Author: Maryland State

*PLEASE NOTE LINKS AND SOME DATES HAVE CHANGED.

Creative Conversations are discipline-specific virtual gatherings to give updates, hold the space for peer-to-peer sharing, encourage updated recommendations for action by the Maryland State Arts Council, and envision the resurgence of arts activities while dealing with the state of emergency during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Open to the public, no registration is required.

Dates

Creative Conversations: Theatre

April 6th, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Director of Grants and Professional Development, Dana Parsons

Creative Conversations: Literary Arts

April 6th, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Director of Grants and Professional Development, Dana Parsons

Creative Conversations: Visual Art

April 14th, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Director, Emily Sollenberger

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/egz-wbjt-axv

Call in: 320-318-8139‬

PIN: ‪397 188 741#‬

Creative Conversations: Multi-Discipline

April 14th, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Director, Emily Sollenberger

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/xxt-tiqy-eur

Call in: 321-710-5427‬

PIN: ‪881 870 625#‬

Creative Conversations: Presenters

April 15th, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Directors, Emily Sollenberger and Laura Weiss

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/ris-zvgt-yru

Call in: 678-870-6616‬

PIN: ‪109 961 479‬#

Creative Conversations: Independent Artists

April 15th, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Director, Emily Sollenberger

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/bbs-benr-brs

Call in: 609-491-2421‬

PIN: ‪221 055 634#‬

Creative Conversations: Touring Artists

April 16th, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Directors, Emily Sollenberger and Laura Weiss

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/jua-vqra-txf

Call in: 318-771-7918‬

PIN: ‪510 438 645‬#

Creative Conversations: Accessibility

April 16th, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts in Education Program Director and Accessibility Coordinator, Precious Blake

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/kea-jird-aet

Call in: 413-370-4279‬

PIN: ‪637 356 214#‬

Creative Conversations: Dance

April 21st, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Executive Director, Ken Skrzesz

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/vyr-dgyb-ikq

Call in: 317-953-3049‬

PIN: ‪104 020 529#

Creative Conversations: Public Art

April 20th, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Public Art Program Director, Liesel Fenner

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/dgj-vwft-ajm

Call in: ‪314-649-9491‬

PIN: ‪343 424 602#‬

Creative Conversations: Folklife

April 20th, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by State Folklorist, Chad Buterbaugh

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/zik-ethj-cun

Call in: 478-308-5595‬

PIN: ‪730 381 521#‬

Creative Conversations: Media Arts/Film

April 21st, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Director, Emily Sollenberger

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/afp-asmr-rmm

Call in: 470-705-4455‬

PIN: ‪774 291 098#‬

Creative Conversation: Arts in Education

April 22nd, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts in Education Program Director and Accessibility Coordinator, Precious Blake

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/euo-fjbi-gyc

Call in: 929-299-3841‬

PIN: ‪724 032 991#‬

Creative Conversations: Music

April 23rd, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Led by MSAC Arts Services Program Director, Laura Weiss

Meeting Link: meet.google.com/vkb-wnix-qku

Call in: 413-338-4739‬

PIN: ‪886 183 825‬#

The Maryland State Arts Council is accessible to all patrons. Guests with accessibility questions or who require additional assistance may call 410-767-6476 or email precious.blake@maryland.gov.

The Maryland State Arts Council mourns the passing of Sue Hess. Sue was an icon in the arts community of Maryland. In the 1980’s, along with a small group of like-minded arts supporters, she created Maryland Citizens for the Arts (MCA). This grew into the unified advocacy organization for all artists and arts organizations in Maryland. MCA’s effectiveness is a major factor in the steadily increasing public support for the Maryland State Arts Council, and through the Council to the statewide arts community.

Sue was a warm and vibrant presence as well as a tireless and eloquent advocate for the arts. For those fortunate enough to have known her and for all those who never met her but who have benefitted so greatly from her life’s work, she will be very much remembered and missed.

Maryland Traditions, the folklife program of the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC), has announced the winners of its 2020 Heritage Award, which recognizes long-term achievement in folklife, or living cultural traditions. Three Heritage Awards are given annually: one each in the categories of Person or People, Place, and Tradition.

Each award comes with a $5,000 grant, and winners will be recognized at a public ceremony; details to follow. This year’s winners are:

Person or People: Rock Howland of Carroll County is a master of Appalachian flatfooting, a mountain dance style that has emerged from a blend of Scots-Irish, African American, and Indigenous solo dance traditions over the past 150 years. Rock has dedicated his life to flatfooting for three decades as a well-loved teacher and premier performer throughout Maryland, the Mid-Atlantic, and the southeast.

Place: The region now known as Dorchester County is the ancestral home of the Nause-Waiwash Band of Indians, descendants of the Nanticoke Indians who have made their home on the Eastern Shore for centuries. The modern Nause-Waiwash maintain an unbroken connection to their homelands, which today are used for an annual festival, traditional activities like trapping, and education on Indigenous lifeways.

Tradition: The Black Storytelling tradition is influenced on state and national levels by activities in Baltimore City, where organizations such as the National Association of Black Storytellers and the Griots’ Circle of Maryland steward and participate in African and African American oral traditions. Through performance, education, and outreach, their efforts provide entertainment, satisfy curiosity, recount history, and teach important lessons about everyday life.

Maryland Traditions has offered Heritage Awards annually since 2007 in honor of Dr. Alta Schrock, a Garrett County community leader who taught biology at Frostburg State University and founded groups, events, and publications to support folklife in Appalachian Maryland and beyond. Dr. Schrock’s legacy and work are a continuing source of inspiration for the Heritage Awards today. As part of their honor, each winner participates in a photo shoot and recorded interview to document their activities.

https://www.msac.org