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Imran Qureshi Continues Painting Despite Interruption of State Funeral at Washington National Cathedral

Imran Qureshi paints outside the Washington National Cathedral as servicemen stand in the background. Photo by Sam DeFusco, Teen Observer.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — At one of the hubs for the By The People arts festival at the Washington National Cathedral, the art pieces were meant to be installations. However, artist Imran Qureshi found his piece turning into performance art.

Qureshi is an award-winning artist from Pakistan who puts meaning into his work. In his current piece, he covers the National Cathedral’s front steps in blue and white paint. “This is meant to show the idea of life,” Qureshi said. “I tried to create the illusion that the water is coming out of the Cathedral. Man is made up of water. The human body is made up of water.”

Qureshi pointed to the stairs at the front doors of the church. “The mural at the top of the stairs is about the creation of human beings, how life is growing out of water,” he said. “The painting is a dialogue with the mural about creation. I also want to show how life is growing out of water, and have people think about how you are cleansing your soul in a religious place, spiritually.”

Due to rain the previous day, Qureshi was unable to complete his art as planned. On Thursday, while tourists watched, he hurriedly added white highlights to careful splashes of blue on the cobbled plaza in front of the Cathedral. But his work was interrupted by marching soldiers doing their bi-annual training for a state funeral, who trod over the just-dried painting.  They took over the area Qureshi painted, causing him to rush to finish.

Servicemen line up for State Funeral Practice outside Washington National Cathedral, with Qureshi’s painting covering the ground beneath them. Photo by Sam DeFusco, Teen Observer.

The state funeral takes place when a past or present president dies. “All of the military services get together, and they perform the state funeral, so right now we’re doing practice runs to make sure it goes smoothly,” said Army Sergeant Zach Bartlett.

The Military District of Washington practices this rare event at least once a year, so the entire ceremony runs perfectly. Steve Saphos, a volunteer verger at the Washington National Cathedral, explained that these practices are to ensure that every member participating in the service knows precisely what they are doing.

Imran Qureshi continues to paint about life and the water flowing through us, no matter who or what tries to prevent him from doing so.

Qureshi has had exhibits displayed in a multitude of places, from the Roof Garden at The Metropolitan Museum of Art to his “hauntingly beautiful show at the Ikon Gallery,” as described by Laura Cumming in her article for The Guardian. Qureshi has won the Lux Style Award for Achievement in Fine Art, the ArtNow Lifetime Achievement Award 2016, the Deutsche Bank Award for “Artist of the Year” in 2013, and was the first Pakistani to be awarded the Medal of Arts Award by the U.S. State Department in 2017.

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Artistic Expression: Emotion from Artwork

It’s rare to witness the moment that art strikes something within a person. But at the National Cathedral, it’s surreal to encounter. The look of awe and amazement reading blatantly across visitors’ faces as they glance around a place of wonder. The change in heartbeat, and subtle slowing in pace as they glance from art piece to art piece, captivated by the style that each artist holds. But most importantly, the broad range of emotions that erupt in every person who enters a church of such power.

The National Cathedral is something that holds all these qualities, and makes a conscious effort to make itself a home for art and the higher consciousness it endeavors. Being a center for prayer and pilgrimage, it integrates art and religion to form multiple representations of artistic expression. The Cathedral’s gothic architecture is meant to inspire awe within visitors.  Its high ceilings with delicate carvings hold significance of architecture’s transformation over the years. The brightly colored stained glass windows on every outside opening provide a burst of imagination and comfort that ensues in every visitor.

The carvings around the doors to the main entrance into the Cathedral

From the magnificent interior inside, to the freeing greenery outside, there are several places that people find their hidden emotions become uncovered when coming in the Episcopal Church. The place of worship can be considered as a place where sentiments are exchanged between the art and the perceptions of everyday people.                

“There’s something everywhere that people can find all forms of artistic expression,” Bob Faltynek, Cathedral volunteer, states when discussing the various types of emotions that are brought up from visitors.

“These kids walk in here, and you can just see them looking around, and you can see their mouths drop open . The wow factor. It invokes a very very strong response, whether it’s a religious response or just beauty.”

The ceiling in the hall of the Cathedral

   The Cathedral is proven to be a place that is not only used for spiritual reasons, it also provides an environment where both visitors and volunteers can be truly amazed and astonished at the diversity of art within the building.

“We’re here, [as volunteers], in the first place, just because this is such an          overwhelmingly beautiful and thought- provoking place,” Faltynek continues. “I’ve worked here for seven years, and not a day goes by that I don’t learn something new here.”

This center of praise has uncovered itself to be a place full of undiscovered cherishes. The emotions that arise are a direct effect from the art itself, and thoroughly discloses a world of expressing passion from artwork.

“The cathedral seems so enormous,” visitor and tourist Scott Fryer vocalized. Fryer was in town visiting when him and his wife and two children stopped by to pay a visit. While there, Fryer explained his personal experience from interacting with the artwork. “You step back and look at all the energy and work it took into designing this, and it’s inspiring.”

The artwork doesn’t only instill emotion in visitors and volunteers, but in the actual artists as well.

Imran Qureshi painting the blue installation on the steps of the Cathedral

Imran Qureshi is an artist who painted a blue instillation on the steps outside of the Cathedral. He portrays this installation as a way “to show the idea of life.” Qureshi said, “I tried to create the illusion that the water is coming out of the Cathedral…. The painting is a dialogue with the mural about creation. I also want to show how life is growing out of water, and have people think about how you are cleansing your soul in a religious place, spiritually.”

Art has the power to influence a wide variety of people and industries, and cause an influx of emotions, whether it’s amazement as a tourist, appreciation as a volunteer or inspiration as an artistic creator.

 

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Berkeley Playhouse merges professionalism and community

The Berkeley Playhouse’s production of “Tarzan,” the musical with words and lyrics by Phil Collins runs through Aug 13. Photo by Keon Morley.

BERKELEY, Calif. —The Berkeley Playhouse, founded by Elizabeth McKoy 10 years ago, uses art to bring a sense of community, producing shows for all ages.

The wood-paneled walls and red doors of the historic Julia Morgan Theater make the exterior appear barn-like and give the impression of a community theater. But the Playhouse is home to professional productions. The advertisements, equipment and costumes for the current production of the musical “Tarzan” further exemplify the theater’s professionalism.

“I have a spotlight here. I have a crew here. They got a brand new light board… We have LEDs, we have M-Faders… A little bit of everything,” Jeff Bristow, three-time stage manager at the theater, said. The theater boasts youth conservatory and after-school classes in addition to a full slate of productions.

Catherine Manning, the mother of one of the actors, says her daughter, Jaina, found the summer theater experience enticing.

“It was much more intense…An amazing experience for her to be side by side with professional adults,” Manning said. “…within the six-week rehearsal period I heard her voice change.”

After a recent matinee, actors and crew alike commented on how McKoy strives to bring a sense of family to all of her cast and crew members while maintaining a professional environment.

Actor Tiana Paulding said,“Elizabeth…exudes family. She will take everyone under her wing.”

She added that “everyone here is just so supportive and very uplifting…It’s just a very good sense of camaraderie here.”

Bristow said his favorite part of being with the theater is “just working with the people. I’ve met a lot of new people, I’ve met a lot of great people, and I know a lot of them will remain my friends after this is over.”

Actors Aurelia Jordan, left, Adam Niemann, and Tiana Paulding greet the audience after the show. Photo by Rachel Winterhalter

Adam Niemann, another actor, said, “The people here [keep me coming back].”

““The theme of the show ‘Tarzan’ is family,” Nieman said of the show based on the Disney film, with music from pop legend Phil Collins.

“And I think it is quite appropriate that that’d be produced by Berkeley Playhouse because I definitely think that’s … a mission of Berkeley Playhouse.”

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Because People are People- NSLC Edition

From June 28 to July students flooded the American University campus for the second session of the Journalism, Film, and Media Arts session of the NSLC program. Here are some of their stories:

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 “My dream is to become a best-selling novelist and write a book that has an impact on everyone who reads it.” Abby Hadfield, 16

 Coming from rural Pennsylvania, this rising high school junior has awaited the opportunity to attend the Journalism, Film, and Media Arts leadership conference since the arrival of an email in December 2014.

Abby Hadfield is attending the program as a student in the Professional Newswriting class.

While her attendance may show her experience is with news writing; however, her true dream is to “make it” as a novelist or a creative writer.

“Journalism is just a more practical form of writing,” Hadfield said.

 “It’s really hard to make it as a novelist,” Hadfield said later in a brief interview just after the start of her first workshop session.

Beyond the classroom, she is involved with the school newspaper, the school literary Magazine, Girl Up, Girls Room and Interact Club.

Hadfield’s passions truly translate into her dreams for the future.

“My dream is to become a best-selling novelist and write a book that has an impact on everyone who reads it” Hadfield said.

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“I would like to live in Mexico and help my country move forward as a leader.”

~Marina de la Sierra- 16

This student is one of many international students at the leadership conference and has traveled from Mexico to be a part of the leadership conference taking place from June 28 to July 8.

Marina de la Sierra found the program through her American school that encourages the students to look for opportunities to study in the United States.

“I got interested in it because I like writing a lot and I saw there was a journalism program,” de la Sierra said.

Journalism was not a career she had considered before the camp and she wanted to gain some experience.

Her openness to this opportunity has been allowing her to gain whatever might benefit her in the future.

De la Sierra is looking into working for the UN and help those who are impoverished and uneducated in the future.

She views human trafficking as a major world issue and is looking to alleviate it in the future.

“I would like to live in Mexico and help my country move forward as a leader,” she said.

 

“Knowing that everyone has a different mind for a different reason.”

Breezy Culberson, 21 (Not Pictured)

This 21-year-old office staff person of a leadership camp at American University has truly made the most of her opportunities and is continuing her education to attain her own dream.

Breezy Culberson works at the NSLC office and is responsible for some of the coordination and teamwork it takes to pull together such a big opportunity for hundreds of high school students.

Culberson chose to attend the Journalism and Mass Media conference in Berkley when invited, became a Psychology major in college and is inspired by the work she has a degree to do.

When asked how the conference benefited her, she said, “It looked good on my resume.”

The leadership experience was definitely of value to her as a student.

The discovery of her personality tendency, a koala, gave her a better direction as to her college choice and future career.

In the next six months, Culberson will be going back to school to continue her education and earn a master’s in psychology.

Her main reason for her fascination with psychology, “knowing that everyone has a different mind for a different reason.”

 

“You know if I could just play that, I would be really satisfied.”

Michael Silverglade, 17 (Not Pictured)

His experience with the leadership conference began with his sister’s involvement four years ago and now he is gaining experience in the field he enjoys, music.

Michael Silverglade’s letter came to invite him to the camp in December 2014, but his interest in playing musical instruments certainly came before that.

“In elementary school, I played trumpet… it was legit but it wasn’t very good,” he said.

He started playing trumpet in his middle school band and only expanded his involvement as he moved forward in school, adding euphonium and bass by his high school years.

He started self-teaching bass in his freshman year after he saw one of the seniors playing and started listened to more music.

He thought, “You know if I could just play that, I would be really satisfied.”

Now, Silverglade is in his school’s symphonic band, the school jazz band and a rock band made up of a drummer singer and himself on bass.

In the future, he hopes to be able to work on the business end of music by producing it and to continue playing bass.

“It’s just something I really enjoy,” Silverglade said.

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Couple’s love and love of art on display at American University Museum

Works of art on display.
Works of art on display.

WASHINGTON–An overly-confident, extroverted poet and a timid, war-torn artist found a similar passion for mystical literature that flourished into one artistic relationship. Ten years after the death of 80-year-old Jess Collins, an artist, an art exhibit opens that gives a closer and detailed look into their relationship in the early 1950s called “An Opening of the Field: Jess, Robert Duncan, & Their Circle.” This exhibit was open to all at the American University Museum at Katzen Arts Center on Wednesday. “We predominantly focus on international, political-oriented and local art,” said Lucy Crowley, a senior administrative and marketing assistant at the museum. This exhibit has made its way through the nation and made possible by a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts. Collins and Robert Duncan, a poet, collaborated to make art based on postmodernism, a late-20th-century style in the arts representing the departure from modernism. Duncan commonly used high-colored crayons and Collins made collages and called them “pastes-ups.” The main themes of Collins’ artwork were chemistry, alchemy, the occult, and male beauty. However, their library had works of Greek myths, Victorian fairy tales and the tarot and Paracelsus, according to the New York Times. Their love for literature translated into their works, despite some different themes. Their artistic style may have been different, but they often showcased their relationship through their artwork. After meeting, they lived together in a house in San Francisco. This can be seen in Jess’ “The Enamord Mage, Translation #6” that’s based off of Duncan’s The Ballad of the Enamord Mage, a love poem about Collins. Their collaborative art changed the creative vision of the upcoming generation of writers and artists. “I had never seen so many materials used,” Genevieve Stegner-Freitag, 20-year-old art major, said about the artwork. To find out more about the Katzen Arts Center, call (202)-885-1300.

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The bands play on: Fort Reno concerts start after controversy

Fort Reno Park concert stage readies for performers after controversy nearly stopped it. Photo by Brenda Vega.
The Fort Reno Park concert stage readies for performers on Monday, July 7 after controversy nearly stopped the annual event. Photo by Brenda Vega.

The decades-old Fort Reno concert series kicked off Monday after security costs threatened to cancel the annual community event this year.

The event, which has been held annually since 1968 and takes place at Fort Reno Park in Tenleytown, was abruptly cancelled June 26, generating backlash from community members and a plea to reopen from D.C.’s Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton.

But, concert organizers and the National Park Service reached a compromise that has the concert back on this week to the satisfaction of locals like Owen Kibenge who thinks it’s a great community event.

“I think that it adds color to our community,” said Kibenge, 39. “I like hearing the bands play.”

Kibenge believes that community events, such as the concert series, are important to create close ties among the people in the Tenleytown area, which is in Northwest Washington, D.C. Kibenge also stressed the need for these social occasions which serve as important family events, while at the same time serving the needs of the community.

“One hundred percent, we need those community events,” Kibenge said. “They attract a diverse crowd of people.”

And Kibenge feels the diversity that community events attract is beneficial to Tenleytown. Others agree.

A change.org petition filed to allow the concert to continue reached 1,500 signatures within two days of the cancellation. And a Twitter campaign using #savefortreno garnered other passionate responses. One Twitter user wrote: “So glad that so many people worked so hard to #savefortreno. It is by far my favorite DC institution.”

But other Tenleytown residents were unaware of the event and the controversy surrounding its cancellation.

Menelik Walker, 22, an employee at Whole Foods in Tenleytown, hadn’t heard about the community concert series.

“I find it odd,” Walker said, about the apparent lack of advertising for the concerts. An email sent Monday to the concert organizers was not returned.

Walker believed it was strange he hadn’t heard people discussing the events at Fort Reno Park, and felt it was surprising he hadn’t heard anything from social media, or through traditional advertisements like fliers.

Haddy Gale, 22, another employee at Whole Foods, said she missed advertising and information about the concert, too.

“I hadn’t heard about it,” said Gale, who works but doesn’t live in Tenleytown. “People that live here might hear from friends but I don’t know.”

For those who do attend and look forward to the annual event, the Fort Reno concert series has become a part of local tradition and serves as a platform for feeding the creative need of the community.

“Music is the cup of wine that feeds the cup of silence,” Kibenge said. “I want to drink music all the time.”

 

 

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Local art framed at the Katzen Arts Center

WASHINGTON–A photograph of SpaghettiOs hangs against the wall.

Paintings of bare women, one smoking a cigarette, line a nearby hallway.

A portrait of a cowboy, made of colors and oils, is framed and hung.

These are just some of the many works on display this summer in sixth temporary exhibits at the Katzen Arts Center on the campus of American University in Washington D.C. The works are all on loan and contribute to the museum’s international, local and political messages, according to Lucy Crowley, an administrative and marketing assistant at the museum.

“You can take pictures and even small videos,” Crowley said.

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A picture of SpeghettiOs stands out in the local art exhibit at the Katzen Arts Center. Photo by Will Amari.

The local art exhibition is a donation from the Franz and Virginia Bader Fund, a 13-year-old organization that gives grants to artists within 150 miles of Washington, D.C.

In order to be eligible to receive a grant, an artist must be at least 40 years and must write an essay on why it would advance their lives as an artist, according to the Bader Fund website. Donations are given out every year, with minimum grants awarded of $15,000.

The exhibit opened on June 14 and closes Aug. 17. Artists include Aaron Brown, Hadieh Shafie and Rik Freeman, all of whom are long-time painters still trying to master their craft.

“My favorite piece is this one,” said Maia Plesent, a 20-year-old who works at the museum. She pointed at one of the works done by Emily Piccirillo. It is a photograph of what looks like the branches of trees.

“All of it so strange and interesting,” Piccirillo said.

Genevieve Stegner-Freitag, 20, is a gallery attendant at the Katzen Arts Center and she feels that it is a great idea to promote artists in the local metropolitan area.

“It is a way of expressing your individual personality, who you are,” Stegner-Freitag said. “It’s fun.”

To find out more about the Franz and Virginia Bader Fund, visit the website.

Summer museum hours are 11 a.m to  4 p.m. Located at 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20016

 

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Bader Fund grants opportunities to local artists

Jason Horowitz's "SpaghettiOs with Sliced Franks." Photo by Will Amari.
Jason Horowitz’s “SpaghettiOs with Sliced Franks.” Photo by Will Amari.

WASHINGTON–“The Franz and Virginia Bader Fund: Second Act” is spending the summer at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center, continuing the work of its founders to reveal hidden talent in local artists.

Established in 2001 in accordance with Virginia Bader’s will, the Bader Fund provides a minimum of one grant annually to visual artists of at least age 40 living within a 150 mile radius of Washington, D.C. “Second Act” gives the public another look at the art produced by grantees over the past 13 years.

Maia Plesent, a gallery attendant, believes that the fund benefits artists’ development.

“The money goes towards the artists to expand their repertoire and explore new mediums,” Plesent said. “So I think it’s a great way to allow artists to learn and improve their art.”

The exhibit offers a variety of artwork, something that Plesent said makes it interesting.

“I enjoy how different everything is, there’s so many different mediums, so many different types of art in this exhibit,” Plesent said.

Rik Freeman is a narrative painter whose oil on canvas painting Samba na Praia is travelling with “Second Act.”  His art falls on the Bader Fund’s unique spectrum due to its ability to tell stories, a skill which Freeman picked up as a child in Athens, Georgia.

Yukiro Yamaguchi's "Energy," made of hand-cast resin and stainless steel wire. Photo by Melanie Pincus.
Yukiro Yamaguchi’s “Energy,” made of hand-cast resin and stainless steel wire. Photo by Melanie Pincus.

“I would ‘overhear’ grown folks’ conversations and feel their emotions, read a book, listen to music, and there’s a movie going on in my head,” Freeman wrote on his website. “This fueled my artistic style as a narrative painter.”

Stories like Freeman’s can be beneficial in applying for a Bader Fund grant, a process requiring artists to provide a detailed resume and a 1,000-word proposal outlining what receiving a grant would mean for their lives and work as an artist.  This process ensures that selected artists’ “ability to concentrate on their art would be enhanced by receiving a grant,” according to the Bader Fund’s website.

Olivia Whitener, 17, and a participant in a summer program at AU, was unaware of the “Second Act” exhibit at Katzen, but doesn’t think that the fund’s efforts to recognize older artists are necessarily optimum.

“These people should be established,” Whitener said.

However, she still appreciates some benefits of acknowledging a different age group.

“People often support younger artists,” Whitener said. “It’s encouraging people out of the norm.”

To find out more about the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center, call 202-885-1300, or visit the museum at 4400 Massachusetts Ave. N.W.

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Messages hidden in metal

WASHINGTON—Splatters of paint, hardware formed in unconventional ways, a message hidden within metal.

These are what consist of BK Adams’ latest exhibit, Mynd Alive, on display this summer at the Katzen Arts Center on the campus of American University in Washington, D.C.

In his artist statement about his works, which are outside in the sculpture garden at Katzen, Adams says, “I present to you Mynd Alive Sculptural Exhibition. Each sculpture tells its own story as do WE…Enjoy.”

In a piece titled “Ladder Me,” Adams forms a chair and places it high on a pole, almost like it’s the grand prize.

A paint splatted chair sits high upon a pole in BK Adams’ sculpture, “Ladder Me.” Photo by Courtney Allen.

In Adams’ writing about “Ladder Me,” the overall message of the sculpture is that before you relax in life, more important things should get done first. Adams’ sculptures speak volumes of color, spirit and individuality.

A message of self-empowerment is displayed in Adams’ “Where Do I Belong.” Similar to “Ladder Me,” the sculpture is of a chair placed high on a stand.

Next to the picture of “Where Do I Belong” in a booklet of his work found at the Katzen Arts Center, Adams’ writes, “If U want 2 B a Teacher, Shoot 4 a PRINCIPAL. If U want 2 B a Lawyer, Shoot 4 a JUDGE. If u wanna B SOMEBODY, shoot 4 YOURSELF.”

A work by BK Adams on display at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center. Photo by Courtney Allen.

Adams, a Washington, D.C.-based artist born in 1972, is self taught. He takes experiences from earlier years to mold his artwork.

According to his biography, located on Adams’ website, “Adams considers himself a Thinker, foremost. It is important to the artist that all of his work has meaning—that it shares a story.”

His works are among six visiting exhibits at the museum this summer, according to Lucy Crowley, an administrative and marketing assistant at the museum.

To find more information about BK Adams, visit his website.

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Stand out pieces at the AU Museum at the Katzen Arts Center

WASHINGTON—Pieces of artwork at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center are all special in their own light but some may just have another dimension to them. Literally.

Two pieces of work by Hadieh Shafie especially stand out because they actually stand out.

Both pieces feature paper handwritten and printed with the word “love” or “passion” in Farsi. The first piece titled “26000” pages was created in 2011 and features colored paper rolled up to make circles of various different sizes, and colors from all across the color spectrum. The piece is part of Shafie’s Katab Series and is owned by Shafie.

The second piece stands out even more than the first. Handcrafted in 2014 the work named “Spike 6” is made out of both acrylic and paper and features the acrylic and paper in a seemingly random arrangement that pops forward toward the center of each circle.

When standing at just the right location, a few steps away from the piece, the work seems to drift closer to the viewer as they focus and stare into the many mesmerizing spikes.

“It feels like it is coming at you,” said Melanie Pincus, 15.

The work is in a private collection.

On the second floor of the building lies a piece of work by Jess, named “The Enamord Mage: Translation #6.”

In the work, a man looks at a book, but when further inspected the painting reveals that it may be more as this painting has been built up in unlikely places such as a glop of paint that intrudes toward the viewer between two books. The piece of art does not have a flat surface and instead is jagged and rough.

“When you back up it is normal but when you get closer it pops out at you,”  said Halle Jefferson, 16.

The two pieces by Shafie will be on display until Aug. 17 in The Franz and Virginia Bader Fund: Second Act exhibition at the Katzen Arts Center at American University in Washington D.C.  The painting by Jess will also be on display until Aug. 17 at the Katzen Arts Center. It is in the An Opening of the Field: Jess, Robert Duncan, & Their Circle exhibition.

For more information visit Katzen Art Center’s website.