Tag Archives: Georgia

Art

“Rhythm and Resilience: The Artistry of Sam Middleton” Exhibition

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If you are able to travel to Georgia this Spring, the Hammonds House Museum located at 503 Peeples St SW Atlanta, GA continues its 2024 exhibition season with “RHYTHM AND RESILIENCE: THE ARTISTRY OF SAM MIDDLETON”. Curated by Halima Taha.

About the Exhibition

You’re invited to embark on a mesmerizing journey through the life and works of Sam Middleton, a pioneering mixed-media artist whose vibrant creations echoed the rhythms of Harlem jazz and the landscapes of Europe’s Low Countries. Born in New York in 1927, Middleton’s artistic odyssey transcended borders and he left an indelible mark on both sides of the Atlantic. Rhythm of Resilience: The Artistry of Sam Middleton opens at Hammonds House Museum on May 17 and runs through August 18, 2024.

In Rhythm of Resilience, Middleton’s artistic evolution unfolds, tracing his self-taught beginnings amidst the vibrant culture and pulsating beats of jazz and classical music in Harlem. His encounters with creativity at the Savoy Ballroom ignited a lifelong passion for self-expression.

Venturing beyond his hometown, Middleton’s voyages with the US Merchant Marines provided him with inspiration, infusing his art with a global perspective. From the sun-soaked shores of Mexico to the tranquil landscapes of Sweden, each destination left an imprint on his ever-evolving aesthetic. Moving to the Netherlands in 1961, Middleton, joined a wave of African American artists drawn to its creative environment. Settling in Schagen, amidst the serene North Holland polder landscape, Middleton’s work blossomed, blending the vibrancy of jazz with the tranquility of his surroundings.

A master of collage, Middleton’s compositions pulsate with energy, weaving together musical scores, photographs, and graphic elements in a dance of color and form.

His art is a testament to the enduring influence of jazz, intertwining with the visual influence of his adopted homeland.

Through teaching positions at esteemed institutions Atelier 63 in Harlem and the Royal Academy of Visual Arts in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, Middleton’s legacy extended beyond his own creations, nurturing a new generation of artistic talent.

Featured Image: Newport by Sam Middleton, 1992.

Culture

WHY Meditation Is Science Approved Medicine

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Ohm! There have been countless anecdotal claims about the benefits of practicing meditation since the Eastern tradition has become more popular in the West.

 Now, there’s plenty of Western-based scientific evidence to support them, says Dr. Matt Mumber, a radiation oncologist and co-director of a non-profit integrative oncology program.

“Meditation is to the brain what physical activity is to the body. We’ve found meditation to be an important facet of health care, both for prevention and maintenance as well as in the treatment of disease, including cancer,” says Dr. Mumber, co-author with colleague and Yoga instructor Heather Reed of “Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your Mind, Body, and Spirit,” (www.sustainablewellnessonline.com).

Mumber and Reed, who are co-facilitators of non-profit residential retreats for cancer patients, say one can experience sustainable wellness by developing a life practice grounded in the cultivation of awareness. This awareness is paying attention without attachment. The ability to be aware can be increased by a meditation tool called mindfulness.

“Life is a constant series of adjustments, matching your inner being with your outer doing,” Reed says. “One way to heighten your awareness is through practicing meditation.”

Mumber and Reed say there’s plenty of new evidence that the resulting sense of balance and peace is not just a psychological effect:

• Mindfulness meditation leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density: Recently published in Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, shows that measurable  changes in gray-matter density in parts of the brain associated with memory, sense of self, empathy, and stress occurred with study participants who meditated for 30 minutes a day for eight weeks.

• Meditation practitioners have longer attention spans: Published by the journal PloS Biology, a study analyzed people with three months of rigorous training and found that they gained a drastically improved attention span – not only longer, but less susceptible to internal or external distraction. They also showed improved memory and enhanced performance in several tasks, from driving a car to playing piano.

• Reduces stress and blood pressure: Presented to the American Heart Association by researchers at the at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and the Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention, a study including 200 high-risk patients for heart attack found that meditation reduced their chances for heart attack by 50 percent.

Oncologist Matt Mumber co-author of Sustainable Wellness
Oncologist Matt Mumber co-author of Sustainable Wellness

“Studies involving people seeking to reduce stress and other problems in their lives via meditation will continue, as well as for those who want to enhance performance of various duties,” Mumber says.

“For those skeptical of the medical benefits of this Eastern practice, there’s now plenty of Western proof.” Matt Mumber, MD

Matt Mumber, MD, is a practicing board-certified radiation oncologist with the Harbin Clinic in Rome, Ga. He completed his radiation oncology residency at Wake Forest University Bowman Gray School of Medicine and graduated from the Associate Fellowship Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Dr. Mumber is past president of the Georgia Society of Clinical Oncology. He founded Cancer Navigators Inc, a non-profit organization offering cancer patients access to nurse navigation, social services and educational programs to support and augment the clinical care they receive. Dr. Mumber received the Hamilton Jordan Founders Award for involvement in statewide oncology activities and in 2008 he was named a Health Care Hero by Georgia Trend magazine. He serves on the editorial board for the journals Current Oncology and Journal of Oncology Practice and is on the board for the Society of Integrative Oncology. 

 

Yoga instructor Heather Reed of “Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your Mind, Body, and Spirit
Yoga instructor Heather Reed of “Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your Mind, Body, and Spirit

Heather Reed has been teaching Yoga since 1996. She expresses an integrative, adaptive approach and specializes in using Yoga and meditation techniques for people living with cancer, post-polio syndrome and other chronic illnesses. Heather received an Experienced Teacher Certification from Esther Myers Yoga Teacher Training Program and has had extensive training with senior staff of the Commonweal Cancer Help program and Dr. Dean Ornish’s Program for Reversing Heart Disease. She developed Yoga classes for cancer patients at The Wellness Community, Atlanta. Since 2008, she has been Yoga teacher and co-facilitator for the Residential Retreat Program for Cancer Navigators of Rome, Ga. For the Silo, Ginny Grimsley

Supplemental-  http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/28/how-meditation-may-change-the-brain/

Culture

ALIPH Allocates USD 10 Million For Cultural Heritage Protection In 12 Conflict Countries

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Geneva, December 2019 

The International alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas (ALIPH) said on Tuesday it has allocated another USD 10 million to support 20 projects that safeguard cultural heritage in 12 countries struggling to recover from conflict, particularly in the Middle East and Africa.

Cultural heritage has been targeted in recent years by armed conflicts; its rehabilitation is now essential for social and cultural reconstruction efforts in affected countries.

ALIPH is the only global fund dedicated to the protection of cultural heritage in conflict areas. To this end, the foundation finances preventive measures, emergency interventions and concrete post-conflict rehabilitation projects all around the world.

Created in response to the massive destruction of cultural heritage in the Middle East and the Sahel region, its offices opened in Geneva in September 2018. These 20 new projects will bring this young organization’s total number of supported projects to 43, for a financing envelope of more than USD 17 million to date.

“Through these interventions, we reaffirm our commitment to help preserve mankind’s collective history and to assist those living in countries affected by conflict in building a renewed sense of hope, community and dignity”, said Dr. Thomas S. Kaplan, Chair of ALIPH Foundation Board. 

This new funding announcement deepens ALIPH’s engagement in three areas of intervention: protecting monuments and sites, safeguarding museums and their collections, and documenting and interconnecting heritage.

The Alliance will also fund, for the first time, an intangible heritage project in Afghanistan to safeguard decorative tile making, carpet weaving and Tambor making. “ALIPH’s support will allow our team to protect, safeguard, and document our priceless heritage which has been gravely weakened by decades of conflict across Afghanistan,” said Hamid Hemat, Cultural Heritage Senior Specialist and Project Manager, at the NGO Turquoise Mountain.

Image result for Hamid Hemat,
Hamid Hemat

This funding cycle will expand ALIPH’s presence from 7 to 12 countries: Afghanistan, Eritrea, Georgia, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Peru, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and a project in Denmark to digitize documents on the heritage of Palmyra, Syria. The depth and scope of these projects is possible only because of the strong support of its Member States and private donors.

ALIPH’s ongoing projects have already achieved several milestones, in particular the long-term initiative “Mosul Mosaic” (Iraq) that aims to rehabilitate sites representative of the cultural and religious diversity of the Old City. For instance, the Mosul Museum has now been stabilized, part of its collections safely stored, and its overall rehabilitation action plan finalized. The next step has just been approved by ALIPH, which aims to restore the collections, build capacities and pave the way for the building’s reconstruction.

Two emergency grants in Africa have also concluded: in Mali, staff were trained at the Al-Aqib Library in Timbuktu to restore 3,000 manuscripts, and in Abidjan, the protection of the collection of the Musée des Civilisation de Côte d’Ivoire has been reinforced. “This excellent project is the first of its kind in West Africa. Indeed, thanks to ALIPH’s generous support, the collections of the Museum are now well protected,” said Museum Director, Dr. Silvie Memel-Kassi.

Dr. Silvie Memel-Kassi

Download Factsheet about the projects

About ALIPH

The International alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas (ALIPH) provides concrete support for the protection and reconstruction of cultural heritage in conflict zones and post-conflict situations. The Alliance was founded in March 2017 in response to the massive destruction of outstanding, often ancient, cultural heritage in recent years. Operating under Swiss law, this Geneva-based foundation, also has the status of an international organization.

ALIPH financially supports associations, foundations, academic, cultural and heritage institutions, and international organizations working to preserve cultural heritage in the face of imminent conflict or to intervene for its rehabilitation. Its three areas of intervention are: preventive protection to limit the risks of destruction, emergency measures to ensure the security of heritage, and post-conflict actions to enable local populations to once again enjoy their cultural heritage.

ALIPH selects projects through regular calls—the next call will be open from 15 January-16 March. Emergency relief funding can also be applied for on a rolling basis. More information available at: www.aliph-foundation.org.  For the Silo, Sandra Bialystok Aliph Communication and Partnerships Officer.

Fashion

Funny Paradox Of Digital Life Is Design Parameter For New “Captcha” Clothing

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Print All Over Me is a creative community of people turning virtual ideas into real world objects. Every three months, we release a series of silhouettes like t-shirts, backpacks, jockstraps, etc. As a designer, you can upload your own artwork to each silhouette and then offer your design for sale. Even “captcha” designs like in our collab below with EXONEMO.

Every piece on PAOM is custom made. We print the fabric first and then cut and sew. We believe that by taking fashion slowly we can: a. offer high quality items; b. produce in an environmentally sustainable way; c. (and most importantly) offer our studio employees a living wage and health benefits.

Our office and collab studio is based in New York at New Inc. – the New Museum’s incubator. Our main production studio is outside Shanghai and we have a satellite studio in Georgia, outside Savannah.

Print All Over Me Captcha Designs by ExoNemo
Click me to design your own captcha – antibot wear.

Supplemental-

Neilsen's signature look- a la 1970's 1980's
Neilsen’s signature look- a la 1970’s 1980’s

Was Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen an early captcha-clothing pioneer?

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Culture

Impressive Fan Series ‘Star Trek Continues’ Is Shockingly True To Original Series

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Ahead At Warp Speed

The finishing touches are now being applied to the sixth episode produced by the fans behind Star Trek Continues, and we look forward to a debut screening in May at MegaCon in Orlando.  This week, we’re  launching another crowdfunding campaign to produce more episodes, which will bring to 10 the number of episodes in our web series.  Support us here:  https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/star-trek-continues#/   Episode VI — “Come Not Between the Dragons” — is an action-packed, dramatic story that deals with deeply personal issues. It guest stars Gigi Edgley of Farscape fame. And Episode VII — featuring the return of Erin Gray and other surprise guest stars — will, with the help of this campaign, be released in the fall.

Vic Mignogna as Kirk.
Vic Mignogna as Kirk.

Between free viewings on Vimeo and YouTube, our five finished episodes have had more than four million views!  And we’re pleased to be recognized with nearly a dozen accolades and awards, and even recognition from The Wall Street Journal, which calls Star Trek Continues “the flagship of the fan film fleet.”   First and foremost, Star Trek Continues respectfully and graciously thanks CBS, the holder of the copyright to Star Trek. CBS’ understanding of the passion fans have for Star Trek is second-to-none, and we’re grateful to have the opportunity to pay tribute with our fan-based non-profit web series.

We are in no way affiliated with, nor endorsed by, CBS or Paramount Pictures. This latest campaign is already off to a strong start.  And it’s the third time we’ve appealed for support in this way.  Late in 2013, our first effort raised enough money to produce episodes 2,3, and 4.  Last January, we launched a second crowdfunding campaign to continue our journey and produce two more episodes and build the enormous Engineering set.  And that’s precisely what we did.     STC’s track record speaks for itself. As deeply committed stewards of our precious fans’ donations, we do what we promise we will do. So many of our previous donors tell us they can’t wait to support us again.  One needs only watch an episode to see these generous donations at work.   We seek no return other than the joy of paying tribute to TOS — both in the creation of these episodes, and in the privilege of sharing them with beloved fans.  All money raised goes to hard costs related to the development, filming, and post-production of these stories, such as:

  • Set construction, maintenance and materials
  • Studio rental and maintenance
  • Monthly utilities costs
  • Equipment rental
  • Prop production and replication
  • Wardrobe production and maintenance
  • Make-up equipment and supplies
  • Cast and crew travel, lodging, and food during the shoots
  • Post-production costs, hard drives, online data storage, etc.
  • Fundraising costs.

So if you believe in what we’re doing and you’d like to help, now is the time to donate to keep a good thing going.And we’ve got an exciting array of perks for contributors – including a selection of screen-used costumes.

StarTrek Continues Instagramhttps://www.indiegogo.com/projects/star-trek-continues#/   Find STC on Instagram!   We are very pleased to announce that now you can follow Star Trek Continues on Instagram!     We will be posting never before seen production stills, behind the scenes photos, crew features, concept art from our designers, and more! You can find us there @trekcontinues, and also on Tumblr at stcontinues. Thank you so much for all of your support and enthusiasm. Please continue to follow, like, share, and tell your friends!   https://www.instagram.com/trekcontinues/   http://stcontinues.tumblr.com/

Trek Prop Fans Relish a Visit to Stage Nine   One of the ingredients that makes Star Trek Continues look authentic is attention to detail, and in particular the sets and props designed to look like they came from the soundstages in the 1960’s.   The production relies on the skills of dedicated propmakers and fans who donate use of their treasures for our episodes.  In December, prop collectors got a chance to tour the Enterprise – including the new Engineering Room – during a private visit to Stage Nine in southern Georgia.

Enterprise Engine Room StarTrek ContinuesSpace.com staff artist Karl Tate came down from New York.  His reaction to walking standing sets was typical.   “I’ve been aboard the USS Enterprise. That’s all I can say. When you’re walking down that corridor, and the stage lights are lit, and all you see is Enterprise…I’m there,” Tate says.  “It’s truly an achievement and I look forward to what Star Trek Continues comes up with next!”   The one-day event was filled with special presentations on prop-making, and an opportunity for prop fans to show off their collections and hand-made treasures.

“Many of us have bucket lists, things we want to complete or do in this lifetime. I’ve had such a list since I was a kid. One of the items on my list, one I never thought possible, was to go back in time and see the Star Trek sets at Desilu Studios. Impossible, right? Well, after visiting the Star Trek Continues sets I was able to cross one more item off my bucket list,” explains Larry Chalkey from Virginia.  “As I walked the corridors of the Enterprise, I imagined what it must have been like to be there in 1966. What it must have felt like to make the show we all love. This was truly an amazing experience and one I will always treasure.” By Vic Mignogna for The Silo.