invincible
INVINCIBLE
VIDEO BY ELI BROWN
THURSDAY MAY 26th, 2011

Detroit based hip-hop artist, Invincible, is a living example that art and everyday life can and should coexist in seamless cooperation. Beyond just producing and performing her music, she is a dedicated community organizer and record label entrepreneur. Still, that didn't stop her from taking the time to give Creative Impact Michigan an inside look at how the arts are impacting the social discussion in Detroit. We caught up with her at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit where she had been speaking on a discussion panel and she gave us her take on what it means to be an artist in Michigan.

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ISLAND HILL HOUSE MUSICIAN IN RESIDENCE JO WILLIAMSON PLAYING AT THE SEED STUDIO GALLERY IN ELK RAPIDS

On a ten acre plot of land just outside of Bellaire, Michigan an ISLAND has risen. An ISLAND shaped by the winds of recognition that community is created by arts and ecology.

Started in May of 2005, the Institute for Sustainable Living, Art & Natural Design (ISLAND) is a non-profit arts and ecology center dedicated to supporting artists, restoring and developing skills and traditions of community self-reliance, and creating and sharing tools for ecological living.

ISLAND was born from Amanda and Brad Kik's collective commitment and shared vision to connect people with nature, art and community. Although native Michiganders (Brad grew up in Haslett, Amanda in Birmingham), each traveled their own unique path to Northern Michigan and a meeting of hearts and minds.

Amanda spent both her undergraduate and graduate years at California Institute of the Arts where she became an active participant in the Los Angeles' arts community. But regular visits to her parent's cottage on Torch Lake created a draw that was irresistible. "Every time I visited, I fell more and more in love with the small town feel of the area." In 2001 she arrived in Northern Michigan with a strong desire to contribute to the cultural community and promote the development of new work.

Brad left Northern Michigan for a job in New Zealand as a Volunteer Coordinator at a nature sanctuary. But after seven months, he realized the work he was doing was also very much needed back "home." Brad returned to Northern Michigan where a meeting on the fourth of July in 2004 introduced him to his future wife. Their shared belief that the arts and sustainable living are intertwined, led to the founding of ISLAND.

The ISLAND Artist's Residency is just one of the ways that they advance their mission of supporting artists. "The residency is designed to propel artists in their work," said Amanda. The Hill House Residency provides artists with the dedicated space, time and resources to create new work. Emerging songwriters, writers at all stages of their career and non-studio artists can opt for a two, three or four week stay in a semi-secluded, two-story log cabin. When fully developed the residency program will house up to 12 residents at a time.

"We want to bring in artists from around the world," said Amanda. The idea is to create opportunities for artistic exchange between the artist and the community, whether it's hanging out at a pub talking with the locals or giving a presentation at the Jordan River Arts Council. According to Amanda, the community engagement piece is very important for the artists. Resident musicians have given performances at several local venues including Shorts Brewing Company and Seed Studio Gallery in Elk Rapids.

"People think culture happens in cities, but we push against that idea," said Amanda. "Culture is very important in rural communities. Art is a way to help our community understand its own culture. Through their work within our community, the residency also helps artists understand their own communities better when they go back home."

Workshops and community events give fire to another facet of ISLAND's core work - developing skills of community self-reliance. According to Amanda everything they do has a hands-on component. Workshops focus on DIY and skill-building activities. "We're also insane book lovers," said Amanda. "We have a library of over 3000 books on sustainable living and art. But we realized that we have a big gap between the information in those books and the actual hands-on knowledge."

Amanda described ISLAND's 2011 Plan featuring over sixty events including workshops on Cordwood Masonry and Beekeeping Basics. "Most of our reach is in the ten-county area of Northwest Lower Michigan, from 1-75 west, but for some of our workshops with big name presenters, we're attracting people from throughout the Midwest."

Although art classes and art fairs are important to a community, according to Amanda, that's not what they do. "Our role is to partner with and support the groups who do that." ISLAND recently teamed up with Parkside Arts Council, a non-profit supporting arts in Antrim County, on an Art, Film and Philosophy series showcasing writers presenting and discussing their latest works.

Another ISLAND partnership with Porterhouse Productions has birthed a creative new way to fund artists. Called Sunday Soup, this mini-granting model first started with InCUBATE in Chicago, a research group dedicated to exploring new approaches to arts administration and arts funding. The concept quickly spread across the globe. Sunday Soup events are regularly held in Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids and Detroit.

Here's how it will work in Traverse City.  Artists of any age, any discipline and living anywhere in the ten-county Northwest Michigan region may submit applications. The applications are collected and juried by ISLAND with the best projects selected to present at Sunday Soup.

Then, once a month, folks gather at Porterhouse Productions' The Good Work Collective, an arts gallery and community space. For a $5 to $20 donation, folks receive a delicious meal of local soup, salad and bread, while the selected artists give a short presentation explaining their proposed project. After the presentations, the community votes for their favorite project by dropping their spoon in the bucket for their favorite project. All proceeds for the event go to the artist with the most spoons in his or her bucket.

According to Amanda, "A lot of what we do has a focus on making changes that will attract young people to the community."And they do this by working with a triangle of ecology, art, and place. "Ecology and art work together to help us better understand place. ISLAND is here to help us explore this triangle."

Straight from ISLAND's website, the description of their philosophy on art describes this triangle and an artistic movement in the making in Northwest Lower Michigan. "The production of art is more than taking brush to canvas, pen to paper, back of hand to forehead, or bow to string. Given the time and space, art will bubble up from depths in the earth, and forms pools that benefit us all."

THE DEWIT CREATIVE GROUP PHOTO TAKEN BY ASHLEY SONEFELD PHOTOGRAPHY

The DeWitt Creativity Group (DCG) encompasses the following groups at DeWitt High School: The Radio Club, Theatre Department, Art Department, Audio/Visual Club, the Music Club (including choir and band), Alternative Energy Program, the School Newspaper, Yearbook, Creative Writing Club and Business Professionals of America.

The group has no budget, no board of directors. There are no members - just supporters - and no appointed leaders. How is it that a group of high school students, under the guidance and encouragement of two teachers, has created such a stir? This fledgling group, in its third year, is creating some serious traction on their goals to promote student creativity in connection with public service and entrepreneurship, and to prepare students for the new creative economy. How can that be?

"We believe that creativity isn't just about the artistic stuff, it is in the sciences and entrepreneurial activities too," said DCG student member Katie Coon. "We have to be prepared for a new economy that will require our creative thinking and passion for learning. When I was a freshman and sophomore I used to quiz the teachers all the time. I wanted to know what information would be on the test, and if it wasn't going to be on the test then I didn't want to learn it. Now, after being part of DCG, I genuinely want to learn about all sorts of things; my priorities have changed."

"These students are mature beyond their age, they listen, and they are attentive to their world both inside and outside this school. They ask questions - important questions. They have some big life skills going on here," said co-founder and teacher Jeff Croley. "We continue to gain support and awareness for the group. Something crazy and magical is happening here."

The students are very aware of an education system and an economy in Michigan that is not working. "It's hard not to have a bad attitude about the situation we find ourselves in - what is happening now in Michigan is not working. So, I believe we have to be part of the solution," said Averie Conn, DeWitt senior. "We are trying to point to the future, even if people are defensive or fearful we have to be part of a solution," said co-founder and teacher Jason LaFay.

The group's vision includes a belief that they can change the culture of their school, but also reach into their community and beyond to make a difference; to be part of the solution. There is an exhaustive list of DCG accomplishments and activities to-date in pursuit of creative, passionate learning.

In its second year the DeWitt Creativity Group hosted the first ever Creative Teachers Summit in downtown Lansing. Educators, business owners, developers, entrepreneurs, community leaders and students gathered to discuss innovative and creative practices that would lead to revitalizing regional schools and communities. The second Creative Teachers Summit occurred on March 19th with the help of LEAP, the Lansing Economic Area Partnership.

One of the most creative endeavors of the group is an original play "Questions?" performed by students in the DeWitt High School Theatre Department. It debuted in February of this year at DeWitt High School, was presented at the Creative Teachers Summit in March, and most recently for Grand Ledge High School.

The play, a series of artistic short scenes and monologues, was written and directed by teacher, Jeff Croley. The play is based on student interviews, personal observations and collaborations on the creative process. In a minimalist stage setting, the actors, all dressed in shades of grey, fearlessly and creatively tackle many social issues confronting high school students. Their "Questions" cover topics like standardized testing, hyper-texting and its effect on teenagers, parental pressure to make the grade, out-of-touch teachers, helicopter moms that hover too much, and the economic pressures on our schools.

The play is not complete until the audience talk-back session occurs. The actors answer questions from the audience and promote dialogue among their peers on the important topics presented in the play, all the while sharing DCG's philosophies about creativity and education as an answer to many of the issues. In the recent presentation of "Questions?" at Grand Ledge High School, a long-time member of a school board was in the audience, and she posed this question: "Why not present this play to Governor Snyder and the legislative leaders? They need to see this."

Why not, indeed!

To learn more about DeWitt Creativity Group, visit the website www.dewittcreativitygroup.org or for a copy of the DCG Playbook, a how-to guide for teachers to build a creative and innovative culture in secondary education, contact Jeff Croley croleyj@dewittschools.net or Jason LaFay lafayj@dewittschools.net . Lafay and Croley are also available to attend functions, meeting or events for other school groups, districts and businesses interested in participating in similar groups.

THE FOG ROLLED IN ON THE WATER
MARY KATHERINE QUASARANO
THURSDAY MAY 26th, 2011

Cities on the water have long been acknowledged as birth places of artistic and cultural movements. The Left Bank called artists to Paris, Grunge Music burst forth on the music scene in Seattle, and Muskegon is the birthplace of Fogged Clarity an exceptional online journal featuring the work of international literary and musical artists. Ben Evans, the site's founder and Muskegon native son, credits his access to water as providing an ongoing source of "wonder, escape and curiosity." Wonder, escape and curiosity are words that also beautifully capture the diversity of work that has been featured since Fogged Clarity's debut three years ago.

In a virtual sea of thousands of printed journals and art reviews, and millions of online journals, blogs and publications, what has made Fogged Clarity so popular and enduring? The answer in part resides in its Manifesto. Fogged Clarity is the product of its founder's poetic sensibilities, the promotion of the creative process for all, and its showcase of excellence in literary and musical arts. Another key to its success has been the warm embrace and support of the people of Muskegon and Muskegon County.

As it has grown in popularity and traffic, regular requests are received to advertise on the site. The support of the Muskegon community has allowed Evans, a poet and musician, to continue to support excellence without compromising the integrity of the site. Fogged Clarity has held several large-scale poetry readings and concerts in Muskegon County, and its first printed collection was funded by a grant from The Muskegon Community Foundation.

The evolutionary process leading to the creation of Fogged Clarity was inspired along the waters of Lake Michigan and culminated in the water of a bathtub. Evans eloquently shares the story of moving from darkness to reaching his own Fogged Clarity:

"As for the journal's impetus, I was living in a small village in France in 2007 afflicted by panic attacks and a general sense of uncertainty regarding my future. In the evenings in my upstairs apartment I would drink wine and take baths in my upstairs apartment to calm down, reading voraciously all the while. In the bath one night I was reading 'Lolita' for the first time and marveling at Nabokov's control of language; his ability to evoke emotion with beautiful prose. One night while reading, a dam inside of me just burst, and I knew I needed to create. I could no longer tolerate simply standing by and being swept up by the human condition. I felt compelled to articulate the struggle, put my own drops in the bucket, if you will. I returned from France two months later, taught myself to play the piano and within nine months had written and recorded an album 'The Nicotine Heart Attack Premonition E.P.' It wasn't good, but it was cathartic and was beautiful in that regard. I understood that if I could accomplish that, then anything was possible, so I hooked up with a good friend of mine (Ryan Daly) who is a brilliant artist and web-designer and proceeded to start Fogged Clarity."

Since its launch, 28 online issues and one print issue have been released, and Fogged Clarity has received press in The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Huffington Post, and Poets & Writers among other publications. Every month, 300 - 400 artists from all over the world submit their work for consideration. The site has featured the work of Pulitzer Prize nominees, Guggenheim Fellows, and well-known artists, authors and musicians from "Japan, Australia, and many places in between."

Fogged Clarity has given an 18 square mile area (3.7 square miles of water) of natural beauty called Muskegon international prominence. Evans will be leaving Muskegon this fall to begin an MFA poetry program in Oregon. He will live bi-coastally for the next couple of years, shifting between the West Coast of America and the West Coast of Michigan; staying close to the water, sharing the wonder of words, escaping the chains of a life without intention, and exploring his craft with all of the curiosity of the beginner's mind.

'An Evening with the Clarity' - a benefit to support Fogged Clarity - will be held on June 25th at the Howmet Playhouse in Whitehall. The event features an appearance by John Hemingway, grandson of American literary icon Ernest Hemingway, Michael Tyrell the former poetry editor for The New Yorker, and three diverse and talented musical artists: The Great Unknown, Singing in the Abbey, and Fred Thomas. Tickets are $10 and are available at http://foggedclarity.com/events and at the door.