Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Opening Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

Opening reception: Celebrate the arrival of Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land this evening 5:30-8:00 pm, with musical entertainment, light hors d'oeuvres and cash bar.

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Flicks on the Crick: Iron Man 2

Price: Free
Sound Garden parking lot
310 W. Jefferson St., Syracuse

Films will be projected in HD starting at dusk on the side of Sound Garden's building, where patrons can watch in Syracuse's new park along the creekwalk next to the MOST in Armory Square. People are invited to bring lawn chairs and early arrival is recommended.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

Letizia and the Z Band
North Syracuse Summer Concert Series

Price: Free
Lonergan Park
Route 11, just north of Taft Road, North Syracuse

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating. Food available for purchase. For more information, phone 315-458-8050.

The Bear Cat Jass Band
Liverpool is the Place

Price: Free
Johnson Park
Corner of Vine and Oswego Streets, Liverpool

Traditional jazz.

Bring lawn chair or blanket for seating.

Dark Star Orchestra
Westcott Theater

Westcott Theater
524 Westcott St., Syracuse

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

Layers: Kimonos and Fans
Redhouse

Price: Free
Former Redhouse Theater
219 S. West St., Syracuse

There will be an opening reception this evening 5:0-8:00 pm, with an artist talk at 7:00 pm.

Layers: Kimonos and Fans uses multiple, suspended 6x3-foot paper kimonos that are painted and collaged, and incorporate air movement and sound. Christina Laurel, a Syracuse native residing in Rochester, transforms temporary paper shades into larger-than-life metaphorical images, and further transforms some of the accordion-folds into 39x53-inch paper fans framed by yardsticks.

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Now and Then: Open Figure Drawing Group Exhibition 2011
XL Projects

Price: Free
XL Projects
307-313 S. Clinton St., Syracuse

There will be a closing reception this evening 6:00-8:00 pm.

New and past works created by artists from Open Figure Drawing, Syracuse's community-based drawing group for people of all abilities, are the subject of this exhibition. The Open Figure Drawing group offers an inexpensive drawing experience to members of the Syracuse community. Participants draw from unclothed models and can attend on a drop-in basis. They become part of a supportive artistic community that networks about exhibitions, workshops, grants and other related events.

For more information, visit www.openfiguredrawing.com or contact XL Projects at 315-442-2542 during gallery hours.

Syracuse Poster Project exhibit
Petit Branch Library

Petit Branch Library
105 Victoria Pl., Syracuse

Windwalker
SparkyTown Restaurant

SparkyTown Restaurant
324 Burnet Ave., Syracuse

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

From director Tamra Davis, "Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child" centers on a rare interview Davis had with Basquiat over 20 years ago. Basquiat began his career as a graffiti artist in New York City in 1970s before applying his talent to canvas in the early 1980s. Despite great success, Basquiat was confronted with racism from others as well as a heroin addiction that ultimately would lead to his untimely passing in 1988. Davis sheds some light on Jean-Michel's tumultuous life in this documentary, which was an official selection for the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and the 2010 SxSW Film Festival.

This film is being presenting in conjunction with Th3, Syracuse's citywide arts open held on the third Thursday of every month.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

Stroke
Town of Dewitt

Price: Free
Ryder Park
5400 Butternut Dr., DeWitt

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating. Food available for purchase.

Fritz's Polka Band
Town of Geddes Summer Concert Series

Price: Free
Lakeland Park
Alhadn Parkway, Solvay

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating.

Lizzy Long and Little Roy Lewis
Kellish Hill Farm

Price: $13
Kellish Hill Farm
3192 Pompey Center Rd., Pompey

Lizzy Long and Little Roy Lewis perform in a concert to kick off the First American Music Festival July 22-24. Little Roy Lewis was a member of the Lewis Family, the legendary bluegrass gospel group that retired in 2009. Instrumentally Little Roy is one of the most talented banjo and guitar players in the music business. In June 2009 Little Roy teamed up musically with multi-talented daughter Lizzy Long. Lizzy plays fiddle, guitar, banjo and alternates between these instruments.

Deadline: Kent Clark, Mild-mannered Reporter
Acme Mystery Company

Price: $32.50 (includes meal, show, tax and gratuities)
Spaghetti Warehouse
689 N. Clinton St., Syracuse

Kent Clark has discovered that, though it isn't what it used to be, the print media is still worth fighting for. His newspaper, The Daily Planetoid, is involved in a power struggle as its owner, the notorious cheapskate Perrier "Tighty" White, is looking to cash out. Unscrupulous investors are lining up faster than a speeding bullet to seize control leading Kent to ask the question: Is the paper also worth dying for? Looks like some nasty stuff is about to happen but who will save the day? Jimmy? Lois? You? Or maybe "You Know Who?"

Reefer Madness
CNY Playhouse
Dustin M. Czarny, director

Price: Dinner theater: $34 single; $60 couple. Show only: $25 (limited availability)
Fire and Ice Banquet Hall, The Locker Room
528 Hiawatha Blvd., Syracuse

Dinner at 6:45 pm, followed by show at 8:00 pm.

Save Our Kids! Inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, this raucous musical comedy takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut kids fall prey to marijuana, leading them on a hysterical downward spiral filled with evil jazz music, sex and violence. You won't be able to resist the spoofy fun of Reefer Madness. The addictive and clever musical numbers range from big Broadway-style show stoppers to swing tunes like "Down at the Ol' Five and Dime" and the Vegas-style "Listen to Jesus, Jimmy," featuring J.C. Himself leading a chorus of showgirl angels. This dynamic show will go straight to your head! A CNY premiere, with music direction by Dan Williams, choreography by Stephfond Brunson.

Read a review!

Friday, July 22, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

There will be an opening reception this evening 7:00-8:30 pm.

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

Layers: Kimonos and Fans
Redhouse

Price: Free
Former Redhouse Theater
219 S. West St., Syracuse

Layers: Kimonos and Fans uses multiple, suspended 6x3-foot paper kimonos that are painted and collaged, and incorporate air movement and sound. Christina Laurel, a Syracuse native residing in Rochester, transforms temporary paper shades into larger-than-life metaphorical images, and further transforms some of the accordion-folds into 39x53-inch paper fans framed by yardsticks.

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

There will be an opening reception this evening 5:00-8:00 pm.

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Now and Then: Open Figure Drawing Group Exhibition 2011
XL Projects

Price: Free
XL Projects
307-313 S. Clinton St., Syracuse

New and past works created by artists from Open Figure Drawing, Syracuse's community-based drawing group for people of all abilities, are the subject of this exhibition. The Open Figure Drawing group offers an inexpensive drawing experience to members of the Syracuse community. Participants draw from unclothed models and can attend on a drop-in basis. They become part of a supportive artistic community that networks about exhibitions, workshops, grants and other related events.

For more information, visit www.openfiguredrawing.com or contact XL Projects at 315-442-2542 during gallery hours.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

First Annual American Music Festival
Kellish Hill Farm

Price: $15/day; $25 3-day pass
Kellish Hill Farm
3192 Pompey Center Rd., Pompey

5:00-6:00 pm: Talent Show (performance opportunity)
6:00-7:45 pm: Music workshop and concert with John and Sondra Bromka (Bells & Motley)
8:00 pm: Loren Barrigar and Mark Mazengarb

Campfire sing-along after concert.

Dancing Under the Stars
Syracuse Parks & Rec
Featuring Stan Colella Orchestra

Price: Free
Sunnycrest Rink
Sunnycrest Park, Syracuse

Instead of dancing with the stars, come dance under the stars with the Stan Colella Orchestra, as they perform their mix of swing and big band era favorites. Bring your friends, your families, your lawn chairs, a picnic dinner, and of course, your dancing shoes.

Underoath, with Times of Grace, Stray from the Path, Letlive
Westcott Theater

Westcott Theater
524 Westcott St., Syracuse

Skaneateles Community Band Concert

Price: Free
Clift Park
Genesee St., Skaneateles

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating.

Reefer Madness
CNY Playhouse
Dustin M. Czarny, director

Price: Dinner theater: $34 single; $60 couple. Show only: $25 (limited availability)
Fire and Ice Banquet Hall, The Locker Room
528 Hiawatha Blvd., Syracuse

Dinner at 6:45 pm, followed by show at 8:00 pm.

Save Our Kids! Inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, this raucous musical comedy takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut kids fall prey to marijuana, leading them on a hysterical downward spiral filled with evil jazz music, sex and violence. You won't be able to resist the spoofy fun of Reefer Madness. The addictive and clever musical numbers range from big Broadway-style show stoppers to swing tunes like "Down at the Ol' Five and Dime" and the Vegas-style "Listen to Jesus, Jimmy," featuring J.C. Himself leading a chorus of showgirl angels. This dynamic show will go straight to your head! A CNY premiere, with music direction by Dan Williams, choreography by Stephfond Brunson.

Read a review!

Curtains! The Musical Comedy Whodunit
The Talent Company

Empire Theater
New York State Fairgrounds, Geddes

Packed full of show-stopping numbers and one of the funniest whodunnits ever, Curtains! is a delightful return to old-fashioned musical comedy. A new hilarious musical from the creators of Chicago and Cabaret, Curtains! unfolds backstage at Boston's Colonial Theatre in 1959 at a pre-Broadway tryout of a new musical. When the talent-free leading lady is murdered on opening night, Lieutenant Frank Cioffi arrives on the scene to conduct an investigation. But the lure of the theatre proves irresistible, and after an unexpected romance blooms for the stage-struck detective, he finds himself just as drawn toward making the show a hit as he is in solving the murder. As the bodies pile up, everyone is a suspect. Can Cioffi solve the murders and save the show so it can reach Broadway? Complete with a knock-out talented cast, drop-dead gorgeous costumes, and killer choreography, Curtains! is the "don't miss" musical comedy of the summer!

Read a review!

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

First Annual American Music Festival: Fiddler's Day
Kellish Hill Farm

Price: $5; $25 3-day pass
Kellish Hill Farm
3192 Pompey Center Rd., Pompey

10-11:00 am: Community Drum Circle, Harmony and History of Bowed Instruments, Musician's Workshop on the Fiddle with Susan Barrington from the Oswego Fiddlers Association
10:30 am: Guts to Glory, with Werner Koegst from the Violin Shoppe in Oneida
11:00 am: Songwriting: Technique & Experience, with Greg Hoover; The Care and Feeding of Your Violin, with Tom Hosmer from Hosmer Violins; Learn Fiddle Tunes with Susan Barrington
11:30 am: Classical Playing by Jonathan Chai
12:00 noon: Jonathan Chai & David Deacon
1:00 pm: Oswego Fiddlers Barn Dance
2:00 pm: Larry Hoyt with Judy & Jeff Stanton
3:00 pm: Irish Sessions
4:00 pm: Lost Boys
5:00 pm: Tumbleweed Gumbo
6:00 pm: Salt Potatoes
7:00 pm: Diamond Someday with Nick Piccinnini
8:00 pm: Joe Davoli & Harry Nusbaum
10:00 pm: Music Jam with Players and Friends

The Big Break: First Round
Westcott Theater

Westcott Theater
524 Westcott St., Syracuse

Featuring Runaway Hudson, Short Notice, The Crown Of Nothing Band, All The Kings Horses, Sleep Circadia, Dirty Frank, Moldy Miles.

Candlelight Series
CNY Jazz Orchestra

Price: Free
Armory Square
Clinton and Jefferson St., Syracuse

Opening acts will precede the main attractions beginning at 7:00 pm. Bring blankets or lawn chairs for seating.

All streets in Armory Square will be closed to vehicle traffic 5:00-10:00 pm for reasons of safety, audience lawn chair seating, table set-ups by Armory Square restaurants (serving fine outdoor candlelight dining) and stage strike. (Other than restaurant fare offered, people may opt to picnic.)

Rain Location: Benjamin's on Franklin, 314 S. Franklin St.

The Princess and the Pea
Magic Circle Children's Theatre

Price: $5
Spaghetti Warehouse
689 N. Clinton St., Syracuse

Interactive retelling of the children's classic story.

Reefer Madness
CNY Playhouse
Dustin M. Czarny, director

Price: Dinner theater: $34 single; $60 couple. Show only: $25 (limited availability)
Fire and Ice Banquet Hall, The Locker Room
528 Hiawatha Blvd., Syracuse

Dinner at 6:45 pm, followed by show at 8:00 pm.

Save Our Kids! Inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, this raucous musical comedy takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut kids fall prey to marijuana, leading them on a hysterical downward spiral filled with evil jazz music, sex and violence. You won't be able to resist the spoofy fun of Reefer Madness. The addictive and clever musical numbers range from big Broadway-style show stoppers to swing tunes like "Down at the Ol' Five and Dime" and the Vegas-style "Listen to Jesus, Jimmy," featuring J.C. Himself leading a chorus of showgirl angels. This dynamic show will go straight to your head! A CNY premiere, with music direction by Dan Williams, choreography by Stephfond Brunson.

Read a review!

Curtains! The Musical Comedy Whodunit
The Talent Company

Empire Theater
New York State Fairgrounds, Geddes

Packed full of show-stopping numbers and one of the funniest whodunnits ever, Curtains! is a delightful return to old-fashioned musical comedy. A new hilarious musical from the creators of Chicago and Cabaret, Curtains! unfolds backstage at Boston's Colonial Theatre in 1959 at a pre-Broadway tryout of a new musical. When the talent-free leading lady is murdered on opening night, Lieutenant Frank Cioffi arrives on the scene to conduct an investigation. But the lure of the theatre proves irresistible, and after an unexpected romance blooms for the stage-struck detective, he finds himself just as drawn toward making the show a hit as he is in solving the murder. As the bodies pile up, everyone is a suspect. Can Cioffi solve the murders and save the show so it can reach Broadway? Complete with a knock-out talented cast, drop-dead gorgeous costumes, and killer choreography, Curtains! is the "don't miss" musical comedy of the summer!

Read a review!

Sunday, July 24, 2011

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

First Annual American Music Festival
Kellish Hill Farm

Price: $15
Kellish Hill Farm
3192 Pompey Center Rd., Pompey

11:00 am: Wild Honey
12:00 noon: Mark Zane
1:00 pm: Dusty Pascal & Family
2:00 pm: The Embellishments
3:00 pm: Bill Ring & Don Fenton
4:00 pm: Kinlock Nelson
5:00 pm: Jazz Jam Band
6:00 pm: Greg Hoover & Friends
7:00-8:00 pm: Silverwood Clarinet Choir
9:00 pm: Two Feet Short Band

Curtains! The Musical Comedy Whodunit
The Talent Company

Empire Theater
New York State Fairgrounds, Geddes

Packed full of show-stopping numbers and one of the funniest whodunnits ever, Curtains! is a delightful return to old-fashioned musical comedy. A new hilarious musical from the creators of Chicago and Cabaret, Curtains! unfolds backstage at Boston's Colonial Theatre in 1959 at a pre-Broadway tryout of a new musical. When the talent-free leading lady is murdered on opening night, Lieutenant Frank Cioffi arrives on the scene to conduct an investigation. But the lure of the theatre proves irresistible, and after an unexpected romance blooms for the stage-struck detective, he finds himself just as drawn toward making the show a hit as he is in solving the murder. As the bodies pile up, everyone is a suspect. Can Cioffi solve the murders and save the show so it can reach Broadway? Complete with a knock-out talented cast, drop-dead gorgeous costumes, and killer choreography, Curtains! is the "don't miss" musical comedy of the summer!

Read a review!

Monday, July 25, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

Layers: Kimonos and Fans
Redhouse

Price: Free
Former Redhouse Theater
219 S. West St., Syracuse

Layers: Kimonos and Fans uses multiple, suspended 6x3-foot paper kimonos that are painted and collaged, and incorporate air movement and sound. Christina Laurel, a Syracuse native residing in Rochester, transforms temporary paper shades into larger-than-life metaphorical images, and further transforms some of the accordion-folds into 39x53-inch paper fans framed by yardsticks.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Nathan Roberts Restoration and Historical Reenactment
Erie Canal Museum

Price: Free
Erie Canal Museum
318 Erie Blvd. E., Syracuse

Dennis Heaphy, a skilled craftsman and historical reenactor, will become a living history exhibit as he completes repairs on the Nathan Roberts, a full-sized replica canal boat bow. Mr. Heaphy will engage passers-by while working to discuss his craft and Erie Canal history. The exhibit is dependent upon the weather. Visit www.eriecanalmuseum.org for more information.

Dave Hanlon's Cookbook
Liverpool is the Place

Price: Free
Johnson Park
Corner of Vine and Oswego Streets, Liverpool

R&B.

Bring lawn chair or blanket for seating.

Opening: The Power of Stories, Cry for Peace, Voices from the Congo
Syracuse Stories

Price: Free
Hosmer Auditorium, Everson Museum
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

A workshop performance of Cry for Peace, Voices from the Congo, written by Ping Chong and Kyle Bass in collaboration with Cyprien Mihigo representing the Congolese Community of Syracuse. ASL Interpreters will be provided.

Syracuse Stories is an all-arts festival celebrating and sharing the stories of the people, cultures and institutions that make up our community. For more information, phone 315-559-7232 or email syracusestories@gmail.com.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

Layers: Kimonos and Fans
Redhouse

Price: Free
Former Redhouse Theater
219 S. West St., Syracuse

Layers: Kimonos and Fans uses multiple, suspended 6x3-foot paper kimonos that are painted and collaged, and incorporate air movement and sound. Christina Laurel, a Syracuse native residing in Rochester, transforms temporary paper shades into larger-than-life metaphorical images, and further transforms some of the accordion-folds into 39x53-inch paper fans framed by yardsticks.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Nathan Roberts Restoration and Historical Reenactment
Erie Canal Museum

Price: Free
Erie Canal Museum
318 Erie Blvd. E., Syracuse

Dennis Heaphy, a skilled craftsman and historical reenactor, will become a living history exhibit as he completes repairs on the Nathan Roberts, a full-sized replica canal boat bow. Mr. Heaphy will engage passers-by while working to discuss his craft and Erie Canal history. The exhibit is dependent upon the weather. Visit www.eriecanalmuseum.org for more information.

Baldwinsville Summer Series
Featuring Joe Whiting Band

Price: Free
Paper Mill Island
Baldwinsville

Matt Chase and Thunder Canyon
Town of Clay

Price: Free
Clay Park Central
Wetzel Rd., Liverpool

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating. Food available for purchase.

Pops in the Park: The Stan Colella Orchestra
Syracuse Parks & Rec

Price: Free
Upper Onondaga Park
301 Crossett St., Syracuse

Bring lawn chairs or blankets, the kids, and a picnic dinner.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Nature As Our Muse: Works by Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting
Baltimore Woods

Price: Free
Baltimore Woods Nature Center
4007 Bishop Hill Rd., Marcellus

Working in the very different media of watercolor and photography, Margaret Manring and Diana Whiting take the viewer into the often fascinating and always compelling natural world. Manring describes the inspiration she derives from nature when approaching her watercolor painting: "I paint what moves me. Mostly I am looking at the way light moves over color and form and the many rhythms in patterns. I like ... trying to paint how the sunlit air smelled, how it cooled and slid down a hill or permeated a field or warmed in a chicken coop. I try to convey how I felt viewing the landscape, the (un)still life ..."

Whiting's passion for photography and for nature go hand in hand. Whiting explains: "Since I love nature, it is a natural fit that I bring (my) love of making photographs to the places that I spend a lot of time. I like looking for simplicity as well as finding a sense of rhythm in many of my photographs. With wildlife, I like to learn about my subjects as much as getting their photographs. My hope is to share my connection to the natural world and encourage conservation."

The work of these two award-winning artists has been exhibited and widely published. Manring's watercolors have been accepted on the national level in shows at Cooperstown, The Schweinfurth, and Old Forge. Whiting's work has been recognized by the National Audubon Society and the National Wildlife Federation.

For more information, visit www.baltimorewoods.org.

Through Our Eyes: A Father-Daughter Photography Exhibit
Westcott Community Art Gallery

Price: Free
Westcott Community Center
Corner of Euclid Ave. and Westcott St., Syracuse

A photographic journey through the travels of father and daughter, Steve and Molly Susman.

Activated Space
Edgewood Gallery

Edgewood Gallery
216 Tecumseh Rd., Syracuse

Jacqueline Adamo: abstract oil paintings on linen and canvas
Miyo Hirano: raku,gas and wood fired ceramics
Melissa Montgomery: concrete sculpture
Bradley Hudson: mixed media on paper and canvas

Creation and Construction: Works of Janet Waters & Sharif Bey
Community Folk Art Center

Price: Free
Community Folk Art Center
805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse

CFAC is proud to be featuring the works of fiber artist Janet Waters and ceramist Sharif Bey for its summer exhibition.

Fiber and Ore: Works by Sharon Bottle Souva and Dana Blythe Stenson
Gallery 54

Gallery 54
54 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Fiber and Ore features fabric art by Sharon Bottle Souva and metalwork jewelry by Dana Blythe Stenson.

Emily Jones Exhibition
Imagine

Imagine
38 E. Genesee St., Skaneateles

Paintings by Syracuse artist Emily Elizabeth Jones will be featured throughout the month of July.

Jones, 26, grew up in Auburn, and is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Jones paints with acrylics on a textured canvas.

Among the works on display will be her "Horizon Colors" series. "In creating this series, I was focused on the colors in our everyday environment," she says. "My inspiration revolves around atmospheric colors, and the glares, haziness and reflection brought on by sunlight. I take away all other elements, man-made or natural, so that viewers can focus completely on the colorscapes that they might otherwise overlook."

The Human Condition: Works by Michael Sickler and Sean Turrell
Limestone Art and Framing Gallery

Limestone Art and Framing Gallery
105 Brooklea Dr., Fayetteville

Michael Sickler's new series of mixed media paintings are his interpretation of Franz Kafka's expressionistic novella, "Metamorphosis". The story, set in Russia, is about a young man who wakes up one morning transformed into a large insect. The story as Sickler has interpreted it deals with the main character's longing for human companionship in spite of his hideous malady. On a larger level, it speaks of how society banishes from sight the afflicted and the unknown, and serves as a metaphor or parable for the Human Condition.

Sean Turrell's wood sculptures have their origins in internal and external influences. Anatomy, emotional energy, gender, sex, and religious idioms form the basis of the work. The works in this show are from Turrell's "The Place Beyond the Pale" series. In leaving behind what may be considered acceptable societal constructs, the sculptures are Turrell's response to leaving his comfort zone. In his artist statement, Turrell describes the motivation in the works as, "Exploring feelings and emotions normally tucked away from the society and even the self." With Turrell's work, the viewer is presented with one artist's journey into the complexities of the Human Condition.

Stories From Generation to Generation
Syracuse Stories

Price: Free
Thornden Park Amphitheater
Ostrom Ave., Syracuse

Community artists from a range of cultural traditions partnering with Say Yes to Education Syracuse will provide children, teachers, parents and community members with story-based arts programming.

Syracuse Stories is an all-arts festival celebrating and sharing the stories of the people, cultures and institutions that make up our community. For more information, phone 315-559-7232 or email syracusestories@gmail.com.

Layers: Kimonos and Fans
Redhouse

Price: Free
Former Redhouse Theater
219 S. West St., Syracuse

Layers: Kimonos and Fans uses multiple, suspended 6x3-foot paper kimonos that are painted and collaged, and incorporate air movement and sound. Christina Laurel, a Syracuse native residing in Rochester, transforms temporary paper shades into larger-than-life metaphorical images, and further transforms some of the accordion-folds into 39x53-inch paper fans framed by yardsticks.

It's Elemental: Works of Laura and Fred Wellner
Szozda Gallery

Price: Free
Szozda Gallery
Delavan Center, 501 W. Fayette St., Syracuse

Duo artists and soulmates Laura and Fred Wellner visually express their appreciation of the world's natural environment in a stunning display of their collective works including abstract mixed media and stone sculpture.

Quilting by the Lake Quilt Show
Onondaga Community College

Price: $6
Storer Auditorium
Onondaga Community College, Syracuse

The QBL Quilt Show is open to the public and features over 100 quilts by QBL's nationally and internationally recognized faculty and students,

Quilting by the Lake is a program of the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn. For more information, visit www.quiltingbythelake.com.

Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The Everson recently received a gift of 47 black-and-white photographs by Neil Folberg entitled "Celestial Nights: Visions of an Ancient Land." "Celestial Nights" is a stunning portfolio of nocturnal landscapes and star-filled skies set in ancient ruins found in the Middle East. The artist skillfully captures a spectacular world of nocturnal landscapes in Israel and the Sinai where the horizon is not always definitive. The earth and heavens are mingled in this series of arresting images, which to Folberg represents a blurred division between present and eternity, substance and spirit, and knowledge and imagination. Folberg writes, "In landscape I see a revelation of how pure spirituality has descended into physical existence ... These are the scenes, on the human edge of the cosmos, that I am showing in these photographs."

Neil Folberg was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Midwest. He was a student of Ansel Adams in 1967 and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley the following year. In 1976 He moved to Jerusalem, a place that has become the subject of much of his work. He has exhibited widely and published several photographic books including the internationally acclaimed In A Desert Land (1987), a series of color photographs of Middle Eastern landscapes and architecture. His second book, And I Shall Dwell Among Them (1995) featured synagogue architecture throughout the Jewish Diaspora. Celestial Nights, published in 2001, became a major traveling exhibition organized by Aperture.

Still Life: Revisited
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Suggested donation $5 adults
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

The current exhibition examines the influence of painting on photography within the still life genre. 19th- and 20th-century American paintings from the permanent collection will be on display with the work of contemporary photographers such as Sharon Core, Laura Letinsky, Paulette Tavormina, and D.W. Mellor, and Irving Penn. Daniel K. Tennant, a local still life painter and photographer will also be included.

Read a review!

The Power of Pattern: New Work by David MacDonald
Everson Museum of Art

Price: $5 suggested donation
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

David MacDonald's long awaited solo exhibition will open with an innovative body of work. The highlight of the exhibition will be a monumental work commissioned by the Everson in 2008 with funds donated by the Social Arts Club. Also on view will be several new figurative vessels, monumental in scale, and plates from the Divination Series. Recently retired from Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts where he taught ceramics for more than 37 years, MacDonald is now able to concentrate on a new body of work.

Early in his career, ceramic artist David MacDonald turned to his African heritage for inspiration in his work. The many examples of surface pattern and decoration found in textiles, utilitarian objects, body ornament and architecture present among the diverse ethnic groups of sub-Sahara Africa continue to inform MacDonald's work on many levels. In his artist's statement, he proclaims "The principle concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; a celebration of my African heritage." For more than three decades, MacDonald has used clay to express these words through a significant body of work focusing on highly decorated utilitarian objects that have come to symbolize tremendous integrity and endurance.

MacDonald is recognized nationally not only for his master craftsmanship in ceramics but for his dedication as a mentor and teacher to a countless number of aspiring artists and students. Locally, he is a founding member of the Community Folk Art Center, an organization affiliated with Syracuse University's Department of African American Studies that aims to provide a space to engage artists from underrrepresented ethnic groups in Central New York. In addition, MacDonald is involved in many community activities including serving on the Everson's Collection Committee.

Film Under the Stars: Despicable Me
Everson Museum of Art

Price: Free
Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

In a happy suburban neighborhood surrounded by white picket fences sits a black house with a dead lawn. Unbeknownst to the neighbors, hidden deep beneath this home is a vast secret hideout. Surrounded by an army of tireless, little yellow minions, we discover Gru planning the biggest heist in the history of the world. He is going to steal the moon. Voices by Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Kristin Wiig. (PG, 2010, 95 minutes, directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud)

Flicks on the Crick: Get Him To The Greek

Price: Free
Sound Garden parking lot
310 W. Jefferson St., Syracuse

Films will be projected in HD starting at dusk on the side of Sound Garden's building, where patrons can watch in Syracuse's new park along the creekwalk next to the MOST in Armory Square. People are invited to bring lawn chairs and early arrival is recommended.

Nathan Roberts Restoration and Historical Reenactment
Erie Canal Museum

Price: Free
Erie Canal Museum
318 Erie Blvd. E., Syracuse

Dennis Heaphy, a skilled craftsman and historical reenactor, will become a living history exhibit as he completes repairs on the Nathan Roberts, a full-sized replica canal boat bow. Mr. Heaphy will engage passers-by while working to discuss his craft and Erie Canal history. The exhibit is dependent upon the weather. Visit www.eriecanalmuseum.org for more information.

Our Sporting Life: The Heroes, The Highlights, The History
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This local sports history exhibit will highlight a variety of sports equipment, photographs, ephemera, and most importantly, the people involved in making sports history come alive. From baseball, to basketball, to football, hockey, bowling, and more, the exhibit will recount the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" for our local sports history makers. Visitors will learn more about Syracuse’s professional basketball team, women athletes, ice boating on Onondaga Lake, past Syracuse hockey teams, as well as African American athletes such as Moses Fleetwood Walker. Guests will also get a chance to see some vintage trophies, uniforms, equipment, and images of our local competitors in action.

Shadows of the Storm: The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War
Onondaga Historical Association

Price: Free
Onondaga Historical Association
321 Montgomery St., Syracuse

This exhibition features paintings, prints, photographs and sketches made during the war by an array of individuals. There is an emphasis on images with local connections, either by the artist or photographer being from Central New York or through the subject involving activities of soldiers from this area.

Fulton Chain Gang
North Syracuse Summer Concert Series

Price: Free
Lonergan Park
Route 11, just north of Taft Road, North Syracuse

Bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating. Food available for purchase. For more information, phone 315-458-8050.

Carol Bryant & Dick Ward
Liverpool is the Place

Price: Free
Johnson Park
Corner of Vine and Oswego Streets, Liverpool

Standards.

Bring lawn chair or blanket for seating.