Jan-Ru Wan “Up Close and Personal”

Artist, Jan-Ru Wan grew up in Taipei, Taiwan and at her parents’ urging studied fashion design at the Art Institute of Chicago. There she discovered the power of fiber and installation art to communicate powerful human stories and universal truths about human experience. Thus began her career as an internationally renowned conceptual artist, keen cross-cultural observer, and artist-educator.

Assistant Professor with the North Carolina State University School of Art & Design, Jan-Ru Wan has most recently been commissioned by the Town of Chapel Hill’s Public and Cultural Arts to lead participants at the Seymour Senior Center in creating a collective art installation to be permanently displayed at the Center.

The project, titled Up Close and Personal, utilizes re-purposed clothes and other objects to tell stories. Participants engaged in sewing, stitching, and screen printing to depict personal stories and memories through their clothing items that are now opening as part of a larger installation.

The project culminates in a fanciful fashion show celebrating the creative reuse of old garments.

“Up Close & Personal” Events:

“Up Close and Personal,” Exhibit Opening: 3 p.m. May 23 at the Robert and Pearl Seymour Center, 2551 Homestead Road.

A Senior ReFashion Show featuring the project’s reconstituted clothing will be held at 5 p.m.,  May 30 at the Seymour Center and at 6:30 p.m. May 31 at University Mall, 201 S. Estes Dr.

Double click to listen to the interview (if you have any trouble with the link, try opening the file from a different browser):

JanRu Wan Up Close and Personal

Ira Planer and Elizabeth Cox make NC a destination for Music, Hops & Roots!

Ira Planer won’t admit it, but he was born with great taste in music and food. Now, he works with Burriss Amplifiers, coordinates a Blues in the Schools program, and also hosts house concerts with some of the finest names in modern roots music. Like many, he discovered the special atmosphere at the 72-Acre Farm known as Shakori Hills. A group of community members, like Elizabeth Cox, have been raising money to purchase the farm to transform it into a full-blown Community Arts Center with a focus on nature and environmental and social awareness.

The farm currently hosts a variety of festivals from Fiesta Latina to Hoppin’ John Fiddlers’ Convention to the Fall & Spring Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival of Music & Dance. Last year, they added the NC Hops & Roots Festival, a fundraiser for Mr. Planer’s Blues in the Schools program. The event brings together fresh gourmet cuisine made with all local ingredients, local beer & wine, and numerous roots musicians like the Lizzy Ross Band, Justin Johnson, and the Olympic Ass Kicking Team. The event is becoming a showcase tourism event that epitomizes NC culture.

Double Click to Listen:
Hops and Roots Fest

Leslie Palmer & Marcelle Pachnowski of the “Artist Studios at Fearrington Village”

At the one year Anniversary of the “Artist Studios at Fearrington Village,” Leslie Palmer,  Marcelle Pachnowski and their many creative neighbors prepare for their second Annual outdoor “Art in the Village” event scheduled on the lawns gardens of their community center. The event is scheduled from 10 am-4 pm on Sunday, May 20th and is intended to introduce visitors to their remarkable and remarkably organized creative community.

Double click to listen: Artist Studios at Fearrington Village

Learn more: http://fearringtonartists.blogspot.com.

Ceramicist, Tanya Casteel

When ceramicist, Tanya Casteel was five years old, she told her family that she wanted to be “an artist and a waitress.” They told her that those things would go together beautifully. She stayed true to her original ambition, but she still left plenty of flexibility for fresh self-discovery.

When she started college, she saw the ocean for the first time, and she realized that what was actually there, under the surface, was even more fascinating than what people’s imaginations could conjure. So when a professor assigned members of her art class to bring in an object that “inspired them,” she brought in a dead Octopus. And the rest was history.

To see more of Tanya’s work (or to buy some), click here: http://www.cephalopodink.com/

Double Click here to listen:

Tanya Casteel Podcast

Envirommental Artist Bryant Holsenbeck

Environmental artist, Bryant Holsenbeck discusses her year without plastic and ways she’s using art to change the world.

Double click here to listen:
Bryant Holsenbeck

Read Bryant’s Blog at http://www.bryantholsenbeck.com/blog/

Actress, Jennifer Evans and Filmmaker, Todd Tinkham Talk about the Magic of the NC indie Movie Community

Southland of the Heart with Todd & Jennifer

Bill Walden Talks About Good Sound and Siler City

Bill Walden owns Walden Sound in Siler City, and has fostered his love of audio since he provided the sound affects for his high school plays. He’s provided sound for BB King, .38 Special, Taylor Swift, among many others. Now his family has helped expand the business to include recording studio, a web design service, and more. They also run the free Siler City Alive festival that happens annually each May. The next one is May 12th. Visit www.waldensound.com to learn more and enjoy Bill’s stories and many insights here: Bill Walden

Chatham County Award-winning Authors Marjorie Hudson and Belle Boggs

Marjorie Hudson and Belle Boggs discuss their favorite characters, how their writing helps them understand the otherwise understandable, and why it’s great to be a writer in the Piedmont: Marjorie Hudson and Belle Boggs.

Maura Michelle Garcia Dance

Maura Michelle Garcia says that the American Dance Festival was an important part of her own childhood development, leading her to dance from a young age. Though she majored in visual and fine arts, she realized that she’s one of those people who has to dance and she hasn’t stopped. Garcia has developed a special passion for the intersection of movement, performance, and activism.

Entrepreneurial Innovator, Robert Donnan and Wood Artist, Erik Wolken Discuss Creative Economies

Erik Wolken and Robert Donnan