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November 3, 2008 – 8:33 am
Our politics might be genetic, according to the Boston Globe. What does this suggest in light of my article about the so-called partisan imagination, in which being an artist makes one a liberal (or conservative)?
Studies: Political At Birth “Scientists are now discovering that our political attitudes have deep roots in our biology. Our place on the political spectrum - liberal, conservative, or in between - is powerfully influenced by genetics, new studies show. In the past year, researchers have demonstrated that the brains of liberals and conservatives are physically and functionally distinctive, suggesting that people on either side of the ideological divide are actually wired differently.”
Boston Globe 11/02/08
October 31, 2008 – 10:49 am
October 31, 2008 – 9:55 am
National Novel Writing Month countdown
My ever-practical sister and I have lurched through this dialogue so often I know it by heart. The conversation goes like this:
SHE: “Why would anyone want to do this?”
ME: “It’s a personal challenge.”
SHE: “Okay, but what’s the point?”
ME: “To write 50,000 words of a novel in 30 days.”
SHE: (sighing, rolling her eyes, AND waving dismissively) “I know that! What do you get for doing it?”
ME: “If you do it, you win.”
SHE: “You win what, exactly?”
ME: (giddy as a third grader who knows the answer) “Personal satisfaction!”
SHE: (eyebrows scrunching, does cartoon double-take) “What??”
(At this point, ME excuses myself and leaves the room.)
Admittedly, I do a piss-poor job of explaining all this to her. But you know how it is: she’s my youngest sister. Despite basking in the glow of my brotherly wisdom for years now, there’s no sign at all that she’s seen the light. She still thinks I’m a doof.
So be it. I rise in defense of doof-ish folly.
Every great stride, every boundary-bashing, limit-stomping achievement swept through old barriers when someone shrugged off “sensible” and embraced a carefree, “Why not?”
Gate-crashers make history, wallflowers don’t.
This November, NaNoWriMo (as it’s collegially known amongst us NaNos) celebrates its tenth year of joyfully pitching the hopeful and unwary into “30 days and nights of literary abandon.”
In real life terms, this is like checking yourself into a psych ward of your own making and locking the door behind you; a self-created reality show without the lovely parting gifts and fleeting celebrity spotlight. It’s crazy fun.
NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow. I’ll be blogging about it here, cross-posting from my blog Vicious Bicycle.
Let’s get busy.
October 30, 2008 – 1:09 pm
From the Dayton (Ohio) Daily News . . .
Cincinnati’s top-ranked fund provides a model to arts communities
In a survey of united arts funds conducted by Americans for the Arts, Cincinnati’s Fine Arts Fund ranks number 1. Why? The strengths of tradition and corporate support. Also notable is that Cincinnati’s program doesn’t tolerate budget deficits. “Our donors and the corporations that welcome us into their workplaces expect us to make sure these organizations operate in a financially secure manner,” says the fund’s director. “Those that don’t get some “tough love,” she said. They get smaller checks.”
October 30, 2008 – 1:00 pm
October 30, 2008 – 10:56 am
I wrote a story in this week’s paper about the role of the arts in the democratic process.
Mostly, I explored a statement made by the novelist Stephen Elliott — that artists have empathy and are therefore liberal. I got a wide range of responses from a wide range of people: artists, an English professor, a philosopher, a political scientist, political pundits, and a poet.
While there was disagreement as to whether empathy is inherently political, there was no disagreement about whether the arts create empathy. Everyone agreed that engaging in the arts, trying to see the world through another person’s eyes, is good for creating empathy.
Though empathy has an unhealthy side (creating enablers for those with drug addiction, for instance), empathy, people said, was good for being a citizen in a country as plural as ours.
Sadly, I was unaware of a speech by Barack Obama that touches in this very topic. If I had been aware, I would have incorporated his position on the arts in the piece (or would have written an entirely different kind of story; I probably will in the future, especially if Barry wins the election).
I found that speech today, thanks to a piece in the Los Angeles Times. Obama in fact has said he will make the arts a core element of his presidential policy. He wants to:
Reinvest in Arts Education
Support Increased Funding for the NEA
Promote Cultural Diplomacy
Attract Foreign Talent
Provide Health Care to Artists
Ensure Tax Fairness for Artists
You can read all about his policy position here (pdf).
Most interesting is the reinvestment category. Here’s what he wants to do:
- Expand Public/Private Partnerships Between Schools and Arts Organizations: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will increase resources for the U.S. Department of Education’s Arts Education Model Development and Dissemination Grants, which develop public/private partnerships between schools and arts organizations. They will also engage the foundation and corporate community to increase support for public/private partnerships.
- Create an Artist Corps: Barack Obama and Joe Biden support the creation of an “Artists Corps” of young artists trained to work in low-income schools and their communities. Studies in Chicago have demonstrated that test scores improved faster for students enrolled in low-income schools that link arts across the curriculum than scores for students in schools lacking such programs.
- Publicly Champion the Importance of Arts Education: As president, Barack Obama will use the bully pulpit and the example he will set in the White House to promote the importance of arts and arts education in America. Not only is arts education indispensable for success in a rapidly changing, high skill, information economy, but studies show that arts education raises test scores in other subject areas as well.
October 23, 2008 – 10:29 am
This just in from the Deuce Theatre . . .
Hear ye, hear ye…
Deuce Theatre’s political satire, The Emperor is Naked? opens tomorrow (10/24) in North Charleston and runs until Nov.2. The show makes comments on the last 8 yrs, media manipulation and our current “state of things” leading up to the election. Its also a goofy comedy with actor-generated music and audience participation.
We know how tight things are right now, so we’d like to offer you 1/2 OFF TICKETS to come and support us in our Lowcountry debut!
If you go to our website, www.deucetheatre.com
you’ll see the link to by tickets online (to brown paper tickets)
When you go through the order process you’ll be asked to enter a “DISCOUNT CODE”
The 1/2 off code is:
“wakeup”
(one word, no caps)
Regular tix are $15, 1/2 off $7.50 (students and seniors, $12)
If you buy tix at the door, they are $18, CASH ONLY.
We will have talk-backs after every show & could certainly use your input & suggestions.
Thank you for your support- We hope to see you at the theatre!
October 23, 2008 – 9:44 am
These just in from owner Jonathan Sanchez . . .
At the bookstore: John Thompson will sign his debut novel Armageddon Conspiracy. ($24.98, Harbor House Books.) This event is sponsored by the Upper King Design District – but it should be sponsored by Ambien – because you’ll stay up all night reading this thriller. Hey-ohh!
Next door at Carolina Business Interiors, 416 King, the Blue Bike’s own Lauren Sanchez will show her fall line of l_design handbags, including some larger models and the new Bees Clutch spotted at The Secret Life of Bees film premiere.
Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24 and 25. The Charleston Home Market.10 Storehouse Row, Charleston Naval Base. Antiques expert Judith Miller (not the NYT reporter) and Southern style chronicler Susan Sully — “We knew her when…” — will speak and sign books.
Saturday, Oct. 25, 1 – 3 pm. Charleston writer David Grant will sign copies of Dumbstruck, Magnificent Erection and Hope to Die.
Saturday, Nov. 1, 4 p.m. Kakalak returns to our courtyard with a reading by the best of North and South Carolina poets.
October 17, 2008 – 4:31 pm
It’s coming. I got word yesterday that the third installment of the massive arts party is going to take place on Nov. 15 at 10 Storehouse Row. This time there will be a “skater vibe,” says co-organizer Olivia Pool. She and her cohort are still finalizing the program and plan to issue a press release later next week. But so far, she says, the line-up tentatively includes:
An aerial performance group from Asheville
Art exhibitions from local faves and local unknowns
A skate ramp
On-demand T-shirt printing by artists like Kevin Taylor, Julio Cotto, and Scott Dubos
And a “performance” by Street Level Lab, a local collective merging art and technology
There will also be a website launch to help with information and ticket buying.
Beer is provided by Magic Hat and wine by the bar Social.
More later . . .
October 16, 2008 – 2:53 pm
A spokeswoman for Spoleto USA has accepted a job offer in New York City, her hometown. Kristin M. Matthews joined Spoleto in December as the performing arts organization’s public relations and marketing manager. Her new job is executive director of publicity at Workman Publishing, one of the few independent publishing firms in the city. She begins on Oct. 27. “I’ve had a tremendous experience at Spoleto,” Matthews says. “My time here has been interesting and educational in all the ways you can imagine.” —John Stoehr
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