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(02/11/10 5:45am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Grand Hall echoed with slaps, thuds and chants Wednesday when four dancers in rubber rain boots fixed with loose bottle caps led a crowd in a traditional African Gumboot Dance.The dance was just one part of the eighth-annual Black History Month Art Fair sponsored by the FASE Mentoring Program, the African American Arts Institute and the Office of Multicultural Initiatives.The event also included paintings, poetry readings, songs and other expressive dances. The works of art were displayed on the walls, while a stage was set for the performances.IU football Coach Bill Lynch opened by discussing the events other goal – raising money for the Monore County Red Cross for local and Haitian relief efforts. “We’ve all seen the sadness of what’s taking place down in Haiti the last month and how involved the international Red Cross has been, so we’re going to try to do our small part here in Monroe County,” Lynch said.The performance aspect of the fair opened when graduate student Caroline Diggins read a portion of Don Belton’s essay “Voodoo for Charles,” as tribute to the late IU assistant English professor.After several more songs and dances from other local artists, an “Open Session” began, allowing each painter a chance to talk about their exhibited pieces.Dr. Audrey McCluskey, director of the Neal Marshall center, discussed her photographs, “Nigeria at Work,” which feature a stark contrast of colorful clothing and activity against the somewhat barren environment of the country.McClusky said many of the people of Nigeria may be poor, “but are not poor in spirit.”Senior Dion Northern, a FASE member, said the art displayed truly represented the theme of the art fair, “Expressions of the Soul.”“A lot of people’s opinions and different things are expressed through art,” he said. “It’s a great way to communicate, to lay your ideas and opinions down.”The spoken word group “Eclectic Poetic,” showcased several original compositions while in costume. During the performance, the group deliberately shed their masks and other pieces while reciting and singing. The act was met with a standing ovation. The headlining artist of the night was local resident and IMU custodian Joel Washington. His large, colorful pop-art rendition of President Obama loomed large over the rest of the pieces on display. The work, titled “Countdown to Inauguration,” is unfinished, Washington said, and is an attempt at capturing the excitement of the first black President and the ”rock-star feel” of his candidacy.While explaining his works and their theme, Washington became visibly emotional.“It kind of reminded me of being six years old during the Bobby Kennedy thing,” Washington said. “Even as a kid you knew how electric and moving the Kennedys were. I remember one night standing on my porch, I had just went outside late at night, and Bobby Kennedy drove by in a campaign truck and waved at me.”The evening ended with a musical selection by “For Reign,” as well as gospel selections by the headlining group, the African American Chorale Ensemble.Sophomore Crystal Velez, another FASE member, said she found the performances and work moving.“Great food, great performances, great people, Velez said. “Just a great way to celebrate Black History Month and multiculturalism for anyone.”
(01/29/10 6:06am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The only pirate cannon ever recovered from the Caribbean has made its way to IU. The centuries-old, chloride and coral-covered cannon that once belonged to the infamous Captain William Kidd was unveiled Thursday in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation.One of 26 cannons beneath the clear waters just 70 feet off of Catalina Island in the Dominican Republic, it was first examined by Archeologist and IU’s Office of Underwater Science Director Charlie Beeker and his team in 2007.The 17th-century cannon is believed to have come from the Cara Merchant, a ship commandeered by Kidd, which he then abandoned in 1699 shortly before he was tried and hanged for piracy. The ship had been missing ever since.“When we first looked at it, we knew that the Captain Kidd wreck was being hunted for by treasure hunters in this area,” Beeker said. “As an archeologist, it just looked like the right time period. We read through all of his testimonials from his trial, and it just seemed like it was matching. So we wrote a report to the government saying, ‘We’re going to do more research, but this could be Captain Kidd’s shipwreck.’” With funding provided by a partnership between IU and the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, the cannon has been carefully transported to HPER’s underwater research lab for a five-year study. The 300-year-old weapon will undergo a series of tests and experiments in its stay, but Beeker said the primary concern is conservation.“It needs to be treated for over two years,” he said. “It’s currently in a bath for conservation treatment. That’s one of the missions, to get a professional group, us, to conduct conservation. We’re specialists in this area.”The process is a tedious one and involves running a low-voltage negative charge through the cannon, said lab assistant Lauren Ayres. As the water reaches a higher concentration of chloride, the water solution must be completely replaced. “This will eventually bring out the cannon underneath all of the biological cover,” she said.The Children’s Museum hopes to exhibit the cannon for public benefit, in an attempt to promote the maritime heritage of the Dominican Republic.“This is the beginning of what we know is going to be a long-term relationship of bringing not only real artifacts but the whole process of how one goes about finding shipwrecks and learning about the past and how we can bring that to children and families in Indianapolis,” said Jeffrey H. Patchen, president and CEO of the museum. Back in the cannon’s home waters, Beeker and his team have made the shipwreck into a permanent underwater site, keeping it safe from treasure hunters who would want to salvage it purely for wealth. The site will be turned into “a living museum of the sea,” which would protect both the wreck and the coral reef life that surrounds it. “Now the Cara Merchant is going to be around another 300 years,” Beeker said. “We’re pretty excited about that.”
(01/29/10 6:01am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The list of nominees for the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards also serves as a veritable who’s who of IU alumni and faculty members. This year the list includes various alumni, as well as trumpet player and past Grammy-winner Chris Botti, whose special-guest-filled live release titled “In Boston” is up for three awards. It also features former faculty member Paul Hillier, who conducted composer David Lang’s song, “The Little Matchgirl Passion,” up for Best Small Ensemble Performance. In addition, IU alumnus Jerry Hey is nominated for his work on Seal’s song, “A Change is Gonna Come,” and former IU student and bassist-composer-conductor John Clayton, whose “Brother to Brother” recording is nominated for Best Jazz Instrumental Album. Alumnus Booker T. Jones, member of the 1960s band Booker T. & the M.G.’s, received two nominations for his album, “Potato Hole.” Glenn Gass, Jacobs School of Music professor, is particularly excited about Booker T.’s nominations.“There ought to be a statue of him out here,” Gass said. “I really think we need to do something for him, and I think this nomination only highlights that he is not just a relic that went here 45 years ago. He’s still out there making music, and he’s revered, it seems, everywhere but his own university.”Other alumni and faculty appear on nominated recordings as well but are not necessarily nominated individually, including faculty member and multiple Grammy-award winning conductor Leonard Slatkin, as well as alumnus and pianist Jonathan Biss. Claude Baker, a school of music composition professor said the number of nominees affiliated with the Jacobs School of Music, while impressive, does not come as a surprise. “It’s just something you’d expect of a school of this caliber,” Baker said. “The only surprise is that there’s not more.”Gass agreed. “I think that if you went through almost any random year you would find an astonishing number of IU people compared to any other college,” Gass said. “Because we are so big and our reputation is so good, we attract good people and turn out good people.”In the past five years alone, the alumni and faculty of the University have been nominated over 25 times. The importance of IU’s long-held Grammy presence is not lost on its students.“It’s incredible to be around these people,” said sophomore Melissa Bork. “To see them work, to pass them in the halls, even. It’s just a really good opportunity to be able to do that.”
(12/10/09 2:54am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Some read the scripture out of their worn Bibles, while others scrolled through it on an iPhone application.The conversation eventually turned to whether or not Jesus has existed as long as God.“If you have a helmet, put it on,” said Nick Pridemore, the group’s campus pastor. “Because I’m about to blow your mind.”Eight members of Resolved IU met in a Ballantine Hall classroom Tuesday to discuss the book of John. Resolved IU is a religious network that strives to find the meaning of following Jesus in a modern age. Pridemore created the organization when he came back to Indiana after being in the Marine Corps and said he wanted to get into full-time ministry.“I sent some resumes out to some local churches, but things didn’t really pan out,” he said. “Eventually my friend asked if I was aware that IU was in need of some good one-on-one type ministering, and I had never considered that. I talked to a local pastor and went on staff there as the college pastor, and last January we had our first Bible study on campus.”Resolve meets every Tuesday for an informal biblical discussion, as well as on Mondays for a ladies-only Bible study. The group also supports missionaries through taking contributions at meetings. This week, the organization began an ongoing attempt to help the homeless community in Bloomington.Pridemore’s wife, Merry, stressed that the group is also about openness.“We’re not going to change our stance on what we believe, but we’re not going to be closed off,” she said. “We’ve gotten involved with meeting with other groups to discuss what we believe truth is, so it’s been interesting for these different groups to interact with each other.”Even the members themselves vary in terms of church affiliation.Senior Andrew Roberts and his wife, Olivia, joined the group while searching for a congregation that was a good fit for them.“Olivia and I were looking for a church in Bloomington that we really liked,” Roberts said. “We found a church called Cornerstone and met Nick and Merry on the first day and had lunch with them ... they told us about Resolved and we’ve been coming ever since.”Group member Eddy Price, however, joined the group because he did not like the structure of most churches.“I like the discussion format,” he said. “It’s really comfortable. I prefer to be able to speak up when I want to. You’re expected in church to just sit there, but with this there is more give and take.”The openness of the group also extends into members’ affiliations with IU.“We have a wide variety,” Merry Pridemore said. “Some people are students. Some people are past students. Others aren’t students at all.”Nick Pridemore said that Resolved is primarily about love.“Jesus was asked one time what is the greatest commandment, and his response was to love God and to love people,” Pridemore said. “We are constantly trying to be more proactive about loving people. Whatever we can do to love people, that is what we will do.”
(11/06/09 4:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Things seemed a little different at a showing of the new family film “Astro Boy” last Saturday at Kerasotes Theater. The film was a part of the monthly showings made possible by the Indiana Resource Center for Autism.The lights remained on and the sound was turned down low. One child talked to his parents loudly without being hushed. Another got up from his seat and walked back and forth at the back of the theater without anyone saying a word. The screening was a “sensory-friendly” film event. It was designed to allow families affected by autism and other disabilities an opportunity to enjoy films in an accepting environment. The center is one of seven operated through the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community. The institute and IRCA cover a wide range of information and services, but Joel Fosha, manager of marketing and public relations, described their mission through a basic premise.“Our main goal is just being responsive – responsive to the needs of the state of Indiana and Hoosiers,” Fosha said.One way the center maintains this receptiveness is through projects like the Students on the Spectrum club. The group offers a chance for students who live with any autism spectrum disorder to share their experiences with each other and the University. It also provides ways for students to find other support within the school and the community. The topics for each gathering are decided at the first meeting of the semester and include dealing with anxiety, communication and social skills. “It is designed to be a comfortable and safe environment,” the club’s advisor, Marci Wheel, said. IRCA also offers an extensive library available free of cost to anyone in the state, numerous guest speaker presentations and a tri-yearly newsletter. In addition, the center engages in research, as well as outreach training and consultation. “We get information out about autism and find new ways to support families and people that are working with families,” Pam Anderson, the center’s research and outreach specialist said. “That’s kind of our mission. It’s a lot of work, but it also offers a lot of rewards.“To be able to watch those families and their children with autism on Saturday sit down in a typical theater, some of them for the first time, with a bag of popcorn and a soda in a very accepting environment, was just beyond belief.”
(10/14/09 3:59am)
The University Players gives undergraduates of any major a chance to
work on theatrical productions, including acting, writing, directing
and production design.
(10/07/09 2:07am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Sustain Bloomington, a celebration of the city’s natural resources, will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m today at Peoples Park. The free event is a partnership between Bloomington Parks and Recreation and the IU Office of Sustainability. “It is an information fair that will create an understanding and awareness of sustainability efforts in our local community,” Elizabeth Tompkins, Bloomington’s natural resources coordinator, said.The fair will feature local “green” businesses and programs and provide information on environmentally friendly transportation, cleaners and seed saving. Visitors will have the chance to participate in a number of interactive exhibits. “Sustainability and being environmentally friendly seems like something a lot of people want to do and think about, but don’t get around to doing,” sophomore Tyler Love said. “So I think it’s a good thing, getting awareness out.”The IU Environmental Management Association is sponsoring a display as well as selling T-shirts. A volunteer-run table will teach participants how to make household cleaners out of common products such as baking soda and borax. They will be able to take these cleaners home with them. “We are trying to promote alternatives to chemically heavy cleaning products,” said Jenna Morrison, a graduate student and EMA volunteer. Hands-on exhibits like these are what set the celebration apart from similar Bloomington Parks and Recreation events. “It will be informative but also interactive,” Tompkins said. “Participants won’t just come and pick up information about businesses and programs but will have a chance to talk to people who are affecting change. They will also be able to take steps to make their own homes sustainable.” If the fair is a success, Tompkins said, it might return next fall. “We really just want people to learn something,” Morrison said.