Viva La Vida is a musical journey through Mexican culture and history that celebrates the groundbreaking painter Frida Kahlo through the medium of the guitar. The journey begins with music of the Mexican baroque from a codex dating from 1732 by Santiago de Murcia that was discovered in 1942 in a Leon, Guanajuato, antique store. Next up is music from the early 20th century guitarist Otaviano Yañez. Yañez was quite a phenomenon celebrated in and around his native Veracruz through his combining of virtuoso guitar music with Mariachi idioms. Manuel Ponce, a contemporary of Kahlo’s, is the most prolific of all Mexican guitar composers. His long association with the great Spanish Guitarist Andrés Segovia yielded not just major works such as the “Sonata Classica” but also more intimate works rooted in traditional Mexican Folk Song such as “Tres Canciones Populares Mexicanas” and “Scherzino Mexicano”. Carlos Chávez was a student of Manuel Ponce and became one of the most important and influential figures in the development of Mexican classical music. Chavez was known for using indigenous folk melodies and rhythms in his compositions as exemplified by his “Three Pieces for Guitar”.
Archives
Frida Kahlo and Mexican Modernism NEW!
This talk considers Frida Kahlo’s work within the larger cultural and societal context of post-Revolution Mexico. Frida’s revolutionary politics and beliefs often informed her work, and more broadly her identity, and were part of a much larger movement related to modernism and “indigenismo” in Mexico after the Revolution. Frida’s work will be placed in conversation with works by other Mexican modernist, such as Diego Rivera, to elucidate how Kahlo used the vernacular of post-revolution Mexican modernism within her artworks.
The Japanese Aesthetic: Floating World to Demi-monde
Why did Ukiyo-e prints resonate so profoundly with artists such as James Whistler, Edouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt, and Toulouse-Lautrec? How did images of Edo’s “floating world” inspire Impressionist and Post Impressionist artists to explore all aspects of European culture, including the Parisian demi-monde? This illustrated adventure will explore the connections between Japanese woodblock prints and the artistic transformations in Western art during the Belle Epoch.
Salis Dembling Workshops
A minimum of 8 participants, with a maximum of 15 participants, is required for each workshop with Salis Dembling. An adjustable standing easel and a drawing board must be supplied by the venue or have participants bring them.
From Enslavement to Empowerment: An Interpretation of the Abstract Architectural Symbolism of Virginia’s Belmead on the James
This is an educational and inspirational lecture that highlights the powerful symbolism of the architecture of Virginia’s Belmead on James, relative to the history of this former plantation that ultimately transformed into two distinctive academic institutions for African Americans, by virtue of the munificence of the heiresses of the Drexel fortune. The fascinating synonymous relationship between the architectural endeavors of the early owners of the property and the individuals that eventually occupied it are highlighted in this captivating presentation – one that extends beyond unique artistic pursuits to exemplify the power and the beauty of the human spirit.
Learn the Basics of Photography
Learn how to use the settings of your camera as you also enjoy being out in nature. As a long-time instructor of mindful photography, Alexandria will take you through exercises of perception. A central part of the program is raising awareness of your own comfort in walking and photographing. Some of the assignments will be done individually and others will be done in pairs and even as a whole group. Topics such as negative space, freezing motion, depth-f-of-field, and color balance will be introduced.
For those who don’t have DSLR’s, cell phone cameras and film cameras are also welcome.
There will be a lecture offering helpful images of the history of nature photography. After each group of assignments, we’ll discuss and review work in slide presentations, learning principles of sequencing and editing along the way.
Limit: 15
What is a Walking Artist?
A walking artist creates the experience of a walk and then materializes that experience in text, photography, film, or a design. The walk can be short or long, fast or extremely slow, in a pattern or in a straight line. The walk can be along an established path or through fields and woods without a path. The walk can be along city streets or out in nature or in a combination of the two.
This workshop will introduce you to walking art, its history and its practice. First, you’ll watch a presentation of videos about the walking artists Richard Long, Hamish Fulton, and Cardiff & Miller. Then we’ll head out to explore possible locations for our walking art piece. Together, we’ll decide on the design of our walk, taking the history of the area into consideration, as well as the sights and sounds. We’ll choose our methods of materializing our walk. We can film or photograph during our walk, or we can walk and then return to do the documentation.
The highpoint of the day will be doing the walk itself, claiming our path and our interaction with the land.
Finally, we can each write text or paint a design reflecting our walk. With Adobe Premiere, we can cut together a video that shows our walking art.
This program is for adults but can also be adapted to children and teens. Limit of students: 30
Portrait of a Watershed
Document your watershed with art! Learn underwater filming with cameras we provide (your hands will be underwater, but not the rest of you). Take photographs and video above water of the wildlife and plants by your stream, pond, or river. We’ll combine the results in an editing workshop using Adobe Premiere. Number of students: up to 10. We have both an adult program and a program for children.
Masked: Wearable Felted Sculptures
Across the globe, varying cultural traditions and ceremonies involve, and are oftentimes centered around the making and performance in a heavenly embellished and ornate mask. Masks can conceal one’s identity, channel the presence of another being or entity, or simply protect its wearer. In this workshop, we’ll delve into the art of sculptural mask making, creating our very own performance mask with wool. We’ll go through the process of needle felting and learn three dimensional techniques to build an object suitable to be worn and imagine the many ways it can be brought to life.
Age range: Middle and High School
Materials: Wool, felting needles, blocks of soft foam (felting pads), industrial felt, scissors, hot glue gun and glue sticks, Velcro, thread.
Felt Memories: Wet Felted Paintings with Wool
When was the last time you looked through that box of old family and childhood photos? Well, it’s time to dust it off! In this workshop, we will source imagery from some of our fondest memories to recreate a series of two-dimensional felted paintings with wool. Felting is a fiber process that uses wool roving or batting, applied in either a wet or dry method, to interlock the fibers into themselves. For this workshop, we’ll be using the wet method. We will start with layering wool batting to create our base, and go through layering, color blocking, and blending. Once completed, you’ll leave this workshop with a hand-crafted retelling of a story you once lived.
This workshop requires either a digital or physical copy of your images.
Age range: Middle and High School and Adult
Space Requirement – access to water in some capacity, and tarp to catch water on the tables and floors.
Materials: Wool, scissors, dish Soap, plastic tarp/ sheeting, wet felting mesh fabric, spray bottles, small containers/buckets, bamboo mat for wet felting.