Media
The Particular Sadness (and Happiness) of Lemon Cake
Reading Under the Roof Cloud
Thursday, August 22 at 6 pm
This installment of Reading Under the Roof Cloud will take on Aimee Bender’s The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake. On the eve of her ninth birthday, unassuming Rose Edelstein bites into her mother’s homemade lemon-chocolate cake and discovers she has a magical gift: she can taste her mother’s emotions in the slice. To her horror, she finds that her cheerful mother tastes of despair. Soon, she’s privy to the secret knowledge that most families keep hidden: her father’s detachment, her mother’s transgression, her brother’s increasing retreat from the world. But there are some family secrets that even her cursed taste buds can’t discern.
Register at http://akronartmuseum.ticketleap.com/aambookclub/.
Happy and Delicious Lemon Cake Recipes
Poor Rose can taste despair because of her magical gift, but we hope you don’t taste anything but cheer if you make one of these delicious lemon cakes.
Joy the Baker created a lemon cake that’s good enough to sleep on. Read the blog to see why Associate Educator Gina wants to be Joy’s best friend forever.
http://joythebaker.com/2009/01/lemon-drenched-lemon-cake/
We’re pretty sure Martha doesn’t have time to be a BFF to us, but she does have plenty of recipes. We just never imagined she’d have THIRTEEN lemon cake recipes!
http://joythebaker.com/2009/01/lemon-drenched-lemon-cake/
Our final recipe is one that Gina (future BFFs with Joy) tried and loved. She said the lemon curd was delicious.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pavlova-with-Lemon-Curd-and-Berries-352320
Did you try any or all of the recipes? Or did you choose to just read the book? What did you think?
Read MoreBACK. TO. SCHOOL.
Three little words that alone don’t cause a whole lot of emotion, but put them together and the response is usually either panic or elation. Many of the local school districts started their 180 days of reading, writing and arithmetic this week. Local universities such as the University of Akron start the fall semester on Monday, August 26. Whether you’re catching the big yellow bus or the Roo Express, the Museum Store has some inspiring supplies to make your classes a little more fun.
Start the Day Right
Spilt Milk from Fred and Friends
Designed like an accident in progress, Spilt Milk will add a splash of fun to your table. It’s made from soft, flexible silicone that’s practically indestructible and is pretty much perfect to use for all those bowls of cereal.
History of Art Mug from Design Ideas
Brush up on your art history while you ingest your daily caffeine.
Perpetual Puzzle Calendar from Made by Humans
Never know what day it is? Sick of buying a new calendar every year? Sure, you might miss those puppies, but this calendar allows you to know what day it is without ever having to buy another calendar.
All the Write Stuff
Giant Wooden Pencil from Accoutrements
It’s big. It’s yellow. And it’s a working pencil. The lead writes, the eraser erases and it’s perfectly surreal for when you want to make your desk look tiny.
The New Black Pencils from Fred and Friends
What’s blacker than black? These New Black pencils have black graphite, black wood, black paint, black ferrule (that thing between the wood and eraser), black eraser and ironic white imprinting.
Piet Mondrian Inspired Dry Erase Board
This dry erase board was inspired by Dutch painter Piet Mondrian. The layout is strategically compartmentalized to organize messages and get your thoughts in order artistically.
Thought Cloud Sticky Notes from Kikkerland
Do you always come up with your ideas when you’re heads in the clouds? These sticky notes will help you collect all your wonderful ideas.
Open during regular gallery hours, the Museum Store offers a unique assortment of contemporary artful accessories for your home and lifestyle. Gallery admission is not required to shop.
Did you know ALL University of Akron students, faculty and staff receive free admission to the museum as part of the UArts program? In fact, all UA students, faculty and staff are members of the Akron Art Museum. We’ll see you in the galleries.
Read MoreDigital Media Tour
Do you have a blog or active Twitter account devoted to the arts or activities in Northeast Ohio?
Thursday, August 22 at 6 pm
If so, we would like to invite you to attend the Akron Art Museum’s first-ever Digital Media Tour. Focusing on Real/Surreal, this tour led by Chief Curator Janice Driesbach explores many themes of realist and surrealist art in American from the 1920s-1950s. Learn how artists balanced the real and unreal, created fantasy/dreamlike images with unique materials, and dealt with the tumultuous events of the era.
To participate send an email to bBeard@AkronArtMuseum.org with your blog address or Twitter handle and a brief description of the subjects you cover and the people you reach. The deadline to register is Tuesday, August 20 and spots are limited.
This exhibition was organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.
The Akron presentation has been made possible by major grants from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Henry Luce Foundation with additional support from the Lehner Family Foundation, Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation, Corbin Foundation, Ohio Arts Council and Harris-Stanton Gallery.
Downtown@Dusk: Anne E. DeChant
The last Downtown@Dusk of the season will take place this Thursday from 6:30-8:30 pm featuring Americana, Pop and Country singer Anne E. Dechant. Attendees can also enjoy a gallery talk from Associate Educator Gina Thomas McGee and food from Urban Eats while kids enjoy art-making activities in the museum’s classroom.
Anne E. DeChant, based out of Cleveland, first appeared in the music scene in the band Odd Girl Out, showcasing her socially-aware music. After the band dissolved, she began a successful solo career, producing six albums. A five-time winner of Cleveland Scene Magazine’s Best Singer Songwriter award, DeChant delights audiences across America with her original, poignant music. Her song “Girls and Airplanes” was recently featured in the major motion picture “Hot Flashes.”
This Thursday’s ArtTalks@Dusk will feature a gallery talk from Associate Educator Gina Thomas McGee titled “New+Improved” from 7:30-8 pm while DeChant takes a break from performing.
The class for the week’s ArtCamp@Dusk is “Atmospheric Landscapes,” where kids 6-12 will use oil pastels and torn paper to create a one-of-a-kind landscape. Free for members, $5 for nonmembers. Registration is required for this event. Sign up here.
The Museum Store and galleries are open during Downtown@Dusk until 9 pm. Admission to the galleries is FREE on August 15 for Third Thursday.
Exhibitions currently on view in the museum galleries include Line Color Illusion: 40 Years of Julian Stanczak, With a Trace: Photographs of Absence, Real/Surreal and Envisioning an Outdoor Sculpture Space: A Project with Kent State University. For information about these exhibitions and other events, please visit the museum’s exhibitions page and calendar.
Anne E. DeChant took time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions about herself and Downtown@Dusk.
You tailor your performances depending on the venue. What and where was your favorite performance and why?
That’s a really tough question. More than an entire performance, I would say there are thousands of moments inside performing that I can recall being really special. I think some of my best moments have been at The Barking Spider. The crowd there is musically focused. When people are listening it makes it possible for a vocalist/songwriter, to be really dynamic vocally. Dynamics are what help to express a wide range of emotion and that’s what music is all about to me. So it is those moments when I’m emoting all that I want to and the crowd is taking it all in that are most special. It’s a symbiotic thing.
What is the inspiration for your songs and lyrics?
Life. My life. Other people’s lives. My goal is to tell ordinary stories about every day people, in an extraordinary way.
After performing at venues such as the White House and Lilith Fair, what keeps you coming back to Akron to perform at Downtown@Dusk?
I love my audience. They are the ones that have made it possible for me to lead a life I love. They are a part of my life. I want to see them, share some old favorites as well as my new music with them. It’s like going to see your family over and over. If there’s a wedding reception or a 4th of July party, you’re there!
What is your favorite memory of performing at Downtown@Dusk?
Not melting!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1vFsicyV38]
Downtown@Dusk 2013 is made possible by The City of Akron. It is presented in cooperation with 89.7 WKSU.
ArtCamp@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from The Howland Memorial Fun and the House of LaRose.
ArtTalks@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from the Sam & Kathy Salem Philanthropic Fund of the Jewish Community Board of Akron.
Third Thursdays are made possible by a generous gift from The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.
Read MoreDowntown@Dusk: 15 60 75 The Numbers Band
The second to last Downtown@Dusk concert on August 8 from 6:30-8:30 pm will feature local Abstract Blues and Rock band 15 60 75 The Numbers Band. Attendees can also attend a lecture from Chief Curator Janice Driesbach and food from Old Carolina BBQ while kids can partake in fun and wacky art activities in the museum’s classroom for ArtCamp@Dusk.
Concert goers will enjoy rocking out to the 15 60 75 The Numbers Band’s boisterous sound and style.
The band, which formed over 40 years ago, has remained without a record label and therefore able to create original, uncategorized music. Formed after guitarist Robert Kidney opened for another band, Pig Iron, here at the Akron Art Museum, 15 60 75 The Numbers Band has continued to delight audiences across Ohio with their fun-loving sound.
Chief Curator Janice Driesbach will be giving a lecture titled Women of Surrealism for this Thursday’s ArtTalks@Dusk from 7:30-8 pm. Featuring more than 60 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs dating from 1930 to 1955 drawn from the collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art, Real/Surreal examines how American artists used strikingly naturalistic details to imaginative images inspired by dreams and how they introduced disconcerting undertones into compositions that featured seemingly ordinary scenes.
Thursday’s ArtCamp@Dusk class is SOLD OUT! Sign up for the final class here.
The Museum Store and galleries are open during Downtown@Dusk until 9 pm (admission is not required to shop in the store). Museum galleries and exhibitions will be open until 9 pm with paid admission.
Exhibitions currently on view in the museum galleries include Line Color Illusion: 40 Years of Julian Stanczak, With a Trace: Photographs of Absence and Real/Surreal. For information about these exhibitions and other events, please visit the museum’s exhibitions page and calendar.
Finally, 15 60 75 The Numbers Band answered a few questions about themselves and Downtown@Dusk.
The band was formed after Kidney opened for another group at the Akron Art Museum. Does the museum have any special meaning to the band?
That took place in 1968 when the art museum was in the very small building across the street. We’ve been playing Downtown@Dusk since the late 1990s. It remains the band’s favorite show of the year for many reasons; we’ve always been treated well by the people at the museum, it is also an opportunity for many fans with families who support our music to come out and hear us play. We are always humbled by their respect and appreciation.
On the band’s site, it is stated that the band is in it for the music, not the fame. Has that affected the band in any way?
Yes, we are not famous. We are not rich. We are highly respected for our music which is truly unique and original because we have the freedom to do what we want to do creatively, and our fans expect it. We are now in our 43rd year. Music is an art form, and does not need to just be a commodity. In my opinion, our culture at this point is glutted with entertainment and starved of artistic commitment.
After 40 years of shows and recordings, what keeps the band motivated to keep playing?
Two things; one is the continuing support of the people who come to see the band in northeast Ohio, the media and organizations like the Akron Art Museum. Two, the band is in a constant process of creating new material, which is the driving factor that attracts people to the band in the first place, our original music.
What keeps the band coming back to perform at Downtown@Dusk?
You invite us, we love to play outdoors, we love the crowd.
What is your favorite memory of playing at Downtown@Dusk?
Looking out over the mass of people who come to see us, the diversity, and the fact that they are paying attention to the subtlety our music offers.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUaPm4zu4qk]
Downtown@Dusk 2013 is made possible by The City of Akron. It is presented in cooperation with 89.7 WKSU.
ArtCamp@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from The Howland Memorial Fun and the House of LaRose.
ArtTalks@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from the Sam & Kathy Salem Philanthropic Fund of the Jewish Community Board of Akron.
Read MoreRethinking our Role in the Community Thanks to Knight Foundation
A new $750,000 grant from Knight Foundation announced today is helping the museum to look forward – to rethink both the museum and its role in the community.
The exciting part is it gives us a chance to rethink the way the Akron Art Museum, as well as museums in general, interact with the public. It’s an engagement piece, but it’s a bigger story than ‘what do people do when they walk into the museum.’ The funding is going to allow us to think about what it means for people to interact with it – whether it’s inside the museum or outside its walls. What are people’s perceptions about who we are, and what we do?
Executive Director and CEO Mark Masuoka
Read the full Q&A with Masuoka on the Knight Arts blog.
Read MoreDowntown@Dusk: JD Eicher & The Goodnights
Thursday’s Downtown@Dusk concert will feature Light Rock band JD Eicher & The Goodnights from 6:30-8:30 pm. Concert goers can also enjoy Short Films curated by Akron Film+Pixel and food from Old Carolina BBQ while kids make fun and wacky art during the museum’s ArtCamp@Dusk.
Attendees will be delighted by JD Eicher & The Goodnights soft, rich music this Thursday.
The band, comprised of JD Eicher (vocals/guitar), Dan Prokop (keys), Jim Merhaut (bass) and Ryan Kirk (drums/percussion), provides listeners and audiences with exceptional subtle pop music. Combining seasoned vocals, rich melodies and emphatic articulation, JD Eicher & The Goodnights’ likability is sure to please concert goers!
At 7:30 pm, Akron Film Shorts will be screening Short Films in the Charles and Jane Lehner Auditorium for ArtTalks@Dusk. Akron Film+Pixel is a year-round social organization for creators and fans of film and games. It evolved from the Akron Film Festival in 2002.
The theme for this week’s ArtCamp@Dusk is “Pieces and Parts,” where kids 6-12 will use felting techniques to create an artwork inspired by artists who use many pieces to create larger artworks. This class has sold out, but you can register for the last two classes at http://akronartmuseum.ticketleap.com/artcampdusk2013/.
The Museum Store and galleries are open during Downtown@Dusk until 9 pm (admission is not required to shop in the store). Museum galleries and exhibitions will be open until 9 pm with paid admission.
Exhibitions currently on view in the museum galleries include Draw Me a Story, Line Color Illusion: 40 Years of Julian Stanczak, With a Trace: Photographs of Absence and Real/Surreal. For information about these exhibitions and other events, please visit the museum’s exhibitions page and calendar.
Vocalist JD Eicher was kind enough to answer some questions about the band and Downtown@Dusk.
How was the band formed?
I started out as a solo acoustic act, performing mostly in Ohio and PA while attending college at Westminster College. As the music developed and became more of a focus, the full band was formed primarily of fellow WC students, and we continued performing out of college.
Your sophomore album has been well received. What was your inspiration for the melodies and lyrics?
Our sophomore record, Shifting, is a record that explores the ups and downs of change in life and relationships. The overarching themes in our music center on hope and love, and these songs are inspired by people and experiences in everyday life.
Your music has been described as “subtle pop.” Do you agree?
It’s definitely what we’re aiming for! We’ve always made it our goal to create accessible music that also has depth and meaning.
You started a music-sharing project to promote your band and music. How successful has it been for you?
The Pass Along Project was a great way for us to get the ball rolling in the promotion of Shifting, and it definitely helped us generate some interest and support from those who participated. Very grateful that we have received the support of so many amazing people!
After hundreds of performances across the nation, what made you decide to perform at Downtown@Dusk?
Part of the band is from Youngstown, and so that makes Akron practically home. We have always kept our eyes open for opportunities to come to Akron and reach the ears of folks in our own neck of the woods. Truly looking forward to this performance!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51RMBGCkONk]
Downtown@Dusk 2013 is made possible by The City of Akron. It is presented in cooperation with 89.7 WKSU.
ArtCamp@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from The Howland Memorial Fun and the House of LaRose.
ArtTalks@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from the Sam & Kathy Salem Philanthropic Fund of the Jewish Community Board of Akron.
Read MoreSurrealist Game: The Exquisite Corpse
By: Alison Caplan, Director of Education
The Surrealists didn’t have Apples to Apples or Pictionary in their day, but they did participate in parlor games that helped get their creative juices flowing.
In the 1920’s, surrealist artists played a game based on chance and accident called Exquisite Corpse. The goal of the game was to make a kind of collaborative collage using words or drawings. The name Exquisite Corpse is the result of an early game, where the finished sentence read “The exquisite corpse will drink the young wine.”
In the days leading up to the Real/Surreal opening, museum staffers decided to take a surreal lunch break and attempt some Exquisite Corpse drawings of our own. The game goes like this: one artist starts a drawing, then folds the paper to hide most of the image. The next artist continues the drawing based on the small part she can see. The drawing is passed along to other players until the fantastical, wacky, surprising image is complete.
What do you think of the results? We should probably keep our day jobs right?
Now try your hand at an Exquisite Corpse drawing! Need inspiration? Check out the Real/Surreal exhibition and create your own collaborative drawing with museum visitors at the show.
Downtown@Dusk: The Wanda Hunt Band
Downtown@Dusk continues this Thursday, July 25 from 6:30-8:30 pm with a performance from the oldschool R&B group Wanda Hunt Band. Concert attendees can also enjoy a discussion from musician Jacob Trombetta and food from Old Carolina BBQ while kids can participate in hands-on art activities during ArtCamp@Dusk.
Concert goers will be fully entertained by the big band instrumentation and outstanding musicianship of the Wanda Hunt Band.
For twenty years, the Wanda Hunt Band has been delighting audience across Northeast Ohio with an impressive rhythm section, fiery horn section and the powerful vocals of Wanda Hunt. Playing its own unique and original arrangements of classic songs, the band’s music gives new life to Old School R&B and regularly surprises the listener. The Wanda Hunt Band plays a repertoire that includes timeless pieces by Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner and Aretha Franklin in addition to several songs composed by band members.
Local musician Jacob Trombetta will be leading a discussion titled “Surrealism and Music” for the ArtTalks@Dusk on July 25 from 7:30-8 pm. Featuring more than 60 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs dating from 1930 to 1955 drawn from the collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art, Real/Surreal examines how American artists used strikingly naturalistic details to imaginative images inspired by dreams and how they introduced disconcerting undertones into compositions that featured seemingly ordinary scenes. The exhibition features works by both well-known artists, such as Charles Burchfield, Edward Hopper, Charles Sheeler and Grant Wood alongside engaging images by lesser-known talents, among them Francis Criss, Louis Gugliemi and Katherine Schmidt.
THIS WEEK’S AARTCAMP@DUSK CLASS IS SOLD OUT! Sign up for the final three classes at http://akronartmuseum.ticketleap.com/artcampdusk2013/ .
The Museum Store will be open during Downtown@Dusk until 9 pm (admission is not required to shop in the store). The museum collections and galleries will be open until 9 pm with paid admission except on August 15 when the museum premieres Third Thursday.
Exhibitions currently on view in the museum galleries include Real/Surreal, Draw Me a Story and Line Color Illusion: 40 Years of Julian Stanczak. For detailed information on these exhibitions and other events, please visit the museum’s exhibitions and calendar of events.
Want to know more about the Wanda Hunt Band? They were kind enough to answer a few questions!
The band performs a variety of original songs and covers. Do you choose the lineup of songs in any particular order? Why?
I am Wanda’s musical director and I write all of the shows. Each show is different depending on the venue, audience and time allotment. I also mix up the songs within each show because there are many fans who come to every public show and I want them to hear something different each night. I tailor our shows with dance music for dance clubs, concert music for concert venues and an appropriate mixture for weddings, fundraisers, private parties and corporate affairs.
How did the band form?
The Wanda Hunt Band formed in 1994 when Wanda and select musicians left The Business Band over creative differences.
The group performs for many different types of events (clubs, bars, weddings, etc). What is your favorite event to perform at? Why?
There are no real “favorite events” per se. We really do enjoy all of the events we play. As musicians, we like to stretch out in concert settings as we can take more time for improvisation and musical exploration. But, there is also a lot of joy in playing dance music when people are really getting into it.
What keeps you coming back to perform at Downtown@Dusk?
Downtown@Dusk is one of our favorite gigs of the year! I think we have played every single one. There is something about the crowd and the atmosphere, a free concert right downtown, outside in the sunlight. For us, one of the best parts is this is one of the few events where kids can hear the band and that’s always fun. We always have a good time and so does the audience!
What is your favorite memory of playing at Downtown@Dusk?
As you know, the stage is at the bottom of a slight hill on the parking lot and the audience is uphill from us. Inevitably, everyone gets up and starts dancing, knocking over their drinks. This liquid slowly, but surely, creeps down the hill toward us. We know we’re doing well when the entire dance area is wet!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gNs9jG_Xqo]
Downtown@Dusk 2013 is made possible by The City of Akron. It is presented in cooperation with 89.7 WKSU.
ArtCamp@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from The Howland Memorial Fun and the House of LaRose.
ArtTalks@Dusk 2013 is made possible by a gift from the Sam & Kathy Salem Philanthropic Fund of the Jewish Community Board of Akron.
Read MoreThis is Real! Installing Real/Surreal at the Akron Art Museum
By: Liz Carney, Curatorial Assistant
Have you ever wondered what happens behind closed gallery doors when the museum is changing its exhibitions?
Lots of work goes into installing an exhibition. Most importantly, it takes a lot of time and care to take works of art from their crates to the gallery walls.
Each artwork comes in its own travel frame, which is specially padded and shaped to fit it. Paintings are usually bolted to the bottom of their travel frames to keep them from shifting during transit. Here is Charles Sheeler’s River Rouge Plant (1932) being unbolted by AAM art handlers:
Then, the painting is meticulously examined to make sure that it hasn’t been damaged during travel.
The artwork is all then arranged so that the curators can fine-tune the exhibition layout. Notice how the painting has been carefully placed against the wall in order to protect it before it is hung in its permanent position.
Finally, everything goes up on the wall! It’s not as easy as it may seem to get everything exactly straight and evenly spaced…
After all of the art has been placed on the walls, we add labels, lighting and other details. You’ll have to come see for yourself the completed installation of these powerful works of art, which are even more striking and intriguing in person!
Want to be one of the first people to see this exhibition? The opening party is tonight (Friday, July 19) at 6 pm. Click for more details.
Read More