Celebrate Rhythm, Love and Norman Arts with ONE: Rave this March!

Feel the rhythm, love and art of this year's ONE event, Norman Arts Council's only fundraiser and the city's biggest arts party of the year. Pulsing with the rhythm of ’90s techno, rave and club culture, let's all let loose at our first in-person party since 2019 with signature drinks, vibrant art and good vibes all around. 

An exhibition of featured works from a wide array of Oklahoma talent begins on Friday, March 11 with a 2nd Friday reception from 6-9 p.m. at MAINSITE Contemporary Art, 122 E. Main, Norman, to preview the art and get a taste of the party to come. The reception and gallery hours will be free and open to all.

MAINSITE will continue to transform from gallery to underground club over the course of two weeks, culminating with the ONE: Rave event from 7 to 11 p.m. on Saturday, March 26, featuring signature drinks and drool-worthy food, along with live DJs, dancing and more surprises. Support Norman Arts Council by purchasing a ticket for the ONE event with at least a $75 donation to Norman Arts by March 5 (or $100 by March 19 and $125 the week or day of). 

Guests at ONE: Rave are invited to immerse themselves and others in the experience by dressing up in their favorite ’90s rave attire! Think bright, neon colors, vibrant patterns, holographic materials, bold hair and any other way you can think to stand out and set your spirit free.

After a two year pause from the live arts party, let your hair down and join us for this raving good time. All proceeds help benefit Norman Arts Council's mission to support the arts in Norman, including community events like 2nd Friday Norman Art Walk, MAINSITE Contemporary Art exhibitions, public art, arts education initiatives and more!  

Note: All guests must present proof of COVID-19 vaccination OR current negative (within 72 hours) COVID test in order to attend ONE.

ALL TICKETS INCLUDE:

Premium Open Bar

Delicious food

Art raffle/auction + silent auction items

Live entertainment

Lots of other arts party fun and surprises!

Norman Arts, Public Arts Board and City of Norman Seek New Storm Drain Mural Designs for Lions Park

4th Annual Artful Inlets

Deadline for submissions: 11:59 p.m. Friday, March 25
Information session: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, February 24
INFO SESSION CANCELLED

Presented by Norman Arts Council, Norman Public Arts Board and the City of Norman

The City of Norman operates and maintains a series of underground pipes, open channels, ditches, and roadways used to collect or convey stormwater runoff from our homes and businesses to the nearest body of water, such as a creek, stream, or lake. In urban areas, stormwater runoff from hard surfaces, like roofs and driveways, flows along the side of the road until it reaches a storm drain, which is an opening or grate in the curb connected by pipes to the nearest waterbody.  Water and other materials that enter these storm drains are transported directly to our creeks and streams without any treatment.  Some of the pollutants that enter our local creeks and streams with stormwater runoff include grass clippings, oil, trash, fertilizers, pesticides, and pet waste.

For the 4th Annual Artful Inlets program, the Norman Arts Council, Public Arts Board, and City of Norman are inviting artists to submit designs that will transform city storm drains into works of public art. These artful inlets will educate and raise awareness that pollutants that go down storm drains have a devasting impact on our local water quality.

There are currently nine Artful Inlets on Main Street and five on Jones Avenue from Main Street to Acres Street.  This year we will be adding an additional five (5) drains identified for this project. They will all be in or around Lions Park, more specifically three bridge crossings located within the park, the sidewalk entryway to the park located on the west side of the park, and the bridge crossing located east of the park within the sidewalk across Flood Avenue from the park. The artwork should have a stormwater and/or water quality theme, incorporating the slogan Cool Cats Keep It Clean! #lionspark, and must be adaptable to any of the five specified drains. Each selected artist will incorporate their original design into the prescribed area around the storm drain.

This year Earth Day coincides with the Artful Inlet event. Earth Day is Friday, April 22 and will be celebrated on Saturday, April 23 in Lions Park with Environmental Control Advisory Board members on hand at several educational stations to discuss several interesting environmental topics! The stations include the Yard by Yard program and native plants, micro-solar applications with a charging station, and dealing with waste. These stations will be in place during the painting of the Artful Inlets on Saturday, April 23, 2022.

Artists must be 18 years or older and residents of Cleveland County, Oklahoma. All designs must be original and submitted no later than Friday, March 25, 2022.

Selected artists will receive a $750 stipend, as well as paint and other materials needed for installation.

Show Your Work at MAINSITE, Support Norman Arts By Contributing Art to ONE

ONE Artist Call Artists are invited to participate in the Norman Arts Council's annual art auction and raffle! This is an exhibition and auction of works to support the Norman Arts Council.

Deadline to confirm participation via this form is February 18, 2022 at 11:59pm CST

Artwork MUST be delivered to the Norman Arts Council between February 28, 2022 – March 4, 2022 from 10am-4pm - No Exceptions!

Artwork must be delivered ready to hang or display.

Artwork must include Title, Artist, Medium, and Dimensions clearly marked on the back of the piece.

Raffle: Works of art in the Raffle will accept raffle tickets beginning March 19th in-person and online through the evening of March 26th. Winners will be drawn at the end of the event on March 26th.

Auction: Works of art in the auction will be available for bidding and purchase in-person and online beginning March 11, 2022 and through the end of the event on the evening of March 26th. Any work purchased prior to the event will still be exhibited through the evening of the event.

Exhibit Opening Celebration: 2nd Friday, March 11, 2022, 6pm – 9pm

Exhibit Closing: 11:00pm, Saturday, March 26th.

Unsold Artwork MUST be picked up between March 28-30, 2022 (10am - 4pm) - No Exceptions!

Details:

• Artists my submit up to two (2) works of art for ONE.

• We will only accept artwork 48” x 48” or smaller

• We would love for artists to consider “Rave” as a theme in their donated work, but it is not required

• The Norman Arts Council reserves the right to decline any work submitted for the auction for reasons including, but not limited to: work that is not exhibition-ready, work this is deemed inappropriate by the ONE Committee, or submissions that do not meet all the requirements.

Artists who donate 100% of proceeds to the NAC will receive:

• Two tickets to the event

• Work will be listed as Featured Work in the online Auction and include a link to your artist website (if applicable)

Artists who donate 50% of auction proceeds to the NAC will receive:

• One ticket to the event

• 50% of final sale price of work or the value of the work if it is in the raffle

Norman Arts Council Seeks Independent Contractor to Manage One-Time Grant Program

The Norman Arts Council is seeking an independent contractor to manage one-time grant program and economic impact data collection.  

The Norman Arts Council (NAC) has contracted with the National Endowment for the Arts to distribute $200,000 of American Rescue Plan Funds to the Norman Arts and Cultural Organizations. 

The NAC has contracted with Americans for the Arts to participate in the Arts and Economic Prosperity Study 6 to gather visitor and economic data to create a report of the economic impact of the arts in Norman.  

This contract position will be responsible for:

·      Coordination of the granting process for the ARP grants

·      Coordination of communication with organizations (approximately 20) who are awarded these grants to ensure compliance with all federal regulations

·      Coordination of communication with organizations regarding use and reporting of grant funds

·      Coordination of communication with arts organization on gathering survey data at their events over the course of a year

·      Coordination of volunteers to assist organization in gathering survey data at their events

·      Coordination of organizations’ own reporting of economic and budget number to Americans for the Arts

·      Monthly reporting to the Executive Director

Qualifications:

·      Highly organized

·      Excellent communication skills

·      Independent worker

·      Experience with managing grant applications

·      Preferred experience with Federal grant applications 

The contract period is March 2022 through July 2023 and may work from home with some regular meetings (in-person or zoom)

Contract fee is $20,000 for the period of the contact.

Deadline for submission: February 18, 2022

Please send cover letter, resume, and list of three references to:

Erinn Gavaghan
Norman Arts Council
122 E. Main Street
Norman, OK 73069
erinn@normanarts.org

MAINSITE Ushers Out 2021 with Abundant Collection of Local Artists

MAINSITE Contemporary Art is excited to present three new exhibitions featuring an artistically rich assortment of Oklahoma talent to close out its 2021 exhibition schedule. Greenwood Imagine — a multimedia project that asks what world would exist if the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre hadn’t occurred — and Water Fables by multidisciplinary artist Uriel Marín will populate the two respective sides of the main gallery at MAINSITE Contemporary Art, while new works by Sharon Burchett will be showcased in the Library Gallery.

The exhibits debut with an opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, December 10 as a part of the 2nd Friday Norman Art Walk. The show continues through Friday, February 11 with a closing reception set for that night, also from 6 to 9 p.m. A midway reception occurs from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, January 14 with a special Greenwood Imagine performance scheduled for Saturday, January 29 (more details to come).

MAINSITE Contemporary Art — located at 122 E. Main, Norman — is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday weekly, though it will remain closed from Friday, December 24 through Saturday, January 8 for the holidays. Both daily gallery hours and receptions are free and open to all.

Pictured: Aunj Renee Braggs

The creators of Greenwood Imagine — poet Anthony Curtis Brinkley artist Ebony Iman Dallas and filmmaker Derick Tinsley — combine live performance, poetry, video, and visual art in an effort to immerse visitors in an experience that dissolves the line between past and present. The artists want visitors to contemplate a world that might have existed if the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre had not occurred. Bringing generational trauma to the surface, Greenwood Imagine envelops viewers in the terror Greenwood citizens felt and asks them to link it to their current moment, moving them to acknowledge the trauma, respect it, and subsequently whisk it away to make room for future ideas and identities.

The work is inspired by Brinkley’s poem, “When Dreams Lose Wing''. A combination of poetry, live singing, a short monologue, and a 4-sided, interactive mural created by Ebony invites the audience to imagine Greenwood in a different state. This mural visualizes Greenwood’s proud past, a moment during the massacre, and the future that shares what the future might have been if the massacre had not occurred.

Featured artists include: Tony B, Black Moon Collective Artists (Melody Allen, Aunj Renee Braggs, Elizabeth Henley, nosamyrag and Erica Martez), Marie Casimir, Ebony Iman Dallas, Jeremy Drayton, J'aime Griffith, Tyler James, Leslie Johnson III, Gay Pasley and Derick Tinsley.

Pictured: Uriel Marín

Uriel Marín is a visual artist from Veracruz, México. In his creative process, he explores multiple and expandable graphics based on drawing and knowledge of traditional printmaking techniques. He uses intuitive experimentation to create iconography that is harmonious and dynamic. Uriel has built his artistic career in Oaxaca City, Mexico, often referred to as the printmaking capital of Latin America. He founded the graphic art collective, Arte Cocodrilo, with a group of emerging artists in 2005, then founded Radio Rizoma arts and culture community radio program in 2015, and the art studio and artist-in-residence program, Gallo-Dragon, in 2017. He has also served the Oaxacan Ministry of Culture as a visual arts instructor in Indigenous communities around the state. Uriel's work is influenced by the ukiyo-e traditional Japanese prints, which he has explored through three trips to Japan in which he worked as an artist-in-residence at Osaka University of Arts. His work has appeared in solo and collective exhibitions in South Africa, Germany, Slovakia, England, Japan, and Mexico as well as San Francisco and Los Angeles, California. His art has received honors from the national and state ministries of culture. Uriel is currently a Visiting Artist at the University of Oklahoma.

Pictured: Blue Marble Philosophy by Sharon Burchett

Mainly a mixed-media abstract artist originally from Chicago, Sharon Burchett has had solo exhibitions in Illinois and Oklahoma, including such locations as the Lightwell Gallery at the University of Oklahoma School of Visual Arts, the Schaumburg Township Library, and the Gingko Tree Art Studio and Gallery.Notable past shows include a stairwell show at Gallery 1-2-3, two-person exhibits Stark Art Gallery and Firehouse Art Center, a five-person exhibit at Paseo Art Space, and participation in two regional art exhibits at the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art.Burchett has a two-year art degree from William Rainey Harper College in Illinois and a master's degree in art history from the University of Oklahoma School of Visual Arts.She has over 130works in private collections in at least tenU.S. statesplus a couple of paintings in Thailand. Sheworks in a manner based on inspiration and personal expression.Typical mediums include acrylic, enamel, watercolor, pastel, chalks and pencils.

This micro-exhibition is by local artist Sharon R. Burchett and it is to accompany the completion of her commission work, Blue Marble Philosophyfor Illinois collectors Mark and Rebecca Miller.The artist was provided with the dimensions for the work as well as with a selection of expert acrylic paints and their hope that the painting would be calming. The location for the work is to be the Miller’s dining room, in a home they had built in Dixon, IL.As the Millers are activein their lake adjacent location, working with the community in various capacities, the artist chose to make this work all about the Millers and their dream location.Rebecca is a long-time friend, since high school.She serves as the administrative manager of the office of the Lost Lake River Conservancy District of Illinois.Mark is the Ogle County Planning and Zoning Administrator. Additionally, she and her husband are volunteer EMTs.Becky is also a 4th degree (master) black belt in Taekwondo and a poet.One of her poems is included in this catalogue, “Just As.”Mark is a musician, bass and vocals, and the two play in a local band (Becky sings).The flora and fauna are all from their area and all aspects relate to their life, including the depictedshape of the lake by which they live.The additional imagesare included as recent works by the artist and images are typically created based on current events and life experiences as well as thoughts and feelings.

Exhibitions at MAINSITE Contemporary Art are made possible by the generous support of the likes of The City of Norman, Mid-America Arts Alliance, Oklahoma Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Fowler Auto, Kirkpatrick Foundation and more.