Tag Archives: art

The MakeSpace

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The MakeSpace is a row house converted into artist studios and a community room that is intended for art shows (individual and collaborated), classes, projects, live music, collecting art materials, or whatever the swelling artistic hearts desire.  

I bet I sound like a broken record. The past few months I found myself enthusiastically spewing the phrase, “Have you been to the MakeSpace yet?!” almost on the daily. The opening has ignited immeasurable inspiration. The collaborating MakeSpace artists love this town. Art can be done anywhere but they chose HERE.  Through experiences, networks, and riding together on the same wave length they are existing as a creative catalyst for each other and the City of Harrisburg.

Boom!  Check it!

The Artists:

Leah and Fisher

Ian Kanski

Liz Laribee (Director)

Amanda Owens

Cat Rios

Upcoming events:

Live Music on Wednesday January, 16 at eight o’clock with a $5 suggested donation:  L’ASTRONAUT and HELLO SHARK

Fresh Prints:  a group exhibit is on Friday January, 18 from six o’clock until ten o’clock.
JACKIE BURKE (Harrisburg)
MICHAEL FISHER (Lancaster)
BRENTON GOOD (Camp Hill)
STEPHEN MURRILL (Harrisburg)
TENNYSON TIPPY (Philadelphia)
LEAH YANCOSKIE (Lancaster)

Go absorb:  http://hbgmakespace.com

 

Meet Sol Amstutz…

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He’s an artist, designer for Pavlov Visuals, and a tattoo apprentice at Dexterity Studios in Lancaster, PA.

And let me tell you, he’s 26, doing what he loves, making money, producing designs for clients ranging from Metallica, The Beatles, Marvel Comics, to Lamb of God, and Every Time I Die, furthering his education by learning the art of tattooing, and growing beyond the spectrum of what people expect from an artist.  To put it simply, Hell yes, he’s doing well…

I was thrilled to get to know this guy better.  When we sat down for dinner a few weeks ago I think we both left feeling pumped and motivated.  He’s confident, but not cocky, and certainly focused.  I think he’s someone that most of us can relate to… When it comes down to it we all have a childhood, a youth, get an education whether it be involving school or not, have ideas of where we should be at certain points in our lives, have bigger struggles, smaller bumps, find the breaking point for our own give-a-damn, learn how to work, etc., but Sol has the drive to take all those life experiences and make himself into someone exceptional.

Will we ever be too old to want to burn things?  …nah.

Cheers, dude.  Keep going…

The Huckle Buckle Boys

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Have you ever envisioned people as monsters? Monsters as people? Yourself as a creature? These ghoulish and foolish beings: disconcerting yet humble. And appearances are deceiving, they are more afraid of you than you are of them.

Garrick Dorset and Zack Rudy are The Huckle Buckle Boys: Black Hearted Kings. And this is the journey of higher learning…

THIS ART can be found at the gallery at the HACC Midtown Campus in Harrisburg, PA until June 8, 2012. It is open Thursdays from 5 to 7pm.

Liz Laribee

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“Love community and you will kill it. Love your brother and you will build it.”
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Last Monday, I was much obliged to spend time with and interview the lovely and wonderful, Liz Laribee! Among many things, you may know her as a local artist, the Events Director of the Midtown Scholar, or the jovial and infectious young woman who’s laughter can be recognized almost anywhere. She is also an avid and experienced hug-giver. Here are some snippets from our interview!

DF: What all does your job entail here at the Scholar?

Liz: This is where I operate out of and its very important to me to be involved in helping creative people have an outlet for exhibiting their talents, whether that’s musicians, community organizers, artists, writers, etc. One of the things I love about this place is that its completely poly-culture. There are so many different things happening in and around this space that it brings every socioeconomic demographic through the door. That’s very important to me. It’s a complete representation of the city around me. There are a lot of places everywhere that attract a very specific lens and specific population of people and there’s a place for that, but that’s not my jam. My jam is being involved in the lives of people who are living on the same street as I am and across town and providing a place for them to come mingle because strange and wonderful things happen when disparate people get together.

DF: I agree! There are a lot of places that only cater to one demographic or select demographics but its apparent that isn’t what you want to see here.

Liz: It doesn’t mean necessarily that we’re doing anything better than anyone else but its a matter of understanding who we are, who will be coming here, and what product we are giving them. The product here being hospitality and education in this wonderful mixture. I mean, I work in a bookstore! Which means essentially anybody who wanted to could get a complete education about anything they wanted to by coming through these doors and ingesting whatever is around them culturally, from the books, and the people they’re seeing. I love that! I work in a setting where everybody has the capacity to deepen their experience as a person. And its not just a social gathering either… its based upon just being within the dregs of culture.

After our meeting, it was my hope to capture Liz: a ball of pure love and joy, and a strong and determined woman.

Liz has also founded the Midtown Poets which meets at Midtown Scholar as well as being on the board for 3rd In The Burg. Upcoming events can be found at http://www.midtownscholar.com/ and at http://www.facebook.com/3rdInTheBurg.

In other exciting news, Liz has also committed to doing photography for a new magazine coming soon called “Local” which will be created by Dan Webster and Andrew Bargh. (Stay tuned for more on that, folks!)

Please take the time to support her and visit her website! http://www.lizlaribee.com/