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Home through Multimedia Installation: May 1st, 2011

MSU Students Explore Home through Multimedia Installation at MICA Gallery

Photo by Hilary Higgins
Photo by Hilary Higgins

Lansing, Mich. – As part of the First Sunday Gallery Walk in Old Town, students from three different MSU courses are working collaboratively to produce a multimedia event called “That Familiar Place: House and Home” that will take place at MICA Gallery on Sunday, May 1. Using photographs, poetry, and dialogue, these students help us to confront fundamental questions that pertain to place and identity: What is home? How do the identities of people and places develop and become intertwined? How do physical objects and structures – streets, bricks, sidewalks, and buildings – acquire the meaning and significance associated with phrases like “my home,” “my home town,” and “my neighborhood”?

WHAT: That Familiar Place: House and Home (a multimedia installation)

WHERE: MICA Gallery, 1210 Turner Street, Old Town, Lansing

WHEN: May 1, 2011, 12:00-5:00pm. Student readings at 1-1:20, 2-2:20, & 3-3:20. (Photo exhibit lasts through May 31; MICA Gallery regular hours are 9-5 Monday-Friday.)

All of the students contributing to this installation are in MSU’s Residential College in the Arts and Humanities, an interdisciplinary “living and learning community” focused on art, culture, and civic engagement. These students are enrolled in one of three upper-level courses taught by professors Eric Aronoff, Anita Skeen and David Sheridan.

“Our focus is on the relationship between Old Town and the surrounding North Lansing neighborhoods,” says Sheridan. “Those neighborhoods are right next door to one of the densest hubs of creative professionals in the state.”

Old Town is known as a local center for art, culture, and creative professionals. Many economists see creative centers like Old Town as the key to future economic prosperity. They represent Michigan’s transition to a “creative economy.”

“We are interested in exploring the ways that the success of Old Town can nurture the creativity of young people who live in the surrounding neighborhoods and who might be interested in video, music, and other forms of creative expression,” Sheridan explains.

For more information on MSU RCAH or “Home,” contact David Sheridan, 517-884-1326, sherid16@msu.edu. Download show poster here.

With the support of the City of Lansing Arts & Cultural Grant Program funded through the Lansing Economic Development Corporation with help from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Inc.
with help from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Inc.

Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art (MICA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit serving as a catalyst for quality arts programming. For more information about the MICA Gallery, call 517-371-4600 or email info@oldtownarts.org.

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Mott Community College Faculty Show – April 3-26, 2011

Art Exhibit Presented by Mott Community College Faculty and Students to Be Featured at the Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art in Lansing, April 3-26

Lansing, Mich. (March 30, 2011) – Mott Community College is presenting “Mixed Pairs,” an exhibition of art at the Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art (MICA) Gallery in Lansing. The opening reception will take place from 1 to 4 pm Sunday, April 3, 2011 as part of the Lansing art community’s monthly “First Sunday Gallery Walk.”

The exhibit runs through April 26. Gallery hours are 9 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday and Sundays from 1 pm to 4 pm. The MICA Gallery is located at 1210 Turner Street in Lansing’s Old Town district.

The body of work features a diversity of media, including printmaking, photography, painting, graphic design & illustration, and mixed media created by Mott Community College faculty and students. MCC faculty members volunteered to exhibit, with the stipulation that they would then curate a piece of work from one of their current or former students. This structure inspired the title “Mixed Pairs.” Twelve pairs of MCC faculty and students are participating in the exhibit.

Some samples:

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Much like downtown Flint, Old Town has become a center for the arts and entertainment in the Greater Lansing Area. The neighborhood is home to many art galleries, boutiques, performance spaces and restaurants. The Old Town Business & Art Development Association (OTBADA) / Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that catalyzes the revitalization of Lansing’s Old Town historic commercial district through promoting community development, preserving historic buildings and producing quality art events and programs. For more information about the MICA Gallery, call 517-371-4600 or email info@oldtownarts.org.

For more information about MCC’s Studio Art, Graphic Design and Photography Programs, please call the Art Office at (810) 762-0443.

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Layers: LCC Faculty Jazz Quartet – CD Release Party Concert

October 7, 2011, 7-9p

Layers: LCC Faculty Jazz Quartet – CD Release Party Concert

Lansing, Mich. – The LCC Faculty Jazz Quartet is having a concert party to celebrate the release of their first CD! The event will feature a performance and reception at 7 pm Friday, Oct. 7 at the MICA Gallery in Old Town Lansing (1210 Turner St.). It also coincides with Lansing’s First Friday promotion in October; guests will receive a two-for-one pass to one of LCC’s fall ticketed events.

Formed in 2007, the group features LCC faculty members Mike Daniels (drums), Ed Fedewa (bass), Jonathon Gewirtz (saxophone) and Dennis Therrian (piano). In addition to performing a wide variety of jazz music including hard-bop, Latin jazz and standards, the quartet also strives for a unique sound featuring original music by each member. No Vacancy, their first CD, features 8 of these original pieces and was recorded live at Therrian Studios. The quartet recently added “Layers” to their name, representing the unique and personal style of each musician and how they coalesce as a single unit. Each layer is separate, but also works with the other layers to form a single entity. The group performs regularly at LCC, at special events, and last spring to a standing-room house at MICA Gallery.

This concert is part of Lansing Community College partnership with the Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art’s MICA Gallery to offer performing arts activities and community education classes in Old Town Lansing.

MICA Gallery is dedicated to featuring artists whose work represents a mix of progressive styles, social commentary, experimentation, and innovation, the gallery provides exhibition opportunities for visual artists, musicians, poets, and performance artists. Its sponsoring organization, Michigan Institute for Contemporary Art (MICA), is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that serves as a catalyst for community development through quality arts programming. For more information about the MICA Gallery, call 517-371-4600 or email info@oldtownarts.org.

For more information on the concert, contact the LCC Performing Arts Production Office at 517-483-1488.