REPRESSED V: FREE TO SPEAK - Call for Entries

From our friends at Gallery 5 in Richmond, Virginia comes this call for activist art...

REPRESSED V: FREE TO SPEAK May 2010

Josˆ© Marˆ‚a Heredia - poet: inspired the Cuban people to stand up and fight against Spain.

Seymor Chwast-designer - illustrator: his anti-war poster "End Bad Breath" indirectly encouraged the anti-war movement of the 70's.

John Lenin and Yoko Ono - famous musicians/artists: created the powerful anti-war campaign stating "THE WAR IS OVER...if you want it to be."

What makes statement driven art so emotionally powerful? It being witness to a piece of work that creates a bond between you, the viewer and the creator of the piece. A bond that can change the direction of thought and purpose.

A successfully executed statement driven piece can be the catalyst that inspires the average person into an active agent for change. Art exists in societies to create shared dialogues and experiences. No matter the medium, art and artists can be the spark to establishing a commonality, to allow us to empathize with each other and encourage altruistic pursuits for the greater good.

Dedicated to social awareness, Gallery5 invites visual and performing artists to submit their statement focused work to Repressed V: Free to Speak.

Deadline is March 6th.

More info and an application can be downloaded HERE (PDF).

ALR on Tour: Skulls at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

I was recently asked to present a talk and workshop as part of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts' annual Teen Symposium. The program features several guest artists who present to 100+ students and art teachers from across Virginia. I talked about my Skull-A-Day project and then led the participants in a mini-project in which they picked an image and then made as many versions of it they could in a short period of time using a variety of materials. The results were really terrific, especially when people realized they could move beyond fixed, traditional forms. More images can be seen on my Flickr stream HERE.

Project Winterfood - December 2 - Richmond, VA

Just a reminder that my Design Rebels students are presenting Project Winterfood, an event promoting local in-season food in Richmond, Virginia. The initial event on December 2nd will feature art, free food samples, live music, a raffle, and more to educate about and promote local, in-season food. The art will continue to be on display from December 4-31st and all profits from the sales will go to support the Central Virginia Foodbank as well as the community space Gallery 5. If you're in the area please come out and show your support...

Project Winterfood is a local food event and art exhibition organized by a group of VCU Graphic Design students. The theme of the event is spinach, apples, and sweet potatoes: all seasonal foods available in Virginia during the Winter.

Event + Art Exhibition
December 2nd, 2009
7-10 PM
1509 West Main Street

Continued Art Exhibition
December 4-31st, 2009
Gallery 5, 200 W. Marshall St.

What is it?
Project Winterfood is a local food resource, art exhibition, and benefit event. Project Winterfood was created by a group of VCU Graphic Design students to help share and preserve the culture of food in our Richmond community. The students who organized the event know how easy, practical, and beneficial it is to utilize local food options. With the help of some community partners, we are excited to share this knowledge with the public.

Project Winterfood will house an art exhibition made up of work that celebrates three winter foods: apples, spinach and sweet potatoes. The artwork has been donated by local artists and will be on sale during the exhibition. All proceeds from the artwork will go to benefit The Central Virginia Food Bank and Gallery 5, a non-profit gallery that supports using the arts to promote positive social action.

At the event, there will be a gathering of partners involved in the Richmond area food community to answer questions and share information about local food options, resources, and benefits. Visitors will be able learn more about how they can easily enjoy food from local farms as well as restaurants that use locally sourced ingredients. The community partners include such local businesses as the Farm to Family Veggie Bus, Dominion Harvest, Savor Cafe, Ipanema Cafe, Rostov’Äôs Coffee & Tea, Ukrop’Äôs, The Byrd House Market, and more to come which will be listed on the website as the project continues.

During the event there will be live fiddle music, sample & tasting booths, and delicious coffee provided by Rostov’Äôs Coffee & Tea. Each visitor will leave with a complimentary take-home brochure designed by Project Winterfood. The brochure will contain information & resources as well as recipes that include the three featured winter foods.

After the event, the artwork will be on display in Gallery 5 throughout the month of December. It can be purchased during that time as well.

Why is it important?
The team at Project Winterfood is passionate about sharing and preserving food culture. It is our mission to share with others in the community how easy, accessible, practical, beneficial, inexpensive, and fun it is to utilize local food options. Project Winterfood is reaching out to everyone’Äî those who already enjoy farm fresh foods and those who have heard the phrase ’Äúeating locally’Äù without getting a chance to learn what it’Äôs really all about.

The Project Winterfood event will present seasonal winter produce in a unique way that creates a memorable, informative, and fun experience.

Who are we?
Project Winterfood is combined of a group of VCU Graphic Design students who are interested in promoting positive change through community service learning. They are part of Noah Scalin’Äôs Design Rebels course striving to make a positive difference as Graphic Designers in the Richmond Community.

For more info visit: ProjectWinterfood.org

Project Winterfood - A Local Food Event

Once a year I teach Design Rebels, a course on socially conscious design that I created for Virginia Commonwealth University's Graphic Design department. As part of the class the students are required to create a real world group project, based on the themes of the class, that reaches into the community beyond the school. This year the class decided to focus on the issue of local, in season food. They're creating an art exhibition called Project Winterfood that will give people in the area a fun way to learn more about what grows in the area in the winter and why it's important to eat locally grown food. Here are the details from their press release:

PROJECT WINTERFOOD

What is it?
Project Winterfood is a local food resource, art exhibition, and benefit event. Project Winterfood was created by a group of VCU Graphic Design students to help share and preserve the culture of food in our Richmond community. The students who organized the event know how easy, practical, and beneficial it is to utilize local food options. With the help of some community partners, we are excited to share this knowledge with the public.

Project Winterfood will house a fascinating art exhibition made up of work that celebrates three winter foods: apples, spinach and sweet potatoes. The artwork has been donated by local artists and will be on sale during the exhibition. All proceeds from the artwork will go to benefit non-profits who are working to make a positive difference in the Richmond community.

At the event, there will be a gathering of partners involved in the Richmond area food community to answer questions and share information about local food options, resources, and benefits. Visitors will be able learn more about how they can easily enjoy food from local farms as well as restaurants that use locally sourced ingredients. The community partners include such local businesses as the Farm to Family Veggie Bus, Dominion Harvest, and many more to come, which will be included on the website as the project comes together.

During the event there will be live fiddle music, sample & tasting booths, and delicious coffee provided by Rostov’Äôs Coffee & Tea. Each visitor will leave with a complimentary take-home brochure designed by Project Winterfood. The brochure will contain information & resources as well as recipes that include the three featured winter foods.

After the event, the artwork will be on display in Gallery 5 throughout the month of December. It can be purchased during that time as well.

Why is it important?
The team at Project Winterfood is passionate about sharing and preserving food culture. It is our mission to share with others in the community how easy, accessible, practical, beneficial, inexpensive, and fun it is to utilize local food options. Project Winterfood is reaching out to everyone’Äî those who already enjoy farm fresh foods and those who have heard the phrase ’Äúeating locally’Äù without getting a chance to learn what it’Äôs really all about.

The Project Winterfood event will present seasonal winter produce in a unique way that creates a memorable, informative, and fun experience.

Event + Art Exhibition
December 2nd, 2009
7-10 PM
1509 West Main Street

Continued Art Exhibition
December 4-31st, 2009
Gallery 5, 200 W. Marshall St.

More information and updates can be found on their website HERE.

ALR on Tour: September - October

I'm going to be doing a lot of traveling and lecturing over the coming months.
If you're in the area(s) I hope you'll check out one or more of these...

This Wednesday September 17th: Richmond, VA
Creative Reuse Workshop for Stuff Inc.
7-9pm @ 812 W. Franklin St. Rm 300
RSVP sarah AT richmondstuff.org
$3 Suggested Donation

September 30th: Richmond, VA
The Pros & Cons of Pro Bono talk for Haustalk
7pm @ Gallery 5 200 W. Marshall Street
FREE

October 7th: Richmond, VA
Talk 20 slide presention on Skull-A-Day
6pm @1708 Gallery 319 W. Broad St.
RSVP HERE
FREE

October 9th: Hollywood, CA
Skulls exhibition opening & Book Signing @ Chaos Gallery at Museum of Death
6-9pm @ 6033 Hollywood Blvd.
(exhibition runs through just October 14th)

October 15th: Louisville, KY
Lecture & Book Signing
Louisville Graphic Design Association 100 Show
6-9pm @ The Mellwood Art Center 1860 Mellwood Ave.

October 17th: Richmond, VA
Book signing at Blood Lake
7:30-11:30 @ 13131 Overhill Lake Lane

October 25th: Sandusky, OH
Skull-A-Day exhibition Lecture & Book Signing.
Sandusky Cultural Art Center
Details TBA @ 2130 Hayes Ave.

October 31st: Philadelphia, PA
Talk, workshop, & book signing.
Day of The Dead event at the Mˆºtter Museum
10am-5pm @ 19 S. 22nd St.
Free with museum admission.

The Pros And Cons of Pro Bono: Richmond, VA September 30

I'll be facilitating a discussion on the relationship of designers and nonprofits on September 30th as part of the Haustalk monthly design forum in Richmond, Virginia. This free event is open to the public. Designers and folks in the non-profit sector are especially encouraged to participate...

The Pros and Cons of Pro-Bono Work:
A Strategic Approach to Developing Working Relationships With Not-For-Profits

September 30th
7:00 PM
FREE

Gallery5
200 W. Marshall Street
Richmond, VA

After Life: a skull exhibition

Sorry for the lack of posting here, but after being in Austin for a week for the How Design Conference (which I'll post more about soon), I returned to put the finishing touches on After Life, an art show based on my Skull-A-Day project, which opens tonight here in Richmond, Virginia at Quirk Gallery. Here are a few photos of the installation of 100+ pieces, including several that have never been shown before...



Additional photos are on Flickr HERE.
The show runs through August 22nd, so if you are in the area please do stop by and check it out.

p.s. If you are a gallery owner and would like to bring this show or a show of large scale prints from the project to your space please get in touch.

ALR on Tour: HausTalk Richmond, VA - May 27

I will be speaking on May 27th at the HausTalk networking event...

Triple Bottom Line Through Design
What is socially conscious Design and what are its benefits?

Wednesday, May 27, 7-9pm
Gallery 5,
200 W. Marshall St.
Richmond, VA

This event is FREE and open to the public (non-designers are encouraged to come). I'll be giving a short talk about the socially conscious business model, and then there will be a group discussion on how to implement it in any field (not just design).

Reclaimed Trophies

I was recently hired to design four trophies for the Better Housing Coalition here in Richmond, VA. The organization, which builds housing in the city for people who usually can't afford it, is having their first annual Leadership Awards ceremony in an old wood mill that is in the process of being transformed into a mixed-use community. In the spirit of the transformation I was invited to scavenge materials that were left over from the previous owners to create the trophies. They are entirely made from the reclaimed materials and finished with water-based stains and coatings. Titles and descriptions of each award were used as inspiration for the designs...


Creative Collaborator - Individual or entity that encourages and participates in community enhancing collaborations.























Changer of Lives - Individual or entity that strengthens families and improves lives within Greater Richmond.





















Community Revitalizer - Individual or entity that strives to positively transform areas within Greater Richmond.























Henry David Thoreau Environmental Conservator - Individual or entity that promotes preservation of the earth through exemplary environmental responsibility and innovative green practices.

ALR makes the GRADE

Three of ALR's projects were selected for inclusion in this year's Greater Richmond Area Design Excellence (GRADE) Awards show put on this past Friday by the Richmond AIGA. Along with the honor of being among a select number of works on display The Playscripts, Inc. book covers also brought home a "Best in Category " trophy for Editorial & Publication Design.




Poster for Target Margin Theater





















Season Brochure for Target Margin Theater, illustrated by Matt Deans




















Book covers for Playscripts, Inc.

ALR talk: Editorial Freelancers Association, March 30, Richmond, VA

I've been invited to speak about marketing and self-promotion at the Central Virginia chapter meeting of the Editorial Freelancers Association on Monday, March 30. The event is open to all editorial professionals, members and nonmembers, and will be held at 10:00 AM at the Richmond Public Library at 5420 Patterson Avenue, in Richmond, VA. This will be a low-key session that focuses on Q&A and will give people an opportunity to discuss their own current marketing materials/strategies.

Do you have Change For A Ten?

ART 180 is a Richmond, Virginia based non-profit that works to connect children in difficult circumstances to the self-expressive power of art. As part of their ongoing fundraising efforts they have created the Change For A Ten campaign. They are encouraging folks to create a ten dollar bill that expresses their vision for positive change in their community and send it along with an actual $10 donation. The resulting pieces are being displayed on their blog and will be eventually show in an exhibition at Virginia Commonwealth University's advertising department Brand Center. There's even a competition specifically for creative students/professionals (PDF).

Find out more about Change For A Ten and get a template to make your own submission HERE.