AHA! A Celebration of Arts and Humanities 2014

October 23 is going to be a wonderful day in Columbia! We are gearing up to once again celebrate excellence in the arts in South Carolina with our second annual Arts and Humanities Awards.

This year’s event is going to be an exciting combination of surprise performances, a miniature art gallery, and of course, the presentation of the awards, all under the roof of the brand new Sheraton Convention Center in Downtown. Over the next few weeks, each Monday we will be featuring one of our award winners and discussing why they have been chosen and recognized for excellence this year.

This year’s award recipients are:

• Collaboration—Trustus Theatre,
• Inspiration—Darien Cavanaugh “The Broadside Project”
• Education—Columbia Baroque
• Innovation—The SAVVY Musician

Stay tuned for more exciting news as AHA! quickly approaches!

Southern Guitar Festival and Southeastern Piano Festival are the sounds of June

Summer in Columbia is Famously Hot, and this summer will be no different! The only thing hotter than the temperatures is the quality of the arts in the Midlands!

This weekend, the Southern Guitar Festival will be introducing wonderful classical guitarists to Columbia through performances beginning Friday June 6 through Sunday June 8. Artists from around the world will be playing and celebrating the craft of classical guitar. This annual event is a beautiful opportunity for musicians to come together and for Columbia to continue to grow as a cultural hub.  To purchase tickets, click here.

 

The following week from June 15-22, the sounds of piano keys will be filling the air at USC with the Southeastern Piano Festival. USC frequently hosts top quality performers, and this festival will be no exception. Such a wide variety of wonderful artists promises to be another celebration of musical excellence. You can purchase your tickets here.

 

The Cultural Council is proud to support so many performers, artists, and organizations and we cannot wait to see the successes of these two amazing festivals.

Unconditional: An Art Opening

“As our church has been exploring ways to reach out to our community, we took an inventory of who we are as a church body, and it became abundantly clear that we are a very creative bunch. Also, a very open and loving bunch. So, what better way to open our doors, than to have an art show that speaks to the unconditional love that fuels our church? Through visual interpretation, live music, and the thoughtful display of food and drink during the reception, St.Mark,UMC is hoping to share in the ‘unconditional’ love experience. “–Trahern Cook, Artist

Tell us if you go to the reception or see the exhibit! We love to hear what the community finds in the art world!

Do you have an upcoming event or exhibit you would like us to share? Email Kaitlin Beckwith at kdiff90@gmail.com with information! We are always happy to share what you are doing in the community.

Call for Artists: Color the Arts 2014

Color the Arts is here again! Our 10th annual event will be held on April 25th at the First Citizens Center. One of our favorite elements of this event is the juried artists exhibition. Each artist accepted will be provided with a booth space to fill with and sell their artwork. Entering is simple: just fill out the webform here and pay the $15 entry via PayPal, or email 3 images with a sample of your work, your contact information, and price range, and mail a $15 entry fee via check to the Cultural Council at 930 Richland Street, Columbia SC 29201 no later than February 26, 2014. 

This exhibit also features a $250 Best in Show award from the Cultural Council for one artist. Additional prize opportunities may be announced as the date gets closer.

Questions? Email Kaitlin at kdiff90@gmail.com. We can’t wait to see what our Midlands artists have this year!

A Call to 2D and 3D Artists: New opportunity for exhibition!

We have some exciting news for artists today! In February we will be partnering with the Greater Columbia Metropolitan Airport for a new arts experience. We are officially issuing a call to 2-D and 3-D artists for rotating exhibition opportunities at the airport!

Artists living in the Midlands will have the opportunity to exhibit their 2-D work on walls between the security checkpoint and the food court at the airport for a period of two months beginning in February, 2014.  3-D artists will be provided the opportunity to exhibit their work in a secured exhibition case at the entrance of the atrium from the ticketing concourse.   Travelers to and from Columbia will be introduced to Midlands artists through their work and will be provided information to contact the artist if they wish to purchase any of the pieces.

“The arts provide a great introduction to our area.  We have such fine artists living here, and exhibiting their work to the traveling public will enhance the travel experience to the traveler and provide exposure to the artist and their work,” said Anne Sinclair, chairman of the Richland-Lexington District Airport Commission.  “It’s a win-win-win situation for the public, the airport, and the artist community.”

Interested artists are asked to submit 3 images representative of their work to Norree Boyd-Wicks, executive director of the Cultural Council of Richland and Lexington Counties via e-mail to Norree@SmartArts.info by Wednesday, January 8, 2014.  Artists will be selected and notified as to their exhibition dates.  All 2-D work must be exhibition ready with proper hanging wire and hooks.  All work, 2-D and 3-D must have proper labeling.  Information about the artist and the exhibited works will be prepared by the Cultural Council and provided to those interested in contacting the artist.

We are so excited to be partnering with the Greater Columbia Metropolitan Airport for this project. It’s a wonderful way to celebrate our 30 years of service to the arts in the midlands!

Decker Boulevard Mural: Pre-bid Conference Review

Yesterday we were able to meet with several artists, Councilman Jim Manning, and some staff members from Richland County to discuss the vision for the Decker Boulevard mural project. It was a great chance for artists to come together and hear in further detail how the project idea came about, what it means for the community of the International Corridor, and to ask questions about how the process will work.

We mentioned in last week’s post that we are heavily encouraging student involvement in the mural creation project. Artist Karl Wicks had some great points about this as he has worked with high school students in Columbia on other murals previously. “Getting kids involved creates a sense of ownership and pride in the community. Students really bond to the projects they are involved in and this would be a great avenue to unite kids across cultures, even if they just do something like prep a section of the wall.”

We were also joined by artist Gerard Erley who had some excellent points about uniting a team of artists to create this project proposal, and said it might be a great way to help incorporate the multicultural focus of the mural into the entire process.

Councilman Jim Manning is greatly enthusiastic about the project as well, having been an avid fan of mural art after seeing it frequently on annual road trips with his son. He believes this mural has the potential to be great for the International Corridor as it works towards community revitalization. Manning was able to give us insight into the eagerness of business owners and law enforcement officials to begin the project,

Decker Boulevard’s mural will be a wonderful addition to the multicultural heritage of the International Corridor. Artists, government officials, business owners, students, teachers, and law enforcement officers alike are all united in their enthusiasm to begin. Design proposals are due by Wednesday, December 18th at 4:00 pm. A detailed copy of the RFP can be downloaded here.

We are greatly looking forward to seeing the visions of all of the interested artists and selecting the design that will be proudly displayed on Decker Boulevard!

Decker Boulevard: A Mural Arts Opportunity

 

If you live in Columbia, chances are you have heard of Decker Boulevard. Fondly known as the International Corridor is home to the widest variety of cultures, nationalities, and heritages in the area. In celebration of this unique part of our community, Richland County has decided to sponsor the installation of a mural depicting the multi-ethnic nature of the International Corridor.

The owner of the Staples Building located at 2744 Decker Boulevard has agreed to let the rear wall of the building become the canvas for this mural project. The wall stands 14 feet tall and stretches 133 feet in length, providing the perfect surface for a mural artists’ imagination to run wild.

Do you have five years of experience in the field of mural arts, and a vision for what this project could be? Download the RFP by clicking here to get all the information about the project as well as find out what requirements must be met by an artist’s proposal. 

Here at the Cultural Council, we have a passion for public art in our commuhnity, and we are thrilled to provide this opportunity to our artists. Submit your proposal by December 18th and your work could become a permanent piece of the International Corridor.

We will be hosting a required pre-proposal meeting December 4 at 1:00 pm at the County Council Chambers. Email Norree Boyd-Wicks with any further questions at norree@smartarts.info

Celebrating Your Successes: Creative Journey

“It all began with Gold Star Mother Suzy Shealy, who lost her son in Baghdad in 2005, and City of Columbia cultural arts coordinator Brenda Oliver, who was moved by a touching experience with the Wounded Warrior Transition Unit at Ft. Jackson.  These individuals shared their life-changing experiences which became the heart and soul of Creative Journey.  Creative Journey is an art resource program that provides a monthly art session for the Wounded Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Jackson in Columbia, SC, the Army’s largest installation in the U.S.  The program began this year in January and is designed to use art as a form of recovery for the soldiers, the majority of whom suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.  This is the only arts recovery program in the country for active members of the military that exists as a result of a partnership between city government and the military.  The program is supported by monetary donations and in-kind contributions from local businesses and a host of loyal and loving volunteers whose efforts are part of a wonderful recovery process for the soldiers.

The vision for the program in 2014 calls for expanding the program to include other veterans from the different branches of the services. ” -Brenda Oliver

We are proud to have an organization like Creative Journey in our city! Congratulations on the Award for Programming Excellence; Population over 30,000, City of Columbia Parks and Recreation. You have certainly earned it through all of your hard work.

Do you have exciting news about your organization to share? Send us an email at culturalcouncil.sc@gmail.com and we might feature you next!

Welcome to the Arts Fund Blog!!!

Welcome to the Arts Fund blog from the Cultural Council of Richland and Lexington Counties.  This blog will be a source of information for you and a link to the entire arts community.  At least once a week, a blog will be posted to provide

• the latest news from the Cultural Council
• opportunities for artists and arts organizations
• information on national arts trends
• and anything else we can think of!

 

In addition, we would like to share your news – special awards, extraordinary volunteer or board member, special performances and exhibitions, etc.  We want you to own this blog as much as we do and to send us your stories and links to share with the rest of your colleagues.

 

Thank you for all you do to make the Midlands a GREAT cultural community in which to live!