Arbor Update

Ann Arbor Area Community News

Public Forum organized to customize the Washtenaw County Cultural Master Plan for Ann Arbor

Posted by Angela Martin-Barcelona on 12. March 2009

The Arts Alliance will host a public forum discuss the Washtenaw County Cultural Master Plan and steps to customize the plan to meet the needs of our community. Anyone interested in the future of arts and culture in Ann Arbor is welcome to attend the forum which will take place on Thursday, March 26 from 6:30-8:00p.m. at the Kerrytown Concert House (415 North Fourth Avenue).

“There was a tremendous amount of community collaboration and engagement throughout the county-wide cultural plan process,” said John Weiss, Executive Director of the Neutral Zone and Ann Arbor Community Leader Co-Chair. “Now is the time for Ann Arbor to come together as a community and identify the key strategic areas that best match our needs from this plan. This forum and any subsequent meetings will be an excellent opportunity for our residents to be directly involved in the future of our community’s arts and cultural assets.”

The Washtenaw County Cultural Master Plan provides a vision for cultural development throughout the county over the next five years. Its recommendations fall into six strategic areas that were identified from the direct input of nearly 5,000 Washtenaw County residents through an online survey, an artists’ census, a study of the area’s creative economy, and in 29 interviews and community forums. The six strategic areas include Lifelong Arts & Education; Creative Economic Development; Capacity Building, Funding, and Investment; Communications, Audience Development, and Advocacy; Cultural Facilities; and Diversity and Access. Participants at the March 26 public forum will prioritize these six strategic areas and will begin brainstorming the next steps involved for developing a plan specific to Ann Arbor. A final customized report will be available in June 2009.

If you plan to attend this public forum, please RSVP to Angela Martín-Barcelona, Marketing Director at the Arts Alliance.

For more information about the cultural plan, click here.

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Ann Arbor Radio Lays Off Martin Bandyke and Brian Larsen

Posted by Nancy Shore on 7. February 2009

As reported in the Ann Arbor News, Cumulus radio station 107.1 WQKL laid off local radio personality Martin Bandyke as of Friday afternoon.

Doesn’t look like anyone is going to replace him as of now.

News Director Brian Larsen was also let go.

According to the Ann Arbor News, the layoffs appear to be part of a nationwide reduction in staff by Cumulus.

National company Cumulus Media also owns country station WWWW (102.9 FM), liberal talk station WLBY (1290 FM), which now hosts the Lucy Ann Lance Show, and sports station WTKA (1050 AM), where Michigan football games are broadcast.

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"Something is growing in Ann Arbor": But What?

Posted by Nancy Shore on 12. September 2008

Ok, I have to admit this is driving me crazy.

There are billboards up all around Ann Arbor with the slogan “Something is growing in Ann Arbor.” and a leaf design.

Then when I got the paper yesterday, there it was again as a sticker on the Ann Arbor News.

I’ve tried Googling the phrase, but to no avail.

So what’s the word on the street?

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Top of the Park starts Friday

Posted by Bruce Fields on 11. June 2008

Top of the Park starts this Friday at 6:30pm, with My Dear Disco and The Macpodz.

It’s still at Ingalls Mall.

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The Bells are Ringing

Posted by Juliew on 23. April 2008

From the Ann Arbor News:

Bells will ring across Ann Arbor at noon today (April 23) to commemorate the signing of the city’s charter in 1833.

Ten bell towers in the city are participating, and the bells will ring for 10 minutes, organizer Steven Ball said. The Ann Arbor Guild of Bell Ringers says eight bell-ringing events are planned this year, and Ann Arbor is one of the only places in the world where most towers ring their bells manually.

Participating towers are at the Bethlehem United Church of Christ, Ann Arbor Hands-on Museum, Community of Christ Church, Forest Hill Cemetery, Kerrytown Market, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, St. Paul Lutheran Church, St. Thomas the Apostle, Burton Memorial Tower and Lurie Tower on the University of Michigan’s North Campus.

The Ann Arbor Guild of Bell Ringers was formed to try to recapture the role that public bells and bell-ringing played in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

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Art and Design at Liberty Lofts

Posted by Juliew on 11. April 2008

Homeless Dave sent in this update from the corner of First and Liberty:

Although Liberty Lofts living units (former site of the Eaton factory) are now largely occupied, the adjoining retail space still sits empty. But activity late last week included a delivery of 2 × 4s and sheetrock to the location, plus the start of construction of 600 lineal feet worth of walls. The walls are being built by 16 UM School of Art and Design students for The Warehouse Show. The opening reception is Saturday, April 12 from 4pm-7pm and the gallery is open April 14-18 from noon to 6:00pm. The students are graduating this spring and the exhibition is their thesis exhibition. Obviously, this is a temporary installation, but it’s nice to see something happening there, even if it’s for a short time.

Another intriguing project coming soon from the UM School of Art and Design is The Urban Forest Project from April 24 – May 15 on Main Street between William and Washington. From the school’s website:

Using the power of design to raise awareness of sustainability issues in urban areas, A&D senior Trent Busakowski creates an installation of banners designed by over 30 designers and students from across Michigan hung on Ann Arbor’s Main Street, between William and Washington. In collaboration with the Detroit chapter of AIGA, and with support from O2 Creative. The original Urban Forest Project was conceived by World studio in conjunction with AIGA NY and Times Square Alliance. The Urban Forest project has also been implemented in Denver and Portland by each city’s respective AIGA chapters and local partners.

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County-wide Artists' Census launches April 1

Posted by Angela Martin-Barcelona on 28. March 2008

How many artists live and work in Washtenaw County anyway? The Arts Alliance is launching a county-wide Artists’ Census on April 1 through May 17 to help try to answer just that question.

It’s easy to know how many arts organizations are in the county, but individual artists are often overlooked. Maybe your neighbor is a dancer, or your boss is an actor, or your waiter is a writer and you never knew it.

The census tabulations don’t provide an accurate count of the amount of artists we have in our county, or, for that matter our state. According to the Special Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Tabulations of Census 2000 there are 63,140 artist occupations (making up 1.28% of the total civilian labor force) in the entire state of Michigan. Nearly half (32,635) of the artist occupations are designers. Surprisingly, as per the census there are 265 actors in the entire state, followed by 5,015 musicians and singers, and only 955 dancers and choreographers.

It’s time for artists in our county to raise their hands and be counted!

All artists and creative-minded individuals – visual, performing and literary, no matter their age or training – are encouraged to take this 2-minute census available online at www.artscount.org. Hard-copy versions of the census will be located at public libraries and creative venues throughout the county.

Artists help make Washtenaw County such a vibrant and great place to live. This census will help build the visibility and credibility of the many artists in our community.

The census questions were developed by a team of area artists and arts administrators using models developed by The Arts Economy Initiative, Project on Regional and Industrial Economics, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota and others. Results of the census will be tabulated and announced as part of the Arts Alliance’s cultural plan report in October 2008.

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Tear in my beer

Posted by Josh Steichmann on 6. February 2008

In case you haven’t heard, the Leopold brothers are leaving Ann Arbor

(Justifiably) high rents are cited. Denver to be new location.

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Happy Birthday Michigan Theater!

Posted by Juliew on 5. January 2008

Congratulations to the Michigan Theater on its 80th birthday!

There will be special events all year, kicking off today with $.80 movie admission for Theater members. The shows today are Atonement, The Savages, and a special screening of Some Like it Hot at 8:00pm. If you aren’t a member, today would be a great time to join so you can take advantage of this great deal!

Tomorrow (Sunday), there will be a special showing of Mary Poppins at 1:30 and admission is free for kids 12 and under.

For more information, see the Michigan Theater web site or the special 80th anniversary press release.

Holiday events: Shadow Art Fair and Mittenfest

Posted by Murph on 1. December 2007

Today, noon to midnight, the Arbor Brewing Company’s Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti (directions from ABC to CB) will be hosting the Fourth Shadow Art Fair. Admission is five cents. At 6pm, a special “Shadow Brew” will be served; $1 from each Shadow Brew sold, as well as the nickels from admission, will be used for micro-grants to support local arts projects.

SAF vendors include a variety of artists, musicians, and crafters from around the area, ranging from coffee-art-and-cars Roos Roast to Matt Callow’s pinhole photography to the Ann Arbor-based Bulb Records label to clothier and printshop VG Kids.

Then, December 21-22, Mittenfest II will feature 23 local bands in a benefit multi-show for 826michigan. Organized by ArborUpdate alum Brandon, from his new headquarters on the banks of the East River, the show will get underway at 9:30pm, Friday the 21st, at Ann Arbor’s Blind Pig, continuing at noon, Saturday, at the Corner Brewery, before moving to the Elbow Room Saturday night. The schedules linked include links to myspace, etc, for artist information.

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