Happy birthday, Artisphere. You've made it—maybe.
A year ago, City Paper staffer Erin Petty wrote about who and what, exactly, the brand-new Artisphere would cater to, given its existence in a business district. Four months ago, I wrote about the various troubles plaguing its young life: Key staff hadn’t signed on until after the space’s opening; [...]
Marty Baumann is a cartoonist who works in a variety of media—he's done a comic book story, The Crater Kid, that appeared in the back of Steve Conley's Astounding Space Thrills comic; children's books such as Old Pard The Last Singing Cowboy; and the hilarious movie poster parodies in Posterama! Coming Attractions That Never Arrived. His [...]
Norma Kaplan, who as director of Arlington Cultural Affairs oversaw the development and execution of Rosslyn's Artisphere, is off to do pretty much the same thing in New Brunswick, N.J.
From mycentraljersey.com:
"Norma Kaplan, the director of Arlington Cultural Affairs in Arlington, Va., has been named to the newly created combined position of executive director of the [...]
When Artisphere opened in October, it was supposed to be a Kennedy Center for young people. And the night before it officially opened, at a boozy art party staged by Brightest Young Things and the Pink Line Project, you almost could’ve sworn that’s what it was: More than 1,000 people filled the new Rosslyn arts center, [...]
A couple of decades ago, self-published comics hit a new boom period, and alternative comics spun out of the sputtering underground comix model. It was a heady time in comics, and the movement is still reverberating today. When I moved to Arlington, I eventually discovered that a close neighbor of mine was Bebe Williams, who [...]
The second half of the two-part "Party Crashers" exhibit in Arlington opens tomorrow. The first part opened Nov. 19 at the Arlington Arts Center. The exhibit at the Terrace Gallery at the Artisphere, curated by Cynthia Connolly, features artists influenced by alternative comics and 'zines. The idea behind this part of the dual exhibit, according [...]
Richard Thompson is a good friend of mine, so of course I've been asking him to do this interview for a year. Only now that he has a new book coming out has he finally agreed. That, dear readers, is how the world works. And that's why he appears to be an overnight success, in [...]
When you think of cartoonists, what comes to mind: sitting around with a fancy pen, sketching shapes in solitude? Adjusting black-rimmed glasses and cross-hatching for hours? OK, those are probably true most of the time, but not tonight! Super Art Fight is in town, and that means war. At SAF, cartoonists draw with live-audience participation [...]
"The Orange Line Revolution," Aaron Leitko's December 2009 story about punk houses in Arlington, has been selected for inclusion in Best Music Writing 2010. The piece takes a look at Kansas House, as well as some group homes associated with local indie labels and movements, such as Dischord, Simple Machines, and Positive Force. As Leitko [...]
In his cover story for this week's Music in Review issue, Aaron Leitko notes the shuttering of the DIY venue Kansas House, and laments that an era of punk and indie-rock houses located in Arlington has finally ended. He writes:
DIY record labels like Teenbeat, Dischord, and Simple Machines, as well as activist groups like Positive [...]
