Meadowlake Studios

Public Library a cradle of democracy

2012-02-29T12:14:00.001-08:00

The Carnegie McMinnville Public Library is 100 years old. Andrew Carnegie funded the library built in 1912.

Carnegie said “There is not such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Library, this republic of letters, where neither rank, office, nor wealth receives the slightest consideration.”

He believed in Libraries “A library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people. It is a never failing spring in the desert.”.

The benefits a Public Library for Democracy and for Community are still very true today.

Jill Poyer, Director of McMinnville Public Library and Bernice Owen, author of “History of the McMinnville Public Library” talk with Arts Alive host Lynda Phillippi at McMinnville Community Media studio.   Ms Owen explains the fascinating history the McMinnville Library.    Ms Poyer talks about the extensive programs the Library offers, which would, I’m sure, make Mr Carnegie nod his head in agreement and smile. McMinnville Public Library is doing for Democracy and for Community just as Andrew said it would.

To watch Arts Alive McMinnville Public Library Part Two

House/studio: creative space matters

2012-02-28T20:38:00.002-08:00

First draft of studio

I've been thinking about literature, websites, literary magazines and such. But we have also working on glazing and firing tiles for the Cedarwood house. We hired an Designer to work with us to build our new studio space.

He sent pdf file of his ideas and we have been working over them. Changing and talking. The creative process. We think about what we want. It is so much easier to do if there is a visual aide to work with.

Where we create matters. At Awaken Creativity they talk about creative space that honors you and is dedicated to what you do. We talked about entrances and realized we did not mind walking into our creating space. We did no want to come in and stare at several doors. The Awaken Creativity article is a simplistic. A new space is a new place and just how it will interact with creative work is unknown. We have to hope it will work out.

Find purpose and do what you love

2012-02-27T17:24:00.004-08:00

Maria Popova at Brain Pickings curates a wonderful blog. Today she put together an article on "How to Find Your Purpose and Do What You Love" by curating the thoughts of seven who have talked about it. She gives pithy quotes and gives links to the source, essays, videos, whatever. There is a reason Technorati gives Brain Pickings a score of 726 which is a very high ranking. Quality and quantity.

Literary Wolf

She starts with quotes of Paul Graham from his essay How to Do What You Love written in 2006. Still makes sense. He starts "Do do something well you have to like it." Maria is taken by Paul's opinion about prestige.

The quote I like is "Prestige is especially dangerous to the ambitious. If you want tomake ambitious people waste their time on errands, the way to doit is to bait the hook with prestige. That's the recipe for gettingpeople to give talks, write forewords, serve on committees, bedepartment heads, and so on. It might be a good rule simply toavoid any prestigious task. If it didn't suck, they wouldn't havehad to make it prestigious."

Paul says you should not worry about prestige and admits it is easy advice to give but hard to follow especially for the young and/or ambitious.

Literature, poems and the reader

2012-02-26T20:38:00.000-08:00

patient vagabond

Reading an online literary magazine Prime Number Magazine which has a nice combination of features. Most literary magazines have the work and a writer's bio. Interviews of writers are often a special thing. What I like about Prime Number is they put the work, the bio and an interview with the writer all together. Prime Number is a North Carolina magazine, online and an annual print.

For example with the poetry of Kat Henry there follows her bio and then an interview with her. As a reader I liked reading the poem and then listening to the interview answers that gave Kat's poem "Vagrants, after A.M. Parker" a context from the writer. In Kat's bio she tells of reading the "vagrants" poem at an open mic in a bar and also reading it to a homeless man who told her he could relate to the poem.

Another poet Katherine E Young writes searing poems of physical and emotional abuse. She teaches English at University level, published in journals and translated from Russian. The interview helps to understand the perspective of the poems.

Reading the poem is good and the main thing. Having detail and context also helps me see the poem.

Elizabeth Santone, a successful feature artist presentation

2012-02-25T20:41:00.001-08:00

Timothy Field

Today at the Portland Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery Elizabeth Santone talked about her narrative watercolor paintings and her landscape painting.

As Elizabeth was concluding a gentleman in the back of the room told a story of two young skate boarders who were in an intense discussion just out side the Gallery. They were in a passionate debate about Elizabeth Santone's painting of a tree that was in the window of the Gallery.

We (Meadowlake Studios) filmed Elizabeth's presentation. We also filmed OK Ji Rdda and Janet Louvau Holt and they discussed their work.

Next comes the work of putting together a watchable video.

Looking for literary magazines

2012-02-24T18:14:00.003-08:00

I've been looking at and looking for literary magazines. Luna Park Review estimates there are 28,000 literary magazines and far from going extinct, they seem to be at least surviving. Luna Park Review's Directory of literary magazines does not have 28,000 entries, but there seem to be hundreds.

Literary Bear

It is not surprising there is intense concern for who reads the literary magazines. The print versions do struggle with the cost of production. The on line magazines try to figure out how to make them pay for themselves and not have a "pay wall" too high so they are accessible.

In a The Millions article On Getting Paid: Literary Magazines and Remuneration Nick Ripatrazone discusses the dilemma of literary magazines and writers. For the most part the readers of the literary magazines are writers, students and whannabe writers. Magazines can't pay much if anything. Is publication enough? But we're in America. Getting paid is a statement of value. Even a small amount is an honorarium which helps a writer feel valued. And there is always the hope there is a way to pay for itself and maybe a little bit more.

Maybe publication (and a free copy) has to be considered similar to the unpaid internships so popular this days. Put in the time, produce the work, have it be judged and keep on keeping on.

Creating a routine to create

2012-02-23T18:04:00.000-08:00

attentive to what is there

There is a website Zen Habits that is dedicated to changing habits. In the article "29 ways to successfully ingrain a behavior" they have the simple steps of habit change: 1. Write down your plan. 2. Identify your new routine. 3. Focus on doing the new behaviors every day for about 30 days. And some great quotes. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." which is attributed to Aristotle. Advice is keep it simple, one behavior at a time and do a 30 day challenge.

With the blog I gave myself a 30 day challenge that started 12/31/11 to do an entry a day. I did 30 days and I'm into the second 30 days. Okay so I feel strong. Next comes a routine for creative writing. There is a ton of advise on the web. It comes down to building in the time, the motivation and doing it. This is my write it down part, not a plan, but saying it out loud.

Matt Love and teachers as social control troops

2012-02-22T21:32:00.001-08:00

Matt & Ray

Ever since I read My great writing dog in the Oregonian last year, Matt Love is one of my favorite Oregon writers. A quote from his essay, which is a heart felt eulogy to a companion, has stayed with me.

"For many writers, writing begins with conversations, ones you have with others, ones aloud with yourself, ones you overhear, and ones with documents and ancient texts."

I have the quote tacked to my wall. For Matt, his conversations started with his dog Ray as they traveled around Oregon.

Recently Matt wrote an Opinion piece Oregon's overreach: Are teachers the troops in a war on individualism? in the Oregonian. He tells a story of he and his high school students field trip to do a performance at another high school. After 18 years of teaching he is feeling "complicit" in shaping students into the American consumer corporate mold. To me he was expressing an existential angst in recognizing his discomfort as being part of the control machine.

Matt & Ray

If Matt were sending the opinion piece as a letter to Dear Sugar at Rumpus , I could image Sugar responding, "There, there, sweet pea, you have been complicit, as a teacher you are absolutely part of the social control troops shaping our good children. But it's okay. You work within. It is usually easier to open a window from inside a house than outside."

The response to Matt opinion piece showed how differently we hear what is being written and what we choose to react to. The article was shared on Facebook and among my "friends" the comments were the "Nice article" kind of typical pablum Facebook comments. I read the Oregonian readers comments which were argumentative. Some responded to the word "corporate", some focused on the "standardized testing". For the most part they put Matt Love into a political caricature and argued against their own construct. They were having fun, some quite eloquent.

I wonder how we can get from dueling monologs to conversations.

Paintings to the Gallery

2012-02-21T21:14:00.000-08:00

Maple in Fall

We deliver painting to Portland Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery tomorrow. Liz has been working on her talk about her work coming up this Saturday.

The rural landscapes are quiet and peaceful. Her city scapes and urban scenes are full of motion, intensity and humor.

The contrast of her two style is amazing.

Wiggle

The rural scapes are contemplative. They let you breath. The urban scapes are wild, complex and engaging. You wonder if you can find your way out.

Studio space to work to relax

2012-02-20T20:34:00.001-08:00

Meadowlake Clay studio

Under glazing tiles for the Cedarwood bathroom is a calm repetitive task. Okay, boring. But there is a challenge. The last batch of test tiles the glaze developed pin holes. Nasty little creatures sometimes as difficult to get rid of as ants.

And for a bathroom pinholes are not acceptable. They will eventual blister and pop. Then it means pulling them and replacing. Not fun.

small tea bowl

But when I look up from the work table the studio relaxes. There is a calm that settles through me. I wonder about moving to a new space, untried and unknown.

Tea bowls and masks and sculptures and tiles gives me more projects than I can keep up with. Luckily it is not a job. Another reason to relax.

Elizabeth Santone featured artist

2012-02-19T09:53:00.000-08:00

Featured Artists Poster

Elizabeth has been with the Portland Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery since the early 1990s. Her unique watercolors depicting urban life are always popular.

When she moved to the country she began to work in oils and plants and natural landscapes developed.

This coming Saturday she will display watercolor urban scenes and natural subjects in oil.

Garden Art

2012-02-18T18:06:00.000-08:00

Garden Sculpture

Winter time in the garden lets the art stand naked and waiting for Spring.

I'm working on several garden sculpture projects. There are many Garden Art Blogs to get ideas. I am interested in sculpture which lives with and within a garden.

A sculpture garden, which is all about sculpture that sprouts from the landscape and is the main feature of a place. There are some very beautiful sculpture gardens or parks like the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

Firing Tiles and Masks

2012-02-17T18:21:00.000-08:00

Lug Marl Tri

Cone 06 firing tonight masks and tiles. The tiles are tests for our Cederwood house bathroom around the shower. Green, blue and gold are almost the same colors as the bird masks.

Glazing is one of my least favorite pottery chores. I mixed glazes together in a random manner without keeping records. My goal and I achieve it completely is to not be able to reproduce a glaze. Each thing fired, even in the electric kiln is unique, not to be repeated. Sometimes I wish I could recapture a look. The price of "one of a kind".

I watched some of videos at Wordpress TV about setting up a blog in Wordpress. One of the videos talked about SEO and mentioned blogs being "scraped" and content being re-purposed (used) by other bloggers or whomever. There is a plug-in which attaches back link code to the content. When someone copies it will bring the link code back to the scrapper, thus and easy back link.

The free Wordpress dot com blog does not allow plug ins. The technical "geeky" stuff to learn is daunting. Well, there was a time 20 some years ago when I knew nothing about clay. And still learning about it, too.

Reading and Watching: Gorky Park, book and movie

2012-02-16T21:46:00.000-08:00

We just finished reading the 1981 crime novel Gorky Park written by Martin Cruz Smith. It was a 1981 best seller and won the Golden Dagger Award from the British Crime Writer's Association. Set in Russia the story follows Arkady Renko, a police chief investigator, who is assigned a grisly case of three mutilated corpses found in Gorky Park, the Moscow amusement park. A wonderful story of inter-agency rivalry, failed relationships, a love story, friendship, betrayal and redemption wove together the strands of suspense. A thirty year old story that aged well.

After reading a book, if there has been a movie based on it, we try to watch the movie, as soon as we can. so the book is fresh. In 1983 the movie Gorky Park was directed by Michael Apted. Dennis Potter wrote the screen play, which won an1984 Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America. Movietime Video in McMinnville has a great selection of movies and Gorky Park was in the Suspense Section. We wondered if the movie had aged as well as the book.

The movie eliminated and changed many of the relationships but keep the main love story. Film has to simplify. Eliminating the wife and failed marriage did not effect the film's story. What did surprise me was eliminating the New York and FBI part. It showed a nice parallel with Russia police and KGB and New York Police and FBI. And changing the KGB Major Pribulda character to another corrupt Russian, worked for the film story. I preferred the book Major Pribulda and the interactions with the Renko character which the richness of the characterization.

Beautiful as ever

2012-02-14T16:49:00.000-08:00

J Elizabeth

You were beautiful at 19. Here we are 40 plus years later and you are as beautiful as ever. I am one of the luckiest men alive because you have let me share your life.

We've become "geezers" together. What a blessing.

We are working on designing our "last house" like we were young again, well not exactly young. But the dreaming is still there.

I look at a time when we might not be able to walk up stares and we might need caretakers. Our search for words, sometimes both of us searching, becomes longer, more arduous.

When I see your smile, the years settle in, the past eases, the present holds and the future waits.

(drawing by Tracy Prescott MacGregor)

Display art in the Community Living room

2012-02-13T21:07:00.000-08:00

Cornerstone Coffee House

Last November I had a mask show at the Cornerstone Coffee House in McMinnville. A long brick wall with my faces. Selecting pieces to show were folks sip coffee and work away on their laptops is like deciding what to wear to a party where you do not know anyone. You are sure to be judged by the few who my look, but it is not worth fussing over it.

Re Garlini

I like having shows in public places like coffee houses. It is where people spend time. They are community living rooms and what better place to have your work than where folks live.

Sider Ryley

Owl

I sat in Cornerstone and watched a college student look up from her sleek laptop. She looked at Re Garlini for maybe a minute. Just gazed. Maybe she was day dreaming, or composing a reply to an email from her friend who needed advice about what to eat for lunch. She got up slowly walked over to Re and touched him on the nose. She returned to her table, sipped her coffee and hunched over her computer. Her fingers skipping lightly over the keyboard.

I like to think that she was telling her friend about the encounter she just had. There was something about Re Garlini which resonated. She did get up and touched his nose. What did he say to her?

Oregon writers coming together, Terroir Creative Writing Festival

2012-02-12T14:34:00.000-08:00

In Arts Alive Part Two Emily Chadwick, one of the founders of Terroir Creative Writing Festival and guest Debra Voorhees and Craig Bodmer talk with Arts Alive host Lynda Phillippi. The Festival will be all day Saturday April 14th at the McMinnville Community Center.

Emily Chadwick

An early registration discount is available until March 23.

The Terroir Creative Writing Festival brings Oregon writers togetherfor a day of celebrating this special place, as well as the joys ofwriting and books. Some of the benefits of attending the are meet nationally acclaimed Oregon writers, share your passion for words and books, attend workshops, talks, readings and book signings, and earn more about your craft.

Some of the Festival workshop leaders and speakers include: Chelsea Cain, Willy Vlautin, Matt Love, Charles Goodrich, Leanne Grabel, Molly Johnson, Bill Siverly, Michael McDowell, Lex Runciman, Mary Slocum, Linda Kuhlmann, Marilyn Worrix, Barbara Drake, Phoebe Newman

This is third year of the Terroir Creative Writing Festival sponsored by Arts Alliance of Yamhill County with funding from the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition.

The full Arts Alive TV show of the Terroir Creative Writing Festival interview will air on McMinnville Community Media

Terroir Creative Writing Festival bringing Oregon writers together

2012-02-11T16:10:00.000-08:00

In Arts Alive TV show Part One the organizers of the Terroir Creative Writing Festival Barbara Drake and Emily Chadwick and guest Debra Voorhess talked with Arts Alive TV show host Lynda Phillippi about the Festival.

The Terroir Creative Writing Festival will be all day on Saturday April 14th at the McMinnville Community Center. The registration form is available at the Festival Website. There is a per-registration discount through March 23.

Barbar Drake

Terroir (terr whah) refers to the site- and region-specificcharacteristics of a wine. Climate, soil and landscape define the wine grapes’ character and helps give the wine its distinctive identity.

Like the vines that line the hillsides of YamhillCounty, our words take on the qualities of place, growing rich in thesoils of life experiences.

The Terroir Creative Writing Festival brings Oregon writers togetherfor a day of celebrating this special place, as well as the joys of writing and books. There will be workshops and speakers on fiction, poetry, writing creative non-fiction, memoir and more.

This is the third year for the Festival, which is sponsored by the Arts Alliance of Yamhill County funding from the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition.

William Stafford, Writing the Australian Crawl

2012-02-10T20:52:00.001-08:00

I found a copy of Stafford's "Writing the Australian Crawl" in the Chemeketa Regional Library Service and picked it up at McMinnville Public Library .

William Stafford

The chapter titled Writing opens with the lines,

It is a whisper, You turn somewhere
hall, street, some great event: the stars
or the lights hold; your next step waits you
and the firm world waits - but
there is a whisper. You always live so
a being that receives, or partly receives, or
fails to receive each moments touch.

Stafford's view of artists and art is "the care of artists is not central to the care of art. The accumulation of art objects is peripheral to the activity of art, in any area."

Art is in what we do and how we live and how we respond to the world not in the objects that accumulate around us.

One of his concluding points could be considered an almost spiritual relationship to Art.

Arts has its sacramental aspect. The source of art's power is one with religion's: the discovery of the essential self and the cultivation of it thought the act of its positive impulses.

It rings true to me. Art is what you do, how you interact and how you are in the world.

Mary L Slocum at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-09T21:20:00.000-08:00

Mary L Slocum was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in the Nicholson Library at Linfield College.

Mary indicates on her Website: Maryslocum.com she has been published in a number of publications, such as, NW Literary Review, Upper Left Edge, Stanza, Black Cat and others. She self-published "Stray - Work" chapbook in the 1980's and "Work Poems" in the 1990's, both chapbooks now out of print.
She reads locally in coffee houses and at open mic events in the Portland, Hillsboro and Forest Grover area. She has co-lead writing workshops at the Forest Grove Library.

11 minutes

She talks about William Stafford and his influence. She read a pantoum she created using lines from William Stafford. She read poems of her own. The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration will air on McMinnville Community Media

Paper Gardens Literary Contest Deadline February 15th

2012-02-08T20:42:00.000-08:00

Paper Gardens Literary Contest DEADLINE is postmark February 15th. Applications are now being accepted for the 2012 Paper Gardens Literary contest. Click here for the application form.

The Arts Alliance of Yamhill County invites submissions to the 2012 Paper Gardens Literary Contest. Open to all residents of Yamhill County ages 6 and up, Paper Gardens is a wonderful creative-writing outlet for the community.

Charles Goodrich

Corvallis poet and essayist Charles Goodrich will be the judge this year. Goodrich is the director of the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature and the Written Word at Oregon State University. He is the author of "The Practice of Home" and "Insects of South Corvallis" His newest collection of work may be found in his book "Going to Seed: Dispatches from the Garden" (Silverfish Review Press, 2010).

Paper Gardens features two main categories for submission, poetry and prose, and encompasses three age groups: children (ages six to 12), youths (ages 13 to 18) and adults (19 and above). The prose category includes subcategories of short story and memoir, and is limited to one submission per person. Poetry has four subcategories: traditional, free verse and haiku, and returning for a second year, poetry-of-place.

The poetry-of-place subcategory is specifically intended for poems written about or inspired by places in Yamhill County. As Paper Gardens is a literary contest for residents of Yamhill County, work inspired by our local surroundings is a natural fit for the competition.

Writers may submit up to three poems total. More than one submission per subcategory is allowed. The entry fee for adults is five dollars. Children and youth submissions are free of charge.

The judge will select three winners in each category, and the winning poems will be published in the 2012 Paper Gardens chapbook. The winning authors will receive a free chapbook and certificate of recognition, and will be invited to read their work at an awards ceremony Friday April 13th at the McMinnville Community Center.

Kelli Grinich, Paper Gardens Part One

Recently Kelli Grinich, the Chair of the Paper Gardens Literary Contest talked with Lynda Phillippi on the Arts Alive program. Arts Alive: Paper Gardens Part One and Arts Alive: Paper Gardens: Part Two the 30 minute show is in Part One and Two because of Youtube limit of 15 minutes. The full show will air on McMinnville Community Media begin Saturday, February 11th and run four or five times during the week.

Paula Sheller Adams at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-07T11:48:00.000-08:00

Paula Sheller Adams

Paula Sheller Adams was on of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in the Nicholson Library at Linfield College. She is a well known Portland area poet who does many personal readings. Her poem "Autumn Gauntlet" won an honorable mention in the Oregon Poetry Association poetry contest.

3 minutes

The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter will air on McMinnville Community Media.

Mark Thalman at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-06T16:23:00.000-08:00

Mark Thalman

Mark Thalman was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in Nicholson Library at Linfield College.

Mark Thalman's poetry has been widely published in small presses, college reviews, anthologies, and e-zines for almost four decades. He is the author of Catching The Limit , which is available from his website.
Thalman has been a Poet-in-the-Schools for the Oregon Arts Commission, an Assistant Poetry Editor for the Northwest Review, and a board member of the Portland Poetry Festival. He has also been an instructor for Chemeketa Community College. He is the editor of Poetry.us.com

8 minutes
The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the William Stafford Birthday Celebration will air on McMinnville Community Media

History and Donald Duck, taxes and spending

2012-02-05T17:25:00.000-08:00

History is interesting. 1943 and here we are 2012. What a difference 69 years makes. War, Taxes, Saving, Spending.

I like the line "for it is our taxes that run the factories" It is wild - spending bad - taxes good. Now it is taxes bad - spending good. oh well.

Donald Duck Wants You to Pay Your Taxes (1943)(from Open Culture)

During World War II, some of the greatest living filmmakers put aside their commercial aspirations and directed propaganda films for the Allies. Frank Capra, Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawks, John Ford, John Huston – they all made a cinematic contribution to the war effort. (More on that here.) And so did Walt Disney, big time. 90% of Disney employees produced propaganda films for the American government, creating 68 hours of continuous film, including this short film for the Treasury Department. The Spirit of ’43 puts Donald Duck in the always unenviable position of asking Americans to pay high taxes to fund their wars. (Imagine doing that today!)

Barbara LaMorticella at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-05T13:43:00.000-08:00

Barbara LaMorticella was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration at the Nicholson Library at Linfield College.

Barbara LaMorticella lives in a cabin in the woods outside Portland, Oregon. In 1997, her second collection of poems, Rain on Waterless Mountain, was a finalist for the Oregon Book Award. In 1999 she received an Oregon Literary Fellowship in poetry for women writers. She has edited or co-edited three collections of Portland poetry including Portland Lights in 2000.

In 2005, Barbara was awarded the Stewart H. Holbrook Literary Legacy Award by Literary Arts, an award in recognition of significant contributions that have enriched Oregon’s literary community.

Her work is in many anthologies, most recently To Topos Poetry International: Poverty and Poetry, (Oregon State University, 2008), Not A Muse (Haven Books 2009 Not a Muse, (Haven Books, 2009), and Eating the Pure Light (Blackwater Press 2009 , an anthology of the inner lives of women . She's been featured at Bumbershoot , Seattle's Music and Arts Festival, where she won a Bumbershoot Big Book Award. In addition, Barbara was twice nominated for a Pushcart Prize , has had her work featured as part of Poetry in Motion. She is a long time co-host with Walt Curtis of KBOO-FM radio’s Talking Earth.

6 minutes
The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration will air on McMinnville Community Media .

Creative process in glass & video

2012-02-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

Out in the studio as I trimmed through the bottom of a bowl, I started thinking about fused glass. Bottomless bowls can be great glass molds. Then I went to Writing Without Paper blog and, as usual, found inspiration in both video and glass.

Videographer Karen Rodriguez in 2009 produced a video for Corning Museum of Glass introduces Artist-In-Residency glass sculptor Mielle Riggie. She explains the technique of cast-glass sculpture and gives a wonderful insight into her creative process.

Mielle Riggie works with both the strength and fragility of glass to illustrate the dynamics of human emotion or conditions. In her residency at The Studio, Riggie created cast-glass sculpture amplifying elements in nature, such as leaves or roots, and recombined disparate parts in ways that exaggerated the tension and balance of humans with their surroundings.

In 2010 Riggie had an exhibition at the Winston Wachter Fine Art in Seattle which provides some dramatic images of her sculptures. It is worth a visit.

We do these artist interviews videos. Karen Rodriquez's video does a great job of presenting an artist as they talk about how they work.

Jakob Gowell at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-03T17:32:00.000-08:00

Jakob Gowell

It is traditional at the William Stafford Birthday Celebration to invite members of the audience to present a poem by William Stafford and to read a poem of their own.

Jakob Gowell recently graduated from Grinnell College in Iowa. He talked about reading letters from his grandfather and discovering and connecting with his grandfather who he never knew. He recited two poems, William Stafford's poem "Traveling In The Dark" and a poem by Edna St Vincent Mellay "Conscientious Objector" . He read a poem of his own.

His recital of the poems was easy and natural, in keeping with the William Stafford approach.

The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the William Stafford Celegration will air on McMinnville Community Media

William Stafford, a compeling voice

2012-02-02T15:56:00.000-08:00

William Stafford

We filmed the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College. After putting an hour TV show together for McMinnville Community Media I separated the individual poets presentations, which I have been posting on our YouTube channel and here.

Before the event I was reading Stafford's "The Darkness Around Us Is Deep". After the Celebration I wanted to find out if I could hear and see William Stafford. Yes the The Friends Of William Stafford website has poems and video clips of him. The poem Farm on the Great Plains is a wonderful video clip of Stafford reading. His voice is quiet, compelling.

There are videos of Stafford from Poetry Videos but they cost more than I can afford at the moment.

Here in Oregon, the Friends of William Stafford are committed and have been celebrating his birthday (January 17, 1914) with poetry readings throughout the month of January for many years. Born in Kansas, William Stafford, Kansas poet, he is also claimed by Kansas as a native son.

Stafford taught writing at Lewis and Clark College for 30 years. He published over 50 volumes of poetry. "He kept a daily journal for 50 years, and composed nearly 22,000 poems, of which roughly 3,000 were published." (Wikipedia - William Stafford (poet)) He wrote "Writing the Australian Crawl" about the craft of writing poetry. I haven't read it, but now I'm out to find a copy.

There are many, many Stafford poems across the internet, too many to try and list websites, at this time. Maybe for a later project.

Joanna Rose at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-02-01T15:13:00.000-08:00

Joanna Rose

Joanna Rose was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in Nicholson Library at Linfield College

She is the author of "Little Miss Strange" (Touchstone 1998), winner of the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award for Fiction.

Her poetry and prose has appeared in, Windfall A Journal of Poetry of Place, The Bellingham Review, Marco Polo Quarterly, ZYZZYVA , Gobshite Quaterly , High Desert Journal.

Joanna Rose contributes poetry to the Oregonian book section and often reviews books for the Oregonian. She is part of The Pinewood Table critique group, which has a Facebook presence. She teaches writing and goes into the schools around Oregon and Washington.

5 minutes
Joanna Rose read William Stafford poems and a poem of her own. The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the Stafford Celebration will air on McMinnville Community Media

Michael J McDowell at William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College

2012-01-31T14:07:00.000-08:00

Michael J McDowell

Michael J McDowell was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in Nicholson Library at Linfield College.

In 2002 along with Bill Siverly, McDowell co-founded and co-edits Windfall A Journal of Poetry of Place. Windfall is published twice a year. In 2012 it will be ten years old.

Current Issue

He has published fiction, poetry, and nonfiction in such publications as Penny Dreadful, the Pawn Review, the South Carolina Review , and Confluences. His poetry is mostly about “a sense of place.” and can be found in Windfall. He writes nature and landscape prose and his prose has appeared in the anthologies The Ecocriticism Reader (Univ. of Georgia Press, 1996), Reading the Earth (Univ. of Idaho Press, 1998), and Fifty Key Thinkers on the Environment (Routledge 2001). He teaches poetry writing, creative writing and nonfiction writing at Portland Community College

His most recent book is The Hundred-Year House available from Windfall Press .

8 minutes
Michael McDowell talks about Stafford, reads a Stafford poem, then reads his own poems. The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration at Linfield College will air on McMinnville Community Media.

Bill Siverly at 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration Linfield College

2012-01-30T17:12:00.000-08:00

Bill Siverly was one of the featured poets at the 2012 William Stafford Birthday Celebration in the Nicholson Library at Linfield College.

Latest Issue

Bill is Co-Editor along with Michael J. McDowell of Windfall A Journal of Poetry of Place A journal began in 2002, publishing twice a year. In 2012 Windfall will ten.

Clearwater Way

He has published three books of poetry: Parzival, (1981), a journey from Lewiston, Idaho to San Francisco, Ireland, and Portland; Phoenix Fire (1987) consisting mostly of anti-nuclear political poems; and The Turn (2000), which tells of travels in Europe, mostly in Germany, before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. His book Clearwater Way from Traprock Books (2009). The Turn and Clearwater Way are available through Windfall Press.

9 minutes, 30 seconds
In keeping with the Stafford Celebration tradition Bill talks about Stafford, reads a Stafford poem and then on of his own. The one hour Meadowlake Studios Encounter show of the Stafford Celebration will air on McMinnville Community Media.

Challenges of field videography

2012-01-29T16:23:00.000-08:00

The last song in the Dante Zapata Trio's set is Broken written by Dante. Three of us on the video crew, two cameras, two mics. Audio through Sony 170 is not what it is best at. The speakers were on opposite sides of the stage and there was no audio board we could plug into. We put the two mics in the center by the center camera. The B-Roll camera got switched off a couple of times, easy to do, when moving around. Editing was a struggle. The blow out on the right we could not fix.
It is the uniqueness and challenge each field session presents which keeps me trying and working to get better. I keep going back to Videomaker to take advantage of their terrific site.

Dante Zapata Trio "Your Little Spell"

2012-01-28T17:13:00.000-08:00

Another song from the Dante Zapata Trio "Your little spell" written by Dante Zapata. This was a live performance.

The 30 minute video of all the tunes the Trio did is showing on McMinnville Community Media Sunday 5:30pm; Monday 8:00pm;
Tuesday 10:30am, and Friday 6:30 pm.

This is a young group. I'm looking forward to their writing more songs

Barbara Drake at William Stafford Poetry reading

2012-01-27T16:45:00.000-08:00

Barbara Drake, poet and Linfield College professor emeritus, hosts the William Stafford Birthday Celebration. She talks about Stafford, reads one of his poems and reads one of her own. Our Meadowlake Studios Encounter of the event will be on McMinnville Community Media.

In 2010 when Barbara Drake book Driving One Hundred, Part 1 came out, we filmed her reading. Driving One Hundred, Part 2 We have to do part 1 and 2 due to Youtube 15 minute limit.

William Stafford Birthday Celebration

2012-01-26T16:51:00.000-08:00

Bill Stafford

Every year for the past several years in January all across Oregon Friends of William Stafford hold poetry readings. We filmed our third Stafford poetry event at Nicholson Library on the Linfield College Campus. A one hour TV show we will take to McMinnville Community Media tomorrow. I like the Stafford Celebration readings because I get to hear different folks read Stafford's poems and their own work.

Here in Yamhill County the Arts Alliance of Yamhill County has sponsored the Paper Gardens Writing Contest for children and adults. This is its 19th year. William Stafford was the first judge of Paper Gardens.

Next I'll edit the individual poet readings. A one hour show is okay for Community Media TV, they are desperate for local content, and we are happy to be able to provide it. But shorter individual poet readings is much better for the internet.

Music Video inspiration

2012-01-25T17:16:00.000-08:00

Sar Gorh the Owl

I've been editing and posting our music video of Dante Zapata Trio. Today I found inspiration to do better. Final Cut Producer, Andy Coon's blog is a find for the struggling videographer. The music video that Coon's worked on Tom Maxwell & the Minor Drag "Jacob Marley" is wonderful. I would upload a clip of the video, but it is on vimeo which does not want to load to this blog.

Meadowlake Studios Encounter Kylee Fernandez

2012-01-24T16:04:00.000-08:00

Meadowlake Studios produces a TV show Meadowlake Studios Encounter. Recently we filmed the Dante Zapata Trio. One of the trio Kylee Fernandez did a nice rendition of "Spelunking", a song written by her friend Laura Veirs.

The Encounter shows are aired on McMinnville Community Media. Editing shows into a TV 30 minute or 1 hour format for Community TV has helped us think about shows with a beginning, middle and end.

Art Cart - archiving, ageing creatively

2012-01-23T15:41:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Maureen at Writing without Paper on her Saturday Sharing made me curious about Art Cart - Saving the Legacy The 11 minute video about the program is on vimeo.

John the Monk

Art Cart is a program at Columbia University in NYC that has graduate students cataloging and archiving the work of elderly (68 plus) artists. Being an artist geezer myself I think it is a great project.

I agree with one artist who said artists are not necessarily old, they are active doing art or they are not. Another idea mentioned in the video is the accumulation of art over the years can be a problem and burden when it is left behind, which will happen. A third concept is continuing to work as an artist and creating is a way to stay active and engaged in life as the years grow shorter.

Video Editing challenge: Meadowlake Studios Encounter: Dante Zapata

2012-01-22T16:10:00.000-08:00

Dante Zapata's "She's not going to change your mind" has feeling and depth. The up tempo Reggie gives it movement.

We had a great time filming at Double D Music. They were gracious in letting us move around and take over their limited space.
We put together a 30 minute Meadowlake Studios Encounter show of the Dante Zapata Trio. The show should air on McMinnville Community Media soon.

Directing (and editing) a two camera shoot when the camera operators are not in audio contact and the cameras are not going through a switcher is not the best of situations. Getting them to in sinc at the beginning is easy. Then one of the cameras get snapped off for a few seconds, it happens so easy, then the editing is a nightmare.

Writing Blogs and Poetry video editing

2012-01-21T16:46:00.000-08:00

Curiosity is the essence

    Looking for a list of writing blogs I found Writing and Literary Blogs which has a great list of blogs from writers and others in the publishing business about the business.
     Sniffing out different blogs is a great way to encounter that special idea. The one that makes the nose inhale deep with the scent of possibilities. Then I read Heather Webb article on Kris Brady's blog about sticking to writing goals and how easy it is to surf around reading blogs and not doing the work.
     In my defense I'm taking a break from editing the Meadowlake Studios Encounter video we did of the William Stafford Poetry Celebration last week. I've been listening closely most of the day to poets reading Stafford and their own poems.

Dante Zapata Trio performing Our Love

2012-01-20T17:05:00.000-08:00

Meadowlake Studios filmed the Dante Zapata Trio at Double D Music on 3rd Street in McMinnville, Oregon. We used two cameras, Sony 170 and then edited the two tapes. We have put together a 30 minute Meadowlake Studios Encounter TV show of their performance which will air on McMinnville Community Media soon.

"Our Love" written by Dante Zapata and Kylee Fernandez is the first of 5 songs from their performance. It is also on our YouTube channel with our name Meadowlake Studios

Sculpture, clay working

2012-01-19T17:55:00.000-08:00

Lum Tue Mar

Got out in the studio today. Not with all the kids watching, that was from the Art Harvest Studio Tour past. No today it was raining, dark, quiet perfect for sculpture making. I've been away from the clay for days.
Although I am not in the Oregon Potters Association Showcase this spring I'm looking forward to going. The Showcase always gets me excited about doing clay. There are so many fantastic clay workers. May 4, 5, and 6 this year at the Portland Convention Center.

My booth at Showcase last year 2011. We stayed in Portland for the weekend. Went out to dinner and listened to some music. I was happy many people liked my tea bowls.

Blog favorite Writing Without Paper

2012-01-18T14:50:00.000-08:00

Maureen who provides the blog Writing Without Paper is the best. I am new at this and her blog is an inspiration and a resource. Her posts are titled by the day Wednesday Wonder, Monday Muse and my favorite Saturday Sharing. She does a wonderful job of curating information. I love following in her click-steps and enjoy the places she leads me to.
My intention for blogging is very different from her blog, but I appreciate the work.

writer author blog research

2012-01-17T16:47:00.000-08:00

Research takes time. Even with the fantastic search tools available. The SEOmos blog entry today about ways to increase blog traffic was helpful in the extreme. Google search like writer blog inurl: lists takes me to Donna McDine blog, which give me a wonderful list of author blogs. There are a lot of blogs which list other blogs. It's great. I'm looking at blogspot blogs to see how they look so I can settle on a look.

If a site is stale, it is done. Six month blanks, gone. And that tells me something.

Must reads for thinking, writing and blogging

2012-01-16T16:02:00.000-08:00

    Jane Friedman's blog article 12 must read Articles from 2011 are true must reads. The first article on her list is Accessibility vs. access by Maria Popova in Nieman's Journalism Lab. Blogger or as Popova calls them "information curator" can be seen as information cross pollinator who reaches to collect information then carries it back out to the hive.
    She says it beautifully "Knowledge is not a lean-back process; it’s a lean-forward activity. Just because public domain content is online and indexed, doesn’t mean that those outside the small self-selected group of scholars already interested in it will ever discover it and engage in it." and "Information curators are that necessary cross-pollinator between accessibility and access, between availability and actionability, guiding people to smart, interesting, culturally relevant content that “rots away” in some digital archive, just like its analog versions used to in basement of some library or museum or university"
The difference today is there are a lot of folks out scrounging around in those dark corners and dusty boxes full of odds and ends. But I have agree with Popova that with all the information available there may be a barrier of motivation.
     She puts in nicely, "The relationship between ease of access and motivation seems to be inversely proportional because, as the sheer volume of information that becomes available and accessible to us increases, we become increasingly paralyzed to actually access all but the most prominent of it — prominent by way of media coverage, prominent by way of peer recommendation, prominent by way of alignment with our existing interests. This is why information that isn’t rare in technical terms, in terms of being free and open to anyone willing to and knowledgeable about how to access it, may still remain rare in practical terms, accessed by only a handful of motivated scholars."
I had not thought of blogger as "editor" before. Popova's interview in Brain Pickings with Eli Pariser about his book "The Filter Bubble", he makes a interesting point. "The primary purpose of an editor [is] to extend the horizon of what people are interested in and what people know. Giving people what they think they want is easy, but it’s also not very satisfying: the same stuff, over and over again. Great editors are like great matchmakers: they introduce people to whole new ways of thinking, and they fall in love.”
Pariser conclusion as a way to overcome the herding of what we learn by the filters of search sites like Google is to behave randomly, follow whims and tangents, "roads less traveled".   The filter algorithms are forced to expand. It is the roll of us and the roll of editors to help.

Story telling

2012-01-15T10:55:00.000-08:00

Reading Jeff Baker's article Talented fiction writer displayes his talent for non-fiction about William Gibson in today's Oregonian. I love the Gibson quote "This newfound state of No Future is, in my opinion, a very good thing. It indicates a kind of maturity, an understanding that every future is someone else's past, every present someone else's future. Upon arriving in the capital-F Future, we discover it, invariably, to be the lower-case now."
To me it is one of the essences of story telling "every future is someone else's past. every present someone else's future."

Reading and writing

2012-01-14T15:18:00.000-08:00

Setting in front of a warm fire, big oak logs rumbling with a lazy rhythm. Reading Boarderliners by Peter Hoag. It is dim from rain clouds moving in. Maybe snow tomorrow. A good time to write.
Surfing I ran across a free e-book list at www.freelancewriting.com. Some good titles. The HP Lovecraft book on writing weird fiction from 1933.

Creativity and the individual

2012-01-13T22:06:00.000-08:00

I completely agree with Susan Cain "The Rise Of The New Groupthink" in the New York Times Sunday Review. A group does not think. A group gravitates to the power of the person who leads or who will not adjust to any other view but their own. They wear a group down. And as Cain indicates. Groups are easy to hide in. The best creative work is done by a person working, doing the heavy lifting, on their own.
Pep talks and encouragement is always great. It helps. A good group can give that to a person. The work itself takes persistence, dedication and devotion to what they are doing. That comes from the person's ethic.

Poetry Reading, Writing, Blood Orange Review

2012-01-12T21:20:00.000-08:00

The filming of the Stafford poetry reading went well. New folks reading and new poems read. Fewer students. Mostly us grey headed folks. Finished reading Red to Black. Lots of narrative, that seemed to struggle to close in and get to near the story.

The Blood Orange Review is bright with colorful home page, it hurts the eyes. But the creative writing, the fiction and the poems are much calmer. CI Bledsoe's poem "starting a garden" is wonderful.

William Stafford Memorial Poetry reading

2012-01-11T15:02:00.000-08:00

Getting cameras and everything ready for the Annual William Stafford Memorial Poetry Reading at Linfield's Nicholson Library.

The reading is hosted by Barbara Drake whose most recent book of poetry is "Driving One Hundred". This will be the third time we have filmed Barbara and the Stafford event. I like it because they invite anyone to come up and read a favorite Stafford poem and then one of their own poems. It makes for a great evening.

Frog eating bats and forgiveness

2012-01-10T17:10:00.000-08:00

Smithsonian Tropical Research video article on Frog eating Bats by Rachel Page shows nature with its conflicts and terrors. The frogs must produce a mating call to get a mate and propagate. The mating call is also what leads the frog eating bats to them. And the bats can tell from the call if the frog is good eating or is poisonous.
And then reading Olin Morales in his blog C2C talking about all of the emotions that need to be felt before there can be "forgiveness" Given the complexity of our world and our nature I wonder what the emotion of forgiveness feels like.

William Stafford annual celebration

2012-01-09T17:35:00.000-08:00

Reading "The Darkness Around Us Is Deep" by William Stafford getting ready for a Stafford celebration at the Library on Wednesday. We will be filming the poetry reading and putting into a show for the local TV McMinnville Community Media. I'll put it on our YouTube channel.

Writing and the Delete Key

2012-01-08T17:31:00.000-08:00

Rachel Kadish in a Ploughshare's blog says we live in an age of instantaneous deletion. The delete key is our friend. That is for sure. But I'm of an age when paper got crumpled into a waste basket overflowing on the floor, then used to start the fire in the fireplace. She is sweetly nostalgic, but I truly love spell check.

Because we write to be heard or read, Rachel says all writing is essentially an unrequited love letter. Were it so simple.

Internet Writing as Promotion

2012-01-07T15:12:00.000-08:00

Reading Leslie Jaminson's article My Internet Relations in Rain Taxi. She talks about the tension of creating and marketing her book "The Gin Closet" (free press). She talks with a self depreciating voice as she describes how she has to promote herself but does not want to seem self promotional.
She presents a very good case for using the internet to do promotion. She is forced to write articles and essay she would not think to write about subjects she would not have considered. And she discovers the self promotion is about the book and not her. Although the internet seems to make the distinction somewhat hard to make.

2012-01-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

Reading Lisa Caldarone's Journey of a Literary Journal about starting a Literary Journal. Just what I needed to hear. Wow. A lot of work. Hmmmm.

Caldarone mentions that Glimmer Train gets 40,000 submission a year, 750 per week. That is a huge amount of reading. They are successful, but it is daunting.

She provides a fantastic list to consider for marketing a new Journal

Develop a clean, sophisticated design for your site – this will announce the value of your enterprise more than anything else
The best marketing technique is simply to publish excellence from a variety of writers, new and emerging; for journals, less can be more – publish only the stories, essays, and poetry that blow you away
Create an opt-in e-mail listserv and/or e-newsletter for your journal
Exchange links with other magazines
Network; as your community of writers and readers grow, correspond with friends around the world on a daily basis
Send out press releases when something new & exciting is going on (first issue, first big-name author, new web redesign, new columns/features, etc.)
Attend the Annual AWP Conference Book Fair
Participate in various writing conferences across the county, including the Sewanee Writers Conference & the Bread Loaf Writers Conference
Sponsor or co-sponsor readings and presentations at the AWP conference
Hold readings of selected work from the latest issue of your journal in your local community
Post new features on your website every 1-2 weeks
Archive the online journal permanently in libraries worldwide through the LOCKSS program initiated by Stanford University
Register and keep your profile up-to-date in Duotrope’s Digest – best registry of online journals available
For online journals, it’s important to have some print marketing materials to hand out, such as postcards w/ photos from the latest issue
Seek out “Best of the Net” – every literary journal can nominate poetry there
Nominate your best work for the Pushcart Prize
Use your blog to weigh in on the discussion surrounding today’s literature; be brief & don’t be afraid to say something confrontational if you believe in it
Post 1-2 new posts per week on your blog; content can include quick interviews with writers in magazine, promotion of events, special events of interest to writers in regional area
Send especially exciting issue links to popular blogs
Announce your “birth” at newpages.com
When first starting out, solicit many of the MFA departments in the country; it’s a quick way to get submissions
Purchase an ad in a magazine that most suits your journal’s style to announce your presence
Use Twitter – a most important marketing tool because a lot of book lovers, authors, and literary journal folks are on it. Use Twitter to announce links to new blog posts, interviews with a best-selling author, most recent issues, etc. Retweet anything from any of your authors
Take adequate time to help your publication find its audience; be careful not to cross the line into blind, belligerent promotion…!

And if that weren't enough she has more in Part Two

Community Building

Build community around the journal by creating personal, ongoing relationships with contributors
Send one e-mail a month to your e-list – no more or it gets too much, no less or they forget about you. Weekly is too much; monthly is appropriate.
Build your audience organically by having some patience and letting people come to you; don’t overdue it with email blasts and online publicity
Encourage editors to respond to emails in personal ways, including signing their own name when rejecting submissions
Build a sense of trust among other literary journals, and focus on cross-promotion not just of your journals, but of the artists and writers for whom you share a mutual appreciation

Blogs & Social Networking

Blogs are flickering fireflies of promotion; make connections with both new & established ones
Tap into the blogosphere with a niche genre
Use your blog for in-depth content – book reviews, interviews, spotlights on contributors
Create a Facebook page for the journal & encourage your editorial board & contributors to use their personal FB pages to announce new issues
For online journals, use social networking & interactivity tools to find a way for readers to be able to discuss what they’ve just read

Word of Mouth

Mail your call for submissions to all department heads you can get email addresses for
Make sure your faculty who have connections talk up the latest issue among their writer friends, colleagues, and in their classrooms
Some of your better known contributors will bring a lot of people to each issue, with their mailing lists, students, and colleagues, plus in Google searches of their name
Pitch to Poets & Writers & try to get special issues reviewed in other popular literary outlets

The Real World

Give the journal some sense of presence in the world by holding readings and events in the community
Attend conferences and book fairs, most especially AWP’s book fair, where you have a captive audience actively looking for new journals to read and submit to.
Put up posters around campus
Hold poetry slams and other student readings at the local bookstore, library, or other literary outlet
When your literary journal is established and has built a solid reputation, pitch it as a learning tool for English courses in high schools and undergraduate programs
Sponsor live events open to the public, inviting artists in multiple genres together; these will help you connect to your readership and create a lot of energy around each issue.

Novelty Ideas

Provide your contributors with announcement cards that they can spread around
Make a hand-made version of your first online issue, which you can pass out at local readings and at the local book fair. Make about 500 of these mini-mags (2 in x 2 in). People enjoy the novelty of these hand-made items, which will drive traffic to your site & they can keep as a momento

I know I do not need to copy and paste from her blog, but I've seen sites and blogs get pulled, so just the referral link worried me. She did such great work I want to make sure I have it with me.

Technology, creativity

2012-01-05T20:04:00.000-08:00

reading "What defines a Meme?" by James Gleick writing in the May issue of the Smithsonian Magazine. He refers to Richard Dawkin contention the center of life, the center of the cell, is information, instructional code. Evolution is the exchange between a self (organism) and the environment. Gleick says we are surrounded by technology. It does seem to be absorbing us. Technology increases our interactions and exchanges. The hard part is being creative and not becoming passive, thus consumed. Writing sure is easier than in the day of clay tablets and sharp sticks.

Wild Rice (Manoonan) to Hiawatha

2012-01-04T18:14:00.000-08:00

Reading an article in the paper about growing wild rice in the Willamette Valley. The article said "wild grain (whose name in Ojibwe means "good berry") never gave the Ojibwe word. I had to know. The word for the good berry wild rice is Manoonin and there is a website with great information about the major roll wild rice played in the lives of the Ojibwe peoples. More than I wanted to know.

The serendipity that is the internet I found the Native American Words in Longfellow's Hiawatha The original word was "Hayowent'ha which meant "He Who Combs". Henry was singing his own Song with his story of Hiawatha who accepts the Christan message and then pushes off for the sunset and disappears forever. I'm thinking, if he were writing today Henry's Song might have a different ending, or maybe not.

Writing apps

2012-01-03T15:47:00.000-08:00

Found an app that can help find errors and reformat. Clear Text at the Apple store. It can capitalize, find those tiny extra spaces, repair a missing quotation mark and such. Nice little app. So with Grammar App (also at the Apple store) and spell check I'm ready.

Short Film Festival

2012-01-02T12:53:00.000-08:00

We were in the first McMinnville Short Film Festival held last October 2011. They are on Facebook and they are working on a website. I hope to be one of the volunteers to help make it more fun than last year.

The 2012 McMinnville Short Film Festival planning session is scheduled for next week. I was reading a discussion on Indietalk on the questions of starting a film festival. There were many questions. Submission Entry fee or Not? Audience ticket? How much for advertising? And many more questions than suggestions.

Advertising is critical. Reaching out for submissions and building a festival audience. Getting volunteers is important. Having good screening venues and building relationships with local organizations helps embed the festival in you community.

Reading Idea Mag they make the points that it is critical to have a festival team with the right mix of experience, passion and a shared vision of the festival.

Online Video Good Business Opportunity

2012-01-01T15:45:00.000-08:00

Taking a break from editing a music session we did with Dante Zapata at Double D Music. Since we do a lot of video production, I was encouraged when I read the Business News Daily article 45 business ideas we loved in 2011, which mentioned Online video production as a good business opportunity.

Business News Daily says "While businesses used to reserve video for their television ads, the Internet has opened up a new world of opportunities for the medium, and everyone is looking for that next great viral video to spur on their brand. According to a survey from Brightcove, nearly 85 percent of brand managers indicated they are currently using online video on business websites for marketing products and services. That, in turn, is creating opportunities for everyone from telecommunications specialists to film school majors to use their creative talents.

Steve Garfield, author of Online Video Secrets to Building your business (Wiley, 2010), said online video is popular now because it allows businesses to connect with customers and prospects in a real, authentic way. “There's nowhere else for online video to go but to become more popular,” Garfield said. “Casual video, business video, entertainment video, news video — we are seeing everyone embrace the Web as a distribution platform for video.”

Your parents were wrong. You can use your degree in 1950s film noir to earn a living. And a specialty in a particular kind of film might even be helpful. Just be sure your personal artistic vision doesn't get in the way of giving customers what they want."

Providing customers what they want is always the test.

Leavings and New Beginnings

2011-12-31T14:27:00.000-08:00

2011 is easy to say good-bye to. Going into 12 doing research and lots of resolutions.

I thought social media might have killed off short short stories or is it flash fiction, but today when I read Facebook Auteur by Scott Bradfield in the New York Times Book Review I felt better. Bradfield talks about Lou Beach's book of short stories "420 Characters". Facebook's status update limit is 420 characters. Beach writes his stories in 420 characters, open, middle, ending. I am cheering with Bradfield that the short story is just a tough little rascal, who battles and claws through these harsh media toxic climates to stay very much alive.

I remembered the 6 word story that has been around a long time. Was it the Hemingway 6 word story? "Baby shoes, For Sale, Never Used."

July catching up

2011-07-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

Here it is July 15. We did a nice show last weekend the ArtInMac Artist Village on the Linfield campus. Not much money, but fun. Got some good film of the event and artists doing demonstrations.

Our 2010 Art Harvest Studio Tour.mov

2011-02-23T20:29:00.000-08:00

Good day to sit in front of the fire

2010-03-11T13:40:00.000-08:00

It is a good day to have the fire purring along warm enough to warm my feet as I look outside at this rainy March day. The morning spent in a Bakery talking with artists about organizations and it seemed a lot like business. But no one is making any money.

Working class neighborhood, walking and getting really old

2010-02-23T17:10:00.000-08:00

Maybe a house in McMinnville? An offer accepted, but you know how that goes. A kinda scruffy workingclass neighborhood. The kind we grew up in. A house from the 40s. Back to walking, which I look forward to. It's odd to be looking for a place to be old.

Good Day for a Walk

2010-02-21T17:16:00.000-08:00

Morning walk around a McMinnville neighborhood, warm sunny February day. The Carlton Together Cares auction is over. Thinking about what comes next. Will be looking at some houses. Tomorrow night AAYC elects some Board of Directors at the meeting at the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg.
Editing for the next Cultural Textures show is coming along. Harder to do when the weather is so nice.

Gardening

2010-02-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

Sunny day in February here in Oregon. Prune the fig trees. Tomorrow do a Raku firing if the sun stays with us.

Our Foremothers art show

2010-02-17T20:55:00.000-08:00

We interviewed jane and deanna yesterday at the chemeketa campus art gallery in Salem. Great interview. Our Foremothers is an amazing show. http://www.chemeketa.edu/programs/art/art_gallery/Foremothers.shtml Worth the trip to Salem. We will be producing a Cultural Textures show to put on local cable access MCM11.org, but seeing the show is so much better than any TV show. These 25 women artists from the past will inspire.

Post Production Video Work

2009-11-04T19:50:00.000-08:00

Loaded into Final Cut the interviews from yesterday's interviews at the Cultural Campaign mailing party. Next comes putting the 30 minute show together and let everyone know what a great thing the Cultural Campaign is for our area. Nothing like having several hours of editing to do to make a person appreciate a comfortable chair.

Video filming Cultural Campaign

2009-11-03T17:38:00.000-08:00

Spent part of the day interviewing volunteers from organizations helping with the Cultural Campaign mailing. They talked about the wonderful programs, like the Gallery Theater's summer theater camp of kids, or the Brown bag concerts the the Mac Downtown Association puts on in the summer. Everyone thanked the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition for putting the campaign together. Now comes editing the interveiws into a show for MCM to put on.

Update

2009-11-02T19:55:00.000-08:00

Art Harvest Studio Tour is over. Moving on to some interesting video projects, having just finished the Linfield Chamber Orchestra's Youth Concert 30 minute TV show. I will take it down to McMinnville Community Media tomorrow.

Art Shows and Videos

2009-02-04T08:44:00.000-08:00

An new year, a new blog. At Meadowlake Studios we do art and we produce art related videos to show on our cable access tv station (http://www.mcm11.org/). Video production is an on-going project.

Art Shows:
The Art Harvest Studio Tour (http://www.artharveststudiotour.org/) that happened this past October 08 is way over. Even with all of the economic fear, we still have a fairly successful show.
We are part of a new arts group Yamhill Valley Arts, which is helping put together an art show in McMinnville. It is our first effort at this kind of thing. The show is called "Living with it" to display some of the kinds of practical art folks live with, like clocks, sinks and tables as well as wall pieces. The show will open on the Third Saturday Art and Wine Walk (http://www.downtownmcminnville.com/) Saturday February 21st at the Mezzanine Gallery of Accolades on 3rd and Evens.