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Investing in the Arts
EFFORTS TO SUPPORT LIVELIHOODS AND PROMOTE EQUITY
By Jessica Smith arts@flagpole.com
MAGICAL: Though revelers are asked to party
in place instead of marching through the
streets of downtown this year, the Wild
Rumpus Halloween Parade & Spectacle
has pivoted its energy into creating safe
and engaging experiences nonetheless. An
online auction and Halloween TV special
are coming down the line, but for now,
enjoy the “Wild Rumpus Virtual Art Show,”
hosted by tiny ATH gallery. In addition
to Sarah Flinn—whose painting, “Worm
Forest,” appears on the cover of Flagpole
this week—the show includes pieces inter
preting the theme “Magical” by Sam Balling,
Stefan Eberhart, Will Eskridge, Laura
Floyd, David Noah, Lois Songster, Valley
StipeMaas, Sam Watson, Jacob Wenzka and
many more. The gallery will arrange pick
ups for purchased artworks, and a portion
of proceeds will benefit the Wild Rumpus,
Food2Kids and tiny ATH. Visit tinyathgal-
lery.com before the end of October to see
the whole collection.
DEFIANCE PROJECT AWARDS: In an effort to
amplify the Black Lives Matter movement,
the Morton Theatre Corp. is offering up
to 10 grants of $500 each to Black or
African-American artists living in Athens or
nearby. Submissions must respond to the
Black Lives Matter movement or reflect on
the experience of being Black in America.
Collaborations are welcome, and projects
can be narrative or documentary films (2-10
minutes), filmed poetry readings, music,
dance performances, time-lapsed studio art
presentations and paintings, drawings or
photographic series. The deadline for sub
missions is Oct. 31. Visit mortontheatre.
com/the-defiance-project to apply.
OCAF IS OPEN: Though the Oconee Cultural
Arts Foundation’s annual “Perspectives:
Georgia Pottery Invitational” was postponed
until next year due to the pandemic, the gal
lery has launched a series of “Pottery Pop-up
Sales” in its place to spotlight regional
ceramicists. The in-person series kicked off
mid-September with Sheryl Holstein, Barry
Gregg, Triny Cline and Jen Graff and is cur
rently showcasing its
second installment
of works by Kathryn
Gould, Douglas
Tobin, Kathy King
and Jim Bridgeman
through Oct. 10. The
lineup continues
with Martha Cook,
Marise Fransolino,
Glenn Dair and Tom
Homann Oct. 13-24;
The Chappelles,
Adrina Richard,
Kathy Phelps and
Cindy Angliss Oct.
27-Nov. 7 and Nancy
Green, Juana Gnecco,
Minsoo Yuh and
Tripti Yoganathan
Nov. 10-21.
Following a string
of virtual shows,
OCAF’s first official
exhibition since
reopening to the pub
lic will be “Romancing
the Coast,” a collec
tion of paintings and
photographs by Alice Pruitt, Anna Desio,
Celia Brooks, John Weber, Karl Enter and
Harold Enter. An opening reception will be
held on Oct. 9 from 6-9 p.m. with reser
vations recommended, and the show will
remain on view until Nov. 13 with multiple
artist talks along the way. OCAF’s hours are
Tuesdays-Saturdays 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Visit
ocaf.com for event details.
ATHFEST EDUCATES: Despite a difficult year
for fundraising, AthFest Educates has still
managed to distribute over $40,000 in
grants to fund music and arts experiences
for local youth. In addition to purchasing
instruments and providing instruction at
multiple schools, funding for the 2020-21
grant cycle will support a puppetry project
at the YWCO, new murals at Timothy Road
Elementary and Clarke Central High School,
after-school music programs at Nufi’s Space
and virtually—through the ACC Library—
and opportunities for several thousand
children to attend the UGA Performing Arts
Center’s Performances for Young People
series.
With this past summer’s AthFest Music
& Arts Festival canceled and the upcoming
AthHalf Half Marathon being held virtu
ally this month, it’s fortunate that local
illustrator and tattoo artist David Hale has
devised a new way to fundraise for AthFest
Educates. The 20 Georgia songbird panels
that comprise “Birdsong,” a mural made by
Hale in 2016 to commemorate the festi
val’s 20th anniversary, have been removed
and retouched. The panels are currently
available for purchase by bidding through
an online auction at biddingowl.com/
DavidHaleMural that closes Oct. 10 at mid
night. In place of “Birdsong,” Hale will cre
ate a new mural called “Hope” to celebrate
the festival’s 25th year.
ACAC REC: The Athens Cultural Affairs
Commission has released its public art
and public history recommendations to
the UGA Presidential Task Force on Race,
Ethnicity and Community as an open
statement. Announced by President Jere
Morehead in July, the task force is charged
with developing ini
tiatives and actions
that will help foster
a more inclusive and
supportive environ
ment for Black and
other underrepre
sented members on
campus. Morehead
has committed $1
million of private
resources from
the UGA Athletic
Association for
actionable recom
mendations that
can be implemented
during the academic
year, which coincides
with the 60th anni
versary of desegrega
tion at UGA.
As advocates and
experts on public
art and creative
placemaking, the
ACAC focuses its
recommendations on
addressing how the
university’s current historical markers and
public art signifiers contribute to a narrow
history that ignores the institution’s own
white supremacy. The recommendation
calls for $250,000 to commission three new
public artworks and $40,000 to recontextu
alize existing markers in order to establish a
more inclusive and accurate narrative. Read
the full recommendation at flagpole.com. ©
‘The Magician’s Nap” by Sam Balling in the Wild Rumpus Virtual Art Show
Event Space
Art Studios and Gallery
Instrument Museum
Recording and Production Services
www.rabbitholestudios.org 762-499-4182
Rabbit hole Studios
OCTOBER 7, 2020 | FLAGPOLE.COM 13