Advice for Writers from our JAY Literary Arts Finalists Jon Tuttle, C. Hope Clark, and Ray McManus

by Adam Trawick

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Each year The Jasper Project asks its readers and patrons to nominate candidates who have demonstrated excellence in their respective fields. The names are then handed over to a panel of experts who discuss each candidate and select three exceptional individuals out of the lot as finalists for Jasper Artist of the Year. This year The Jasper Project is pleased to announce its three finalists in the Literary Arts: Dr. Ray McManus, Dr. Hope Clark, and Dr. Jon Tuttle. The Jasper Project contacted each of these distinguished figures for a brief conversation on the profession and the craft.

Our question: Just how do the up-n-coming literary artists break out of anonymity and break into recognition?

 

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Dr. Ray McManus is a poet among whose publications include “Angels Already Know” from Binder Summer, “Undertow” in Open-Eyed and Full Throated: Irish American Poetry, and “Finding Teeth in the Yard” out of Talking River, and much more. McManus’ advice is “be vulnerable.” This is a complex suggestion. Vulnerability is often interpreted as sentimentality. This is not Dr. McManus’ meaning. “Be honest with yourself,” McManus says. “Walk unafraid. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable.” As a beginning literary artist, you will have to “go to readings, establish relationships—create your opportunity. [You will have to do all] the unsexy difficulty of asking for money, someone to help cover costs to get you started.” This is not a task for the sentimental. The vulnerability McManus speaks of is one that bears no shame in breaking out of the little ego that hinders most from breaking into social circles where networking and fundraising can be accomplished. But this vulnerability is also to be applied to the writing itself. He suggests reading the likes of Terrance Hayes, Sean Thomas Doughtery (who McManus calls a “gypsy punk poet”), Nickole Brown and Jessica Jacobs to “raise [your] emotional IQ” in order to render explicit that which you merely sense or intuit. Confront it. Put it down on paper. And let the world filter through you.

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C. Hope Clark is a novelist having published a number of books including the two mysteries: Dying on Edisto and Edisto Tidings. Ms. Clark recommends one “be specific.” Clark recommends “[going] to the experts in your field. Not just any good writer…connect with the professional organizations of your genre.” Clark says, “Lisa Gardener, John Sanford, Raymond Chandler – I love his use of words – are among my go-to.” An emphasis on diligence and trajectory is Clark’s philosophy: “Read a lot. Take notes while reading. If [you] have not truly defined [your] genre, then read quality work that is entertaining. Don’t force-feed what you read, trying to become something you’re not.” Clark continues, “…write daily…allow criticism. Not all criticism is good and not all is bad. Accept it as [an] opportunity to glean nuggets of direction and improvement.” Break out of inconsistency and indecisiveness. Specificity begets direction. It facilitates refinement. It makes clear to the mind what it’s after and where to get it.

 

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Dr. Jon Tuttle is a playwright. Among his publications are The Trustus Collection (which is an anthology of six plays that have premiered since 1994 at the Trustus Theater) and Boy About Ten, which was a finalist in the Screencraft Stage Play International Competition, and more. Dr. Tuttle’s suggestion is “be discerning.” Because of email “the competition is overwhelming.” This day and age “[it’s] difficult to even get rejected.” That’s because there is so much content being submitted that a large portion doesn’t even make it to a real set of eyes. “People spend the day unselectively sending out a submission and this clogs the system” and most of the time what’s being submitted are unpolished drafts. Tuttle fears this has enabled a lack of discipline in the scriptwriting process (and writing in general) for beginning writers, as well as blocked out a great deal of valuable scripts. Among Tuttle’s current go-to are Samuel French, Qui Nguyen (particularly her play She Kills Monsters), and Adam Rapp (notably, his play The Sound Inside). Get particular in what you are writing, what you’re sending out, and where you’re sending it. Discernment raises one’s standards. It aids in the production of quality work and gets it in front of the right eyes.

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If you’re looking for a start, are a fan of these lexical wizards and wish to celebrate, or would simply like to hear more about the arts in Columbia from those immersed in it, come to The White Mule on Friday, January 31 at 7:30pm for the Jasper Artist of the Year Awards Celebration and Mardi Gras Ball. Tickets available here.

For more info on these artists and those nominated in other disciplines check out http://jasperproject.org/what-jasper-said/pne6ka386aep4xhlf9sf8ysne2arh6

 

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Nominations Open for Jasper Artists of the Year (JAYs) 2019

Jasper is excited to add a new art discipline to the Jasper Artists of the Year Awards this year -- Film!

Filmmakers should have had work screened in a theater, film festival, broadcast, or through a streaming service between November 2018 and November 2019.

Please follow the attached guidelines for submitting your nominations. Deadline is December 1st!

Nominations for

Jasper Artists of the Year 2019

in

Dance, Music, Theatre, Literature, & Visual Arts

Will be accepted from Sunday November 3rd through Sunday December 1st

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Individual Artists, 18 and older, working in the greater Columbia arts community are eligible for the title based upon their artistic accomplishments during the period from November 1, 2018 through November 3, 2019.

Nominations MUST be sent to editor@Jaspercolumbia.com with the subject heading “Artist of the Year” and MUST be accompanied by a numbered list of works or accomplishments produced or performed during the designated time period.

Artists MUST be made aware of their nomination before their official nomination and agree to participate in the competition.

Upon closing of the nomination call, a panel of judges will select the top three candidates in each field, and the public will be invited to vote online for their top choices.

Finalist results will be announced in early December.

The JAY 2019 Awards celebration will take place in January 2020 and the winners will be featured in the spring issue of Jasper Magazine.

The category Dance includes:  performance, choreography, or direction of any form of dance including, but not limited to ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, ballroom, folk, or dance-based performance art.

The category Theatre includes: directing or acting in one or more local performances.

The category Music includes: conducting, directing, writing, or performing any style of music in one or more local concerts or recordings; both individuals and groups are eligible.

The category Visual Arts includes: the completion & presentation of a form of non-performing or non-literary arts, such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, print-making, mixed-media, etc.

The category Literary Arts includes: the completion, publication, and/or presentation of any form of prose, poetry, or non-fiction writing, as well as playwriting and the writing of executed screenplays.

NEW for 2019! The category Film Arts — Filmmakers should have had work screened in a theater, film festival, broadcast, or through a streaming service between November 2018 and November 2019. Please follow the attached guidelines for submitting your nominations. Deadline is December 1st!

 

Only individual artists may be considered for nomination. While arts groups, such as musical groups or arts troupes, are not eligible for consideration, individuals within those groups may be nominated. The purpose of the awards is to recognize artistic achievements accomplished within a calendar year. There is no fee to enter. Artists may nominate themselves.

 

Past Jasper Artists of the Year

2018

Darion McCloud, Trahern Cook, Monifa Lemons, Marcum Core

2017

Al Black, Fat Rat da Czar, Bakari Lebby, Cedric Umoja

2016

Michaela Pilar Brown, Baxter Engle, Mark Rapp, Len Lawsom

2015

Julia Elliott, Kimi Maeda, Dewey Scott-Wiley, Martha Brim, Craig Butterfield

2014

Catherine Hunsinger, Katie Smoak, Darian Cavanaugh, Kathleen Robbins, Greg Stuart

2013

Vicky Saye-Henderson, Terrance Henderson, The Restoration, Janna McMahan, Philip Mullen

2012

Regina Willoughby, Kwame Dawes, Morihiko Nakahara, Chad Henderson, Susan Lenz

 

And the Winners Are ...

Life beats down and crushes the soul

and art reminds you that you have one.” Stella Adler

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The Jasper Project, guests, and guests of honor celebrated an intimate evening of art and joy last night at Columbia’s historic Seibels House and Garden during the Jasper Artist of the Year Salon Celebration. With presentations of poetry and song, and even a rousing group sing-along led by theatre artist Darion McCloud, attendees were able to mingle, chat about processes, projects and possibilities for collaboration, and enjoy food from Chef Joe Turkaly and a bar provided by Muddy Ford Press. All our attending JAY finalists shared their work with those in attendance. Art called some of our finalists away, (we missed you Tim, Michael and Christine). but it was a beautiful night.

Congratulations, once again, to all our finalists:

Music - Marina AlexandrA~ Marcum Core ~ Zach Seibert

Theater - Michael Hazin ~ Christine Hellman ~ Darion McCloud

Visual Arts - Trahern Cook ~ Flavia Lovatelli ~ Andy White

Literary Arts - Libby Bernadine ~ Tim Conroy ~ Monifa Lemons

And the winners are …

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Music - Marcum Core

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Music - Marcum Core

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Theatre - Darion McCloud

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Theatre - Darion McCloud

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Visual Arts - Trahern Cook

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Visual Arts - Trahern Cook

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Literary Arts - Monifa Lemons

Jasper Artist of the Year 2018 in Literary Arts - Monifa Lemons

Many thanks go out to folks and organizations who made the evening a success ~

Historic Columbia, Michael Krajewski, Bohumila Augustinova, Barry Wheeler, Ashley Hayes, Easter Antiques at Red Lion Antique Mall, Muddy Ford Press, 2nd Act Film Festival, Ed Madden, Trahern Cook, Joe Turkaly, Bob Jolley, Annie Boiter-Jolley, Bonnie Boiter-Jolley, the editorial staff of Jasper Magazine, the board of directors of the Jasper Project, Kristine Hartvigsen & all who chose to spend their evening with us.

Jasper Artists of the Year -- JAY 2018 Nominations are OPEN

Call for Nominations for

Jasper Artists of the Year 2018

are Now OPEN

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Individual Artists, 18 and older, working in the greater Columbia arts community are eligible for the title 

Jasper Artist of the Year

based upon their artistic accomplishments during the period from

July 31, 2017 through October 31, 2018.

Nominations MUST be sent to JasperProjectColumbia@gmail.com with the subject heading “Artist of the Year” and MUST be accompanied by a numbered list of works or accomplishments produced or performed during the designated time period. (see checklist)

Upon closing of the nomination call, a panel of judges will select the top three candidates in each field, and the public will be invited to vote online for their top choices.

  • The category Dance includes:  performance, choreography, or direction of any form of dance including, but not limited to ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, ballroom, folk, or dance-based performance art.

  • The category Theatre includes: directing, acting, or set design in one or more local performances.

  • The category Music includes: conducting, directing, writing, or performing any style of music in one or more local concerts or recordings; both individuals and groups are eligible.

  • The category Visual Arts includes: the completion & presentation of a form of non-performing or non-literary arts, such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, print-making, mixed-media, etc.

  • The category Literary Arts includes: the completion, publication, and/or presentation of any form of prose, poetry, or non-fiction writing, as well as playwriting and the writing of executed screenplays.

Only individual artists may be considered for nomination. While arts groups, such as musical groups or arts troupes, are no longer eligible for consideration, individuals within those groups may be nominated. The purpose of the awards is to recognize artistic achievements accomplished within a calendar year. There is no fee to enter. Artists may nominate themselves. Artists should be made aware of their nomination before their official nomination and agree to participate in the competition.

Finalists will be announced by November 15, 2018 and voting will take place from November 15 through December 31, 2018.

Awards will be presented at the Jasper Artist of the Year Gala on

January 19th, 2019

at the historic Seibels House and Gardens in downtown Columbia.

——

Check list for nominating an artist for Jasper Artist of the Year:

1.    My nominee has agreed to be nominated

2.    I have included the nominee’s contact information (email and phone) in my nomination

3.    I have included a paragraph briefly explaining why I am making my nomination

4.    I have included a numbered list of accomplishments by my nominee

5.    All the accomplishments on my list will have occurred from July 31, 2017 through October 31, 2018

Send Nominations to

JasperProjectColumbia@gmail.com

Failure to check off all five items will result in disqualification for your nominee.

Announcing the 2017 Jasper Artists of the Year & Thanking Everyone Who Helped in Celebrating Them

Announcing the winners of the JAYs - and celebrating them - is such a joyous way to spend an evening. Sure, we could bump up the ticket price and ask people to worry about what they're going to wear. We could hold the celebration in some swanky hall with fancy food and funky drinks. Ice sculptures. We could do ice sculptures.

But Jasper decided a long time ago that our celebration of artists who have had a very good year would not fall into that trap of being a who's who and a see and be seen event. We have way too many of those things in town already! And the reality is that once you pay for those mixologists and finger foods -- not to mention the ice sculptures -- you've not only out-ticket priced the working artists in town who just barely get by financially off their art and their other jobs, and you've created an entirely uncomfortable event that people fret about going to and can't wait to leave so they can go home take their Spanx off.

Last night was another example of how we play at Jasper. We had some of the best people in town on our stage, serving us drinks and food, and doling out big authentic hugs to one another.

Those Lavender Whales, finalists for JAY in music, fully embraced our request that they lead us in Christmas Carols -- and Jessica even donned a Dolly wig and sang Hard Candy Christmas! All three JAY literary finalists - Nicola, Al, and Don - put together a sweet and silly Twelve Days of Christmas number involving all the finalists. Mandy, finalist in theatre, performed some beautiful songs accompanied by Chris, also a finalist in theatre, and Tyler, JAY finalist in music. Jay provided us with our sound system.

Off-stage. we had Phill and Matty pouring beer and wine and Joe and Candy serving up some delicious snacks. Ashley was capturing everyone on camera and Barry was popping those images up on screen as fast as he could. Bohumila, Diane, and Billy had coordinated the ornament auction in which more than two dozen ornaments, made especially for last night by artists like Stephen, Barbie, Matthew, and more, went home with folks as a remembrance of the evening. Kristian judged the living Christmas tree contest -- Bohumila won -- and offered up the prize of a dinner at Bourbon. Intern Jenna checked all the contestants in. And Thomas offered us four of his beautiful paintings for auction -- Barry and Chris each took one home. Kyle and Coralee ran the door, selling not only tickets but also the hand-made all-ages coloring books that Billy, Bob, and I had put together, with art in them from Cedric, Michael, Heidi, Laurie, Dogon, Thomas, Alexandra, and Sean.

At the end of the night we were tired, but sustained by our sense of community and that happiness that comes from having an authentically good time in the company of people we can be ourselves around. It was a joy.

So, without any more tap dancing and horn tooting, we are delighted to announce our winners of the 2017 Jasper Artists of the Year.

 

 

Fat Rat da Czar - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Music

Fat Rat da Czar - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Music

Al Black - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Literary Arts

Al Black - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Literary Arts

Bakari Lebby - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Theatre

Bakari Lebby - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Theatre

Sean Rayford - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Visual Arts

Sean Rayford - 2017 Jasper Artist of the Year in Visual Arts

Congratulations once again to all the finalists - Nicola, Don, Tyler, Aaron and the gang, Nicole, Cedric, Mandy, and Chris. 

Thanks to everyone who voted (and sorry to have to clean out those multiple votes and keep it clean, but that's how Sara rolls!) And thanks to all who came out last night to support and celebrate with us.

Happy Holidays from all of us at The Jasper Project!

 

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Focus on JAY Finalists - Nicola Waldron for literary arts

We're chatting with the 2017 JAY Awards Finalists as we enter the last few days of voting and preparing for the JAY Awards (& Retro Christmas party!) coming up on December 5th

Nicola Waldron - literary artist     photo by Forrest Clonts

Nicola Waldron - literary artist     photo by Forrest Clonts

Jasper: What made the past year so great for you as an artist?

Nicola: I have been lucky to have a number of prose pieces accepted for publication in various venues, and to feel in this way that my voice is being included in the national conversation in some small way. I also had the opportunity to work on a piece of performance art through the Jasper Project’s Syzygy Solar Eclipse Festival: it was so good to collaborate with new friends, and to be given the encouragement to experiment. I learned a lot, had a lot of fun, and found some new avenues to wander down.

 

Jasper: Why is art so important right now?

Nicola: This has been, as they all are in their way, a hard year, which also means it’s been a year to respond to those difficulties. For me, that means thinking through issues in my writing of femaleness, Americanness, immigrant-ess, and parenthood. If your heart is a social justice engine, then struggle can be its juice, its defibrillator; and art its beat.

 

Jasper: What role does art play in your life?

Nicola: Writing is my way of being fully alive within myself, when public life sometimes feels oppressive. As a classic introvert, my work is where I live most of the time. It brings me ridiculous joy, those moments where the words on the page come to actually match what it is I’m thinking or feeling: synergy. There’s nothing quite like it.

 

Jasper: What role does community play in the execution of your art?

Nicola: The support of the community is of enormous significance. We can, and must, labor away or play with our art in private, but without an audience or someone, at some point, saying ‘I hear you; this matters,’ I’m not sure there’d be much point. For me, it’s all about connection. I love the moments here in Columbia where I find myself in a room with like-minds and think, ‘These are my people,’, by which I suppose I mean, ‘here is my true family, the people who will support me in whatever I do, in my attempt to examine a subject and get at the truth of the matter.’

 

Jasper: Who are some of your favorite local artists from an arts discipline other than your own?

Nicola: I really adore the visual art of painters like Lee Monts, and Christopher Lane, both of whose use of color and form moves me in the way a good poem moves me. I also enjoy the courageous, boundary-pushing work of artists like Michaela Pilar Brown, and Nicole Kallenberg Heere, and Dogon Krigga, though this is not an exhaustive list, by any means. These artists inspire me to break down some walls of my own. In theater, I have particularly enjoyed the work I’ve seen at USC’s Center for Performance Experiment this past year—so much talent in the work of directors and actors like Stephen Pearson, Robyn Hunt, and Mary Beth Gorman. Just so much talent everywhere you look!

 

Jasper: Is there anyone you’d like to thank for their support of your arts career?

Nicola: Without the support of the Jasper Project, and particularly people like Cindi Boiter, Ed Madden, and Al Black, their warm friendship and encouragement, I’d have fallen into a pit of despair long ago. Thank you one and all. (editor’s note – ow, wow, thanks, Nicola!)

 

Jasper: Why should folks come out to the 2017 JAY Awards and Retro Christmas Party?

Nicola: Because people dressed as Christmas trees!

 

 

VOTE at http://jasperproject.org/jays

BUY Tickets at https://2017jays.bpt.me/

GIVE as part of #GIVINGTUESDAY at https://www.facebook.com/JasperProjectColumbia/

THANKS!

 

 

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It's JAY Season - Vote Now! VOTE HERE!

2016-jays A really good year.

Every artist has one now and again. A period of time when the universe smiles upon you, life just seems to click, and you have the energy to get done all the jobs you need to do.

It’s a brilliant feeling. And we like spreading that brilliance around. That’s why we asked our readers to nominate the artists in their lives who have had one of those really good years. Then, our panel of experts took a look at the list of nominees and winnowed it down to the top three artists in each discipline who seemed to have the very best years of all.

Below, you’ll read about these 12* artists and have the opportunity to register your vote for which artist in each field should be named 2016 Jasper Artist of the Year.

Winners will be announced at the 2016 Jasper Artist of the Year Gala & Columbia Christmas Carol Lip Sync Championship on December  2nd.

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VOTE HERE!

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Literary Arts

Carla Damron

Carla Damron’s most important work for the year was the publication of her literary novel, The Stone Necklace, by Story River Books, a division of USC Press. The Stone Necklace was also chosen as the One Book, One Community selection for February 2016 which led to multiple events and appearances, which gave Damron the opportunity to explore the intersection of art and social awareness with hundreds of people (including a presentation at the SC National Alliance for Mental Illness conference). Damron has completed approximately 30 book club presentations thus far, with more scheduled. Damron’s other works include a submission to the Jasper Project’s Marked By Water collection, monthly blogs on the Writerswhokill website, a quarterly column in the SC Social Workers newsletter, and the completion of her fifth novel, which is now in her agent’s hands.

Len Lawson

Len Lawson’s many poetry publications this year have included the following: “Briefcase of Little Tortures,” in Up the Staircase Quarterly, “Down South,” in Charleston Currents; “I Write My Body Eclectic” in [PANK] Magazine; “Feel the Vibration: Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch, A Retrospective” in Yellow Chair Review; “Church Fan,” “Niger (Or the Country Missing a Letter,” and “When a White Man in Camden Tells You to Act Like  You Got Some Sense,” in Drunk in a Midnight Choir;  “Google Search for Black Lives Matter” in Winter Tangerine Review; “ The Black Life Anthem: Unarmed Black People Killed by Police or Dying in Police Custody Since 2012*” in Free Times; “For the Dead Whose Caskets Flowed Out of Graves After the South Carolina Flood,” “12 Year Old Inside Me Seeks a Father Figure,” “Uneasy Dreams of a Presidential Hopeful,” and “The Body is a Cave” in Connotation Press; “  George Zimmerman as Jack in Titanic Painting Trayvon Martin as Rose” and “Krack” in Public Pool; and, “The Invitation” in Get Free Books.

Ray McManus

This year, along with R. Mac Jones, Ray McManus co-edited the anthology Found Anew: Writers Responding to Photographic Histories which was published by USC Press and nominated for the Lillian Smith Book Award. He published the following poems: “Caveman Survey,” “How Boys are Measured,” and “Manspread,” in The Good Men Project; “For the Hardest to Reach Places” in Prairie Schooner; “Dog Box,” “Disturbing Remains,” and “Staying in the Truck” in Hard Lines: Rough South Poetry from USC Press; “When a Dog Comes Back Rabid,” “We Were All Dead Once,” and “Natural Selection,” in Red Truck; “Ask Your Doctor,” “Origin of Species,” “In the Absence of Protection,” and “The Descent of Man” in The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature; and, “Ruts” in The State of the Heart Volume II, from USC Press. McManus participated in community projects that included the Tri-District Arts Consortium, The Carolina Master Scholars program, Serious Young Women Writers Workshop, Poetry Out Loud Region II Competition, High School and Middle School ABC Site Training, Word Fest Charlotte, and the Center for Oral Narrative and gave readings at Festival for the Book in Nashville; Pat Conroy Lit Fest in Beaufort: LILA Author Event in Charleston; Book Tavern in Augusta GA; Deckle Edge Literary Festival as well as Mind Gravy in Columbia; the Upcountry Lit Fest; Two Writers Walk into a Bar in Durham NC; and, the Scuppernong Book Store, Greensboro NC.

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VOTE HERE!

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Visual Arts

Kendal Jason

Kendall Jason's work this year has included quite a few multidisciplinary performance art pieces including the following at The 701 CCA South Carolina Biennial 2015 comprised of Speak to Me: "I've been mad for fucking years, absolutely years, been over the edge for yonks, been working me buns off for bands..." as well as, "I've always been mad, I know I've been mad, like the most of us...very hard to explain why you're mad, even if you're not mad" and Far away across the field, The tolling of the iron bell, Calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spells, both with reconstituted performance costumes; Lunatic on the Grass and

Breathe, a single channel video. Jason also created the "Goin Down the Road Feelin Bad" performance at Tapp’s Arts Center In conjunction with Michaela Pilar Brown, and The Transitioner Episode 1- "Who Do You Love"- 3 night performance at 701 CCA. For the Da Da Desque Exhibition 701 CCA, he created The Bags (50lbs Zombie Drawings), The Uniform (Custom Uniform for Work and Play), Episode I, Who Do You Love (Live video), and Ol' Man. He performed at Artista Vista as The Transitioner Episode 2, producing Corn hole Bags (50lbs Zombie Drawings), Extra Large Corn hole boards (Fear Vs. Fan Zombie Cheerleader drawings), and Zombie Drawings.

Michaela Pilar Brown

Among the programs that have occupied Michaela Pilar Brown’s time of late are Summer Arts Residencies in both Sedona Arts Center in Sedona, Arizona as well as one in Kunstlerwerkgemeinschaft Kaiserslautern, Germany. She also served as a visiting artist at Claflin University, Central Piedmont Community College, and at Tapp’s Arts Center, here in Columbia. She was featured in a film by Roni Nicole Henderson as well as one by Wade Sellers, and her work, Speak No’, 2011 was acquired by the Columbia Museum of Art. Her exhibitions included 15-Jahre-Künstlerwerkgemeinschaft volksbank Kaiserslautern; Artfields in Lake City; a solo exhibition and site specific performance, I’m a boss my house, at If Art Gallery; a two-woman show and site specific installation and performance called Making Time Marking Forever at Carrack Contemporary Art in Durham, NC; The Mother Wound site specific performance at Spelman College in Atlanta; Remix – Themes and Variations in African American Art at the Columbia Museum of Art; Wet Hot Southern Summer Group Exhibition at The Southern Gallery in Charleston; Where They Cut Her I Bleed – Site Specific Installation/ Solo Exhibition and Performance at Tapp’s Arts Center; The Space Between – Solo Exhibition and Performance at McMaster Gallery, University of South Carolina; Ruptured Silence Multimedia Performance and Collaboration with Wideman Davis Dance and Darion McCloud at Drayton Hall, University of South Carolina; Liquor and Watermelon Will Kill You – Solo Exhibition at Rebecca Randall Bryan Art Gallery in Conway; and Red Dirt and Doilies – Solo Exhibition at Sumter County Gallery of Art in Sumter.

Lauren Chapman

Among Lauren Chapman’s accomplishments this year was winning second place in the 61st Annual USC Student Art exhibition for the painting Still, and her painting The Flood was featured at the ArtFields Festival 2016 in Lake City as well as being published in the 2016 ArtFields catalog. In May, Chapman had a joint exhibition at Tapp’s Art Center and in August she showcased 25 oil paintings in her first solo exhibition and artist talk, titled Repetitions at the Pearson Lakes Art Center in Okoboji, IA. Chapman was awarded the Yaghjian Studio arts scholarship at USC and received a fully funded art residency at the international center for the arts in Monte Castello, Italy which she attended in June. Finally, Chapman’s oil painting the white rabbit was selected for the "Figure Out" Planned Parenthood exhibition in August.

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VOTE HERE!

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Music Arts

Mark Rapp

If there’s a linchpin of Columbia’s jazz scene, it’s probably trumpet (and didgeridoo) player Mark Rapp. In addition to balancing a steady stream of gigs around the city with his constant national and international travel, Rapp has kept busy orchestrating a steady stream of recordings, including a long overdue set from jazz patriarch Skipp Pearson and two efforts under his The Song Project Series with guitarist Derek Bronston. And, as part of the Harbison Theatre Performance Incubator Series, Rapp teamed up with professional choreographer Stephanie Wilkins to create Woven, a unique collaboration that combines jazz and contemporary dance that stands as one of the most innovative original performance pieces created in Columbia in recent years.

Dylan Dickerson

Although he’s one of the most affable and easygoing artists in town, when Dylan Dickerson steps on stage with his band Dear Blanca and starts playing music that person seems to slip away. With his post-punk-meets-Hendrix approach to playing guitar and an unadorned bawl of a voice, Dickerson stands clearly out among his peers. His lyrics, pondering and painstaking, feel like anthems for twentysomethings who want to make it plain that their disaffection and distress should never be mistaken for apathy.

Dear Blanca started out slowly but over the past year seems poised to make the next step, releasing two EPs--one produced by Triangle veteran Scott Solter (Mountain Goats, St. Vincent, Spoon), the other by Charleston’s producer-of-the-moment Ryan “Wolfgang” Zimmerman of Brave Baby--that hold to Dickerson’s idiosyncratic vision of folkie Townes Van Zandt drinking at a bar with D. Boon of the Minuteman while proving that Dear Blanca is a band capable of making music every bit as captivating as their heroes.

Justin Daniels

As much as Columbia has begun to champion its hip-hop veterans like FatRat da Czar and Preach Jacobs, there’s no denying that much of the energy of the genre still lies with a powerful younger generation that is still forging its own identity. Of the newer crop of emcees in the Capital City, Justin Daniels, who raps under the moniker H3RO, is one of the best. His December release Between the Panels, despite its DIY sensibility, plays like a masterclass in how to embrace youthful swagger with a keen sense of history. His comic book motifs and love of pure bars harkens back to Wu Tang Clan; the joyful soul samples and backpack rap self-consciousness to Lauryn Hill and early-period Kanye West; and his charismatic exuberance not unlike current rapper-of-the-moment Chance the Rapper. Daniels is still hustling, but his past year suggests the sky is the limit.

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VOTE HERE!

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Theatre Arts

Baxter Engle

A perennial behind-the-scenes magic maker, Baxter Engle has served over the past year in the following productions: Marie Antoinette (Sound Design); Blithe Spirit (Scenic Design); Peter and the Star Catcher (Scenic and Props Design); American Idiot (Scenic and Video Design); and, Anatomy of a Hug (Scenic and Video Design.) In addition to handling the creative aspects of design, Engle is hands-on throughout the productions from conception to the birth of the show.

Robert Harrelson

The consummate theatre man, Robert Harrelson is the executive director and owner of his own company, and all the hard work and minutiae that implies, with On Stage Productions, a non-profit theatre company in West Columbia. This year, Harrelson directed Little Shop of Horrors, Twisted Carol, Miracle in Memphis, Crimes of the Heart, and Oz: Dorothy’s Return, which he also wrote. He also teaches ongoing acting classes.

Hunter Boyle

In January 2016 Hunter Boyle performed in a staged reading of Composure, a screenplay by Jason Stokes at Trustus’ Side Door Theatre, playing “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman and several other characters. Next, he performed at Trustus Theatre, where he is a Company member, in Peter and the Star Catcher, playing the roles of Mrs. Bumbrake and the mermaid called Teacher. Following that, Boyle performed with the South Carolina Shakespeare Company, where he is also a company member, playing Sir John Falstaff in The Merry Wives of Windsor. Boyle taught several Master Classes in Musical Theatre (how to tell a story through song) and Acting (how to develop/train your voice effectively for stage work) for the Trustus’ Apprentice Company, as well as a total of five classes (three classes in the fall and two classes in the spring) of Introduction to the Theatre at USC Aiken. Boyle is currently a member in good standing of the Actor’s Equity Association-the union of professional actors in the US, as well as the Screen Actor’s Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists in the US. As of the nomination cut-off date, Boyle is currently rehearsing the role of Dr. Scott in The Rocky Horror Picture Show at Trustus Theatre, being directed by Scott Blanks.

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VOTE HERE!

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(*The 2016 JAY in Dance will not be awarded this year.)

Deadline is August 26th! CALL for Nominations - JASPER ARTISTS OF THE YEAR 2016

   

 

THE

JasperProjectLogo

&

Jasper Magazine 

Announce the CALL for Nominations for the Title

“Jasper Artist of the Year”

in each of the following categories:

Dance

Theatre

Music

Visual Arts

Literary Arts

Individual Artists, 18 and older, working in the greater Columbia arts community are eligible for the title 

based ONLY upon their artistic accomplishments during the period from

August 26, 2015  until August 26, 2016.

~~~

IMPORTANT STUFF:

Nominations should be sent to JasperProjectColumbia@gmail.com 

with the subject heading “JAY”

and MUST be accompanied by:

  1. The category in which the nominee should be considered.
  2. list of work produced or performed during the designated time period. (No paragraphs. No forthcoming work. No stories of awesomeness.)  
  3. The nominee’s complete contact info and a statement confirming that the individual has consented to be nominated.

Nominations must be received online by midnight August 26th, 2016. *

Finalists will be announced in the September issue of Jasper Magazine and winners will be announced at the JAY Gala in November – details to come.

Upon closing of the nomination call, a panel of judges will select the top three candidates in each field, and the public will be invited to vote online for their top choices.

Jasper leaf logo

Fine Print:

The category Dance includes:  performance, choreography, or direction of any form of dance including, but not limited to ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, ballroom, folk, or dance-based performance art.

The category Theatre includes: directing or acting in one or more local performances.

The category Music includes: conducting, directing, writing, or performing any style of music in one or more local concerts or recordings; both individuals and groups are eligible.

The category Visual Arts includes: the completion and presentation of any form of non-performing or non-literary arts, such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, print-making, mixed-media, etc.

The category Literary Arts includes: the completion, publication, and/or presentation of any form of prose, poetry, or non-fiction writing, as well as playwriting and the writing of executed screenplays.

Only individual artists may be considered for nomination. While arts groups, such as musical groups or arts troupes, are no longer eligible for consideration, individuals within those groups may be nominated.

Jasper 2016 Artist of the Year Awards will not be awarded based on achievements accomplished prior to August 26, 2015. The purpose of the awards is to recognize artistic achievements accomplished within a calendar year

There is no fee to enter.

Artists may nominate themselves.

Artists must be made aware of their nomination and agree to participate in the competition.

* Failure to comply with these rules will result in disqualification of the potential nominee. 

Announcing the 2015 JAY Gala Line-up

JAY 2015 graphic It's no coincidence that we patterned this week's 2015 JAY Awards Gala after the Italian Renaissance--a fertile time of humanism, art, architecture, science, and literature. In so many ways, we've been living through our own renaissance over the past several years in Columbia and we want to celebrate this fact at the same time we celebrate the 15 artists honored as Jasper's Artists of the Year Finalists and Winners.

Join us for an evening of Renaissance inspired food, drink (open bar), and entertainment, and the announcement of the Jasper Artists of the Year in Dance, Literature, Music, Theatre, and  Visual Arts.

  • Musical performance by the classical guitar duo Duo Cortado who will be playing Renaissance tunes and more
  • Renaissance inspired spoken word performances by members of Jasper's Wet Ink Spoken Word Collective, featuring Kendal Turner, Debra McQueen, & Kenneth Denk
  • Mini cello concert by Catherine Hunsinger
  • Impromptu performances by Al Black and Catherine Hunsinger
  • Leonardo daVinci (Michael Krajewski) will be creating his own version of the Mona Lisa from a live model
  • Michelangelo (Alex Smith) will be our guest throughout the evening embodying the Enlightenment, inciting evocative conversations, inspiring us with his multiple talents, (and maybe even creating art!)
  • Roving Renaissance entertainment from the Trustus Apprentices will keep the spirit of the Enlightenment alive and a smile on your faces
  • Il Magnifico's own Court Jester (Chris Carney) will meet you on the walk with fire eating demonstrations
  • USC Theatre Students are cooking up a surprise performance for us all
  • Bier Doc (Bob Jolley) has a rich selection of special biers and wines
  • Be sure to arrive in time to sample the Editor's Punch, created specially for this gala
  • Enjoy a sample feast of Renaissance-inspired dishes created by Chef Joe Turkaly
  • And, of course,the announcement of the Jasper Artists of the Year!

Tickets are $25 in ADVANCE and $35 at the door. Or join us at 6 for a special champagne reception in which you can sip bubbles, nosh on special treats, and hob nob with some of the greatest of the city's artists.

Come out and support your local arts magazine, celebrate its release, and congratulate the Jasper Artists of the Year Finalists and Winners: Martha Brim, William Starrett, Dale Lam, Eileen Blyth, Kimi Maeda, Russell Jeffcoat, Jullia Elliott, Ray McManus, Al Black, Jordan Young, Craig Butterfield, Heyward Sims, Dewey Scott-Wiley, Jennifer Moody Sanchez, and Kendrick Marion.

Special Thanks to Coal Powered Filmworks, Mouse House, Bert Easter of Easter Antiques, Richard Durlach and Breedlove of The Big Apple,  and Singing Fox Event Planning.

CALL for NOMINATIONS – Jasper 2015 Artists of the Year

Jasper leaf logo

Jasper 2015 Artists of the Year

DEADLINE = MONDAY AT MIDNIGHT!

Jasper Magazine announces the call for nominations for the title “Artist of the Year” in each of the following five categories:

  • Dance
  • Theatre
  • Music
  • Visual Arts
  • Literary Arts

Individual Artists, 18 and older, working in the greater Columbia arts community are eligible for the title based upon their artistic accomplishments during the period from September 15, 2014 until September 15, 2015.

Nominations should be sent to editor@Jaspercolumbia.com with the subject heading “Artist of the Year” and should be accompanied by

  • a brief but detailed and comprehensive list of work produced or performed during the designated time period

Nominations must be received online by midnight September 21, 2015. Results will be announced in the November issue of Jasper Magazine.

Upon closing of the nomination call, a panel of judges will select the top three candidates in each field, and the public will be invited to vote online for their top choices.

The category Dance includes:  performance, choreography, or direction of any form of dance including, but not limited to ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, ballroom, folk, or dance-based performance art.

The category Theatre includes: directing or acting in one or more local performances.

The category Music includes: conducting, directing, writing, or performing any style of music in one or more local concerts or recordings; both individuals and groups are eligible.

The category Visual Arts includes: the completion and presentation of any form of non-performing or non-literary arts, such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, print-making, mixed-media, etc.

The category Literary Arts includes: the completion, publication, and/or presentation of any form of prose, poetry, or non-fiction writing, as well as playwriting and the writing of executed screenplays.

New This Year:  Only individual artists may be considered for nomination. While arts groups, such as musical groups or arts troupes, are no longer eligible for consideration, individuals within those groups may be nominated.

Jasper 2015 Artist of the Year Awards will not be awarded based on achievements accomplished prior to September 2014. The purpose of the awards is to recognize artistic achievements accomplished within a calendar year. There is no fee to enter. Artists may nominate themselves. Artists should be made aware of their nomination and agree to participate in the competition. Employees of Jasper Magazine and clients of Muddy Ford Press are not eligible for competition.

2014 JAY Awards - Big Apple Swing on Nov 21st - Limited tickets on sale NOW

Jay 2014 graphicPlease join Jasper on November 21st at 7 pm as we announce and honor the recipients of the 2014 JAY (Jasper Artist of the Year) Awards in Dance, Literary Arts, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts at Columbia’s historic Big Apple.

Step back in time to 1937 when the Big Apple dance – which originated right here at the Big Apple in Columbia, SC – was hopping and the juke box was bopping. Grab a fistful of silver to toss from the balcony to the dance floor below when the music stops. Be sure to get your dance card signed so you’ll be ready to hit the floor when Vicky Saye Henderson sings those special tunes. Enjoy an open bar, hors d’oeuvres provided by Scott Hall Catering, dance demonstrations by Big Apple experts Durlach & Breedlove, chances to win great prizes & tickets to the most exciting arts events in town, and be the first to see an original 1930’s Dance Hall show starring Vicky Saye Henderson & the Apple Jacks.

Your Master of Ceremonies for the evening is Terrance Henderson.

Due to the intimacy of the venue, only 100 tickets will be sold to this event and they are going fast! So don’t wait too late to get yours. Click HERE to grab your ticket before they're all gone!

Tickets are $25 in advance, $50 for a preceding VIP champagne reception with Big Apple dance lessons demonstrated and taught to you and the 2014 JAY finalists by Richard Durlach and Breedlove.

Guess Who the Jasper 2013 Artists of the Year Are, and WIN!

Jasper leaf logo We're counting down the days and hours until we announce this year's winners for Jasper's Artist of the Year in Dance, Literary Arts, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts on Thursday, November 21st at 6 pm!

To make time pass more quickly we thought the members of the extended Jasper Family might be interested in getting in on the competition.

Here's how:

Visit us on Facebook and find the message GUESS THE WINNERS posted on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/jaspercolumbia. In the comments section under that post, do just that -- guess the winners in each of the five categories by 4 pm on Thursday, November 21st.

If you are correct -- in ALL FIVE categories -- visit us on Thursday evening at our release celebration at Coal Powered Filmworks at 1217 Lincoln Street and you'll win one of our cool new purple Jasper Backpacks. It's that easy.

To refresh your memory, here are the finalists in each category:

Dance:  Erin Bolshakov     Wayland Anderson     Terrance Henderson

Music:  Phillip Bush     The Restoration     Fat Rat da Czar

Literary Arts:  Janna McMahan     Aida Rogers     Jim Barilla

Theatre:  Bobby Bloom     Terrance Henderson      Vicky Saye Henderson

Visual Arts:  Michaela Pilar Brown     Philip Mullen     Thomas Crouch

 

We're looking forward to seeing how clever you are -- and learning who the winners are ourselves!

So get guessing -- and we'll see you on Thursday when we announce the winners!

 

Jasper 2013 Artists of the Year Nominations -- Get Yours in Today

award Sometimes--once in a blue moon, when the stars and planets align, when the gods are smiling down on you, sometimes--when you look back over the past twelve months, you realize happily, contentedly, sometimes surprisingly, that you have had a really good year. 

Sometimes it's not you, but maybe an artist that you know/love/admire.

Jasper wants to help you celebrate this magnificent accomplishment--this milestone--this raining down of good fortune/reward/award/credit due--by shining the spotlight on you and yours for all the world to see.

If you are--or if you know/love/admire--an artist who can look back over the time period between September 15, 2012 and September 14, 2013 and  reflect happily on the way those twelve months have turned out, then please consider nominating yourself or the object of your admiration/affection for the title Jasper 2013 Artist of the Year in Dance, Literary Arts, Music, Theatre, or Visual Arts.

Artists, 18 and older, working in the greater Columbia arts community are eligible for the title based upon their artistic accomplishments during the period from September 2012 until September 2013.*

Nominations should be sent to editor@JasperColumbia.com with the subject heading “Artist of the Year” and should be accompanied by

1)   a single paragraph explaining why the nominee should be considered — this is the place where you wax poetic & sing the praises of your nominee in terms that will touch our hearts

2)   a brief, but comprehensive list of work produced, performed , published, or presented during the September 15th, 2012 – September 14th, 2013 time period — this is the place where you get serious. You know all that stuff you said in the paragraph above? We don’t need to hear it again. What we need to hear are the specific enumerated accomplishments your nominee has made over the past 12 months and the dates of accomplishment. (Note:  it broke our hearts last year when we weren’t able to include highly deserving candidates whose nominators failed to list their nominees’ many accomplishments. For our sake, please follow the instructions.)

3) a sentence stating that you have consulted your candidate and she or he has agreed to participate in the competition.

Nominations must be received online by midnight September 14, 2013.

Results will be announced in the November issue of Jasper Magazine.

Upon closing of the nomination call, a panel of judges will select the top three candidates in each field and, from these three finalists, the public will be invited to vote online for each of their top choices at the Jasper website.

  • There is no fee to enter.
  • Artists may nominate themselves.
  • Artists should be made aware of their nomination and agree to participate in the competition.

The category Dance includes:  performance, choreography, or direction of any form of dance including, but not limited to ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, ballroom, Latin, or folk.

The category Theatre includes: directing or acting in one or more local performances.

The category Music includes: conducting, directing, writing, or performing any style of music in one or more local concerts or recordings; both individuals and groups are eligible.

The category Visual Arts includes: the completion and presentation of any form of non-performing or non-literary arts, such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, print-making, mixed-media, and (new this year) set design, etc.

The category Literary Arts includes: the completion, publication, and/or presentation of any form of prose, poetry, or non-fiction writing, as well as playwriting and the writing of executed screenplays.

*Jasper 2013 Artist of the Year Awards will not be awarded based on achievements accomplished prior to September 15th, 2012. The purpose of the awards is to recognize artistic achievements accomplished within a calendar year, not over a lifetime.

 

Congratulations to our outgoing

Jasper 2012 Artists of the Year

on a year well-served!

Regina Willoughby – Dance

Kwame Dawes – Literary Arts

Morihiko Nakahara – Music

Chad Henderson – Theatre

Susan Lenz – Visual Arts

awards pic

Fine Print

  • Previous winners of Jasper Artists of the Year are not eligible for nomination for a three year period following the year in which they won.
  • Previous nominees who did not win are eligible to be nominated in subsequent years.
  • Artists must have resided in Columbia, SC during the September 2012 – 2013 time period. Artists who are from Columbia, but no longer live here, are no longer eligible for Jasper Artists of the Year Awards.
  • Works in progress will not be considered.
  • Employees of Jasper Magazine and clients of Muddy Ford Press are not eligible for competition.