, a Spanish poetic form, by Gaspar Fernández (1566-1629) in the Nahuatl language. The most recent: “Oceana” by the Chilean composer Javier Fairas (b. 1973), a choral setting of a Pablo Neruda poem.

The concert will present several East Coast premieres, and the United States premiere of a villancico by Tomás de Torrejón y Velasco Sánchez (1644-1728), “Cuatro plumajes airosos,” an allegory in which a hawk, a turkey, a swan, and a phoenix are each represented by a singer.

The many other pieces on the program include the Gloria from the “Misa Criolla” of Ariel Ramirez (b. 1921), a mass performed in its entirety by Crescendo in 2006 to much acclaim; also two works of Juan Orrego-Salas (b. 1919), founder of the Institute for Latin American Music in the US, one of them his Cánticos de Navidad, Op. 22, three short motets for female voices—including an Alleluia that has been compared in mood and quality with the work of his mentor, Randall Thompson.

Performers include the Crescendo Choir and the Crescendo Vocal Ensemble, along with period and folk instrumentalists, including the Alturas Duo and other specialists from Boston, New York, and Hartford. The conductor will be Ms. Gevert.

The concerts are supported in part by an Alfed Nash Patterson grant from Choral Arts New England and by the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism.

Crescendo was founded in 2003. It provides an ongoing program of music performance and education, chiefly for the communities of Connecticut’s Northwest Corner and nearby Massachusetts and New York. It offers workshops, lectures, master classes, and choral and instrumental concerts.

With the participation of international performers and teachers as well as non-professionals, Crescendo’s programs reach audiences of all ages and levels of experience.

The concerts will be held at the First Congregational Church, 251 Main St., Great Barrington, at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 17 and at Trinity Church, 484 Lime Rock Rd., Lakeville, at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 18. A talk about Latin American music will be held 30 minutes before each concert by Juliet Mattila. Tickets are $25, $10 for children under 18. (A group rate is available for the Great Barrington concert.) For tickets and information, visit www.worldclassmusic.org email sales@crescendoberkshires .org or call 860-435-4866.

“...one of the finest and most charming private galleries in New England.”

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS WITH MUSIC AVALON QUARTET

MAHAIWE PAC PERFORMANCE

Close Encounters With Music continues its 18th season Saturday, April 24, 6p.m. with Chopin and His Circle, the second of two programs celebrating the bicentennial of Chopin’s birth. From John Field, father of the Nocturne, who paved the way for Frederic Chopin’s masterworks in the genre, to Hummel, whose music he heard in his youth and whose concerti he performed, to the cellist Franchomme, for whom Chopin composed his Cello Sonata, to the charismatic Paganini, a frequent collaborator, this program offers a spectrum of works by Chopin’s friends and mentors, as well as his own sublime Ballades and Nocturnes.

Chopin explored the resources of the developing pianos of his day, resulting in the creation of new territory for future generations to admire and plumb – with harmonies from beyond the boundaries of what was then theoretically possible. His calling cards were a polished personality and a body of highly individualistic music which projected its novel beauty instantaneously.

In music as seduction of the ear, no composer has surpassed him.

Joining artistic director Yehuda Hanani at the Mahaiwe performance are pianist Adam Neiman, violinist Stefan Milenkovich, and cellist Amy Gillingham. The concert will be complemented by a Chopin Hour the following afternoon, part of Close Encounters’ Conversations With… a series of illuminating talks by notable speakers and performers.

Guest pianist Adam Neiman is featured both at the Mahaiwe concert Saturday evening and on Sunday, April 25, 2 PM at the Hudson Opera House, Hudson , NY. Tickets for Saturday, April 24, $35 or $25 for adults and $10 for students, are available at The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center box office, 413.528.0100, through Close Encounters With Music at 800-843-0778, or by emailing cewmusic@aol.com Please visit our website at www.cewm.org

THE LENOX GALLERY O F

F I N E

A R T

paintings • drawin g s • w a t e r c o l o r • s c u l p t u r e • m i x e d m e d i a w o r k s • p a s t e l s • p o r t r a i t c o m m i s s i o n s

69 Church Street, Lenox, MA 01201 • (413) 637-2276

over twenty-five artists • on two levels

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THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

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open year round - call for hours

THE MUSIC STORE

As the spring flowers bloom around us, The Music Store marks its second spring in our new location at 87 Railroad Street, in Great Barrington, MA! Acclaimed as one of the areas finest music stores, The Music Store edges toward it’s tenth anniversary serving the musical community in the Berkshires and beyond.

Providing musical instruments, accessories and music motif gifts to musicians and music lovers of all ages and abilities, The Music Store boasts a fine selection of guitars of all levels, from luthier handmade instruments, to fine handcrafted ones, to good gutars for those on a tight budget. Alvarez, Avalon, Bourgeois/Panthon Baden, Baden, Takamine, Luna and Greg Bennett guitars nestle among other fine, folk and unusual instruments and international percussion. Walking stick and cane flutes (handmade in Stockbridge), thunder drums, bamboo flutes, guiros, African djembes, USA-made chimes and many other other instruments sit happily amidst necessities such as a wide international array of all levels of strings, reeds, sticks and heads, among other accessories.

For those seeking gifts, music motif kitchen wares, tee shirts, curios and knick-knacks, keychains, miniature instruments, picture frames and reading glasses represent some of the gift possibilities available at The Music Store. Manuscript paper, method books, music books and sheets are also available, as are a wide variety of services including re-stringing, set-up and repairs.

All new instruments are backed by The Music Store’s lifetime warranty, including free custom set-up, free re-stringing and free labor on repairs NOT due to neglect. For those seeking specialty strings or unusual reeds or other necessary accessories, The Music Store will happily special-order such items, whenever possible, at no extra cost. Family owned, The Music Store is also always happy to provide helpful advice, free of charge.

From a first violin to a professional level guitar, from shakers to shirts, tambourines to timbale sticks, music to metronomes, tuners to tom heads, rhythm sticks to reeds, doumbeks to D strings, The Music Store offers a magical musical experience to all.

As always, we wish you health and harmony in the months to come, and look forward to serving your musical needs.

The Music Store, 87 Railroad Street, Great Barrington, Massachusetts, open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 to 6, and on Sundays from 12 to 5. Call 413-528-2460 or email us at musicstr@bcn.net

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THE ARTFUL MIND • 7

MYRON SCHIFFER PHOTOGRAPHER

CARRIE HADDAD PHOTOGRAPHS

WILLIAM WEGMAN, LITTLE RED, 1999, COLOR POLAROID, 24 X 20”

Carrie Haddad Photographs is pleased to announce Polaroids: Works by William Wegman, Mark Beard, John Dugdale, Melinda McDaniel and Tanya Marcuse from April 22 through May 30, 2010. There will be an opening reception for the artists on Saturday, April 24, 2010 from 6 – 8 pm.

No other artist has conveyed the color, beauty and elegance of the 20 x 24 large format Polaroid process quite like William Wegman. The fact that Wegman has also managed to use this form of photography to bring humor, wit, intelligence and a humane view of the world, most often via the eyes or visage of one his beloved Weimaraners, is a great bonus for people everywhere, both in the art world and beyond.

Also on exhibit are Mark Beard’s Polaroid transfers of personal and compelling landscapes and portraits of downtown New York performers, celebrities and friends. Tanya Marcuse also uses this method. In her jewel-like series Torso, the transferred emulsion onto a sandwiched mylar material creates a luminous, transparent effect. John Dugdale’s use of 8 x10 Polaroid film to capture his 19th century aesthetic results in images that are remarkable in their other worldly beauty. Melinda McDaniel uses the difficult to find SX 70 film to create abstract images of rich color, shape and dimension in a continuation of her distinctive body of contemporary work.

For more information, please visit our website www.carriehaddadphotographs.com or visit us at the gallery 318 Warren Street, Hudson, NY, 12534.

Prior to moving to the Berkshires in the late sixties, Schiffer was getting established in New York City as a piano teacher, accompanist for auditions, and hanging around the fringes of jazz.

Also fascinated with photography since childhood, he finally took classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology to learn more about composition, lighting and fashion window display while continuing to pursue music as his vocation.

Now that he’s entered his ninth decade he has chosen to fulfill his earlier hopes of doing something with photography. This year he’s been busy exhibiting his work at galleries, frame shops, a retirement community and in the North Adams Open Studios show.

Starting Dec 19th he’s showing his new canvas prints on the dining room walls of one of the smartest restaurants in the Berkshires, Castle Street Cafe, next to the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington.

Schiffer continues to work on his new photography website, www.myronschiffer.com which is growing fast and seems to be attracting more attention each month. He never dreamed that turning 80 would be so exciting.

Myron Schiffer, 413-637-2659, myronschiffer.com, myron@myronschiffer.com

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SABINE PHOTO ART

Whether it’s a radiant bride, a playful dad, a family gathering, or a tree house, Sabine Vollmer von Falken is in rapport with her subject. In the European photographic tradition, her true talent and interest lays in photographing real people and locations. The results are natural and direct, capturing the emotion of the moment or the mood of the environment.

Sabine specializes in young children at play and creating a photographic record of their growth. A master of the subtleties of lighting and the nuance of background, her eye for detail provides photos to be treasured for a lifetime. It is to no surprise that she is a sought-after wedding photographer, as well.

Sabine’s photo studio and gallery is located in Glendale, Massachusetts. She captures portraits there or on location. Each photo is tailored to meet her client’s needs—a black-and-white remembrance for a special occasion or a logo image to create an authentic online presence.

Her photographs have been published in a variety of magazines and books. Her latest book Woodland Chic will be published by Storey Publishing in 2010, author Marlene H. Marshall. Other volumes include Full of Grace: A Journey through the History of Childhood, Making Bits & Pieces Mosaics and Shell Chic.

She will appear at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA on April 17 at 10 am - 11am “Get More Out of Your Digital Camera”. A clinic will follow until 1 pm. Photo enthusiasts are welcome.

A member of the American Society of Media Photographers, the International Center of Photography ICP and the Wedding Photojournalist Association WPJA, Sabine offers workshops at her studio for professionals and amateur photographers.

Sabine Vollmer von Falken, 20 Glendale Road, Glendale, MA, 413-298-4933; www.sabinephotoart.com / info@sabinephotoart.com

Violin Teacher

Leading multi-field violinist (NYC) is now accepting serious students in Williamstown.

Special emphasis on seamless, beautiful sound and expressive performance techniques.

For information, please contact Joseph Gallo at: (413) 458-1984

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THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

(Juilliard graduate, listed in their Private Teachers Directory.)

“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.”

-Aldous Huxley

JEFFREY L. NEUMANN JEFFREY IN STUDIO

MARGUERITE BRIDE

POTTERY ALLEY, MARGUERITE BRIDE, BLACK AND WHITE WATERCOLOR

WATERCOLOR LESSONS

Have you ever thought it might be fun to learn to paint but didn’t know where to begin? Were large classes with many other students a little too intimidating?

That’s exactly how it was for me many years ago when I first discovered an interest in painting. Actually it was my daughter who said, “Mom you REALLY need a hobby”. At that time I was an engineering manager at a network operating systems company….and I certainly did need stress relief. At that time I knew very little about art… I didn’t know anything about color, how to mix them, what kind of paints to start with, perspective…essentially I knew nothing. All I had was a desire to learn and discover.

And, of course to “de-stress”.

I did that by working with an artist in her little studio, with one or two other “newbies” like myself. Who knew then that art would now be the love of my life and my full time career? I have my first art teacher back in Hopedale, MA to thank for turning me on to painting.

I am now offering lessons in watercolor painting. Whether you’re interested in a hobby, stress-relief, or might be a serious budding artist, I’ll teach you all I know about paper (yes, some paper just “works better” than others), colors, paints, special tricks and techniques and some funky tips.

Many people think watercolors are so “unforgiving”….. but that’s not true, because I know a secret. If you bring a desire to learn and discover, you’ll also know the secret.

And, plan to have some fun in the process.

I have a new larger studio at 311 North Street in Pittsfield…easily room to accommodate two students at a time. Give it a try; you may have a masterpiece inside you hoping to be discovered.

Details about lessons can be found on my website or call me at my studio. There are a few openings for spring and summer lessons.

Marguerite Bride, Art on No, Studio 5, 311 North Street, Pittsfield. Call 413-8411659. Email: margebride@aol.com web: www.margebride.com

CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN REALISM

My aim is to create deeply personal work that speaks about the soul of America.

Throughout my life I have spent a great deal of time on the road. My art is a distillation of that experience through the filters of my memory, my imagination and my hand.

Although there is an aspect of cultural anthropology in my work, I have to experience a profound personal connection with my subject. That connection can be as intrinsic as a part of my personal history or it can be an emotional response to a particular scene. This emotional response is what I try to convey through my paintings. I’m seeking to evoke a certain mood through the limitations of paint.

For me the most satisfying way to get at the mood I am trying to convey is through a representational approach. Although I’m interested in the craft of painting and I try to create well-executed art, my paintings are not just about painting. They are also very much about the subject. Not necessarily a literal representation, but one that contains a feeling that comes from the heart.

Neumann Fine Art: corner of Anthony & Coldwater St., Hillsdale, NY, Tuesday – Saturday 10 – 4 and by appointment.

Call 413-246-5776, www.neumannfineart.com. Neumann is also represented by Hanback Gallery, corner of South Center& Main, Millerton, NY. 413-446-9235 or 518-789-0202.

STEPHEN FILMUS “LAKESIDE BIRCHES” 40” X 40” OIL

THE LENOX GALLERY OF FINE ART

This painting by Stephen Filmus depicts a stand of white birch in early spring. The trees provide an architectural framework to the scene and a dramatic contrast to the Lake and Berkshire hills.

Filmus’ artwork reflects the essence of the Berkshire landscape. His ability to perceive and interpret the character of the scene results in a believable sense of place.

Stephen Filmus lives and works in Great Barrington, Massachusetts and has lived in the Berkshires for many years where he has established his reputation and following. His work is in numerous collections and he has exhibited widely including David Findlay Jr. Fine Art in New York and locally at the Berkshire Museum and the Norman Rockwell Museum.

Stephen’s work can be seen at the Lenox Gallery of Fine Art, 69 Church Street, Lenox, MA. 413-637-2276 and www.stephenfilmus.com

Hidden Pond Bed & Breakfast 43 Deer Drive Claverack, New York 518-828-2939

www.hiddenpondbandb.com

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Located in mid-Columbia County, on a rise in a clearing surrounded by trees, Hidden Pond provides a serene environment in a beautiful rural setting just five short miles from Hudson, New York Mailing Address: PO Box 332

Hudson, New York 12534 APRIL 2010 THE ARTFUL MIND • 9

CAROLINA MONNERAT DANCE CAROLINA IN MIDDLE,”TRAINS”,

The first time I met Carolina Monnerat she was behind a video camera filming my interview with Theodore Collatos. The longer I was at their home the more I became aware of the passion and excitement she feels when she’s working. I became intrigued with her story so a few weeks later I returned to talk to her.

Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Carolina has retained a slight accent that adds to her appeal. Children generally change their minds several times about what they want to become when they grow up. From the time she was a small child Carolina knew her path and how to get there.

She spoke of hardships both emotional and physical and even endured cruelty to reach her goal but Carolina overcame the obstacles including coming to the United States as a young teen, leaving her family behind. I followed her into the small salon noting that the old cliché “glided across the room,” was exactly what she did. She immediately immersed me in her world without any of the awkwardness that can happen when talking about one’s life. There was no need to do more than sit back and relax because she has the ability to put people at ease. We talked at length about her life. By the time I left I felt that I knew not only Carolina the dancer but Carolina the woman.

Nanci Race: When did you first become interested in dance?

Carolina Monnerat: When I was five years old, I went to watch Swan Lake. They have a huge government dance company in Brazil. I saw a dancer, whose name is Ana Botafogo, one of the most famous dancers in South America. She’s very beautiful and inspiring. She was very technical but she had so much emotion. At five years old I was looking for a way to somehow put my emotions out there. I looked at my mom and said, “I’m going to be just like her.” The government dance company also has a school. You have to audition to get in and it’s a very strict school. You have to study theater, music, and dance. I audi10 •

THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET

Article written by Nanci Race

Cover Photo by Julie McCarthy

tioned and I passed. I had to be there every day seven days a week. You go to your regular school then you go to the government school and you dance five to six hours a day. The grades go from one to ten. I was the only one in my class who would go to the next grade. My grades would be five or six—very high. It was great.

Later in my career I danced with Ana many times. She was the reason I started dancing. It was really cool. When I was leaving Brazil to come to the United States she actually called me to ask permission to do a solo that I used to do. They needed permission from me and the choreographer. I said, “Wow, you’re asking permission? Of course you can, you’re the reason I started dancing. You can do whatever you want to do.” She’s really something and she’s still dancing.

NR: Dancing is a lot of discipline, hard work, and frustration, how did you handle that at such a young age?

CM: I had a good support system with my family. It was really hard because first of all you don’t have a normal childhood. All of my friends would invite me to birthday parties or to do things that kids do and I never had any of that. I didn’t care because I was really happy dancing. Sometimes there are teachers who try to discourage young people with talent. Dance is a really cruel profession. There are so many beautiful dancers out there with so many companies. Even if you dance with companies sometimes you never become the principle dancer or the soloist.

Then by the time you’re 40 you’re done. In ballet by the time you’re 30 you’re done. A lot of dancers don’t prepare themselves for what happens after that. They become teachers and most of the time they’re bitter. When they see the light in the eyes of some kid who is happy and wants to dance they punish them for that for some reason. I had some teachers like that but my mother was really good at keeping me focused.

When I was 11 I got an apprenticeship in the big company that I wanted to dance with. It was very unusual at 11. So one day I

PHOTO BY MIKE

STRONG

went there and there were needles in my point shoes. The toe of point shoes are made of wood so people would break the point shoe in the middle with blades so I would fall. People would call my house with threats. It was really crazy. My mother would tell me not to continue if I didn’t want to but then I got into competitions every weekend. I never thought I would win anything and would exit before they gave out the prizes and I would always win. But that wasn’t the reason I was doing it. I wanted to be on stage. Just having that moment of being on stage every weekend and being so happy was great. My friends would say, “You have no life.” But I did have a life. That was my life. My family was very supportive and kept me in check.

Even to this day they ask me if I’m prepared for life after dance.

NR: In addition to dance you also co-produced Ted Collatos’ “The Chosen One,” as well as a couple of other productions.

Why did you get involved in that?

CM: I got to the point once in Brazil that I wanted to be involved in film. I acted in a few things on TV and I acted in theater. But I really wanted to be involved in film. I decided that if I didn’t dance I wanted to be a filmmaker. But of course I never stopped dancing. So I came to the United States and I met Teddy. I thought that he couldn’t promote himself. I’m really good at talking to people and getting organized. At dance school they teach you how to organize things and get things together.

So I started doing that and it really helped him. We were able to get into more festivals and get more articles and do more fundraising. Then I decided to mix passions. The first documentary I produced with Teddy was about a dance competition that happens in Brazil. It’s called “On Point.” We went to a competition to do a documentary. The competition brings in dancers from all over the world who are there to try to get a scholarship or contract with a company in the United States or Europe.

There is a lot of money that is given to the dancers. We went there and we followed five dancers from different backgrounds.

One of them was from Australia, the other four were Brazilians.

We made that into a film and actually got into the Bucharest International Film Festival. We were in competition with a lot of other big documentary productions. So that was really cool. I want to continue to do that.

I don’t have a wish to be a director anymore. I haven’t really tried it but I don’t think I have that talent. I do know I have the talent to produce things, even other people’s things; not just Teddy’s.

NR: When you are a producer what is it that you actually do?

CM: I have to try to get the money and that’s big. There are different kinds of producing. Right now I do all different kinds. I organize the films, the staff, the actors, the food, the catering, the release forms, the legalities of the film and when the film is actually in progress I assist Teddy with whatever he needs—if he needs a certain camera, if he needs more tape, or if a camera breaks down I have to run around and get another camera. I help him choose the subjects. If it’s a documentary and if he gets stressed out because it’s too long then I am the pacifier so he can have his artistic moment. I keep the artist happy so he doesn’t have to know all this drama is going on behind him. Afterwards I have to make sure that we get press for the film or the color correction done and figure out how we’re going to get money to pay those people. I have to do all the press releases. I have to get the rights for the music and that’s a crazy job. When we get distribution in place I have to make sure the distributors are doing their jobs. It never ends but it’s a lot of fun.

very dizzy. Fortunately the choreographers that I work with are nice and understand my limitations at the moment. When it’s your head that’s a serious injury. Sometimes I have ripped tendons. You just pull through it. But with the head I’m not going to risk it. Now I have hip problems and knee issues but it comes with dance.

NR: How many more years do you think you will be able to dance?

CM: I think I’ll be looking to stop dancing when I turn 42 because I’m thinking of some friends of mine who are going into their 40s. I have a friend who is 42 and she looks fabulous but it’s starting to not be as much fun for her anymore.

NR: You were originally a ballerina then you crossed over into modern dance. That’s a little unusual isn’t it?

CM: I was a classical ballerina under the mentorship of a very famous teacher named Eugenia Feodorova. She was a Russian Jew. She was in the war and her entire family was killed. Her parents were walking in the concentration camp and they shot her parents in front of her. Her sister started crying so they shot her too. That left Eugenia alone in the world but she was one of the biggest stars of dance. While she was in the concentration camp she and the other ballerina’s would take ballet class. They were working on manufacturing bombs but one German soldier

NR: It sounds like it takes more time for you to put the film or documentary together than it does to do the actual shooting.

CM: “On Point” took a month to shoot. Then when we got back home we had hundreds and hundreds of hours of footage in Portuguese. Teddy edits and that takes years. He speaks a little bit of Portuguese but when people started speaking really fast and say crazy things I had to sit by his side with head phones on simultaneously translating things to him over and over again until he was happy with about five hours of footage then we could put in the subtitles.

Without subtitles it takes too much time. I sat by his side for years.

NR: That sounds pretty stressful. What do you do for stress relief? Dance?

CM: I drink a glass of wine, maybe go to the movies, and I dance. Although it hurts dance is good therapy. It actually hurts more if you don’t do it.

NR: What other things are you doing?

CM: I am the rehearsal director for the company I work with, the Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. It’s a lot of work but it’s putting me on a different path. When I finish with dance I can still be in the dance world. I also teach dance a lot. I am a guest teacher in a lot of places. Right now there is a company in Memphis that wants me to go there and teach and choreograph. I teach at a summer intensive for the company that I work with. I also teach in Brazil at the competitions. I am also a judge for those. So now I’m starting to get into choreographing too. The company that I work with has a second company in Chicago and I’m trying to choreograph with them. That will be the first time that I’m choreographing professional dancers. That will be fun. I dance quite a bit with a company called Wylliams/Henry Contemporary Ballet.

NR: That sounds interesting with a lot of travel involved.

CM: I travel eight months of the year. It’s not fun traveling with your co-workers, staying in hotels with them, you go back home with them, and you miss your loved ones.

NR: What have you found to be the biggest hassle that you have in doing all this stuff?

CM: The injuries. Your body hurts. I have two slipped discs, I got a bad concussion last year from dancing and I’m still recovering from it. That’s a big hassle because you don’t get enough support in the arts for the company to get a good insurance package. And to be away from Teddy is really hard.

NR: A massage therapist isn’t going to help a concussion or slipped disc. Can you still dance with those injuries?

CM: No the therapist doesn’t help with either of those things but it does help relieve the pain. With the back I can still dance but with the concussion I had to stop for a little bit. Last year when I returned to dancing there were certain things I couldn‘t do. I couldn’t do anything that would make me hit my head or shake my head. I couldn’t jump. It’s been almost a year but I still get ringing in my ears and if I do certain things I get very,

CAROLINA CENTER FRONT, “JAGGED EDGES”, PHOTO BY KEN CARL

saw that they were having the ballet class by themselves and he decided to move them to an area where they would just paint the bombs. It was a safer area because of the bombs exploding and killing people.

After the war she started a school in Brazil and she handpicked her students. I really wanted to take a class with her. I went there and she said I was too young to take the class. I was 10 and I lied to her and said I was 11. She didn’t want me to take the class but I begged her and she agreed. After the class she saw my mom and she said, “She is very talented, but we need to change things on her. She’s going to have to study very hard.

Does she want to do that?” I said I wanted to so I quit an apprenticeship with a company and I went to be her student. She said that I was her last student. And I really was her last student.

They asked her to be one of the founders of the Bolshoi Ballet in Brazil. Because of that I got my diploma from the Bolshoi in the Vaganova technique, which is really hard in which to get a diploma. But she made sure her dancers were really smart. A lot of dancers are not very smart because they are so into themselves and it’s just about their bodies. They just look at themselves and they don’t know about the world. So she made sure that we were very smart people. She would kick you out of the class if you didn’t know what was going on in the world that day. Or she would show you a painting and if you didn’t know who the painter was she would kick you out of the class. If some music was playing and she asked you what ballet the song was

from and you didn’t know then you were out. She might ask you who composed it and if you knew that she would ask, “Well how did he die?” Everyday someone would cry in class. I got kicked out a few times. But she really taught us that dance is an art form where you have to be a smart human being. She would say, “Do not be a stupid dancer, do not!” She really was my mentor and she made sure that you appreciated the music you were dancing to. Who was the composer, what was the music about, how was the life of the composer because that would add something to your performance. You had to understand theater.

So she made us study Stanislavski and we had exercises by Stanislavski. You would really appreciate how to act on stage and you had be an actor otherwise you’d just be a machine. And that to me is how classical ballet has become—unemotional dancers. It’s just trying to see who has the highest leg or the most turns. It’s boring. She wanted us to know what was going on in the world so we could see the parallels of stories—the love that someone gives you and then you die and the drama.

There were stories of that time that can reflect the stories of today and she just wanted me to be informed.

At that time I was doing all these competitions and I was winning them and I was invited to dance at a seminar in competition. They bring the stars from all over the world. I was doing La Bayadere, which is a really famous classical ballet. A German Symphony was there. But I was getting tired. Even though I was only 16 years old I had done Swan Lake, La Bayadere, Giselle and all of the ballets so many times. I was touring all the time. It was great but I was getting stuck emotionally. I didn’t want to do it like that anymore.

This company from Chicago had a teacher at the seminar and I went to take a class in modern dance. We don’t have a lot of modern dance in Brazil. The modern dance was extremely difficult and so different. The other ballerinas are so prejudiced against modern dance because modern dancers don’t dance on point shoes and anyone can do that and the ballerinas think that it’s trash. So I wanted to go see what it was about but I failed miserably in class. But the teacher had seen me dance and she was amazed because I was the first ballerina in her class. She told me to come back, which I did for the entire summer. One day she asked, “Do you really like to dance?” I said, “I do. It’s very beautiful, very emotional, and very physical. It’s really difficult.” She talked to the directors of the company about me and she said, “They want you to come to Chicago and I think you should come.” I talked to my mom. I had finished high school really fast and she made me do a bunch of tests to see if I could get into a university so I could have that life and I passed. At 16 I moved to the United States to dance with the company in Chicago. It was fantastic but it was really hard because even in that world some of the dancers were prejudiced against me. They’d say, “Oh, she’s just a ballerina. Of course she can do that, she’s a ballerina but she can’t dance like we do, down to earth and move her body.” But I took it seriously. I told my mom that I knew I was going to suffer and I’m not afraid of suffering. I knew I was going to come from a place where I was a soloist, recognized and people loved me to a place where I probably wouldn’t be cast because I didn’t know how to dance that, but I learned it. And with that came some of the most amazing choreographers in the United States today.

A year ago I decided to do ballet again so I did the Albany Berkshire Ballet’s Nutcracker and I thought it was going to be crazy but I loved it. It makes me feel good that I can step into both worlds. Of course I have no aspirations to be dancing with the New York City Ballet or any of those places.

I think that is what my mentor was trying to teach me; you have to be open. You can’t be ignorant and there is such ignorance in both modern dance and ballet. I teach a lot of modern dance classes and I teach them passages from Swan Lake where they have to do it; not on point shoes but flat just to give them that power and some of them wake up and say, “Oh I just did part of Swan Lake.” That’s something they had never dreamed of. I like to tell the story of my mentor to my students because some of them don’t take class seriously. They say, “Oh it’s too hard, I can’t do it.” But Eugenia was taking class after her entire family was killed before her eyes. It’s not that we all have to be like that but it’s a wakeup call because sometimes we just have to do something. If it’s too hard then go to school to do something else. My mentor gave me the courage to fail.

For a preview of Carolina’s dancing go to http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individuals&videoid=1 02847991 i

APRIL 2010 ARTFULMIND.NET THE ARTFUL MIND • 11

April 2010 Mars is now direct in Leo. All through the winter, we experienced Mars retrograde, which is a complex, frustrating (and fortunately rare) transit that feels like the big chill. Mars is now in the process of covering the whole sign Leo, and will stir up a lot of passionate energy. Looked at another way, Mars direct is here to clear stuck energy in time for some truly stellar events later in the spring. In April, planets have gathered in Aries and the fiery energy is rising. This is just the beginning. By June, two of the most influential planets, Jupiter and Uranus, make a conjunction in Aries, and this conjunction is going to rock the world. Stay tuned to PlanetWaves.net for daily news as this event develops.

Aries (March 20-April 19)

Do you know those situations where someone holds in all their passion and energy for months on end, wanting to be well-behaved and spiritually pure and in control, and then one moment, under the influence of perhaps a little alcohol, decides to let it go all at once and do all kinds of crazy things and then wakes up and regrets it? I thought you might have heard of this. Whether you are the party type or not, this metaphor applies to your life, and I suggest that as the next few weeks go on, you unfold yourself gradually, gently and intentionally rather than explode with all your plans at once. In other words, for maximum fun and creativity, easy does it — for now.

Taurus (April 19-May 20)

Are these big fears you are confronting, or small ones? Is there really a difference? I would say not. Fear, insecurity, uncertainty, jealousy — it’s all the same thing, as far as your current situation is concerned. Dance with that for a moment; notice the specific elements that they all have in common, which elements may involve one of your parents. That is where we get most of our fears. You could say that it’s where we get most of our talents, except for one thing: talents are usually more difficult to acquire because they require the development of potential. Fears are generally easier to acquire because they have effects whether ‘true’ or not. I suggest you decide which you really want, and which you really don’t.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) Be grateful that you’re having an issue seeing both sides of the story. I think one side of whatever it is you’re experiencing is enough to reveal the many facets of what you’re confronting in your life, mostly the truth that the world as you know it is the product of your ideas about yourself and about life. It’s really true that you seek completion and the full expression of your being through your ideas, whether you do this professionally or not. I suggest you keep your current search on the deeper level of a search for yourself rather than a search for ‘what is true about life’. See if you can eliminate any abstractions; go directly to your inner source; be yourself and describe your inner reality directly, persistently and most of all gently.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

These have been weeks of contrast, and if my reading of your charts is vaguely accurate, you’ve made a good few choices about what you want and what you don’t want. You’re not done making these decisions — not only do I suggest you get used to

the process, I suggest you embrace the necessity and beauty of a total reevaluation of your life. Everything you discover that you don’t like is coming up specifically so you can move on from that very thing and create room for what you desire. Further, you can subject to a conscious decision everything you discover that you don’t want to be true about yourself. Don’t just trust my word: try it and see.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) Draw your energy close to your center, physically and spiritually. Be cautious what you reveal about yourself and your beliefs. Keep your body warm, including your extremities, but particularly your core temperature. Watch where your money goes, your effort, your energy, your thoughts. Be careful when others try to define you, and know this when you see it: specifically, beware of when others try to dictate what you want. By conserving your energy, you will be able to focus enough strength to tune into your long-term vision, and to shift your sense of identity in that direction. Over the next 10 days or so, you can tune in and feel the person you are becoming, and identify with that fully.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)

Who exactly is keeping secrets from you? Accuse who you will, but it would seem like you’re hiding hostility from yourself.

Perhaps it’s about whether you feel fairly treated in a close relationship, which you are blaming yourself for. Alternately, it could be your deepening desire, indeed, your need, to transform yourself creatively or sexually, yet at the same time feeling like you’re obstructed from doing so. In either event, the main part of the blockage is your struggle to tell the truth to yourself. This truth may involve something you have long denied: a desire, a fact, an understanding with yourself that you came to previously, perhaps more than once. Be real with you, and grant yourself some relief.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) Finally, you’re seeing that it’s healthy to invest some of your self-esteem in the service you offer to others; and that far from taking anything away from you, your ability to offer yourself is a gift you give to yourself. If you’re not quite seeing that, I would offer this as a proposal. The more you offer to the people you care about, and by more, I mean in terms of quality and innovation as much as in labor and effort, the more you will discover that you have, and that indeed, you are. We see the opposite equation play out too often, reinforcing a belief that to give is to lose. Yes, it’s important to give consciously and carefully, following an ethos of love.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) Make your moves one at a time. Yes, work with a vision; work with a clear idea of what you want; but make one move at a time. Live one day at a time. Respond to something present in your environment that is actually present, rather than what you think might happen or are afraid will happen. Mars coming to a halt and changing directions on such a sensitive, personal angle of your chart (as Leo is for you) is going to have some strange effects, and one way to handle any potential distortion is to make deliberate moves close to where you are now. You will

Please join us for the Third Annual Taking Strides Against Mental Illness Walk at Saddle River County Park in Ridgewood, New Jersey on May 16, 2010.

Open to all ages and abilities. Enjoy refreshments, DJ entertainment and a Taking Strides T-Shirt. The scenic park walk is 1, 3 or 5 miles on flat, paved trails in beautiful Saddle River County Park.

To register or make a donation, and for more information: Visit: www.againstmentalillness.org Email: info@againstmentallillness.org

FUNDS RAISED DONATED TO NARSAD THE WORLD LEADING CHARITY DEDICATED TO BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR RESEARCH.

12

THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

by Eric Francis

very likely feel the need to be impetuous; I strongly suggest you let your mind rule over your emotions.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22)

While the ‘home’ angle of your chart — Pisces — is getting the really hot transits (Mercury, Jupiter, the Sun, Venus and Uranus, all at once) I would say that you feel the world is your home and your oyster and you are raring to go. I suggest you make contact with why: it’s the feeling of resonance with your environment, and of comfort with yourself, that’s drawing you into new experiences. This is a rare-enough experience for a human on the planet, particularly in a time when we are taught to perceive everything as a threat. Those who preach the doctrine of threat and danger are the ones who would do better to stay home. You are not playing this game, and if you’re sitting on the fence, I am here to tell you that a many-layered adventure is calling you.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20)

Your friends love you, and they want to help make your life not just easier, but a celebration. Some of them have precisely the qualities you lack, or that you struggle with expressing, and that your current transits are doing their best to cultivate: unfettered passion, spontaneity and the ability to express yourself from the depth of your soul. You will benefit from the examples of those who have set aside or gone beyond their own struggle with freedom, recognizing it’s as much of a necessity as structures and boundaries. You have gone far enough in the direction of integrity, safety and purity. Naughtier times are calling your name.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19)

If you are thinking about how to make money, take a day or two or better yet, three, and do what you want to do the most. Try this as an experiment. See how you feel. By ‘want to do the most’ I mean what gives you the most pleasure for the doing; what you yearn for; what you care about, regardless of its monetary value. I say this knowing that money is on your mind. I say this knowing, as well, that far more important things are on your mind — such as fulfilling your life purpose. I know that many who reach for their purpose seem to sacrifice financial wealth, but I am not here to speak for them, or to them. I am here to speak to you.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

Drop your resistance and stay open to all the possibilities. Get used to this — a process of opening and allowing rather than trying to be pure or even positive. It is easy to allow the energy to flow through you and around you, and you may find it easier yet if I remind you that you are protected, and that your deepest desires are resonating with the world around you. All you need to do is get out of your own way. Is this easier said than done?

In theory, no; in reality they are closely related. Make a commitment to yourself. Recognize the incredible good that is around you; embrace the people who love you, and observe your life with the trust of a child. ~ Read Eric Francis daily at PlanetWaves.net

Ancient Quantum Healing “THE LUMINOUS ENERGY FIELD CONTAINS A TEMPLATE OF HOW WE LIVE, AGE, HEAL AND MIGHT DIE.” -Dr. Alberto Viloldo

Masterʼs of Education, Certified by Healing the Light Body School of the Four Winds Society to practice Luminous Healing & Energy Medicine. Macrobiotic counseling is also available when appropriate.

For information or to schedule a session please call: 413-446-5712

Nixsa M. Mills 231 Hartsville NM Rd., New Marlborough, MA

HELPFUL GO-TO’S

KARI J. AMDAHL, MA

Pychotherapist

• Traditional Talk Therapy

• Cognitive & Dialectical Behavioral Therapies • Mindfulness Approach • Art and Dream Work

• Body-centered Approaches

413-528-6121

Great Barrington, MA Sliding Scale Fee • See press release in this issue

SHARON TRUE, M.A., C.M.A., R.M.T. Somatic Movement Therapist and Certified Pilates Instructor

WholePerson Movement Mat Classes Mondays 6:30 - 7:30 PM Kinesphere Studio • 66 Main St, Lee, MA Tuesdays 5:00 - 6:00 PM Kilpatrick Athletic Center, Simonʼs Rock College 84 Alford Rd, Gt. Barrington, MA

WholePerson Movement Private Sessions

Personal training in a quiet country setting featuring the Reformer and other Pilates-designed apparatus

All WholePerson Movement Classes:

• Increase strength and flexibility • Improve posture, balance, breathing, body awareness • Improve comfort, ease, grace in moving • Reduce lower back and other chronic pain • Reduce risk of re-injury from sports or occupation

Call for more information

413.528.2465

...Visit: www.artfulmind.net

WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET APRIL 2010 THE ARTFUL MIND •13

WHOLE PERSON MOVEMENT WHAT DOES IT TAKE?

ERIN BURCH, PT BODY WHISPERER

OLD INJURIES NEVER DIE Old Injuries never die. I have had this experience in my own body, as well as observing it in countless others. I used to work in an outpatient clinic and people would come to me with neck pain. As part of the history and intake process, I would inquire if there had been any neck trauma (car accident, fall, etc). It was evident by the visible distortion in their neck that something; some force had disrupted it. After much questioning, it finally dawned on them that in fact, they were in a car accident…. “but that was 20 years ago!”

The assumption is that once the acute phase of pain of a trauma has passed, the problem has been resolved, and perhaps in a small percentage of cases, that may be true. However, in my experience and observation this has not been the case. When the small bones of the neck, for example are shifted out of their original position, by the forces from an accident or fall, this creates an unnatural “fit” between the joints therein. The body works amazingly hard to protect us from pain and so goes immediately into compensation. This compensation works subtly throughout the body, taking a little from here and a little from there, until it can no longer accommodate the distortion. In the meantime, inflammation continues at the original site. This process can take a couple of decades for the body to run out of the available “slack”, and pain may resurface at the original area or at some other location.

This all may seem like bad news indeed. However, the good news is, that armed with this information, awareness, and connection to one’s body, as well as intelligent intervention, a great deal of pain can be understood, relieved and potentially avoided.

Erin can be reached at 413-528-1623, cell: 201-7877293

Romancing theImage

Graphic Design for all your advertising needs

Creative design for advertising, logos, brochures, package design, posters and cards from start to press.

M & A and SVA Graduate, BFA Portfolio avaiable upon request

Designing for Berkshire people for over 20 years

14 • THE ARTFUL MIND

413 . 528 . 5628

APRIL 2010

What does it take to overcome your resistance and do what needs to be done to look and feel your best?

Is it that awful photo of you someone took at a wedding?

Or at a beach? Is it getting together with a friend to exercise so you really do it? Is it signing up for a yoga class, joining a gym, or meeting a personal trainer, so that you make a financial investment that you’d hate to waste? Perhaps it’s seeing an old friend who’s made a commitment to health, and you like the results your friend is getting and want some for yourself!

Regular exercise gives you the most ‘bang for your buck’ for your health investment dollar. It can help you spend less time and money in the health care system because exercise improves your cardiovascular system, your strength and mobility, your mood, your brain function, and more. It can be as simple as walking your dog every day, or as ambitious as training for marathons. The key is to find what motivates you personally to exercise, and to set up a structure so that it can work in your life.

Sharon True of WholePerson Movement is a certified Pilates trainer and a somatic movement therapist. She understands how challenging it can be to make exercise a regular part of life: “There have been times in my life when I’ve had to do a lot of computer work, or my family has needed me, or I’ve been working on some project or another, and exercise has taken a back seat for awhile without my even realizing it. Then I start noticing aches and pains and stiffness, and I’m irritable all the time. I start to worry about myself and think I need to call doctors. Then I remember. Aha! When was the last time I really worked out? As soon as I get back to exercise I feel better. It helps my body to be a home I like to live in.”

True has two locations for her holistic approach to Pilates and therapeutic movement. Since 1998 she has had a Pilates studio for one-on-one personal training on her property in Great Barrington that overlooks a small stream and some woods. This tranquil setting promotes relaxation and inner focus, so that after a workout her clients feel refreshed and energized rather than spent. In 2009 she opened a practice at Kinesphere Studio, 66 Main Street in Lee. At that larger location she is able to offer Pilates mat classes and private or duet Reformer workouts. (Reformers are exercise machines invented by Joseph Pilates). At both locations, she creates customized programs for each of her clients, taking into consideration what their goals are, and what is truly motivating to them. And especially, she serves as a support for “doing what needs to be done.”

For more information about WholePerson Movement classes, workshops, and personal training please call Sharon True at 413-528-2465, MonSat 9 AM to 9PM, or email: sharontrue@roadrunner.com

KARI AMDAHL

Emotionally overwhelmed? Stressed? Feel down on yourself? Stuck? These are just a few symptoms of how one may respond to life’s challenges. But one doesn’t have to get trapped in these uncomfortable places.

Kari Amdahl utilizes a number of modalities in her psychotherapeutic work with clients to address such feelings, so as to allow for smoother transitions and resolutions to the issues presented.

“Mindfulness” and CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) are two approaches that can be applied at any given time with very favorable results.

Though “mindfulness” originated as a form of Zen Buddhist meditation over two and a half thousand years ago, its essence need not be experienced in meditation solely. Rather, “mindfulness” can be practiced within the therapeutic process, and eventually as a way of experiencing life in general, whether one is driving on the freeway, working, taking a shower, or talking to a friend.

In brief, exercising “mindfulness” allows for a more grounded, in-the-moment experience of what is at hand. So, rather than fighting a problem, forcing solutions, or continuing to be gripped by uncomfortable feelings, becoming “mindful” nurtures a more neutral state of being, so acceptance of “what is” becomes possible. Calmly accepting a circumstance then fosters new insights, wisdom and compassion for one’s self and the situation. As a result, unexpected resolutions arise, as well as a more positive and open outlook.

CBT is also very helpful in discovering and changing one’s negative perspectives. Often we are not aware of our pessimistic conscious/unconscious thoughts that create our view of the world and ourselves. With help one can bring these out into the open, discovering if they are true or not. Often by catching these self-defeating thoughts, one can not only prove them untrue but, one can also alter one’s whole outlook: more choices become available and positive life changes occur.

The thought manifests as the word; The word manifests as the deed; The deed develops into habit; And habit hardens into character.

So watch the thought and its ways with care, And let it spring from love, Born out of compassion for all human beings.

As the shadow follows the body, As we think, so we become —Das, L.S. 1997.

For more information and to make an appointment, contact Kari Amdahl at 413-528-6121. Great Barrington area. Sliding scale available.

FRONT ST. GALLERY

Painting Classes are held Monday and Wednesday from 9:30 to 1 pm at the gallery/studio. Thursday class is planned, from 9:30 - 1 pm at different locations, and to be announced weekly. The cost is $30 per class and it is for beginners to advanced, all mediums are welcome.

Remember during difficult times the best investment is something that uplifts the spirit. There is no greater gift than a wonderful painting. Please come pick one out and make every day of your life richer. Ongoing large selection of still life and Berkshire landscapes. All work sold at “recession concession” prices. Time payments accepted by appointment or chance.

The Front St. Gallery was established fifteen years ago by seven local artists; Kate Knapp was one of the original founders.

Designed as a cooperative showing many Berkshire artists’ work, today it is not only a gallery but primarily Kate Knapp’s studio. The space is obviously a working studio with many racks filled with canvases new and old, offering a great choice to anyone interested in looking. Kate has been studying art for 40 years. Her paintings are found in collections all over the country.

Front St. Gallery is a beautiful and intriguing space located next to the Corner Market looking out at the mountains and passing trains. The paintings hanging on the walls are filled with color and light reflecting Kate’s training in the impressionist school. There are portraits, still life’s and landscapes done in oil and watercolor. Wonderful paintings of the rivers, farms and flowers found in the Berkshires are inspiring. There are also vibrant seascapes painted on Block Island, RI., where Kate has a home and loves to paint. The key word here is “loves”. These paintings are filled with an intense joy and passion for life. The wild rapids of the river, old farm trucks parked in a field with cows and waves breaking on rocks and shore are painted with great feeling. Prices are negotiable.

Front St. Gallery, Housatonic, MA. 413-274 6607, www.kateknappartist.com and 413-528-9546 / 413-429-7141

MICRO THEATRE PRESENTS LOST AND FOUND

Micro Theatre presents “Lost and Found”, a theatrical event of satire, farce and absurdity. Written and produced

by Bob Balogh, “Lost and Found” features Bob Balogh, Michael Hitchcock, and Becky Sterpka and takes place Sunday afternoons at 3 p.m. on March 21, 28 and April 11 and 18 at the Micro Theatre in Pittsfield. Suggested donation is $10.

Micro Theatre serves the community as a performance venue for experimental theatre productions, acoustic music shows, standup comedy and poetry readings. The space is also available for rehearsals and auditions. The 30-seat, black box theatre is conveniently located in downtown Pittsfield at 311 North Street and is affiliated with the ArtOnNo collaborative.

Artistic Director Bob Balogh managed Sidney Armus’ Theatre 22 in NYC from 1996-2002. Bob is a member of the board of directors at CTSB-TV in Lee; his radio program is broadcast on WBCR-LP in Great Barrington and on WPKN in Bridgeport, CT. Among the original, experimental presentations scheduled for 2010 at Micro Theatre are “Lost and Found” and “Nixon in Love.”

Auditions for the repertory cast are ongoing. All ages and all levels of experience are welcome to make an appointment.

Micro Theatre, 311 North Street, Pittsfield, MA; 413442-2223, 413-212-7180; microtheatre@hotmail.

SCHANTZ GALLERIES DAN DAILY, SURE, 23” X 12” X 9”, BLOWN GLASS

Schantz Galleries in Stockbridge is committed to the continuation of over 30 years of providing representation internationally recognized glass artists to exhibit their work and share their art with the world.

This is a hidden gem of a gallery, a destination for glass collectors and enthusiasts near and far. Open seven days, visitors to the gallery will be delighted to find inspired sculptures and installations by Maestro Lino Tagliapietra of Murano Italy; and the recently installed spectacular Silvered Jade and Sapphire Chandelier by Dale Chihuly. Representing over 40 of the world’s foremost living artists exhibited on two floors, visitors are privy to experience the very pinnacle of contemporary art glass right here in New England.

Throughout the years, the popularity of glass has grown immensely—nurtured by Schantz and several other dedicated gallerists and collectors—and the gallery has become an international destination for contemporary glass enthusiasts. You really owe it to yourself to stop by and experience this art form.

Schantz Galleries, 3 Elm Street, Stockbridge, MA Winter hours are 11am – 5pm. 413-298-3044; www.schantzgalleries.com

“The creative person finds himself in a state of turmoil, restlessness, emptiness, and unbearable frustration unless he expresses his inner life in some creative way.”

-Silvano Arieti

Too Much of a Good Thing is Good!

Always great selection of rugged work clothes.

68 Main St. Lee, MA 413-243-0242 APRIL 2010 THE ARTFUL MIND • 15

PHYSICAL POETRY ENSEMBLE

NEW PERFORMANCE WORK IN PITTSFIELD

DON MULLER GALLERY

For the third year in a row, the Don Muller Gallery has been named one of the Top Ten Retailers of American Craft in North America by Niche Magazine, one of the highest marks of distinction in the American craft industry.

More than 18,000 craft artists from the United States and Canada are polled each year and nominate over 700 galleries, retail stores, and museum shops. Criteria for selection include: treating artists with courtesy and respect; paying on time; promoting and marketing American crafts; giving back time and energy to the craft community; mentoring emerging artists; and maintaining an inventory that is at least 85% American craft.

Don Muller Gallery was honored to be named among the top galleries in the United States, and is particularly proud to achieve such an award for owning and operating a business in downtown, Northampton, Massachusetts, for over 25 years.

Being one of the top 10 galleries in the nation is a real tribute to past and present employees and all of the artists that have been represented through the years.

The gallery has also announced the launch of their new website. The site features the work of many artists in jewelry, glass, wood, fiber, and more; it includes a tour of the gallery, a description of their services, and an introduction to the gallery staff. The site was produced by Positronic, a web development company based in Northampton.

Don Muller Gallery, 40 Main St, Northampton, MA, 413-586-1119, www.donmullergallery.com Open Mon–Wed, 10-5:30, Thurs–Sat, 10–9, Sunday 12-5pm.

A new performance work by dance artist Stefanie Weber’s COH eNsemble entitled habitat (de)fragmentation will premiere on April 17 in the ballroom at Jae’s Spice on North St in Pittsfield at 7 and 9p. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $15 or reserved ahead of time for $10.

Weber’s medium is physical poetry, which is a fusion of metaphoric movement, collaborative ritual and creative process meant to spark a revelation in the viewer. The COH eNsemble otherwise known as the Creatures of Habitat Physical Poetry Performance Group began in 2001 as The Creatures of Habitat.

Debuting in 2003 with the 80 minute performance and installation piece entitled “indicator species: works inspired by the habitats of nest, womb and Earth” which brought the viewer literally into the woods to follow the main character Journey through a dream-like chapbook of physical poems based on the themes of the female experience, addiction, abuse and ecological associations to the female form. Weber continued her artful examination in the eco-feminist tradition with the making of the performance sculpture Oschun Exuvia in 2004 (revisited in 2009). This shedding of a socio-exo-skeleton represented the polluted ideals of love and divine feminine in relationship to the poisoning of rivers such as the Housatonic.

Weber’s newest work habitat (de)fragmentation has been in progress in Berkshire County since June of 2008. Works-inprogress have been shown throughout in Manhattan and Pittsfield. A pinnacle in the process was reached during a six-week long residency with the Storefront Artist Project in Pittsfield in January, which commenced with a successful campaign via the online funding vehicle for visionaries, Kickstarter.

The 50minute performance includes original music from long-time collaborator Frederique Trunk in Barcelona and recent alliance Lance Monotone of Brooklyn. Costumes are crafted in part by Catherine Diebold of Ruckus Muckus Originals in Oakland, CA. Original video made by Ben Pender-Cudlip of Unrendered Films in CT. Visit www.fertileuniverse.com/events, call 413-281-6734 or email stefanie@fertileuniverse.com to reserve tickets or for more information on Stefanie's work.

“Let us proclaim that the sidewalk can climb up your table, that your head can cross the street, and that at the same time your household lamp can suspend between one house and another the immense spiderweb of its dusty rays.”

-Umberto Boccioni

16 APRIL 2010

WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET

HARRIET DIAMOND HARRIET DIAMOND, THE PIT

THE PIT

Harriet Diamond’s exhibition of sculpture and drawing, “The Pit”, opens on April 1 at the Oxbow Gallery in Northampton. The opening reception is on Friday, April 9 from 5-8pm. Concurrently, Gary Niswonger will show paintings in the backroom and will hold a closing on Sunday, April 28 from 2-5pm.

The main piece in the show, “The Pit”, is an elaborate sculpture much like a very large, open diorama. About the piece Harriet Diamond says, “For the last year and a half I have been working on “The Pit” and, sadly, the subject is still war. In the sculpture soldiers are depicted endlessly spiraling downward. Warplanes drone overhead. It’s simple and to the point. We are always at war. Why? How can we get out of this? It is sobering to still be making this kind of work after 9 years, but it is uplifting to engage with this problem. We may not solve it in our lifetime, but certainly we need to focus our energies on stopping war.”

Harriet Diamond’s depictions of the common soldiers caught up in the events of war animate and humanize her pieces. The contexts of her scenes juxtaposed to her gently comic figures emphasize the haplessness of the soldiers.

By turns the soldiers appear proud, triumphant, startled, suffering, and even dead. A panoply of human emotions is displayed across their faces. With humor, caring and wit Harriet Diamond places all of us in her scenes.

Harriet Diamond uses many types of materials in building her scenes such as paint, wood, styrofoam, clay, and tinfoil. She retains faith that her viewers will see what she sees in her materials. For example, a series of triangular tinfoil pieces resolve themselves simply into a group of airplanes. She reaches for whatever skills are at hand; sculpture, drawing and painting, to tell the story. And this urgency reverberates throughout her work. Harriet Diamond has shown throughout New England and in New York City.

Gary Niswonger will show paintings in the backroom at the Oxbow from April 1-25. Niswonger is a Professor of Art at Smith College has painted from the landscape for 25 years. He has painted landscape in Western Massachusetts, Arizona, Northern California and the South of France. His work has been shown locally and regionally. The works in this exhibition are small, direct, immediate responses to being in the moment in a specific place.

Of particular interest to the artist in this set of works is mirroring the changes of light and color of natural world as weather and time of day of day dictate.

About his work he says, “Painting is choosing—all sorts of choices—some are subtle or elegant, others are flat-footed.

My paintings are not afraid to be clumsy.

They come from being in the making.

Standing out in the air, trying to keep up with the moving elements, confronting color’s transiency—that’s it, that’s painting for me.”

Oxbow Gallery, 275 Pleasant St, Northampton.

SPRING CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS

PARK ROW GALLERY SECRET GARDEN, JOHN SIDELI

JOHN SIDELI OPENS 2010 SEASON

Altered States, a captivating solo exhibition of mixed-media constructions by the American artist John Sideli will be on view at Park Row Gallery in Chatham, NY, April 1 – May 31. There will be a cocktail reception with the artist on Saturday, April 10 from 4pm - 6pm, and the public is cordially invited to attend.

Altered States will feature approximately 25 mixed media constructions made from old objects and antique artifacts that the artist collects on his travels. Primarily self-taught as an artist, Mr. Sideli studied painting and architecture in his formative years, and then developed an absorbing interest in antiques and history. He was deeply influenced by the playfulness and creative energy of the sculptor Alexander Calder during a twoyear period when he lived on the artist’s estate in Roxbury, CT, and it was during this time that the young John Sideli became fascinated with the beauty and mystery of ‘found objects.’

Mr. Sideli gradually combined his interests in art, antiques and history into a very successful career as a dealer and expert in American Folk Art. But for the past forty years he’s also remained passionately engaged in the process of creating mixed media constructions from fragments of long forgotten objects. After living with these disparate artifacts and contemplating their beguiling forms for days, weeks or years, he reinterprets, recombines and magically transforms them into playful, poetic and transcendent works of art.

John Sideli lived and worked in Malden’s Bridge, NY for over thirty years before moving to Wiscasset, Maine. He was greatly inspired during his years living in Columbia County, and is delighted to be returning to the area to show his work in a community that he still calls home. Sideli shows his work nationally and internationally, including exhibitions with the Alexander Gallery and Giampietro in New York City, NY; Robert Young Antiques, London, England; Jenkins & Ingram, Wiscasset, ME; Tom Veilleux Gallery, Mount Vernon, ME; Red Mills Gallery, Claverack, NY; and Jeffrey Tillou Gallery, Litchfield, CT. Park Row Gallery exhibits some of the finest artists in the region. Offering a full range of services to their clients, the gallery can assist with private consultations, installing works of art, or arranging special commissions.

Park Row Gallery is located at 2 Park Row, in the charming town of Chatham, NY. Gallery hours are Monday, and Wednesday through Saturday, from 11am – 5pm. For further information, please contact Park Row Gallery at 518-392-4800, or visit our website: www.parkrowgallery.com

IS183 Art School announces its spring class and workshop schedule for adult students. Offering a range of programs for novice and working artists, classes are taught by professional artists in a creative, nurturing and inspirational environment at the Berkshires only year-round community art school. Classes for adults at IS183 include weekend workshops, three-session labs, weekly courses and weeklong intensives in the visual arts.

Courses of study include ceramics, painting, drawing, collage, printmaking, metals, glass, jewelry, photography, fiber, paper, sculpture and mosaics. A complete list of course offerings and registration information is available online.

A weekend workshop “Making Colors Sing,” with instructor Wednesday Sorokin, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, April 10 and 11, from 12 to 4 p.m.

A weekend workshop “Exploring the World of Colored Clay,” with instructor Naomi Lindenfeld, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, April 17 and 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A weekend workshop “Venetian Lampwork Beads,” with instructor Stephanie Maddalena, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 1 and 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“Intro to Digital Fine Art Printmaking,” a three-session Wed. night photography lab with instructor Mark McCormick-Goodhart, will be held on March 31, April 7 and 14, from 6 to 9 p.m.

“Basket Making,” with instructor Wendy Jensen, will be held on Thursdays, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., from April 8 to June 3 (No class will be held on April 22.)

“Contemporary Realism: The Painted Portrait,” with Yura Adams, will be held on Fridays, April 9 through June 11, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

“Collage and Journaling with Handmade, Painted, Printed and Paste Papers,” with instructor Karen Arp-Sandel, will be held on Fridays, April 9 to June 11 (no class April 23 and May 14), from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

“Figure Sculpture,” with instructor Philip Howie, will be held on Mondays, from 1:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., from April 5 to June 7.

“Tile Making,” with instructor Ben Evans, will be held on Mondays, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., from May 10 to June 14 (No class will be held on May 31.)

Located half-way between Great Barrington and Pittsfield in Interlaken (a village of Stockbridge) IS183 Art School encourages people of all ages, means, and skill levels to enrich their lives through hands-on experience in the visual arts, with year-round programs in ceramics, painting, drawing, photography, fiber arts, sculpture, mixed media.

For more information, a complete program schedule, enrollment fees, scholarship opportunities, faculty bios, or to register for classes, please call 413-298-5252, email info@is183.org or visit us online at www.is183.org

BOB CRIMI STUDIO

VISIT AN OIL PAINTING TODAY

Drawings, prints, water colors lose far less of the original meaning and quality in reproduction than do oil paintings. The camera, first stage in producing a reproduction, can photograph only what it sees on the surface. The power of a splendid oil painting is dependent to a large degree on what is known as under-painting, the pigments applied as initial steps in building a final image. This dimension is overlooked entirely by the lens.

––from How To Start And Build An Art Collection by Irwin Solomon.

If a pigment, which appears transparent or translucent in a thinly applied layer, is piled up or applied to a surface in a thick layer, it appears more opaque because the light then travels through a greater number of separate particles. Each pigment particle impedes the light ray’s progress by refracting it. Also, it appears opaque because there is more refraction of light from the points where the pigment particles and their surrounding medium meet. The increased absorption of light, due to the then increased number of particles, contributes to the illusion of opacity. Pigments vary in transparency in indirect ratio to theirrefractive indices, but all of them are transparent to some extent.

––from The Artist’s Handbook by Ralph Meyer.

Bob Crimi’s paintings can be viewed at his Studio/Gallery by appointment. – 518-8517904.

“The artist who uses the least of what is called imagination will be the greatest.” _Pierre-Auguste Renoir

WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET

THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 • 17

Greater Backfish Roundup

SPORTS

by Bob Balogh

The Sheffield Bloodthirsty Coyotes have signed Japanese baseball player Bucky Toshiba to a one-year contract for the 2010 season. Financial details of Bucky Toshiba’s contract were not disclosed, probably because there are no financial details.

Ballplayers in the Berkshire County Saloon League receive no pay. They sign up purely for the love of the game.

Oh, sure. They are handsomely compensated sometimes.

Like Scooter Musnicki, the popular shortstop for the Pittsfield Rabid Coyotes. He gets free haircuts over at Angie and Tina’s Hair Salon on Tyler Street. And the word around Pittsfield is that Scooter Musnicki enjoys more than just free haircuts. I’m saying, maybe a nice shampoo, too, once in a while. Or a manicure. And Angie or Tina might even make a house call for that extra stuff.

Hey, I don’t know what goes on exactly. But there’s word on the street that baseball players in the Berkshire County Saloon League occasionally get additional perks on top of their regular perks.

So despite the fact that the newest member of the Sheffield Bloodthirsty Coyotes, namely Bucky Toshiba from Japan, won’t be paid for his talent according to league policy, he will be living rent-free in the Sheffield home of Arnold and Roxanne Shook.

Bucky Toshiba will sleep on the Shook’s living room couch from spring training through the playoffs. As for food, Bucky will be allowed to eat for free at the Heaping Helping Diner in downtown Sheffield, as long as he remembers to tip the waitresses. And that should not be a problem because Bucky Toshiba will be earning a modest salary as a member of the town’s Roadkill Committee. That may sound like a fancy position, but it’s actually a lousy piecework job.

By the way, Bucky Toshiba is not an extraordinary athlete.

He played center field in Japan with the Hirohito Sand Pebbles for the last five years and he was mediocre at best. But that’s okay with the Berkshire County Saloon League. They expect and encourage mediocrity. The league wants their baseball teams to be staffed by mostly average or sub-par players. Empirical data shows that maintaining mediocrity as a standard in sports eliminates egocentric hissy fits among teammates.

Consequently, the Berkshire County Saloon League’s baseball squads are regularly composed of unspectacular lunkheads

with just enough motivation to show up on time and go through the motions and keep achievement as a relativistic concept.

Nevertheless, the fans, those loyal, unswerving baseball fans, who game after game cheer on their favorite middle-of-the-road teams, wouldn’t have it any other way.

OBITUARY

Voluptuous Verna Vox, 54, slid into oblivion and came to nothing after an embarrassing ordeal with the affliction known as Leamy Eye. The popular Voluptuous Verna Vox enjoyed a modest career in show business as an underwater singer, submerging herself in ponds and lakes throughout Berkshire County, where she would burst into song for as long as she could hold her breath.

Because of her unusual capacity to control her breathing, Voluptuous Verna Vox was able to sing underwater for two minutes and 45 seconds before coming up for air. And in her three decades of underwater singing, she never had a close call.

But the climate changes that have refashioned our planet these days seemed to have reorganized the physiology of Voluptuous Verna Vox and ultimately liquidated her.

From pollution to polyunsaturates, from fluorocarbons to flatulence, something in this lousy, mutating world caused Voluptuous Verna Vox to fall victim to the malady that took her life, namely Leamy Eye. Yes, Leamy Eye. Excessive watering of one eye in response to environmental stimuli. And in the case of Voluptuous Verna Vox, it drained the life out of her.

What a damned shame. She was an original. Peerless. The only underwater singer anybody in Greater Backfish, Massachusetts ever saw.

Of course, no one can claim to have actually heard her croon a tune. She was always submersed. But her audiences came to watch, not listen.

Who could listen? She belted out her vocals way below the water’s surface. Down under Lake Mansfield, Long Pond Reservoir, Rising Pond, Stockbridge Bowl, Lake Pontoosuc. Inaudible melodies. Nothing to appreciate except air bubbles atop the water.

People stood on the shorelines during her sunken concerts,

waiting for her to finish for no other reason than to gaze at the voluptuous element of Voluptuous Verna Vox. Men and women alike waited for the buxom blonde goddess to step out of the water and towel off, showcasing her bikini-clad, perfectly proportioned womanly credentials.

Now she is washed up and grounded for good. Because of uncontrollable leakage. Leamy Eye. Non-stop tearing from her left eye. Begun as a few drops, then a trickle and soon, an open faucet draining all body fluids until she was nothing more than a broken water balloon.

Leamy Eye. A dirty trick of nature. A trick of dirty nature.

Collateral damage in the ecological gloom and doom.

The good news is that there are bootleg recordings available of Voluptuous Verna Vox’s last three underwater concerts. Hidden microphones were able to capture most of her repertoire, cover tunes of Wendy O. Williams, Nina Hagen and Lydia Lunch.

Rolling Stone calls her sound “cutting edge experimental gargle.”

For more information, visit VoluptuousVernaVoxUnderwaterMusic.biz.

Voluptuous Verna Vox, dead at 54. She was a Red Sox fan.

SOMETHING ELSE IS MISSING

Lost my wallet this morning This afternoon I lost my keys Lost my appetite at suppertime Lost my wife last week Something else is missing, there’s more that I can’t find Something else is missing from my daily grind

I go over to the Y I need to take a swim But the water’s gone, the pool is dry I can’t jump in Something else is missing, there’s more that I can’t find Something else is missing from my daily grind

Sitting in the bar having some laughs All or bad luck we compare and contrast Just us losers going down fast Going down fast, going down fast

I’m a victim of identity theft Now somebody stole my cat Can’t lose much more, there ain’t much left Anybody seen my hat?

Something else is missing There’s more that I can’t find Something else is missing from my daily grind

The Gallery at

The Berkshire Gold and Silversmith Beverly Bourassa Watercolorist

In the Gallery through the month of April

Please come and visit

“Raising marble is evidence that a number of men have reached the point where the one they would now honor

THE GALLERY AT THE GOLD AND SILVERSMITH 152 Main St, Great Barrington (next to Eagle Shoe and Boot) 18

THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

413 • 528 • 0013

(Tues - Sat 10:30-6 pm)

formerly stood alone.”

-Wassily Kandinsky

Architecture & Arcadia

Potemkin Village

by Stephen Gerard Dietemann Potemkin Village is a term - and a concept - with which we should all be familiar. The term’s etymology, according to a summary provided by the University of Phoenix on-line: “After Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin, who had elaborate fake villages constructed for Catherine the Great’s tours of the Ukraine and the Crimea”. His intent was, of course, to conceal the horror of actual life in the nether regions of the empire and to permit a blissful ignorance of the grim reality there to continue uninterrupted. As such, ‘Potemkin village’ has come to mean, according to the ‘A-Z’ dictionary, “a pretentiously showy or imposing façade intended to mask or divert attention from an embarrassing or shabby fact or condition.” While the original Potemkin villages may have deluded the elites in Russia at the time, history notes that reality would not be denied, rectifying the situation of extreme economic and power imbalance with the very real Bolshevik revolution and the bloody end to the Czars rule. Facades, it turns out, do not a city make.

Sadly, the lesson has not been learned. A more recent effort by our government is both amusing and frightening. According to Jim Brittain / jimbrittain@ncaddnj.org (and others), “In the early 1980’s, U.S. President Ronald Reagan was expecting a visit from a number of (I believe) middle-eastern dignitaries.

They were to land at one of the New York airports, and travel through the South Bronx, a neighborhood full of abandoned high-rise buildings. Reagan had many of the windows of these buildings (the ones facing the major roads) covered with shades on which were printed designs of windows, with curtains, shades, lamps — I even seem to remember some with a cat sleeping on the sill (many were still in the windows years later). It is pleasant to think of Reagan making the entire South Bronx into a Potemkin Village.”

Of course, we now know this was an early example of ‘compassionate conservatism’, but at the time it was probably viewed by the impoverished residents of the area in less sympathetic terms. Closer to home and today, many upstate New York cities — and many cities throughout the country in general – are veritable Potemkin Villages. Hudson, New York — the town where I lived until I before I moved to Great Barrington — is an excellent example. Its main street, Warren Street, is a collection of antique shops, ‘New York-style’ restaurants, galleries and upscale boutiques. ‘Luxury’ apartments and residences are visible up and down the street; dilapidated buildings have been renovated at considerable effort and cost to do this. On weekends the streets are clogged with BMWs, Lexus, Mummers and other luxury automobiles. Elegantly dressed woman and men stroll up and down Warren, shopping bags in hand.

But if you wander off Warren just a block in most directions, there exists another city. This one is much less affluent and a good deal less white. Housing is often marginal, cars far less shiny or new than those motoring up and down Warren Street. In short a perfect example of the increasing division of the United States along the lines of income and, despite the election of Obama, race. Poverty is increasingly hidden from view in Hudson (and in many other cities in the United States, I hasten to add) and obscured by glittering shop facades and the almost obsessive media focus on wealth. Most distressing, those with power and money, those for whom Warren Street is the only possible destination in Hudson , can, like Catherine the Great herself, be blissfully unaware of what lies beyond.

plan and generous pension benefits imagine the grim reality many of their own constituents face in these areas? Public policy has long been focused on maintaining privilege, protecting the wealthy and demanding the bill be paid by those with less.

This is a real problem for us and Hudson is hardly the only example. Other varieties of our own Potemkin Villages abound. The gated community, the corporate office park, even the second home tax breaks are all examples of our own Potemkin Villages; they keep a nice clean and orderly façade on a festering cauldron. I believe that it is no stretch to argue that our wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are an attempt to keep the façade of empire – the ultimate Potemkin Village — in place to conceal the economic and social decay behind.

In the end, our own Potemkin Villages will surely serve us no better than Catherine the Great’s descendants were served by the original.

This, then, is the great danger: the Potemkin Village of the mind. In the final analysis, the Potemkin village in all its many forms can be reduced to a simple concept: the subjugation, manipulation, or ignoring of the ‘have-nots’ for the benefit and comfort of the ‘haves’. The majority of our leaders have never had to experience life outside ‘Warren Street’; how could they, with considerable private wealth, a comprehensive health care

Micro Theatre

Auditions for 2010 repertory cast All ages, All Levels of experience To schedule an appointment: 413-442-2223 or microtheatre@hotmail.com Micro Theatre (dedicated to experimental theatre)311 North Street, Pittsfield, MA

Regional Italian Dinner Series $30 Prix Fixe Monday, Tuesday and Thursday Nights

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THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 • 19

JANIS IAN

Janis Ian was born April 7, 1951 onto a farm in Southern New Jersey. She began playing the piano at the age of two, but far from being a child prodigy on that instrument, she hated scales and studying. She switched to guitar at age ten and published her first song, “Hair of Spun Gold,” at the age of twelve.

Her first album, featuring the breakout hit “Society’s Child,” was recorded in 1965. A haunting melody about a forbidden interracial relationship, “Society’s Child” ignited controversy from coast to coast, resulting in the burning of a radio station, the firing of disc jockeys who played it, and a generation of searchers finally having a female songwriter to stand beside Bob Dylan.

After four years of touring non-stop recording and touring, with four entirely self-written albums under her belt, Ian took a break from the music industry, retiring to Philadelphia at the age of eighteen “to find out if I had it in me to be a good songwriter, or if I should just go to school and become a veterinarian like I originally planned.” She returned with the stunning Stars album in 1973, and went on to cover the decade with number one records worldwide. The seminal “At Seventeen” from her second CBS album, Between the Lines, garnered five Grammy

nominations (the most any solo female artist had gotten to that date) in 1975, and she opened the first-ever episode of Saturday Night Live in the fall of that year. Her follow-up album, Aftertones, was #1 in Japan for an astonishing six months, and the single, “Love Is Blind,” remained in the top five for a full year - a record that has yet to be broken. At the close of the decade, her Night Rains album, featuring the Giorgio Moroder collaboration “Fly Too High”, went platinum throughout Europe, Africa, and Australia, making Ian a truly international star.

In 1983, after ten unbroken years of “make a record for three months, tour for eight months, then somehow write another record with brilliant hits on it in the remaining month…”, Ian took an unprecedented hiatus from the music world. She spent the next nine years studying acting with the legendary Stella Adler and “in general, learning how to be a person”. During that period, she married and divorced, suffered two emergency surgeries, lost all her savings and home to an unscrupulous business manager, and moved to Nashville, TN in 1988 “penniless, in debt, and hungry to write”. She returned to the music business with 1993’s Breaking Silence, which immediately garnered her ninth Grammy nomination.

In 2002, “Society’s Child” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, with “At 17” following in 2008. In the same year, Janis Ian is releasing her long-awaited autobiography, Society’s Child: My Autobiography on Tarcher/Penguin, as well as a twoCD set titled Best of Janis Ian: The Autobiography Songs. The CD release is the only “greatest hits” of Janis’ recordings ever released in N. America! Containing 31 cuts total, there are remastered versions of “At 17,” “Society’s Child,” “Jesse,” and every other song mentioned in the book, as well as several never-before-heard bonus cuts.

“It was good. Instead, I got to deal with everything from doing coke with Jimi Hendrix to death threats. I lived an entire life in my teen years, and I don’t regret a second of it.”

2008 saw the release of Ian’s autobiography, Society’s Child, called “Immensely readable” and summer must-read by O Magazine. 2009 sees the release of Society’s Child in paperback, also by Tarcher/Penguin. 2009 also sees a return to her roots, when Janis and Sony jointly release The Essential Janis Ian, timed to coincide with the release of the paperback in September.

All in all, a life worth living.

Janis Ian will be appearing (with Karla Bonoff) on April 18th at the Swyer Theatre in Albany, NY

“A good technician may lack passion. A passionate person may lack technique. Both may lack originality, judgement, or proportion.

There are infinite ways to fail.”

-Karen Laub-Novak

Painted Cities GROUP SHOW

March 4 - April 11, 2010 and on exhibit at CARRIE HADDAD PHOTOGRAPHS 318 Warren Street Ida Weygandt & Elliot Kaufman March 11 - April 18

Carrie Haddad Gallery

HANCOCK SHAKER VILLAGE

BABY ANIMALS ON THE SHAKER FARM

Eighth annual spring celebration will run April 3 through April 25 in Pittsfield, Mass. Hancock Shaker Village (HSV) kicks off its 50th anniversary as a living history museum with “Baby Animals on the Shaker Farm,” running April 3 through April 25, 2010. This annual spring celebration is one of the most exciting times of the year at the Village, when scores of baby lambs, piglets, calves, goats, ducklings, and chicks arrive at the historic Round Stone Barn. New this year: “More Creatures Gathered Here,” an exhibition of paintings of baby animals by Stockbridge-based artist Susan Merrill, which will be on display April 3 through April 25 (with preview opening reception on March 27th at 5pm) and “Green at Hancock Shaker Village, the City of Peace,” a family-friendly Earth Day celebration on April 22 at 2:00pm that will include a tour of the Village’s historic-to-modern green and environmentally-friendly features.

The animals represent livestock once kept by the Shakers, beginning in the 1700s and continuing into the 1960s. In addition to the heritage breed animals raised by HSV year round, this event includes “guest” livestock raised by local farms and 4-H clubs. Visitors get to meet and greet the baby animals and participate in farm chores, such as helping to feed the animals and to save seeds. They may also participate in fun Shakerthemed craft activities, such as basket weaving, making and decorating seed packets, and weaving on a small loom.

The Round Stone Barn is the only circular barn ever built by the Shakers. Widely recognized as an architectural icon and agricultural wonder, this unique dairy barn originally stabled 52 milk cows. It has attracted visitors—most notably Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville, who staged a footrace in the structure—since its construction in 1826.

Behind-the-Scenes Farm Tours are available daily at 2 pm.

Families can get up close and personal with the animals on these private guided tours, which include special access to the newborns, helping at feeding time, gift bags with a variety of toys and games from the Village Store, and a group photo to commemorate the visit. Behind-the-Scenes Farm Tour tickets are $25 per person (including general admission). Reservations may be made for this tour by calling 413.443.0188 x213.

“Baby Animals on the Shaker Farm” hours are 10am to 4pm daily. General admission tickets are $17 for adults and $8 for youth ages 13 to 17. General admission is free for children ages 12 and under and for Hancock Shaker Village members. ocated on Route 20 in Pittsfield, Mass., just west of the junction of Routes 20 and 41.

For GPS purposes, the Village is located at 34 Lebanon Mountain Rd., Hancock, Mass. 01237. Or, enter 1843 W. Housatonic St., Pittsfield, Mass. 01201 then proceed 1/2 mile further West on Rt. 20 to the parking lot.www.hancockshakervillage.org.

622 WARREN STREET HUDSON NEW YORK 518-828-1915 OPEN DAILY 11 - 5 PM CLOSED TUES & WED

CARRIEHADDADGALLERY.COM

20 • THE ARTFUL MIND

APRIL 2010

RICHARD BAUMAN, MULBERRY STREET

Altered States : An Interview with John Sideli

by Terri E. Sisson

T.S. - John, I know you’re primarily self-taught as an artist, having studied painting and architecture for only a short time before developing a compelling interest in antiques and history. But you’ve said that you were deeply influenced by the sculptor Alexander Calder during a two-year period when you lived on the artist’s estate in Roxbury, CT, and it was during this time that you became fascinated with the beauty and mystery of “found objects.” In what ways were you influenced by Calder?

J. S. - I actually made very little art while living on Calder’s property. I was only 22, newly married, and had just become a father. I was also fascinated with the world of antiques, and learning how to support a family by buying and selling antiques on a shoestring. However, the impact of living in that environment was evidently quite profound.

I think it was Calder’s playfulness, and his ability to make something out of nothing that influenced me the most. Everywhere you looked around their house, you could see evidence of his hand at work. I remember an old wooden spoon that was in their kitchen, which had nearly broken in half. But Sandy had repaired it with twisted brass wire, and it was absolutely beautiful. I also recall this fantastic collection of little tin birds made out of Medalia D’Oro coffee cans strung on a wire hoop, which he allowed us to bring into our house to live with. We put the tin birds next to my daughters crib when she was only a couple of months old, and when Elise finally spoke, her first word was “bird.”

Being witness to that kind of playfulness and broad application of creative vision, coupled with my burgeoning interest in antiques and ancient artifacts was a natural kind of pressure cooker that stimulated my creative energies. Of course, I wasn’t aware of it at the time, but I was taking it all in, and the concept that art could be anything, and everywhere, was clearly taking hold.

T.S. - While your work is historically linked to the densely adorned “cabinets of curiosities” of the 16th - 18th century, and the surreal box assemblages of Joseph Cornell, your mixed-media constructions are much more sculptural in nature, and sparingly composed. How do you choose the various components of your constructions, and how would you describe the process?

J.S. – Well, first I should say that I’ve been collecting material for over forty years, and what I don’t use continues to accumulate in my studio, as if wait-

ing for its turn. That search for the raw material is certainly part of my process, and a lot of time (not to mention the cost) is invested in finding and gathering these old fragments and artifacts. For instance, there was a time when I was fascinated by the colors and textures of old rusted trucks and farm equipment that were left out in the fields of Columbia County, and I have used parts of old tractors in my work, as in the large piece, “Steering Committee.” And just last month, on a trip to Costa Rica, I visited a huge metal scrap yard in search of these textured metal plates that I’ve seen on the sidewalks all over San José, covering water meters and other municipal valves. Most of them were painted originally, and now they have these beautifully worn surfaces and diamond patterns on them. I learned at the scrap yard that the name for them is “punta diamante” - diamond point. I like that.

In addition to gathering the materials, it’s a question of spending time in my studio and selecting objects that evoke the same mood, or that relate in some way. Essentially, I try to liberate the spirit in matter by carefully combining objects in a way that allows them to transcend their original form or meaning, so that they evoke a feeling or tell a story. I combine objects in the same way that a poet combines words. And as with words in a poem, there’s an eloquence or clarity to a perfect arrangement of objects.

It’s really all about relationships.

T.S. It’s interesting that you speak of poetry as a literary correlation to your constructions. When I first saw your work titled, “Rare Bird,” it reminded me of the first stanza of a poem by Emily Dickinson that reads:

JOHN SIDELI, LETTER BOX

‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers — That perches in the soul — And sings the tune without the words — And never stops — at all —

Indeed, for me, “Rare Bird” illuminates the poetic and transformative nature of your work. It seems to be constructed from an eccentric wooden pulley or armature mounted to a wooden base and adorned with a large, exquisite feather. And that’s it; so this ‘rare bird’ is really quite abstract. Yet, there’s something hopeful in its simple but stately grace, and in the aesthetic relationship between the forms that, like a secret combination, sets the imagination in flight.

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THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 • 21

JOHN SIDELI

JOHN SIDELI, SUN MOON HARMONY

JOHN SIDELI, ARTIST’S WORLD

J. S. I’m not familiar with that poem, but I’m touched by it, as well as your perceptive observations

T.S. - You once said you were, “an artist that had become trapped in the antiques business, and that the material of my profession had become the medium of my obsession.” With this in mind, do you think that if you’d become a geologist, you would have made sculpture out of rocks ... or is there something about the historical and cultural context of found objects that is intrinsic to your art?

J. S. - It’s funny that you should ask that. One of the earliest pieces I created was made of rocks. Our property in Malden Bridge bordered the Kinderhook creek, and it was impossible to take a walk down there without returning with armloads of stones. So I guess what you proposed might very well have happened. Indeed, I’m a great fan of Andy Goldsworthy’s work, and am in awe of his vision and energy.

To answer your question about the historical artifacts more specifically, yes, I was very drawn to the soulfulness of used and worn everyday objects, and their evocative quality, as points of departure in telling a story. Bestowing importance and relevance on otherwise forgotten fragments is a fascinating part of the process for me. Through the act of focusing intently, and establishing a kind of dialogue with these things, they become infused with a new kind of energy that serves to redefine them.

Having said that, I would quickly add that I don’t think there is a more soulful category 22 • THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010

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of inanimate objects on the planet than rocks and crystals, which brings me back to your question. In fact, the title of that first piece I had made from stones was, “The Rocks Hold the Answers; But First We Must Learn the Questions.”

T.S. - How do you come up with your titles? They’re often quite philosophical, poetic or humorous, and seem to reinforce a narrative element to the work.

J. S. - I would say that more often than not, the titles flow from the objects themselves.

Occasionally, there will be a topic that I really want to comment on or work out through my creative process. “Distorted Vision” was one of those pieces, related to the Holocaust.

Of all the holocaust images I’ve seen in photographs and films, the one that made the strongest impression on me was that of mountains of eyeglasses being moved by bulldozers. So I’ve been accumulating old wire eyeglasses for years, whenever I see them. They are my point of entry into the deep feelings I have on this subject, and a vehicle of expression for those feelings.

T.S. - I notice that you have one piece with two titles – “Death’s Door” /”Secret Garden.” How did that come about?

J. S. - Originally, I had titled the work “Death’s Door,” but when I did a show in London, the gallery didn’t think it was a good title from a commercial standpoint. They came up with “Secret Garden,” which I actually liked a lot. So now I use them both.

JOHN SIDELI

JOHN SIDELI, PLANE GEOMETRY

JOHN SIDELI, PROUD PARENTS

JOHN SIDELI, RARE BIRD

T.S. - On the surface, ‘Deaths Door’/‘Secret Garden’ is a simple construction comprised of a small wooden door set into a larger wooden door. And yet the perfect composition of those two elements creates a powerful symbolic dialectic and seems to evoke the metaphysical tension between the desire to know, and the limits of what can be known.

J. S. - Beautifully put. Your description reminds me that it’s important not to be too literal or give too much away in titling a work. I do like to give some clue or reference that is integral to the work, but also leave room for the viewer to imagine his or her own interpretation.

T.S. - How much of your process is conceptually driven, and how much is a matter of connecting objects in a purely aesthetic relationship?

J. S. - Sometimes I do start with an idea I want to convey, and then look for elements that might express that thought. But more often than not, I’m visually intrigued or stimulated by an object - a color, simple shape, or even a word integrated into the artifact that captures my attention. In fact, one of my favorite ways to work is to sit in my studio amidst this large array of curious objects and just allow my imagination to roam - free associating without any conditions or constraints on where it might take me.

There is something about creating order out of chaos that’s appealing to me, and that’s central, really, to my process. I love the idea of creating something unified out of seemingly random and unrelated elements. I love the challenge of it. And I feel that there exists an ideal relationship between any group of things, or pieces of matter, no matter how humble they might be.

Working to find that ideal aesthetic relationship is largely what my work is about.

Through this process, things take on new meaning and significance, often in ways that are

surprising and even startling. I try to follow the objects and let them tell me their collective story, often exclaiming to myself as I move through the process, ‘So that’s what this is about!’ At times it can be almost a mystical experience, depending, of course, on the nature of the objects and the story that unfolds. I don’t say that it’s always like that, but it is often enough.

John Sideli lived and worked in Malden’s Bridge, NY for over thirty years before moving to Wiscasset, Maine. He was greatly inspired during his years living in Columbia County, and is delighted to be returning to the area to show his work with Jeff Risley at Park Row Gallery. John shows his work nationally and internationally, including exhibitions with the Alexander Gallery and Giampietro in New York City, NY; Robert Young Antiques, London, England; Jenkins & Ingram, Wiscasset, ME; Tom Veilleux Gallery, Mount Vernon, ME; Red Mills Gallery, Claverack, NY; and Jeffrey Tillou Gallery, Litchfield, CT. “Altered States,” a solo exhibition of mixed-media constructions by John Sideli will be on view at Park Row Gallery in Chatham, NY, from April 1st – May 31,st 2010. There will be a reception with the artist on Saturday, April 10th from 4pm - 6pm. For further information, please call Park Row Gallery at (518) 392-4800, or visit: www.parkrowgallery.com

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THE ARTFUL MIND APRIL 2010 • 23

Lewis Scheffey

LEFT TO RIGHT: AUTUMN SONG, SERENADE IS BROWNS AND BROWN, BEIGE, BLACK

MYRON SCHIFFER NEW DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

CASTLE STREET CAFE

10 Castle Street, next to the Mahaiwe Theatre, Gt Barrington, MA Come visit! The cafe is comfortable and the food is great!

THE RED LION INN GIFT SHOP Affordable Miniatures at~

30 Main Street, Stockbridge, MA (M-TH 10-5, SAT, 9-8, SUN, 9-5) This gift shop is one of Stockbridge’s jewels!

413-637-2659 myron@myronschiffer.com

For more information please contact the studio at:

www.myronschiffer.com

Lewis Scheffey, Looking North - Early Winter, 1983 (cropped version)

Please visit Lew at his studio / house in Monterey, MA.

See his many oils, watercolors and drawings done over 40 years For appointment

413-528-6785

FRONT ST. GALLERY Housatonic Mass.

KATE KNAPP

Jaz in Kimono, 24x20

Martin

“ Portraits …All the people I loved to paint” 40 or more paintings, oils and watercolors, of men, women and children, friends, family and members of the community.

Come see who’s here! Through April…

Winter hours: By appointment or chance Monday, Wednesday and Thursday studio open for classes 9:30 am -1pm New students welcome

413-274-6607 • 413-429-7141 • 413-528-9546

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APRIL 2010 WWW.ARTFULMIND.NET

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