Pop Up Art

“I’ve learned love is like a brick

You can build a house or sink a dead body.”

    “Judas,” Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga suffered a mild concussion in Aukland, New Zealand, when she got hit in the head with a pole while singing “Judas.”  Like a trooper, Gaga finished the show, belting out 18 more songs.

Gallery Northwest director Ann Fritz put together an interesting and well-attended alumni show featuring the work of Fine Arts graduates from as far back as 1982.  Many were delighted to see Gary Wilk, who retired last year after teaching photography for over 30 years. William Bosch’s piece was a scene from Thailand as seen in the reflection from a glass ball.  Molly Rakochy’s sculpture titled “Cooperation,” portrayed three people working together.  When I praised it, she said that most of her work was very gloomy. Attending with their wives were Tim Sutherland, Jean Poulard, and Peter Kesheimer.

Corey Hagelberg helped me hang a dozen Dale Fleming drawings at the front room of Lee Construction as part of the Pop Up Art events from 5 to 9 along Lake Street in Miller.  Around 7 he and Kate held the fort while I made myself a plate of food at Joyce’s Lake Street Gallery.  The place was jammed, but most folks were socializing, not paying attention to the artwork on exhibit.  On the other hand, at my site there wasn’t much to do except examine Fleming’s drawings and listen to my spiel.  I sold four pieces and talked up the idea of finding ways to bring Dale up from Bloomington to spend some months living near the dunes he loves so much.

What I especially liked were comments by other artists, especially young people who admired Dale’s work.  Eighth grader China Johnson (I think that was her last name), who attends Emerson School for Visual and Performing Arts, stayed quite a while and returned with a friend.  A fourth grader mentioned winning a contest for designing a logo for the RailCats, a local baseball team.  Recent East Chicago Central grad Miguel Cuevera, who was showing his art up the street, came in twice with his girlfriend.  Another Latino whose girlfriend was Macedonian spent about 15 minutes reading my Gary book.  Joanna Mulder has been collecting oral histories of Jewish Millerites.  Her parents live in Illinois but still own a home on Lake Shore Drive.  Valpo law professor Sy Moskowitz lives there during the school year but travels extensively summers so Joanna is staying there.

Alesia Metz, whom I hadn’t seen in 20 years, stopped by.  Toni gave her art lessons when she attended Alternative Public School with Phil and Dave.  Anne Balay came in with her daughters and two friends and bought a drawing that daughter Emma admired, one of four pen and ink renderings that I sold.  Artist Kay Rosen also bought one.

Near the end of the evening photographer Marty Bohn videotaped me about Dale Fleming’s works on display (most of them done for inclusion in my “Lake Michigan Tales” Shavings).  She intends to post the interview on the Miller Beach Arts website and YouTube (under Marty’s Flicks).  After I packed up, event organizer Karren Lee offered me a glass of wine, and we agreed the event was a big success.  Earlier, cops broke up a wine tasting event in the former Miller Drugs after a liquor storeowner across the street complained.  The participants moved the event to a pizza place down the street that had a liquor license.

Sunday at the Wades again for Game Weekend I prevailed in Amun Re and Acquire and would have won croquet except a new rule did not reward people who were poison another shot after they knocked someone out.  Tom and Brady’s balls were pretty far away but close to each other.  I aimed for Tom but hit Brady.  Under the old rules I could then have eliminated Tom.  Instead he became poison, too, and ousted me after I gambled and left myself less than six feet from his ball.  I left with a pint of Darcey’s yummy potato salad that she insisted would go to waste otherwise.

I’ve titled my upcoming talk to new Gary charter school teachers “The Fifth Wave.” A hundred years ago idealistic teachers were eager to be part of progressive educator William A. Wirt’s work-study-play system.  The 1920s population opened opportunities for African-American teachers who dedicated themselves to making all-black Roosevelt School a first-class institution.  A third wave came during the 1960s, many inspired by Black Pride and Richard Hatcher becoming the country’s first black mayor.  A quarter century later many homegrown teachers were replacing those who had once taught them.  So the Fifth Wave has big shoes to fill and hopefully will stand on the shoulders of four generations of dedicated educators and train future leaders.

I had lunch at the Redhawk Café with Anne and Leah Balay.  Earlier morning while running Anne got bit on the back of the leg by a miniature Doberman pinscher.  Bummer.  She went with the owner to examine the dog’s rabies shot record.  The woman was a surgical technician and cleaned the wound for her.  We shared some of Darcey’s potato salad.  Leah will be working on Obama’s re-election campaign until she returns to college in the fall. They wondered why Miller library has two names, Wildermuth-Woodson.  Pioneer resident Ora L. Wildermuth, a teacher and lawyer, lent out books form his collection and became known as the town’s first librarian.  Years later, while on IU’s Board of Trustees Wildermuth wrote letters to President Herman Wells opposing desegregation.  After this came to light, many residents wanted to rename the library.  As an ironically fitting compromise, the name of Carter G. Woodson, the “Father of Negro History” got attached to his name.