West Columbia Brought the Magic to Friday Night's Fall Back Festival 2017

Alicia Leeke

Tony Brown

Michael Cassidy

Sammy Lopez

BA Hohman

Dre Lopez

Karl Larsen

Herman Keith 

Michael Krajewski & Lucas Sams collaboration

You couldn't have asked for a more beautiful night on State Street last Friday when West Columbia threw their first ever Fall Back Festival. With the help of the shop owners on State Street, and a very strong influence from Frame of Mind owner Mark Plessinger, the night was warm and welcoming, full of music, food, drinks, and good and new friends.

Among the artists creating street art -- literally art on the asphalt paving of State Street -- were ten of Columbia's top creators, and you could tell they were having a great time creating art for art's sake. As one artist said, "It was nice to be able to just come out and make some art without having to abide by too many rules or fill out too many forms and applications." The artists, whose works are pictured above, included Alicia Leeke, Herman Keith, Sammy Lopez, Karl Larsen, Michael Cassidy, Dre Lopez, Tony Brown, BA Hohman, and Michael Krajewski and Lucas Sams who collaborated on their piece.

After 10 provided some great cover tunes, Pawleys food truck fed hungry bellies, and all the restaurants and bars had their doors open welcoming folks to come in and buy a drink to take back out on the street.

Frame of Mind featured an innovative art show by IRL couple artists Bohumila Augustinova and Barry Wheeler. ( Full disclosure: Barry Wheeler is the president of the board of directors for The Jasper Project.)

Mandala by Bohumila Augustinova

Converge Above the Plane by Barry Wheeler

Art for art's sake. Answering the need to create and share that creation. Music in the air. A happy little buzz from a Friday night drink. Friends, old and new, clasping hands, slapping one another on humid backs, giving good deep hugs. Celebrating Friday, fall, art, and one another. 

Keeping it simple. Preserving the joy. 

CMA brings a Ceramics Workshop - Ladies Night Out (can dudes come, too?) - Arts & Draughts - Rahul Pophali concert at Baker & Baker

Columbia Museum of Art Adult Art School: Ceramics Workshop

Explore the expressive possibilities of hand-building and decorating functional earthenware pottery. Learn hand-building techniques using underglazes and slips to create a variety of surface textures and designs and how to successfully fire work. This two-day class is designed for all levels of experience with clay, and allows you to both create three-dimensional objects and address the issues inherent to decorating these forms. The objects you create from clay will become three-dimensional canvases on which you can explore your own personal style and artistic voice.

Instructor Kristina Stafford is currently working as education coordinator at the Columbia Museum of Art. Since earning her MFA from the School for American Crafts at the Rochester Institute of Technology, she has also worked as a Professor of Art at Bridgewater State University in Bridgewater, MA, and Artist-in-Residence at the Clay Art Center in Port Chester, NY. Stafford has work in galleries from South Carolina to New York and continues to enjoy an active studio process.

Saturday and Sunday, November 1 and 2, 2014

Noon - 4:00 p.m.

$100 / $80 for members.

And ...

"Ladies' Night Out" is a celebration of women, fashion, and art, featuring fabulous food, local artisans selling their work, and the mind-blowing sounds of DJ Alejandro. (But we hope the dudes can come, too!)Guests can peruse wares and shop with vendors, whose offerings include scarves by Alicia Leeke, purses by Mary Catherine Kunze, and jewelry by Cindy Saad, among others. The CMA's deluxe gift-wrapping station will be available to beautifully package parcels. Attendees also have the opportunity to view the Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera exhibition. Hors d'oeuvres are provided by Earth Fare and a cash bar will be available for wine, beer, and a specialty drink prepared just for the occasion.

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

$10 / join or renew your membership that night and get in for free.

And ...

Another Great Arts & Draughts

The Columbia Museum of Art hosts the next Arts & Draughts on Friday, November 7, 2014. Art, drink, and be happy! Special thanks to our sponsors The Whig, WXRY, Jam Room, and Free Times.

The BANDS: •Stephanie Santana •Can't Kids •ET Anderson

The FOOD: •The Wurst Wagen •Bone-In Artisan Barbecue •Fair Food Truck

The BEER:

Enjoy a beer tasting of selections from Widmer Brewery of Portland, Oregon and Cash Bar provided by The Whig. •Widmer Brrr seasonal ale - a hoppy Northwest-style red ale •Widmer Hefeweizen •Widmer Alchemy Pale Ale

And MORE...

•Unique perspective tour: "A Queer Tour of the Gallery" led by USC Director of Women and Gender Studies and Jasper Literary Arts Editor, Dr. Ed Madden. •Exhibition Tours of Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera led by Bauer Westeren. •Dance: Rockwell-inspired dance demo by the Richard Durlach and Breedlove dance team - (catch Durlach & Breedlove at the Nov, 21st JAY Awards ~ Big Apple Swing!) •Film screenings of The Norman Rockwell Code, a short film parody of The Da Vinci Code. •Dr. Sketchy's Live figure drawing sessions at 8:15 p.m. and 9:35 p.m. •Rockwell-Inspired Photo Booth •D.I.Y. Art projects •Interactive art •Scavenger hunts

Friday, November 7, 2014

7:00 - 11:00 p.m.

$8 / $5 for members / join or renew your membership that night and get in for free.

And ...

Baker & Baker Presents the Art of Music

The Columbia Museum of Art Hosts an Evening with Tabla Master Rahul Pophali

The Columbia Museum of Art hosts the next Baker & Baker Art of Music concert with tabla master Rahul Pophali on Sunday, November 9, at 6:00 p.m. Pophali is one of the most versatile tabla players in today's younger generation. A dazzling performer and an incessant innovator, he has carved a niche for himself in the world of percussion music.

"Tabla is the principal rhythm instrument in North Indian Classical Music," says Pophali. "It is widely used in different styles of Indian music and in fusion with world music today. The art of tabla-playing features spontaneous improvisations alongside renditions of traditional repertoire.

I believe my music is a journey, an adventure into the realm of sounds and rhythms. I draw inspiration from the audience and surroundings to fuel my creativity. I am looking forward to performing at the Columbia Museum of Art; a place replete with works of art will surely inspire the best out of me!"

Pophali began concert performances at an early age and, since then, has toured extensively in several countries in Europe and Asia. His desire to explore various possibilities with the tabla and an urge to experiment led him to perform with several reputed world, rock, flamenco, and jazz musicians across the globe. Passionate about spreading his art form, Pophali has conducted workshops and lecture/demonstration sessions for several institutions and music schools in India and Europe.

Sunday, November 9, 2014. Doors at 5:30 p.m. Galleries open. Concert at 6:00 p.m. $12 /

$10 for members / $5 for students

For more information on all these exciting CMA events and offerings, visit

columbiamuseum.org

TONIGHT! FOM features Alicia Leeke and Darlene Fuhst blog by Jasper Intern Caitlyn McGuire

During tonight’s monthly celebration of the arts, First Thursdays, one exhibition is bringing a new meaning to “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”- metaphorically speaking. Artists Darlene Fuhst and Alicia Leeke have created “Lost and Found,” and exhibition that not only turns junk, random parts, and antiques into interesting works of arts, but also a visual tool for guests to learn a little something about wastefulness.  The duo says they have gathered these parts as a metaphor for just how much consumer goods are cycled through our lives, encouraging viewers to follow the three “R”s-reduce, reuse, recycle.

The artists are hoping that guests stop and take a closer look, not only at the art compiled of figurines, oil paintings of neon signs, and nostalgic antique items, but take a closer look in their everyday lives and use even a pile of trash as a reminder of the impact of a consumer society.

“Lost and Found” will be on display at Frame of Mind, an appropriate place to look at things a little differently. Frame of Mind is the home of Mark Plessinger, one of the kick-starters of First Thursdays. Mark anticipates tonight’s festivities will be a huge success especially since the growth and popularity of the art celebration has increased dramatically over the past few months. He added that more surprises, street vendors, and blocks of artistic expression, will result in a large amount of movement from one end of Main Street to the other.

So as you wander through the blocks of Main Street, through musicians and street vendors, stop into Frame of Mind to take a closer look of the everyday consumer life.

Lost and Found will be open for viewing tonight at Frame of Mind located at 1520 Main Street, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and will be on display until September 29.

-- Caitlyn McGuire

The SC State Museum is Showing the Arts Some LOVE -- Art Day at the SC State Museum!

The South Carolina State Museum will be celebrating South Carolina visual art and artists by presenting a day of hands-on activities, artist demonstrations, behind-the-scenes tours of the art collection and much more at Art Day on Saturday, March 1 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

According to Anna Kate Twitty, PR manager at the museum, "Art Day offers a unique look into South Carolina [visual] art and artists with activities for all ages.  The event will feature hands-on 'creation stations' from University of South Carolina’s Art Education Department, which will focus on South Carolina art from the State Museum’s collection. Guests will have the opportunity to interact with and see demonstrations by South Carolina artists, Paul Moore (pottery), Gene Speer (printmaking), Brian Rego (painting), Alicia Leeke (painting), Herman Thompson (sculpture) and Rick Wells (painting)." 

South Carolina art and artists, like Paul Moore (pictured), will be featured.  Photo courtesy of the S.C. State Museum

We also hear that there will be live music along with special guided "behind-the-scenes" tours of the museum’s art storage areas, (which, by the way, contain over 4,000 works of art!)

“South Carolina has an incredible representation of visual culture across the state, spanning over 300 years,” says Paul Matheny, chief art curator, S.C. State Museum. “This rich cultural diversity is easily overlooked.  Art Day at the State Museum brings our visual culture to life for our statewide community and beyond.”

For the aspiring or emerging artists, the museum is also sponsoring their inaugural College Art Day on Friday, Feb. 28 from 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. According to Twitty, student artists are invited to explore South Carolina colleges and university art departments, meet current students and faculty from colleges from across the state, including Coker, Lander, Winthrop, Furman,  and Francis Marion universities as well as Columbia College, Spartanburg Methodist, and USC - Beaufort, and hear from alumni applying their art degrees in their professions.

“We’re looking forward to hosting College Art Day, which will offer a forum for middle and high school students to discover the vast educational and professional art opportunities that are available in our state,” says Matheny.

(Event guests at Art Day and College Art Day will have the opportunity to explore the museum’s permanent galleries and the temporary exhibition, This Just In, which features highlights of recently acquired artifacts representing art, history, natural history and science/technology.  Both events are included with museum general admission or membership. Visit scmuseum.org to learn more.)