CSF's Urban Culture Project Presents CUMULUS, Opens 1/15/2010

Charlotte Street Foundation's Urban Culture Project is pleased to present Cumulus, a multi-media, multi-disciplinary exhibition featuring select projects developed by current Urban Culture Project Studio Residents. UCP's Studio Residency Program for Visual and Performing Artists awards free studios for one year terms to promising and accomplished Kansas City area artists of all disciplines in need of dedicated space in which to work among a community of artist peers. UCP's Studio Residency Program currently provides studios for more than 30 artists and groups, who occupy studios in three facilities: Bonfils (125 East 12th Street), pARTnership Place (906 Grand, 13th floor) and City Center Square (1100 Main Street, 5th floor).

The exhibition's call for proposals encouraged studio residents to "consider collaboration or interactivity in the making and /or presentation of the work." The open nature of the call resulted in a dynamic group of proposals whose structures are inherently generous - offering room for audience participation, inviting the response of peers, and directly giving "gifts" to visitors of the exhibition. As a cumulus cloud gathers mass between opposing wind currents, Cumulus seeks to harvest exchange, hybrid design, and spontaneous expression through a mounting creative momentum.

Events that will mark the opening of the exhibition on January 15 include: The Four Seasons, an interactive performance piece, 7:30-8pm, by Timothy Amundson, Jane Gotch, and Erica Mahinay that will engage and react to the gallery space; Luke Rocha's Project Porta-Sound performance, which will employ analog audio/visual formats of the past to create a multi-media experience; the debut of Lisa Marie Evans' and Maura Michelle Garcia's video of a multi-media dance performance entitled The Little People, which addresses the reclaiming of a conscious Native identity through exploring the character and personality of the ancient Cherokee fairies; and a performance of new compositions by the Black House Improvisors' Collective at 9pm.

The walls of Paragraph will host three evolving installations: a large-scale paper-cutting by Caleb Taylor and Juniper Tangpuz, who will layer "coded" images based on a series of questions the artists have posed for themselves to respond to visually; Dead Game, a sculptural display to which Julie Malen and Calder Kamin will progressively add replicas of animals found killed in the urban environment; and Lori Yonley's project Give and Take: a collaborative drawing experiment, an ever-revolving collection of 5x5 drawings, extending an invitation to the general public every Thursday afternoon to "Take any drawing desired as long as you replace it with a new drawing."
Other gifts abound. Paul Shortt's Resistance is comprised of a stack of 5 1/2 x 11 inch take-away posters upon which "childish and immature actions" are printed, such as "pick your nose, stare, ask if it's time to go yet." Campfire nostalgia and S'mores will be available for purchase on the sidewalk at Kurt Flecksing's S'mores vending cart, whose proceeds will be offered as grant money for future artists' projects.

In February, happenings continue with an off-night performance organized by Charlie Mylie who will invite participants to reenact pivotal moments in their artistic development for a "celebration of the people and pieces that gave us hope, power, provocation, and momentum." Aaron Storck, embodying his character, "The Wizard Ningxt," will offer complimentary snacks and drinks to gallery visitors from his set-up on the floor in the corner of the gallery on the Third Friday February 19 reception. February 19 will also mark the beginning of a rotating exhibition space, curated by Erica Mahinay, who will facilitate a call and response structure to build further artist participation. The exhibition will further overflow into Oppenstein Park, 12th and Walnut, where new clay figures by Elaina Michalski will be stationed, left vulnerable to weather elements, in attempts to bring awareness to the problem of homelessness in Kansas City.

Cumulus has been organized by a collaborative curatorial team comprised of UCP Curatorial Committee members Cara Megan Lewis, Julia Cole, Kate Hackman, and Jared Panick.
Urban Culture Project is an initiative of the Charlotte Street Foundation, an organization dedicated to making Kansas City a place where artists and art thrive. Urban Culture Project creates new opportunities for artists of all disciplines and contributes to urban revitalization by transforming spaces in downtown Kansas City into new venues for multi-disciplinary contemporary arts programming. For more information, visit www.charlottestreet.org.

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