#beth crandall

[readingforsanity]

Before We Were Yours | Lisa Wingate | Published 2017 | *SPOILERS*

Memphis, 1939 

12 year old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge - until strangers arrive in force. 

Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a Tennessee Children’s Home Society Orphanage, the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents - but they quickly realize the dark truth. 

At the mercy of the facility’s cruel director, Rill fights to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty. 

Aiken, South Carolina, present day. 

Born into wealth and privilege, Avery Stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal procedutor, a handsome fiance, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family’s long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption. 

Based on one of America’s most notorious real-life scandals - in which Georgia Tann, director of a Memphis-based adoption organization, killed and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country - Lisa Wingate’s riveting, wrenching and ultimately upifting tale reminds us how, even though the paths we take can lead to many places, the heart never forgets where we belong. 

The story of two girls in different times: May Crandall, going back and forth as her time in 1939, once living on a shantyboat on the river to being essentially kidnapped and sold to the Tennessee Childre’s Home Society to present day, a 90-year-old woman with secrets that are bound to be found out. And to present-day Avery Stafford, a prominent lawyer from DC, come home to the Carolinas to help her father as he is suffering with cancer, but as a promiment politician himself, tries to suffer in silence. 

These two women are bound by a secret, only known to May and Avery’s grandmother Judy, and Avery is desperate to find out. So unfolds the tale of the TCHS, run by Georgia Tann and countless other men and women, who have taken advantage of poor or disadvantaged families in an attempt to control children. 

Rill Foss and her siblings are taken from their home on the river after their mother mistakenly signs her and their fathers rights away during a brief trip to the hospital after the birth of twin babies goes awry. They are sent to live in the home of Mrs. Murphy, working closely with Miss Tann. Unfortunately, many of the children are adopted and Rill knows nothing. Eventually, her younger sister Fern is adopted and a few days later, Rill goes to live with the same family, so her and Fern are reunited. 

In their want to get home to their true mother and father, Rill, now known as May, and Fern, known as Beth, flee in the night and return to the Arcadia, where they learn that their mother has died and their father has turned to whiskey to cope with the losses of his entire family. When their boat goes up in flames, they return to their adopted family and are met with a privileged life. 

Avery finds all of this out, and learns that Judy, her grandmother, was one of the twins born to her mother, and that her twin brother was also adopted, but nobody could ever find out what happened to him. May and Judy were reunited with Fern and Lark, another sister, many years later and while they wanted to share their stories, decided against it and would take it to their graves. That is until Avery begins snooping through the old family history, and learns the truth. 

May and Judy are reunited, and live together at Magnolia Manor, a home for seniors. Judy is in a memory care unit, but May is allowed to visit her sister whenever. Avery has ended her engagement to her longtime beau and is now dating Trent, the grandson of another man who was adopted rfom the TCHS, who was close to the Foss children during his time there, and helped reunite some of the sisters. 

Discussion Questions 

1. Before We Were Yours alternates between the historical story of the Foss children and the modern-day story of Avery Stafford. Did you have a favorite between these story lines? Which one and why? I enjoyed both perspectives. We got the historical one from Rill/May, and we got the modern day of Avery. Both stories are unknowingly intertwined together due to their shared histories, but Avery isn’t privvy to that until close to the end. May’s story is damaging to the heart, and will really tug at those heart strings, whereas Avery is just a young woman trying to find herself in a family who wants to control her every move. I think a lot of individuals her age could resonate with that. 

2. Many families have been touched in some way by adoption and foster care. Is adoption or foster care in your family history? If so, how did that affect your thoughts about the journey of the Foss children and about Avery’s excavation of her family histroy? I am unsure if anyone in my family has been adopted, though this would be unlikely. We do have family in Tennessee, so I have pondered if we did have anyone who was adopted, and if they could have potentially come from TCHS, but my family and ancestors were on the poorer side, so it is unlikely that Georgia Tann would have adopted any of the children to families in a less than prominent state. 

3. When the sisters were originally reunited, they decided to keep their history to themselves rather than telling their families. Do you agree or disagree with this decision? What do you think the implications would have been if they had gone public? Do you think family secrets should remain secret, particularly after the people who kept those secrets have passed away? Or do family secrets belong to the next generation, as well? Have you ever discovered a secret in your family history? If so, what was it? I agree with their decision. As it was mentioned, they were all adults with families of their own when they were reunited. Why confuse anyone by bringing in individuals. The sisters were all raised by prominent individuals, either in Hollywood or in the political world, and there wasn’t any reason to bring anything up. They had found each other and that was what mattered. 

4. There was a little girl who had a little curl is a touchstone between Avery and her grandma Judy. Is there a song or saying that reminds you of someone special in your childhood? Where does your mind travel when you hear it or repeat it? I can’t think of anything, other than a special handshake my great-Uncle Sonny would do with my sister and I when we were kids. It was always different, never the same as the time before, so it was like a running joke with him. Although as I got older, it got more annoying than funny. 

5. Avery laments that the busy schedule expected of a Stafford has prevented her from spending time on Edisto Island with her sisters or Elliot. “Who chooses the schedules we keep? We do, I guess,” she tells herself but excuses this with,  the good life demands a lot of maintenance.” In our modern age are we too busy? Too preoccupied with accumulating things to actually enjoy what we have? Too dialed into media and social media? What are your thoughts on this? What would you like to change about your own schedule? Anything? What might you gain if you did? Life is busy. I know this to be true: I have two kids, a husband, activities for my older daughter, a gym schedule for myself, schedules for the kids. It is never ending, and even when I am able to “relax”, it isn’t really relaxing as something is usually happening. We’re an active family, and that is what we chose for ourselves. 

6. While Rill sees her life on the Arcadia through the idyllic eyes of childhood, May in her old age seems to acknowledge that she wouldn’t have traded the life she lived for a different one. Do you think she wonders whether Queenie and Briny’s unconventional existence on the Arcadia could have been sustainable as times changed or more children were added to the family? Were Queenie and Briny responsible or careless in their choices? Queenie and Briny were neither responsible or careless. They just did what they could with what they had. They loved their children, of that I have no doubt. But, times were different then. Many families were poor and doing what they could to simply survive, but while also continuing to bring more children into their families and into the world. But, without Rill, May wouldn’t be who she is today. She was thankful for the family who adopted her, and allowed her to remain with one of her biological siblings. 

7. May says, “a woman’s past need not predict her future. She can dance to her own music if she chooses.” How has your past made you who you are? What do you want to leave behind? Anything? What is the true music of your own soul? Are you in step with it or out of step? What helps you hear your own music and find balance in your life? I’m only 32 years old, so there isn’t much of a past to be had for me. Would I do somethings differently? Absolutely. I dabbled in the drink a bit during my early 20s, but getting married at 25 and having my first child by the time I was 27, you really rethink the choices you make. I still like to have a good time, but do so more responsibly now. 

8. When fear of being caught threatens to prevent her from escaping Miss Murphy’s house, Rill tells herself, “I shush my mind because your mind can ruin you if you let it.” Does your mind ever ruin you? In what way? On what issues? May comments, “we’re always trying to persuade ourselves of things.” Are women particularly guilty of this? What do we tell ourselves that we shouldn’t? My mind ruins me on a daily basis the majority of the time. I overthink everything. My husband could say something to me, in a completely innocent way, and I’ll dwell on it for hours and sometimes days. It’s just how my brain is wired, I guess. 

9. Child trafficking, abuse and economic disadvantages still imperil the lives and futures of children today. What can we as ordinary citizens do to prevent children from being robbed of safe, happy childhoods? What can society do to prevent people like Georgia Tann from taking advantage of the most helpless and vulnerable among us? We need to protect our children. Every day, children are born into families who are unable to care for them, but those families don’t do anything to change their situations, or to give that child a better life. Why? Because those children are, for the most part, wanted. Just like the children of the story. Their family situations led them to be basically kidnapped from their families, and sold to other families. It is disgusting. 

10. Did you search for more information about Georgia Tann and the Tennessee Children’s Home society after reading? What did you learn? Based on what you learned, what do you think motivated Georgia? Why were so many people willing to be complicit in her schemes when they knew children were suffering? Was Georgia’s network a creature of the political corruption and societal attitudes of its time or could something like this happen today? I did research Georgia Tann when I first started reading the story. While I like to think that she has helped pave the way for modern adoptions, such as having the records sealed until the adopted children reaches adulthood, there was nothing modern about her. She was a terrible woman, and I wish she would have had justice brought to her. 

11. Avery feels the pressure of being in a high-profile political family. Do you famous families are held to a higher standard than others? Should they be? Has this changed in recent years or is it just harder to keep secrets in today’s media-crazed world? Famous families are often under the public eye more than your regular, everyday family. Hollywood couples and their families can’t go anywhere without being watched like a hawk by every single person in the world. There are eyes everywhere. Do I think this is right? No. They’re human, and are entitled to privacy just the same as anyone else. Simply because of their jobs, we are thought to believe that we can scrutinize their every move, and that isn’t okay. 

12. How did Avery grow as a result of her discoveries abou the family’s past? How did it change her view of herself and her family’s expectations for her? Did your family have expectations for you that you didn’t agree with? Who in Avery’s family might struggle most to accept her decision to change her life plans? Avery found herself. She was a confused 30-year-old basically being told that she was going to have a career in politics from the day she was born. Her parents were widely successful people, her father more than her mother, but she wanted to find her own way. And I think of all people, her father was the one who would understand that the most. 

13. Do you think there will be a happily-ever-after ending for Avery and Trent? In your view, what might that look like? Absolutely. if there ever was two people who were right for each other, it was these two. They were basically bred from the same cloth, meant to find each other years after their grandparents did. 

14. How would you describe Rill as she struggles through the abduction, the orphanage, and her decision to return to her adoptive family? Did you admire her? What changes did you see in her as a result of the experience? How is she different when she gets to the Sevier’s house? Rill was a fascinating character. You rooted for her from the very beginning. She started as a young girl living on the river, to a well-respected woman of music, just like her adopted father. She went through so much as a 12-year-old girl, it had to take a lot to return to the people who basically purchased her, though they were unaware of the intentions of Georgia Tann and what she was doing until Rill told them. 

15. Avery struggles to come to terms with Grandma Judy’s dementia. Her family wrestles with difficult choices about Grandma Judy’s care. Has memory loss and elder care affected your family? In what way? What issues did it cause and how did you deal with them? Have you imagined what it would be like to be a victim of memory loss? My grandmother has Alzheimer’s/Dementia. While she can still remember things fairly clearly, she does tell stories repeatedly, and can’t remember things. For example, she purchased a new washer and dryer for me, and used the store credit card. We weren’t sure it would still work but it did. Everything seemed to be going well, until I talked to her a few days ago when she said that I’d receive the bill for it. I explained that it would come to her, as it was in her name. She didn’t remember using the card at all, and thought she had put it on layaway. She can remember details of her life from years ago, but oftentimes can’t remember the names of people she’s recently met, or has known only a short time. It’s hard knowing that this might be my future, and one day I won’t remember the names or faces of the people I love the most in this world. 

16. The Seviers seem to have adopted the Foss girls with good intentions. Do you think they were aware of or at all suspicious of Georgia Tann’s methods? Should they have been? They had no idea. They thought they were working with a legitimate orphanage, and a woman who actually cared about the children. But it is clear straight from the beginning that Georgia was basically stealing these children to earn a profit. It is stated as so in the research I conducted outside of this book. She was taking about 90% of the profits earned from these children, and putting it in her own pocket. What happened to that other 10%? We may never know as she died three days before anything happened to the TCHS and prosecution could be had against her. 

17. What symbolism do you see in the picture of the sisters on the wall? How do you think the sisters felt during their Sisters Days? Do you have sisters you are close to or sister-friends you spend time with? What does that bond mean to you? I have an older sister, 9-years older than me, and while our relationship was tumultous growing up, we are close now. We have kids, all girls, and I couldn’t imagine ever giving them up, or what they would do without each other. My daughters are obsessed with each other, and while they may fight, I know they’ll always have each other. 

18. Did you wish all seven of the Foss siblings could have found one another in the end? In your opinion, would that have been realistic or unrealistic? Why do you think the author chose not to bring all of the siblings back together? Yes, I do! I’m heartbroken that we never get to find out was happpened to Camellia. She was there one day, and then she was gone. I would have given anything to find out what happened to her. As for the twin boy, as well as the boy that was adopted from Miss Tann, I hope they lived full lives. I think Lisa Wingate chose to not bring them all back together because it is unrealistic. Yes, it would have garnered a happy ending in the end, but this story is meant to be as realistic as possible. It’s a homage to what these children actually went through. I’m sure many siblings who were separated weren’t lucky enough to reunite with their siblings. 

19. This novel has garnered worldwide interest in the publishing industry and is being translated for publication in at least fourteen countries. Why do you think the story drew international attention? What themes in it are universal? This could have happened anywhere: the UNited States, Canada, Europe, Asia...this literally IS happening everywhere. Child trafficking is still very much a thing, and black market adoptions are still happening, we just don’t hear anything about it. 

20. Was the cover a factor in your book club’s decision to read? What reaction did you have to the cover and title? It tells the story of the girls, Fern and Rill before they were the Seviers. The picture is of Rill and Fern, from the back. You can tell by the descriptions of the hair Lisa used in the books. 

21. Will you be passing the book on to someone else? Will it remain on your bookshelf? Will you give a copy to someone you know? Unfortunately, I had to borrow this book from the library, but I do know someone else who read the book, and honestly, I will recommend this book to anyone who loves to read as much as I do. I am looking forward to reading the non-fiction version of the story told from the perspective of real survivors of Georgia Tann’s negligence. 

[deborahocarroll]

Timely: A Phoenix Fiction Anthology (Review)

Timely: A Phoenix Fiction Anthology (Review)

Today I’m excited to share a review for an excellent spec-fic anthology featuring short stories dealing with . . . time! By some really stellar authors. Read on for my mini reviews of each story! Title: Timely: A Phoenix Fiction Writers Anthology Author: The Phoenix Fiction Writers Grace Crandall • E. B. Dawson • Deck Matthews Nate Philbrick • J. E. Purrazzi • Beth Wangler And featuring:…

[danceoftheday]

Performed by: Beth Crandall, David Guzman, Jacob Guzman, Andrew Hodge, Bryan Hunt, Sasha Hutchings, Abby Jaros, Christopher Rice, Kelly Sheehan, Clay Thomson, and Teddy Toye

Number: “Uptown Funk”

Choreographer: Christopher Rice

Style: Tap

From: “Uptown Funk Tap Dance Rehearsal - #Tappy” (2015)

[animatejournal]

Cactus Swing Directors: Susan Crandall & Beth Portman Studio: National Film Board of Canada | Canada, 1995

[soldefied]

i. anyone - justin bieber // ii. i still wait for you - XYLØ // iii. 11 blocks - wrabel // iv. hurts like hell - fleurie // v. hurts like hell - wrabel // vi. where i sleep - emeli sande // vii. champion - elina // viii. get you the moon - kina ft snow // ix. talking to the moon - bruno mars // x. scar - foxes // xi. no bad memories - sam macpherson // xii. fix it to break it - clinton kane // xiii. when you're home - tyler shaw // xiv. just about over you - priscilla block // xv. she gets the flowers - beth mccarthy // xvi. family reunions - maddie zahm // xvii. never getting over you - lost stars // xviii. i would die for you - laruen duski // xix. things i can't say - spencer crandall ft julia cole // xx. don't forget to breathe - anson seabra // xxi. trying my  best - anson seabra // xxii. you & me - james tw // xxiii. quite miss home - james arthur // xxiv. you are the reason - calum scott // xxv. can i be him - james arthur // xxvi. incredible - james tw

[ L I S T E N ]

[praise-the-lord-im-dead]

Happy release day to an amazing anthology!!!

[simplygaymingquinn]

Some random screenshots from the Sims 4 100 Baby Challenge. I’m thinking about having a second game save just for Tumblr!  But currently this 100 Baby Challenge is 19 kids in. In the pics is Adalyn, but I’m list all of them! 1. Adalyn Heart-Kim, Child of Dennis Kim. She had Friend of the Animals aspiration and Erratic, Romantic and Geek as traits. She’s been moved out. 2. Beth Heart-Feng, Child of Victor Feng. She had Body Builder aspiration, and Gloomy, Clumsy and Glutton Traits. She has been moved out. 3. Chat Heart-Jang, Child of Baako Jang. He had Best Selling Author as his Aspiration and Child of the Island, Hates Children and Music Lover as his traits. He has been moved out. 4. Darrius Heart-Fyres, child of Dominic Fyres. He had Musical Genius aspiration and Outgoing, Snob and Evil traits. He has been moved out. 5. Elliott Heart-Bjergsen, child of Bjorn Bjergsen. He had Painter Extraordinaire aspiration and Active, Childish and Jealous as traits. He has been moved out. 6. Fred Heart-Flex, child of Marcus Flex. He had Master Actor aspiration and Good, Romantic and Clumsy as traits. He has been moved out. 7. Gretchen Heart-Kahanuanui, child of Alika Kahanuanui. She had Public Enemy as her aspiration and Self-Assured, Dance Machine and Clumsy as traits She has been moved out. 8. Haylee Heart-Crandall, child of John Crandall. She had Master Mischief as her aspiration and Good, Perfectionist and Squeamish as her traits. She has been moved out. 9. Issac Heart-Sloan, child of Jaylen Sloan. He had Big Happy Family aspiration. Genuis, Kleptomaniac and Geek as traits. He has been moved out. 10. John Heart-Brown, son of Remington Brown. He had Vampire Family as his aspiration and had Self-Assured, Self-Absorbed and Loner as his traits. He has been moved out. 11 & 12. Kelly and Lena Heart Landgrabb, BOTH Children of Geoffrey Landgrabb.  Kelly had Successful Lineage as her aspiration and Lena had Super Parent as hers. Kelly’s traits were: Evil, Lazy, Loves Outdoors and Lena’s traits were: Squeamish, Creative and Self-Assured Both girls have been moved out. 13. Makenzie Heart-Silverwater, child of Simeon Silverwater. Aspiration: Master Chef , Traits: Bookwork, Outgoing, Child of the Islands She has been moved out. 14. Norma Heart-Raghavan, child of Aarush Raghavan. Aspiration: Master Mixologist Traits: Insane, Glutton NOT MOVED OUT. 15. Ophelia Heart-Cantrell, Child of Demario Cantrell. Apiration: Fabulously Wealthy. Traits: Creative, Lazy NOT MOVED OUT. 16. Patrick Heart-Goth, child of Mortimer Goth. Aspiration: Mansion Baron. Traits: Slob, Dance Machine. NOT MOVED OUT. 17 & 18 Quincy and Ryleigh Heart-Straud, Both children of Vladislaus Straud.  They’re toddlers, both have independent as their traits.  19. Spenser Heart-?? - Child of *UNKNOWN* since I forgot to write that down.

[bugsongs]

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happy international women's day! here's one of my favorite animated short films, directed by Susan Crandall & Beth Portman in 1995

[3thurs]

Third Thursday events and exhibitions for September 16

The next Third Thursday — the monthly evening of art in Athens, Georgia — is scheduled for Thursday, September 16, from 6 to 9 p.m. All exhibitions are free and open to the public. This schedule and location and hours of operation information for each venue is available at 3thurs.org.

Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia

Yoga in the Galleries, 6 p.m. — Join us via Zoom for a free yoga class surrounded by works of art in the galleries. Led by instructors from Five Points Yoga, this program is free and open to both beginner and experienced yogis. This program is available both in-person and via Zoom. Email callan@uga.edu to reserve an in-person spot or join us on Zoom.

Film Series: The Crime of Art: “Stolen,” 7 p.m. — It was the most expensive art heist in American history. In March 1990, two thieves disguised as Boston police officers gained entrance to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and successfully plundered $500 million worth of art. Among the 13 priceless works stolen were Rembrandt’s “The Sea of Galilee” and Vermeer’s “The Concert,” one of only 35 of the master’s surviving works. Filmed 16 years after the heist, the film raises a new magnifying glass to this crime, following the renowned art detective Harold Smith as he pursues the mystery of the stolen works. With Smith as a guide, it journeys into the mysterious and surreal world of stolen art and examines the many possibilities as to where the art might be today. 2005, NR, 85 min. This film series is presented in conjunction with the exhibition “Kota Ezawa: The Crime of Art” and is sponsored by the UGA Parents Leadership Council.

On view:

“Inside Look: Selected Acquisitions from the Georgia Museum of Art” — With more than 21,000 objects in its collection, the museum cannot show everything all the time. This exhibition features new gifts and purchases across our curatorial departments that have filled critical gaps in the permanent collections.

“Kota Ezawa: The Crime of Art” — This exhibition brings together new and recent works related to Ezawa’s “The Crime of Art” series, a group of light boxes and video animations that chronicle some of the most infamous and high-profile museum heists in history.

“Neo-Abstraction: Celebrating a Gift of Contemporary Art from John and Sara Shlesinger” — “Neo-Abstraction” highlights the resurgence of abstract art among contemporary artists, drawing from a recent major gift

“In Dialogue: Artist, Mentor, Friend: Ronald Lockett and Thornton Dial Sr.” — This exhibition focuses on one work by each artist, both gifts from Ron Shelp, comparing their approach to their work and examining the shared relationship that sustained their creativity.

“Whitman, Alabama” — This ongoing documentary project by filmmaker Jennifer Crandall brings Walt Whitman’s words to life through the voices of modern-day Alabama residents.

“Contemporary Japanese Ceramics from the Horvitz Collection” — This exhibition presents Japanese pottery and porcelain created by three generations of master ceramic artists. Made with both ancient and modern materials and methods, their works are exceptionally diverse. They share the exceptional craftsmanship and sophisticated design characteristic of Japanese contemporary ceramics.

“Power and Piety in 17th-Century Spanish Art” — Works by premiere Spanish baroque painters such as Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Murillo, Pedro Orrente and others, on loan from Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery.

“Modernism Foretold: The Nadler Collection of Late Antique Art from Egypt” — An extraordinary assembly of Coptic objects dating from the 3rd to the 8th century CE belonging to Emanuel and Anna Nadler.

The museum’s days of operation are Tuesday – Sunday. Reserve a free ticket and see our policies at https://georgiamuseum.org/visit/.

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia will be opening its doors for timed ticket access (https://botgarden.uga.edu/porcelain-and-decorative-arts-museum-timed-access-now-available/). The newest building at the garden holds the personal porcelain and decorative arts of Deen Day Sanders, a longtime supporter of the State Botanical Garden. The space is designed to draw environmental and conservation connections to the collections in the museum.

Eight different gallery spaces blend conservation, botanicals, art, beauty and curiosity. Adjacent to the building is the Discovery and Information Garden, where visitors can connect to the living botanical collection that is represented in many of the porcelain works in the museum. Please join staff and docents for a time in the Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum to develop your own ideas on art and nature and become inspired to see the natural environment through the lens of the many artists on display.

ATHICA: Athens Institute for Contemporary Art

ATHICA@675, Pulaski St., Suite 1200 

“LIGHT: 2021 Juried Exhibition” — ATHICA’s annual juried exhibition features contemporary art in all media that explores or references light, which is found all around us, around our planet, and throughout art, nature, literature, science, society and language as a concept and a construct with many different connotations. Without light there is no color and art would not exist. Work was juried by guest juror Matt Porter, curator at the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta, Georgia.

ATHICA@CINÉ Gallery

“Remembering Chatham Murray and Her Art” — Works of the late, beloved Athenian and painter Chatham Murray, organized by her friends Charles Warnock, Juana Gnecco and Anne Sears and featuring 14 paintings that span six decades. A number of works in the exhibition illustrate Murray’s love of home and table. Favorite subject matter included the bounty of the garden and home interiors and exteriors, the latter inspired perhaps by her daily walks.

Lyndon House Arts Center

3THURS Artist Talk with Andy Cherewick & Jeffrey Whittle, 6 p.m. — Join the artists and Curator Beth Sale for a gallery walk-through and discussion about the works in the exhibition “I vs. Me.” Reserve your free ticket. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/artist-talk-jeffrey-whittle-and-andy-cherewick-tickets-168152154621

On View:

“Willow Oak Tree Exhibition with Guest Curator Abraham Tesser” — In honor of the willow oak tree that graced the lawn of the historic Ware–Lyndon House for over a century, this exhibition features works created with and inspired by the tree. Each of the participating artists received reclaimed wood from the tree to incorporate into a work of art.

“Inside Out: Expressing the Inner World” — Abstract paintings from a group of women artists working primarily in the Southeast.

“Modernist Sculptures from the Legacy of Loyd Florence” — Florence’s life was marked by a lifelong passion for aviation. He graduated in 1939 from the first civilian pilot training program, sponsored by the University of Georgia and served as president of Athens Aviation, which operated the Athens Airport in the early 1950s. Later in his life, he began making metal sculpture.

“Something I’ve Been Meaning to Tell You: Brian Hitselberger and Julie Wills” — For this exhibition, the artists worked independently in their respective studios while maintaining an active dialogue through correspondence and video conferencing.  

“I vs Me: Andy Cherewick and Jeffrey Whittle” — Two beloved Athens artists’ paintings in one gallery.

“Arts Center Choice Award: A Lot More Than It Seems by David Froetschel” — With structures found at thrift stores and imagery taken from fiction, Froetschel balances between order and chaos, dreams and reality, imagining what could be and depicting “a lot more than it seems.” 

“Window Works: AJ Aremu” — Using the banks of windows as a palette, AJ Aremu represents Black bodies in motion and states of repose. Their contemporary clothing blends with African patterns in Aremu’s exploration of the melding of cultures.

“Collections from our Community: Oscar’s Godzillas” — “I always admired the idea of something unbelievable and wonderful hidden out in the world. Godzilla holds a great example. It shows how small we really are as a species and how our actions have great effects.” – Oscar Justus

Lamar Dodd School of Art Galleries, University of Georgia

“Dawn Williams Boyd: Woe” — A series of textile works by the Atlanta-based artist that reflect a lifelong critique of social injustices and racial violence. Using scraps of fabric, needles, and thread as her tools, Boyd painstakingly “paints” the entire surface of her quilts, layer upon layer, cutting, sewing, endlessly repurposing, building the surface into a formidable, authoritative source that pulls no punches. The exhibition is organized by Daniel Fuller and will travel to the Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, New York, and the Galleries at Sarah Lawrence College.

“Time at the Tableæ — Features the work of Dodd undergraduate students Alan Barrett, Alex Barrett and Massie Herlihy. In this intersection of performance, installation, ceramics and photographs, the artists hope to bring a better understanding of what it means to pursue and use ceramics in the ritual of our daily lives.

“Flex·i·ble Architecture: we’re not trying to be heavy, we’re trying to be light” — Dodd MFA candidate Rachel Seburn and Alberta, Canada–based artist Sarah Seburn created this exhibition that investigates materials and their malleability. The artists pull from architectural lineages as they create an installation that acts as a mock-up showroom, an investigation into a new kind of interior building that allows for floors and walls to sink, rock and tilt.

“Waste Creation” — Mickey Boyd, a Dodd MFA candidate, presents a collaborative exhibition with Max Yarbrough, an artist working and living in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The artists present a series of images and sculptures that explore how exponential growth equals exponential waste. 

The Atheaneum

“Trevor Paglen: Vision After Seeing” — An exhibition of photographs and a video by internationally renowned artist Trevor Paglen explores an essential question at the heart of Paglen’s recent work: “Are vision and seeing the same thing?” Paglen investigates this question as it relates to the long history of technologies that have aided, and perhaps even eclipsed, the human eye. 

tiny ATH gallery

“Davy Gibbs: ‘Empires’” — “Empire” is a word we associate with a powerful sense of place, with both glory and decay, rise and fall. The Deep South, if never quite an empire in the formal sense, has always been a land of little empires. Athenian Davy Gibbs examines this idea through photographs.

Safety precautions in place for tiny ATH gallery:

Unless vaccinated, please wear your mask

Please consider parking up Pulaski/Cleveland to alleviate parking issues   

If you feel unwell, or have been in touch with anyone who has been sick, please stay home

Enter through front porch door

Hotel Indigo, Athens

ArtWall@Hotel Indigo: Considering the intersection of natural and industrial beauty, “All or Nothing” juxtaposes organic abstractions and lush landscapes with historic structures and decimated buildings. Featured artists include Alexa Rivera, Christina Matacotta and Zahria Cook. 

BARBAR

“Uncaged” — Work in oil and watercolor by Helen Kuykendall, a largely self-taught artist originally from Venezuela who combines natural motifs in unsettling ways. Opening party from 7 to 9 p.m. as part of Third Thursday. 

The Classic Center

No programming for this month’s Third Thursday.

Creature Comforts Brewing Co.’s CCBC Gallery

Artist-in-Residence Noraa James’s painting-in-progress on display in the CCBC Gallery. Plus: How do you contribute creativity to your community? Let us know on the interactive chalkboard installation! 

—

Third Thursday was established in 2012 to encourage attendance at Athens’ established art venues through coordination and co-promotion by the organizing entities. Rack cards promoting Third Thursday and visual art in Athens are available upon request. This schedule and venue locations and regular hours can be found at 3thurs.org.

Contact: Michael Lachowski, Georgia Museum of Art, mlachow@uga.edu.

[maugustyniuk]

How to Build Stamina for Mask-Mandated Competitions & Block Scheduling

As pandemic-related safety restrictions ease and dancers return to competition and convention stages, many dancers will face new obstacles, mainly, performing in masks and performing all your routines at once. While you've probably trained and rehearsed in a mask, performing onstage in one—in front of judges and an audience, and with all that performance-induced adrenaline—will likely require more stamina. And with many competitions now relying on block scheduling to aid social-distancing requirements, you may find yourself relying on your stamina more than ever before.

So, to help you manage the stress of having to get through your already-impossible jazz group with a mask on after performing five other routines, Dance Spirit spoke with expert teacher-trainers for some advice. Here are their recommendations.

Yoga

Certified yoga instructor and Broadway performer/choreographer Beth Crandall says in her experience, practicing yoga flows, with a focus on breathing—inhaling and exhaling with each transition—has increased her capacity for prolonged physical output.

But building stamina isn't just a physical pursuit, she says: "I strongly believe that building stamina is also about cultivating mental strength and resilience," Crandall explains. Pranayama, for example, which is the practice of conscious breathing exercises, "has this incredible calming effect on the nervous system," she says, which can help reduce the anxiety we sometimes feel when we're nearing the edge of our cardiovascular threshold.

Crandall adds: "Everything in yoga is progressive, so as your stamina and strength increase, you can gradually load physical postures or lengthen a cycle of breath." And as you graduate to more challenging yoga postures, the focus on breath keeps the mind centered, she says—building mental strength, confidence and willpower.

Here are some yoga poses Crandall recommends:

•warrior I, II or III (virabhadrasana I, II or II)

•extended side angle (utthita parsvakonasana)

•side plank (vasisthasana)

•chair pose (utkatasana)

•boat pose (navasana)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Beth Crandall (@bethiec717)

Pilates

According to former performer Desirée Errico, who now runs the YouTube channel Dansique Fitness, and teaches conditioning classes at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City, almost all Pilates exercises aid in building stamina. "It's all about getting in touch with your deep core muscles, and moving in a very controlled way," she says. "If you're doing Pilates exercises properly, it takes tons of concentration, muscle engagement and control—which is why it's so efficient in building stamina."

Like yoga, Pilates requires you to focus on the physical and mental aspects of completing an exercise. The combination provides a full mind–body workout. And the expectation of executing movements in a controlled manner can help build the mental fortitude needed to get through a performance, especially while masked.

Cross-Training

"I'm a huge believer in cross-training for dancers," Errico says, whose classes mix Pilates and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). "Usually, I have a set number of Pilates-based exercises that we do for 45 seconds, and then we rest for 15 seconds in between each exercise. Studies have shown these shorter bursts of intense intervals contribute to stamina improvement."

In addition to cross-training, yoga and Pilates, be sure to also get plenty of rest, Crandall says. Without it, you won't be able to reap the benefits of the stamina you're building. "Taking time for self-care, reflection and rest is of the utmost importance," she says.

from Dance Spirit https://ift.tt/3unX0Q6

[nofomoartworld]

Hyperallergic: A Collaborative Reading of Whitman’s “Song of Myself” All Across Alabama

Screenshot from Whitman, Alabama

When Mariam Jalloh first comes into focus in “Verse 17” of filmmaker Jennifer Crandall’s documentary series Whitman, Alabama, we find her seated in a bustling classroom in Birmingham, struggling to recite lines from a poem she’s just been shown. “These are the thoughts of all men in all ages and lands,” she haltingly begins, “they are not original with me.” The thoughts may be universal, but the phrasing is Walt Whitman’s, from his American epic, “Song of Myself.” Jalloh fumbles the next line through a gap-toothed grin, but by the next cut, her self-consciousness has evened into a calm certainty, and she speaks the remaining lines as if they were her own. In fact, she makes them her own, translating into her native Fulani, “If they are not just as close as they are distant, they are nothing.” Her interaction with the text collapses the chasm between writer and reader, and in watching it, we too are brought into the fold (“for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you”). We become the makers of the poem’s meaning.

“Verse 17,” closeup of Jalloh

Jalloh, a 14-year-old Muslim immigrant from Guinea, may seem like a surprising conduit for the writing of Whitman, a long-dead queer socialist poet from Brooklyn, but such incongruity is the active agent in Whitman, Alabama’s therapeutic salve. The project is journalistic at heart, presenting a pointillistic portrait of the expansive American identity through 52 short videos of Alabama residents reading the 52 verses of “Song of Myself.” Crandall will release a new video every Friday, one for every week of 2017. Through them, we’re offered a nuanced profile of an oft-stereotyped state, a gentle tug on the connective tissue of our heartstrings, and a comforting respite amid the chaos of our current political climate.

A serious realist might gripe that “Song of Myself” is too cheery for our dangerous times; that America, the whole world even, is coming apart at the seams, and that we shouldn’t be celebrating anything right now, especially ourselves. (And the series’ soft-focus slow-mos and scoring of what the subtitles call “soft acoustic guitars” and “light piano” may come off as mawkish to more cynical viewers.) But we shouldn’t dismiss Whitman’s incessant optimism as an “indiscriminate hurrahing for the universe,” as the philosopher William James critiqued; rather, we should connect with it as a source of inspiration during grim junctures like these.

Screenshot from Whitman, Alabama

“Verse 43,” Billy Wayne Corkerin and his wife with Jennifer Crandall

It’s worth noting that things seemed similarly bleak on July 4, 1855, the day Whitman first published Leaves of Grass, the book in which “Song of Myself” appears. Then, like now, the nation seemed to be spiraling toward a civil war, splintering over who would receive the unalienable rights guaranteed to all Americans in the Declaration of Independence. Surely the poem’s holiday release was no coincidence. “Song of Myself” is Whitman’s declaration of interdependence. It’s a reminder that, even as our political institutions fail us, Americans are defined neither by territory nor time, but by our imaginative empathy. Whitman, Alabama enlivens these abstractions, showing not what America is or ever was, but what it should always hope to be: experimental and egalitarian.

Despite Whitman’s adamant optimism, he understood that the American people are and will always be beset by divisive narratives. In “Verse 34,” we hear of “what [the poet] knew in Texas in [his] early youth,” of 412 countrymen killed in cold blood by foreign soldiers after surrendering. This story is relayed in Whitman, Alabama by Beth Spivey, a steely-eyed woman with a sugary drawl and a shotgun in her trunk. “Better be ready to run and get your gun,” she warns us with a laugh before reciting the verse. What enemies (besides the mailbox vandal she mentions) threaten her in the tiny town of Tyler? Perhaps bogeymen conjured in personalized national traumas, in one-sided retellings of the Alamo, Pearl Harbor, September 11th, or any of the myriad other episodes that encourage the stockpiling of weapons and the building of walls. These narratives outline our national identity, defining who we are in opposition to our Others.

“Verse 34,” close-up of Beth Spivey

“Verse 43,” Billy Wayne Corkerin with dog

Of course, one of the great dividers of humankind has always been religion, and history would have it that the United States is a Christian country by tradition, if not by law. But in “Verse 43,“ Whitman, that aspirational American, claims “the greatest of faiths,” one that encompasses “worship ancient and modern and all between ancient and modern,” that accepts the Gospels and the Qur’an alike. This verse in Whitman, Alabama is recited by a spectrum of speakers the documentarians found driving down Route 43. Billy Wayne Corkerin, a large white-haired man with a nasal cannula assisting his breathing, agreed to take part — to the surprise of his wife and despite his disagreeing with the phrase “honoring the gods,” plural. The willingness of Corkerin (and all the project’s participants) to read from a text seemingly at odds with their beliefs speaks to an unexpected openness in the residents of Alabama, a place often maligned as one of America’s most backward states.

“The proof of a poet,” Whitman wrote in the preface to Leaves of Grass, “is that his country absorbs him as affectionately as he has absorbed it.” In Whitman, Alabama, Crandall has created a proof of concept for the all-encompassing American identity evoked in Whitman’s  “Song of Myself.” Consider, for a model, Donnie Goodin, who delivers “Verse 51” in his computerized voice while selling candy and gum from his wheelchair outside a supermarket in Birmingham. Though he’s both immobile and mute, Goodin embodies the infinite possibility of Whitman’s poetry. Through a combination of Whitman’s words and his own optimistic attitude despite his disabilities, he challenges us to do more and better: “Who wishes to walk with me? / Will you speak before I am gone? / Will you prove already too late?”

“Verse 51,” Donnie Goodin

We can’t merely let these messages wash over us. The idyll is impossible unless we collectively participate in its making. Like the part-time poets of Whitman, Alabama, we must take hope into our lungs as sustenance and shout it out into existence.

Whitman, Alabama is currently available online.

The post A Collaborative Reading of Whitman’s “Song of Myself” All Across Alabama appeared first on Hyperallergic.

from Hyperallergic http://ift.tt/2oxqB7V via IFTTT

[3thurs]

Third Thursday events and exhibitions for June 17

The next Third Thursday — the monthly evening of art in Athens, Georgia — is scheduled for Thursday, June 17, from 6 to 9 p.m. All exhibitions are free and open to the public.

Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia

Yoga in the Galleries via Zoom, 6 p.m. — Join us via Zoom for a free yoga class surrounded by works of art in the galleries. Led by instructors from Five Points Yoga, this program is free and open to both beginner and experienced yogis.

On view:

“Hands and Earth: Perspectives on Japanese Contemporary Ceramics” — Drawn from the Carol and Jeffrey Horvitz Collection of Japanese Ceramics, “Hands and Earth” features works by some of 20th- and 21st-century Japan’s most important artists.

“Echoes from Abroad: American Art from the Collection of Barbara Guillaume” — Paintings from the collection of Georgia Museum of Art board member and art collector Barbara Guillaume dating from 1878 to 1940.

“Rediscovering the Art of Victoria Hutson Huntley” — Approximately 30 lithographs and two paintings by the woman who was one of America’s leading lithographers during her life.

“In Dialogue: Artist, Mentor, Friend: Ronald Lockett and Thornton Dial Sr.” — This exhibition focuses on one work by each artist, both gifts from Ron Shelp, comparing their approach to their work and examining the shared relationship that sustained their creativity.

“Whitman, Alabama” — This ongoing documentary project by filmmaker Jennifer Crandall brings Walt Whitman’s words to life through the voices of modern-day Alabama residents.

“Contemporary Japanese Ceramics from the Horvitz Collection” — This exhibition presents Japanese pottery and porcelain created by three generations of master ceramic artists. Made with both ancient and modern materials and methods, their works are exceptionally diverse. They share the exceptional craftsmanship and sophisticated design characteristic of Japanese contemporary ceramics.

“Power and Piety in 17th-Century Spanish Art” — Works by premiere Spanish baroque painters such as Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Murillo, Pedro Orrente and others, on loan from Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery.

“Modernism Foretold: The Nadler Collection of Late Antique Art from Egypt” — An extraordinary assembly of Coptic objects dating from the 3rd to the 8th century CE belonging to Emanuel and Anna Nadler.

The museum’s days of operation are Thursday – Sunday. Reserve a free ticket and see our policies at https://georgiamuseum.org/visit/.

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia will be opening its doors for timed ticket access (https://botgarden.uga.edu/porcelain-and-decorative-arts-museum-timed-access-now-available/). The newest building at the garden holds the personal porcelain and decorative arts of Deen Day Sanders, a longtime supporter of State Botanical Garden. The space is designed to draw environmental and conservation connections to the collections in the museum.

Eight different gallery spaces blend conservation, botanicals, art, beauty and curiosity. Adjacent to the building is the Discovery and Information Garden, where visitors can connect to the living botanical collection that is represented in many of the porcelain works in the museum. Please join staff and docents for a time in the Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum to develop your own ideas on art and nature and become inspired to see the natural environment through the lens of the many artists on display.

Hotel Indigo, Athens

“Nouveau Bridal” by Tabitha Fielteau — Funded by the 2020 Arts in Community Resilience Award presented by Athens Cultural Affairs Commission and Athens-Clarke County Unified Government, this exhibition is a drive-by, walk-by, bike-by art experience, viewable from outside and perfect for social distancing. The Glass Cube at Hotel Indigo is an art experience all day and all night.

“Athens Facades” — Photography by Mike Landers. The artist took these building portraits at dark downtown and in Five Points between 2000 and 2002. His first building portrait shows what had been The Gap on Clayton Street, which left a beautifully symmetrical illuminated façade and an empty interior. Landers finds this an exercise of looking in and looking out.

ATHICA@Ciné

“Pandemic Portraits: Photographs by Cindy Karp” — www.athenscine.com for open hours.

Lyndon House Arts Center

6 p.m., 3Thurs Artist Talks: Artists Nathaniel Byrd and Christee Imogen Henry will speak about their work in a conversation led by curator Beth Sale. Please reserve a free ticket. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/3thurs-artist-talks-46th-juried-exhibit-tickets-157116276011 

On view:

“46th Juried Exhibition” — This year’s show was selected by guest juror Hallie Ringle, the Hugh Kahul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art.

“Window Works: AJ Aremu” — Using the banks of windows as a palette, AJ Aremu represents Black bodies in motion and states of repose. Their contemporary clothing blends with African patterns in Aremu’s exploration into the melding of cultures.

#NotAStereotype: Voice and Space for Black Artistry” — The Arts Center and the Lyndon House Arts Foundation, Inc. (LHAF) present this exhibition organized by La Ruchala A. Murphy. Murphy is the first recipient of the Guest BIPOC Curator program funded by LHAF.

“Endless Party: A Collection of Party Animals: Paintings by Will Eskridge”

“LOBBY CASE: Jourdan Joly’s Ice cream Cones”

“Collections from our Community: Arthur Johnson’s Sharks”

tiny ATH gallery

Penny Noah: “Transforming"

Safety precautions in place for tiny ATH gallery:

Please, please, please WEAR YOUR MASK (we will have gloves and sanitizer and extra masks readily available as well).

4 people will be allowed in at a time or a larger family group that has been sheltering together.

ENTER through front porch door, EXIT through back of gallery (one-way traffic).

Please consider parking on Pulaski St. or Cleveland Ave. to alleviate parking issues, and allow for extra space for the entry line.

Please follow signage instructions and maintain safe 6-feet-plus distancing while waiting to enter the gallery.

Feel free to mingle (6 feet safely away from one another) on the back patio area.

If you feel unwell or have been in contact with anyone who has been sick, please stay home.

Creature Comforts Brewing Co.’s CCBC Gallery

“Respite” — A collection of abstract expressionist paintings made by artist Abby Kacen between 2020 and 2021 as the artist processed personal grief, unpacked identity and coped with the tragedies of 2020. Kacen is a cartoonist, illustrator, muralist, chalk artist and founder of Keep It Weird Art Collective. On Third Thursday, come out to meet the artist (6 – 7:30 p.m.) at Creature Comforts' downtown taproom. The exhibition is on view through June 20.

ATHICA: Athens Institute for Contemporary Art

Not open for this Third Thursday.

Lamar Dodd School of Art Galleries, University of Georgia

Closed for the summer.

The Classic Center

No art is on view this Third Thursday.

—

Third Thursday was established in 2012 to encourage attendance at Athens’ established art venues through coordination and co-promotion by the organizing entities. Rack cards promoting Third Thursday and visual art in Athens are available upon request. This schedule and venue locations and regular hours can be found at 3thurs.org.

Contact: Michael Lachowski, Georgia Museum of Art, mlachow@uga.edu.

[3thurs]

Third Thursday events and exhibitions for May 20

The next Third Thursday — the monthly evening of art in Athens, Georgia — is scheduled for Thursday, May 20, from 6 to 9 p.m. All exhibitions are free and open to the public.

Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia

Yoga in the Galleries via Zoom, 6 p.m. — Join us via Zoom for a free yoga class surrounded by works of art in the galleries. Led by instructors from Five Points Yoga, this program is free and open to both beginner and experienced yogis. Registration is required: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJErc-6tqz8vGdxmanu3g8tBhQmDByvXIume

On view:

“Whitman, Alabama” — This ongoing documentary project by filmmaker Jennifer Crandall brings Walt Whitman’s words to life through the voices of modern-day Alabama residents.

“Extra Ordinary: Magic, Mystery and Imagination in American Realism” — This exhibition examines the formation and legacy of the magical realist tradition in American painting, from the late 1930s to the early 1970s.

“In Dialogue: Look, Paint, Repeat: Variations in the Art of Pierre Daura” —This exhibition uses the museum’s recent acquisition of Daura’s “View of Saint-Cirq-LaPopie” to highlight how the artist depicted certain subjects over and over again.

“Contemporary Japanese Ceramics from the Horvitz Collection” — This exhibition presents Japanese pottery and porcelain created by three generations of master ceramic artists. Made with both ancient and modern materials and methods, their works are exceptionally diverse. They share the exceptional craftsmanship and sophisticated design characteristic of Japanese contemporary ceramics.

“Power and Piety in 17th-Century Spanish Art” — Works by premiere Spanish baroque painters such as Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Murillo, Pedro Orrente and others, on loan from Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery.

“Modernism Foretold: The Nadler Collection of Late Antique Art from Egypt” — An extraordinary assembly of Coptic objects dating from the 3rd to the 8th century CE belonging to Emanuel and Anna Nadler.

The museum’s days of operation are Thursday – Sunday, and a free timed ticketing system is now in place to limit the number of people in the building, along with new policies for safety during COVID-19. Reserve a ticket and see our policies at https://georgiamuseum.org/visit/.

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum at the Center for Art and Nature at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia will be opening its doors for timed ticket access (https://botgarden.uga.edu/porcelain-and-decorative-arts-museum-timed-access-now-available/). The newest building at the garden holds the personal porcelain and decorative arts of Deen Day Sanders, a longtime supporter of State Botanical Garden. The space is designed to draw environmental and conservation connections to the collections in the museum.

Eight different gallery spaces blend conservation, botanicals, art, beauty and curiosity. Adjacent to the building is the Discovery and Information Garden, where visitors can connect to the living botanical collection that is represented in many of the porcelain works in the museum. Please join staff and docents for a time in the Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum to develop your own ideas on art and nature and become inspired to see the natural environment through the lens of the many artists on display.

Lamar Dodd School of Art Galleries, University of Georgia

Closed for the summer.

Hotel Indigo, Athens

“Nouveau Bridal” by Tabitha Fielteau — Funded by the 2020 Arts in Community Resilience Award presented by Athens Cultural Affairs Commission and Athens-Clarke County Unified Government, this exhibition is a drive-by, walk-by, bike-by art experience, viewable from outside and perfect for social distancing. The Glass Cube at Hotel Indigo is an art experience all day and all night.

“Athens Facades” — Photography by Mike Landers. The artist took these building portraits at dark downtown and in Five Points between 2000 and 2002. His first building portrait shows what had been The Gap on Clayton Street, which left a beautifully symmetrical illuminated façade and an empty interior. Landers finds this an exercise of looking in and looking out.

ATHICA: Athens Institute for Contemporary Art

“Lost in the Weeds: Climate Change and Human Nature” — Organized by Macon-based artist/curator Craig Coleman, this exhibition features the works of 11 individual artists and four collaborative artist teams from across the country and beyond. All use the stuff of nature to convey the beauty, mystery and inescapability of its rule and perhaps its ruin. The technology-infused works on display take form through new approaches to sculpture, installation, video, interactive sound and video, virtual reality, animation, blown glass, weaving and more and derive their substance from natural materials, the ecosystems of the world and data from natural phenomena. Thought-provoking, energetic and urgent, these works both analyze our changing environment and substantiate a new way for art to express the effects of humanity on our small planet. Open Third Thursday, 4 – 9 p.m.

ATHICA@Ciné

“Pandemic Portraits: Photographs by Cindy Karp” — www.athenscine.com for open hours.

Lyndon House Arts Center

6 p.m., 3Thurs Artist Talks: Will Eskridge & 46th Juried Exhibition Artists — Will Eskridge will discuss his new solo exhibition “Endless Party” and juried exhibition artists Ophelia Culpepper, Maria Elias and Bradley Spaulding will speak about their work in a conversation led by curator Beth Sale. Reservations are recommended for this free, in-person event, available at this link.

On view:

“46th Juried Exhibition” — This year’s show was selected by guest juror Hallie Ringle, the Hugh Kahul Curator of Contemporary Art at the Birmingham Museum of Art.

“Green Life Awards” — Youth Community Program sponsored by the ACC Recycling Division. The 2021 theme for K – 12 students is renew, reinvent, rejoice.

“Window Works: Noraa James” — “Window Works” is an outdoor project located at the entrance of the Lyndon House Arts Center. Using the banks of windows as a palette, Noraa James has designed a triptych and diptych inspired by love, the Black body and primary colors.

We require face coverings and social distancing and follow all CDC guidelines. As we navigate through these unusual times, we recommend visiting our website, social media or calling the Arts Center for further information regarding procedures for visiting the galleries. Please note gallery hours and numbers of visitors at one time are subject to change and will follow CDC guidelines. For more information, please call 706.613.3623. Please visit us at accgov.com/lyndonhouse or on Facebook and Instagram.

Lamar Dodd School of Art Galleries, University of Georgia

First round of BFA Thesis Work on display.

tiny ATH gallery

“Scenes from Quarantine” by Manda McKay — Instagram Live artist talk at 6 p.m. and Third Thursday open hours following at 6:30 – 9 p.m.

Safety precautions in place for tiny ATH gallery:

Please, please, please WEAR YOUR MASK (we will have gloves and sanitizer and extra masks readily available as well).

4 people will be allowed in at a time or a larger family group that has been sheltering together.

ENTER through front porch door, EXIT through back of gallery (one-way traffic).

Please consider parking on Pulaski St. or Cleveland Ave. to alleviate parking issues, and allow for extra space for the entry line.

Please follow signage instructions and maintain safe 6-feet-plus distancing while waiting to enter the gallery.

Feel free to mingle (6 feet safely away from one another) on the back patio area.

If you feel unwell or have been in contact with anyone who has been sick, please stay home.

The Classic Center

No art is on view this Third Thursday.

Creature Comforts Brewing Co.’s CCBC Gallery

Contact the venue for May 20 info or learn more at GetCurious.com.

—

Third Thursday was established in 2012 to encourage attendance at Athens’ established art venues through coordination and co-promotion by the organizing entities. Rack cards promoting Third Thursday and visual art in Athens are available upon request. This schedule and venue locations and regular hours can be found at 3thurs.org.

Contact: Michael Lachowski, Georgia Museum of Art, mlachow@uga.edu.