Follow Cat Urbigkit's blogs from American Library Association conference

Pinedale writer and rancher Cat Urbigkit will be micro-blogging for the Association for Library Service to Children at the American Library Association annual conference June 23-28 in New Orleans. 

She is a trustee for the Sublette County Public Library System, a first time ALA Conference attendee and an award-winning writer & photographer. She will be doing a book signing at the Boyds Mills Press booth on Saturday afternoon (June 25). Check out her page, Welcome to Cat Urbigkit’s Paradise Sheep.

Cat will have a new book out in the fall. 

Works of Wyoming flyer lists May 21 workshops

Click image for larger version

Call for blog posts: Creative Nonfiction food issue

From Creative Nonfiction magazine:

Creative Nonfiction is seeking narrative blog posts to reprint in our upcoming food issue.

We’re looking for: interesting, true stories that focus on food, including restaurant reviews; tales of meals gone awry; secrets, tips and kitchen short cuts; confessions from cooks, chefs and/or servers; an examination of the kitchen life; and so on. Narrative, narrative, narrative. Posts that can stand alone, 2000 words max, from 2010. Something from your own blog, from a friend’s blog, from a stranger’s blog.

The small print: We will contact individual bloggers before publication and pay a flat fee for one-time reprint rights. Deadline for nominations: 11:59 PM EST, Monday, November 29, 2010. Nominate as many posts as you like, though we ask that you not nominate the same post multiple times.

FMI: http://www.creativenonfiction.org/blog_nomination.html

Danielle Pafunda: "The Dead Girls Speak in Unison"

This poetry news comes from an Oct. 29 post on the Owen Wister Review web site:

Danielle Pafunda is an assistant professor of gender & women’s studies and English at the University of Wyoming. She has authored such books as Iatrogenic: Their Testimonies, My Zorba, Pretty Young Thing, and the forthcoming Manhater. Her poem “The Dead Girls Speak in Unison” is today’s Poem-a-Day offering from www.Poets.org.

Congratulations, Danielle! You can find out more about Danielle by visiting her blog, or you can just Google her name.

Two more quilt mysteries by Barbara Graham in the works

Cody mystery author, quilter and Wyoming Writers, Inc., member Barbara Graham was interviewed by Jean Henry Mead for an Oct. 23 story on the mysterious writers blog. Here's a snippet from the interview:

Jean: What are you working on now?

Barbara: The third book in the series, Murder by Music: The Wedding Quilt will release next October and I am working on Murder by Vegetable: The Baby Quilt now. I also am trying to find a home for a suspense novel not connected to the series.

Join today's conversation with The President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities

Today's Tuesday Talk from the White House features The President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities.

On the White House blog, Kori Schulman has the following info:

Join us for two talks on Tuesday, October 19:

•1:30 p.m. EDT: Talk with Austan Goolsbee, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, on the economy.

•2:15 p.m. EDT: In celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month, talk about the arts and arts and humanities education with co-chairs and members of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities (PCAH), including:

Chuck Close, Member and visual artist
Margo Lion, Co-Chair
George Stevens, Jr., Co-Chair
Damian Woetzel, Member and ballet dancer

Here's how you can participate:

•Ask your questions in advance on Facebook
•Watch the chat through www.WhiteHouse.gov/live
•Join the discussion live through the White House Facebook application

Link up by going to http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/10/15/two-tuesday-talks-austan-goolsbee-economy-president-s-committee-arts-and-humanities

Brooks Reeves: "Why I Love Interactive Fiction"

At Wyomingarts, we know Brooks Reeves as a theatre guy. He's written plays and melodramas for the Cheyenne Little Theatre Players. One of his plays, "The City that Cried Wolf," was produced for the 59E59 Theaters in Manhattan and received a favorable review in the New York Times. He's acted in productions in Wyoming and Colorado, currently involved in a reader's theatre put on the Bas Bleu Theatre in Fort Collins.

He also participates in interactive fiction.

What is interactive fiction?

Since Wyomingarts bloggers know next to nothing about it (except what we read online), we shall let Brooks the blogger tell it at The Quiet Sunday: Why I Love Interactive Fiction

Deadline Oct. 8 for Governor's Arts Awards nominations

The Wyoming Arts Council is accepting nominations for the 2010 Governor’s Arts Awards, an annual honor presented to citizens, organizations, businesses or communities in the Cowboy State that make substantial contributions to the arts.

The awards are presented based on accomplishments that reflect substantial contributions made to the arts in Wyoming, and exemplify a long-term commitment to the arts. Nominations must be postmarked no later than October 8, 2010.

To request a nomination form, selection criteria and a list of previous Governor’s Arts Awards recipients, contact the Wyoming Arts Council office at 307-777-7742, or via email at ebratt@state.wy.us. Forms may also be accessed on the Arts Council’s web site http://wyoarts.state.wy.us/.

Previous Governor’s Arts Award recipients are not eligible; however, nomination of previously unselected nominees is encouraged.

Established in 1982, the Governor’s Arts Awards recognize excellence in the arts or outstanding service to the arts in Wyoming. These awards were first made possible by an endowment from the Union Pacific Foundation in honor of Mrs. John U. Loomis, a life-long patron of the arts.

Over the years, individuals and organizations from throughout Wyoming have been honored for their dedication to the arts in Wyoming. This year is the 29th anniversary of these prestigious awards. This year’s recipients will be honored at a dinner and awards ceremony in Cheyenne, February 11, 2011.

More info available through future blog posts and on the WAC web site.

Igniting Cheyenne, five minutes at a time

From the Ignite Cheyenne blog:

If you had five minutes to say something to the people of Cheyenne, what would you say?

Well think it over, because we are giving you a chance to say it. Ignite Cheyenne is a place where people from Cheyenne and southeastern Wyoming can come to share ideas, hobbies, socialize and have a great time. Ignite Cheyenne is about showcasing your ideas and your passion. Both of those things can make Cheyenne an even better place! We want to hear you talk at Ignite Cheyenne.

Location: Historic Plains Hotel, 1600 Central Avenue, Cheyenne

Date: October 5, 2010

Schedule:

6 pm Doors open - Come for mingling and drinks

7 pm First group of talks

7:30 – 8 pm Intermission

8 – 8:30 pm Second group of talks

9 pm Go home enlightened

Tickets: Starting September 3 at 9:30am, you can get them on the blog. Tickets are free, but you must register to attend.

Agenda: Presenters have not been picked. If you’re interested in presenting, head over here to read some guidelines on the talks, then contact us here

Event Curators: Anna Nowak, Jeff Fruhwirth and Juliette Rule

What is Ignite, exactly?

On the website, Ignite is called a “global movement.” Here we just like to think of it as a group of people gathering around to share stories, tips and tricks that make life and work easier, and a forum for people to talk about their passions.

How does it work?

Each speaker at Ignite will get 20 slides to tell their story. However, there’s a catch: each slide will auto-advance after 15 seconds, making the total time of the talk 5 minutes. The format of the slides embodies the Ignite tagline “Enlighten us, but make it quick.”

How much does it cost?

Ignite Cheyenne is free to the public, but you do need to sign up for a free ticket. You can sign up for tickets starting at 9:30 am on Friday September 3, 2010 here. Having you register helps us by letting us know how many people to expect, and in turn how much food and beer to provide (also free) at the event.

What do I need to do?

Just show up. If you enjoy yourself, make sure to tell your friends and come back next time (we are shooting to coincide with Global Ignite Week for Ignite Cheyenne 2). If you’re feel really brave, give a talk!

We will be uploading pictures from the event to our Flickr page and the talks to our Youtube Channel.

UW Art Museum on YouTube: "Dufy on Design"

From the UW Art Museum blog:

The University of Wyoming Art Museum has added a new video to its uwartmuseum channel on YouTube. Dufy on Design is a walk through the exhibition, Dufy on Design: The Fabric Designs of Raoul Dufy.

Raoul Dufy (French, 1877-1953) has been recognized for his work as a Fauvist painter, known for bold color and strong lines. Dufy was also one of the great innovators of twentieth century textile design, an aspect of his work that has been relatively unknown. Dufy by Design: The Fabric Designs of Raoul Dufy, at the University of Wyoming Art Museum through August 21, 2010, explores Dufy’s collaborations with Parisian couture fashion designer Paul Poiret and the leading French silk manufacturer Bianchini-Frier. 100 original silk fabrics and fabric designs and thirteen dresses designed by Mongi Guibane and Christian LaCroix using Dufy fabric designs are included in the exhibit.

View the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UWE_JfmcRc

FMI: http://uwartmuseum.blogspot.com/

Artist Ji Eun Kim wins first prize in competition sponsored by AHL Foundation

2009 Wyoming Arts Council intern Ji Eun Kim reports that she has won first prize in a competition sponsored by the AHL Foundation. The foundation supports Korean artists in the U.S. She wins a cash prize and will be part of a group show at the Gana Gallery in New York City's Chelsea District in January 2011.

Ji Eun is from Seoul, South Korea, and now lives in Cheyenne. She's currently in residence at the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center in Nebraska City, Neb. She just received a residency at the Santa Fe Art Institute in Santa Fe, N.M. for November and December of this year.

Congrats to Ji Eun. To see samples of her work, go to her blog at http://jieunkim25.blogspot.com/

Fanciful American bison at Carter Museum

In 2009, the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to catalog and digitize the entire works on paper collection, which is comprised of over 7,000 drawings, watercolors, and prints. Museum staff is posting some of the newly digitized work on its blog with this comment: "You’ll notice that these are unusually whimsical images, most likely drawn by Europeans who had not seen the American bison (or his friend, the deer) in person." As an example, here's a 1790 (approx.) etching by Swiss artist Johann Rudolf Holzhalb (1723-1806), "Americanischer Aur-Ochs. Bos Bison." For more, go to http://www.cartermuseum.org/blog/notes-from-underground/it-works-on-paper-the-fanciful-buffalo

Connie Norman blogs interviews with artists

Cheyenne artist Connie Norman sends this:

I've been doing a series of artist interviews on my blog. I thought it would be a great way to connect, and get to know other artists. I have 12 artists who have committed to the project so far. At this point I have posted three interviews. The artist of the week now is Lander's Matt Flint, recipient of a 2009 Wyoming Arts Council visual arts fellowship.

Go to http://connienorman.com/blog/

National Museum of Wildlife Art launches blog on the Huffington Post

News from the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson:

Jim McNutt, President and CEO of the National Museum of Wildlife Art, is authoring a new blog on the acclaimed Huffington Post. The blog, called People + Art + Wildlife, is committed to enlisting public perception of wildlife art as a transformative tradition and will continue to explore issues of how wildlife art in particular resonates with the people who experience it. McNutt is equally recognized for his scholarship in wildlife art, Western history and folklore.

A member of Museums West and accredited by both the American Association of Museums and the American Association of Museum Directors, the National Museum of Wildlife Art of the United States provides an exciting calendar of exhibitions from its permanent collection and changing exhibitions from around the globe and has been featured in media including the L.A. Times and The New York Times. A complete schedule of exhibitions and events are available online at www.wildlifeart.org, along with a coupon for $1 off admission.

Web marketing help available for artists

Attention artists, writers and performers! Wyoming Entrepreneur at the University of Wyoming offers free web counseling for the state's small businesses. For details, go to http://bit.ly/11x3H4.

The Wyoming Arts Council offers Individual Artists Professional Development (IAPD) grants. Since its advent five years ago, IAPD grants have provided funds to Wyoming artist-entrepreneurs to hire web designers, pay for web site hosting and other assorted web marketing projects. You can apply for up to $500 in this category and it requires a 1-to-1 match.

For more info, e-mail your friendly blogger and IAPD adviser at mshay@state.wy.us.

Gene Gagliano: "B is for Bookfest"

Children's author and Wyoming Arts Council roster artists Gene Gagliano from Buffalo will be one of the presenters at the Wyoming Book Festival Sept. 19 in Cheyenne. Gene is featured on the book festival web site. Go to http://wyobookfest.blogspot.com/2009/08/dreams-do-come-true-for-childrens.html

Atwood takes new approach to book tour

Dystopian novelist Margaret Atwood is putting on a show as part of her book tour for "The Year of the Flood," which is set in a post-pandemic future.

Here's a story about Atwood by Bruce DeMara in the Toronto Star:

Margaret Atwood is radically redesigning the concept of a standard book tour. The acclaimed Canadian author is using a live performance with original music, local actors and the author herself as narrator to promote her latest novel, The Year of the Flood, her publisher announced yesterday.

Her tour for the book will feature six Canadian stops, including St. James' Cathedral at 65 Church St. in Toronto on Sept. 24.

"It's a chance to break free from the traditional structure of a book tour," Atwood said in a statement. "I felt this particular novel deserved a more complex presentation. It's also a great chance to work with other creative minds and see their interpretation of the story come to light." Ellen Seligman, publisher of fiction at McClelland & Stewart and editor of Atwood's 13th novel, which will be released Sept. 22, called the project "unprecedented" in the annals of publishing.

The Year of the Flood, a follow-up to Atwood's novel Oryx & Crake, is set in a future where the world has undergone dramatic change as a result of decades of evironmental degradation. The final blow comes in the form of a pandemic that decimates virtually all of humanity, leaving a scattering of survivors.

But Seligman said, despite the book's dark nature and theme, "there is definitely a sense of hope (by the end) because it's people gathering in groups together." That's where the idea of live performance and bringing together people from local community meshes with the book, she said. "The idea of this performance and gathering the public – these are public performances and very inexpensive tickets – is a way of kind of joining everybody together in this global concern, which is our world and life as we know it."

The hour-long performance will feature 14 hymns – one for each chapter – which Atwood wrote, to the music of L.A.-based composer Orville Stoeber.

A three-person cast will perform along with a choir, all of whom will be local talent. Atwood has helped to design an interactive website for the book tour, including a blog and a Twitter feed. In her first entry, Atwood said she and husband Graeme Gibson are travelling to the U.K. by ship and said two Coronation Street cast members will perform with her in Manchester. Events will also be held in Ottawa, Kingston, Sudbury, Calgary and Vancouver, with proceeds going to Nature Canada.

Details of the Toronto cast have yet to be finalized. Ticket information is available at http://www.readings.org/.