Sunday, October 10, 2010

ART Today in New Haven - SERA Salon: Social Experiments Relational Acts

[8 October 2010 - By City Wide Open Studios 2010]
This weekend at the Alternative Space, City-Wide Open Studios hosts SERA (Social Experiments Relational Acts) Salon, examining the notion of art as service – in a vacant, fully-outfitted nail salon.

Artspace has cleaned the salon, but left its original trappings – magazines, customer autographs, nail polish tubes, manicure tables and pedicure tables – intact. From 12 pm – 5 pm on Saturday, October 9, and Sunday, October 10, visitors will be able to participate in a series of site-specific experiments, developed by various artists and organized by Ted Efremoff.

One such experiment is “IMAGICURE: an imagination exchange for creative alternatives,” developed by Steven Dahlberg. In IMAGICURE, visitors are invited to to contribute an idea about how to infuse more creativity in education.  In his statement to Artspace, Dahlberg adds that, “A salon is inherently a place of social interaction, where ideas are exchanged and community is built….This experience explores creativity in service to self and the community.”

Dahlberg focuses on applied imagination in search of creative alternatives. He is interested in how creativity improves the well-being and flourishing of those who engage in it. He directed an international creativity conference and currently heads the International Centre for Creativity and Imagination.

The project also includes the relational act, WAIT.  WAIT engages its participants through a “Take-a-Number” ticket dispenser “Take-a-Number” ticket dispenser, and other permutations of symbolic place holders, that only exist to allow access to a future experience or object.  This is a relational act intended to discover, or at least approximate what we are waiting for?   What are the philosophical existential implications of  waiting? When do we wait? What does waiting feel like?

WAIT has been developed by John O’Donnell.  O’Donnell was conceived on Halloween, born on his father’s birthday, and raised in Montana. He lives and works in Connecticut. He has exhibited at the Chelsea Art Museum, the International Print Center in New York, and the Seoul Museum of Art in Korea. John creates installations, videos, performances, prints and works on paper.

Also participating are PRAXIS, the joint project of Delia Bajo and Brainard Carey.  Among many other notable achievements and innovations, the pair have previously participated in the Whitney Biennial.

Please join us this weekend to celebrate this unique event.  Social Experiments and Relational Acts await you ...

More about SERA ...

Friday, October 8, 2010

Pilobolus on Creativity - LIVE Friday at noon EDT

Pilobolus' Itamar Kubovy on Connecting the Creative Process in the Studio and the Organization ... on Creativity in Play, 8 October 2010, 12:00 p.m. Eastern ... listen LIVE online at http://www.creativityinplay.com/ or via telephone at +1 347 826 7082. Pilobolus is an arts organization that operates with a principle of "radical democracy" - where everyone's creativity matters. Their challenge to themselves is to reflect that process in not only how they create and perform dance, but in how they run the organization itself as an organic, creative entity. We'll explore what lessons other organizations can learn from the Pilobolus experience, as well as the importance of movement in creativity. Itamar will participate in the
Creativity World Forum in Oklahoma City, November 15-17, 2010. Discover more about Pilobolus at: http://www.pilobolus.com/

ABOUT CREATIVITY IN PLAY: Exploring the importance of creativity, play and imagination across society. Hosted by Steven Dahlberg (International Centre for Creativity and Imagination) and Mary Alice Long, Ph.D. (Play=Peace). Produced by the International Centre for Creativity and Imagination, in partnership with the National Creativity Network. ... 'The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.' – Carl Jung

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Making a Mental Athlete

It Doesn't Take a Genius to Win the USA Memory Championship, Just Practice ... Can you memorize the names and faces of 99 people you've never met before? Or, how about memorizing an entire deck of cards? These are just two of the challenges confronting competitors at the annual USA Memory Championship. Tips on improving your memory from kids competing to be memory champs.The competitors are no smarter than you. But they are athletes -- "mental athletes" -- and 42 of them, ranging in age from 12 to 53, participated in the 10th annual memory competition held last weekend in New York City. [16 March 2007 - 20/20 - More]