Speaking of the Arts

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the April artists: Wood sculptor Michael Bauermeister in Augusta, who has two sculptures in the Smithsonian museum and whose gouge-carving technique creates surfaces which seem to ripple and flow of their own accord; Spoken word poet Sheri Purpose Hall who is described as both a kind and gentle spirit and a gale force wind who wrecks microphones; abstract painter Kelley Carman who says her artwork is an attempt to decipher the babble in her brain; and guitarist BT Sullivan who plays orchestral arrangements of The Great American Songbook on his solo guitar. You can see, and hear, the works of this week's guests on their websites: http://michaelbauermeister.com/; https://www.spokenpurpose.com/; https://www.kelleycarman.com/; https://btinamerica.com/. Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music entitled, 'Restless Heart'.

On this week's show host, Diana Moxon, revisits two recent chats: Director Angela Howard and actor DeeDee Farris talk about Columbia Entertainment Company's production of the Tracy Letts play 'August, Osage County' about a vanished father, a pill-popping mother and three sisters harboring shady little secrets (www.cectheatre.org). Plus singer songwriter Meredith Shaw talks about finding her musical voice and career later in life, and how she secured a Nashville producer. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to guitarist, Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the March artists: Columbia oil painter, Ken Nichols, whose artwork 'Sometimes It's a Door' won the 2021 City of Columbia poster contest; Ozarks story-sharer Kaitlyn McConnell who has written over 450 stories for her website, Ozarks Alive, documenting not only the past but also present day culture and people of her region; St Louis-based photographer, Ken Konchel, who aims to provocatively capture architecture in an abstract way; and textiles and performance artist, Karen E Griffen, aka E Lewis, in Kansas City, whose work tells the story of her ancestors. You can see the works of this week's guests on their websites: https://kennicholsartwork.com/; https://www.ozarksalive.com/; https://www.kenkonchelphoto.com/; https://artbyelewis.studio/. Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music entitled, 'Restless Heart'.

On this week's show Diana Moxon chats with Boone History and Culture Center curator, Audrey Florey, about an art retrospective of the work of Tracy Montminy and the fascinating tale of a mural she painted in 1941 that has been missing for almost 80 years. Plus artist Chad La Fever talks about his work as a bronze sculptor and his current show entitled 'Descension' on display at Columbia College's Hardwick Gallery, which explores how human evolution has arrived at the era of connection via technology; and director Angela Howard and actor DeeDee Farris discuss their upcoming production of the Tracy Letts Pulitzer-prize winning tragicomedy play 'August: Osage County' about a wildly dysfunctional family who seamlessly blend love and cruelty, secrets and truths, in a play that has been described as an acting cornucopia. Opening and closing musical credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com).

This week it's a musical tour of the arts. Host Diana Moxon chats with singer songwriter, Meredith Shaw, about her journey into the Nashville music scene and the liberation of pursuing a music career in later life. And, as The Missouri Symphony holds its golden jubilee celebrations, Executive Director, Trent Rash takes Diana back through the mists of time to talk about the founding of the Missouri Symphony Society and the two people whose love of music, and love for each other, were the bedrock of the organization for half a century, Maestro Hugo and Lucy Vianello. Opening and closing music with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

The True False film fest returns to downtown Columbia this weekend with 33 documentary movies and 20 shorts packed into the weekend. Diana Moxon chats with the Fest's new artistic director, Chloe Trayner, about her first Fest, what she is excited to bring to audiences and how films are chosen. There are 4 world premiere documentaries at the Fest, one of which is 'Let the Little Light Shine' (https://www.lightshinefilm.com/) by Kevin Shaw, which follows the fight put up by parents, educators and students when a high-performing mostly Black elementary school in Chicago was threatened with closure so that it could be transformed into a high school for mostly White and Asian students. Kevin chats with Diana about making the film and the challenge of filming in a school setting. Plus film director and cinematographer Rita Baghdadi talks about 'Sirens' (https://www.sirensdocumentary.com/) an intimate coming-of-age story that follows Lebanon's first and only all-women thrash metal band, Slave to Sirens. Opening and closing music with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.YasminWilliamsMusic.com)

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with three of the February artists (timing precluded the inclusion of the 4th): St Louis-based film maker, Joseph Puleo, whose documentary 'America's Last Little Italy: The Hill' has received multiple film festival awards and explores the colorful history of St Louis' Italian neighborhood; muralist and fine art watercolorist Linda Hoover in Houstonia; and nature inspired abstract painter Joha Bisone in Kansas City. You can see the works of this week's guests on their websites: https://www.facebook.com/TheHillDoc; https://johabisone.com/home.html;http://www.lindahooverart.com/.Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music entitled, 'Restless Heart'.

With Columbia's annual True False Film Fest returning the first weekend in March, this week Diana Moxon chats with three of the visual and musical artists who will be showing and performing alongside this year's documentary film line-up, plus she checks in with one of the most prolific composers of African art music. Arriving in Columbia from Canada on March 5th is indie pop singer Begonia (www.hellobegonia.com) whose debut album 'Fear' was released right before pandemic fear arrived on the planet, Diana chats with Begonia about being an artist during a pandemic and her new single, 'Heaven'. Visual artist and spoken word poet, Askia Bilal (www.askiabilal.art), talks about how his work centers around what it means to be human and his non-portrait series. Geologist and artist Carrie Elliott discusses her True False installation work COMO Sea and her fascination with the intersection of art and science. And Ghanaian-Nigerian-American composer, Fred Onovwerosuoke (www.fredomusic.com), talks about becoming a composer and his Nubian and Warrior Dance works which will be performed in Columbia by the Mizzou New Music Ensemble and the Columbia Civic Orchestra. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

After their annual winter hiatus, local theatres are turning out their ghost light and turning the footlights back on, so on this week's show, host Diana Moxon dives back into the world of theatre. Quin Gresham, from Arrow Rock's Lyceum Theater previews what's coming up in their 2022 season and exactly how unique Arrow Rock's theatre is in the American theatre landscape; from Stephens College, Director Brett Olson talks about the college's production of the Eugene Ionesco anti-play, 'The Bald Soprano' and the challenge of giving a play of non sequiturs a sense of truth; Director Cara Carter explores the character motives and comedy of Talking Horse's production of 'The Smell of the Kill' by Michele Lowe; and artist and debut-author, Jeru Battle, talks about his upcoming children's book 'The Indigenous Goat'. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

The arts are starting to emerge from their January hiatus and this week Diana Moxon chats with three people who are making arts things happen. Actor and Director, Richard Harris, talks about his love for August Wilson plays and about Columbia Entertainment Company's upcoming production of 'Fences' (Feb 3-20); Ragtag Film Society's Co-Director, Barbie Banks, imparts some updates on next month's True False film fest (March 3-6); and the Missouri Symphony Orchestra's Executive Director, Trent Rash, chats about two upcoming events: MOSY on the Rocks (February 14th) which pairs classical music with Dogmaster Distillery cocktails, and Chicago's Juliani Ensemble's visit to the Missouri Theatre (February 12th). Opening and closing music with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com).