WHAT HAPPENED AT THE ARIZONA CONSORTIUM, 2009?
December 2009
A DAY OF CULTURE FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON
Arizona Consortium for the Arts celebrated a day of culture for the holiday season on Saturday, December 12th at the Peoria Home & Garden Expo Center. There was a wonderful presentation of the Filipino Martial Arts performed by two sisters, Nikki, 10 and Grace Tordil, 9. Both are sixth-graders at Luke Elementary School.
Their father, Leo Tordil, played the drum. Their instructor, Guro Toki of Gerald Toki School of Kali, explained the Villabrille-Lagrusa Kali System. Everyone enjoyed readings from the fall issue of The Blue Guitar art and literary magazine. Mel Flores and Trish Dolasinski read their nonfiction essays, Jerry Cole read his short story, and Richard Fenton Sederstrom read selections from his poetry. The readings also included a dedication of the magazine's fall issue in loving memory of Scottsdale resident and World War II veteran Richard Colosimo. Rebecca Dyer read his nonfiction essay that he sent from hospice about his World War II experiences liberating a concentrration camp, "My Experience at Ohrdruf." Many thanks to all the participants!
November 2009
THE BLUE GUITAR MAGAZINE - 2009 FALL ISSUE
It is with great excitement and honor Arizona Consortium for the Arts announces The Blue Guitar Magazine Fall 2009 edition.It is now on the web site. Rebecca Dyer, Editor in Chief, and Rick Dyer, Production Editor. Sharon McCarthy, is the featured artist. The Blue Guitar Magazine is the project of the Arizona Consortium for the Arts.
This issue is filled with great literary works in many genres by Arizona writers, one-of-kind artworks, photos from our April 26, 2009, annual celebration at ASU, and a Q&A with Dog-Eared Pages Used Books owner Melanie Tighe, who is also a writer and a great supporter of the arts.
By the numbers, the Fall Issue at 76 pages has 22 more pages than the inaugural Spring 2009 Issue, and has 34 contributors. All are Arizona residents. The Fall 2009 Issue of The Blue Guitar features the works of:
Paige Blatnik, Jodi Cisman, Lysa Cohen, W. Jerald Cole, Richard Colosimo, Lauren Dixon, Trish Dolasinski, Keely Ernst, Andrea Ervin, Tony Fabiano, Robin K. Ferguson, Mel Flores, Devin Fuller, James Gaitis, Allison Gatlin, Brittany Gonzales, Flora Grateron, John Mikal Haaheim, Andrea Hernandez Holm, Natasha Karaczan, Lindsey Kupfer, Luis Carlos Lopez, Josh Louchheim, B Love, Melissa Matyas, Sharon McCarthy, Charlsy Panzino, Andrew Pentis, Dan Ramirez, Jeannine Savard, Richard Fenton Sederstrom, Amanda Soto, Lilvia Soto, and Melanie Tighe. We hope the Fall Issue will be an inspiration to everyone! The call for submissions for our Spring 2010 Issue will go out in mid-January!
This Fall Issue is dedicated to the memory of Scottsdale resident, writer and World War II veteran Richard Colosimo. His moving nonfiction essay “My Experience At Ohrdruf” about one of his World War II experiences during the liberation of the Ohrdruf, a labor camp, was sent to us from hospice and is included in this issue. On Saturday, December 12th there will be readings from the fall issue of The Blue Guitar, including a dedication of the issue in memory of Richard Colosimo. The event will be at the Peoria Home and Garden Expo Center located at 8606 W. Ludlow Drive, off the Loop 101 at Thunderbird Road. The public is invited to this event. The free event for the whole family will start at noon.
October 2009
DAY OF CULTURE
The Arizona Consortium for the Arts held a Day of Culture for the whole family on October 17th. Everyone enjoyed listening to the very talented Arizona Classical Kids under the tutelage of Maestro Zhanna Tevan. They presented pieces ranging from classical to modern with an international flair and impressed the audience with their superb talents. Each time period was announced with an explanation by one of the kids. Neil Dicks and Jonathan Gabriel were equally exquisite in their performances representing folk music from the '60s and '70s. They really brought some of us back to those nostalgic times. Ramona Richards did fun Face Analysis. Many thanks to the Peoria Home & Garden Expo Center for hosting us. They invited us back to hold a holiday performance on December 12th. A huge thank you to the Event’s Chair, Colleen Sugden, all the committee members for their hard work on organizing the event and helping at the event.
September 2009
OUR FIRST THIRD THURSDAYS/SUNSET ON THE PLAZA
On September 17th we participated at the monthly Third Thursdays/Sunset on the Plaza in the Old Town Scottsdale area. We displayed our brochures and our inaugural issue of The Blue Guitar magazine. We had a great time meeting artists and made some new friends. Everyone enjoyed wonderful music by singer/musician Joe Draper.
July 2009
CREATIONS - 09
Dedicated Artists Of The Arizona Consortium Present - “Creations - 09"
by F4R4D4Y aka Mark Faraday
www.artslant.com Gifted artists and members of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts will be displaying their work at the Mercado Galleria in downtown Phoenix for all to observe throughout July and August...
The ASU Mercado Galleria will host the group presentation, offering a taste of what the valley's growing assembly of devoted artists has to offer. "Creations - 09" showcases creative minds like, Nancy Troupe, Mark Faraday, Diane Brand, Elena Eros, Mary Guy and Marjory Boyer, as well as other locals committed to the future of Arizona art.
Gallery hours are 8am-6pm Mon-Friday.
Call for extended weekend hours
(602) 496 -1500
Meet the Artists - If you've ever wondered where an artist's ideas come from, you can mingle with the painters, photographers, quilters and more while browsing their work on Friday August 7th.
The Arizona Consortium for the Arts
The Consortium's troop of creative visionaries understands the necessity for nurturing artistic minds, especially in one of America's fastest growing and diverse areas. The Non-Profit Organization's agenda is raising a multicultural arts center, where writers, musicians, dancers, artists and actors of all ages can become inspired to hone their skills, and belong to a supportive community.
- ASU Mercado Galleria
- 502 E. Monroe St.
- (inside Mercado Building C, 2nd floor)
- Phoenix, AZ 85004
- 602-496-1500
July 2009
SPOTLIGHT ILLUSTRATOR - NANCY TROUPE
Nancy Troupe is currently illustrating books for 2 authors. One is in South Carolina and has finished a lengthy novel about a modern day family drama, with a touch of Native American spirituality. Nancy is illustraing some of the chapters with a painting to introduce the chapter. Each painting is full of symbolism which represents important elements of that chapter. The other author is in California and authors a line of children's books. They are light-hearted and whimsical with fun and colorful drawings to go along with each verse which is written in rhyme.
June 2009
BOOK REVIEWS BY MELANIE TIGHE
Be sure to check out the City Sun Times for book reviews of our local authors. Melanie Tighe, owner of Dog-Eared Pages Used Books writes a column highlighting new Arizona authors.
Download PDF- Dog-Eared Pages Used Books - bringing affordable reading to our neighborhood!
- 16428 N 32nd Street, Suite 111
- Phoenix, AZ 85032
- (602) 283-5423
- twitter.com/dog_earedpages
- Follow us on Twitter
May 2009
MEENAKSHI MATAI
One of Meenakshi Matai's warli paintings is published in the May 2009 issue of FlyLite, the in-flight magazine of Jet Airways.
They were welcomed by ASU West student body President Andrew Clark and by the sponsor of the event, Nuha Sarraj, president of the ASU Kurdish Youth Club. The community was treated to a robust sampling of music, dance, a Kurdish Fashion Show and readings by writers in The Blue Guitar magazine. It was truly a history-making day, made possible through the planning and organizing of consortium Co-Founder Elena Thornton and a cadre of other hardworking volunteers. The sound equipment was skillfully operated and generously donated for the day by local singer, songwriter and musician Brian Willia.
The event began with musical performances by the Consortium’s talented Arizona Classical Kids under the tutelage of Maestro Zhanna Tevan. They played a variety of music from Russian to Italian to classical to "America the Beautiful.
The Consortium’s Artists in Motion children’s dance group led by instructor Diana Matatova, an ASU student, performed traditional Bucharian dances in colorful costumes, then quickly changed and entertained the audience with a hip hop dance.
The dances were followed by an equally colorful Kurdish Fashion show by ASU students and their friends, as well as readings by the Arizona writers and poets who are published in The Blue Guitar magazine. Rebecca Dyer, the magazine's Editor in Chief, led the introductions of the readers. They read from their poetry, nonfiction essays and short stories. Those writers and poets who read, many of them currently in or alumni of the ASU MFA creative writing program, included: Nadine Lockhart - poetry, Fernando Perez - poetry, Melanie McCuin - poetry, John Haaheim - fiction and poetry, Cathy Capozzoli - poetry, Chris Emery - poetry, Ryan Holden - poetry, Stephanie Austin - fiction, Lilvia Soto - poetry, Meg Files - poetry, Bill Warren - nonfiction and John Ledford - fiction.
Also, ASU Professor Guillermo Reyes’ one-act play “Dudes of Orpheus” was performed by ASU students Stephanie Martinez, Matthew Konecni, Kevin Sahakian and Monica Ekabutr, and was followed by a talk and lively discussion between Professor Reyes, the actors and the audience.
Rebecca Dyer and her husband Richard H. Dyer Jr. worked tirelessly and diligently to bring to the community The Blue Guitar magazine, a brilliant work of art. The pages are filled with carefully chosen themes that colorfully and perfectly flow from page to page. The front cover and back cover were created by longtime local artist, painter and teacher Marjory Boyer, whose vibrant and colorful works can be found at www.phoenixartspace.com/mboyer. The community is grateful to the Dyers for this exquisite gem of a magazine, a gift they have created for our enjoyment, and we are already looking forward to future editions. The magazine is published online at www.theblueguitarmagazine.org . Also, to submit for the fall edition, please visit the Web site.
Folk singer, acoustic guitarist and harmonica player Neil Dicks entertained the audience with his wonderful repertoire of songs and music. The audience also was treated to Inis, a local Irish Band, who can regularly be seen at the Lis Doon Varna Irish Pub in Peoria.
Local rock band the Hunger Artists were the last performers of the day with a combo of singers, three guitars, drums, trumpet and xylophone. We look forward to many future events by our local performers, artists and writers.
April 2009
Blue Guitar Magazine Annual Arts Festival Launch
On April 26th, the Arizona Consortium for the Arts held its 1st Annual Festival of music, arts, cultures, and the celebration of the inaugural spring issue of The Blue Guitar magazine at the ASU West campus in Glendale. The all-volunteer event was free and was attended by many people from the community.
March 27, 2009
1ST ANNUAL ART FESTIVAL LAUNCH!
Valley residents will get to experience a robust sampling of the arts – ranging from music, dance, and culture, to performance art and literary works – at Arizona Consortium for the Art’s 1st Annual Art Festival on Sunday, April 26th at ASU West in Glendale. The festival will include performances by the Consortium’s “Arizona Classical Kids” musicians, the “Artists in Motion” dancers, Singer and Songwriter Brian Willia, Classical Guitarist Bonnie Lou Coleman, Singer and Acoustic Guitarist Neil Dicks, a Kurdish Fashion Show, readings from the “Blue Guitar” Magazine and many other artists. There will also be dignitaries and local personalities from the community speaking about the importance of promoting arts and culture in our communities. The event is free. The festival runs from 12:00pm-5:00pm and will be held at:
- Arizona State University
- West La Sala
- 4701 W Thunderbird Rd
- Glendale, AZ 85306
