Arts & Culture
A new collaborative
The space at 2241 South Kinnickinnic Avenue that once housed Broad Vocabulary, Milwaukee’s first and only feminist bookstore, sits barren. The signature cornflower blue exterior stands out among other shops and restaurants, but inside, all that remains are stark walls and empty shelves … for now. Around Milwaukee, in conference rooms and libraries, in bars and coffee shops, a resurrection is in the works. Enter A Broader Vocabulary Co-operative, a crew of … um, broads, bound and determined to get the shop back on its feet after former owners Tina Owen and Jennifer Morales were forced to close the struggling bookstore last fall. The café we’re at is nearly full, and the air feels electric. Every table is a hotbed of excited conversation, surrounded by people with notebooks and agendas. We settle in just as someone in the back cranks up the stereo so that Booker T. and the M.G.’s “Green Onions” can be heard over the bustle, giving momentum to the buzz around us. Once the announcement was made that Broad Vocabulary would close, friends and lovers of Broad immediately came together to try and save this vestige of the Bay View landscape. “We [couldn’t] just stand by and let this happen,” says Hannah Wallisch, a former volunteer and board member for the new co-op. Wallisch, along with other board members Annie Weidert, Stephanie Schneider, Patty Donndelinger, Janine Arseneau and Barbara Chudnow didn’t know each other from Adam (or in this case, Eve) when they decided to take on this formidable task. And so the wheels began to turn. In November 2008, after months of research and a stack of paperwork, A Broader Vocabulary Co-operative was formed. Wallisch says that the immense outpouring of support from the community and from other successful co-ops has been an inspiration. “It’s a good kick in the pants,” she says. “ You realize that anybody can do this…you just have to work hard and educate yourself.” The decision to go co-op seemed a likely progression, allowing the responsibilities of the shop to be shared among people who can pool their time and resources to meet the needs of running a small business. The ladies looked to other Milwaukee businesses that have flourished with a co-operative structure, like the Riverwest Co-op and People’s Books for guidance. By the time Broad Vocabulary closed its doors on November 30th, the co-op had few resources and even less money – at least not enough to re-open immediately. The plan was in motion, but not quite ready to take flight. They decided to hold a fundraiser on the store’s last business day to build momentum for the project, and to give a face to the co-op. “The Phoenix Rising fundraiser spread the awareness that something was in the works even though the store wouldn’t remain open,” says Stephanie Schneider, who also works as a teacher in Milwaukee. The fundraiser was a huge success, allowing ABVC to raise enough money to make an offer on the store’s inventory – […]
Mar 2nd, 2009 by Erin Petersen
RedLine on the front line
Right now, it’s a non-descript 14,400 sq. ft. two-story warehouse abutting a sidewalk just north of the Park East corridor near downtown Milwaukee. There are quite a few similar aging buildings curving up the gentle slope to a downtrodden section of the Brewers Hill neighborhood. But currently, this nearly gutted structure at 1422 N. 4th Street is likely the only one with a red rose petal trail bisecting the dusty wooden main floor – daring you to step over it. It is Valentine’s Day morning. Arts advocate Lori Bauman and well-known art educator Steve Vande Zande stand bathed in sunlight before a small crowd. They introduce a space that may become the city’s next arts “urban laboratory” and educational center. The facility optimally will provide multi-layered services to its artists, including studio workspaces, shared conversations and opportunities for outreach. The idea, according to the mission statement, is to “nourish the individual practice of contemporary art and to stimulate the creative potential of the local community to which we are all linked.” There are plans to have live-in resident artists both national and local, a paid membership program, lending library, a multi-use community room for special events or shows and more. It’s a concept that isn’t completely novel to Milwaukee. Forms of collaborative programming, studio space, on-site education and community projects have existed before in some way with entities such as the Milwaukee Art Museum’s support groups, Bucketworks (which is nearby), Hide House, Milwaukee Arts Resource Network, Kunzelmann-Esser Lofts, Riverwest Artists Association and so on. “What makes this special,” says Bauman at the microphone, “is the way all [our] programs that are under one roof will work together and support each other.” One of Bauman’s specific objectives, as she explains later, is to encourage artists into explore different forms such as video – and to see the way pop culture and media shape identities. Hartford School’s art specialist Vande Zande has broader goals for the space and doesn’t know what his exact role will be yet, stating: “Life has many paths.” While he acknowledges the tough economy and the need to pool all available resources (“we’re working our tails off to get the money to make this”), he believes that the strength in making Redline happen is people’s need to get excited about something. They have a long road ahead if their affiliate center wants to catch up to the buzz Redline founder Laura Merage received with the beautiful and ambitious 20,000 sq ft. space in Denver, Colorado. That location already rolled out its first show in late October of last year. Merage, who is a photographer, sculptor, and now philanthropist after marriage to husband David, sits on the board of the directors for the Milwaukee group and Redline Denver is now the model to learn from and follow. Just a few days prior to Milwaukee’s open house in February, an unnamed set of backers (made up partially of MIAD graduates, Redline partners Kari Couture and Kim Weiss, plus other business […]
Mar 2nd, 2009 by Brian Jacobson
Milwaukee Actor is “GANGBANGER 1” in GRAND TORINO
lets end the REEL Milwaukee year with a warm n fuzzie. Peep a letter we received at Vital from Elvis Thao repping all the indie-film-actor-milwaukee-hmong’s out there. Peace y’alls: Howie ____________________________________________ I’m a local Milwaukee resident that just landed my first major film. Yes, as a cast. The title is Gran Torino and hits theatres here on January 9th, 2009 (wide). A Warner Bros film directed by Clint Eastwood. It is a four star movie and is in chase of an Oscar award. This is his LAST film acting, at that. Plus, hes already nominated for Best Actor. This is HUGE! All the major television and publishing companies nationwide already have their hands on this. The limited release had already come out December 12th. And the reviews are high. Check your search engines for ratings. However, the film has NOT landed here yet. SOON! This city needs some exposure to it. Lets create a demand for Milwaukee actors and city exposure. By increasing ratings. Also being Hmong, Id like to shed light on our community. Let me know how I can contribute to your corporation and yours to mine. We can even attempt to promote advanced ticket screenings and things of that nature directly from the WB. I have those contacts. Hope you catch the movie and hope to hear from you soon. Take care Elvis Thao
Dec 30th, 2008 by Howie Goldklang
Marcus Aurelius Redux
The first blog I wrote for VS was way back in April of ’08. Titled “Marcus Aurelius Online,” I’ve revived it with new answers to old questions. While ruling Rome, Marcus Aurelius Antonius wrote Meditations, setting down rules for living written in Greek. Stoic to the end (his end came in AD 180), Marcus Aurelius wrote them to himself, and in many ways his twelve books pre-figured the blogs of today. Book 1: “the certainty to ignore the dice of fortune…” Bones: Those who bought tickets on the ill-fated Titanic. Relive the grisly event at our Public Museum with a ticket bearing the name of an original traveler. At journey’s end you get to discover if that traveler survived or died….a gruesome roll of the dice from the world of marketing. Book 2: “Now the flesh you should disdain….blood, bones, a mere fabric and network of nerve, veins, and artifacts. Bones: Okay, cut yourself some slack and disdain the Bronze Fonz, too. Book 3: “Do not waste the remaining part of your life in thoughts about other people, when you are not thinking with reference to some aspect of the common good.” Bones: Advice to sour grapes Republicans and in particular, Mr. William Jefferson Clinton. Book 4: “Remove the judgment and you have removed the thought, ‘I am hurt,’ and the hurt itself is removed.” Bones: Rejects from the 2008 Mary Nohl Fellowship thing. Writers who didn’t make the Cream City Review. Book 5: “If on the other hand harm is done to the city, you should not be angry, but demonstrate to the doer of this harm what he himself has failed to see.” Bones: Developers who insist we need more condos. Book 6: “Some things are hurrying to come into being, others are hurrying to be gone, and part of that which is being born is already extinguished.” Bones: Art galleries, blogs, White House staffers, daily newspapers. Book 7: “The art of living is more like wrestling than dancing, in that it stands ready for what comes and is not thrown by the unforeseen.” Bones: Broad Vocabulary, Milwaukee Shakespeare, Milwaukee Fashion Week, etc., etc. Book 8: “Everything has come into being for a purpose….a horse, say, or a vine. Does this surprise you?” Bones: Well yeah. What pray tell, is the purpose of bailouts? Book 9: “Enough of this miserable way of life, enough of grumbling and aping.” Bones: Get on with the plan. Print more money. Book 10: “The healthy eye must look at all there is to be seen, and not say ‘I only want pale colors’….this is a symptom of disease.” Bones: All arts organizations that deem themselves deciders of what goes where. Book 11: “No nature is inferior to art, in fact the arts imitate the variety of natures. If that is so, then the most perfect and comprehensive of all natures could not be surpassed by any artistic invention.” Bones: Museums and galleries will ignore this advice. Book 12: “Practice even what you […]
Dec 8th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Visual Arts Picks, December 2008
Getting back to nature needn’t mean you’re a tree-hugger determined to save the earth. That said, in this season of ho-ho overkill, perhaps you’re in need of respite in the realm of visual arts. Start with the December 3 lecture (Art, Ecology and Social Change) by New York artist Betsy Damon. Its part of the Wednesday night series in the Arts Center Lecture Hall, 2400 E. Kenwood Blvd, and it’s a freebie! From now – December 27, Tory Folliard Gallery offers painters (Dennis Wojtkiewicz and Flora Langlois) whose views on flora and fauna are at opposite poles and from greatly different distances. Dip into Brian Knep’s Healing Pool in MAM’s Baker/Rowland Galleries (now – January 09). The funky “waters” are projected from the ceiling onto vinyl flooring, an ever-changing reminder that no matter where we walk, no matter what we do, we are bound to disturb the biological system. Ever changing too, was the 19th century cultural landscape of Wisconsin, and until January 4, you can explore those changes during The Finest in the Western Country: Wisconsin Decorative Arts, 1820-1900, also at MAM. Items include Crazy Quilt, 1893, a stitched-together-landscape which warmed a long ago Wisconsin bed. At Paper Boat Gallery and Boutique on December 5, witness the bright, other-worldliness of Life in WonderMountain by San Francisco-based mixed-media artist Lisa Congdon. Paper Boat is also a great place to pick up affordable gifts for your friends and family. Grab crocheted purses in gumdrop hues, key chains, pendants, magnets, baby onesies or a copy of Paper Boat owner Faythe Levine’s new book Handmade Nation. For more cheap and wonderful gifts, consult our guide on page 12. And Vital Source has a gift for you: everything you want to know about Act/React at MAM, with a DVD, artist cards, essays and more, all packaged in a clever orange box. The first person to me at <a href=”mailto:art@vitalsourcemag.com”>art@vitalsourcemag.com</a> wins the loot! VS
Dec 1st, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Roofin’ The Green
That’s a guy named Dieter in the foreground. His buddies are working on the flat white roof of the soon-to-be Green Gallery East at 15th & Farwell. Missed filmmaker/writer Mark Borchardt’s event at Green West (on Center St.).
Nov 28th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
MIke Brenner & Hair
This just in from Mike, along with a new-ish jpeg of his pate topped in pink. Yes, he’s still working on his MBA and emails that “The Decider” slot in The Onion will be mostly minimal and mostly previews. It’s hard to imagine him being minimal isn’t it, but certainly not hard to imagine him being part of The Onion.
Nov 26th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Jimminy Crickets
Some things to consider: Walk. Run. Crawl. Cricket Toes is a new local site with a bit of this and a bit of that, fun and interesting, and so far, devoid of mouthy rants. Go to www.emergeartzine.com, a new quarterly (next issue is January 09) mag showcasing artists from Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Iowa and Indiana. Hopefully, it won’t be a publication disguised as an advertising vehicle. What’s needed is a clear and concise look at the featured artists which seem to be “emerging.” December 1 is the deadline for artists submissions for the January issue, and well, the hook is they’re charging $12 for 3 –10 submissions. I haven’t seen their October 08 debut issue, but it’s said to be in galleries here and there. Rotating “guest jurors” will decide who makes the cut. Ms. Ketarkus, owner and director of Grace Chosy Gallery in Madison will select for January. The mag is being navigated somewhere in Ft. Atkinson, Wisconsin. There’s been a strange lack of coverage for the Nohl Fellowship exhibit at inova/Kenilworth, and the usual whine about the decline of female contenders for the title of “established,” and/or “emerging.” All in all, it was a decent show, but wouldn’t have been without the addition of the Black Box section for viewing film & video. Is the tail wagging the dog? The newest batch of Fellowship winners are heavy into those disciplines.
Nov 25th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Nohl Rap
The gender issue surrounding the annual Nohl Fellowships is a dead issue, but if you must beat it to death, you may as well ask how many racial minorities made the cut? Anyone with disabilities? How about old folks like me? Perhaps fewer women than men applied for the fellowships? You’re chasing your tails folks. Since when should awardees be selected on the basis of anything but what’s in front of the faces of the judges? Get over it. How many of you readers have actually visited the current Nohl event at inova/Kenilworth? I’ve been there three times and never noticed anyone else but the reflection of myself in the windows. Plus a few faces staring at me from the outside of the Prospect Avenue entrance. I even ran out and tried to entice outsiders in, to no avail. But hear tell, the place was packed on opening night, which is party time and schmooze-ville. Nothing wrong with that, but art is more than wine & cheese, or beer & brats. Recently a local gallery dealer sniffed that he didn’t like the show. His nose actually wrinkled as if he was inhaling the scent of Limburger cheese. His lip curled. And while we’re at it, how many gallerists ever visit each others’ exhibits? Can you name three? Two? One? Art sales are at a new low (lower than usual in M’waukee). Auction houses are in a snit. As the scene shrinks, the pressure mounts for more and more coverage of the visual arts. Ad sales plummet, printing costs rise, publications tank in the wake of online coverage. In the 80s, the economy fueled art sales and everything else open to inflationary prices, and then, wow! it all came tumbling down, in a kind of art foreclosure sale. Of course there are still uber-bucks around to purchase the really BIG stuff, and allegedly, “bargain” hunters are swooping in to scoop it u. Vultures.
Nov 24th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Breaking News!
Jimmy Von Milwaukee is, yes he is, hosting his annual Xmas Craft event on December 20th. The site is yet to be announced, but he reveals participants will include the ever-faithful Julie Lindemann & Johny Shimon and perhaps a special showing of Milwaukee’s maker of sculptures fashioned from trash…Mike “Ringo” White. “Ringo was in to recycling years before it became chic,”quipped JVM, who is doing some recycling of his own. He reports that he’s pumping iron these days and morphing flab into abs. Stella will be incognito in Arizona on December 20 and is sorry to miss the gala. One of her fave possessions is a Xmas Craft Shimon & Lindemann photograph of her wearing a Packers’ helmet while perched on the lap of Bob Watt. Just so you know, December 20 is the birthday of Bo Derek, and the anniversary of the Jones Town Massacre. Von Milwaukee likes to build his events around special dates. And isn’t this special? Mike Brenner, artist/writer/former syrup on the cakes at Hotcakes is going to be an art critic for the Onion in their Decider section. If he thinks he had problems running a Riverwest Gallery, just wait until the herds of artists rush forth seeking his attention. Does this mean he’s no longer going to be pursuing a degree in Business Administration at UW-Mil?
Nov 24th, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Hit by an Opgenorth?
It’s a bird. It’s a plane. An asteroid? No, it’s a piece of art by Harvey Opgenorth. In my office is a hanging light fixture designed by Harvey. Fashioned from an upside down Eames fiberglass chair, it rocks. The light not the chair. So does Harvey. About this sculpture. It will be part of the Armoury Gallery exhibit showcasing Milwaukee’s Own, and Harvey is certainly one of those. A 1999 MIAD grad, he’s part of an event including three other MIAD grads, Kathryn E. Martin (a part time faculty member at both UW-Mil & MIAD), Mary DiBiasio, and lastly but not leastly, Colin Dickson. The grads who stick together seem also to play together. I hope they don’t try to one-up each other. I’ve seen this happen and it isn’t a pretty sight. The show opens at the mighty Fortress on Friday, December 5th (6 – 10pm). The address is 1718 N. 1st St., 3N3. If you’ve never been there, pack a bag lunch. 3N3 isn’t the easiest space to locate. As I re-read the Armoury’s press release, it seems that the aforementioned Harvey sculpture is a “gold” nugget. Okay, so expect a cave by Dickson, clouds of Styrofoam by Martin, and nuggets by Harvey. DiBiasio will check in with “the figure in contour.” For more info go to www.thearmourygallery.com. The press release does not mention the closing date. I don’t know why young gallerists often don’t include closing date info. It drives me bonkers.
Nov 21st, 2008 by Stella Cretek
Stella’s 2008 Awards for Best & Worst Sculpture
Best: Milwaukee has hunks of stuff that pass for “art,” but the east lobby of the historic Shorecrest Hotel shelters a bronze worth considering. “Fisherboy Dancing the Tarantella” (Francisque Joseph Duret) is allegedly the only true copy of the original 1832 beauty enshrined in the Louvre. With his six-pack abs, earrings and elegant torso defining a dance derived from the bite of the tarantula, the smiling chap is (perhaps) considering what art isn’t. Worst: The year was 1989. The National Association of Letter Carriers dedicated a memorial to those who carry forth through rain, sleet and snow. Installed on a small plot at Plankington & Wells, convenient to those out dodging traffic while dog walking, once per year someone stops by to clean the motley trio of figures. No one seems to know who gave us this miserable three, but the budget must have been miniscule. The result is a clutch of pint-sized carriers intent on dashing off in different directions.
Nov 21st, 2008 by Stella Cretek
