ART+CULTURE+LIFE
ANNAPOLIS
THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE I.W.S.A. & THE ANNAPOLIS ARTS DISTRICT
SPRING 2019
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TRIBUTE
I
f Mr. Lahn gives you his old purple kayak, you will need to go and get it from his house. You will make sure he is sure, and he will say yes. He will tell you this purple kayak is too slow for him, and you will chuckle together. Mr. Lahn speaks slowly and moves thoughtfully, now that he is older, but he prefers to kayak fast. Before you leave his house, he will show you his beautiful garden and tell you about the creek behind his house, its precious source of water, how he lobbied local government for its improvement. Mr. Lahn cares for the environment. When you get the kayak home, you and your seven-year-old daughter will cart it to the creek for a trial run. The water will be brown, and your daughter will ask why. You will explain erosion and the importance of trees and bay grasses. There will be trash floating in the creek. As you paddle, your daughter will pick up plastic bags out of the bay and tuck them in the kayak. Approaching an alcove, you will see a downed tree resting in the water and stop to take a picture of its gangling branches. You will marvel together at the beauty of nature even while in decay. Across the way, you will see a great blue heron and stop paddling so it will stay. The heron will watch you. You both will be silent, aware that you are unwelcome guests. Paddling back to shore, your daughter will notice the sun’s rays illuminating the guppies playing just below the murky surface. She will dip her hand in and try to touch them. When you are back on shore, your daughter will immediately start talking about the next time you will go kayaking together in your new purple kayak.
If Mr. Lahn Gives You His Old Purple Kayak by BRENDA WINTRODE
Bee the Change (2018) by Jeff Huntington/original source photo by David Hartcorn. Oil on canvas.
When you see Mr. Lahn a few months later, he will be bundled in a scarf and jacket. You will tell him that you and your daughter went out in his old purple kayak. He will look at you intently as you share everything you saw. Mr. Lahn will smile as he listens. You will not realize until much later the larger gift that Mr. Lahn gave you
and your daughter with his generous gesture. And you will not know that you will tenderly express that irony in writing, after he passes, one month from now. You will not realize that this is the last time you will see him. You will bend down to give him a hug goodbye, as you do when you see Mr. Lahn, and you will be so very glad you did. Be at peace, friend. August 2, 1942–November 22, 2018
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Issue 1
Mr. Lahn Gives You 3 IfHis Purple Kayak •DICK LAHN
By Brenda Wintrode
CANVAS
ART+CULTURE+LIFE
CONTENTS
TRIBUTE
|
Springtime 12 New of Creativity •MOE HANSON DELAITRE
By Julia Gibb
WAVES on It 22 Work Until We Love It! •AHREN BUCHHEISTER
By Leah Weiss
ANNAPOLIS
6 | Spring 2019
Volume 6
SNAP Beauty & 30 Finding Connection in Chaos
THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE I.W.S.A. & THE ANNAPOLIS ARTS DISTRICT
SPRING 2019
•SARAH JANE HOLDEN
By Leigh Glenn
SPACE
40 Art Things for All
COVER
•ART THINGS
Coco by Moe Hanson Delaitre.
By Melissa Lauren
Spray paint on mixed media.
SUP of 46 Evolution a Communal Place •ANNAPOLIS MARKET HOUSE
By Christine Fillat
66
INK
54
WUNDERKIND Fostering Musical Futures
Night Walker •JANICE COLEMAN
•ANNAPOLIS SYMPHONY ACADEMY
By Andrea Stuart
By Desiree Smith-Daughety
WAVES
60 Where Voices Soar
• U S N AVA L A C A D E M Y G L E E C L U B S
WUNDERKIND Mentoring Movie-Making
By Desiree Smith-Daughety
74
•FILMSTERS ACADEMY
By Locum Tenensmith
CALENDAR
82
The I.W.S.A.(Inner West Street Association) & the Annapolis Arts District Calendar
Editor’s Inkwell
I
f you read Up.St.ART Annapolis, then you have probably noticed that we love language. We enjoy winding our way around narratives that take us inside the lives of movers and shakers and art makers. Most of all, we love stories told by a variety of voices. As such, we’re always looking for freelance contributors. Are you a writer who enjoys art and creativity? Do you fancy yourself a word nerd, lexicon lover, or ink-slinging virtuoso? Do you enjoy digging beneath the surface of a subject to uncover something new or get a peek at its essence? We’re interested in writers who have a passion for the written language, an inquiring mind, and an urge to tell stories. If you would like to contribute to Up.St.ART—whether just once in a while or on a quarterly basis—please send your resume and two writing clips to upstarteditor@gmail.com. Title the subject line “Up.St.ART Writer Query” and include in the email a cover letter with your contact information. Write on.
upstart-annapolis.com | 7
We’re fifty, but we feel so much younger!
Since 1969, we’ve been producing beautiful ceramics and offering the best in handcrafted goods. And you’ve been with us every step of the way. Every person we meet and every piece we make has a story, and that’s been the most fulfilling part of our journey. Thank you for being a part of our story and our history. Our home is your home. 40 State Circle, Annapolis, MD 410.268.6153 www.AnnapolisPottery.com @AnnapolisPottery
ART+CULTURE+LIFE
ANNAPOLIS
Publisher & Creative Director Jimi Davies jimihaha@gmail.com Editorial Director Andrea Stuart upstarteditor@gmail.com Copy Editor Leah Weiss Associate Editors Michele Callaghan MacDuff Perkins
Art Director Cory Deere cdeere@gmail.com Contributing Photographers Gregg Patrick Boersma Paula Dixon Alison Harbaugh Sarah Jane Holden Advertising Jimi Davies jimihaha@gmail.com
Contributing Editors Christine Fillat Julia Gibb Leigh Glenn Melissa Lauren Desiree Smith-Daughety Leah Weiss Brenda Wintrode
facebook.com/UpstartAnnapolis twitter.com/upstartnaptown instagram.com/UpstartAnnapolis
SUBMISSIONS: For article submissions, email proposal to upstarteditor@gmail.com. Up.St.Art Annapolis Magazine is published quarterly. Subscription rate: $40, payable in advance. Single copies $10. Back issues, if available, $15 (includes shipping and handling). For subscriptions and all other inquires, send an email to jimihaha@gmail.com or call 410-212-4242. Entire contents Š 2019 by Up.St.Art Annapolis MagazineTM unless otherwise noted on specific articles. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited without Publisher permission.
10 | Spring 2019
Christine Fillat
Julia Gibb
Leigh Glenn
Melissa Lauren
Desiree Smith-Daughety
Leah Weiss
Brenda Wintrode
WRITERS PHOTOGRAPHERS
Gregg Patrick Boersma
Paula Dixon
Alison Harbaugh
Sarah Jane Holden
upstart-annapolis.com | 11
CANVAS
12 | Spring 2019
w e NSpringtime of Creativity by JULIA GIBB
U
ssy-sur-Marne is an ancient farming town on the Marne River, a 45-minute train ride east from Paris, France. With a nine-centuries-old church at its heart and stone walls dating back to the time of Christ, Ussy puts Annapolis’ idea of a historic town into perspective. Moe Hanson Delaitre, portrait and figure painter, and over the last few years, street artist inspired by the graffiti of Paris, is an American expatriate. She grew up in Upstate New York, where her interest in art began early. With other artists in the family, she never questioned her own path as an artist. In the early 1980s, she moved to the Annapolis area, where she became a key member of the artistic community.
While still living in Annapolis, Delaitre met her future husband, Jean-François, at a wedding in Southern France. “It was love at first sight, and it changed both of our lives, radically, on the spot.” After seven years of traveling between the States and France with older daughter Bessie Turner, son Jack Turner, and nowteenage daughter Ella, the family moved to France permanently in 2009. Delaitre maintains close connections in the States with friends, family, and Annapolis’ art community, returning at least twice a year to visit. Bessie and Jack now both live in Annapolis. Delaitre lives on an operating farm on property that has been in her husband’s family for generations. This is a place
Moe Delaitre packing up her series "Les Effrontées (The Brazen)." First solo exhibit in Paris at The American University of Paris. Photo by Delphine Piovant.
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where a vegetable garden is a given, providing rows of tomatoes, greens, and winter squash, as well as flowers grown just for beauty. Stroll out the back of the property, and one can walk for miles along rolling, bucolic farmland, hedgerows, tree breaks, and streams. The attitude
about wandering on the property of others is more relaxed there than in the States, and it feels as if one might walk forever. The open skies can shift from sunny to cloudy to bruise-colored and stormy fairly quickly. As one walks back toward the Delaitre
Gelsey Kirkland, American Prima Ballerina by Moe Delaitre. Spray paint on wheat seed carton.
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property, the view is dominated by three large silo-type buildings, dark green, with sloping, gently pointed roofs. Inside the Delaitre home, one finds the classic beauty of a rustic, 500-year-old farmhouse, with exposed timbers and eccentric winding staircases, and filled with homey touches, contemporary art, and tall rubber boots. After moving to Annapolis, Delaitre began to study under Baltimore artist David Zuccarini. He belonged to a lineage of painters known as the Baltimore Realists and taught the principles of Maroger—an Old Masters technique whereby a medium is used to build thin, translucent skins of oil paint to render a lush, lifelike quality, the recipe of which was developed by artist and conservator Jacques Maroger. After ten years, Zuccarini pushed his apprentice out of the nest. “He told me it was time to do or die,” she says. Although Delaitre hasn’t spoken to her former teacher in years, she says, “I do think of him every day, I do still hear his words in my head when I try to bend a shadow.” While studying with Zuccarini, Delaitre maintained a studio residency at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts in Annapolis, where she worked until 2002. “It was heaven at Maryland Hall, back in those days,” she says, recalling the sense of community. “Every studio was full.” She describes how the artists would pool their resources, throwing dance parties to raise money when the facility needed electrical upgrades or other improvements. Delaitre’s early work contains
nods to her formal background in the use of form, color, composition, and symbolic imagery. Pastel compositions are rendered in incredibly tight detail, with richness, darkness, and saturated color rarely seen with the medium. Her older, commissioned portraits often reveal a twist that gives them a contemporary edge, such as an unexpected figure peering around a corner from down a long dark hallway, adding mystery to the work’s narrative, as the main subject dominates the foreground, posing with her house pets and flanked by pictures of horses hung on the walls. “Her subjects were always specifically posed, placed in a specific setting, with small details that only hold significance with the individual or family in the painting [for example, a family’s beloved horses appearing on the wall in the background of Kristen Pratt at Wolf Run, 2003]” says Delaitre’s son, who is an accomplished photographer. “I think this attention to detail has influenced my photography, and I always look for small details that go unnoticed by the majority of viewers—details that hold a special significance if you know where to look.” While in Annapolis, Delaitre built a vast clientele, becoming a sought-after portraitist. She formed relationships with local artists, galleries, and small businesses, and is still represented locally by Katherine Burke’s Annapolis Collection Gallery. Her works are in numerous permanent public and private collections, including the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, the US Naval Academy, and the University of Maryland’s Dental Museum. They have also appeared
Georgia O’Keeffe by Moe Delaitre. Spray paint on sugar beet carton.
on magazine and book covers such as National Geographic and for Miramax-Hyperion publishing. In 2007, she was invited to exhibit in the Florence Biennale in Italy. The American University of Paris gave her her first solo exhibit in France in 2014, and she is represented in
Paris by Galerie Martine Moisan. In December 2018, she had a dualgallery opening at the Annapolis Collection Gallery and ArtFarm, a local multimedia art space, on the same night, just a couple of storefronts apart; her edgier work was displayed at ArtFarm while
upstart-annapolis.com | 15
her more conventional portraits were shown at the Annapolis Collection Gallery. In 2013, another body of Delaitre’s work made its way from Ussy-sur-Marne to Annapolis. L’Art du Nu Francais (The Art of the French Nude) consisted of 33 figure paintings of women from her French village and was exhibited at 49 West Coffeehouse, Winebar & Gallery. Delaitre had met the women around town, at her daughter’s school, and spoke
Delaitre’s most recent portraits are only “traditional” at f irst glance.
Printemps (Spring) from series "The 4 Seasons." Spray paint on wood panel.
16 | Spring 2019
Printemps (Spring) from the series "The 4 Seasons." Spray paint on old curtains.
with them about posing for her in her studio, located adjacent to the family home on the farm. She had all of the women assume the same pose, reclining on their side, looking away from the viewer. The figure forms a diagonal within the composition, with an emphasis drawn to the swell of their buttocks, the roundness treated with special care of color and highlights. She asked the women to imagine floating over the rolling fields surrounding their village. In talking and working with these women, she felt herself becoming more integrated with the community she now calls home. Delaitre’s most recent portraits are only “traditional” at first glance. Since embracing an obsession with street art, she began incorporating more contemporary methods and materials into her repertoire, including spray paint, seed cartons, farming equipment containers, and meticulously cut stencils. “They make strangely comfortable partners with the traditional portrait,” she expresses in a blog post. “The dirty, often oil-stained cartons have gotten me to loosen my realist grip and free up my inner art student.” The results of her spraypainted portraits on cardboard are astonishing, managing to appear at first as hyperrealistic charcoal drawings or traditional grisaille oil paintings. Only on closer inspection can the viewer realize the imperfect spatter of aerosol and the dented corrugated surface of the cartons.
Sister Terese by Moe Delaitre. Spray paint on bike box covered in Charlie Hebdos.
upstart-annapolis.com | 17
Mother Nature is a French Chick by Moe Delaitre. Spray paint on wood.
18 | Spring 2019
“It’s understandable to see hyperrealistic aerosol portraits on a monumental street art scale, but to see them executed on a smaller scale—it took me a while to wrap my mind around what turns out to be a very obsessive process. Just to create one eye or lip, she has to create so many different stencils,” says fellow portrait artist Jeff Huntington. “She’s using new materials to speak an old language.” A series of stencil art depicting a young Coco Chanel in profile has become a well-known motif in Delaitre’s work, and it opened her up to the world of street art. As a novice in this particular genre, she has received a warm welcome and generous help from other urban artists. Although Parisian culture is more accepting of graffiti and street art than is her former home of Annapolis, she still gets a rush from creating pieces within seconds in the urban landscape of Paris, in the dark of night, in danger of being caught. There comes a time in an
artist’s life when, having spent so many years exploring a subject, acquiring skills and muscle memory, and creating one’s own unique art history, a new springtime of creativity breaks open the work from the inside. Such seems Moe Delaitre portrait by Alison Harbaugh. to be the case with Delaitre’s she is a bountifully breasted series "The Four Seasons," which woman in a beret, a bra, black explodes with patterns, textures, a crinolines, and red and white mix of stylization and naturalism, striped leg warmers, with birds and with markings that evoke balanced on her fingers. The both contemporary graffiti and painting is titled Mother Nature classical gestures, creating a dual is a French Chick. The master is vocabulary all her own. Female forever a student. █ figures serve as iconic metaphors for winter, spring, summer, and fall. Among these representations Learn more about of the seasons, a recurring subject Moe Delaitre’s artwork at in Delaitre’s work over the last www.portraitsbymoe.com/blog.htm three decades, Mother Nature, has been reborn. In this incarnation,
CANVAS
Delaitre with her muse in Paris. Mother Nature is a French Chick. Spray paint on panel. Photo by Delphine Piovant.
upstart-annapolis.com | 19
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WAVES
22 | Spring 2019
Work on It Until We Love It! by LEAH WEISS photography by ALISON HARBAUGH
O
ne week in January 2016, Ahren Buchheister’s parents were trying to reach him. They kept leaving messages but heard nothing. Apparently, he had been preparing for a David Bowie tribute concert and was busy charting out individual parts to “Blackstar,” a nearly tenminute song, for his band Pompeii Graffiti to perform. “We were trying to call him to give him our old car, but he was not getting back to us,” says his mother, Bevin, laughing. “He was like a monk, cut off from everything, working on that piece!” Those who know the 30-year-old understand that this is not unusual. He often gets into a flow state, working on something for eight to ten hours at a stretch. He once asked every band he was playing in to make a music video for a National Public Radio song contest. Not
even faintly interested in winning, he pulled together and submitted 11 videos within weeks. “I probably didn’t have a lot to do that month and thought it would be a great idea to make something with all of my friends,” he modestly explains. Buchheister is a prodigious musical talent, proficient in many styles including rock, swing, jazz, classical, country, and American roots. While acoustic, electric, and classical guitars are his primary instruments, he’s adept at dobro, pedal steel, mandolin, and electric and upright basses and can play studio-quality lines on a host of other instruments. “Whatever the song needs is what I’ll do,” he says. “I’m happy being in a supporting role.” Cellist Erin Snedecor, who since 2013 has been collaborating full time with Buchheister in three
Digital collage portrait of Ahren Buchheister.
upstart-annapolis.com | 23
24 | Spring 2019
bands—Black Rhinoceros, Doublespeak, and Pompeii Graffiti—admires his drive, dedication, and generosity. “He’s out six to seven nights a week playing a show. And before that, he’ll be in a recording session, usually for somebody else, and then he’ll be teaching, and then he’ll come and play three sets with a band . . . and he’ll run sound—he’ll make sure your live sound is amazing because he wants you to sound good. He’ll be the first one there and the last one out. He’ll make sure all your bartenders are tipped and that everyone’s fed. He wants Annapolis musicians to play out and feel comfortable, and he wants to play with you for no ulterior motive—he just wants to play.” “He’s got this work ethic that’s just out of control,” declares Ruben Dobbs. Buchheister arranged string and horn parts on most of Swampcandy’s albums and put down dobro and steel guitar tracks. “He’s so many different things,” says Dobbs. “He’s an excellent songwriter, composer, and arranger.
He’s such a good musician and so song oriented. Collaborating with him is super-easy. He usually just does it, and it’s right. He puts the song first.” “Everything he plays is in service of the song,” says James Von Lenz, with whom Buchheister plays in Doc Pine & The Respect He Deserves. He and another of his bands, The Thorn Apples, had Buchheister record some songs. “Everyone agreed that it was, hands-down, our favorite recording experience,” he says. Alexander Peters recently recorded a single at Buchheister’s home studio in Arnold. “I knew I didn’t want it to sound like my old stuff and asked for help. A few fuzz pedals, ’80s synth sounds, and one saxophone later, we had something special,” he says. “He breathes and sleeps music. Odds are, he’s playing music right now, while you’re reading this.” Nothing in Buchheister’s early childhood foreshadowed his musical excellence. He had a traumatic encounter with the recorder in primary school and played violin (“poorly,” he says) in orchestra. Then, during the summer before seventh grade, he stumbled upon his father’s guitar. It was missing some strings. “I just started messing around on it. I remember picking out little melodies like ‘We Don’t Need No Education’ by Pink Floyd—it’s three notes, you don’t need to change strings,” he recalls. “I was immediately interested in it, more interested than I’ve been in anything else, ever.” One day, after hearing Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” for the first time over the car radio, he later remembered and figured out its guitar
line, note-for-note, in the correct key. “That was one of the few instances of having that kind of luck, that early on, without any ear training,” he says. “It’s one of those great riffs—it plays itself on the guitar. That was inspiring to me.” He became immersed in music. “I loved doing it, loved thinking about it, and loved talking about it.” Dobbs taught guitar to Buchheister for six months, after which he told the teen’s mother, “I can’t teach him any more.” He encouraged Buchheister to form a band with his peers and eventually invited him into his own band. Dobbs brought him to gigs in Annapolis, Baltimore, and New York City and involved him in productions of his rock opera, Jody, during which Buchheister subbed for the lead guitarist with two-week’s notice. “He came in and played the material flawlessly.” Buchheister played with schoolmates nearly every weekend of his high school senior year in the indie rock band Pompeii Graffiti. He worked hard to deepen his musical skills at Towson University, where he studied jazz, classical, and commercial guitar performance. “My ability to pick things up pretty quickly is something that people in the music community are fascinated by. I totally did not have it before. I went [to Towson] with really bad ears.” During college, he brought Pompeii Graffiti back together to record, infusing what he’d learned into the songs with string arrangements and vocal harmonies. He also spent time with Annapolis guitarist Gary
“Whatever the song needs is what I’ll do,” he says. “I’m happy being in a supporting role.”
upstart-annapolis.com | 25
Wright. “He expanded my world view,” Buchheister says, “I learned a lot from him about how to play chords and melody at the same time—that’s a very important part of how I play.” Says Wright of Buchheister, “He’s fluent in so many musical genres while maintaining his own voice. He’s also a great improviser. I can always count on him to grasp the feel and play what’s needed.” Of Buchheister’s role as a producer, songwriter Dan Mollen says, “He helps me form songs in ways I wouldn’t have anticipated. He’ll say, ‘Oh, what we need here is some glockenspiel,’ and then he just pulls one out and plays it amazingly well. It never ceases to astound me.” Buchheister’s songwriting has evolved over the years. Initially focusing on his own personal experiences, he’s shifted to social issues, presenting them through an intimate view of someone else’s life. Most of what he considers his best songs are still in production and will take a few more years to release. “Songwriting is the melody—the chords, and the lyrics, at its barest elements—and that is a beautiful thing on its own. But production is equally as important,” he explains. In the duo Black Rhinoceros, Buchheister and Snedecor write together, usually starting with a riff, then playing off each other. “He has so many ideas and such a clear vision. It’s an interesting collaboration that never gets old or stale. He’ll say, ‘Let’s just work on it until it’s good, until we both love it!’ It would be so easy to give up, but he can’t,” Snedecor laughs. He’s proud of Pompeii Graffiti’s Internet World Tour, a 13-part multi-media video series. Over a two-year period, he released one song at a time over the internet. Each piece was introduced by a phony host, ostensibly from a different location—a jocular acknowledgment that the band couldn’t tour. Buchheister engaged different videographers, recording
26 | Spring 2019
Erin Snedecor and Ahren Buchheister make up the duo Black Rhinoceros.
Internet World Tour (2018) album by Pompeii Graffiti. L-R: Host of the IWT video series "Rolland Feldspar," Ahren Buchheister, Cara Jamison, Tyler Grimsley, Robin Eckman, and Erin Snedecor.
Pompeii Graffiti at Milkboy Arthouse in College Park, MD. L-R: Jesse Kirchner (bass), Ahren Buchheister (guitar), Benjamin Heemstra (keys), and Brian Moran (drums).
studios, and sound engineers as well as guest musicians, creating yet another community project. “I feel very lucky to work with so many talented people. I get to work with my favorite musicians and songwriters, and that’s a dream come true. It makes me wish that more people could find that local music is often just as good as global or national stars—they just have to go out and find it.” █ Learn more about Buchheister’s music and upcoming shows at www.Ahrenf ield.com
WAVES
Pompeii Graffiti at MilkBoy Arthouse in College Park, MD. L-R: Erin Snedecor (cello), Ahren Buchheister (guitar), and Jesse Kirchner (bass).
upstart-annapolis.com | 27
UPSTART.AD.2019.1.pdf
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THE MITCHELL GALLERY
The power of the print
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Making Our Mark:
Eight Washington Printmakers
March 7 – April 21, 2019
Image & Imagination:
Anne Arundel County Juried Exhibition 2019
May 23 – June 9, 2019
For information about all exhibition-related events including tours, lectures, and book club,
visit sjc.edu/mitchell-gallery or call 410-626-2556.
Expect the Unexpected St. John’s College | 60 College Avenue | Annapolis, MD 21401 Pauline Jakobsberg, Europe 1930's, 2015. Etching on Arches.
Don Dement, Red Umbrella, 2015. Color photograph.
SNAP
30 | Spring 2019
Finding Beauty & Connection in Chaos by LEIGH GLENN photography by SARAH JANE HOLDEN
S
even years ago, documentary photographer Sarah Jane Holden would not have guessed that the birth of her daughter, Isabella, would have ignited her own creative fires. But during that neonatal time, during those moments of disarray, she asked herself, “What is this new life?” and “What does this new life look like?” sparking an imaginative craving. This coincided with moving back to Annapolis from Washington, DC, to raise their family—she and her husband had rented in Annapolis for a year and had come to love the people and being near the water.
Born and raised near St. Louis, Missouri, Holden came from a family of teachers. As a child, she was immersed in the arts, music especially. Her affinity to the sciences and her family’s interest in service led her to study speechlanguage pathology. She headed East for her clinical fellowship, which was through a private practice in the DC and Annapolis areas. There, she worked with adults— including those who had had strokes, traumatic brain injuries, or Parkinson’s disease to help them regain their ability to communicate—as well as with children with autism, developmental delays, dyslexia, and other issues.
A family strolls through the streets of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
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Midwives Vanessa Caldari (left) and Michele Perez Chiques step in to see another patient during a full clinical day at Centro MAM in Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Holden also had to learn to trust the process itself. 32 | Spring 2019
Eventually, she worked as a graduate-level instructor and clinical supervisor for speechlanguage pathology students at the George Washington University in DC, overseeing the handling of adult and pediatric neurology clients. In her work, especially with families, Holden often found herself either alone or as part of a team working
in an intimate setting such as a family’s home, and working with the vulnerability that comes with the situation. She had to establish trust and hone her observation and analysis skills to chart a therapeutic path for child and family. For the long-term commitment that working as a speech therapist requires, Holden also had to learn to trust in the process itself.
Midwives Yariana Feliciano Chico (right) and Michele Perez Chiques monitor a baby's heart rate during a prenatal home visit with Luisa Vazquez and Gabriel Cabrera on October 2, 2018 near San Juan, Puerto Rico. Michele and Yariana work with Mujeres Ayudando Madres (Women Helping Mothers), an organization that provides holistic education and support for families during pregnancy and childbirth.
As a new, full-time mother, Holden needed a way to engage with the huge shift in life that that new role had brought. She had long been drawn to photography, but could not afford photography classes, and so began studying it on her own—loading up on photography books that offered instruction as she focused the camera on her family’s and her own day-to-day life. She
sought out the work of women photographers, especially those who were also full-time mothers, such as Sally Mann. “Women, when they become mothers,” says Holden, “need to maintain some aspect of themselves. It’s easy to get lost in motherhood.” Photography is a significant financial commitment, with expensive equipment and classes, she explains. But when she got to
a place where she was committed to her vision, her family made the investments of time and money so that finally she could take classes. A couple of years in to making photographs, Holden looked at her body of work and felt that something big was missing. “They all looked the same,” she says of the images. “I didn’t see my life showing up in the pictures.”
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“When I first started, all I knew were family portraits at the park,” she adds. “That wasn’t my real life. My life doesn’t happen at the golden hour in the park.” After taking an online class, “Visual Storytelling,” taught by Molly Flanagan through The Define School, everything shifted. “[It became] about weaving imagery together to tell a more purposeful story,” she says. “[The class] gave me to permission to 34 | Spring 2019
embrace the mess and the chaos of being a young mother . . . That process of embracing helped me to refine what I see as meaningful work for myself. I think when you get into that phase, the mess and chaos, you’re still looking for those moments of connection and beauty. I was always looking for that.” What Holden discovered is that the same traits and skills she used as a speech-language therapist— patience, respect for the process,
and the ability to observe and analyze—also lend themselves to photography. And the difference between being a documentary photographer rather than a family photographer or one who focuses solely on the tenor of a particular moment stems from the desire to weave the images to tell a story. “It’s the difference between looking at images in isolation versus looking at the broader pictures that paint a narrative,” Holden says.
Midwives Michele Perez Chiques (center) and Yariana Feliciano Chico (right) take a moment to admire all baby clothes as Luisa Vazquez prepares for the birth of her daughter.
She recognizes that, with any process of choosing which images to share—a process that holds true across all forms of creative endeavor, there is always bias. It shows up in the way a photographer frames an image and when the shutter is clicked. “You just have to be aware of that,” she says. It’s of particular importance in documentary work, where the
aim is to accurately capture what’s happening. “You get to make that choice,” says Holden. That choice implies that two photographers shooting the same event or situation will end up with entirely different images. For Holden, finding the moments of beauty and connection is paramount. Even when her photographs represent a situation
that is chaotic or potentially so, they also impart a sense of calm to the viewer. “Even if it’s a march, and everybody’s angry, everybody is not angry,” she says. “You can shoot to focus on the negative, or you can shoot to focus on moments of connection and beauty. I try to focus on those moments . . . that could potentially translate into what you call a calming quality.”
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Warm up drills kick off with A's & Aces, a nonprofit organization in New Orleans.
Cooling off in Spa Creek after a morning kayaking on Spa Creek with Box of Rain. 36 | Spring 2019
Box of Rain counselors greet campers as they get off the bus and prepare for a day of kayaking on Spa Creek.
improve their skills by connecting This is especially true for Holden, them with nonprofits whose missions who says that, in the imageneed to be shared and whose stories saturated culture we inhabit, taking need to be told. Momenta cofounder pictures of everything can take Jamie Rose served as Holden’s mentor, people out of the moment. But and the program took place over eight for her, it’s the opposite—making days in Puerto Rico in October 2018. pictures takes her more into the The effects of Hurricane Maria the moment. “Most of the time, when year before were still felt around the I pick up my camera, I know it’s island, and some of the nonprofits because I’m slowing down,” she says. that tend to pregnant women were “I’m stopping and I’m really seeing. on the verge of closing at the time of It makes those experiences more the hurricane. Somehow, they kept vivid, more salient, and the photo is their doors open, Holden says, though the result of that.” funding is always an issue. She is keenly aware of her own As part of working to document potential impact as well. “You have the health of mothers, children, and to be okay with struggling with that pregnant women in Washington, DC, a little bit, with asking, ‘What is the Holden is researching the subject impact of the images I’m making?’” and learning to write grants. Doing she says. “If it were my child or my the latter may help her ease some family, how would I want someone of the burden for cash-strapped to treat them? That’s always going nonprofits whose work she ends up to be a factor. You’re always trying photographing. to do justice to the people you’re Holden has been interested in working with and the people you’re social issues since she was a child. encountering.” “I’m drawn to issues surrounding That sentiment comes full circle women and girls,” Holden says. as Holden considers her own family. “What you find ultimately is that “I struggle,” she says. “Once you issues don’t exist in isolation,” she enter motherhood and try to have a says. “You think it’s a singular issue business and creative endeavors, it’s you’re focusing on, but there are so constantly a juggling act. I want to many things connected with it.” For be a present mother, and I also want example, pregnancy and postpartum to be fulfilled as a professional, as a health requires access to nutritious creative. Sometimes I do better than food and healthcare, and the impacts others.” Still, Holden hopes that, of not having access are felt through a decade from now, looking back, generations. “When you are starting she’ll have been a good example— life this way,”—with a mother who especially for daughter Isabella—of didn’t get what she needed in terms a mother who also put time and of nutrition, vitamins, minerals and energy into building a business. support—“you are at a disadvantage.” “I would want her to do the same Holden knows that firsthand from her thing,” she says. █ speech therapy work. But the issues are complex, and photography is a way To see more of Sarah Jane Holden’s to sort them out and help people to documentary photographs, go to see the connections and prompt them www.sarahjaneholden.com/wander-portfolio to care. “You’re going to make better pictures if you’re more connected to the issues,” Holden says.
SNAP
Holden’s work in social services also shaped the direction of her photographic work. She appreciates the work done by small nonprofits in the DC and Annapolis areas and sees a need that she seeks to fill. “I love learning about the work that people are doing,” she says. “I find it inspiring and enjoy meeting people who are making our communities better and stronger and reaching people who are underserved.” Holden wants to be able to tell the stories of those organizations so that what they are doing has an even greater impact, beyond a particular event or portrait showing a person’s involvement with an organization. The Annapolisbased nonprofit Box of Rain is a good example. She volunteered to help tell the story of how the organization supports underserved youth in Annapolis. “I tell everybody that day—it was just a day I was with them—was one of the best days of my summer,” Holden says. She felt inspired, not only by the organization’s leaders, who are invested in the children, but also by the program participants who had returned later as counselors to give back. The day Holden was there, the children kayaked up Spa Creek. “There was so much sheer joy and excitement,” she says, “It really touched my heart.” Holden has a passion project in mind that stems from her ongoing interest in maternal health and well-being. She would like to document organizations that are helping to minimize the health disparities of pregnant women in Washington, DC, who, because of socioeconomic and racial differences, are at more risk for health challenges during pregnancy and childbirth. Holden gained experience photodocumenting the care of mothersto-be when she attended a photography mentorship program created by Momenta, which helps photographers
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Masterworks SEASON
José-Luis Novo, Music Director | The Philip Richebourg Chair
March 29 & 30 | 8 PM
Cosmic Depth
U.S. Naval Academy Glee Club Whitacre Deep Field Aaron Smith, conductor Beethoven Symphony No. 9 José-Luis Novo, conductor
Cathie Ryan
May 3 & 4 | 8 PM
Fantastic Light Brian Ganz, piano
Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20 Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique
May 11 | 2 PM
Family Concert
Bob Brown Puppets’ Carnival of the Animals
Fun for all ages, the annual Family Concert pairs the Symphony’s live music with comedic puppeteers and a compelling story line.
Meet the musicians after the show!
annapolissymphony.org | 410-263-0907
ASO2018-19UpstartAnnapLateWinterAd.indd 2
2/8/19 4:37 PM
SPACE
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FOR ALL
A
rt Things, in West Annapolis, is an institution. The store has always been a womanowned business, and for 53 years it has been a part of the city’s fabric. Recently, Skye Dorsey Vasquez purchased the shop from Laurie Nolan. The artists’ haven was originally owned by Nolan’s mother, Lydia, and is known for carrying a full range of art supplies
by MELISSA LAUREN photography by PAULA DIXON for everyone, including artists, designers, and architects. Its atmosphere is playful, especially with its multitude of Mona Lisa images displayed on every wall. The collection, having grown to over 500 “Altered States of Mona,” has a bit of a cult following among regular customers, many of whom often contribute original versions. Vasquez was one of those regular customers. When she learned that the store was for sale, she felt it was
extremely important to keep its doors open and had to take advantage of the opportunity. She has fond memories of going there as a child with her artist grandmother. During those visits, she often explored the treasures within while helping her grandmother gather provisions to paint sets for Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre and Colonial Players. Art Things supplies both established artists
Vintage photos of Lydia Nolan, former owner and Laurie’s mother (center, with Kim, still the store manager).
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Laurie says goodbye to her store. “It’s the customers I’ll miss the most,” she says.
Former owner Laurie Nolan holds a newspaper clipping about her mother, Lydia Nolan, the first owner of Art Things.
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and beginners. “It is good for the community to have a one-of-akind store you can’t find anywhere else,” says Vasquez. Everyone who works there is an artist or degreed in art or art education—combined, they have over 50 years of expertise in the field. It was important for Vasquez to make certain the spirit of Art Things remained intact. Kim Eshleman still manages the shop, as she has done for nearly 43 years. Customers visiting Art Things immediately feel welcome. The approachable staff loves sharing their knowledge with each guest. They take pride in helping people on their artistic path, ensuring everyone is equipped with the tools they need to create. “It is an amazing place because you can learn about anything you want,” says Vasquez. Not only is she passionate about keeping the integrity of the store alive, she also works diligently to continue developing classes for artists of all ages and abilities in the community. Offerings have included Acrylic Painting, Block Carving, How to Draw Anime, Japanese Fish Printing, Kids Friday Night Paint Night, and Watercolors, to name a few. In February 2019, Art
Things began offering weeklong afterschool programs for elementaryand middle-school-aged children. These classes are a wonderful way to supplement school-based arts education. Each class has a 10-person limit to ensure that every student receives hands-on instruction and enjoys a more personal experience. Art therapy classes for seniors are in the works, too. Art Things has an extensive inventory that includes graphic supplies, paint, canvas, brushes, paper, and calligraphy supplies, and the staff are happy to place special orders. First-time visitors are encouraged to spend time exploring. There is a vast collection of how-to art books that cover various media, and a longestablished Creative Kids department with the latest educational, fun projects to make, including kits that let each child’s imagination soar. Savvy grandparents and parents know that the shop is a great place to get birthday gifts as well as ideas for creative party activities and party favors. The staff can even customize art sets. People who don’t think of themselves as artists can also enjoy the eclectic mix of journals, pens, greeting cards, books, and other fun goodies.
Art Things offers an array of colorful pens and paints.
During a visit Art Things as a teenager, I remember purchasing a journal and being introduced to rice paper. The process of making the paper was even explained to me at the time, fostering a greater appreciation for the unique, white sheets. They were stunning—soft to the touch, practically transparent, with sheer sections that captured the light, and resembled angel’s wings. The rice paper inspired me to sculpt with wire and attach the paper to the wire to make angel ornaments for friends and family members. Artists of Annapolis are thanking Vasquez for being an angel and saving the shop so it can remain the place to get art things for all. █ Learn more about Art Things and its class offerings at www.ArtThingsInc.com The store features hard-to-find art supplies, like Winsor and Newton linseed oils.
SPACE
Former owner Laurie Nolan and new owner Skye Dorsey Vasquez.
New owner of Art Things, Skye Dorsey Vasquez, says she bought the local art shop “to branch out and help the community.”
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Competition & Exhibition
June 2-9
8 DAYS IN ANNAPOLIS
30 PLEIN AIR ARTISTS
HUNDREDS OF PIECES OF ART WWW.PAINTANNAPOLIS.ORG
Annapolis Early, Jill Stefani Wagner, Paint Annapolis 2018
MARYLAND FEDERATION OF ART
MUCH MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
Upcoming Spring Exhibitions: Member Melange I & II
February 26 - March 24 Receptions: March 3 & 17
Art on Paper
March 28 - April 27 Reception: April 7
Spring Member Show
May 2-25 Reception: May 5
Working for a Living
April 15- May 31 Visible on MFA Curve Gallery
WWW.MDFEDART.ORG Taken Back, Vinnie Hager, Lowe House 2019
SUP
Evolution of a Communal Place
I
by CHRISTINE FILLAT photography by ALISON HARBAUGH
’m going to tell you of a city on the water that needed a place for her people to buy provisions for food and gather to shoot the breeze and be a part of a community. This is the story of the Annapolis Market House and its many incarnations. Historical background presented here is based on Ginger Doyel’s 2005 book, Gone To Market: The Annapolis Market House 1698–2005. In 1683, leaders set up a grid to organize 100 acres for the newly named Anne Arundell Town and mandated that some land be set aside for a central location for city people to buy and sell goods. In 1695, when the town was rechristened Annapolis and became the state’s capital, a
market was built at the corner of Duke of Gloucester and Market Streets. Following a complaint from “Perry the Postman” that the structure marred the view from his property, the market moved to the intersection of State Circle and Maryland Avenue. It moved three more times, landing on State Circle near the old Treasury Building in 1752, where it remained until September 2, 1775, when a terrific windstorm blew it down. In 1784, eight businessmen deeded portions of their waterfront properties to the city to provide space for the Market House. Those men—Nicholas Carroll, James Maccubin, Jacob Hurst, Charles Wallace, John Davidson, Thomas Harwood, and Joseph and James
The new Market House has been a popular spot for locals and tourists with a variety of offerings throughout the year.
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Williams—made a condition in the deed that the land would be used solely for a market house. Although the structure was built that year in a spot just southwest of today’s Market House, it was on the same property. Working hours for the market were established by the city and a market master was hired. The building was rebuilt in 1819. The eighth and final rendition of the Market House was built in 1857. Constructed with cast iron
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columns, this is today’s structure . In 1888, it was wired for electricity, and it was enclosed in 1894. Old Bay Seasoning was sold there for the first time in 1939. In 1941, the city tried but failed to raze the building to make way for a USO center for Caucasian soldiers. A gym occupied the east half of the building from 1945 to 1950. During the 1970s, city efforts to demolish the Market House to make way for a high-rise building
failed due to the efforts of Historic Annapolis, spearheaded by historian Anne St. Clair Wright. Champions for the Market House introduced a “Reverter Clause” in which the land deeded to the city for the Market House would revert to the heirs of the original 1784 landowners if the land were used for any purpose other than a market house. From 1969 to 1972, Annapolis architect James Wood Burch directed a vast renovation of the structure. It
People of all ages meet at the communal tables for a bite to eat or simply to socialize. revealed the architectural integrity of the original 1857 design—the building, like much of Annapolis, had weathered wars and folly. The advent of the 1980s presented new challenges for the Market House. Lifestyles changed, and the market had to redefine itself and its mission to the community. Structural systems had to be brought up to modern-day standards. The market closed and later reopened with a different combination of tenants and operators, trying to make a business model that had longevity. Annapolis architect Chip Bohl has restored many historic buildings, including the Frederick Douglass House in Highland Beach and the B&A Trail Ranger’s Station in Earleigh Heights. He finds the Market House to be the most valuable and important retail space in Annapolis. “If the Market House is not healthy as a retail destination, then all of the retail in Annapolis suffers,” he says. “This is the prime retail real estate in Annapolis. It needs to be healthy. It needs to be vibrant. It needs to be packed.” Long gone are the days at the Market House with its stalls of live chickens and fragrant bouquets The new Market House has a bar with rotating taps for craft beers, a wine selection, and raw bar.
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The eighth and f inal rendition of the
Market House was built is 1857.
Happy hour at the Market House in downtown Annapolis attracts a crowd with drinks and oysters.
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of flowers and produce for sale from farms from the surrounding counties. Today, you are more likely to see locals and tourists gliding in on the polished concrete floors with the promise of a briny oyster and a glass of crisp local brew, or a cup of coffee, or some other of-the-moment culinary creation. Michele Bouchard, Jody Danek, and Joe Lyon are the Market House’s only tenant. They have created a beautifully lit, elegantly simple configuration of conviviality. Open since July 2018, the color scheme is black, white, and natural wood. A stunning window runs the entire length of the building, facing waterfront Ego Alley, where all of humanity may be observed passing by. People of all ages meet at the communal tables for a bite to eat or simply to socialize. Someone always seems to be working on a laptop computer. Schoolchildren hang out there at the end of their day. This is Annapolis’ newest living room. Ellen Moyer, former Mayor of Annapolis (2001–2009) considers the Market House a gathering spot. In relation to its neighboring restaurants, she says: “The restaurants are restaurants and they don’t really provide that kind of casual [open environment]. The current Market House provides that informal setting. It’s another space for meeting and getting together.” At its core, the Market House is about human interactions. Is it different than it was in 1683? Most definitely. “It’s a community center with food and beer,” says General Manager Brian Sykes. But it is much more than that. The Market House is something beyond a building. It is the heart of the community. And like the city of Annapolis, it has evolved. █ To learn more about the Market House, visit annapolismarkethouse.com
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STOKED ON BEING NEW OWNERS
SKATE - SNOW - CLOTHING - SHOES PUREBOARDSHOP.COM
1908 FOREST DR ANNAPOLIS upstart-annapolis.com | 53
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by ANDREA STUART photography by GREGG PATRICK BOERSMA
Music is love in search of a word. –Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette
V
apors gather into driblets along young Janice Coleman’s brow line, then give way to gravity. Down her cheeks and vibrating along her Sennheiser earphones, they liberate themselves, landing on a sheet of paper. Her pen stutters over the paper’s surly fleece, now moist. She lifts the pen to find a dry spot and continues etching her way through a fictional war where various species of insects fight over their human host.
This metaphor for the Cold War—realized in the sweaty walk-up attic of Coleman’s childhood Colonial home— propelled her to become a Montgomery County writing finalist in middle school. Coleman’s story, The Klutes, came about the way any story does—it grew in her bones like marrow. She spent a good portion of her childhood and adolescence behind the pen, writing and drawing. She was also found behind a sewing machine and a set of drums. Her love for animals and the environment inspired a
bachelor’s degree in marine biology. When 1992’s volatile economy contributed to a shortage of jobs, Coleman began working at a furniture distributor and went back to school for an associate’s degree in interior design. She started Magnolia Spec, LLC, a design and specification company, and has been indulging her creative spirit ever since. Coleman’s inner writer sat patiently as she worked through design concepts for clients, took up the bass guitar, taught karate
Janice Coleman, author of Night Walker, in an alleyway in Annapolis, MD.
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and kickboxing, and pacified her curiosity about the paranormal. Each October, she and her family go on ghost tours. “My husband jokes that October is Halloween month,” Coleman says with a chuckle. Then, about four years ago, one interest bled into the next. “We went on a ghost tour in Ellicott City. I was staring up at
one window and wanted to see something [happening]. I asked myself why I wasn’t writing about this.” For the next several years, she responded by writing her first novel, Night Walker, a story about a ghost tour guide. She wrote between work commitments, raising her daughter, teaching, and
Coleman prepares to autograph a copy of her book.
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spending time with her family, and in the wee hours of the night. Coleman is curious about that which cannot be explained, and writing about her queries offers her satiation. “There is too much anecdotal evidence for me to discount anything. Maybe creativity balances me out because I don’t have all the answers,” she admits. If curiosity is the mother of Night Walker, then music is the father. During the writing process, Coleman spent much of her time with headphones blaring, bathing her ears in gritty lyrics, layered guitar riffs, and electronicinfused rock tunes. A reader can almost hear Yes, Jethro Tull, Rush, The Damned, Screaming Trees, Triumvirat, Elbow, and Sex Pistols in the scenes, and it’s not surprising that the characters adopted her preferences. The book’s main character, Tom Hall, has a penchant for progressive rock while the deuteragonist, Anna Pearson, prefers punk (like Coleman, she’s also a vegan). Creativity runs in Coleman’s family. One brother is an animation professor at an art school and the other is a magician. Her husband is an editor, and her daughter plays bass in a local band, Water on Mars. Writing Night Walker was even a bit of a family affair. Coleman’s husband edited her book and her daughter provided feedback. Night Walker began with Coleman’s love for British culture. She scoured tour books, watched British TV shows, and pored over the internet. “But I knew I needed to visit London. We did two ghost tours while there. We also went to
Coleman, pictured in the lower level of Old Fox Books & Coffeehouse—formerly the location of The Annapolis Bookstore—where she wrote much of Night Walker.
Like music, sometimes a story needs to be told, and sometimes it feels better when it’s in our bones. █
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where [the characters] live to get a feeling for the area because feeling is everything!” After her visit and subsequent edits, the book emitted a truer sense of place. After completing Night Walker, Coleman sent query letters and chapters to agents and publishing houses and ultimately ended up self-publishing. An agent in London had told her that he receives 10,000 queries a year and only represents two or three of them. He explained that a query must grab him on the first page to be considered. It’s a highly subjective process, and even published authors don’t necessarily get republished. This led Coleman to forge a path that would put her books into readers’ hands. Self-publishing isn’t for the faint of heart and presents its challenges, but Coleman continues connecting with readers through social media, Amazon.com, book signings, book fairs, and festivals. She scored a coveted spot at the Sea Witch Festival in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, after frequently reaching out to the festival’s host, Browse About Books. While continuing to promote Night Walker, Coleman has slowly begun drafting its sequel in her traditional fashion, allowing the story to unfold as she goes. “A part of me wants to dig back into the characters because I miss them. They are real to me,” she says. “But something is holding me back.” A part of her is still jamming to her first novel’s soundtrack. The characters tug at her, and the storyline is singing for her pen, but she’s riding out the chorus to Night Walker a little while longer, waiting for the muses to inspire a new refrain.
To learn more about Janice Coleman and Night Walker, visit www.night-walker.weebly.com.
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Where Success Starts
e are a small school with big thinkers. Our progressive approach to teaching and learning is proven and research-based. For more than a quarter-century, St. Anne’s School of Annapolis has led the way in providing academic excellence, rooted in the development of each child’s social and emotional well-being. From our design and science labs to our turf field and performance stage, we engage the natural curiosity of students in a vibrant, experiential educational program. With small class sizes, our students receive the attention they deserve. They thrive in a setting that encourages critical inquiry, self-advocacy, persistence, and collaboration. Consistent with our Episcopal tradition, our teachers create caring classroom communities. Because they feel known, safe, and included, our students embrace challenges necessary to succeed. St. Anne’s School focuses solely on providing the best possible experience during the most formative period of children’s lives. Our teachers are developmental experts from early childhood through early adolescence. They pride themselves on knowing how each student learns and tailoring lessons that are differentiated and meaningful. At St. Anne’s School, students have time to develop their skills and interests --- there’s no pressure to grow up too fast. Each of our program levels receives top priority when it comes to scheduling, staffing, professional development, and resources. In the last year of the St. Anne’s School experience, our director of upper school placement guides every eighth grader and their parents to identify their high school of choice. Having grown in a program that cultivates intellectual discipline and a strong ethical compass, our alumni distinguish themselves in their high schools. Last year alone, our graduates received 12 scholarships to high schools for academic merit, leadership, and the arts --- with awards totaling more than $430,000. Currently, we have graduates in 32 public and private high schools across the region and beyond and 75% of reporting alumni have declared STEM majors in their current college programs. A St. Anne’s School graduate is confident, poised, and prepared to tackle the challenges ahead. Find out for yourself – schedule a visit today. StAnnesSchool.org Photos by St. Anne’s School alumnus, Jay Fleming, Class of 2001.
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WAVES
Where Voices
SOAR by DESIREE SMITH-DAUGHETY
L
ean in close. You’re about to be let in on one of Annapolis’s best-kept and unexpected secrets: The US Naval Academy has glee clubs. Plural. “Once you hear us, you don’t forget,” says Dr. Aaron Smith, the Academy’s Director of Musical Activities. Two ensembles, the Men’s Glee Club and the Women’s Glee Club, perform both independently and together. With a full range of voices, from soprano to bass, they’re able to deliver performances from Beethoven to Broadway. The ensembles perform all over the United States, offering a gamut of music to fit the occasion, including state functions—they sang in the Capitol Rotunda for President George H.W. Bush’s funeral service and for Senator John McCain’s funeral service. They also collaborate with organizations such as the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Minnesota Orchestra, perform at ceremonies such as The Kennedy Center Honors, and make their annual
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appearance in the Academy’s chapel to perform Handel’s “Messiah.” One of the clubs’ recurring responsibilities is public relations on behalf of the Academy. For this, they travel on outreach tours, helping to recruit and bolster future admissions to the school, a four-year college that serves as the US Navy’s undergraduate college and offers a variety of majors, including advanced mathematics, chemistry, and physics. All students graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree. “Almost a quarter of the school participates in music in some form or fashion, which I find stunning in a very positive way,” says Smith. “At a military, math, and science school, we have incredible music.” According to Smith, they’re accomplishing the evolution of the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) curricula into STEAM by adding art to the Academy’s lineup.
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Smith enthusiastically describes an upcoming collaboration with the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra to perform Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” as well as a contemporary piece with which he has fallen in love— Eric Whitacre’s “Deep Field,” based on images from the Hubble Space Telescope. It is a 25-minute choral, orchestral, and multimedia work that includes a video of images displaying the immensity and vastness of deep space. The audience is afforded the opportunity to participate in the last five minutes by using a pre-downloaded phone app. At a specific time during the performance, the conductor cues the audience to launch the app, and 2,000 people become like stars of the universe through the app’s visual and audial components. For ensemble members, rehearsal time is miniscule for such ambitious endeavors, with practice just twice a week for about an hour, compared with other schools that might pack in six hours of rehearsal a week. “They’re able to do miraculous things in a limited amount of time,” Smith says. “That’s the beauty of working with smart and fast young people—they’re able to pull off things other colleges couldn’t do in the time given.” Smith describes himself as a lifelong choir nerd. Originally from Texas, he has been involved in music since age four and a professional musician since he was 15. Work brought him to Manhattan for a number of years before he landed at the Academy, where he’s been for 13 years. He’s a choral specialist, consistent with his academic degrees. Smith’s technique involves garnering all of those individual voices into a cohesive whole and making beautiful sounds that people want to hear, meaningful for both the choristers and the audience. “That’s the mark of a good ensemble,” he says. “If they’re being moved by the music they’re producing, the audience will [be, too]. If they don’t 62 | Spring 2019
Glee Club in Memorial Hall at the US Naval Academy. Photo by Web Wright.
care, the audience won’t, either. The mark of a bad ensemble? It isn’t worth it for anyone.” Add an orchestra and coordinate all of the voices and instruments. What looks and sounds easy when working well is anything but that. “The reason I do it is because it scratches every itch. It’s giving of one’s self, it’s collaborating with others, being symbiotic, a team. The conglomerate is always making something greater than the sum of all its individuals. That might be why it resounds so well at the Naval
Conductor Dr. Aaron Smith. Photo by Web Wright.
Academy: There’s no such thing as a solo mission, you’re always part of a team and always striving for excellence.” The glee club members give up their spring break to do their outreach tour, performing about 20 concerts in 10 days—while other college students may be traveling to lounge on a beach somewhere. No one seems to mind, as working together has forged strong friendship bonds. All tallied, they might do anywhere from 40 to 50 performances annually, compared with other colleges that may only manage a handful.
“We can set exceptionally high bars for mids, and they’ll reach and even surpass them. It’s what’s expected from them every day, and what they’re taught to do when they’re out in the fleet,” says Smith. “They never disappoint nor cease to amaze.” █
WAVES
Midshipmen in the Formal Parade on US Naval Academy grounds.
To view the US Naval Academy music department upcoming performances, visit www.usna.edu/Music/schedule
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WUNDERKIND
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Fostering Musical Futures by DESIREE SMITH-DAUGHETY photography by SARAH JANE HOLDEN
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aybe you can identify. attaining their dreams is fraught You’re a young student with obstacles. There’s the struggle with your future to find the right teacher who can unfurling before you propel them toward their goals. And toward a horizon you then there’s the unremitting lack of cannot see. Watching resources to secure such instruction television, or maybe a clip on if a teacher is found. Many students YouTube, you’re suspended in awe might decide to give up in the by a performance by Yo-Yo Ma, face of seemingly insurmountable who’s deeply engaged in producing challenges, casting out their dreams, sound from a cello and evoking a leaving their potential talent thrilling chill in you. Or maybe unrealized and the world the poorer it’s Sheku Kanneh-Mason, the for it. young cellist who performed at Such stories caught the interest the royal wedding of Prince Harry of the leadership at the ASO and Meghan Markle, who enthralls (Annapolis Symphony Orchestra). you. Or a sublime orchestral piece Concertmaster Netanel Draiblate that carries you on the alluring is the founder and director of ASA pulsation of crescendos and (Annapolis Symphony Academy), an diminuendos. after-school and weekend education Whichever the piece or artist, program in its inaugural year. This dreams were sparked in you new, youth-centric offshoot is of maybe one day, some way, an example of following through possessing similar virtuosity. until you see your dreams realized. For some young musicians who Draiblate has long planned to bring aspire to greatness, the reality of high-quality musical education to
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fill a void in Annapolis and build a program encompassing aspects that musical education advocates may believe are missing in Anne Arundel County. Draiblate launched the program starting with middleand high-school-aged students to start addressing an issue brought to his attention by public school system educators: the music dropout rate that occurs around middle-school years, due to so many interests vying for top spot on a student’s ever-burgeoning calendar. Patrick Nugent, ASO’s executive director, came up with the socioeconomic element of the program. It took him and Draiblate three years to build, and in their research they came across thought-provoking statistics. In the United States, only four percent of musicians in
orchestra come from either Latino or African-American backgrounds. According to Draiblate, many programs were started in the country but focused only on minority students. The ASA was created with the idea of an integrated, even balance of student backgrounds coming together in a music education program. Another aspect considered was the ability to pay for a program such as this, which while affordable compared to similar programs, is still well beyond some households’ financial reach. To this end, Draiblate wanted to ensure that, if a student is really interested in learning an instrument and has the chance for a musical career, then household income below the poverty line shouldn’t be a disqualifying factor. The ASA uses a waiver program that can cover tuition costs, based on certain
criteria and thanks to a generous founding gift. Qualifying students must audition, and both students and parents are interviewed. Once accepted into the ASA, students must commit to a private lesson during the week, ensemble training on the weekends, and workshops during the semester, along with the requisite practice at home. To help motivate students in their commitment, they’re provided a subscription to attend ASO performances, where they can see their teachers perform. Ongoing participation could bring opportunities, such as college scholarships, with schools recognizing the inherent benefits of a rigorous program that promotes discipline and fosters the ability to collaborate. Such potential opportunities appeal to 15-year-old twins and program participants Holland
The junior ensemble rehearses with conductor Tiffany Lu.
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and Rome Davis. Both have been homeschooled all their lives and have played their respective instruments for over seven years. “Because orchestra for adults is so prestigious, the fact that I’m in the program for younger people, I think it’ll open doors for college,” says Holland, who plays violin. Her brother Rome says, “I really enjoy playing the cello, and any opportunity to play it in a group is great.” Their prior experience included private lessons and playing with their church and in a youth orchestra. They find the program challenging, but in the best way. “When I first started cello in elementary school, I was eager to grow and had time to practice a lot,” says Rome. “As I got older, it was harder to find time to do that. But the program is really challenging and has got me to
Conductor Tiffany Lu leads violinists Alexa Velasquez (center), 12, and Erin Loftice, 13, during junior ensemble rehearsals.
Cellist Nina Lambert, 14, rehearses with the junior ensemble.
WUNDERKIND
practice a lot more.” Holland adds her perspective on the program: “I like how I’m challenged; it’s a little hard to find that in other programs. I find I’m trying really hard to get it right, trying to live up to the level of the ASO’s professional musicians.” Their mother, Von, notes that the rigorous program is helping them both grow as musicians. Draiblate says that even more plans are in the works. “The ASO Board of Trustees recognized the current framework as robust already and approved the initial structure of the program. When we worked to build the program, we dreamt up a lot of new ideas and expansion plans, which we intend to implement pending future fundraising efforts” The program has received strong community support and, as it evolves and money is raised to ensure its longevity, Draiblate is keen to promote another benefit gleaned from his research—the neurological and other health benefits of learning to play an instrument from a young age. “In Anne Arundel County, lots of students gear toward sports, which is great and they keep healthy,” he says, “but with all of the research coming out about the benefit of music, the balance will shift dramatically. It’s an area we’ll want to develop, as it promotes longevity and it’s actually a great healthcare program.” █ Learn more at www.tunedtoyouth.org Dr. Netanel Draiblate, founder and director of the Annapolis Symphony Academy, conducts the senior ensemble as the Academy kicks off its second semester.
Miguel Roche, 12, plays with the junior ensemble.
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Celebrating Annapolis’ Diverse Arts Scene JUNE 1 -8, 2019 As an annual week-long event, Annapolis Arts Week spotlights artists, galleries, associations, arts educators, creative businesses, and the different neighborhoods that add creativity to Annapolis. Join us as we celebrate the arts of Annapolis. Get more information at:
annapolisartsweek.com
Join us for a week-long celebration of the arts. Along with the 17th annual Paint Annapolis plein air competition, the week features festivals, gallery
JUNE 1 -8 PRESENTED BY
exhibits, performing arts, block parties and live music for an unforgettable week of art, music and food.
ORGANIZED BY
WUNDERKIND
MOVIE-MAKING A Conversation with Lee Anderson, Patti White, & Friends
by LOCUM TENENSMITH
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n 2002, award-winning filmmakers Patti White and Lee Anderson, best known as the driving forces behind the Annapolis Film Festival, cofounded a children’s summer film camp called FILMSTERS Academy. Here, Anderson, White, and friends explain the genesis, workings, and impacts of this unique program. Up.St.ART Annapolis: What was the impetus for FILMSTERS Academy? Lee Anderson: Patti [White]’s younger son, Trevor, who was a Key School student at the time, was enamored with the filmmaking process and had a few like-minded friends who wanted to tag along with us on our filmmaking adventures to learn. Because it was difficult to sneak those under eighteen on set, I had another idea for engaging them in film.
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UA: Can you prof ile the program for us? LA: Our vision was to provide a place where children could learn about the filmmaking process and find their creative potential along the way. FILMSTERS Academy is a hands-on, experiential filmmaking program that teaches children how to conceive, pitch, write, produce, act, shoot, direct, and edit their own short films. To date, we have taught over 900 students and had over 125 staff and interns participate in this process-driven filmmaking program. We’re really proud of the fact that we run a 100% collaborative, non-competitive program, and are proud of the diversity of our students and staff. Each year, we create a successful culture of creativity, passion, and learning.
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UA: Who is on staff ? LA: We have a whole group of talented and willing young professionals who come to film camp, as it is affectionately called, to teach their young charges the specifics of the art of filmmaking. For example, Katie, who was a student, went to New York University and returned to teach. Stephen, who is a professional sound man in L.A., comes home to teach. And Rick is a professional stunt man. Each, with his and her specialty, adds so much. And Trevor White—now a Hollywood-based director and producer with credits on Villians, Wind River, The Post, LBJ, A Crooked Somebody, The Good Neighbor, and Jamesy Boy—still returns to teach as a guest instructor in the advanced program. UA: How has the program changed since its inception? Patti White: In the beginning, we just had a beginner’s program at Maryland Hall [for the Creative Arts] for 11- to14-yearolds. Our only staff were Trevor and his friend, Fred Gundry, who were both in high school at the time, and we had 12 students. The program eventually grew to include an intermediate program for 13- to 16-year-olds, and ultimately, the crown jewel, the advanced program, an invitationonly or interview-required-togain-entry program. LA: The advanced program is totally unique and special, offering one-on-one mentoring by industry professionals, and we shoot on location, with
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real actors, using the latest gear available. I don’t think that there is really anything like this for children. We had one of our industry guest instructors who was a big cinematographer in L.A. say, “These kids have no idea what they are getting. I didn’t get to do anything like this until graduate film school.” UA: Where do you hold the camp today? LA: We have operated on the campus of the Key School for the past 15 years. It provides a great place and space that is safe, fun, and it can look like many things that fit the stories in the films— the beach is at the end of the road, a soccer field, house-like buildings, the gym, forested areas, swings, school rooms, and cafeterias. And the children are free to roam the campus to places that are not being used to film their movies. It works out great, and Key School is a great partner who really understands the kind of freedom the children need to create. UA: How is the program generally structured? PW: We have room for 72 students. We have layers of teaching and set up teaching teams with complimentary skill sets. LA: Yes, for example, in a pair, one might be more centric to writing, producing, and acting, and the other instructor has strengths in shooting, lighting, sound, and editing. PW: The whole thing is set up like a movie set. We have a camera department, sound department, lighting department, makeup,
wardrobe, special effects, a writing team, a special effects team, and our very own acting team. The best day is pitch day. It is so fun to hear all of the creative ideas that the children come in with and develop at camp. UA: What is your focus? PW: We are a process-driven program but are particularly strong on the aspects of storytelling. This is a really important part of what we do. It starts with the story. In fact, we think that there is a lot being taught about all of the new technology, but the foundation of success is in knowing how to tell a story. At film camp, students learn about how to take an idea from pitch to page, from production to presentation. LA: The culmination of the two weeks is a frantic editing, as students huddle around the latest iMacs® with Adobe® Premiere
Pro working to the finish the films, as the young filmmakers are “crashing” to add music, sound, and special effects credits, and to screen these 10 original short films before a community audience of 500 to 600. We offer free pizza, pasta, and salad for those who gather to support the students at the screening. They also get to listen to the Q&As with the various film crews, who describe their experiences with joy and celebration. UA: Do people return to f ilm camp? LA: We have an 80 percent student return rate and waiting list each year. Most of the attendees return year after year, going up the ranks and through all three levels of the camp. The return rate for instructors is almost as high as it is for the attendees. We have been so fortunate to have so many dedicated and talented people
Several former FILMSTERS Academy students are now working in the industry in New York and Los Angeles, and it all started right here in Annapolis. come to teach, year after year— it is like a big creative family. UA: Do you see the impact that FILMSTERS Academy has on its students and staff ? LA: Many graduates have gone on to some of the top film schools in the country, like New York University, University of South Carolina, Chapman, University of Texas at Austin, Boston University, Ithaca College, Rhode Island School of Art and Design, Savannah School of Art and Design, Towson University, MICA, Pratt, and the School for the Arts in Wilmington, North Carolina. Several former FILMSTERS Academy students are now working in the industry in New York and Los Angeles, and it all started right here in Annapolis. We teasingly call them the “FILMSTERS mafia.”
Advanced cinematographer and fifth year student Johnny Gregory learns to shoot on the 4k RED camera for the film Good Luck Kid. upstart-annapolis.com | 77
Intermediate student Joseph Daigle operates the boom mic for audio on the set while cameraperson checks the shot as the director in the chair watches the monitor.
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FILMSTERS Academy student Will Brady has the lead role in Good Luck Kid.
everyone looks to me about what to do and how to do it. DaJuan Gay: I love FILMSTERS. It is a great way every year to escape whatever troubles you have and just have fun and let your imagination fly. I’ve tried directing, acting, editing, learned how to produce a film properly, and the people that are here, they have been teaching me from [age] 11 to 18, and they’ve watched me grow up. It’s like one big creative family. UA: Filmmaking is expensive, yes? PW: I always tell prospective film camp parents to try camp with their children before spending $52K a year at New York University, only to have them discover that they didn’t really enjoy this process as much as they thought. LA: We really try to keep our price down, but it is an expensive program to run, with lots of gear to rent and eight edit stations to set up, and it needs to be highly supervised. We offer some limited scholarships for underserved kids. It’s a tough thing to support, and we could use more help, but we feel like everyone should have a change to explore and fulfill their creative potential. Registration for new students opens in March. The camp will take place this summer from Monday, July 29 through Friday, August 9. █
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FILMSTERS Academy Shy'yon Frazier (on the right) being shown by guest DP Andy Schwartz how to use the dana dolly and how to work with the camera on the set of Good Luck Kid.
PW: The cool part is that, in creating the film camp, we’ve created a second community of young professionals who now help the new transplants transition to New York and Los Angeles. UA: As a former intern and staffer, talk about that second community. Chellie Schou: It’s really hard to just make the jump to L.A. without knowing anyone out there, but having been involved in film camp, I was introduced to so many people that I met in L.A. who were in the business. In fact, it was like having an extended family. And without the experience I got from [White and Anderson], I would not have been able to get the job I have now in L.A. on the new CW show All American. All roads in and out of Annapolis in the film world begin with and return to FILMSTERS. They’ve helped a lot of people, and I’m lucky I found them. UA: As former camp attendees, how does FILMSTERS Academy stand out for you? Ben Trevey: We used better gear at film camp than here [at the Carolina School for the Arts]. In fact, in the advanced program, I got to work with a set of Zeiss primes on an 8k Red camera, with a slider, and MOVI rig, and they don’t have that stuff here. But most importantly, I’m so experienced already,
For more information, visit www.f ilmstersacademy.com.
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Arts District
WE’RE YOUR DIVERSE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT DESTINATION The Inner West Street Association is a 501(c)6 nonprofit organization The Annapolis Arts & Entertainment District is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization
El Distrito de las Artes de Annapolis está compuesto por lugares únicos, bares y restaurantes con artistas locales experimentados en una gran variedad de medios. ¡Experimente Annapolis desde la otra cara del espejo, desde Westgate Circle hasta Church Circle, con algunos lugares intermedios! Le quartier des arts d’Annapolis est composé de lieux uniques, de bars et de restaurants avec des artistes locaux expérimentés dans divers médias. Découvrez Annapolis de l ’autre côté du miroir - de Westgate Circle à Church Circle, avec quelques endroits entre les deux! Il distretto artistico di Annapolis è composto da luoghi unici, bar e ristoranti con artisti locali con esperienza in una vasta gamma di media. Scopri Annapolis dal lato opposto dello specchio: da Westgate Circle a Church Circle, con alcuni punti intermedi! The Annapolis Arts District is comprised of unique venues, bars, and restaurants with local artists experienced in an array of media. Experience Annapolis from the flip side of the looking C H – MWestgate AY 2019 A P O L I S , MCircle, A R Y L A N D with 2 1 4 0 1a glassM A–Rfrom Circle AtoN NChurch MARCH 10: SAINT PATRICK’S DAY PARADE • MARCH 29-31 MARYLAND DAY WEEKEND few MAY spots in SUDAY between! Ons• isMAYjou29: DINNER diverseUNDER kuns en vermaak 5: FIRST ARTS FESTIVAL THE STARS bestemming Som la vostra destinació d’art i diversió
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