WesLive: Wesleyan's Community Blog

Wesleyan Professor of Art David Schorr recently sat down with GalleryIntell–a website focused on the world of art galleries–to discuss his new exhibition, “APOTHECARY (storehouse).” This exhibition of gouache and silverpoint drawings depicting antique apothecary bottles is on view at the Mary Ryan Gallery in New York City through June 16.

The writers at GalleryIntell said of their interview with Schorr:

Our interview with David was interesting, engaging, enjoyable and very unexpected! A highly erudite man, a scholar and an avid traveler David draws inspiration for his work from a wide variety of literary, operatic and theatrical sources to name a few. His titles, like  ”A Sky Blue Life” or “Vorrei / Non Vorrei” come from the Russian classic short stories (Maksim Gorky) and famous Italian operatic libretto (Don Giovanni).

View the video podcast here.

On Wednesday, June 6, New York City area alumni, parents and friends are invited to hear Schorr speak at a WESeminar at the Mary Ryan Gallery, 527 West 26th Street, New York City. There will be a reception at 6 p.m., followed by a lecture at 7 p.m. More information about the event is available here or by contacting Jennifer Healey, Office of Alumni and Parent Programs, at (860) 685-3756 or jhealey@wesleyan.edu. The deadline to register is Friday, June 1, and registration is $10.

Reblogged from: The Wesleyan Writing Blog. (Go to the original post…)

It’s official: the Writing Workshop has officially closed for the 2011-2012 year. We’ve had a spectacular time working with you this year and wish you all the best of luck for finals!

If you’ve still got writing to do, don’t fret: there are tons of things you can do to improve your written work even without the Workshop. A few suggestions:

1. Aim to finish your paper well before it’s due. (Normally, we would suggest leaving a full 24 hours…but given that we’re already in the thick of finals, that might not be possible at this point.) How much time you spend editing is up to you, but it’s always a good rule of thumb to leave enough time to step away from your computer for a quick mental break before you go back to edit.
2. Swap papers with a friend: you can read and edit theirs while they do the same for yours. Sometimes you really need another pair of eyes to catch mistakes or inconsistencies that you can’t see!
3. If you can’t solicit any friends to help, consider asking your parents to glance over your work. There’s no shame in this!
4. Before you hand in a paper, read through it at least once. (You’d be surprised how many people finish typing the last sentence and immediately hit “print”.) A suggestion: first, locate your thesis. Then, write it out on a sticky note and tack the note to your computer. As you read through each paragraph, keep glancing at your thesis to make sure that what you’ve written connects back to it clearly.
5. Revisit the prompt. Read through it slowly and make sure you have responded to each component of it. You don’t want to do all this work only to get a poor grade because you only addressed four out of the five requirements.
6. Don’t rely solely on spell check. Read through your papers at least once with a critical eye for the nitty-gritty (grammar, spelling, formatting, and citations).
7. Sleep. No, seriously. You may feel like you don’t have time to do anything but write and drink coffee, but you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t get some z’s in, too. Think about it this way: the more quality sleep you get, the better your writing will be and the less time you’ll have to spend correcting errors you made because you were too tired.

Good luck everybody! May the force be with you!

Tags: reblogged, Uncategorized, writing workshop

Reblogged from: Class of 2014. (Go to the original post…)

This year the WSA’s Transportation Committee has partnered with Stor-U-Self Storage – Portland to offer shuttle services so that students without their own transportation can easily have a home for their belongings over the summer (and while abroad).

Stor-U-Self will provide a $15 shuttle service for your belongings from 10am-6pm on the 17th and 18th (Thursday and Friday) and potentially also offer services on Saturday if there is strong demand. They will also offer this service in the Fall (or Spring) when you return to campus.

In turn, WSA members will be available to shuttle you to Stor-U-Self to get your belongings in place. If you have your own transportation, but cannot fit all your belongings in your car, you may also take advantage of Stor-U-Self’s service, but we would appreciate it if you left the student shuttle for those who need it.

Stor-U-Self’s prices are very competitive (see link) and they have agreed to cap prices for Wesleyan students at $59.99 if they run out of units of that size (5×10) or smaller and you do not require a larger unit.

We would appreciate it if you would reply to this email if you would like to take advantage of the WSA’s shuttle service for students and tell us when you would like to go to storage. We may not be available at all times, so please let us know your preference in advance. 

If you are interested in taking advantage of Stor-U-Self’s service, give them a call at 860-342-1445.

Best,

Evan Weber

WSA Transportation Committee Chair

Tags: Class of 2014, reblogged, WSA

Reblogged from: Wesconnect News. (Go to the original post…)

May 16, 2012 / Friendly URL: wesconnect.wesleyan.edu/news-20120516-liz-garcia

In a recent Forbes op-ed, screenwriter, TV producer and new mom Liz W. Garcia ’99 discusses media’s fascination with women’s figures after giving birth and its relation to the “War on Women.”

“One of Us Weekly’s lead articles on their website today is about football player Tony Romo’s wife Candice Crawford. Romo and his wife attended the White House Correspondents Dinner this weekend, where Crawford caught the attention of the press, ’cause of her rockin’ just-three-weeks-postpartum figure. Don’t you feel dirty reading that phrase? I felt dirty writing it. But US Weekly did not feel dirty writing the headline ‘Candice Crawford’s Hot Post-Baby Bod: How She Did It,’ accompanied by an article detailing the healthy habits this new mother has practiced in the last weeks that have melted those pounds right off. The topic is all over the internet, as are photographs of recent mothers Jennifer Garner, Hilary Duff and Beyonce Knowles with captions calling attention to the state of their postpartum bodies. Women’s postpartum figures are a media obsession, which has fed a social obsession, and this obsession needs to be stopped.”

Read the full story…

Image: Liz W. Garcia.

Related links

• Liz W. Garcia ’99 on ‘Memphis Beat’
• Defining American Culture: How Movies and TV Get Made – Speakers – Shasha Seminar for Human Concerns 2009

follow @lizwgarcia on Twitter →

Tags: alumni, news, reblogged, wesconnect

In the Ocean’s 11 themed season finale, Robby, Chris, and the gang seek revenge on Damien and his goons. Please subscribe to our YouTube page (wait for button at end of episode)!

Reblogged from: Center for the Arts. (Go to the original post…)

Tickets for Brian Brooks Moving Company, David Liebman Quartet, and Steve Scionti’s Hear What’s In The Heart: A Shoemaker’s Tale are now on sale online! Click here to buy your tickets.

EVENING PERFORMANCES


• Alma Moyo – Thursday, July 5, 7pm, CFA Courtyard, FREE!
• Brian Brooks Moving Company – Thursday, July 12 & Friday, July 13, 8pm, CFA Theater
• David Liebman Quartet – Thursday, July 19, 8pm, Crowell Concert Hall
• Steve Scionti’s Hear What’s In The Heart: A Shoemaker’s Tale – Thursday, July 26 & Friday, July 27, 8pm, CFA Theater

FREE NOONTIME TALKS AND PERFORMANCES


• DD Dorvillier/human future dance corps: The Making of Danza Permanente – Tuesday, July 10, 12:10pm, CFA Hall, FREE!
• Rinde Eckert: Performance Musings – Tuesday, July 17, 12:10pm, Crowell Concert Hall, FREE!

• Gina Ulysse: Voodoo Doll – What if Haiti Were a Woman – Tuesday, July 24, 12:10pm, CFA Hall, FREE!

• María Magdalena Campos-Pons – Tuesday, July 31, 12:10pm, CFA Hall, FREE!



Tags: Art & Art History, cfa, CFA Courtyard, CFA Hall, CFA Theater, Crowell Concert Hall, dance, music, reblogged, Summer at the CFA, theater

Reblogged from: Creative Campus. (Go to the original post…)

Katherine Clifford reviews the annual West African Drumming and Dance Concert, held on Friday, May 11, 2012.

The West African Drumming and Dance Concert was held on Friday, May 11, 2012 in the CFA Courtyard. West African Dance classes I, II, and III, taught by Artist in Residence Iddi Saaka, performed traditional West African dances with the accompaniment of the West African drumming class, taught by Adjunct Professor Abraham Adzenyah. The CFA Courtyard was filled with Wesleyan students supporting their friends, as well as professors and their families, on this warm Friday afternoon, the first day of reading period before finals. The upbeat music and dancing was the perfect anecdote for the stress accompanying impending final papers and exams.

The dances performed by the West African Dance classes were traditional dances from different ethnic groups of Ghana. These dances traditionally served different purposes; some were originally performed on special social occasions such as weddings or funerals, at times of war, or as harvest dances. The emphasis on tradition was also revealed through the attention to elaborate and colorful West African costumes.

The dances were composed of series of rhythmic movements set to the beat of the drums. Together, the dancers created a pulsating, collective energy that was contagious. Indeed, the audience cheered on the dancers and drummers, creating a supportive and energetic atmosphere. Although each dance was quite different, the style of West African dance consistently uses a lot of hip movements, stepping, and rhythmic motions. It also engages geometric patterns, in which the dancers moved collectively in circles and lines in series of repeated movements. The dances were largely about group movement to create certain feelings suited for the purpose of the dance. This was accomplished through mutual experience through movement. However, the individual was also showcased through solos and duets. Each dance contained twists and surprises that held the viewer’s attention against the backdrop of the sustained rhythm of the drums.

The ensemble of dancing, drumming, and chanting created a culturally rich and dynamic experience. The performance was a fun and engaging way to end the semester; and both the Music Department and  Dance Department’s events, as well as to showcase the hard work of all the students in these classes.

Tags: creative campus, dance, music, reblogged, Theater and Live Performance

Reblogged from: Creative Campus. (Go to the original post…)

Hannah Cressy ’13 concludes her four-part series on Wesleyan’s interdisciplinary course Ritual, Health, and Healing.

Community members Guido and Tish Cianciotta of GREC (sitting), Laura Hofmann of OUTRAGE, Chris Henderson of St. Nicks Alliance, and Pat Dobosz of GEM, pose with ANTH 289 students and faculty Gillian Goslinga and Jill Sigman at the close of the community ritual.

After weeks of seminars, movement labs, bus rides, and a lot of bonding time, our “Ritual, Health, and Healing” class has come to a close.  We had our final movement lab on Tuesday, which gave us a chance to reflect, share our thoughts, and be together as a group for the last time; half the class will be graduating this month.  We sat in a circle, drinking lemongrass tea and allowing time for final words, though we found ourselves still talking, laughing, and shedding a few appreciative tears for an hour after “class” had ended.  One student sent an email to all of us this week that began with “Hey fam!”; we definitely feel like we have moved beyond classmates to become a family because of the work we did together at Wesleyan and especially in Brooklyn.

Students Andrew Pezzullo ’13 and Kate Enright ’15 talk with Guido Cianciotta at a community meeting.

I’ve been blogging for the past month and a half about our trips to Brooklyn, where the class has been working at the St. Nick’s Alliance and in surrounding Greenpoint-Williamsburg neighborhoods.  We’ve met, interviewed, gone on walks, had tea, and celebrated with community members who taught us about their lives’ work.  Pat and David Dobosz are public school teachers who talked with us about the harmful social and educational effects of charter schools’ division of neighborhoods, and have been very inspirational for the future educators of our class, including my fellow blogger Shira Engel ’14.  Guido and Tish Cianciotta are the founding directors of Greenpoint Renaissance Enterprise Corporation, and have worked for decades to keep the Greenpoint Hospital complex serving the needs of the community; a group of students created a Wikipedia page for their organization.  Jan Peterson is a tireless (and very spunky) activist, feminist, organizer, and founder of the National Congress of Neighborhood Women, among several other activist/feminist groups; several students interviewed Jan and Tish among other lifelong residents of the neighborhood for an oral history project on the women of Greenpoint.  I could go on for pages about many more incredible people we have been so lucky to learn from.

Pat Dobosz of GEM (Grassroots Education Movement) discusses with Shira Engel ’14 how a public school education enriches a community.

Stepping outside the classroom walls taught us things we can’t learn from professors; it is a privilege to sit down with neighborhood residents and hear their stories of health issues due to environmental damage, struggles with educational equality, building rights, and organizing strategies, and we have truly come away with a new sense of what it means to be a neighbor.  As I’ve written before, Jan Peterson’s best advice to us was “if you live here, you have to do something.  You can’t just have brunch”.

We all began the course wondering how West African shamanism, Brooklynite activism, Japanese dolls, Wikipedia, and Peruvian water rituals would fit together.  During our final lab, we were asked to say one word each to sum up the course: I said “us”.  Any ritual, health, or healing requires a community consciousness, a sense of group wellbeing.  My classmates growing closer to each other was the overall lesson of the class:  whether you’re fighting a disease, spirit loss, or a trash dump, healing comes through a healthy community; it’s about us. 

For more reflections and information about the course, check out a recent article about the class here.

Tags: Community Engagement, Cooking, creative campus, Creative Research, food, reblogged, Theater and Live Performance, Writing and Publications

Reblogged from: Wesleyan Photo. (Go to the original post…)

Tags: Center for the Arts, college, liberal arts, reblogged, sculpture, wesleyan, Wesleyan University

Reblogged from: Wesleyan Photo. (Go to the original post…)

Wesleyan kids make cool art and reid appreciates that (reblogged from kellytoy on May 14).

Tags: reblogged, wesleyan, Wesleyan University