DANCE - FINE ARTS - MUSIC - THEATER - WRITING

ARTBITS by Richard B. Harper


VOLUME 5 * * All Arts News On the Web * * January 25, 2001

STUFF YOU SHOULDN'T MISS

      ArtBits always features a calendar of the goings on of Franklin County artists. Check out these events around Franklin County. Each issue includes the entire text of our weekly newspaper column.


      Stop in for the AAC CoffeeHouses at 7 p.m. on the first and third Thursday of every month. These gatherings bring new opportunities, gossip, "show-and-tell" and workshops. We come together on the second Wednesday for a booked musical performance and an art exhibit at Simple Pleasures in St Albans. On the fourth Wednesday come to the Kept Writer in St Albans for acoustic Open Mike Night featuring music, readings, and more from the best new artists in Vermont.

Programming note: we have changed the AAC CoffeeHouses to a new date and time in January:
Simple Pleasures ... 2nd Wednesday of each month
Kept Writer ... 4th Wednesday of each month


 

"A BUNCH OF HUMBLE MUSICIANS"

      Are presenting a monthly Folk Festival at the Sheldon School this Friday evening. "We're playing real unplugged music," said Chris Conti of a concert and jam session that will also include Pat Murphy, Mike Willey, Jim LaClair and more. The participants are well known for performances at the premiere Franklin County events, including the Vermont Dairy Festival and the Got Milk Summer Sounds concert series. The concert will include an eclectic mix of folk music, country, pop, and even a little bluegrass.
      The Sheldon Folk Festival is a benefit series for the Sheldon Ski Club. Jay Peak offers a Ski for Schools program to many area schools. The schools pay a stipend to the Jay Foundation for other good works and their kids get a substantial discount for the whole skiing season; kids with straight As get a free season pass. About 55 (mostly junior high) Sheldon kids participate. The Sheldon program needs to raise $500.
      Chris Conti teaches K-8 phys-ed at Sheldon. "If the interest is there, I hope to continue the Folk Festival through the end of the year," he said. "Generally concerts will be the last Friday of each month."
      The January Sheldon Folk Festival will be held in the Sheldon School Library, this Friday, January 22, 7-10 p.m. Admission is $3. Tickets are available at the door. The Ski Club will serve delicious refreshments.


HELP WANTED, PART II

      Long hours and no pay, but great working conditions! Here are a couple more of the volunteer positions the All Arts Council needs to fill:
      To showcase and develop Franklin County artists, we need groups to plan and set up the Rotary Home Show exhibit and to find and rotate artworks through six businesses, community centers, and the welcome center
      Do you like music? Perhaps you want to orchestrate the AAC CoffeeHouses, or help book and coordinate the bands for four county festivals.
      Maybe you have office skills. We need a secretary, a newsletter editor, and members to organize a telephone calling chain.
      The AAC also needs several new directors who are active in the community and love the arts. AAC board members set policy, long term goals, and priorities to meet our mission to bring all the arts to Franklin County and to showcase and develop area artists. Directors also help in promoting the arts, and work on at least one project each year. We elect board members to fill expired terms and vacancies at each annual meeting.
      Please E-mail the All Arts Council for more info or to volunteer.


FEBRUARY ART DEADLINES

ABENAKI WEBSITE ARTWORK CONTEST (February 2)--Create or design an image or work that captures the essence of the Abenaki people. Any medium is acceptable, although they prefer photo submissions for sculptures or large two-dimensional pieces. Cash prizes. There is no entry fee. Call Deb Bergeron at ASHAI (802-868-2559) for info.


KERRVILLE FOLK MUSIC COMPETITION (April 1)--Move quickly. One of the premiere contests, the Kerrville Music Foundation is accepting only the first 600 entries received of two original, previously unrecorded songs. Call 800-257-3600 or Click here for info


ART STUDIO DESIGN CONTEST (February 1)--Studio will be judged on clarity of photos, work environment, design, creativity. $100 for each studio used in publication. e-mail for info.


POETRY PRIZE (February 1)--$1000 award for a book of poems, 48 pages or more in length. Winner gets a minimum print run of 500 by a university press at Passaic County Community College. Click here for info.


WORKSHOP NEWS

      The first All Arts Council professional workshop of 2001 was held Monday. Simeon Geigel of the Micro Business Development Program focused on building and marketing a small business in the arts.
      We taped the workshop for Channel 10. Check the local listings on Saturday for its air dates.


CLICK HERE: ART SITE OF THE WEEK

      This year, we are wandering around the virtual state of Vermont to look at the online homes of arts organizations, galleries and artists, film and theater sites, and musicians.
      Our own All Arts Council website has moved! When we went online in early 1996, we may have had the first arts council web site in Vermont. Now, after five years with a long name and over a quarter million hits, we have a new host and our very own, very short domain name.
      Check out the new "AllArtsCouncil.org" for special events from the AAC and other presenters, plus area workshops and seminars, lots of All Arts info; our annual report; back issues of the Book Shelf; community information; CoffeeHouse schedules, artists, and performers; essays on the arts; our featured albums and artists; FloodStock info; our gallery exhibits; member stuff; links to our sponsors; all the facts about ten years of Got Milk Summer Sounds concerts; and too much more to list. The ArtLinks page lists hundreds of resources we have found for dance, fine arts, music, theater, and writing. You can take part in our community survey, read some Franklin County information and even scan a map of the county. And, of course, there is a painless form to join the AAC and see how our annual membership drive works. Finally, because there are browsers who dislike images and javascript, we even have a Text Only index.
      E-mail the All Arts Council and visit us on the web at here


FRANKLIN COUNTY BOOKSHELF

      ArtBits features a quick weekly peek at the bookshelf or night stand of the folks you know in and around Franklin County. That popular feature has a page of its own at the Franklin County Bookshelf here on the AAC site.


SUPPORT LIVE ARTS IN YOUR TOWN!


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Dick Harper, Chair

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All Arts Council of Franklin County
P.O. Box 1
Highgate Springs, VT 05460
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      This article was originally published in the St Albans Messenger and other traditional print media. It is Copyright © 2001 by Richard B. Harper. All rights reserved. Archival material is provided as-is. Links are not necessarily maintained (if a link in this article fails, try Google.com or your favorite search engine).
      Thanks to recent misuse of copyright material on the Internet by individuals and archival firms alike, we emphasize that your rights to this article are limited to viewing it and printing it for personal use only. You must receive explicit permission from the All Arts Council and the author before reprinting or redistributing this article in any medium.