HopeWorks Sponsors Dragonfly Poetry Reading

“Dragonfly The Poetry Reading,” co-sponsored by HopeWorks and the Howard County Chapter of the Maryland Writer’s Association (MWA), will celebrate the publishing of the 2016 Dragonfly Arts Magazine and will feature local poets’ work, offering reflections on life, love, trauma, renewal and hope.

The event will be held on Thursday, June 16, from 7–9 p.m., at the Owen Brown Community Center, 7246 Cradlerock Way, Columbia.

The evening provides a dynamic opportunity to experience the power of words and the vital role that poetry provides in promoting healing, awareness and change. Poets who have been published in any issue of Dragonfly are eligible to read at the event. Based on availability, MWA members and the general public may have the opportunity to read.

All work must be related to the magazine’s themes of relationships, love, self-care, advocacy, trauma, hope or the process of self-renewal. Please be advised that some material may be unsettling or disturbing in nature.

The event is free, but registration to attend or read is required. Visit www.wearehopeworks.org/event/dragonfly-arts-magazine-poetry-reading.

Arts Council’s Visual And Performing Arts Camps Are Available

Space is still available for visual and performing arts summer camps at the Howard County Arts Council (HCAC) in Ellicott City. Programs are open to the public, regardless of residency in Howard County, for students entering grades K–7. Campers must be a minimum of 5 years of age by Sept. 1 to be eligible for participation.

Campers are grouped by age and may enroll for a full or half-day. Before-care beginning at 8a.m. and after-care until 6 p.m. is also available.

Students may select from age-appropriate visual and performing arts camps including World Art, Meet the Monsters, Shakespeare Moves, Birds of a Feather, Everybody is a Hero, Lights of Broadway, Needle Felting Fun, Mask Mania, Art from Nature and more. Camps conclude with an exhibit or performance of student work on the last day of each camp session. HCAC employs experienced teachers who are each aided by one to three camp assistants. Classes are limited to 20 campers.

Summer camps begin June 20 and run in one-week sessions through Aug. 12. Registration is available online at hocoarts.org or by phone at 410-313-2787.

HCAC Hosts Reception in Conjunction With Columbia Festival of the Arts

On Thursday, June 16, the Howard County Arts Council (HCAC) will host a special reception in conjunction with the Columbia Festival of the Arts. The reception will be held from 6–8 p.m. at the Howard County Center for the Arts and will feature two gallery exhibits as well as an improv showcase and open artists’ studios. Light refreshments will be served.

A performance by All County Improv will take place in the black box theater beginning at 6:30 p.m. Founded in the summer of 2007 by Sally Livingston and Pam Land, All County Improv’s mission is to create a dynamic improvisation team composed of Howard County high school theater arts students.

The featured gallery exhibits are “Resident Visual Artists Exhibit 2016” in Gallery I, featuring recent work by artists with studios at the Center for the Arts, and, in Gallery II, “From Start to Finish: Inside the Mind of the Photographer,” an exhibit of Howard High School student photography curated by instructor Matthew Hanson. Both exhibits run through June 17.

Resident artists’ studios will be open to visitors the evening of the reception from 7–8 p.m.

To learn more about Howard County Arts Council programs and exhibits, call 410-313-ARTS (2787) or visit hocoarts.org.

HCPSS Celebrates 10th Annual Choose Civility Contest Winners

Each year, Choose Civility recognizes original art created by students that represents a specific civility theme. This year, Howard County students were invited to design a poster or short video illustrating the theme, “Would You Say That to My Face?”

This year’s contest was presented in partnership with Choose Civility, the Howard County Library System and the Columbia Association Art Center.

The winner in the kindergarten through 2nd grade category is Manor Woods Elementary School first-grader Yukthi Naraharisetti.

In the Grades 3–5 category, the winner is Ducketts Lane Elementary School fifth-grader Nithishkumar Sivakumanan.

The Grades 6–8 winner is Elkridge Landing Middle School eighth-grader Venus Fernandez.

In the Grades 9–12 category, the winner is Wilde Lake High School sophomore Maya English.

The Poster Grand Prize Winner is Worthington Elementary first-grader Malindu Nethmin Talagala.

The Video Grand Prize Winners are Lime Kiln Middle School eighth-graders Kadija Koroma and Maddie Olek.

The winning students were formally recognized at the Howard County Board of Education meeting on May 12.

Laurel Historical Society to Hold Rube Goldberg Camp July 25–28

The Laurel Historical Society’s Rube Goldberg Camp will challenge kids to use recyclable materials to creatively solve a “simple” problem, such as turning off a light switch, through a series of steps in true Rube Goldberg fashion. The three best solutions will receive prizes.

According to Wikipedia, “A Rube Goldberg machine is a contraption, invention, device or apparatus that is deliberately over-engineered to perform a simple task in a complicated fashion, generally including a chain reaction. The expression is named after American cartoonist and inventor Rube Goldberg (1883–1970).” Today the phrase “Rube Goldberg” is used to mean accomplishing something simple through complicated means.

The free camp is designed for incoming third- through fifth-graders and will be held at the Laurel Historical Society, 817 Main Street, and the adjoining Laurel Community Pool Room, on July 25–28, from 9–11 a.m. Pre-registration is required, and spaces are limited. For more information and to register, [email protected] or call 301-725-7975.

Mark Ryder Original Choreography Grant Applications Now Available

Applications for the FY2017 Mark Ryder Original Choreography Grant Program are now available. This program was established at the bequest of Mark Ryder’s family, in honor of his life’s work, to recognize individual creative expression and to provide financial assistance to choreographers to create new, original work.

A fund has been established at the Community Foundation of Howard County to enable monies to be awarded for this purpose in perpetuity. The grant award recipients will be announced at HCAC’s Annual Meeting and Grant Awards Ceremony in September 2016. The minimum grant amount will be $500.

Mark Ryder was an established dancer, choreographer and leader in the dance community. He danced alongside Martha Graham in the 1940s until founding the Dance Drama Duo — later called the Dance Drama Company — with Emily Frankel. He taught dance in the 1960s at Goddard College in Vermont and served two years as chairman of the dance department at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Ryder believed individual expression to be the most important part of the creative process for both choreographer and dancer and that more is learned through being a part of the process and actively participating in it than by simply being taught the movements or viewing the final product. He passed away in July 2006. His family wishes to honor his legacy by offering an annual competitive grant award to choreographers through the Howard County Arts Council.

The application and guidelines for the Mark Ryder Original Choreography Grant Program are available to view and download at www.hocoarts.org. Email [email protected] or call 410-313-ARTS (2787) for more information. The deadline to submit applications is June 27.

ARTreach Festival at Long Reach Village Center on June 11

ARTreach, a free, outdoor community arts festival, will be held at the Long Reach Village Center on June 11, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Talk with artists from a variety of disciplines and watch them practice their craft. Participate in drop-in, hands-on arts activities for all ages. Listen to a lively selection of music by regional performing artists. Be entertained by stilt walkers, magicians, mimes, balloon twisters and more.

Musical performances include Afro-Pop band Elikeh; progressive hip hop and electric cello with Christylez Bacon and Wytold; Latin pop band Ocho de Bastos; and Baltimore-based blues band Ursula Ricks Project. Attendees can also enjoy demonstrations of capoeria, an African-Brazilian martial art incorporating music and dance-like movement, and children’s performances by Drama Learning Center and Beale Street Puppets.

At 12:15 p.m., County Executive Allan Kittleman and Council Chair Calvin Ball will welcome the crowd from the main stage. A detailed schedule is available on the ARTreach website, artreachhoco.org.

ARTreach is a partnership between Columbia Association, Columbia Association Art Center, Columbia Festival of the Arts, Howard County Government, Howard County Arts Council and Long Reach Community Association.