Inside the Artists: Tom Ryan

What can still be said about a RAW artist that will soon be participating in his 5^th showcase? Well quite a lot actually; not only a good friend of mine, but someone who is also a fantastic artist that I admired long before I got the chance to meet him.  Tom Ryan, a RAW Veteran, who, like most superheroes is a man with two first names, making him a perfect fit for this showcase of all things “MARVEL”.  I was happy to get the chance to sit and chat with Tom further find out just what it is that makes him tick.

“What really inspires me is just the day to day life, looking for the unexpected. It sounds cliché, but you really never know when inspiration is going to hit, so it’s just good to be ready for it!”  Evidence of this can be found in Tom’s work through some of his most recent designs featuring quotes taken from nostalgic cinema and pop culture.

But the real joy comes from the act of painting, “The day starts with a surface, I’ll prep up a piece of watercolor paper or a skateboard with spray paint.” Taken from a stockpile of canvases at the ready, so as to not waste any of that all-important creative fire, his backgrounds bring a certain level of whimsy to the overall work. The background highlights the composition through the use of urban accents, compelling patterns or the simply the natural beauty that comes from matrix being painted on.

But like with all great works of art each begins as an idea. “I let the colors and designs speak to me, which really tells me what the final image will be.” His colors are bright and organic with particular attention taken to each draw of the brush.  “I then use acrylics to block in color and after that I use ink to bring out the character of painting” But that’s not the end of the day for this artist of all trades, after a few quick thumbnail sketches it’s on to the next piece.

And it’s with that little bit of paint and a whole lot of time that life is breathed into his characters, each one with a personality all their own, but never losing the essence that simply put is “Tom”. If you’d like to learn more about Tom and his work can be found on his website at http://www.facebook.com/TomRyansStudio and while your their be sure to “Like It” to get all the latest on this “MARVEL”ous RAW artist.

Check out Tom’s and all the other RAW artists on Thursday April 4th for “Marvel”; a one night event at the Russian Lady, located on 191 Ann Uccello St, Hartford CT. Tickets can be purchase from the artists of your choosing for $10 or at the door for $15. Doors open at 8 and remain so till midnight, for tickets, artists and more information about RAW can be found at http://www.rawartists.org/hartford

Inside the Artists: Adam Berlingeri

Movies are a road map of history; they tell us where we’ve been, how we got there, and the lessons we’ve learned along the way all captured in film.  Some teach us what it means to be a hero, while others explore the human condition in an attempt to explain just what it all means.  But what is film? That’s what I asked RAW Hartford’s first film artist Adam Berlingeri in hopes to understand just what it was about this art form that inspires him.

“I fell in love with using unique storytelling methods and visual/editing styles to portray a message.” This is prevalent in one of my personal favorites of Adam’s is entitled, “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?”  Adapted from a short story of the same name, where Adam not only in fact directed the feature, but also played one of the pivotal characters. If you haven’t read it, it tells the story of how one person is able to psychologically take total control of another without any physical interaction, “He’s a snake charmer, using his words to lure her out, without violence and only a promise.”

A “Jack of all Trades”, Adam is not only the director on the films he makes, but is also well versed in the processes of videographer, the writer, and as mentioned up top, has even acted in a few of his films. “I’m always trying something new. “I don’t work in a way of “here’s what I know how to do” and stick with that, but here’s how I want this to look, if it’s not in my skill set or not, I figure it out as I go along, if I need to learn a new skill for a project I do it.”

“Movies that make you ask questions, I’m not the one to say if my I’ve had success in doing that with my film, but whether or not that’s what I strive for, to tell stories in unique ways and make the viewer’s ask questions.” Personally I feel that Adam is well on his way to working towards this goal, an example of this is evident in the 2010 film “Only Room for One” shot in black and white. This supernatural drama is about a young man who has lost everything who, during a series of events, must make the choice between being consumed by his own pain or setting evil free.  It makes the viewer wonder is there an invisible thread guiding us and what does it mean “to lose” as well as the true meaning of “sacrifice”.

Currently Adam’s work can be found at http://www.happenstance-productions.com/Happenstance_Productions/Welcome.html where you can find his production company “Happenstance Productions” there you can view sections of a few of the short features he has completed as well as find out more about this first RAW Hartford filmmaker, it’s as easy as clicking the picture above!

Be sure to check out all the other RAW artists every First Thursday at the Russian Lady. Next month, come and be amazed at out next showcase “Marvel” on Thursday April 4th.  Doors open at 8 and remain so till midnight, for tickets, our artists and more information about RAW can be found at http://www.rawartists.org/hartford

Inside Out: Jennifer Jacobs, RAWards Visual Arts Winner

Location: Downtown Yoga Studios. 57 Pratt Street, 2^nd floor, Hartford, CT.

When: Saturday, March 23rrd, 2013. 7-10pm.

Price: Suggested donation of $5.

Website: www.jennjacobsart.com

This is a solo show, artwork presented by the amazing Jennifer Jacobs! Come out for a night to enjoy her spectacular artwork with some of the most amazing deals you can get with a yoga studio and artwork. A mix of the human anatomy and sense of bright colors, there’s no doubt as to why she won RAW: Hartford’s RAWard for Best Visual Artist of 2012. For the show, Jacobs has whipped up a new painting which will be revealed that night!

Pairing up with local businesses such as City Steam Brewery, NoRA cupcakes, and Lucky Taco; Downtown Yoga Studios will be offering one of their best deals that night. So, don’t miss out on the beer tasting, music by DJ Cajar, and one month of FREE membership to Downtown Yoga Studios! It’s a deal you can’t miss! And only attendees to the event that night will be receiving the special promotion.

Paintings will be raffled off and proceeds will go to benefit the Charter Oak Cultural Center! What a way to give back to the community! Come out and enjoy the art, the music, the food, the atmosphere, and the great network of people!

A recent graduate from the Hartford Art School, Jacobs received a BFA in Illustration and graduated Summa Cum Laude. Miss Jacobs, the one with beauty and brains and of course her amazing talent working with her favorite medium, oil paints; creates a piece of art only for the eyes to gaze in amazement.

A night you’ll won’t want to miss: Downtown Yoga’s special promotion, delicious food and drinks with the one and only- Jennifer Jacobs! Come out to see RAW: Hartford’s RAWard Best Visual Artist of 2012!

Inside The Artists: Tim Wengertsman

The taste of stale beer mixed with vomit, dirt, and the stink of human sweat.  The oxygenation of the iron in blood hitting air as ink and the light buzz of tattooing needles hit flesh; all while punk rock rages on in the background.   These are only some of the things that make RAW artist Tim Wengertsman’s world go round.

A Manchester native, Tim received his BFA in printmaking from the University of Hartford’s Hartford Art School. Following in the footsteps of of Kathy Kollwitz, a German Expressionist printmaker, whose work depicts death and poverty in the face of war, Tim’s work is honest; depicting a subculture of a culture that the mainstream world has all but become deaf too. “These prints are a primitive look at the underground Hartford scene full of crust punks and bike couriers, Rebelling musicians, artists and people who just like to party and have a good time.” He gives them voice through the use a style that is both grotesquely gritty and boldly beautiful with the use of strait black and paper white on a massive scale making it almost impossible to stop and take notice.

With compositions that borrow from Byzantine era imagery such as “The Last Supper” “St. George and the Dragon” and the “Madonna and Child”, the work becomes provocative, iconic, “I make images of what I love; beer, tattoos, bands, shows, bikes, punk rock, my friends, my family, traveling, touring in a band, or just taking a nice crap…simple as that.” this paired with the iconic nature of his work gives the images and lifestyle a feeling of “HOLY”. But they are also a platform used to discuss things that make him angry; racism, the state of the political world, rampant homophobia, and the squander of capitalism.

Looking to the work this can be seen in the piece “The Last Supper in Hartford”.  Depicting a vomiting Tim being held up by his girlfriend while being surrounded by his friends with the caption “EATING THE RICH BECAUSE WE’RE POOR”.  It is a call to action to all those angry with the current state of our world.

Currently Tim’s work can be found either at the EBK Gallery, where Tim works as a framer, which can be found at http://ebkframing.com/artists/tim-wengertsman/ or out on the road as he rages out on the drums as a member of the punk band OILTANKER whose music can be found at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Oiltanker/178083802211595?fref=ts.

Be sure to check out all the other RAW artists every First Thursday at the Russian Lady. Next month, come and marvel at out next showcase “Marvel” on Thursday April 4^th.  Doors open at 8 and remain so till midnight, for tickets, information about our artists and more about RAW can be found at http://www.rawartists.org/hartford

Inside the Artists: Charlie Cunningham

“A skeleton walks into a bar, sits down, and orders a beer and a mop.”

The telling of a horrible joke and the uneasiness that floods the room after; these are the feelings that, veteran RAW artist Charlie Cunningham feeds off of.  Having the chance to sit down and talk with Charlie, he was able to tell me more about his humor and the process behind his work.

“My intention as an artist is to create experiences that invoke the menacing contradictions that exist between what is humor and what is disgusting.”  This is most prevalent when you look at his series “Genealogy” a series of digitally manipulated photos depicting the Spunnigan family tree.  This long running joke shows its genesis in the 17^th century and continues through 1910, 20’s, 50’s, 70’s, 90’s, 00’s, and ending in the present day. A particular level of detail has been paid in the construction of this yarn, each one is period specific and in a way could be said to be a look, through the uncomfortably small, closed, bathroom window, at the time. Now I am a full believer that the impact of a joke losses some of its punch if it has to be explained, and I think in this case Charlie has made it uncomfortably obvious why attention should be paid to the Spunnigan family.

But I feel that it’s in his sculpture where he is free to push the bar on what is funny and what it disgusting.  Using resin, found objects, and hair (yes…hair) Charlie reduces the human form into its most base state, a gelatinous mass of hands feet and face.  The figures, in some cases, look as if they have been made of wax and like crayons left on a hot porch, are in various stages of melting.  It’s hard not to laugh at a figure in a black furry animal costume holding a beer while a techno color puddle hangs out, like a raccoon tail, by its crotch, the whole set up is nothing but ridiculous. “I just want people to interact with the work.” he says “nothing particular really, I enjoy the assortment of reactions people have when they see it [the work].” from confusion and discomfort to humor and absurd.”

Currently Charlie is applying for the chance to work towards his MFA as well as another RAW showcase coming up in Brooklyn.  You can find out more about Charlie and his disturbingly funny work at http://charliecunninghamart.com/

Check our Charlie and all the other RAW artists on Thursday March 7^th for “Generations”; a one night event at the Russian Lady, located on 191 Ann Uccello St, Hartford CT. Tickets can be purchase from the artists of your choosing for $10 or at the door for $15. Doors open at 8 and remain so till midnight, for tickets, artists and more information about RAW can be found at http://www.rawartists.org/hartford

Hartford’s Art Scene

What’s a better way to immerse yourself in a city? Submerse yourself in the arts of Hartford! It’s a way of life, a culture that can not be defined; you’ll have to see it all for yourself! So put down that textbook, get out of the office, or take your significant other out on a date to take a break from the kids… come out for a night you’ll enjoy!

American Idiot Broadway Musical

Hartford Symphony Orchestra’s Concertmaster Leonid Sigal

City Steam Brewery: The Brew HaHa

RAW: Hartford’s Generation Showcase

American Idiot Broadway Musical

Location: The Bushnell: William H. Mortensen Hall

When: March 1^st – 6^th

Price: Starting at $20.00

Ticket Information: Tickets are subject to change due to applicable fees.

Online: http://www.bushnell.org

860-987-5900

If you love punk rock, or simply just love Green Day, then the American Idiot Broadway Musical is the musical for you. With a rating of an average of four and a half stars, this musical is not one to be missed!

It’s the type of music that makes you remember the good old times of when American Idiot Hit the US Billboard 200 number one, making it a six times platinum record with over $6 million copies sold in the US, and 14 million copies sold worldwide. Green Day’s hit, American Idiot, was one of their successful singles and also became popular internationally.

The song won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in 2005 and was among the 100 best songs of the 2000s. It also made its way to Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

The story line is quite the unique one. You’ll even be seeing Green Day’s Billie Joe performing the musical! If Green Day didn’t remind you of 2004 then you need to come out and see what the commotion is all about. It’s definitely one of the musicals you will never forget.

Hartford Symphony Orchestra: The Genius of Mozart at The Bushnell

Location: Belding Theater at The Bushnell

When: Thursday- Sunday. March 14^th -17^th

Price: Starting from $35.50

Ticket Information: Saturday night special: $25 tickets 40 and under. Student tickets are $10.

Online: www.hartfordsymphony.org

860-244-2999

Classical music? String quartet? Piano sonata? If any of these interest you, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra is the place to be! Stop your busy life and relax to the soothing melodies of Mozart. You will get an earful of exhilarating rhythm flowing through your body. The beautiful sounds will make you want to hear another show.

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra is presented by the Koski Memorial fund. It will be at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts. It will be led by Hartford Symphony Orchestra Concertmaster Leonid Sigal. Sigal is the conductor and a violin soloist and will be part of the  Orchestra. Hartford Symphony Orchestra will perform works from throughout Mozart’s life.

The Brew Ha Ha

Location: The City Steam Brewery. 942 Main Street, Hartford, CT

When: Every Friday and Saturday of March

Price: $17

Ticket Information: Visit site for purchase.

Online: www.citysteambrewerycafe.com

Hours: Monday- Wednesday & Saturday 11:30am- 12am

Thursday &Friday 11:30am- 1am

Sunday 4pm-10pm

Parking: Mon-Fri is FREE after 6pm. It’s FREE all day Saturday & Sunday!

Phone: 860-525-1600

Great beer, great laughs, great people? City Steam Brewery’s “Brew HaHa” is the night scene for you! Come in an enjoy food and beer while sharing some great laughs. Food prices are economical for $7-$20! The beer selection is great as well! Whether you favor some of City Steam’s different flavors or Woodchuck Hard Cider, it’s a great atmosphere to be around with great people. Bringing you a different feel of Hartford’s nightlife with local brewed beer, nothing better can top that.

RAW:Hartford’s Generation Showcase

Location: The Russian Lady.

191 Ann Uccello Street

Hartford, CT

When: Thursday, March 7^th

Price: $10 & 50 cent pitchers!

Ticket Information: $10 in Advance (see website for purchase) & $15 at the door.

Online: http://www.rawartists.org/hartford/generation

Beautiful art with beautiful people! DJ DC Medina will be spinning and the lovely host Chenot with be making a night you won’t forget! At a venue that has multiple floors, with art taking over the masses of Russian Lady’s walls and walkways, you will be immersed with such ambiance it’ll resonate within.

Russian Lady’s famous vodka bar with over 24 flavors, the variety will not compare to the vast amount of art that will be there. From vegan cupcake soaps, black light art, handmade jewelry  to the sounds playing in the background of modern Ska music, RAW: Hartford ‘s Generation Showcase will be one you will not forget and sure to come back for more!

Of course the fun doesn’t stop there, outside the venue, there will be a gourmet inspired grilled cheese truck taking your ordinary grilled cheese to another level! And right next to it will be a cupcake truck! That’s right! I said it, cupcake truck by NoRA, bringing you the best decadent cupcakes and vegan cupcakes are on the menu as well! Prepare for a tasty treat with a special for limited edition of RAW artists cupcake- inspired by RAW; natural born artists.

So come out and join the festivities in this beautiful showcase full of artists with different mediums and will blow your mind with their creativity! It’s one you won’t want to miss out!