Arts In

Allen Loyd spends more than a year every year, putting together St. Petersburg’s biggest New Year’s Eve celebration.

First Night is a family-friendly celebration of the arts, a way to roll out the old year and swing in the new with music, dance, visual art, theatre, fireworks and even fire sculptures, now on its 25th year.

It’s aimed at letting people of all ages play, and create art themselves. And it’s where Allen’s creative genius has sparked artistic collaborations for decades.

Allen wrangled the parade that led The Dalí Museum from their old location to their beautiful new building. He organizes the St. Pete Science Festival every fall and is the longtime House Manager for American Stage in the Park. He’s an experienced set and prop designer whose busy schedule rarely permits theatre work these days, but he found time to design an imaginative set for Tampa Rep’s recent production of Flying.

Allen has seen St. Pete change and grow since he started out as American Stage’s first intern. Hear how this annual First Night celebration has helped St. Petersburg become a city of the arts.

Find out more about First Night, every December 31 - http://www.firstnightstpete.com

Check out Allen’s theatrical designs - https://sites.google.com/site/allenloyd/

Explore the St Pete Science Festival - http://www.stpetescifest.org/?

See what’s scheduled for American Stage in the Park - http://americanstage.org/park/

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Akiko Kotani’s art embodies the surprising power and attraction of simplicity.

Imagination and a sense of play infuse her work, ranging from miniatures to the striking “Soft Walls” many viewers remember from the recent Skyway Exhibit at the Museum of Fine Art in St. Petersburg. Her work contains a depth of feeling within an economy of means.

Kotani’s work is in private, corporate and museum collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We’re grateful that after a teaching career up North, Pittsburgh’s Artist of the Year is now living and creating art in Gulfport.

Enjoy this joyful conversation where Akiko explains the surprising inspiration behind “Soft Walls,” the beauty of creating landscapes from memory, and how and why traditional women’s work is part of her very non-traditional creations.

Find out more about Akiko Kotani at - http://akikokotani.com/?page_id=2

Akiko’s new “Floating Cubes” are on display at the Art Center Sarasota through January 19, 2018 - http://artsarasota.org/currentexhibitions

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Mark Aeling is a master sculptor, a lifelong craftsman and, as he calls himself, a maker. His artistic practice is translating ideas into tangible, physical - and often very large - objects.

Mark’s MGA Sculpture Studio is a mainstay of St. Petersburg’s Warehouse Arts District. Through his work with the Warehouse Arts Association, Mark’s helping to create the new ArtsXchange, with affordable studio space for working artists.

His sculptures are created in a traditional artisan studio, with apprentices learning the craft and assisting on Mark’s large-scale public art projects. He creates works inspired by shapes in the nature, and is adventurous in exploring new techniques.

You’ll enjoy this fascinating conversation with an artist who thrives on the challenge of problem-solving and gets inspiration from constantly asking, how can I build that?

Find out more about Mark Aeling’s work and the Warehouse Arts District:

MGA Sculpture Studio - http://www.mgasculpture.com

Warehouse District Arts Association - http://www.warehouseartsdistrictstpete.com

The Arts XChange - http://www.warehouseartsdistrictstpete.com/ArtsXchange

Soft Water Studios - http://www.softwaterstudios.com

Fibonacci Numbers - https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/fibonacci-sequence.html

Photo of Mark Aeling by Steven Le-Thee Photo Ninja

Master artisan and printmaker Holly Bird is working in the Arts & Crafts Revival, creating art through hands-on methods that haven’t changed for hundreds of years.

She worked on the cutting-edge of digital design as those techniques were developing. And storyboarded the classic movie “Caddyshack.”

Holly’s lifelong love of sailing and Florida’s waterways give her work a unique look in the Arts & Crafts Movement. She explains how homeowners renovating historic bungalows are keeping the work of skilled artisans in demand.

Holly is a Roycroft Renaissance Master Artisan-at-Large who practices her craft - and teaches it - at the Dunedin Fine Arts Center. Listen as she walks us through the fascinating process of creating woodblock prints and copper-plate etching.

Explore the work of Holly Bird at http://www.studioibis.com

The Roycrofters-at-Large Association - http://www.ralaweb.com

More on the Roycroft Campus in Aurora NY - http://roycroftcampuscorporation.com/index.php

Check out the many classes, art-making facilities and art exhibitions at the Dunedin Fine Arts Center - http://dfac.org

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Carla Bristol runs the Gallerie 909 in St. Petersburg. It’s the only African American art gallery south of Atlanta.

Carla doesn’t just display original works of art and sell them, she opens the doors of the gallery to her community, and invites young people who’ve never explored an art gallery or museum into a welcoming place of creativity and conversation.

Gallerie 909 is in the historically African American neighborhood known as The Deuces. The gallery is home to music, poetry, festivals and more.

In our conversation, Carla explains the importance of original artwork, and the role galleries and collectors play in an artistic community. She tells us how Gallerie 909 has shown that everyone can appreciate art if you share art with them.

Find out more about Gallerie 909 at https://www.gallerie909.com/welcome-1.html

Keep up with special events at the Gallerie, and the Annual Black Arts and Film Festival - https://www.facebook.com/gallerie909/

Explore St. Petersburg’s own African American History Trail - http://www.stpete.org/parks_and_recreation/african_american_heritage_trail.php

Take a look at the history of The Deuces neighborhood in St. Petersburg (scroll down the page for The Deuces) - https://www.stpete.org/history_and_preservation/

The Deuces Live nonprofit organization is working to revitalize this vital neighborhood - http://www.deuceslive.org/aboutus

Make sure to visit the changing exhibits and the beautiful gardens at the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum - http://www.woodsonmuseum.org

Photo by Rossie Newson

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Peter Meinke is what he didn’t think was a real job when he started writing - a professional poet.

The first Poet Laureate of St. Petersburg is now the Poet Laureate of Florida. He’s friendly and funny, sharp and engaging. And he’s passionate about the sound of words.

You’ll enjoy Peter’s conversation with Barbara St. Clair, as he explains the special nature and appeal of poems, the hard work behind it and how poetry is part of life.

Peter Meinke named Florida Poet Laureate, Tampa Bay Times - http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/st-petersburgs-peter-meinke-named-poet-laureate-of-florida/2233793

and Creative Loafing - http://www.cltampa.com/arts-entertainment/article/20761823/peter-meinke-named-florida-poet-laureate

Peter Meinke’s Poet’s Notebook column in Creative Loafing - http://www.cltampa.com/news-views/poets-notebook

Peter Meinke’s published works include:

• Unheard Music: Stories (2007)

• The Contracted World: New & More Selected Poems (2006)

• Zinc Fingers: Poems A to Z (2000)

• The Shape of Poetry: A Practical Guide to Writing Poetry (1999)

• Scars (1996)

• Campocorto (Sow's ear) (1996)

• The Piano Tuner: Stories (1994)

• Liquid Paper (1992)

• Far from Home (1988)

• Night Watch on the Chesapeake (1987)

• Underneath the Lantern (1986)

• Trying to Surprise God (1981)

• The Rat Poems: Or, Rats Live On No Evil Star (1978)

• The Night Train & The Golden Bird (1977)

• Lines from Neuchatel (1974)

• Very Seldom Animals (1969)

• Howard Nemerov (1968)

• The Legend of Larry, the Lizard (1968)

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Dora Arreola and Andrea Assaf are longtime collaborators and award-winning theatremakers who create adventurous works that focuses on women, immigration, war and military veterans. Their projects blend music, dance and text to create theatre that is beautiful and powerful. It’s theatre as activism, and as healing.

Dora teaches in the University of South Florida School of Theatre and Dance, where Andrea is a frequent guest artist through the nonprofit group, Art2Action. In their inspiring conversation with Barbara St. Clair, they talk about borders both physical and metaphorical. They share the common ground they’ve found in Dora’s Mexican heritage and Andrea’s Arab-American identity.

Dora and Andrea talk about the hope you need to create art out of trauma and pain. And the joys of sharing physical theatre, dance, Shakespeare and theatre techniques from around the world with students embracing this diverse 21st century.

Find out more about Dora Arreola and Andrea Assaf’s work at:

Art2Action: https://art2action.org

Andrea’s original piece drawn from the aftermath of 9/11: https://art2action.org/eleven-reflections-on-september/

The R&R Arts Festival 2017 of Arts by and for Veterans: https://art2action.org/rr-festival/

Dora’s Mexican theatre company, Mujeres en Ritual: https://vimeo.com/channels/doraarreola

https://alternateroots.org/mujeres-en-ritual-danza-teatro/

https://www.facebook.com/mujeresenritual/

Dora Arreola at USF: http://theatreanddance.arts.usf.edu/content/templates/?z=9&a=1472

The Mathematics of Love: http://theatreanddance.arts.usf.edu/content/templates/?a=5249&z=374

Andrea Assaf at USF: http://theatreanddance.arts.usf.edu/content/templates/?z=0&a=4169

9 Parts of Desire: http://www.arts.usf.edu/content/templates/?z=6&a=4827

Babs Reingold is a nationally-known mixed-media artist whose works and large-scale installations are displayed around the country more often than they’re seen near her home in St. Petersburg.

Her work asks questions about poverty and climate change. She explores aging and animal rights through her creations. Human hair is a material she often uses in her work.

And Babs Reingold’s work is beautiful.

In this conversation sparked with passion and laughter, we explore Babs Reingold’s many inspirations, from growing up in public housing to Hurricane Katrina and the hair she pulled out of her brush today.

Find out more about Babs Reingold’s work at https://www.babsreingold.com.

Selections of her work will be on display this summer at the Museum of Fine Arts in downtown St. Petersburg, as part of the collaborative Skyway Exhibit shared by the MFA, the Tampa Museum of Art and the Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota. http://tampamuseum.org/news/ringling-museum-fine-arts-st-petersburg-tampa-museum-art-present-skyway-contemporary-collaboration/

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Paula Kramer is a dancer and choreographer whose graceful, powerful and adventurously creative. Tom Kramer is a dance photographer known for strikingly beautiful images of dance.

The Kramers’ lifelong collaboration has made their life together a vibrant work of art. Now both in their 80s, Paula is still performing and choreographing and Tom is still creating vivid photographs of dancers and musicians. The Kramers are a vital part of St. Pete’s arts community, constantly collaborating with visual, literary and performing artists.

In this inspiring and often hilarious conversation, they tell stories together and tell stories about each other. We’ll find out about the groundbreaking work Paula did to integrate dance into elementary school education, and hear Tom’s thoughts on capturing the ephemeral beauty of motion.

You can see selections of Tom’s photographs on his web page tomkramerphoto.smugmug.com

Tom is currently working with dancer Helen Hansen French on Capturing Dance. Sponsored by the St. Pete Arts Alliance, the project seeks to capture the diverse dance community of St. Petersburg in photographs that will be displayed in venues through the city.

And Tom is documenting performances at The Palladium Theatre in downtown St. Pete. . . www.mypalladium.org

Paula will be performing on July 27 at the Morean Arts Center as part of Helen Hansen French’s performance at the interactive arts event, [Unified] #genderequality . 

You can see Paula’s choreography onstage at The Studio@620 on August 22, as she collaborates with actors, director Elizabeth Brincklow and dancers Helen Hansen French, Crystal DelGiudice and Sean McDonald in a staged reading of playwright Sheila Cowley’s work, Trio. 

Featured image: Photograph of Paula Kramer by Tom Kramer.

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.

Catherine Woods has a visceral passion for color. She shares the possibilities of ever-changing light through large-scale glass sculptures that change from every angle, and shift their appearance by day and by night.

In a conversation rich with laughter, Catherine details the work involved in public art commissions that combine art with engineering and construction crews. She explains the practicalities of leaving a secure job for a full-time art career, and the work required to push beyond simply ‘okay’ ideas to discover sparks that both scare and excite her as an artist.

Catherine shares the lure of creating small-scale models and monumental sculptures, of using cutting-edge technology but knowing when to work by hand. She studies the history of art while constantly exploring adventurous new art around the world.

Find out more about Catherine Woods’ artwork at:

http://cglassstudio.com/Artist.asp?ArtistID=2595&Akey=EGW9FJRW

Artists mentioned in this Interview:

Olafur Eliasson - http://olafureliasson.net

Lucian Freud - https://artuk.org/discover/artists/freud-lucian-19222011

Anish Kapoor - http://anishkapoor.com

Anselm Kiefer - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anselm_Kiefer

Heatherwick Studio, London - http://www.heatherwick.com/#

Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, St Louis MO - http://pulitzerarts.org

Rachel Whiteread - http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/rachel-whiteread-2319

Arts In is produced by Matt and Sheila Cowley. Executive Producer, Barbara St. Clair for Creative Pinellas.