“Treasures of World Song” for a Treasure of an Organ

On Saturday, April 17, at 7:30 pm singer, composer, guitarist and saz player Gerard Edery brings his ensemble to Congregation Beth Emeth in Wilmington for an evening of Sephardic Music. Originally from Casablanca, Morocco, the New York-based musician is a master and scholar of Judeo-Spanish songs. Rich in musical influence, the songs are born of an oral tradition from the Balkans, North Africa and Greece.

A trained operatic bass baritone, Edery sings with a rich, warm tone. He accompanies himself with the guitar and the saz---a wonderful lute-like Turkish instrument. Edery’s band also includes Meg Okura on violin and erhu and Sean Kupisz on bass. In addition to Judeo-Spanish music, the trio will perform folk and popular songs from France, Ireland and South America. The concert is a benefit for Beth Emeth’s new organ.

For tickets and information: 302-764-2393 or www.bethemethde.org.

To hear Edery’s music: http://www.sefaradrecords.com/.

Two Cultures: Many Perspectives

Always during the Wilmington Art Loop something really catches my eye. This time it was Tanya Murphy Dodd’s mixed media artwork entitled Shadows of a Journey and a presentation of photography Socialism of the 21^st Century by Gabriel Pilonieta and his son Esteban Martin Pilonieta Vera. Both exhibits used photography to tell the story of a people.

The muted tones of Tanya Murphy Dodd’s scenes added to their warmth and historical flavor. The artist told us she used family photographs, antique photographs as well as her own. The photographs of soldiers, farm sites, churches and other powerful icons in African-American life are worked into her art and help create images that are rich in story. Dodd often paints into, around and over the photographs, which she uses as a starting point. Be sure to visit the Christina Cultural Arts Center to see this fabulous, unique work. (See image, top.)

See http://tanyamurphydodd.blogspot.com/.

The Market Street Brew Ha Ha seemed the perfect location for the photography of the father and son team, Gabriel Pilonieta, editor of El Tiempo Hispano, and Esteban Martin Pilonieta Vera (EMPV) senior in the BFA program at the University of Delaware. Though I found myself wishing these photographs had been mounted or framed, the tacks holding them in place on the cramped wall seemed apropos. Immigrants from Venezuela, the men, now both living in Delaware, returned to their homeland and took bold, sorrowful pictures of the people and streets of the villages. Often, the photos included images or posters of socialist propaganda juxtaposed with blatant visions of extreme poverty. The wonderful detail of humanity and the vibrant countryside tell the story of a tough struggling people. (See image.)

See http://sefuepalnorte.blogspot.com/.

Hunter Clarke, Mark V Turner & Michael Kalmbach in the April Loop

Walking up the steps of the Mezzanine Gallery of the city’s Carvel Building, I was greeted by a small girl pushing her head through a gap in the railing and calling, “I can see you, Mommy!” I could not see who greeted her, but it was Hunter Clarke, the artist whose exhibit Aerial was opening in the Mezzanine Gallery. She had created a work especially for the small space with high ceilings: strips of vellum painted with bright acrylic silhouettes of predatory birds and what I thought were wolves, but Clarke, who seems to be an animal buff, said, “Actually, they are African dogs.” The piece is entitled Into the woods, 2010 and I hope it gets a new home after this exhibit ends on April 30. Pictured above top is an enlarged version of one of the many very small paintings Clarke grouped in nines. Clarke used bright colors to feature many animals in this exhibit – some acting on their natural predatory instincts, some enduring their fate, and some facing the viewer with a steely stare.

Was delighted by Mark V Turner’s exhibit of acrylic on paneling at the Wilmington Institute. Turner is a member of Delaware by Hand. (See 1/24/10 blog). Visiting artists tried to figure out how he achieved the tactile feel of layers and three dimensional illusion with acrylics. Turner’s vivid portrayals of doors in New Orleans have purples and other outrageous colors which blend into a realistic imagery.

Spectrum: contemporary color abstraction (open until August 1) left me with more questions than answers. I read that curation of this exhibit was started by Carina Evangelista (who is no longer at DCCA). Some local artists were included and others were selected in another way….open competition? Well worth seeing, in particular, Michael Kalmbach’s work on outdoor carpet wrapped in clear plastic and decorated with an abstract of acrylic and chains of dots. Second picture.

See http://www.hunterartist.com/.
See http://www.artsdel.org/.
See http://www.delawarebyhand.org/.
See http://www.markvturner.com/.