Latest Arts & Culture
You’re Invited: Oglethorpe’s Senior Art Show
Posted by: | May 11, 2012 | Comments
OU seniors would like to invite YOU to Oglethorpe University’s Senior Art Show. The four-day exhibition is curated by Professor Alan Loehle and comprised of works by graduating art majors and minors from Oglethorpe University.
Students Nicole Kang, Lauren Visconti, Lara Jacques, Sarah Duff, Kara Samples, Sean Lovett, Michaela Mayfield, Samantha Korotskin, Bianca Hernould, Hannah Goldman, Jessica Sundstrom, Leeane Eldredge, Katie Odell, and Ian Franklin will showcase some of their best works created during their time as undergraduates. A wide range of works in mediums, styles, and subjects will be part of the exhibit.
The show will run May 11 – 14, 2012 in the Talmage Room of the Emerson Student Center. An opening reception will be held on May 11, 2012, 7-9 p.m. Need more information? E-mail Nicole Kang at nkang@oglethorpe.edu.
Oglethorpe Feels the Mardi Gras Spirit from Atlanta to New Orleans
Posted by: | March 09, 2012 | Comments
This year the Oglethorpe community celebrated “Fat Tuesday” both on the road and at home.
The OU French Club planned a road trip to New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras (French for Fat Tuesday)—the first trip of its kind for the Francophone group. They immersed themselves in the culture, practicing their French language skills and visiting the French-speaking children at L’ecole Bilingue de la Nouvelle Orleans.
“We learned about the history of the Cajuns and how they were sent to Louisiana from Canada,” said Alexus Whilby, president of the OU French Club. “We learned a lot about the history of voodoo and the contrast between Creoles and Cajuns. We also enjoyed the New Orleans Museum of Art and the French exhibit gallery.” The club plans to make this an annual trip.
While the French Club celebrated in New Orleans, the others back on campus shared a prayer and a delicious spread in Hearst Hall, hosted by the Orthodox Student Union. The feast united students of many different backgrounds, beliefs and religions.
“Hearst Hall has never been as cozy as it was on Fat Tuesday this Lent season!” said student Lidia Awad. “Everyone gathered…to enjoy great company, wonderful food, and celebrate the spiritual journey they were about to embark on.”
Sophomore Awet Woldegebriel, president of the Orthodox Student Union, described what Lent meant to him, saying “the Lent season keeps me grounded. Fasting or giving something up—going above and beyond what you usually do—is a humbling sacrifice and this Lent, I am excited to be able to share my faith with my Oglethorpe family”.
“The lamb, pastries, and warm fire were exceptional,” said Awad. “But nothing filled the Great Hall more than the love and the joy of everyone holding hands around the table, saying grace and reflecting upon the blessings we had been given.”
Oglethorpe Students Explore “Stand Strong Japan” Exhibit
Posted by: | February 23, 2012 | CommentsIt’s exciting when the Core curriculum and what Atlanta has to offer come together.
Last semester I took my Narratives of Self class to an exhibit sponsored by the Consulate of Japan. The exhibit was called Stand Strong Japan and was held at the Wimbish House in Midtown. It showcased the culture of Tohoku, the region that was hardest hit by the earthquake and tsunami. I was looking for a way for my students to connect with Japanese culture because they were writing an essay on Ran, an adaptation of King Lear by the director Akira Kurosawa. This exhibit provided the perfect opportunity for students to connect with the culture and it also allowed us to show our support for the people of Tohoku.
“I like studying Japanese culture,” said OU student Cayla Austin ’15. “I got to touch and feel authentic Samurai Gear and practice the bit of Japanese I learned in class.”
The highlight of the event was the introduction of the Soma Noma Oi (Soma Wild Horse Chase), one of Japan’s foremost festivals. Held every July in Soma and Haramachi on Fukushima Prefecture’s east coast, the festival features horseraces in full samurai regalia, a Bon Dance, a parade, a contest of sacred banners, and a horse chase where riders catch wild horses and then ride them bareback. In 2011, the festival, which has a history of more than 1,000 years, became a symbol of Tohoku’s resolve and recovery when the people of Soma and the surrounding area joined forces to hold the festival despite the devastation sustained by their town just four months prior.
Mr. Satoshi Tachibana of Soma City, one of only five people remaining in Japan with the skills and knowledge to create and restore the Heian Period (794 to 1185) yoroi armor used in the festival, came to Atlanta all the way from Soma to demonstrate his artform at the Tohoku exhibition. Two suits of authentic samurai armor, video, and photographs of several famous Tohoku festivals, including the Soma Noma Oi were also on display.
“This exhibit truly showed the nature of a culture that survived one of the worst storms in our lifetime,” said Heather Burgess ’15. “The ability for so many people to stand together and keep a cultural existence is inspiring.”
Dr. Robert Steen is Associate Professor of Japanese. He received his BA at Oberlin College and his MA and PhD at Cornell University.
Oglethorpe Alumnus Releases Solo Piano Album
Posted by: | February 14, 2012 | CommentsJohn Burke, a 2011 Oglethorpe University graduate, released his first solo piano album this past fall. The OU Blog recently caught up with him to see how he managed to reach such a milestone so early in his career.
OU Blog: Congratulations on your new album! Tell us about it.John: The album came out in October. It’s called “Synesthesia” and my goal was to provoke a sense of colors through music. All songs are named after colors and the album has a psychological edge to it that tests your mind while you’re enjoying the music.
It’s an instrumental album and I wrote and composed all the tracks. It took me about a year and a half to complete it. I actually found my inspiration during a study abroad trip to Spain I took while at OU.
OU Blog: So, Oglethorpe helped your development as an artist?
John: Yes. I chose OU because of its size and tight knit community. Looking back, I do not see myself being anywhere else but OU. I majored in Spanish and minored in Music. I also sang in the choir. Oglethorpe made it easy for me to balance between full academic load and music practice by providing access to the piano room on campus. I was able to steal little increments of time between classes to practice. It is a great place to thrive.
OU Blog: How did your love for music begin?
John: It started during my senior year in high school. My friends and I started a rock-and-roll/blues band named “Vinyl”. I had no formal schooling in music before OU. I just listened to music and tried to apply it by ear.
OU Blog: Impressive! What was the first tune you learned on piano?
John: The first tune I learned must have been “Imagine” by John Lennon. My favorite thing to play now is George Winston, whom I consider to be the most influential pianist in my life.
OU Blog: What’s your dream stage to perform on? Dream duet?
John: I would love to perform at Carnegie Hall. And a dream duet would be with Ray Manzarek, keyboardist for The Doors—piano and organ. And I would also love to compose an album for a blockbuster movie. I dream big. The sky is the limit.
OU Blog: You are obviously very talented. Do you have musical genes in your family?
John: My father is a musician; he currently leads and directs a band at church. He is my role model and motivation, and I can honestly say that if it were not for him I would not be where I am today.
OU Blog: How often and for how long do you practice? What advice would you give beginner musicians?
John: I practice every day, on a good day between 2-4 hours. Beginners, and even those with experience, should not stop practicing and always try new things and different styles. Practice and variety help you grow as an artist.
OU Blog: Music is a big part of your life. Do you have any other musical initiatives?
John: Yes, I am a choir director at a church in Brookhaven, and I have also taught music theory, reading music and also piano. I would like to spend more time teaching music and sharing my passion for it. It is very rewarding to reveal the beauty of music to someone else.
The album is available at www.johnburkemusic.com. John’s music also airs on Best Smooth Jazz and Best Smooth Grooves, two radio stations in the United Kingdom.
History In the Making: Oglethorpe Visits Cuba
Posted by: | February 07, 2012 | Comments
Dr. Mario Chandler and Dr. Viviana Plotnik, together with President Schall, led a group of OU students on an educational trip to Cuba over winter break as part of a course focusing on Cuban history, politics and culture. This is the first Oglethorpe University educational trip to this country.
The course, taken for academic credit, included extensive lectures, readings, films, homework, and other requirements. The trip focused on hands-on exploration of Havana’s extensive Asian heritage, the historical and contemporary importance of Cuba’s tobacco industry as well as the island’s economic importance. After the trip, each student had to turn in a journal and each are required to write a reserach paper due later in the semester.
The trip coincided with Delta Airlines’ adding direct flights from Atlanta to Cuba in December 2011. The decision allows for flights for passengers with close relatives in Cuba, for those who are involved in the medical or agricultural business sectors, or for education or religious activities. OU’s group was on one of the first flights to Cuba, just a few days after Christmas. Dr. Chandler shared his thoughts on the trip with the OU Blog.
OU Blog: How did the trip to Cuba come to fruition?
Dr. Chandler: The idea for the OU trip to Cuba was inspired, in fact, by President Schall, who has great interest in the Spanish language and Latin American issues. The President approached me and my colleague in Spanish, Dr. Viviana Plotnik, and shared with us his desire to see such an opportunity come to fruition for our students. Dr. Plotnik and I designed the itinerary and course, which received an enthusiastic and immediate response from the campus community. We were able to put all of the organization pieces together during the Fall 2011 semester.
OU Blog: Why was this trip important?
Dr. Chandler: For me the trip to Cuba symbolized one important, but all-encompassing notion: opportunity. This trip constituted an opportunity for Oglethorpe students to engage Cuban culture, history, and society on that country’s terms rather than through a five-decade long filter of misunderstanding and distrust between Cuba and our country. Unfortunately, the average American students’ views about Cuba are often imbued with misunderstanding, so an opportunity to challenge popular opinion by allowing students to meet Cubans and engage issues from an internal perspective is a powerful and potentially transformative educational experience. As Spanish professors, Dr. Plotnik and I couldn’t be more proud than to have had the chance to shepherd our students in their navigation of this wonderful opportunity, an exercise that takes place, ideally, in the people’s language…Spanish.
OU Blog: How was the Oglethorpe group received by the local people?
Dr. Chandler: Our OU group members were consummate ambassadors throughout our Cuban journey. We were proud to see our students using the Spanish language for engaging in daily contact with Cubans, for holding conversations and maintaining discussions, and for cultivating acquaintances that extended beyond the typical tourist demarcations. Frequently, throughout our Cuban travels, we used public transportation alongside Cubans going about their daily tasks or ate peanuts while strolling the country’s prados and malecons, in small but significant ways bringing us closer to our Cuban hosts and erasing barriers on both sides whether real or invented.
If you would like to learn more about this trip, Dr. Chandler, Dr. Plotnik, and Oglethorpe students will give a presentation about their experiences as part of tomorrow’s OU Day celebrations. Join the conversation, “OU Student Reflections on Cuban Culture–What Happens in Cuba Doesn’t Stay in Cuba,” on Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:10 p.m. in the Conant Performing Arts Center. For more photos from the Cuba trip, check out Flickr. For more information about Oglethorpe’s study abroad program, check out OUSA’s page.