Mudgee Arts now has its own URL at http://www.mudgeearts.com.au. Please use this to get all the latest information. No up-to-date information will be posted here in the future. Please update your BOOKMARKS.
Category Archives: News
SIMON TEDESCHI & IAN COOPER CONCERT
“Putting Tedeschi and Cooper together is like mixing nitro with
glycerine – an explosion of musical virtuosity” James Morrison
Pianist Simon Tedeschi is a musical chameleon, known Australia-wide for his phenomenal artistry and technical wizardry. Ian Cooper has been dazzling audiences for decades, as a performer and raconteur in the spirit of Stephane Grappelli.
Performing everything from Bach to swingin’ jazz, these two masters have taken Australia by storm with their consummate skill and love of performing. Equally at home in concert halls or country churches, Ian Cooper and Simon Tedeschi are a musical sensation, leaving audiences on their feet and calling for more.
Program includes works by Stephane Grappelli, Rachmaninoff, Mozart, Gershwin, Percy Grainger, Grieg, Saint Saëns, Django Reinhardt & Fats Waller. Town Hall Theatre June 14. Full details in the next newsletter.
MUDGEEARTS.COM.AU NOW ACTIVE
Our new blog www.mudgeearts.com.au is now active. From now on all news, view and information will be posted there. Please update your Bookmarks and renew the Following function if you need to.
Thanks, Christopher
POETRY IN THE CELLAR UPSTAIRS
Kathielyn Job reading one of her poems from The Quadrant Book of Poetry
Mudgee Arts Poetry in the Cellar was bumped upstairs into the back part of the Small Winemakers building due to a severe lack of warmth downstairs. That aside everything went better than planned. A larger audience would have been welcome but on the day we had more poets reading than we expected, as well as an impromptu jam session after the poetry had finished.
The poets reading included three very well established and widely published writers, Kathielyn Job from Dubbo, Terry Yates from Kandos and Jorie Ryan, vicar of St Luke’s Gulgong, whose latest poem published on www.eurekastreet.com.au “The problem with being an atheist,” has created something of an online storm.
Jorie read the poem to us, and as on the web met with a mixed reaction and a promise of future arguments, whch she appeared to prefer to a round of polite applause.Other highlights included Katielyn Job’s reading of several of her poems including some from the 2012 Quadrant Book of Poetry, that Les Murray described as the best of the works published in Quadrant over the past ten years.
Terry Yates who is probably best known as the 2008 “Beat Poet of The Year” at the San Francisco Beat Museum with his “Letter to Jack”, read two works that were, broadly autobiographical as did Christopher Wright. While Ross Kurtz read one that he’d written that morning, and another powerful piece commenting on the death of Men At Work musician Greg Ham, as well as two poems by Kevin Pye who was unable to make the reading.
Mudgee Arts president Jill Novak read a poem that came out of the Jorie Ryan workshop held earlier in the year. Lee Paine kept us in touch with the past with two humorous poems from a 1907 book of verse and Sam Paine read (in beteen taking happy snaps for the Mudgee Guardian) an another humorous poem taking a wry look us the “us versus the police” theme that has underscored so much Australian poetry.
It was a good afternoon that culminated in a spontaneous jam session (that started, unfortunately, after most of the audience had left) with Ross Kurtz on guitar, and Michael Forster on bongos … joined by a rousing rendition of “The Land Down Under” from host Johnny Furlong. Great Fun.
During the course of the afternoon Jill Novak suggested that we should hold a Poetry Afternoon regularly through the year, and we’ll announce the new dates and venues as soon as possible.
THE LIVING WORLD BEST MUDGE ARTS EXHIBITION
Artist Margot Stephens judged The Living World.
The Mudgee Arts The Living World exhibition now on at Fairview ArtSpace is the best I have seen in fourteen years as a member of Mudgee Arts. The quality of the work on display is simply astonishing. Featuring paintings, three dimensional works and photographs, by artists from Mudgee and other parts of the Central West, the show is a delight.
Well known local artist Margo Stephens judged the exhibition and in her speech announcing the winners in each of the categories she acknowledged that “many of the pieces spoke to me and selecting the winners was very difficult.” In the event she awarded $500 first prize in the hanging art section to newcomer to Mudgee, Michael Forster for his large abstract oil entitled “Autumn Jazz Symphony,” with a Highly Commended award going to Brunhi Martens for her work “La Femme 2011″, and Kay Norton-Knight for her quadtych (I’m not sure that is actually a word) print “Mexico.”
“From the Primal Ooze,” a glass sculpture by Veronica Burns won the $500 3 D award, with a Highly Commended going to Susan Bridgeford for her elegant ceramic “Ghost Gums.” The $500 Photography Prize was won by Ted Morgan’s “Scribbly Gum”, with Highly Commended awards to Simone Kurtz for “Boobook” and Christopher Wright for ”Roadie.”
The Living World is on until May 28 so you have plenty of time to see the show and pick your favourites. For me the stand-outs were Pamela Welsh’s “Singers” and Kay Norton-Knight’s “Mexico,” which I couldn’t afford and Brian McCarney’s “A Slash of Red” which I could.
For Mudgee Arts it was gratifying to see so many new artists participating in the exhibition and we hope that they will enter our future competitions (the next is The Still World) to help us maintain the level that The Living World has set.
Our heart-felt thanks to our sponsors Club Mudgee, Mid-Western Regional Council, and Bunnamagoo Wines. Their help enabled Mudgee Arts to offer the $1,500 prize money and mount the exhibition at Mudgee’s best visual art venue, Fairview ArtSpace.
Mudgee Art’s next event is Poetry In The Cellar at the Small Winemakers Cellar (next to Fairview ArtSpace) at 3pm this Sunday, May 20. Eight local poets (so far) will be strutting their stuff and it will make a pleasant, and entertaining way to spend a Sunday evening. All welcome, not just Mudgee Arts members. Afternoon coffee and cakes available from Fairview or wine from Small Winemakers. Don’t miss it!
WELL KNOWN POET TERRY YATES AT POETRY IN THE CELLAR
Terry Yates, winner of the 2008 “Beat Poet of The Year” in 2008, will be reading his work at Poetry in the Cellar at the Small Winemakers Cellar on May 20. Terry, who lives in Kandos is a welcome addition to the list of local poets reading at the event.
BIG PROGRAM FOR MAY. THE LIVING WORLD ART SHOW & POETRY IN THE CELLAR
May is always one of the key months for the Arts in the west. The Living World our first arts competition for the year opens at 6.30pm May 16 at Fairview ArtSpace. We’ve a lot of new sponsors – Club Mudgee, Bunnamagoo Estate Wines. Mid-Western Regional Council – and combined with contributions from Mudgee Arts each of the three sections in the competition carries at $500 prize. The Living World is open until May 28, Thursday to Monday 10am to 5pm.
Then on May 18 Art Unlimited opens at Dunedoo, and on the twentieth during the show, Mudgee Arts Poetry in The Cellar, will be held in the Small Winemakers Cellar (next to Fairview ArtSpace) featuring original works from Ross Kurtz, Christopher Wright, Jorie Ryan, Bev Palmer and hopefully, a number of other local poets.
The program starts at 3pm. Wine will be available from the Small Winemakers and coffee and cakes from Fairview ArtSpace.
VISIT TO WASTE FOR ART NO WASTE OF TIME
The 2012 Waste To Art at the Mudgee Showground has some amazing works on display, and while the Showground is a little out of the way the trip is well worth while. It is the seventh Waste To Art to exhibit in Mudgee and it continues to grow in popularity attracting top class artists.
A large crowd came to the opening on Saturday night. The show was opened by the Deputy Mayor Max Walker and organiser Colin Jones made the awards to the winning entrants. The work of Katrina Odgers (the CD fish) and Mort Erickson (the wooden man) attracted a great deal of attention, but the work of all the artists was of a very high standard and I’d suggest hopping in the car and visiting the Showground during the next couple of weeks as it is a show not to be missed.
WASTE TO ART OPENS TOMORROW NIGHT
Photograph courtesy Mudgee Guardian
The 2012 Waste To Art exhibition opening is at 6pm at the Main Pavilion Mudgee Show- ground (Douro Street). Waste To Art is one of the most important, and long running, art shows in the Mid-Western Regional Council area. It attracts a great number of entries from school students to professional artists. Come along and join the fun.
If you can’t make it tomorrow the show runs for the next two weeks. Don’t miss it.
FILM & TELEVISION COURSE AT DUBBO
RUNNING YOUR OWN CREATIVE BUSINESS
1 DAY AFTRS COURSE
DUBBO
The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) will be bring its hugely popular one-day course Running Your Own Creative Business to Dubbo on Friday April 20
This is an essential course for anyone working in a creative field. Creative practitioners often prefer to concentrate on creative and artistic output, but secured financial viability and success relies on the ability to navigate the world of small business too.
Running Your Own Creative Businessis one of AFTRS most popular courses. It is taught by Monica Davidson who, through practicing what she preaches, has a long and distinguished career as a successful freelance director and writer as well as the author of “Freelancing for Australians for Dummies” (2008).
AFTRS OPEN Regional Manager Martin Corben, says this intensive 1 day course has been developed to focus on the key areas that arts-based businesses most need.
“ As a long term freelancer herself, Monica is able to answer the key questions and issues concerning all arts-based small businesses such as the need for business planning, managing irregular income, tax and financing, contract and copyright basics and how to create a plan to market the arts in a way that will bring in more clients and profits,” Martin says.
For Dubbo, there will be a special emphasis on taxation and copyright issues for creative people which will build on other recent training opportunities.
Past graduates of the course include filmmakers, musicians, dancers, ceramicists and performers.
This AFTRS initiative is part of its recently expanded regional training program. AFTRS Open, the short course program of AFTRS, now offers a broad range of film, television and radio courses all year round across Australia in partnership with local organisations.
Booking Details:
DUBBO – Friday 20 April, Dubbo Cultural Centre $95.00/ BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL
Info & Booking: http://www.openprogram.aftrs.edu.au/course/Q512
Info & Enquires: 1300 065 281 / open@aftrs.edu.au
For details, images and interviews please contact:
Undine Marshfield / AFTRS OPEN Marketing
/02 – 9805 6431 / undine.marshfield@aftrs.edu.au
