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(07/01/12 11:36pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The songs the Quarryland Men’s Chorus sing have a message. In a song the chorus sang Saturday evening at First United Church for about 100 people, the all-male group put a unique spin on “America the Beautiful.”“From sea to shining sea, they tell you who to be,” they sang. Saturday’s performance was the chorus’s send-off concert for the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses Festival 2012 in Denver. The festival lasts four and a half days and will feature 130 choirs and 45 ensembles who will give 200 performances from choruses around the world. Saturday evening also marked the chorus’s 10th anniversary since its inception in summer 2002.The Bloomington-based group consists of 25 members who advocate acceptance and pride of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender community through choral music in south-central Indiana. The chorus, which is also a nonprofit, began rehearsing for the festival four months ago and will perform four songs, including “Back Home Again In Indiana,” as well as an original piece.“I wanted to make sure that we had some kind of new stuff or some stuff that other people weren’t doing, and that was kind of important for me,” said Barry Magee, who has been the group’s artistic director since January 2003 and is also the assistant director for diversity education at Residential Programs and Services at IU.At the festival, each chorus will receive 30 minutes on stage. Magee said he planned for the chorus to perform 23 minutes of music, with “Back Home Again In Indiana” as the last song.The Quarryland Men’s Chorus is the only group that will represent Indiana in Denver.Historically, gay men’s chorus groups started to form during the AIDS epidemic in the late 1970s to early 1980s, Magee said. Kathleen Sideli, former president and current secretary for the Quarryland Men’s Chorus, knew two men who died of AIDS in the early 1990s. Sideli, who is involved in gay rights groups and is the associate vice president at the Office of Overseas Study at IU, first heard the Quarryland Men’s Chorus sing 10 years ago. “I was so struck by what a positive image they presented and so sorry that 20 years before, gay men couldn’t stand up and share their art like that,” she said. Sideli said the chorus has accomplished its mission even through a lack of resources, such as minimal funding and human capital. “I felt moved to lend my commitment as well as my board and leadership expertise developed through my professional life,” she said in an email. Chorus member Doug Bauder has been singing with the Quarryland Men’s Chorus since it began. He said members have used the chorus performances as a coming-out process to their parents. Bauder is also the office coordinator of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Student Support Services at IU. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to blow stereotypes out of the water,” he said. Bauder said he thought the group would never make it to the GALA Festival. “It’s just an opportunity to wave the Bloomington flag,” he said. “We’ve developed a really nice fan base, so it feels like we’re not only doing this for ourselves but for our community.” Magee said not all group members are bisexual or gay. “I think the words to the music and the music I choose, again, in a lot of ways respond to and reflect kind of this very open attitude,” he said. “It’s not just one perspective. It gives you all kinds of different life experiences in most of the music that we do.”
(06/28/12 12:53am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Ten male voices chime in to form the first few notes of Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon.” Just as the bride and groom are about to say their vows, a silence breaks the flow of violins in one of the most popular wedding songs. Then, unexpectedly, singer Jesse Townes starts to sing Nelly’s 2001 pop hit “Ride Wit Me” in pitch-perfect a cappella. What results is “Pachanelly Canon,” a mash-up sung by the 10-man group Gentleman’s Rule uploaded on YouTube at midnight on June 18. The video now has more than 200,000 views and counting.Although Gentleman’s Rule is “based in Chicago” according to the group’s official website, all members are IU alumni and reside in Bloomington. The members are also former singers of the all-man Indiana University Straight No Chaser. Dan Ponce, founder of the Straight No Chaser that signed with Atlantic Records in 2008, arranged the music for the mash-up.“Combining Nelly and Pachelbel’s ‘Canon’ makes no sense whatsoever, and that’s why I did it,” said Ponce, who also works as a reporter for WGN-TV and as radio show host for WLS-AM in Chicago. It was in summer 2011 when the members of Gentleman’s Rule began to rehearse as a group. The 10 guys crowded inside one member’s small bedroom and practiced to the notes of a piano attached to a computer.About a month later, Ponce asked if they wanted to be on his indie label, Arena Child Records. At the beginning of July, the group will start recording its album at Airtime Studios in Bloomington and will embark on a national tour with the quartet Under the Streetlamp, which Ponce will include on his label.Ponce said he thought it would take a month for “Pachanelly” to receive about half of its current viewership. “Nowadays, that’s how it’s done,” he said. “You don’t need a music video to blow up on MTV, you need it to blow up YouTube. That’s where people go to find their music videos.” The four-minute and nine-second long video, produced by Winky Productions, starts with a bride and groom who are about to say their vows until Townes, who sings tenor one, breaks into a melodious rendition of “Ride Wit Me.” The rest of the members, including Main Squeeze front man Corey Frye, join in on the song’s most memorable line: “Must be the money.” The video, set in Chicago, finishes with a bridal party dance-off inside a reception hall. “I think the video incorporates everything that people want in a good music video,” said Ponce, who is Gentleman’s Rule creative director. “There’s humor, it’s a really clever combination of music that have nothing to do with each other, and it’s shot really, really well.” But before the group found YouTube success, the majority of the members who are now part of Gentleman’s Rule auditioned for “The Sing-Off” last summer. “The Sing-Off” is an NBC show in which several a capella groups compete for a contract with Sony Music Entertainment.Tenor two Brent Mann said they called themselves “TBA” for “To Be Announced” before Frye, who sings tenor one, thought of the name. Now, one of the show’s producers, Deke Sharon, will work with the group for its album, said member TJ Breen, who sings tenor two. “It’s kind of weird,” Breen said. “We started just because we thought OK, we should audition for the show. We didn’t make it, we were pretty bummed about it, and then we’re working with (Sharon).”Other than two original songs, the album will also feature covers of songs by The Script, OneRepublic, B.o.B., The Rolling Stones, Outkast and other well-known artists. The video’s popularity caused some sites to refer to Gentleman’s Rule as a boy band. However, “boy band” is an image that the group wants to embrace. “Unfortunately a cappella music itself has such a nerdy-choir-boy type of reputation anyways,” Townes said. “And so that’s why we’re trying not to necessarily peg ourselves as just an a cappella group. We’re an a cappella band, we’re trying to be pegged as something more than that, so we can kind of mesh mainstream music with what we have been doing, even though it’s a cappella.” Baritone Will Lockhart said they want to explore different background beats to their music — hip-hop, stomps and claps “to make it more fun, to make the audience go crazy.” But right now, the group members said they are focused on learning repertoire as best they can. At one point, the group hopes to release an album with all original music. “Whether that’s written by Dan or by a lot of the guys in the group is to be said, I think,” Mann said. “But as we’re approaching it right now, that’s a huge concern for the group, and that’s something we really want to explore is for us to write our own music.”Ponce said he hopes Gentleman’s Rule, whether considered a band or a group, will attract the same variety of audience that Straight No Chaser has since both groups originated at IU. “You never turn on the radio and hear a cappella music,” he said. “That just doesn’t happen. I want to change that.” Andrew Morstein, who sings tenor one, is the only member who majored in vocal performance at the IU Jacobs School of Music. The rest of the members — with the exception of Breen, who minored in music — all studied different subjects. But for most of the members, being a part of Straight No Chaser during their undergraduate education provided a musical outlet. “The unique thing about what we do is that we’re singing with our 10 best friends,” Breen said. “And that’s what we love to do. And we started singing, and we had no expectations of this being our career.” Ponce said Gentleman’s Rule will not gain overnight success. “But they have the talent and the energy to make it happen, and I think with a cappella it’s so much more than having great voices,” he said. “You have to have great writing, great producing and great energy, start to finish. Otherwise, it’s not going to happen.”
(06/24/12 11:26pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Baking naan bread takes less than two minutes. Naan, a traditional Indian flatbread, is made of nine ingredients that Bombay Café chef Ram Singh combines to produce naan for curries and sauces. After pressing the dough with a pair of long tongs inside a cynlindrical clay oven, called a tandoor, Singh slides the lid open and pulls out a flaky, crisp piece of naan. On Saturday afternoon, a line of people waited outside the Bombay Café tent during the 30th Annual Taste of Bloomington. Bombay Café was one of 62 local food and drink vendors at this year’s event, which took place in Showers Common next to City Hall. Until late evening, 11 live bands played on two stages. Ron Stanhouse, co-director of the Taste, said the event’s committee added an extra band to the country stage and almost doubled the site’s square footage since last year. “It’s a year-round process, but the committee’s pretty good,” said Stanhouse, who is also a manager at The Crazy Horse Food and Drink Emporium, which had its own tent. “They’ve put in a lot of time, and they know their job. It helps make the Taste come off as well as it does.” More than 100 volunteers work almost year-round for the event. To prepare, Bombay Café owner Rabari Singh, Ram’s nephew, shelled out $3,500 for the tandoor and a hefty price for a machine that makes flavored shaved ice. “There’s a lot that goes into it on his end,” Stanhouse said. “We know how it will go. We know we don’t have to worry about this or that. But these new guys have to sweat every detail.” After Rabari opened and closed a Quiznos on the east side of Bloomington, Rabari opened Bombay Café in early January. During a routine health inspection of the restaurant, Rabari was informed of an opportunity to be a part of the Taste. “This is a way to get in with the locals,” he said. “I don’t want us to be just another Indian restaurant. We want to be multicultural.” Bob Crowley, owner of Cajun restaurant DATS, served Thai peanut étouffée with chicken, carmelized corn and black beans and bourbon chicken, each served over white rice. Crowley, who creates all of the recipes on the DATS menu and has participated in the Taste since DATS opened in 2006, began preparing the food four days in advance. Crowley said being a part of the Taste is a good way to get people to return to DATS throughout the year. “It’s something that has a long-term impact,” he said. “There are so many restaurants in Bloomington that after a while you can forget about one. We don’t want them to forget about us, so that’s another reason we come here.” While both locals and people from outside of Bloomington attend the Taste for the food, Briana Root, 30, of Cleveland said she is excited to see the 1960s girl group The Vallures.Root is a post-doctoral student and IU psychology department intern. On Saturday, Root and a friend snacked on watermelon gazpacho — a dish made of chopped watermelon, cucumber and seasonings that they ordered from The Upland Brewing Company. “We’re definitely trying to hang out, enjoy the weather and enjoy the food as much as we can,” Root said.
(06/17/12 11:50pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The musical “Damn Yankees” centers around Joe Boyd, a married man who happens to be more in love with baseball than his wife. Boyd makes a deal with the Devil — disguised as a slick salesman — and quickly sells his soul in exchange for youth and a chance to play baseball for his favorite team. Directed by George Pinney, with musical direction by Terry LaBolt, “Damn Yankees” is a cross between the classic story “Faust” and America’s favorite pastime. The musical premiered Wednesday at the Ruth N. Halls Theatre inside the Lee Norvelle Theatre & Drama Center. The play originally premiered on Broadway in 1956 and won seven Tony awards.— Jaclyn Lansbery
(06/07/12 12:47am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A spotlight illuminated two chairs and a microphone on a stage at the Bloomington Playwrights Project. A screen in the background displayed a Frida Kahlo painting called “The Dream” — a rendering of Kahlo sleeping peacefully under a skeleton on its side. IU professor and feminist scholar Susan Gubar said she identified with the skeleton after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer in November 2008. The then-63-year-old author had her ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, appendix and part of her intestine removed — a process called debulking. Gubar describes both the emotional and physical effects of debulking in her recent critically acclaimed book, “Memoir of a Debulked Woman: Enduring Ovarian Cancer.” On Monday evening, Gubar talked about her experience of writing the memoir and read excerpts on the stage of the Timothy J. Wiles Mainstage Theater at the Playwrights Project. Daniela Matei, Gubar’s oncologist at the IU Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis, also read from her poetry book “The Way Back Machine,” which was originally published in Matei’s home country Romania and was nominated for best debut book of 2011 by the Romanian Writer’s Union. The event was part of the 72nd annual IU Writers’ Conference in which participants improve their writing in a week-long series of faculty-led workshops and classes in poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction. “Susan taught me that you can be serious and funny, rigorous and kind,” said Bob Bedsoe, director of the IU Writer’s Conference and a former student of Gubar.Gubar is also known for her research and academic writing in feminist theory, literature and criticism at the IU English department, and is a distinguished professor emerita. Matei, who read three poems in English to the audience for the first time, said she and Gubar had little social interaction outside of the doctor’s office.“I am here because she is here,” said Gubar, who is currently in remission, before Matei read her poetry. Gubar spoke of three factors in the creation of her book: the ethics, the construction and the function of art in memoir writing. She said her memoir aimed to increase awareness about the need for early detection and less harmful protocols in ovarian cancer treatment, and that her self-disclosure in the book involved “revelations about others.” “Such exposures can profoundly injure readers with no recourse to tell their side of the story,” she said. Although Gubar did not say that she used names, she mused whether she had the right to disclose the grief of her doctor who wept about his mother’s death, for example. After Gubar’s book was published, she received emails from people who said they had gone through the same experience and that they had felt that pain. “There’s a great deal of loneliness out there one quickly finds when publishing a memoir,” she said. Gubar used art and poetry by Emily Dickinson and Gerard Manley Hopkins to express herself. She discussed Kahlo’s painting as a case in point. “It seemed to ask, ‘How can we integrate the awareness and actuality of dying into our living?’” Gubar said. Throughout chemotherapy, Gubar received support from her “nurturing colleagues” at the IU English department. John Schilb, who specializes in composition, rhetoric and literary theory, said he has known Gubar for 14 years but does not want to be solely credited for comforting her throughout her illness. “She’s an inspiration to all of us,” he said. “I’d rather emphasize the fact that she was able to write this book (while she was sick). She’s very impressive and a treasure to her community. The project kept her going.”
(05/24/12 12:38am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Across the street from Landlocked Music, a passerby yelled the name of Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo, who sat on the curb of North Walnut Street.It’s been 22 years since the 56 year old has visited Bloomington. In October 1990, Sonic Youth — the alternative rock band that gained recognition in the ’90s — played at Alumni Hall.During that time, Ranaldo was inspired to write the poem “Bloomington, Indiana: Autumn.” On Monday evening at Landlocked Music, Ranaldo read his poem and gave an acoustic performance of six songs from his recent album, “Between the Times & The Tides.” This is Ranaldo’s first mainstream solo record.Landlocked Music owners Heath Byers and Jason Nickey contacted the albums’ label, Matador Records, to ask that Ranaldo read his poem and play songs between tour dates in Atlanta and Chicago. Sonic Youth devotees and Ranaldo fans filled Landlocked Music from front to back. Ranaldo, sitting on a chair with an acoustic guitar, spoke about the inspiration of his album. Alan Licht played the electric guitar and Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley played percussion. Ranaldo also read poems from his poetry books “How Not To Get Played On The Radio” and “Hello from The American Desert.” The Bloomington poem was read from a scroll of glossy paper. “I cannot concentrate/Everything before me blurs together/until nothing is sharp, or simple.”Sonic Youth was touring internationally when Ranaldo wrote the poem and met his current wife, Leah Singer. “I was kind of here, kind of displaced, thinking about her, and wrote that poem,” he said. “So somehow this place has always had this weird resonance for me since then.” Ranaldo has since embarked on his first mainstream, 10-track album “Between the Times & The Tides,” which was released in March. In April, Ranaldo and his band members have been touring with American singer-songwriter M. Ward and rock band Disappears. Bloomington resident Thom Hartnett, 34, is a longtime Sonic Youth and Lee Ranaldo fan, attended the free show Monday after work. Hartnett, who has seen Sonic Youth live six times and was 16 when he first discovered the band, said he has always appreciated Ranaldo’s contributions to the band’s albums. “I think the fact that he has a mainstream album is a good sign,” he said. “It’s good to see him get more recognition and to see his songs get more breathing room.” Ranaldo has been quoted as saying that the band’s future is up in the air, and with several more shows to be played, Ranaldo will likely continue focusing on his art — which is displayed internationally in galleries — and music.“I think anybody that is deep into Sonic Youth knows that we all do a lot of different stuff,” he said. “It’s still weird to think that where we are all going to go if, for instance, Sonic Youth is over, which we don’t know that that’s the case, but if it is, then yeah, people will have to start taking us in a different light now.” Shelley called Ranaldo’s album “not Sonic Youth,” although critics have pointed out similarities between Ranaldo’s album and Sonic Youth music. Landlocked co-owner Nickey said he knew he would like Ranaldo’s album before he listened to it. Nickey also credits Sonic Youth for its broad influence on independent rock music since the band’s inception. “There are so many bands whose careers were sort of made by, like, you know, getting the nod from Sonic Youth,” he said. “So yeah, it’s just cool to have someone from the band and hanging out for a while, playing some songs.” Ranaldo talked to fans before stepping outside of Landlocked to discuss his artistic pursuits, his new album and potentially returning to Bloomington in the future.“It’s been a long road, and it’s been so amazing,” he said. “You know, I’d love to come back more often. It’s a beautiful town. I really love it.”
(05/17/12 12:41am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Christina Perri and her band walked off the Bluebird Nightclub stage without singing the song “Jar of Hearts,” the 2010 hit single that first aired on the Fox TV show “So You Think You Can Dance.” The crowd wasn’t convinced she would play her first show in Bloomington without singing the platinum song that eventually led to a record deal with Atlantic Records. Perri sat down behind the piano for an encore as the audience began to cheer and clap. “This particular song changed my whole life,” Perri said into the microphone. “But it’s not me. It’s you guys. You listened to the radio, you requested it and you downloaded it.” People packed into the Bluebird on Tuesday night to watch the Philadelphia native perform nine of the 16 tracks from the deluxe edition of her album “lovestrong.” along with two new songs and a cover of the Ronettes’ 1963 song “Be My Baby.” Perri’s album was released last May, and she has been touring for the past two and a half weeks with the band Sleeping At Last, which opened for Perri.“(I’m here because) I love Christina Perri. I love the way she gets into her music and is really open to her fans,” said Jerry Bowling, a recent Purdue graduate who said he was enjoying his first visit to Bloomington for the show. “Everyone wants to hear ‘Jar of Hearts,’ so I’ll say I’m really looking forward to ‘Arms.’ That’s also one of my favorites.” So far, Perri has released three successful singles: her breakout single “Jar of Hearts,” “Arms” and “A Thousand Years,” which was featured on the 2011 album for “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1.” A barefoot Ryan O’Neal also performed the song “Quicksand,” which was featured on ABC’s TV show “Grey’s Anatomy,” before Perri’s set. “I’m so excited you guys would come and spend your evening with us,” Perri said after the first song “Bang Bang Bang,” one of the more upbeat numbers on her album. Drummer Jacob Marshal1, who had been playing in the band for just the past four days, said he is excited to tour with Perri. “I definitely get lost up there (on stage), and the more I lose myself, I think it’s contagious,” Marshall said. Bloomington resident Lehua Aplaca attended the concert with Bloomington resident and friend Denise Alexander, who said she first heard “Jar of Hearts” on “So You Think You Can Dance?”Perri’s singles “Jar of Hearts” and “A Thousand Years” were the only songs Apalca said she had heard before attending the concert. “This is awesome that the Bluebird is bringing more mainstream artists,” Aplaca said. “Usually, you have to go to (Indianapolis) to see these kinds of artists, and gas is really expensive right now, so this is really convenient.” At the end of “Jar of Hearts,” Perri threw red and yellow roses out to the crowd. “Live shows are a great way to get to know an artist,” Aplaca said.
(05/14/12 12:05am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The last few piano notes trailed off into silence, which was soon broken by applause and whistles from the crowd at Jake’s Nightclub on Friday night. “How are you feeling?” Jenn Cristy asked the audience from behind her keyboard on stage. Until 11 p.m., about 200 people waited for Cristy and her band to premiere all thesongs from her newest album “Crawl.” The crowd was feeling good. Backed by three band members and two backup singers, the Jenn Cristy Band played an uncharacteristically late-night show that also included covers such as Adele’s “Set Fire to the Rain” and songs from Cristy’s previous three CDs. The album was recorded at Bloomington Farm Fresh Studios and was funded with the use of a Kickstarter campaign, an online platform for artists to raise money for creative projects. Cristy raised more than her initial budget of $4,000.About 50 people who donated $10 or more to the Kickstarter campaign received the album two weeks in advance via download. About 77 people altogether donated to the campaign. “I definitely feel more attached to this one,” Cristy said about the album. “The album isn’t all over the place itself, but it definitely has levels of different emotions. I am so excited about this album, it is so hard to describe.” Cristy, who writes all her own lyrics and music, said she forced herself to write more for this album and that it is more “radio-friendly” compared to her previous albums. “And it’s not necessarily just to get on the radio or anything like that,” she said. “It’s trying to find something that can connect to everybody.”As an IU senior at the height of her swimming career, Cristy was “discovered” by John Mellencamp when he heard her sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at an IU basketball game. She ended up touring with Mellencamp for 18 months and contributed vocals, organ, piano, violin and percussion to his 2001 album “Cuttin’ Heads.” Eleven years later, Cristy said she feels she has the “best collection of musicians working with me. It’s incredible.” She credits her band members for refining her performance style and sound, which she said is now more “aggressive” and has more of a “driving force.” Before settling on the current pop-rock flair that can be heard in her new songs “Crawl” and “You Don’t Know,” Cristy worked with 18 different musicians as part of her band and played with a jazz trio at one point. “I wanted to be more of a soulful rocker, a beat-the-heck-out-of-the-piano pianist,” she said. Christina Cerimele, 47, of Carmel, Ind., attended the show Friday night with two other people. Cerimele said she first heard Cristy play a year ago at a show in Indianapolis. “I’ve been a music lover my whole life,” Cerimele said. “She’s an amazing musician. Her talent is underappreciated. She has a top-notch, great voice. Very personal.” Brent Crockett, 52,, who has been a bartender at the Player’s Pub for almost four years, said he has seen Cristy perform several times at the pub’s Songwriter Showcase. Crockett gets most of his musical fixes from hearing music while working.He said the Player’s Pub had the best turnout for the showcase when Cristy performed two weeks ago. “Very lively, very cheerful,” Crockett said when asked how he would describe Cristy’s performances. “Just the kind of exuberance that she brings to the stage.”In a town where indie music thrives, pop music perhaps challenges Bloomington audiences that consist of mostly college students. Cristy, a Knoxville, Tenn., native, said she feels like she has built a fan base during the 13 years she has lived in Bloomington. She said she can go to the Player’s Pub any night and see people she knows. “It’s warm, it’s a great feeling,” she said. “If I could swallow it, I would.”
(05/07/12 12:13am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The painters dipped their brushes in acrylic paint.At 7 p.m., they stared at blank canvases with wide eyes. Then instructor and IU graduate Abbi Cord began covering her canvas with colors of red, blue, green, purple, and the tension dissipated. And the painters began to drink wine. At Wine and Canvas, a painting studio and franchise in Bloomington’s west side, the idea is to allow both former and inexperienced painters to go home with a work of art they can call their own. Sometimes, that work of art will look like Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Starry Night” or a rendering of the Sample Gates. Although the painters create the same picture, each painter’s work is different.“Everybody has their own little twist on it, so it’s just neat to see the end result, especially with other people who are really scared at first and don’t think they could do it,” said Joshua Wathen, one of the owners of the Wine and Canvas studio. In May 2011, Joshua and Sarah Wathen bought Wine and Canvas after Sarah began attending classes at the Indianapolis studio while her husband Joshua was deployed overseas with the United States military. The studio started as a mobile business, traveling to restaurants and bars throughout Bloomington, where a professional instructor taught classes. But as the business gained exposure, the Wathens decided to open a studio in January this year. “It may not be what we’re looking for as far as pedestrian traffic or vehicle traffic, but it is right next to David’s Bridal,” Joshua said. “So there are a lot of females who go in daily, and then they wander over here and check it out.”The studio regularly travels to four Bloomington venues: T.G.I. Friday’s, Serendipity, Crazy Horse Food and Drink Emporium and Eagle Point Golf Resort.Classes, which typically last for two and a half to three hours, involve an instructor first revealing the painting that the participants will have replicated by the end of the night. Then, step by step, the teacher will begin painting and advising the class until the piece is complete. Paintbrushes, all the necessary paint colors, long black aprons and easels with 16-by-20-inch canvases are provided with each class. The studio also offers Cookies and Canvas — two-hour, kid-friendly events where cookies are served instead of wine and 11-by-14-inch canvases are offered for $20.“For a lot of people who come, they start off frustrated but they end up happy and calm,” said Greg Potter, a Mooresville, Ind., resident who teaches classes four to seven times a month in Bloomington and teaches at Wine and Canvas in Indianapolis 11 to 15 times a month. Potter is one of five instructors who teach regularly at the Bloomington studio. Joshua said most of the painters who take the classes, which cost about $35 and are offered every Friday and Saturday and sometimes Thursdays, have not touched a paint brush since they were in elementary school. “Occasionally, we’ll get people who used to be artists, but they’ve gotten so caught up in life and stuff that they’ve lost touch and then come back and remember how fun it was,” he said. Erika Katterjohn, a recent IU graduate who studied apparel merchandising, attended a class Saturday night with her mother, Sharon Katterjohn, who used to paint regularly.“I was fine whenever we were doing the reds and the yellows, and then the green colors and suddenly it would all seem very permanent,” Katterjohn said. “You can’t fix it (the painting) very much from here. But my mom said you don’t have a good or bad painting. She said there are just ones you like more than others.”Potter said his favorite part of teaching classes is helping people with certaintechniques. “When they raise their hand for help and you go over there and help them out, you fix their painting, and they’re just ecstatic that you’ve done something for them and you show them and explain it in the process,” he said. “And they’re all just people right off the street. They just work nine to five and they find out about it, they come here and they leave just loving every minute of it. They just leave happy.”
(05/06/12 11:51pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>On Friday at the Ivy Tech John Waldron Arts Center, more than 200 people gathered to view four artists’ new exhibits on display until May 27. The May First Friday artists’ reception debuted the work of Nate Johnson, Ben Pines, Yang Chen and Angela Hendrix-Petry. The artists, who attended the reception, each create different styles of art. “I think Julie Roberts, the gallery director, did an exquisite job arranging the artists’ work,” said Paul Daily, the artistic director for the center. “We’re always pleased to have the opportunity to showcase more local artists in our galleries.” Chen’s exhibit “Les Preludes” is displayed in the Treasurer’s Gallery and consists of up-close photographs of nature details, such as dead dandelions or blooming flowers. The photographs were mounted on a 17-by-42-inch scroll. Chen, who received his masters of fine arts in photography from IU, also designs digital and book art. “From my impression, and I’m certainly not speaking for the artists and what they intend, but there is almost an Asian feel for the tapestries and the artwork in the pictures and where they look at life,” Daily said. Pines, a local artist, created 13 paintings for his “Recent Works” exhibit, which are all united by dark blue overtones of people interacting with each other. The people’s features are also undefined.“The way the working world is so fast-paced, it’s sort of a main function of the art that I want to make, to provide an alternative to that,” said Pines, who worked on the paintings in this exhibit since 2010. “I need, and I think people need, to be free of constant rush, to accomplish sort of external tasks in order to work within, to think about oneself and to think about the world in a free, meditative way.”The biggest painting in Pines’ exhibit is “Cookout at Lake Monroe,” which features people conversing at the local lake front. “I like to take my time when I work, I think it’s very important for me to keep a calm level head as I work,” he said. Pines said he tries to establish and develop a particular mood during the painting process, and that if the mood doesn’t feel “right” two weeks before the show, the piece will not be completed. “I was happy with how the show came out, and I’m happy with how the paintings came out individually,” he said. In the second floor of the Arts Center is Johnson’s exhibit, “Heroes and Icons." Four of those paintings are private collections of his family and self-portraits. The rest of the paintings, which are for sale, are of famous icons. Johnson used stencils and spray paint to create these pieces. The fourth exhibit for May is Angela Hendrix-Petry’s photography exhibit called “Journeys with a Simple Girl.” This is a collection of 35 photos, 11 of which are black and white, of nature and Hendrix-Petry’s children, which she said are her muses. She began shooting pictures three years ago when she, her husband and four children moved from a house in the backwoods of Brown County and into a Bloomingtonsuburban neighborhood. The year they moved, her husband bought her a camera. “I used the camera as a tool to help me find what the beauty is in the everyday,” said Hendrix-Petry, whose photographs have been hung at the east- and west-side Bloomingfoods locations and at Thrive Healing Arts, a Bloomington gallery that also offers massage therapy. Hendrix-Petry said she doesn’t use Photoshop or any other editing techniques to alter her photos. “That is something that is a little unique in this day and age of digital photography because you can really jack up an image to a level where it almost gets distorted, and you’re kind of lost in it,” she said. Daily said the Center holds artists’ receptions the first Friday of every month for new exhibits.
(05/06/12 11:46pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Celebrate the end of finals by gazing at some local exhibits, watching an award-winning movie or laughing at the Comedy Attic. Thoughts, Things and Theories ... What is Culture? When 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. May 8Where Mathers Museum of World CulturesMore Info This new exhibit uses objects from around the world to explore two main themes: universal needs and life stages. Universal needs are demonstrated through replicas of a 1967 Bloomington ranch house and a multi-generational Nigerian compound in the same year. The exhibit also displays a Lakota cradleboard, a Japanese wedding kimono and more.The Kid with a BikeWhen 7 p.m. May 10-12 and 6:30 p.m. May 13Where IU Cinema More info Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, “The Kid with a Bike” is a story about an 11-year-old boy who is abandoned by his father and searches obsessively for his bicycle to preserve his last bit of hope in this symbol of their relationship. The movie is part of IU Cinema’s International Arthouse Series. Urban Landscape: A Selection of Papercuts by Qiao Xiaoguag When 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, from now until May 27Where IU Art MuseumMore info Qiao is inspired by ancient Chinese archaeological material, music and scenes of contemporary life to create an exhibit of contemporary papercut designs. Qiao learned his craft from Chinese practitioners. Dan Telfer at the Comedy AtticWhen 8 p.m. May 10 and 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. May 11-12Where The Comedy AtticMore info Chicago comedian, actor and writer Dan Telfer returns to the Comedy Attic to deliver more standup. He is also known for his CD “Fossil Record,” which was released in 2010.— Jaclyn Lansbery
(05/04/12 2:35am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Serene. Calm. Peaceful. That’s how Bloomington artist Dawn Adams describes her paintings in the exhibit “The Art of Healing,” which is currently on display at the Venue Fine Art & Gifts until May 10. “The Art of Healing” stems from Adams’ grieving process of losing her son, 19-year-old Wade Steffey, whose body was found on Purdue University’s campus in Lafayette on March 19, 2007. Steffey, who was a student at Purdue, was electrocuted in a high-voltage utility room after attending a frat party. Since then, Adams has shifted her style of art work from fused glass to oil on canvas. Her paintings consist of water, horizons and landscapes with blue overtones. “I looked for subject matter that would be something that I could communicate with and something that would be helpful for me and therapeutic for me,” Adams said. “I also wanted my paintings to be therapeutic for everybody, not just me.” Adams said she appreciates painting rather than fusing glass because the results are more immediate, although she admits she is “not a very quick painter.” The painting “Where Water Meets Sky,” the largest canvas at the exhibit, depicts a horizon meeting a body of water. “Even in doing landscape, I feel like my work has got a little different approach to it,” she said. “The water has a lot more texture and variety to it.” Adams’ paintings are created from pictures she has taken or composites of images she has put together. She chose these paintings to be exhibited because they are images of the Midwest. “She’s exuding a kind of multi-faceted nature to her creativity,” said Gabriel Colman, curator for the Venue. “Each painting represents at least 20 different layers of work, and a layer represents attention to it and the time to let it dry, so it’s got a lot of depth to her work.” Colman said it is typically hard to paint water in paintings.“It’s so fluid and so dynamic that you really have to be able to master that quality,” he said. “So I’m thrilled to have it on the walls.”
(05/04/12 2:28am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>On Tuesday and Wednesday at IU Cinema, filmmakers from the Bloomington chapter of the Indiana Filmmakers Network showcased their locally made films as part of the free “Made in Bloomington” film series.The series was part of the four-day “Made in Indiana” film series at IU Cinema, which kicked off April 30 with the student-made film “Mudcity.” The Indiana Filmmakers Network consists of seven networks throughout Indiana. The Bloomington chapter was started in summer 2011 and meets the last Tuesday of every month at the IU Innovation Center. “What we’re trying to do is create an environment where people can come into the group and just explore what they actually might want to contribute,” said Barbara Ann O’Leary, who organizes many of the programs within the network for the Bloomington chapter. “One of the things that I really like is that it’s very non-hierarchical, and it’s just relaxed. Anyone, students or people who just live in the community, can come.” The first film at the series premiere was “Pi Bake,” a two-minute-19-second stop-motion film that documents the pie-baking process.Laura Ivins-Hulley, director of the film and a graduate student of the Department of Communications and Culture, said she made the film because “it seemed like a nice way to spend the day.” She also made it March 14, which is National Pi Day. Kate Chaplin of Karmic Courage Productions directed the film “Home Security,” a 10-minute short about a salesman who breaks into people’s homes to scare them into purchasing a home security system.“The Puppet Master,” directed by Dylan Cashbaugh, who graduated in December and studied telecommunications and communications and culture, features a group of human-sized puppets that rebel against their master. “This is a lot different from stuff that I’ve done in that it’s a lot more fantasy related,” Cashbaugh said. “It took a lot more people to work on it, and it really just created an entirely different work than anything else I’ve worked on.” Jon Stante helped produce “The Puppet Master” and “Nathan and the Luthier,” a 53-minute coming-of-age story directed and written by Jacob Sherry that premiered in April 2011 at IU Cinema to a sold-out house. The film was also part of last year’s Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis. “Nathan and the Luthier” was the last film shown Tuesday. Stante said helping to produce the two films was nothing like he had done before. IU student Thomas Beaver, who acted as one of the puppets in “The Puppet Master,” said the type of acting was different for him. “You just sort of picked a spot and hoped that your eyes glazed over and that you looked like a puppet,” he said. “And that was all thanks to Dylan’s directions.” On Wednesday, the cinema screened “Until the Last Time,” “Public Art,” “Dark Worlds: Slasher” and “8 Wheels of Death.” O’Leary said it was a “very, very big offer” when IU Cinema Director Jon Vickers invited filmmakers from IFN to show their films for the series. “One of the things that I love about this space so much is that it’s a repurposed theater that’s unique to the film community at a very high level,” she said. “And there is nothing like seeing something on screen in this way.”
(05/04/12 2:25am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Serene. Calm. Peaceful. That’s how Bloomington artist Dawn Adams describes her paintings in the exhibit “The Art of Healing,” which is currently on display at the Venue Fine Art & Gifts until May 10. “The Art of Healing” stems from Adams’ grieving process of losing her son, 19-year-old Wade Steffey, whose body was found on Purdue University’s campus in Lafayette on March 19, 2007. Steffey, who was a student at Purdue, was electrocuted in a high-voltage utility room after attending a frat party. Since then, Adams has shifted her style of art work from fused glass to oil on canvas. Her paintings consist of water, horizons and landscapes with blue overtones. “I looked for subject matter that would be something that I could communicate with and something that would be helpful for me and therapeutic for me,” Adams said. “I also wanted my paintings to be therapeutic for everybody, not just me.” Adams said she appreciates painting rather than fusing glass because the results are more immediate, although she admits she is “not a very quick painter.” The painting “Where Water Meets Sky,” the largest canvas at the exhibit, depicts a horizon meeting a body of water. “Even in doing landscape, I feel like my work has got a little different approach to it,” she said. “The water has a lot more texture and variety to it.” Adams’ paintings are created from pictures she has taken or composites of images she has put together. She chose these paintings to be exhibited because they are images of the Midwest. “She’s exuding a kind of multi-faceted nature to her creativity,” said Gabriel Colman, curator for the Venue. “Each painting represents at least 20 different layers of work, and a layer represents attention to it and the time to let it dry, so it’s got a lot of depth to her work.” Colman said it is typically hard to paint water in paintings.“It’s so fluid and so dynamic that you really have to be able to master that quality,” he said. “So I’m thrilled to have it on the walls.”
(04/30/12 2:04am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Stroke is a leading cause of long-term disability in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s one of the reasons Jill Bolte Taylor’s nonprofit BRAINS, Inc., aims to educate the public about brain awareness and appreciation. On Saturday in the Bloomington High School South Auxiliary Gymnasium, 22 brain sculptures were on display for the launch of “Brain Extravaganza!” The display will be followed by the temporary installation of the brains throughout Bloomington until October.About 400 to 500 people attended the premiere.The brains had themes relating to their sponsors, which were mostly Bloomington businesses.“You know, it was beautiful,” said Taylor, who helped sculpt and paint two of the brains on display. “This is a dream come true for me, and it’s been so many details for so long. It’s been my heart and soul, and now I get to give it to the world.” On Dec. 10, 1996, Taylor woke up and couldn’t talk, read, write or recall any of her life. Before realizing that she was suffering a stroke, Taylor said she fell into a “state of peaceful grace.” It took her eight years to fully recover the left side of her brain, which was hemorrhaged by a blood clot. In 2008, Taylor’s New York Times bestseller, “My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey,” was published,and later that year, Taylor was named as one of Time Magazine’s most influential people. Now, 30 years after graduating from IU, Taylor said she wants to give back to the Bloomington community. “I kind of saw my job as get the brains done, get the brains out, get the word out and then let people enjoy it,” she said. Each anatomically correct, 5-foot-tall brain includes a plaque with the name of the sponsor, a list of brain facts and a question. People can plug their answer to the question into a phone application that allows visitors to construct their brain by coloring in sections through each installation site. To do this, visitors have to be within 25 feet of the brain. This week, all the brains except for one — which will be installed at College Mall this Friday — will be put in their respective places. Nine of them will be on the IU campus, and 13 will be located throughout the town. Because the mission of BRAINS, Inc., is to promote exploration, education, injury prevention, neurological recovery and the value of movement on mental and physical health, the brains also represent how different conditions — depression, music, religion, aging and more — affect the brain.Bloomington artist David Ebbinghouse, with his nephew and IU freshman Connor Ebbinghouse, created the “sleep and pain” brain, which was sponsored by Dr. David Lawler, a Bloomington dentist who helps raise awareness for sleep disorders. David said when he was first approached for the project, he hesitated because he doesn’t prefer to replicate others’ ideas. But after hearing about the brain’s theme, David said he “let the right side of my brain go.” On Saturday, this brain was displayed in front of the gymnasium. Tall, bright yellow lightning bolts stick out from the top of the brain, with large gray “Z’s” hanging from the bottom. “The idea is that there is some relationship between pain and sleep, and that’s what we’re trying to do with the motifs,” David said. “But then, just on a more general level, even if you don’t read the symbols, somehow lightning bolts and brains just go together.” Bloomingfoods Market & Deli sponsored a brain that artist Bonnie Gordon-Lucas designed. The theme of this brain illustrates the different foods that improve the overall brain function. “I’ve always been into nutrition, which is why I wanted this particular assignment,” Gordon-Lucas said. “But finding out what parts of the brain were affected by what foods was a real challenge.” Gordon-Lucas, who is also an illustrator for children’s books, said she hopes that when people see the brain at west-side Bloomingfoods, adults and children will be better educated. Every student from Pinnacle School contributed to the design of a brain that demonstrated the three areas that are primarily affected by dyslexia. Pinnacle, which also sponsored this brain, offers specific programs for students with dyslexia. “People don’t understand that people with dyslexia are smart and they are creative and they put ideas together, they just have some difficulty reading and writing,” said Pinnacle Executive Director Denise Lessow. “So they thought it was important to get that message across.”After the brains are taken down in Bloomington, Taylor said she would love to see them at Times Square, where it is not rare for “big art” to be displayed. Until now, creating the brains has been a collaborative effort. “From that perspective, literally hundreds of warm bodies have been involved in this process in one way or another,” she said, admitting that she has no idea what the next step will be after the brains have been displayed around Bloomington. “We’re open to possibilities, and that’s part of the beauty of being in the right brain because the right brain isn’t going to say we’re going to think in a box and define it. We’re going to let it manifest as it wants to manifest.”
(04/30/12 2:02am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>EverybodysBloomington.com, a website for Bloomington residents old and new, has answers. Developed by the City of Bloomington in the last few years, Everybody’s BloomINgton emphasizes business opportunities and offers information for residents, potential residents and visitors.“One of the main goals of the website is to provide information about Bloomington and our quality of life,” said Danise Alano-Martin, director for the Department of Economic & Sustainable Development. The site exists to capture Bloomington’s community, informing new businesses and employees who have relocated to the city. The site is organized in three sections: everybody’s opportunity, everybody’s story and everybody’s community. Everybody’s OpportunityThis section provides site visitors with information about opening a new businesses, including available city grants and loans, property taxes and more. Malcolm Abrams, owner of Bloom Magazine, also gives a testimonial about the benefits of being an entrepreneur in Bloomington. Everybody’s Opportunity also offers the latest news affecting Bloomington businesses. Information about technological innovations is also available. A separate page is dedicated to the Bloomington Entertainment & Arts District, which is a downtown space for arts businesses. Everybody’s Story This section includes the city’s history. Bloomington is referred to as “Indiana’s arts and entertainment capital.” “Our downtown is a difference maker,” said Mike McAfee, executive director of Bloomington Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We have a very healthy, vibrant, growing downtown, and that’s what sets us apart.” Two Bloomington locals — contributor to Bloom Magazine Elisabeth Andrews and entrepreneur Abby Noroozi — also describe their lives in Bloomington in a personal essay. Everybody’s Community This subhead lets visitors glimpse the local neighborhoods, downtown, education, health and recreation, transportation and entertainment that are available. “The City of Bloomington is such a wonderful place to live, and a lot of people are working hard to make the quality of life in these neighborhoods,” said Vickie Provine, program manager for the Bloomington Housing and Neighborhood Development Department. This section also offers resources for health and wellness, such as IU Health Bloomington Hospital and the Twin Lakes Recreation Center. Currently, Alano-Martin said the city is discussing new ways to make the website more readily available for prospective business owners and residents. “We hope that someone visits the website and sees the types of activities, the types of businesses and opportunities that are available,” she said.
(04/27/12 4:06am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>People filled Alumni Hall in the Indiana Memorial Union as beats from the stage reverberated off the walls. Thursday night, New York hip-hop group Das Racist headlined the party for the launch of Canvas Creative Arts Magazine’s 2012 spring edition. At about 7 p.m., students from the Jacobs School of Music performed to poems featured in the spring issue of Canvas, followed by a performance by beat poet Michael Mlekodaj. The public event also included free issues of Canvas, which aims to create an IU art community. Popular for their Internet song “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell,” Das Racist established themselves as rappers with the release of their 2010 mixtapes “Shut Up, Dude” and “Sit Down, Man.” Chloe Kent, assistant director for Union Board, said the event had been planned since the beginning of the semester. “We didn’t know we were going to get Das Racist, but we’re really excited that we did,” she said. “It’s just a bonus.” Benjamin Taylor composed the music that percussionist Bobby Conselatore performed for the poem “Belly Button” by Raphael Koehler–Derrick. Taylor, a first-year doctoral student at Jacobs, said he has never composed music that was inspired by text, although he derives inspiration from art and photography. “I just thought the poem was so funny,” said Taylor, who also composes jazz and orchestral music. “His text is interesting, and it made me think of my belly button like I’ve never thought of it before.” Junior Tae Na attended the event with his friends because he liked the song “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell,” which he heard a few months ago on YouTube. “I’ve never read Canvas before, but I love music, and I love art,” he said. “I just want to see how the Union Board runs the concert, and I also just want to see the performance.” Daniel Avon, a junior studying Spanish, Portuguese and German, said he is a friend of Jared Thomas, director of Canvas Magazine. “I’ve always read Canvas and always knew about it,” Avon said. “I see it everywhere, too. It’s distributed in stands in Ballantine Hall. I think people don’t read it because they have tunnel vision.” “My favorite song is ‘Michael Jackson,’” sophomore Ashik Shah said. “I was in the car when I heard it on my friend’s iPod, and I thought it was good, so I really liked it.” Kent said the idea of the premiere was to create a collaborative effort. “I’m excited to celebrate a new issue of Canvas,” she said. “I’m surprised so many people are here.”
(04/26/12 2:20am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>During the days leading up to the 2011 Little 500 race, 267 patients between the ages of 17 and 23 were admitted to the Emergency Department of the IU Health Bloomington Hospital. There were 656 patients of that same age group who were admitted to the ED during the 2011 Little 500 celebrations for alcohol-related reasons.“We actually had lower numbers than we’ve had in the past couple of years, but we still did see quite a few intoxicated students,” said Kitra Ludlow, manager of the emergency department at Bloomington Hospital. Ludlow said she had not yet counted the amount of patients admitted to the department from the 2012 Little 500 week. This year, Ludlow said a common complaint during Little 500 weekend was abdominal pain and that she saw several cases of soft tissue injuries with bike riders. More on-site nurses and advanced practice providers were added to the staff to prepare for the volume of patients who use the emergency services at the hospital during this time of year. During the weekend, most of the patients were brought in from emergency medical services, spent a few hours at the hospital and were either sent home or to jail.This year, police issued a record number of 258 tickets, up from 167 last year, during the Little 500 celebrations, according to the Indiana State Excise Police.Most of those tickets were issued to people who were visiting from another school in Indiana and other states. Ludlow said the emergency department takes in an average of 170 patients daily, except during Little 500.Hugh Jessop, executive director and chief financial officer for IU Health Center, said there was very little change in the amount of patients at the clinic before and after the bike race. IU Health has provided on-site medical services for the men’s race since it began in 1951, as well as for women 25 years ago when they had their first race. The riders’ injuries that do not require hospitalization are treated on-site and then followed up at the health center if necessary, Jessop said.
(04/25/12 3:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Mel Brooks’ classic movie “Young Frankenstein” will come to life on campus today at the IU Auditorium.The musical will start at 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday. Tickets are $20 to $41 for children and students with a valid ID. For the general public, tickets are $38 to $60.Brooks, a three-time Tony winner, wrote the music and lyrics and co-wrote the book for the musical, which is based on his 1974 cult classic film. The story takes place in 1934 Transylvania and follows the life of Dr. Frankenstein and his hunchbacked sidekick, Igor, as they attempt to bring to life a corpse. Matters are complicated when the good doctor, Igor and lab assistant Inga steal the wrong brain.Douglas Booher, director for the IU Auditorium, said he expects audiences to enjoy the ironic and impossible situations Frankenstein and his assistants find themselves in. “‘Young Frankenstein’ showcases Mel Brooks’ unique ability to find the comedic potential behind anything, including this previously frightening story of a mad scientist and his creature,” he said. Before the show tonight, Bloomington neuroscientist Jill Bolte Taylor and author of “My Stroke of Insight” will give a talk called “Brains Are Cool!” from 7 to 7:30 p.m. at the School of Fine Arts Auditorium, Room 015. In 1996, Taylor suffered a stroke, but eight years later she recovered. Her neuroscience background allowed her to assess the functions of her brain as it started shutting down. Taylor’s non-profit organization BRAINS Inc., which aims to raise awareness about brain health, will sponsor 22 brains at the Bloomington High School South Auxiliary Gymnasium from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday. Tickets for “Young Frankenstein” can be bought at the IU Auditorium Box Office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.— Jaclyn Lansbery
(04/23/12 1:47am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Local writers and community members gathered Friday at the Showers Inn Bed & Breakfast to listen to authors Brian Stoner, Margaret Clark and Ladi Terry read excerpts from their books, which were published by Bloomington-based Holon Publishing & Collective Press. Holon and Morrison Media & Marketing, which promotes the authors, organized the event. About 20 people mingled and enjoyed food donated from La Torre Mexican Bar and Grill.“I love working with authors. I consider them to be artists,” said Lisa Morrison, who also promotes multiple businesses and nonprofits in central and south central Indiana. “They have important things to say, ideas to share, and I really enjoy promoting their stories. That’s what tonight is about.” Holon also presented the poetry book “The Never Ending Cosmic Show” by Riley Evans, a World War II veteran and lyricist from Florida who was not present at the event. Bloomington local Terry read from her book “Celebrate the Messengers (Don’t Shoot Them!),” a book that is intended to help readers unleash their creativity and leadership through the workforce. Terry is also the president of Success Work Online, an initiative that sponsors national workshops and seminars. Her upcoming seminar, “Creative Indiana,” will take place April 30 at Ivy Tech Liberty Crossing and will consist of a three-hour workshop to help people improve individual and team creativity. “The more you know about your own creativity and other people’s creativity and encourage and support that, the more successful you’re going to be,” Terry said. Stoner read from his most recent novel, “Prophecy of the Ancients.” He also wrote the Dark Angel Chronicles and the Dragon Mage Chronicles trilogies. “The majority of books that I started writing and the ones that I’m still working on are actually from dreams that I had,” said Stoner, who is also a computer programmer and musician. “I have extremely vivid dreams, and they’re a bit weird sometimes, but they make really good stories.” Baltimore native Clark read from her book “I Left My Heart in Harlem: He Made it BIG in Hollywood,” which she wrote in 2008. It is about six children and their mother who move into the Harlem housing projects in New York City. Liz, the main character, was based off of Clark, who grew up as the seventh child in a family of 13 children and was born and raised in Harlem. “It was therapeutic, as well, because it made me see things the way other people see it and yet the reality part of it,” she said. “When you live in a place like the projects, a lot of people think you’re not going to make it out, but somebody does make it out, and sometimes they come back and help the neighborhood.”