By Jessie Raynor, Akron Area Arts Alliance Director

Summit Artspace Gallery opened its 10th anniversary season with Unmonumental Landscapes, an exhibition by emerging artists Debra DeGregorio, Coe Lapossy, Sommer Tolan and Chelsea Blackerby. The young women explore personal understandings of the contemporary world through landscapes created from collections of ideas, objects and images.

The group was brought together by DeGregorio, who recently returned to Akron after earning an MFA in New York. She said the show illustrates a current trend she saw of creating art that appears ephemeral or temporary. “It seems the pendulum of art has swung from expensive, precious materials presented literally on a pedestal to more accessible, less materially impressive media presented lightly,” DeGregorio said.

In creating their paintings, the artists used inexpensive materials such as expanses of white paper, watercolors, straight pins, thread, sequins and gel pens. Colors used are soft, airy pastels – ethereal hues that create an overall feeling in the gallery of floating. The majority of works are simply tacked to the walls, making them appear all the more transitory. DeGregorio and Tolan agreed that by omitting the expense of working on framed canvases, they felt free to experiment and just let things happen.

The anchors in the room are installations by Lapossy and Blackerby. Shown on a large screen TV, Lapossy’s video installation is titled Waking Up and Getting Up Has Never Been Easy. It shows a groping hand searching through an endless tunnel of undulating, cloth sheets. Blackerby’s sculptural installation, titled Excellent Accommodations, uses plastic toy packaging that has been boiled to melt into interesting shapes. Splashed with light green and soft pink paints, her fanciful structures sit atop rusted wire stands. To an imaginative eye the transfigured trash looks like miniature gardens, mountain ranges and enchanted forests. Yet Blackerby’s interest is homelessness and the creative housing solutions of vagabonds, squatters and displaced populations.

The exhibition runs through February 25. Summit Artspace, a growing downtown art center, is a project of the Akron Area Arts Alliance in partnership with Summit County government.

DANCECleveland, a Knight Foundation grant recipient, is thrilled to be presenting Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company this weekend at Playhouse Square.  In addition to the main stage performances, we are hosting:

Pre-performance lecture:

• Saturday, January, 28 at 7:15 pm or Sunday, January 29 at 2:15pm. Join us in the Ohio Theatre for a conversation lead by Avshalom Pollak.

Post-performance events:

• Moderated Question and Answer session with members of the Company immediately following both performances
• Stop into Speakeasy! Mix and mingle with fellow dance lovers and enjoy cocktails and conversation at the Ohio Theatre Lobby Bar after the show. (Evening performance only; cash bar.)

Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company's Masterwork Oyster

Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company was founded in 1992 and has toured the globe to critical acclaim. The company consists of 12 dancer/actors working among various artistic disciplines to create new work informed by memories, longings, ideas and imagination.

By Beth Rutkowski, GroundWorks DanceTheatre

Northeast Ohio’s premier dance company has announced the dates and locations for the world premiere of new work by choreographer Ronen Koresh. The piece was commissioned with generous support from Toby Devan Lewis through her contribution to the GroundWorks New Works Fund and will premiere in Cleveland and Akron in February 2012. The Akron premiere will be on February 24 and 25 at the Akron-Summit County Public Library. All performances will begin at 7:30 pm.

"Hindsight" Felise Bagley, Photo by Dale Dong

Koresh has performed and choreographed commissioned works for dance companies throughout the U.S. as well as South Korea, Japan, Turkey and Israel, where he was born and raised. He formed the Koresh Dance Company, based in Philadelphia, PA, in 1991 and is a Professor of Jazz Dance at the University of the Arts of Philadelphia.

“Ronen has a unique approach to musicality, timing and precision as he explores the sources of his movement,” said GroundWorks Artistic Director David Shimotakahara. “He combines organic movement and imagery that connects viewers to what they see.”

Also on the program will be a reprise of “Hindsight” by Lynne Taylor-Corbett, an homage to Northeast Ohio rock legend Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders, and “Valence” by GroundWorks Artistic Associate Amy Miller created in 2010 in collaboration with Oberlin composer Peter Swendsen.

GroundWorks DanceTheater: February 24 & 25, 7:30 pm; Akron-Summit County Public Library: 60 S. High Street, Akron (Downtown)

By Val Renner, Akron Civic Theatre

January is upon us and we are very excited to start our 2012 shows out with three shows that highlight the diversity among local artists here in Northeastern Ohio. Devo, Chrissie Hynde and the Black Keys had to start somewhere and these three very talented acts could get their big breaks here at the Civic during the Local Artist Showcase on January 21st.

ZOBAPAGO

The lineup includes Madison Cummins, who will be making her Civic stage debut with her soulful acoustic sound. Also featured is Ashley Brooke Toussant, who is no stranger to the Civic stage having recently opened for country legend Don Williams. Ms. Toussant’ alt-country set will feature songs from her recently-released album Sweetheart. Rounding out the evening will be Unseen Masterpiece, an all-folk and jazz group that has been delighting audiences all over Northeast Ohio. The trio will be performing songs from their recently released album Couches & Castles.

After this show, comes another local programming of Jazz@ The Civic with Forecast on January 27th. Forecast is a sassy jazz group from Cleveland and last, but not least, ZOBAPAGO will return on January 29th. ZOBAPAGO embodies dynamic entertainment and educational material that relate to topics of a child’s everyday life, with a focus on science, health and hygiene. The audience will be transported to Zobapa-Dopolis where characters such as TaxiMan Zan and Quizzical Lizzy will entertain and educate them on a healthy way of life. We love to have the opportunity to showcase and present some of the local talent that Northeast Ohio has to offer!

By DANCECleveland

DANCECleveland is pleased to be presenting one of Israel’s premier dance companies, Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company at the Ohio Theatre at Playhouse Square on Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 3:00 p.m.

From Isreal, the Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company performs in Cleveland in January.

From the Innovative minds of Israeli choreographer Inbal Pinto and director Avshalom Pollak comes Oyster, a magical and mysterious work that combines the dreamlike qualities of Fellini and the keen intellect of Pina Bausch.  Enter a fantastic circus-world of wandering street acrobats and oddly beautiful creatures.  Performances and dancers in doll-like make-up, spiky blonde wigs, and tutus alternately become puppets or puppeteers.  The unique movement combines ballet, contemporary mime and acrobatics in an unforgettable magical performance.

DANCECleveland is the proud recipient of a grant from the Knight Foundation for our Akron presentation of MOMIX in October of 2011.

For more information about the presentation of Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak, please call the DANCECleveland offices at 216-991-9000 or check out dancecleveland.org.  

By Jessie Raynor, Akron Area Arts Alliance director

Every generation has its toy manias from Troll Dolls to Ninja Turtles to Beanie Babies to Hello Kitty.  Now the rage is Munny, a blank, white vinyl doll with moveable parts that challenges its owner to create a personality.

Guest curator Rob Lehr, a BFA graduate from the Meyers School of Art at the University of Akron, gave Munny dolls to art students, emerging and seasoned artists, professors, even children and challenged them to create works of art inspired by the faceless, naked toy.  The results are on display in the Box Gallery on the third floor of Summit Artspace through December 31.

Matt Miller’s Temptations at 20,000 Leagues from the Paper or Plastic exhibit inspired by the Munny toy

The Box Gallery is one of two galleries located in Summit Artspace, an art center project of the Akron Area Arts Alliance in partnership with Summit County government.  The first floor gallery is currently featuring Kaleidoscope 2012, an annual juried show featuring the talents of members from the Akron Society of Artists, Artists of Rubber City, Women’s Art League and Cuyahoga Valley Art Center.  

By Keith Freund, Akron Art Museum

Most of the photography we do to document our collection at the Akron Art Museum is accomplished in a studio setting with the highest-quality equipment. We hire a photographer and set up a professional studio in our storage areas and galleries to capture our prints, paintings, and sculptures looking their best so that we can share them online, or use them for print material. But we’ve also found it helpful to document the objects as they move, are shown in exhibitions, or are conserved. These photos have not only proven helpful for our preparators, curatorial staff and scholars, but we’ve also recently found that the public enjoys seeing their favorite pieces in a different context (Alexander Lieberman’s Contact III for example).

Installation of ‘Seer (Alice I)’ by Kiki Smith at the Akron Art Museum

The Akron Art Museum recently acquired Seer (Alice I), a fantastic new sculpture by Kiki Smith, and completely redesigned one of our galleries to showcase this work. We documented the installation of the piece, especially since it is quite large and heavy and the odd proportions required special consideration. This way, our preparators can reference these photos for future moves and our Collections Manager can consider them for preservation issues.

More photos and information about Kiki Smith’s sculpture is available on our Knight Foundation-funded Online Collection at http://www.akronartmuseum.org/collection

By Val Renner, Akron Civic Theatre

The Akron Civic Theatre comes alive with the hustle and bustle of the season. The sounds of glee fill the air when children experience the magic of the Nutcracker. It has become a Holiday tradition for many of the families in the area. We have been told as many as five generations have been in attendance together to see the ballet. The Akron Civic Theatre lends its magic to this most enchanting local production.

Christmas Under the Stars with Helen Welch

We love to showcase local artists on the stage and returning this year, with their locally produced Holiday shows are Ryan Humbert and Helen Welch. Ryan Humbert’s 3^rd Annual Holiday Blowout featuring a 16-piece rock-and-soul band performing Humbert’s original songs along with numerous seasonal classics. Humbert will be joined by a 6-piece horn section, the JLTS gospel singers, and the Woodridge High School choir.  Helen Welch will also be returning with her holiday show Christmas Under the Stars. Helen will be backed by her fabulous quintet and two local outstanding show choirs; ETC and Miller South in a Holiday show to make your spirits soar. The theatre stage will also present the Oak Ridge Boys Christmas show and Away in the Basement: The Church Basement Ladies.

By Neil Thackaberry, Actors’ Summit

Good things continue to happen as the result of the Knight Foundation’s support of Actors’ Summit “Bring Your Parents to a Play” program. We added a special performance of Woody Guthrie’s American Song for 150 students and they all went home with fliers about the special Student / Parent program.  Some of the students who had seen the matinee came back to see an evening performance and brought their parents with them.

The outreach program is continuing to gather momentum.  We’ve made presentations to faculty, and to students.  Artists and staff members of the theater will be making classroom visits to prepare students for attendance at Bully, An Adventure with Teddy Roosevelt and The Importance of Being Earnest.

Our Education Coordinator, Aubrey Caldwell put together of video of the school day matinee of Woody Guthrie’s American Song.

Curtain call at Actors' Summit “Bring Your Parents to a Play” program featuring Woody Guthrie

By DANCECleveland

DANCECleveland continues to be thrilled with the response from the Akron community for our presentation of MOMIX on October 1! The crowd of 3,000 was wowed by the spectacular beauty of the dancers, costumes and artwork. The critics, including the Akron Beacon Journal, agreed with the rave reviews (click here to read the review) from the audience!

DANCECleveland performs MOMIX

In addition to the extraordinary main-stage performance, University of Akron dance students benefitted from a week-long residency with the dancers from MOMIX where they worked closely with the dancers to learn techniques unique to MOMIX.

Thanks to the Akron community and our lead sponsor the Knight Foundation for making this remarkable presentation possible!