N E W H A M P S H I R E A R T S N E W S

2004

Katherine MinFiction WriterPlymouth

2004 Fellow

[ Volume XXII Number 2 � Summer 2004 ]

Photo by Julie Mento

ContentsT A B L E O F

From the Director ..................................................1Arts Council News ..............................................2-3Marie Harris Tribute ..............................................4Old Man of the Mountain Update ........................5NH Creative Economy Network..........................6-7NH/Québec Dance Exchange ................................8NH Delegation to Québec......................................9Spotlight: Traditional Arts Showcases..............10-11Fiddle/Dance Instruction Book/CD ......................12Craft in the Digital Age Conference......................13Silk Road Collaboration ..................................14-15Pathways to Learning ............................................16Widening the Circle Conference ..........................17Spotlight: Community Arts/Main Street..........18-19Portsmouth Documentation Project ....................20Around the State ............................................21-25Regional News ......................................................26National News ......................................................27Autumn Deadlines................................................28

NH Arts NewsNH Arts News is published quarterly. It reaches 6000 people free of charge.To change address information, pleasee-mail, info@nharts.state.nh.us, or writeto NH Arts, New Hampshire StateCouncil on the Arts, 2 1⁄2 Beacon Street,Concord, NH 03301-4974.

State of New HampshireDepartment of Cultural ResourcesDivision of the Arts© NH State Council on the ArtsConcord, New Hampshire USA

Editor: Yvonne StahrProduction Manager: Julie MentoGraphic Design: Brian Page,

Dharma CreativeContributors: Arts Council Staff

On the Cover2004 State Arts Council Fellow KatherineMin was born in Urbana, IL and receivedher B.A in English Literature at AmherstCollege in Amherst, MA and her M.S. inJournalism from Columbia University inNew York City. She is Writer-in-Residenceand Diversity Scholar at Plymouth StateUniversity’s Graduate Studies Division, whereshe is also an adjunct faculty member.

During her Fellowship year, Min spent two months focusing onher writing at the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough and onemonth at the Millay Colony in Austerlitz, NY. Min was honoredas a Tennessee Williams Scholar in 2004 at the SewaneeWriters’ Conference in Tennessee.

Min gave a reading at Plymouth State University as her“Report to the New Hampshire Community” in July 2004.

This newsletter is available electronicallyor in alternative formats. Please call

603/271-2789

DirectorF R O M T H E D I R E C T O R

Summertime and the livin’ is easy busy!We are in the midst of interviews, focusgroups, and surveys as part of our strategicplanning process. We scheduled sixregional focus groups around the state tolisten to arts issues tied to geography inthe Granite State. Groups have or will beconvening in Peterborough, Manchester,Portsmouth, Randolph, Laconia, andLebanon. A special session in Portsmouthon August 5th focused on the particularchallenges faced by emerging artists.

To get as much feedback as possible, weinvite everyone to take the online surveyposted on the State Arts Council’s website(see box). By October, using what wehave learned from these investigations,we will post a draft of State Arts Councilgoals and strategies for 2005-2010 forfurther public review and comment.State Arts Councilors will vote on thefinal draft of the plan in December.

To help us with our planning, we alsospent some summer days learning aboutnational trends and strategies in publicsupport for the arts. Several staff memberstraveled to (very hot and steamy)Washington DC in July to participate in the joint conference of the NationalAssembly of State Arts Agencies andAmericans for the Arts. The focus wason civic engagement in politics andcommunity service through the arts.Sessions explored ways to build morelivable neighborhoods, bridge differences

among communities, and value the eco-nomic impact of the arts on communityprosperity. Additional sessions focusedon public art and accessibility resourcesand strategies.

This summer also brought the bureaucraticwork of preparing the next biennium’sbudget request for FY2006-2007. TheGovernor’s team will listen to agencyrequests in November to develop theGovernor’s budget presentation for

January. February through May will be theLegislature’s turn to review these requests.With predictions of state deficits ahead,this is expected to be a difficult year.

Despite this working calendar for thesummer, I know all of us will be fitting inas many summer arts events as we can,from the annual League of New HampshireCraftsmen Fair to summer theatre andstreet festivals. We encourage all ourreaders to do the same, support your localarts organizations and artists. People fromout-of-state spend their vacation dollarsto enjoy what we have right here in ourown backyard. Don’t let them have allthe fun, get out and pARTicipate!

Rebecca L. LawrenceDirector, Division of the Arts

Tell Us What You Think!As part of our process of updating the Strategic Plan for the State Arts Council,we invite everyone to provide feedback on the opportunities and challenges yousee for supporting and promoting the arts over the next three years. We’vemade it easy for you to give us your feedback online. Please visit our web site,www.nh.gov/nharts, and click on “2004 Constituent Survey.” The survey takesapproximately 10 minutes to fill out. Your advice helps us respond to the artsneeds of New Hampshire citizens.

1

Photo left:

2004 Fellow,

Katherine Min,

Plymouth, NH.

Photo by Julie Mento

News

Arts Council NewsArts Councilor and Staff Notes

We were sorry to see long-time ArtsCouncilor Melissa Walker have to cut hersecond term short due to the demandsof recovering from a devastating fire atthe Walkers’ Christmas Tree Farm inMadbury. Walker, a weaver and educator,was an enthusiastic supporter of the Arts Council’s work and could always be depended upon for her down-to-earthinsights on ways to meet any challengepresented to the Council. On June 23rd,the Governor and Executive Council officially accepted Arts Councilor MelissaWalker’s resignation with regrets.

Science fiction author and State ArtsCouncil Chairman James Patrick Kellyof Nottingham has been nominated for a Hugo award, the World Science FictionSociety’s Achievement Award. He is alreadya two-time recipient of the coveted award.

In August, musician and Councilor RandyArmstrong of Dover will be touringGhana and Mali in West Africa.

Councilor and photographer Gary Samsonof Concord is working with folklorist andUNH Professor Burt Feintuch of Portsmouthon a book provisionally entitled In theBlood: Cape Breton Conversations onCulture.

Councilor Jacqueline Kahle of Wiltonhas been appointed Vice Chair of theState Arts Council. Many thanks areextended to former Vice Chair WilliamHallager of Lincoln, who stepped downfrom office for personal reasons.

During the recent busy spring grant season, panelists who are active in thesubject areas that correspond to theState Arts Council’s programs, haveconvened to review grant applications.Each grant review panel meeting isoverseen by a representative of the State Arts Council who, in most cases,facilitates the proceedings. We extend

our gratitude to the Councilors who havevolunteered to ensure that this importantprocess is carried out in the fairest and most ethical manner possible.Participating Councilors and the panelsthey oversaw were: Gary Samsonfor Artist Fellowship applications inLiterature, Randy Armstrong for Artist Fellowship applications in thePerforming Arts and also TraditionalArts Apprenticeship grants, KarenBurgess Smith for Artist Fellowshipapplications in the Visual Arts, Tim Sappington for Cultural Facilities/Cultural Conservation grants and Artistin Residence grants, Grace Sullivan forArtLinks applications, Jasmine Shah forTraditional Arts Project grants, JacquelineKahle for Organizational Support Project/Planning grants and Operating grants,and Paul Hodes for Community ArtsDevelopment Project grants.

State Arts Council Director RebeccaLawrence has been chosen to chair thenew International Committee for the NewEngland Foundation for the Arts.

Councilor Jacqueline Kahle of Wilton is Vice

Chair of the State Arts Council.

Photo by Julie Mento

Melissa Walker of

Madbury is retiring

from the State Arts

Council.

Photo courtesy of

Melissa Walker

32

Conference

Plans are in place for the 2004Arts in Education Conferenceand registrations are now beingaccepted. This year’s conferencewill take advantage of the vitalarts activities available in NewHampshire’s most urban city.“The City as Canvas,” the StateArts Council’s 2004 statewideconference will take placeSeptember 17th through the19th in Manchester.

Devoted to the continuing professional development andrenewal of educators, artists and

parents, the annual conference bringstogether artists and arts educators fromall disciplines to exchange ideas, discusschallenges and form an ever-growingnetwork of colleagues and advocates.Individuals and school teams will learn about the power of the arts toimprove learning.

Conference Highlights

Highlights will include the Apple HillChamber Players, an evening showcaseof AIE Roster performing artists, artsworkshops throughout the city, openartist studios at Langer Place CreativeMills, tours of the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Zimmerman House and theCurrier Museum of Art, and dinner prepared by the Culinary School ofSouthern NH University.

Pat Schneider, poet, author, and adjunctprofessor at the Graduate TheologicalUnion in Berkeley, CA will open the conference with a keynote address. She is founder and director of AmherstWriters & Artists, and editor at AmherstWriters & Artists Press. Her pioneeringwork is the subject of the award winningdocumentary, “Tell me Something I Can’t Forget.”

The internationally known Apple HillChamber Players, based in Sullivan, willperform a “Playing for Peace” concert on

Saturday, September 18 at Southern NHUniversity. One of America’s most highlyrespected performing ensembles, they willalso conduct a coaching workshop withNH student ensembles. The Playing forPeace Project is dedicated to furtheringworld peace and understanding throughconcerts, residencies, and scholarships.

Partners

The State Arts Council presents the conference in partnership with the NHDepartment of Education, the ArtsAlliance of Northern NH, the NH Alliancefor Arts Education, the National Endowmentfor the Arts, the NH Association of StringsTeachers, the Manchester CommunityMusic School, the City of Manchester,Art Builds Community, the CurrierMuseum of Art, the Manchester schools,plus host site partners.

(Photo right):

The Apple Hill

Chamber Players

Ensemble will be

"Playing for Peace" at

the September 2004

Arts in Education

Conference in

Manchester.

Courtesy of Apple

Hill Chamber Players

The Mill Girl statue at

the Millyard Museum

of Manchester, a

tribute to 19th-century

female textile workers,

contrasts with the

Queen City's

modern skyline.

"The Mill Girl"

courtesy Intown

Manchester/Photo ©

Robert Edsall

The City as Canvas Arts in Education Conference

Registration

Early bird registration ends August 14.Daily commuter rates are available. For more conference details, or to download a registration form, pleasevisit the State Arts Council on the web:www.nh.gov/nharts. Contacts: Frumie Selchen at (603) 323-7302,artsallianceNNH@cs.com.Catherine O’Brian, (603) 271-0795,cobrian@nharts.state.nh.us.

Th

e Old M

anIn June, Dr. Rawn Spearman, noted New Hampshire performer and recipientof the 2001 Lotte Jacobi Living TreasureAward, presented the New Hampshirepremiere of Safe Harbor: A Celebration of Music, Art and Poetry at the CurrierMuseum of Art in Manchester.

The multimedia performance, designedas a tribute to immediate past NewHampshire Poet Laureate Marie Harris,featured a poem cycle by Harris entitled“Safe Harbor,” a watercolor sequence byNewfoundland artist Sylvia Bendzsacalled “Form of the Wave,” and original

Shortly after New Hampshire’s loss ofthe Old Man of the Mountain, GovernorCraig Benson appointed a 12-memberOld Man of the Mountain RevitalizationTask Force charged with memorializingthe cherished stone face for generationsto come. Former Governor Steve Merrillis chairing the committee. In addition, aseven-member Old Man of the MountainDesign Team, chaired by CulturalResources Commissioner Van McLeod, hasbeen appointed to focus on implementingthe three phases of revitalization overthe next few years.

The First Phase — The Old Man’s Spirit is Reborn

The first phase ofthe Old Man of theMountain’s revital-ization waslaunched on theanniversary of hisfall on May 3, 2004.

During that grayand misty morning at the base ofCannon Mountain,two viewfinderswere unveiled. Van McLeod describes theviewfinders, “Through one, you see whatis there now with the Old Man gone.Through the other you see a stereoscop-ic overlay that creates an optical illusionof what it was like when he was there.”

Later that evening in Manchester, thefirst annual New Hampshire ProfileAwards, recognizing specific or longtimeefforts to preserve, protect, or promoteone or more of the attributes associatedwith the Old Man of the Mountain, werepresented. The three awards honor an organization, an individual, and amunicipality. The recipients of the inaugural awards were, respectively, the Society for the Protection of NewHampshire Forests, former GovernorWalter Peterson, and the town of Littleton.

jazz “knee plays” performed by musiciansAnthony Mele and Bruce Ronkin, andcomposed by the musicians and MitchellShuldman, to accompany dramaticreadings by both Spearman and Harris.

After the performance, the audiencejoined an informal discussion and gatheredfor a gala reception. Bendzsa’s paintingswere exhibited through June. Safe Harborwas made possible by the Currier Museumof Art, the New Hampshire State Councilon the Arts, the New Hampshire HumanitiesCouncil, the Poetry Society of NewHampshire, and private donations.

54

Photo left:

The Old Man of the

Mountain fell from

his perch on

May 3, 2003.

Photo by

Dick Hamilton

Revitalizing a Beloved State Icon The Old Man Lives On

2001 Lotte Jacobi Living

Treasure Rawn

Spearman.

Photo by Gary Samson

Fellow Artists Paid Tribute to Marie Harris at the Currier Museum of Art

Safe Harbor (from the poem cycle, Safe Harbor by Marie Harris)

Winter pushes inland up the rivers,heaving slabs of frozen sea into salt marshes:pile-ups troweled in sea colors – gray-greenblue-green, black-green, gray-blue, gray-white,yellow-white, blue-white, pale whiteand paler to clear ice — folds and faults.Our boat is in safe harbor, anchored to the forest floor, riding snow swells. Cold noise thrums in the coiled rigging,suggests speed over the frozen ground.

The Profile Award — born and raised in New Hampshire

The committee determined that theseunique awards should be designed by aNew Hampshire artist and made of naturalmaterials that are native to the state.Sculptor Andre Belanger from Berlin wonthe competitively bid commission. Hecreated the awards from New Hampshiregranite and native birch with the famousprofile of the Old Man etched on clear acrylic.

The Second and Third Phases — The Old Man’s Gifts to the People ofNew Hampshire

Two more phases are currently underwayto memorialize the Old Man of theMountain. These projects will communicatethe values that have come to be symbolizedby the Old Man’s rocky profile.

� Artist Sculpture Park on the northernshore of Profile Lake.

� An educational curriculum.

� A museum with interactive exhibits.

Request for Proposals for the ProfileLake Sculpture Park – Art and Nature

An RFP for the artworks that will populatethe Sculpture Park is currently beingdeveloped. “The Sculpture Park providesan exciting opportunity for artists,” saysArtist Services Coordinator Julie Mento.“Keep an eye out for the request for proposals at www.nh.gov/nharts and sign up for the State Arts Council’s e-news service.”

The Profile Awards

were created by

Berlin artist Andre

Belanger.

Photo by Julie Mento

Poet Laureate

Emerita Marie Harris.

Photo courtesy of

Marie Harris

Rendering of the

proposed Artist

Sculpture

Pathway.

Rendering by

Tim Sappington

Understanding the Creative EconomyThe creative economy includes work that results in culturalproducts or services…from glassblowing to web designing andfrom working as a security guard in a museum to being anaccountant in a graphic design firm.

Three overlapping aggregates measure New England’s creative economy in terms of people, organizations or businesses, and places:

The Creative Workforce

The creative workforce is composed of individuals whose jobsrequire skill in the cultural, fine, or applied arts. This group ofindividual workers may be employed within the creative cluster(a curator at a museum), in an industry outside the creativecluster (a web designer at an investment firm), or they may beself-employed (an interior designer).

The Creative Cluster

This term refers to a group of nonprofit organizations and businesses (sole proprietorships, partnerships or corporations)that produce goods and services based in cultural enterprise,the fine or applied arts. The workforce for creative clusterindustries, such as museums and architectural firms, includescreative workers with skills in the cultural, fine, or applied arts,such as self-employed craftspeople, and workers with skills inother areas, such as museum guards.

Creative Communities

This term refers to geographic locations within New Englandwhere quality of life is directly connected to higher concentra-tions of creative workers and creative cluster industries.Creative communities understand and value their culturalassets. They support diversity and innovation.

Thinking THE BOX

76

In June, business,

arts, and government

leaders launched the

New Hampshire

Creative Economy

Network with an

afternoon of sharing

information about

what this sector

means to the state’s

economic future.

Photo by

Joan Goshgarian

(Photo bottom right):

Media production —

film, video, cable, and

broadcast — is a

major employer of the

creative workforce.

Providing training in

these skills to young

people, such as those

seen here at the

Children’s Museum

of Portsmouth, is

essential to education

for the 21st century.

Photo courtesy of the

Childrens’ Museum

of Portsmouth

The creative workforce includes all types of designers from architects

and interior designers to web and graphic designers. Seen here, an

architectural plan for Capitol Center for the Arts by Sheerr McCrystal

Palson Architecture, Inc.

A vibrant mix of 90 business, arts, andgovernment leaders came together onJune 9th to launch New Hampshire’s

Creative Economy Network, a state-sizedvariation of New England’s Creative

Economy Council.The session beganwith an overview ofterms and statisticsthat define the creative economy inNew Hampshire,then progressed toroundtable discussionson eight related topics,ranging from “Artistas Entrepreneur &Entrepreneur asArtist” to “The Role

of Arts and Culture in WorkforceDevelopment.”

The groundbreaking work on definingthe creative economy began over threeyears ago through a research studysponsored by the New England Council,the New England Foundation for the Arts(and its member state arts agencies),and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.By gathering information on for-profitapplied arts, nonprofit cultural work, and self-employed artists together in oneplace, the significance of this sector inNew England’s overall economic competitiveness became apparent.

An ongoing partnership between the State Arts Council and the NH BusinessCommittee for the Arts led to the formationof a steering committee to design a wayof moving this research forward into

action for the state. Members of thesteering committee were Chris Dwyer,RMC Research; Doris Burke, Public

Service of New Hampshire; MaryMcLaughlin, Bank of New Hampshire;Terri Beyer, Ocean National Bank;Stephanie McLaughlin, NH BusinessReview; Byron Champlin, Jefferson-Pilot;Tom Putnam, Markem Corporation;Rebecca Lawrence, NH Division of theArts; and Joan Goshgarian, NH BusinessCommittee for the Arts.

The steering committee designed NH’sCreative Economy Network to spark new conversations about ways the creative sector can keep New Hampshirecompetitive in a changing economy andthe urgency of supporting and investingin that sector. The conversations willcontinue through list-servs hosted onwww.creative-economy.org, the sitemanaged by New England’s CreativeEconomy Council, which also containsnews and resources on other state andregional activities related to the region’sCreative Economy Initiative.

Question:

What common interest would bring these people together: the owner of a brewingcompany, a museum director, a North Country resort hotel manager, the CEOof a utilities company, the State’s Artist Laureate, and a municipal planner?

Answer:

New Hampshire’s Creative Economy Network.

OUTSIDE

Communities that feature public art

works contribute to the creative economy.

La Dame de Notre Renaissance

Français and her son Émile, sculpture

by Christopher Gowell.

Photo by Kathy Seward MacKay

53% of NH’s creative workersare employed in for-profit busi-nesses; 7%, in nonprofits; 14%,in government; and 26% areself-employed.

About 16,000 creative workers,in 34 job categories, make up2.5% of NH’s labor force.

The economic impact of NewHampshire’s nonprofit culturalorganizations, a subset of thestate’s creative cluster employingnearly 4000 workers, is $136.4 million.

Want to Know More? Here are some helpful links.

www.creative-economy.org,www.newenglandarts.org

New Hampshire Statistics

Open Borders – Sans Frontières

Open Borders8 9

"(Another) Metal

Garden" choreo-

graphed by New

York choreographer

Séan Curran in

collaboration with the

dancers was among

one of the dances

showcased at the

Redfern Arts Center.

Photos by

Celine Perrone

(Photo right - opposite page)

Representatives of two governments met to

discuss future plans for a NH/Québec

cooperative cultural agreement. From left to

right: Mme. Françoise Cloutier, New England

International Relations, Ministry of Culture

and Communications; Conseillére Fabienne

Bilodeau, Ministry of Culture and

Communications; Director of International

Cooperation and Development M. Jacques

Laflamme, Ministry of Culture and

Communications; NH Department of Cultural

Resources Commissioner Van McLeod and

Division directors Jim McConaha, Historical

Resources; Michael York, State Library;

Rebecca Lawrence, Arts.

Photo by Gary Samson

was New Hampshire’s turn to senddelegates to Québec. Over thecourse of three days they met withand were hosted by staff from theNational Library, museums, Bureauof Film, art centers, galleries,archeologists, historians, andQuébec government officials.Roundtable discussions were held atthe National Archives on culturaltourism and French heritage, historyand genealogy. During a formal meetingbetween government representatives, thegroup agreed to collaborate on a culturalheritage corridor in 2008 as part of the400th anniversary of the exploration of NorthAmerica by Samuel de Champlain, the Frenchnavigator who mapped much of the north-east and started a settlement in Québec.

Among the benefits of these exchangesis the opportunity for New Hampshireand Québec counterparts to meet andlearn from each other and compare thefunctioning of their respective departments.In most cases, the issues confronting artsand culture in Québec are significantlysimilar to those in New Hampshirealthough their public/private fundingratio is dramatically different.

“I am confident that our cultural agreement,Open Borders – Sans Frontières will instillin our fellow citizens the desire to learnmore about each others’ cultural andhistorical resources,” said France Dionne,Québec Delegate to New England. “NewHampshire and Québec are already strongeconomic partners. By bringing togetherleaders of our cultural communities, thecultural agreement is developing ourrelationship into a broader scope,” she said.

The sponsors of the New Hampshire delegation’s visit to Québec were theDepartment of Cultural Resources, PublicService of New Hampshire, JeffersonPilot Financial, American-CanadianFrench Cultural Exchange Commissionand the New Hampshire Department ofResources & Economic Development –International Trade Resource Center.

In May the New Hampshire Departmentof Cultural Resources led a delegation of NH cultural organizations to Montreal,to further develop the partnerships andalliances that outline the State’s on-goingCultural Exchange Agreement with Québec,known as Open Borders – Sans Frontières.

Leading the group were Cultural ResourcesCommissioner Van McLeod and thethree directors from the Department:Rebecca Lawrence, State Arts Council;Jim McConaha, Division of HistoricalResources; and Michael York, State

Library. Members of the delegation included:Mary Boswell, Belknap Mill Society;Adele Baker, Franco-American Centreand the American-Canadian FrenchCultural Exchange Commission; JoanChamberlain, Northern Forest HeritagePark; Mary Jean Chaput, Franco-AmericanCentre and UNH-Manchester Library;Peter Davies, NH Humanities Council;Sylvio Dupuis, Palace Theatre and NH Historical Society; Sheryl Hack,Canterbury Shaker Village; Gary Samson,NH Institute of Art; Susie Lowe-Stockwell,League of NH Craftsmen; and AndreaThorpe, Richards Free Library and NHLibrary Association.

The Québec Government, Division ofInternational Affairs, Ministry of Culture andCommunications, invited the delegationin order to continue to expand andexplore cultural exchanges. In October2002, New Hampshire hosted a three-daycultural mission from Québec. In May, it

The idea of developing

a cultural heritage

corridor as part of the

2008 celebration for

Samuel de Champlain,

founder of Québec,

was introduced during

the formal meeting.

Photo by

Gary Samson

NH Delegation Travels to Québec to Focus on Cultural and Heritage Programs

Launching the New Hampshire/Québec Dance Alliance

Dancers were Danielle Discenzo, YoshioChandler, Jillian Davey, Aiyana Maye,Alison K. Rosenthal, Melanie Rosner,Meredith Roy, and Leah J. Waitkun. “I Forget Just Why” is a solo piece,inspired by the Edna St. Vincent Millaypoem, “Lament,” and danced by Maye.Also included in the concert wasMontreal choreographer Katie Ward’spiece, “Collapsible Uprisings.”

The Dance Alliance’s next project willfind one of Montreal’s leading moderndance companies, Cas Public, in residenceat KSC February 6 through 9. They willbe seen in “If You Go Down to the WoodsToday” and “Courage Mon Amour.”

The Dance Alliance’s principal venuesare KSC’s Redfern Arts Center onBrickyard Pond and Montreal’s TangenteDance Space. The visit to Montreal wasmade possible through funding from theNew Hampshire State Council on theArts, The Québec Ministry of Cultureand Communication, KSC Office of theDean of the School of Arts andHumanities, and Brickyard Pond.

After two years of planning, the NewHampshire/Québec Dance Alliance’smission to exchange dance resourcesbecame official on May 10 when eight

Keene StateCollege (KSC)dance students andalumni, along withdance faculty, left fora weeklong visit toMontreal, Québec.Among the danceopportunities avail-able to them weredance classes atLes Ateliers deDanse Moderne deMontréal; a masterclass with Butohmaster, YoshitoOhno; and attendingdance performancesat Tangente DanceSpace and theUniversity ofMontreal. In additionthey showcasedtwo dances atStudio 303 to asold-out house.

The dances theyperformed were “(Another) Metal Garden,”choreographed by New York choreographerSéan Curran in collaboration with thedancers, and “I Forget Just Why,” choreographed by KSC dance professorWilliam Seigh.

“(Another) Metal Garden” was createdduring Mr. Curran’s two-week residencyat KSC in the fall of 2003. His residencywas made possible though a NationalCollegiate Choreography Initiative. Thedance was rehearsed throughout the yearby the head of KSC’s dance programMarcia Murdock and Seigh.

KSC Dance Students and Alumni Showcase Talents in Montreal

Apprentices at the League Fair

On August 8, 2004, the Traditional ArtsProgram once again showcased recipientsof Traditional Arts Apprenticeship grantsat the annual League of New HampshireCraftsmen Fair. The showcase helps

fulfill a communitypresentationrequirement of thegrant recipients. Bysharing their skills,grantees let visitorssee that traditionalarts are important,beautiful, and are preserved by dedicated individuals.

This showcase also helps bring publicattention to the important work that theState Arts Council is doing to help preserveimportant aspects of the state’s livingcultural heritage. The Traditional ArtsApprenticeship showcase includescrafts, music, and dance. Craft artistsdemonstrated processes, materials and

techniques involved in their tradition.Musical performances were informationaland entertaining.

The recipients of this year’s TraditionalArts Apprenticeship Grants featured at theLeague of New Hampshire Craftsmen Fairat Mount Sunapee were:

The 10-day League of New HampshireCraftsmen Fair was held August 7through 15th at the Mount SunapeeResort in Newbury, NH. It is the oldestcrafts fair in the country and a wonderfulopportunity for people to support thewide range of fine craftsmen in the state.

Demonstrations at the Annual Stratham Fair

For the third year, the State Arts Council’sTraditional Arts Program partnered with the Stratham Fair to support a“Traditional Arts Village” as part of itsfour-day annual event. Held July 29-August 1, 2004 at the Stratham HillPark, the Fair drew over 40,000 visitors.

Like other agricultural fairs, the StrathamFair features displays and demonstrationsof farm equipment, livestock, community-based home crafts, 4-H projects, performances of country western andpop music, midway games, food booths,and carnival rides. What makes theStratham Fair unique is their commitmentto including educational demonstrationsof traditional arts in the mix.

The Stratham Fair provides an opportunityto reach new audiences and increasepublic awareness of the State Arts Council’swork to preserve NH traditional arts inNew Hampshire. Nestled in among the4-H barns and show arenas, the

Traditional Arts Village provided fair visitors a special opportunity to visitwith traditional artists and learn aboutNew Hampshire’s special heritage.

The Traditional Arts Programhopes to work with other fairs to include more traditional artsdemonstrations and performances attheir events. Grants and partnerships areavailable. For more information, contactTraditional Arts Coordinator Lynn Martin Graton at (603) 271-8418, or lmartin@nharts.state.nh.us.

This year, demonstrationsincluded blacksmithing, granitecutting, timber framing, ash basketmaking, cooperage (barrelmaking), furniture upholstery,and working with draft animals.

1110

Apprentice Bob

Wyatt shows that

skillful and patient

hands are needed to

tie Classic Atlantic

Salmon flies.

Photos by

Lynn M. Graton

Decoys are first

roughed out with

power saws and

then the fine

carving is done by

hand. Fred Dolan

demonstrates the

finesse needed to

create a lifelike head.

To create a hooked

rug, Pam Bartlett

draws one loop of

wool at a time

through a burlap

backing. The goal

is to have each loop

appear exactly the

same as the other.

Oxen were responsible for clearing the fields of

stone and stumps during the early farming

days of New Hampshire. Today, their skills are

preserved in pulling competitions, one of the

main attractions at the pulling arena at the

Stratham Fair.

Steve Green

demonstrates the

technique of chipping

granite to a fine

edge using hammer

and chisel.

Photos by

Lynn M. Graton

Jack Paige teaches

Industrial Arts at

the NH Technical

Institute and also

preserves the time-

honored tradition of

blacksmithing.

The Stratham Fair

incorporated restoration

timber framing with a

goal toward repairing

their historic barn for

use in future fairs.

Spotlight: Traditional Arts Showcases

Decoy Carving:

Master Artist Fred Dolan of Strafford and Apprentice Gary Trotter of Lee

Rug Hooking:

Master Artist Dorothy Towle of Intervaleand Apprentice Mary Jo Landry of Berlin

Master Artist Pamella Bartlett of Loudonand Apprentice Janan Tari of Concord

Fly Tying:

Master Artist Mark Favorite of Rochesterand Apprentice Bob Wyatt of Concord

Vietnamese Dance:

Master Artist Kim Chi Vu Potter ofMerrimack and Apprentice VictoriaForslind of Nashua

Scottish Highland Bagpiping:

FY03 recipientsMaster Artist Gordan Webster of Concordand Apprentice Brendan Carey Blockof Antrim

12

Janet Farrar-Royce, a music teacherbased in Cheshire, CT is working withDudley and Jacqueline Laufman of TwoFiddles to expand the vision and musicalversatility of classical string players. Overthe past year, Farrar-Royce developed

companion instructional booklets forviola, cello and bass for the Laufman’sself-produced fiddle and dance instruc-tional booklet and CD entitled WhiteMountain Reel, and found a national distributor. “Teachers are very excitedabout this. Everyone loves the dancingwith the music.” said Farrar-Royce. “The fiddling is helping me reach somechildren for whom classical music isn’tdoing it and the Laufmans are reaching outto new audiences. It’s a win-win situation.”

Although classically trained, Farrar-Roycewas always interested in fiddling. Fiveyears ago she attended the nationalmeeting of the American String TeachersAssociation. They had gathered guestfiddlers from around the country andsuggested that music educators look tolocal traditions to broaden their musicprograms. They further suggested thatincorporating local fiddle traditions intothe curriculum of string programs wouldhelp achieve goals in meeting nationalstandards such as learning improvisation,harmony and chord structure, ensemblewriting and composition, plus allow students to connect with culture.

Farrar-Royce returned to New Englandand sought out traditional New Englandfiddler, and NH Folk Heritage awardrecipient, Dudley Laufman of Canterbury.Her friendship and working relationshipwith Dudley and his wife, Jacqueline, isbringing New Hampshire’s traditional fiddle-based dance music to the attentionof music educators everywhere. “Theyare the living art, the real thing, and traditional New England fiddling is somuch a part of our heritage,” she said.

For their part, the Laufmans are pleasedto participate in this integration and are preparing another project. SaysFarrar-Royce, “ We are working onanother collection of dance tunes for aninstructional booklet called Sweets of May.We hope to have it ready in the Fall.”

For more information, visit www.laufman.org

Violinists Become Fiddlers NH Fiddle and Dance Instruction Booklet and CD is a Model for Teaching Music

On April 24, 2004, The League of NewHampshire Craftsmen, in partnership withthe New Hampshire State Council on theArts, presented a one-day conferenceentitled Craft In the Digital Age: ExploringTechnology’s Role In Fine Craft. The eventwas held at the New Hampshire Instituteof Art in Manchester, New Hampshire,and was open to individual craft artisans,art teachers and instructors, curators, artassociation administrators, governmentofficials, and businesses that sponsor the arts.

The Rhode Island School of Design(RISD) played an important role in thepresentations and a keynote addresswas offered by Jay Coogan, AssociateProvost for Academic Affairs and developer of the Center for IntegrativeTechnologies at RISD. The State ArtsCouncil’s Traditional Arts CoordinatorLynn Martin Graton participated in apanel that explored perspectives on thetopic. “The conference was an excitingforum for discussing technology and its impact on the creative process,” commented Graton. “The digital revolutionis impacting the way we think, the wayshapes come to our mind, the way theyare translated into physical form, theway we touch the materials to shapethem, the entire process.

The digital revolution is inevitable, exhilarating and full of possibilities,” she continued. “As a folklorist and acraftsperson though, I’m concerned thatif we are not attentive, we risk that theshift to a completely digital creative language may overshadow the speciallanguage inherent to hand-made crafts. I hope that there will always be at least a few craftsmen who will consciouslypreserve that language that it has takengenerations to develop, and that oureconomy and cultural attitudes will support these decisions.”

In addition to the panel, the conferencefeatured craftspeople and vendors thatuse technology skills in their work. Toillustrate the exploration of technology’srole, the League of New HampshireCraftsmen’s Gallery 205 in Concordmounted an exhibition entitled High Tech• Hand Made. This juried, invitationalexhibition explored the connectionbetween high technology and handcraft.The entire exhibition was reinstalled atthe New Hampshire Institute of Art forthe Craft in the Digital Age conference.

Joanne Wise, Executive Director ofNorth Country Studio Workshops andformer board member of the League ofNew Hampshire Craftsmen’s HanoverCraft Council, coordinated the effort withvolunteers from each of the collaboratinginstitutions.

Partnership InitiativesCraft in the Digital Age: Exploring Technology’s Role in Fine Craft

13

Fine Craft

(Photo left):

People attending the

Craft in the Digital

Age Conference at

the NH Institute of

Art were treated to

the exhibit High Tech

• Hand Made.

Jay Coogan,

Associate Provost for

Academic Affairs

and developer of the

Center for Integrative

Technologies at RISD,

gave the keynote

address.

Photos by Susie

Lowe-Stockwell

From left to right:

Janet Farrar-Royce,

Dudley Laufman,

and Jacqueline

Laufman celebrate

the completion of

another session

recorded by Tim

Meeh of Canterbury.

Photos by

Lynn M. Graton

12

“It’s all about the rhythm, it’s all about

dance… a violin sings, a fiddle dances.” - Janet Farrar-Royce

High Tech • Hand

Made featured fine

crafts reflecting digital

influences as well as

the hand-made

perspective. The

exhibit was on view

at Gallery 205 in May.

Arts in Education

Faculty for the Institute includes historianDr. Pamela Crossley, Dartmouth College;historian Dr. Susan Blader, DartmouthCollege; ethnomusicologist Dr. Ted

Levin, Dartmouth College; Drs. SheilaSutherland Blair, Jonathon M. Bloom,and Norma Jean Calderwood, UniversityProfessors of Islamic and Asian Art,Boston College; master educator andproject humanist Joan Barnatt; artist andPersian scholar Rachel Lehr and artistBetsy Grob Giberson, who will leadhands-on explorations of the arts andcrafts of the Silk Road. Special guestmusicians will also participate.

As part of the two-year project, an interdisciplinary Silk Road workshop wasoffered at the State Arts Council’s 2003Arts in Education Conference. “A SilkRoad Banner, Lessons in LuxuriousCommodities” will be offered as part ofthe 2004 Arts in Education Conferenceon September 18 in Manchester. Theworkshop’s multi-textured approach will integrate math, geography, socialstudies, language arts, and science.

In an ongoing partnership effort, severalAIR school residencies with a focus onthe Silk Road have evolved at severalNH schools. These residencies haveincluded Indian dancer Jasmine Shah,

Chinese dancers and even a Chineseexchange student. Each school exploresthe Silk Road in a fresh and innovativeway, using a variety of resources, artistsand approaches to encourage studentlearning. The State Arts Council’s Arts in Education Coordinator CatherineO’Brian notes that even Carnegie Hallhas partnered on the Silk Road Projectby providing copies of their “GlobalEncounters: Sounds Along the SilkRoad” Teacher’s Guide for NH teachersand artists. Joan Zaretti, Manager ofWorld Music Programs for Carnegie Hall,recognizing the value of the project,attended the 2003 Arts in EducationConference. The Silk Road project,which started with the artistic ideas ofRachel Lehr, has led to some surprisingpaths. Working with the leadership ofFrumie Selchen and quality partnerships,valuable, high-quality artistic and learningexperiences are being offered to studentsand teachers in the state.

For more information on the Silk Roadproject or Teacher Institute contactCatherine O’Brian, (603) 271-0795, or Frumie Selchen, (603) 323-7302, or email ArtsallianceNNH@cs.com.

1514

Arts in Education PartnershipsHeart of the Silk Road:Interdisciplinary Partnership ProjectThe Arts Alliance of Northern NewHampshire (AANNH) received a two-yearNational Endowment for the Arts (NEA)grant to partially fund the creation of acurricular and pedagogical model forarts-based, integrated, interdisciplinaryteaching. According to project directorand AANNH director Frumie Selchen,“We are using the extraordinary arts of theSilk Road, and partnering with the State

Arts Council and the NH HumanitiesCouncil, to bring to life the ways in whichstudying and practicing the art of a regionor culture illuminates the environmental,economic, religious, historical and politicallife of that culture.” She added, “The SilkRoad project also offers a rich pathwayto the teaching of mathematics, science,and the language arts.

The Silk Road provides a particularlyinteresting model because teaching andlearning about it allows us to focus onan historic period of cultural exchange,and also offers a contemporary view of apart of the world that is much in the

news and on our minds,” she said. The Silk Routes included ancientEurope, Central Asia, China, and spursto India, Japan, Korea and Viet Nam.

NH felter and fabric artist Rachel “Rocky”Lehr is the lead artist and scholar for“Heart of the Silk Road.” Betsy GrobGiberson has been collaborating withLehr to develop visual arts approaches

to the project. NewAIE roster artistshave been invitedto participate asthe project growsand includes artistsworking in music,dance, theater/puppetry, literaryarts, and crafts.

In August, AANNHwill offer the secondSilk Road CulturesTeacher Institute atPlymouth StateUniversity (PSU).The Institute isheld in cooperationwith PSU, and

funded in part by the NH HumanitiesCouncil, the State Arts Council, and the NEA.

The Silk Road Institute offers presentationson history, ethnography, storytelling,visual arts, and music by distinguishedhumanities professors as well as a guidedseries of hands-on artistic activitiesinterpreting the daily humanities topics.It will provide educators with a solidunderstanding of content; with an exploration of how we can learn, teach,and talk about culture; and with supportin creating an integrated, humanisticapproach to teaching about Asian andworld cultures.

Artist Rocky Lehr

(third from left)

works with

summer Institute

participants as

they roll felt cords

to bind their Silk

Road map books.

Photo by

Frumie Selchen

Conway teachers

Peggy Cromwell and

David Freedman

study traditional rug

patterns as inspiration

for creating their own

rubber stamps during

the first summer Silk

Road Institute at the

World Fellowship

Center.

Photo by

Frumie Selchen

Art educator Patti

Quinn shows her

Silk Road portfolio

book, created

using a variety

of techniques

including stamping,

weaving, felting,

paper marbling

and papermaking.

Photo by

Mark Coy

16

The State Arts Council and the WalkerFund of the NH Charitable Foundationhave each awarded $5,000 to fund thefirst year of John Stark Regional HighSchool’s Artist in Residence program“Pathways to Learning,” which will enableNH AIE Roster Artist and designer LauraCampbell to workwith the school’sfaculty and studentsduring the 2004-2005 school year.

The project willencourage partner-ships with art, engineering, geometry,environmental science and poetrystudents to researchthe history and natural resourceson their schoolproperty. Studentswill also learn theconcepts of archi-tectural design anduse them to createand name a newtrail. The schoolplans to work with teaching artists eachyear for the next three years.

Additional partners on the project willinclude the John Hay Wildlife Refuge,the Weare Historical Society; theKearsarge Indian Museum and PaulDoscher from the Society for theProtection of NH Forests. The school’sfine arts department fundraiser also tookplace in partnership with Murray Farmsin Penacook. Art students raised over$1,000 selling flowers.

The program was designed by a groupof faculty concerned about students atrisk and who were determined to find newways to keep high school students engaged

in the classroom. The consensus was toget students out of the classroom andprovide real life situations for students touse their classroom knowledge outdoors.Faculty and teaching artists will emphasizethe fact that knowledge is applicablebeyond the confines of school walls.

The first year willbe spent learningabout John StarkHigh School’s land,understanding theconcepts of designand creating a newtrail. The old trail,primarily used byenvironmental sciencestudents and thecross-country skiteam, was lostwhen the schoolbuilt a football fieldand additions to the building.

The second year willinvolve designingand building markersto highlight points

of interest on the property. Design of themarkers will also allow anyone to cus-tomize the trail and transform it into aninteractive gallery throughout the year.The third year will involve designing andbuilding an organic outdoor classroomoff of the new trail.

For more information about the project,or for a schedule of the school’s firstyear events, contact Arthur Aaronson orSuzanne Canali at (603) 529-7675, orCatherine O’Brian at (603) 271-0795.

1716

Artwork by Joan

Dur, John Stark High

School Class of 2004.

“Untitled”, Etching,

Artist’s Proof, 2003

Conference

NH teaching artist

and musician Jeff

Warner (far right)

leads the workshop,

"The Latest News

from the Past:

Building Community

through Traditional

Song" at “Widening

the Circle.”

Photos by Dan Kahn

(Photo Left):

Teaching artist and

dancer Elaine Herg

Sisler from MA,

teaches "Dancing

through the

Frameworks & Into

the Classroom" at

“Widening the

Circle.” Her work-

shop focused on

helping artists devel-

op their own strate-

gies for creating

effective arts-integrat-

ed school programs.

Arts in Education PartnershipsPathways to LearningArts in Education Partnership Model with Artists in Residence at John Stark Regional High School

More than 130 artist-educators from acrossNew England convened for the thirdannual “Widening the Circle” conferenceon June 25th at the newly renovatedOpen Square Mills in Holyoke, MA.

The keynote speaker was independentteaching artist Eric Booth, also editor ofTeaching Artist Journal. His presentation,“The Overlooked Essentials of TeachingArtistry,” clarified, enriched, andadvanced the practice of teachingartists. Booth stressed the importance ofteaching artists, calling them “bridges”between our young people and the arts.He noted that they are a crucial resourcefor arts-in-education programs, arts education and general education, and tothe future of the arts as a whole. He alsoobserved that their significant contributionshave often gone unnoticed. Booth pointedout that before the Teaching Artist Journal,there had been no national professionalforum for the learning and developmentof artist-educators, and no vehicle fortheir voices to be heard.

He stressed the importance of “reflection”in artist residencies and noted that,“adding opportunities for students to geta grip of what they have just experienced,including a variety of ways for them to perceive what they have just accom-plished… is essential to a rich learningexperience.” Booth also facilitated apanel discussion titled, “Pushing the Big Questions.” Some tough questionsincluded: How do I balance practicing

my art form with teaching it? What arethe advantages and disadvantages of aunion for teaching artists? Why do Ioften feel isolated? How can I stay trueto my art form?

Workshop topics included: “Sharing theVision: Developing Effective CommunityArts Partnerships,” “Foundations ofArtist Residencies,” “Dancing throughthe Frameworks,” and “ArtisticCatalysts: Methods for IncreasingStudent Participation.” Seminars focusedon music, poetry, theatre, communityservice and public art.

“Widening the Circle” conferences arehosted by the New England Consortiumof Artist-Educator Professionals (NECAP),an organization dedicated to the supportand development of teaching artists.NECAP collaborates with the NewEngland State Arts Agencies, otherorganizations, and individual artists.

For more information, contact CatherineO’Brian at cobrian@nharts.state.nh.us,or (603) 271-0795. Information on nextyear’s conference will be posted on the webat: www.nh.gov/nharts. For information onTeaching Artist Journal, write to: journals@erlbaum.com, or visit the website: www.erlbaum.com.

Widening the Circle 2004 New England Conference for Artist-Educators

Thanks to an almost seven-year partnership with the NH Main StreetCenter in Concord, downtowns in communities like Plymouth, Durham,Goffstown, Jaffrey and Littleton haveused the arts as a catalyst to help revitalizetheir downtowns. Why? Because thedirectors of these Main Street Programsunderstand the value the arts play inboosting their local economies. Theyalso realize that arts events, particularlyparticipatory programs, improve thequality of community life, which justhappens to be the main purpose of theCouncil’s Community Arts Program. So forming a partnership with the NHMain Street Center was a very logicaland beneficial step.

Kathy LaPlante, Executive Director of the NH Main Street Center agrees:“The arts are an integral component tosuccessful downtown revitalization efforts.Our New Hampshire Downtowns arehome to many arts and cultural venuesand events, and our Main Street commu-nities benefit greatly from their ongoingassociation with the State Arts Council.”

The partnership began when CommunityArts Coordinator Judy Rigmont, accom-panied by professional sculptor and

Littleton's

designation as a

Main Street

Community and a

community arts

project helped to

create an opti-

mistic spirit in the

town.

Photo by Ruth

Taylor

1918

Spotlight: Community Arts The Arts Bring Life to NH Main Streets

The Goffstown

Main Street

Program has also

embraced the arts

as a regular part of

their community

festivals.

Photo courtesy

of Goffstown

Main Street

veteran community artist Emile Birch ofCanaan, were invited to give a presentationto new Main Street managers. As part ofthe presentation, Birch guided themthrough a hands-on collaborative artsexperience. The Littleton director wasinspired by the concept and process andapplied for a community arts grant tobring Birch to town to create a sculpturewith the community that reflected Littleton.The result was a long-term residency,bolstered by local support and communityparticipation, resulting in the creation ofa bronze sculpture of the character ofPollyanna, based on the book was writtenin Littleton depicting the optimistic and“glad” spirit of the community. Thesculpture has become a major marketing

anchor that attracts visitors to see avibrant downtown of colorful banners,artist-owned shops, boutiques, cafes, acolorful mural created by the community,and a restored grist mill. At least twoversions of a Pollyanna musical-theatrepiece are to be performed at the LittletonOpera House. Littleton’s successful program became a model for other NH Main Street arts projects.

The town of Jaffrey has created attractive“Visit Downtown” promotional materialstouting things to do. Attractions includeArt Strolls at the Civic Center; visitationsto a potter’s studio; a new summer concertseries on the town common; and abrown bag lunch concert featuring local,traditional and professional artists.

The Goffstown Main Street Program has also embraced the arts as a regularpart of their community festivals. A “Community Art Show Off” is nowintegrated into their annual PumpkinWeigh-Off and Regatta Weekend in mid-October. This community exhibit in thetown hall and library now includes morethan 40 amateur and professional artistsfrom the area ranging in age from sevento seventy-four.

Heading north to Plymouth, residents andtourists can be found enjoying the soundsof professional jazz artists performing inthe Gazebo on the Town Common. Thiswill be the third year that Plymouth MainStreet Program has sponsored a jazzseries that highlights performances byNH, national and internationally knownjazz artists. Roster artist Paul Bourgelais,a faculty member at Plymouth StateUniversity, helps coordinate the series.He has introduced an educational out-reach program for high school students

that gives them the opportunity to playwith the back-up band and local artists.The Main Street Program was also a keypartner in the development ofPlymouth’s first cultural plan.

Over in Durham, students shine at theAnnual Young Artists Showcase sponsoredby Durham Main Street Program, localbusinesses NH Public Television andFoster’s Daily Democrat. This summerevent brings more than 2500 to Durham’sdowntown to enhance their local economy.Professional artists mentor aspiring artistsvia workshops and demonstrations, andyoung artists are provided a venue tosell, display, perform, exchange andinteract with them and their peers.

“We look forward to helping make

more Main Streets come alive with artsprogramming and assisting them withtheir cultural tourism and planningefforts as well as projects that strengthentheir local and creative economies,” said Judy Rigmont. Contact JudyRigmont, Community Arts Coordinator,at jrigmont@nharts.state.nh.us, or 271-0794, and learn more aboutCommunity Arts Grants on the web atwww.nh.gov/nharts.

20Partners

Community Partnerships

A conversation withWashington DC basedchoreographer Liz Lermaninspired a documentationproject that chronicles theflowering of communityarts projects that bloomedin Portsmouth after Lerman’sDance Exchange company’screation of the PortsmouthNaval Shipyard Project.The Shipyard Project,first presented atPortsmouth’s Music Hall,culminated in 1996 with

a week-long festival of dance and storytelling that explored the role of theshipyard in the city’s economic andsocial life. This project grew from aground-breaking collaboration betweenart groups and the military that broughttogether people of all ages and back-grounds to celebrate an important partof the city’s history. The project becamea national model for community-basedoriginal art-making.

The connections and partnerships madeduring the Shipyard Project, coupled withthe power of the community’s arts-makingexperiences, motivated local artists andarts organizations to continue these typesof projects. Like the Shipyard Project,many of the 13 projects that followed werefunded by a combination of state artsagency (NH State Council on the Arts),regional arts agency (New EnglandFoundation for the Arts), communityfoundation (Greater Piscataqua CommunityFoundation), and local funds. These samefunding partners contributed to this docu-mentation project.

The documentation team (mostly volunteers)includes Paula Rais, formerly of theMusic Hall and now at the Children’sMuseum of Portsmouth; Nancy Hill ofthe Portsmouth Poet Laureate Program;and Artistic Director Genevieve Aichele ofthe NH Theatre Project, and the StateArts Council Community ArtsCoordinator Judy Rigmont. Jane

Hirshberg, formerly of the Music Hall andnow at Liz Lerman Dance Exchange,also contributed to the project’s earlyplanning phase.

A companion publication was edited byaward-winning Portsmouth authorKatherine Towler. It contains projectdescriptions, background informationabout project funders, many of whom alsoworked in collaboration, participating artsorganizations and their partners, quotesfrom project participants, and “advice”about conducting community arts projects.Publication is projected for later this year.Many of these projects were supportedby the multi-year Lila Wallace funded ArtBuilds Community Initiative in Portsmouth.This initiative also helped lay thegroundwork for the formation of a city-supported committee that developedPortsmouth’s first cultural plan, and helpedto found the city’s first local arts agency.

Grant support is available from the StateArts Council’s Community Arts Programto bring the display into communitiesalong with speakers who are willing toshare their experiences and knowledgeabout the community arts process. Formore information, contact Judy Rigmontat jrigmont@nharts.state.nh.us or (603) 271-0794.

2120

(Ghosted image):

Dancers in Prescott

Park create a bridge

between the Naval

Shipyard and the

Portsmouth community.

Photos courtesy of

Liz Lerman Dance

Exchange/

The Music Hall

Telling Our Stories: Portsmouth Community Arts Project

Greg Gathers of Pontine

Movement Theatre in

Portsmouth was com-

missioned to create a

display piece docu-

menting the activities

of the Shipyard

Community Arts project.

Artwork by

Greg Gathers

"You can literally trace the lineage of so many

projects along the Seacoast back to the

Shipyard Project. It was like a ripple effect

with people wanting to tell their own stories."

Paula Rais

An attendee at the 2004 Access Expo at

the Whittemore Center at UNH enjoys

creative expression at the VSA arts of NH

interactive display.

Access04, northern New England’s 11thannual exposition of technology, adaptiveequipment, services, and resources for independent living, took place in June atthe Whittemore Center in Durham. TheExpo offered opportunities and creativeexpression through technology, education,and the arts.

The VSA arts of NH staff conducted twoexciting hands-on community art projectsat Access04, which were sponsored inpart by the NH State Arts Council. Aninteractive weaving project that celebrateddiversity was lead by NH Roster artistSarah Haskell. Participants were invitedto experiment with color and texture andcreate a communal work of art.

Participants were also invited to experimentwith the one-of-a-kind tools created byartist Dwayne Szot to offer people of all

abilities an opportunity for creativeexpression through arts and mobility.The VSA arts staff assisted the visitorswho used the unique and innovativetools to create a large and colorfulmural. Public Service of NH sponsoredthe Arts for All tool purchase.

VSA arts of NH worked with Wisconsin artist

Dwayne Szot, who created unique art-making

tools that make it possible for people with

disabilities to create art.

Photos by Karen Bessette

Around the StateAccess04 Exposition Provides Options to People with Disabilities

Around the State22

Congratulations to…

The New Hampshire PhilharmonicOrchestra, recipient of a HistoricPreservation Award by the ManchesterHistoric Association for Conservation ofa Cultural Resource for 100 years ofbringing classical music opportunities toManchester.

CiborowskiAssociates,Citizens Bank,Nixon PeabodyLLP, and OceanNational Bank forbeing the recipi-ents of this year’sNew HampshireBusinessCommittee forthe Arts’ awards.

Consultant Alice DeSouza of Bedfordwas recognized with a Leadership Award.

Executive Director Stephen Dignazioand the Board of the Colonial Theaterof Bethlehem for receiving a $25,000USDA Rural Development CommunityFacility Grant for renovations to helpmake it a year-round regional culturalcenter for the North Country. The Colonialseats 300 and has operated during thesummer presenting independent films,and performances. They have also provided a venue for presentations andevents by local schools and nonprofits.

The following performing arts presenterswho have been awarded 2004 ExpeditionTouring Grants from the New EnglandFoundation for the Arts: The HopkinsCenter at Dartmouth College; RedfernArts Center at Brickyard Pond, Keene;The Music Hall, Portsmouth; The ColonialTheater, Keene; Friends of the Arts,Plymouth; Colby Sawyer College, NewLondon; Arts Alliance of Northern NH,Littleton; and the Lebanon Opera House.

NH Business

Committee for the

Arts winners were

awarded framed

watercolors by artist

Becky Darling.

Photo by Althea

Haropulos

2322

Howard Lyons whose work “Spirit Walk”has been nominated in the Pop categoryby Indian Summer Festivals, Inc.Winners will be announced September11th at the first annual Indian SummerMusic Awards.

Manchester Choral Society MusicDirector Lisa Wolff, who announced thatOxford University Press has publishedSongs of Hope and Consolation, by K.Lee Scott. Commissioned in celebrationof Wolff’s 20th anniversary as MusicDirector, the songs were premiered by theensemble in concert in 2002.

Actor Billy Butler, who has been cast inthe lead role of the Seacoast RepertoryTheatre’s upcoming production of BatBoy. Butler was chosen from among 25 actors who auditioned for DirectorSarah Gurfield.

The Cocheco Arts and TechnologyAcademy of Dover, which receivedunanimous approval from the NH StateBoard of Education to establish itself asan arts charter school. The Academyintends to open in January 2005 to 40freshman students from the region.

Recipients of the 10th Annual Spotlighton the Arts Awards. Winners in the visualarts category include visual artist/painterSean Beavers; sculptor ChristopherGowell; and photographer and 2003State Arts Council Fellow Tim Gaudreau.Theatre artist Genevieve Aichele receivedthe Spotlight Best Director Award.

Artists Samantha Bullock and NateHowe who were among the first to agreeto occupy the communal studio spacecreated on the top floor of the newly renovated Shepard Block in downtownFranklin. Owner Bennet Phillips under-took the successful renovation, with theassistance of Bullock and Howe andother artists in the community.

Suzanne Delle, who has been identifiedas one of The Union Leader’s 2004 “40under Forty.” Delle is artistic director ofher own theater company, Yellow TaxiProductions of Nashua.

Welcome to…

Lawrence Yerdon, new museum presidentof Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth.Formerly president and chief executiveofficer at Hancock Shaker Village inPittsfield, MA, Yerdon had been there for18 years.

Jane Forde, who has been appointed tofill the position of Executive Director ofArts Rochester starting September 1.Formerly artistic director of the PortsmouthMusic Hall, she is also a freelance director/choreographer. Forde has most recentlydirected Noises Off by Michael Frayn forthe Hackmatack Playhouse in Berwick, ME.She is also co-directing the summerdance/theatre camp at the Music Hall withGenevieve Aichele, of NH Theatre Project.

Sofia Piel, who recently joined the NH Theatre Project staff as director ofmarketing and development.

Patricia Lynch, new executive director of the Portsmouth Music Hall. She wasexecutive director of the O’Shaughnessyperforming arts center at the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, MN. Lynch haswon writing awards from the KennedyCenter’s Fund for New American Plays,the Jerome Foundation, the MinnesotaState Arts Board and the TheaterCommunications Group.

Fond Farewell…

To National Dance Project ManagerJennifer S. Bleill, who resigned from theNew England Foundation for the Arts topursue cultural consulting opportunities.

To Kate Kirkwood, who is stepping downas Executive Director of Arts Rochester.She will continue to be on the theatrefaculty, direct the youth theatre, coordinatethe Seacoast Theatre Collaborative, and help steer Rochester’s cultural planning process.

Artist Roster Member and State ArtsCouncil Fellow Frank Wallace fromAntrim on the release of his CD,“Delphin”, featuring his artistry on thevihuela de mano, a now rare stringedinstrument from 16th-century Spain. His performances were recorded at theHillsborough Center Congregational Church.

John Baymore, ceramic artist fromWilton, for representing the UnitedStates at the International WoodfireArtist-in-Residence program held thispast June at the Tsugaru KanayamaTogei Kumiai, a large wood firing ceramicsproduction facility, in Goshogawara-shi,Japan. This residency represents thethird time Baymore has been invited totravel to Japan.

Roster Artists Larry Siegel, ofWestmoreland, and Perry Alley Puppets,based in Strafford, for their successfulnine-show run of Strange Love, a collectionof three original adult puppet plays witha wide variety of musical interludes, atthe Exit Theatre in San Francisco earlierthis year.

Arts Rochester, upon their relocationfrom Shoreyville Plaza in to a newly-renovated 12,000-square-foot space inRochester’s historic Gonic Mill.

(Photo right):

Baymore works on a

handled basket form

at the August 2002

Aomori International

Wood Fire Festival in

Japan where he was

invited to be a work-

shop presenter.

Photo courtesy of

John Baymore

Theatre artist Genevieve

Aichele received the

10th Annual Spotlight

on the Arts Best Director

Award.

Photo courtesy of

Genevieve Aichele

Patricia Lynch,

Executive Director

of the Portsmouth

Music Hall.

Photo by Ann

Marsden

In Memoriam22 2524

On May 29th New Hampshire lost aLiving Treasure with the passing of wood sculptor and woodcut artist RobertHughes. He was 89 years old. He will beparticularly well-remembered by thegenerations of art students in the GreatNorth Woods and White Mountainswhose lives he touched as a teacher inthe Berlin public schools.

Robert Hughes wasborn in 1915 inProvidence, RI.After graduatingfrom the RhodeIsland School ofDesign (RISD) in1939, Hughesmoved to Berlinwhere he began his43-year teachingcareer in the town’spublic schools.

The youth of Berlinwere very fortunateto get their exposureto art from a professional artist ofHughes’s stature.In addition to hishigh school classes,

he taught master classes and students athis home studio. Professional artist AndreBelanger of Berlin, recalled his highschool days and “Mr. Hughes” who, forthree summers invited him to apprenticeas a wood sculptor. “I am a better personfor having known Bob Hughes,” saidBelanger. “He was one of the very fewwho changed life in Berlin, and in NewHampshire, for the better, forever.”

The State of New Hampshire namedHughes Teacher of the Year in 1975, inrecognition of his impact on Berlin HighSchool’s Art Department.

Eagerly interested in fostering culturalactivities in NH’s remote North Country,Hughes was a founding member of theWhite Mountain Arts and Music Festival.He also actively participated in the NorthCountry Chamber Players’ SummerFestival, Music in the Schools, andFestival DuBois.

He received many honors throughout hiscareer. In 1989, he was designated RISD’s“Alumni of the Year;” in 1991, the Stateof New Hampshire named him LivingTreasure; that same year he was featuredon New Hampshire Crossroads and inthe documentary film, “The City thatTrees Built.” Hughes had a solo exhibitionin 2000 at the Urban ArchitectureInstitute in New York; and exhibited in2001 at ArtSpace in Birmingham, MI. In 2002, he was asked to create anornament for the White House ChristmasTree; for the 2003 Governors’ Arts Awardshe was commissioned to create NewHampshire’s Living Treasure Award,which was jointly received by ceramicartists Edwin and Mary Scheier.

His works are on permanent display in the NH State Library, the LivingTreasures exhibit in Concord, the NHState Prison in Berlin, the Coos CountyCourthouse in Lancaster, and the NH Veterans Home in Tilton. Hughes’sartwork is also included in many privateand public collections in New York,Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Many will remember Hughes’s enormousinfluence on the arts in New Hampshirewith gratitude.

Wilson Langlois was a much loved and

respected French Canadian fiddler who

participated in a number of State Arts

Council projects.

Photo by Lynn M. Graton

“He was one of the very few who

changed life in Berlin, and in New

Hampshire, for the better, forever.”

New Hampshire

Living Treasure,

Robert Hughes in

his Berlin studio,

March 2004.

Photo by Julie Mento

Wilson Langlois 1929-2004

New Hampshire lost one if its mostbeloved fiddlers, Wilson Langlois, onMay 10 at the age of 74. Wilson was agifted fiddler who devoted much of hislife to playing traditional music from hisQuébecois heritage. He was known byhis fellow musicians and folklorists as agenerous soul and extraordinary player.

The State Arts Council has enjoyed itscreative association with Wilson Langloisover the years. In 1997 and again in2003 he received a Traditional ArtsApprenticeship grant from the State ArtsCouncil to pass on his French Canadianmusical heritage. In 2000, Langlois represented New Hampshire at theCelebrate New Hampshire Festival and in2003 he participated in a music recordingproject with the Cote family and pianistRobert Choiniere. Langlois accompaniesthe Cotes on two tracks and plays withRobert on another two on the resultingcompact disc Songs of the Seasonsproduced by the State Arts Council.

Folklorist Burt Feintuch of the Universityof NH’s Center for the Humanities hadbeen recording Wilson’s repertoire overthe past years. “Wilson … had a hugerepertoire, and it seemed that he couldplay nearly anything on his fiddle.”

Langlois was born to a musical family in Shawinigan Bay, Québec in June of1929. He began to play fiddle at the ageof five and at seventeen he joined adance orchestra in Québec and stayedwith the group for 20 years. In the 1960s,Wilson moved to Nashua to work in ashoe factory, but he continued to play

fiddle with friends in his off-hours.Folklorist Jack Beard has commented,“Wilson was a master of the Québecoisstyle of fiddling…unique to the region andexemplified by a spirited, syncopatedbowing which is intended to drive thedancers who traditionally two-stepthrough the figures.”

Over the years, Langlois provided a lotof music for dancing and a lot of joy. He will be missed.

In Memoriam…Robert Hughes 1915-2004 “Wilson… had a huge repertoire,

and it seemed that he could play nearly

anything on his fiddle.”

22 2726

David Steiner is the

new Director of Arts

Education at the

National Endowment

for the Arts.

Photo courtesy of

Boston University

Photo Services

National NewsNational Endowment for the Arts Announces David Steiner as New Director of Arts Education

Survey Finds a Decline in Literary Reading

Regional NewsOn-line Cultural MarketplaceState Arts Council Partners with the New England Foundation for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts(NEA) has appointed Boston UniversityProfessor David Steiner as its Director ofArts Education. In this position, Steinerwill be responsible for the panel selectionand grant making process in arts educationand will provide professional leadershipto the field.

Steiner, 46, is Associate Professor and Chairman of Boston University’sDepartment of Education Policy, and ascholar in the dual fields of the philosophyof education and American K-12 education reform.

He has designed and constructedassessment, accountability and curriculamaterials, consulted with major educationreform organizations, and served onnational education task forces focused

on the improved delivery of education.He has also worked with public officials,academics, and public school teachersin the United States, Europe, and Asia,to implement new education programs.

He is currently working on abook entitled “Retreat fromJudgment: The Limits ofEducation Reform.”

He received bachelor’s andmaster’s degrees from BalliolCollege at Oxford University,and earned his doctorate inpolitical science at HarvardUniversity.

Literary reading is in dramatic declinewith fewer than half of American adultsnow reading literature, according to aNational Endowment for the Arts (NEA)survey. Reading at Risk: A Survey ofLiterary Reading in America reportsdrops in all groups studied, with thesteepest rate of decline – 28 percent –occurring in the youngest age groups.

The study documents an overall declineof 10 percentage points in literary readersfrom 1982 to 2002, representing a lossof 20 million potential readers. The rateof decline is increasing and, according to the survey, has nearly tripled in thelast decade.

The study also found that literary readerstend to have the highest level of partici-pation in other activities. They are nearlythree times as likely to attend a performingarts event, almost four times as likely to visit an art museum, more than two-and-a-half times as likely to do volunteeror charity work, and over one-and-a-halftimes as likely to attend or participate insports activities.

Download Reading at Risk as a PDFdocument, or obtain free hard copiesthrough the NEA's web site:www.nea.gov.

State Arts Councilor Randy Armstrong,Artist Services Coordinator Julie Mentoand Community Arts Coordinator JudyRigmont are currently working closelywith the New England Foundation for theArts (NEFA) along with the lead admin-istrative partner, the MassachusettsCultural Council, on the developmentand forthcoming launch of the On-lineCultural Marketplace (OCM). Other partners include the Vermont Arts Council;Maine Arts Commission; Rhode IslandState Council on the Arts; and theConnecticut Commission on the Arts,Tourism, Culture, History and Film.

The OCM will strengthenthe creative industry bymore efficiently linkingartists in the region withthe theaters, libraries,schools, festivals, museums,galleries, and other venuesthat hire them to providecultural programming intheir communities.

Currently in development,and slated for launch in a

pilot form in Spring 2005, the OCM willbe a transaction-oriented, web-based,online booking service. It will allow artiststo market their work and interact directlywith presenting organizations, while providinga comprehensive management tool tolocate, schedule, promote, and tracktheir artist bookings.

Thanks to a suite of web-based tools onthe OCM, artists will be able to post andmaintain their portfolios online, with specialfeatures like streaming video and audiosamples. Presenters will use the tool tolocate artists, view work samples, negotiate,and draw up contracts. Both artists and

presenters will have access to technicalassistance, such as how to documenttheir work or tips on writing a contract.

Linked to Research Database

The OCM is being constructed in tandemwith NEFA’s New England CulturalDatabase (NECD), an online data warehouse of financial, demographic,contact and other information related tobusinesses, organizations and individualswithin New England’s creative economy.The OCM and NECD will be linked toeach other so they can share datasources and tools. Visit the NECD at www.newenglandarts.org.

Development Process

To initially develop, test, and promotethe OCM, a pilot group of 20 artists andpresenters from the region will provideinput on system specifications and testthe customized tools and interfaces.Then in the OCM’s first phase, NEFA’sNew England States Touring Roster ofover 900 performing artists will populatethe website. Soon, any artist of any discipline from the region will be able topost portfolios and utilize marketingtools on the site.

Welcome to...

Rebecca Blunk, newly elected executivedirector of the New England Foundationfor the Arts (NEFA). A 19-year veteranwith NEFA, Blunk has served as DeputyDirector for the past ten years.

Dana M. Whitco, who has been appointed Director of National DanceProject, a funding program operatingunder the auspices of NEFA that supportsthe production and distribution of contemporary dance in the United States.

Rebecca Blunk,

new Executive

Director of the New

England Foundation

for the Arts.

Photo by

Abigail Baisas

24

New Hampshire State Council on the ArtsAutumn Grant DeadlinesAcross Programs

Grant Name Deadline Mini-Grant October 1 & Quarterly*Peer Mentorships Ongoing

Community Arts Program

Grant Name Deadline Community Arts Project October 1

(for projects Jan. 1 – June 30, 2005)

Organizational Support Program

Grant Name Deadline Operating Grants November 19 (FY 06 & 07)

*Quarterly Deadlines:

October 1 for projects Jan. 1, 2005 & afterJanuary 1, 2005 for projects April 1, 2005 & afterApril 1, 2005, for projects July 1, 2005 & afterJuly 1, 2005 for projects October 1, 2005 & after

Traditional Arts Apprenticeship GrantsTraditional Arts Apprenticeship grants support the perpetuation of traditional arts inNew Hampshire. The grants provide funding for a master traditional artist to teach anexperienced apprentice in one-to-one sessions for a minimum of 80 hours over a sixto eight month period. In most cases, the maximum combined request for a masterartist and apprentice is $3,000. Applications are invited on an annual basis. Fundingis competitive and the State Arts Council is able to support between six and twelveteams a year. For more information, visit the State Arts Council’s website atwww.nh.gov/nharts or contact Traditional Arts Coordinator, Lynn Martin Graton at(603) 271-8418 or lmartin@nharts.state.nh.us

Regional Grant Workshops are Being Plannedfor Last Two Weeks of OctoberState Arts Council grants program coordinators will be traveling around the stateconducting five grant workshops during the last two weeks of October. Workshopswill include information on funding opportunities and services available through theState Arts Council’s program areas: Artist Services, Arts in Education, CommunityArts, Organizational Support, and Traditional Arts. Dates and locations will be postedsoon on the State Arts Council’s website at www.nh.gov/nharts.

For grant guidelines

and application

forms:

www.nh.gov/nharts

For more informa-

tion: 603/271-2789

NH Relay Services

TTY/TDD:

800/735-2964

General Phone:603/271-2789

URL: www.nh.gov/nharts

Fax: 603/271-3584

TTY/TDD:800/735-2964

Office Hours: 8:15 am – 4:15 pmClosed all Stateand most Federalholidays

New Hampshire StateCouncil on the ArtsEstablished in 1965, the New HampshireState Council on the Arts and the NewHampshire Division of the Arts comprisethe state’s arts agency. Funding comesfrom appropriations from the State ofNew Hampshire and the NationalEndowment for the Arts, a federalagency. Volunteer Arts Councilors setpolicies, approve grants, and advise theCommissioner of the Department ofCultural Resources on all matters concerning the arts.

The State Arts Council’s mission is toenrich New Hampshire’s quality of lifethrough the arts. The Director of theNew Hampshire Division of the Artsadministers the agency, which is part ofthe Department of Cultural Resources.

New Hampshire State Arts Councilors

Chair

James Patrick Kelly, Nottingham

Vice Chair

Jacqueline R. Kahle, Wilton

Randy Armstrong, DoverRichard W. Ayers, SanborntonKaren Burgess Smith, ExeterM. Christine Dwyer, PortsmouthWilliam Hallager, LincolnPaul Hodes, ConcordPeter McLaughlin, HanoverEdward J. McLear, MeredithGary Samson, ConcordTim Sappington, RandolphJasmine Shah, NashuaGrace Sullivan, Deerfield

Department ofCultural ResourcesVan McLeod, Commissioner20 Park StreetConcord, NH 03301603/271-2540

Division of the ArtsRebecca L. Lawrence, Director2 1⁄2 Beacon StreetConcord, NH 03301603/271-2789

Division of Arts Staff

Yvonne Stahr, Programs InformationOfficer, 603/271-0791

Judy Rigmont, Community ArtsCoordinator, 603/271-0794

Catherine O’Brian, Arts EducationCoordinator, 603/271-0795

Lynn Martin Graton, Traditional ArtsCoordinator, 603/271-8418

Julie Mento, Artist Services Coordinator, 603/271-0790

Dawn Nesbitt, Accountant I, 603/271-7926

Marjorie Durkee, Grants & ContractsTechnician, 603/271-2789

Carey Johnson, Arts Program Assistant, 603/271-0792

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Enriching New Hampshire’s quality of life through the arts since 1965.

InsidePartnership Initiatives

NH Creative Economy Network

New Hampshire / Québec Cultural Exchange

Traditional Arts Showcases

Old Man of the Mountain Revitalization Update

Coming up in future issuesMeet the 2005 Fellows

FY05 Grants Announced

PRSRT. STDUS POSTAGE

PAIDCONCORD NH

03301PERMIT #1478

New Hampshire State Council on the Arts21⁄2 Beacon StreetConcord, NH 03301-4974

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