Easy Lemon residency with Aaron Cowan

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Aaron Cowan: Performance Art at Easy Lemon

“NightmareSuit” by Aaron Cowan

For over a year now – since I first saw the jaw-dropping, video’d performance of Aaron Cowan slowly and meticulously destroying a chest of drawers with a sledge-hammer – I have been eager to have him in residency at Easy Lemon.  The timing has finally worked out, and on April 4-8, 2013, Aaron will surprise and provoke thought through his performative installation in our studio/loft.

As usual, performances are short, nightly presentations (around 30 min. each) followed by open discussion with the artist.  Each evening begins at 8:00 pm, so bring your favorite drink (for yourself) and a donation (for Aaron) and come as many times as you wish.  Each night will be unique!

From Aaron:

“I am interested in the mind, the psyche, health, medicine, fun, play, humor—these things are represented in my art.  My approach to performance is not one of acting, nor pretending; it is about an action or endeavor, an attempt to be in the direct present. There may be objectives, or images, gestures, repetitions and ideas that constitute nodes or anchors, but this is the only linear aspect that is concerned with “progression” throughout the process of doing or being. I am not someone else. I am not a character. It is the closest to presenting a raw, uncut, ‘true,’ stream-of-consciousness of being. I breathe. The viewer will make meaning and content, and take from the performance whatever they need, whatever they see that is in themselves in the performance.  Often there is struggle, against myself, against culture, society, the universe—my body. And that includes failure, that includes mistakes, and those induce problem-solving, and creative solutions, to make something work, accomplish the impossible. It is difficult. It is exhausting.”

postcards from Mark Bradley-Shoup

MARK BRADLEY-SHOUP in residence next week!  Fascinating presentation (INCLUDING SURPRISE PERFORMATIVE ELEMENT!)

 

Mark Bradley-Shoup in Residency

Mark Bradley-Shoup is well-known regionally as on of the finest painters around.  His paintings of industrial structures utilize an unexpectedly warm and vibrant color palette, and in the end they come off feeling surprisingly light and ephemeral.  At Easy Lemon, however, I am more interested in hosting residencies in which artists and musicians explore processes, material, or disciplines that are completely new to them; or in this case disciplines which they abandoned many years ago.  Although Mark continues to play and record music, his focus has almost exclusively been on visual art over the past decade, particularly now with his increasing teaching schedule as one of the main painting teachers at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga.  Mark’s presentations will take on an evolving form that will include visual elements, sound performance, and of course some talks about his work and process.  We are so excited to host Mark’s three-day residency here at Easy Lemon, November 15-17.

FRESHLY SQUEEZED RESCHEDULED

Hello folks!  It’s been a crazy semester here at Easy Lemon.   Southside Stroll has finished an incredible season and Gallery Hop kept us on our toes!  Thanks to Harrison Holmes for GREAT tunes at the Southside Stroll afterparty!  My new quartet KALOSIS is just about to be premiered in Nashville at the SoundCrawl festival, so that’s kept me very busy.

With all the craziness, our two-night Easy Lemon featurette, Freshly Squeezed, will need to be pushed back a few weeks.  Please note: NO EASY LEMON PRESENTATION October 3 and 4!!!

I’m talking to Mike and the others currently and should have a firm date for you soon!  We are still looking forward to Mark Bradley-Shoup’s residency in November.  It will be truly unforgettable!

The EVERYWHERE QUINTET+3

Here are some of the musicians that will come together next week to form Thollem’s “EVERYWHERE QUINTET”

Chattanooga Musicians joining Thollem McDonas

 

 

thollem mcdonas’ everywhere quintet :: an all-idiomatic ensemble

quintet + 4 at EASY LEMON LOFT

september 1, 2, 4, 5

8pm nightly

b.y.o.b. + $5

 

Thollem McDonas isn’t just a virtuosic pianist and improvisor, he is also a great instructor.  Like any successful teacher he is frequently able to bring together an unexpected group of musicians and give them a new perspective on making music.  The everywhere quintet has been assembled repeatedly wherever and whenever Thollem sees an opportunity.  The musicians are entirely different at each performance, and they represent countless genres or styles of playing.  Under Thollem’s guidance, this ever-changing quintet is able to present fascinating performances of chamber music, and yet the musicians’ individual identity always seems to prevail over the communal identity.  The opportunity to hear one of Thollem’severywhere quintets is a chance to hear something completely unique to one specific community.

For the Chattanooga performance, Thollem is joined by :

Christie Burns

Tiffany Feltner

Nicholas Hartline

Tim Hinck

Nathan King

Andrew Maden

Sara Schone

Upcoming residencies

upcoming Easy Lemon residencies and special presentations:

–Freshly Squeezed (readings of several new plays by local writers)
–Thollem McDonas presents his ‘Everywhere Quintet’ (McDonas performing with Tim Hinck and local musicians)
–Mark Bradley-Shoup presents 2D work that has never been seen by the public
–Tim Hinck presents his new string quartet ‘Kalosis’

Presenting a major new work for Chattanooga, July 27

I encourage all of you to stop by the Easy Lemon loft on Friday, July 27, from 5-9 pm to see this major new work by Ashley Hamilton.  This is an extremely important new work for the Chattanooga art scene, and one of the best works I have seen this year anywhere.  Don´t miss this one!

Easy Lemon on Summer Break!

There will be no weekly performances at Easy Lemon this whole month of July, and none of the regularly scheduled events will take place until the next Southside Stroll (July 29).  I’ll be in Barcelona and Rodellar, but Ash will be around, so feel free to drop her a line if you want to check out her work this month.  Stay cool in this heat, and enjoy yourselves!  See you all next month!