Posted By Editor on January 27, 2010
Finally, my first post. Looking around here, I have to say that I wish my non-virtual blotter looked as nice as this one! On my real-world desk, there are piles of business cards, brochures, flyers, scrawled hand-written notes, postcards and gallery guides strewn all over the place. How’s an art lover supposed to keep up with all this stuff? So many wonderful artists to meet, galleries to explore and festivals to attend, wine trails to follow, organizations to support and classes to take. Can’t we have a central online resource that has all this information about our active arts and culture community so we can toss the mess and never have to scribble on a scrap of paper that will immediately get lost again? Oh right…that’s my job. The piles of paper are a bit overwhelming sometimes…
But you see what I mean. Southern Oregon is a beautiful treasure trove of “secret spots,” many of which have been discovered by artists of every imaginable type looking for a peaceful place to create. Which is great, and not so great, because it can be hard to find them. Not just for someone who wants to know who’s doing what, but for event organizers scouting for talent to include in their presentations. Even some of our premier creators, known throughout the country and the world for their innovative and award-winning creations, can be hard to track down. How to find all their websites, blogs and social networking presences? It takes forever to search and sort through them all. I’ve talked to lots of locals who have no idea that our area is host to festivals that feature world-class cheesemakers, chocolatiers and winemakers. The events I attended over the last year have done a great job showcasing artistic talent across a broad range of specialties, but there’s plenty of room for more.
Keeping track of these events can be challenging, too. A close friend of mine told me recently that she had intended to go to the “Empty Bowls” show for the past two years, but when the time came for the event she’d lost track of the notes, the location, the date…event came and went without her knowing til it was all over. Another good friend missed Jacksonville’s Art Jubilee last year. JOBA and Art Presence worked so hard to promote it effectively, but his comment to me was “how is someone supposed to hear about things like this?” That’s what our calendar is for. With your help, I’ll do my best to have any and all arts-related events available there, so from your browser you can check it at our site, subscribe to it with a feed or from your Google account, or subscribe to it from the iCal in your computer. This should be handy for locals to stay on top of events they want to attend and for those planning visits to Southern Oregon who want to include art events in their itineraries. Soon I’ll be adding another blog so those who list their events on the calendar can introduce themselves and describe their events in more detail. To back it up, we’ll be publishing an Art Events calendar in the Jacksonville Review every month.
Speaking of blogs, you’ll soon be seeing links to more of them here, some “domestic” blogs within the Southern Oregon Artists Resource, some linked to those published by members of the arts community who have listings here. That should be fun!
I went to the Rogue Gallery and Art Center’s 50th Anniversary celebration last week and walked in to a standing-room-only crowd. Awesome. Naturally, as I have been since September, I talked to as many of them as I could about SOAR. I’m so pleased that I have yet to hear anyone say “don’t bother.” I spoke with the RGAC’s new Executive Director, Jules Masterjohn, and co-founder Eugene Bennett, who’s put 50 years of work into developing and encouraging the arts around here, and, happily, got lots of heart-warming encouragement to stay with it. Everyone feels the concept is good, the service is necessary and that it will be helpful to many. It’s a lot of work, and so far its been a labor of love which steals too much time from my bank account and my work as a web designer. Which does pay my bills, so I can’t quit my “day job” yet! Yet I am completely enamored with our lovely and talented arts community and don’t see why I shouldn’t leap in with no backing or sponsorship to do what I can to promote them. They have certainly done their part to make Southern Oregon such a great place to live, work and play.
So, while the site is in its infancy and it’s not time to throw away all the piles of paper just yet, I hope you’ll enjoy hanging out and watching it come to life as I add new features and more events to the calendar, and as more artists, galleries, organizations and events add their listings to the directory. This is a great time to make suggestions, so don’t be shy. And, you know, spread the word!
I’ll try to keep my posts shorter in the future!
Category: Benefits, Mission, Uncategorized |
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Tags: Arts, Culture, Destination, Events, Leisure, SOAR, Southern Oregon, Southern Oregon Artists Resource, Travel
