Nevada Arts Council announces 2019 Basin to Range Exchange projects

The Nevada Arts Council’s Basin to Range Exchange (BRX) is unveiling its first list of projects designed to bring collaboration between urban and rural arts organizations.

Each of the 14 projects received Nevada Arts Council grants for $1,200 — $16,800 total — to help move the projects forward.

“The inaugural BRX program is off to a fantastic start,” said Tony Manfredi, executive director of the Nevada Arts Council. “The Nevada Arts Council is impressed with these 14 partnerships and projects and excited to see their impact on their respective communities.”

The inaugural 14 projects from the BRX Program:

Carson City, Tonopah

Mark Salinas (Carson City Department of Arts & Culture) and Kat Galli (Town of Tonopah)

Project abstract: Providing artists new audiences and exhibition spaces

Visual art works will travel between Tonopah and Carson City, with a long-term goal to establish an ongoing collaboration between the two entities. Additionally, the project includes cross-promoting artists and local art including mash-ups of murals, developed by graphic designer, Shelly Brown, and released on both entity’s social media channels monthly. This project not only benefits artists but also both communities through increased art opportunities and tourism.

Las Vegas, Carson City

Deborah Lambin (My Thousand Words), Dave Lambin (My Thousand Words) and Julie Okabayashi (Clark County Library)

Project abstract: NVArtStops Tour

This project is a literary and artistic journey that will start in Northern Nevada libraries and end in Southern Nevada. This project aims to share the love of a printed book turned into art. The tour will be based on route 95 and will divert a little to catch as many interested libraries. In conjunction with an exhibition of created art books, project partners will teach book art techniques to the community through hands-on workshops.

Reno, Lyon & Storey Counties

Tia Flores (Sierra Arts Foundation) and Quest Lakes (Healthy Communities Coalition of Lyon & Storey Counties)

Project abstract: Arts Integration training to the teachers of the Title I schools of Silver Springs elementary and middle schools

Arts Integration training helps students learn more effectively across the curriculum through the arts. Teachers will learn how to integrate art education into their current curriculum in core academic subject areas. Arts Integration works successfully across all socio-economic boundaries. At the training at the Silver Springs schools, Healthy Communities will provide meals with locally sourced ingredients from the organic school and community gardens.

Las Vegas, Ely

Paco Alvarez (Fabulous Story Tours) and Virginia Terry (Ely Renaissance Society)

Project abstract: Las Vegas to Ely Arts and Culture Escapade, an art tour along the route from Las Vegas to Ely

This art tour, chartered by bus, will expose participants to the public art and exhibitions across the southeast portion of the state. Public art includes murals and sculptures in Ryolite, Goldwell, Ely and more. This project is designed to boost art appreciation as well as economic development in rural areas of Nevada.

Eureka, Reno

Garney Damele (Eureka Restoration Enterprise) and Beth MacMillian (ARTOWN)

Project abstract: Eureka Art & Wine Festival

The inaugural Eureka Wine and Plein Air event will be held Sept. 16-21 in Eureka. This project combines Artown’s director’s knowledge of public programs with rural connections of Eureka to bring a weeklong arts event to the town, boosting tourism and local exposure to arts and culture. Details of the event can be found on Eureka Restoration Enterprise’s Facebook page.

Henderson, Ely, Las Vegas, Gerlach

Brian Kendall (City of Henderson), Caroline McIntosh (White Pine Main Street Program) and Margie Reynolds (Graphic Design)

Project abstract: Learning from Ely’s Public Art

This project will encompass a professional development study to learn how Ely injected a boost into their town’s diminishing economy with murals. Representatives from Henderson and Gerlach both seek this type of reinvigoration through public art in their respective communities.

Gerlach, Reno

Crimson Rose (Burning Man), Scott Hinton (University of Reno, Photography) and Candy Webb (Visual Artist)

Project Abstract: Community Engagement through Art Workshops

Photographer and UNR instructor Scott Hinton will host photography workshops that bring participants to the cultural geographies of the Black Rock Desert. Images and videos produced from the photography convenings will be incorporated into the workshops conducted by Candy Webb. Webb’s programs will invite students and community members to manipulate the photographs into an animation inspired by the landscape of Northern Nevada. The completed images and animations will be exhibited in both communities. The project aims to integrate communities separated by miles of sagebrush and the uniqueness of Reno, Empire and Gerlach.

Elko, Reno, Las Vegas

Paul Gregory (Ghost Light Productions) and Irma Varela (Winchester Cultural Center)

Project Abstract: Elko’s premier theater company presents in and on the way to Las Vegas

Ghost Light Productions, a theatre company based in Elko, is going to tour Nevada. The project aims to take a show on the road and perform in rural and urban areas, to increase exposure of the performing arts throughout the state.

Reno, West Las Vegas

Heather Gage (Reno Philharmonic), Marcia Robinson (City of Las Vegas, West Las Vegas Arts Center) and Marisa Cooper (Nevada Art Museum)

Project abstract: Sharing teacher resources across the state

Teacher training workshops in visual arts and classical music will be offered in underserved, rural areas as identified by the group. The project aims to give the teachers skills and resources that they can use in their classrooms year after year across school subjects. This project was realized through observation of teachers in rural areas lacking access to professional development as compared to their urban colleagues.

Virginia City, Las Vegas

Arika Perry (St. Mary’s Art Center) and Nancy Good (Core Contemporary Art)

Project Abstract: A traveling exquisite corpse

NV Head2Toe: Using the “exquisite corpse” collaborative technique creates an experience and exhibition that connects the “head” (Virginia City) of Nevada to its “toes” (Las Vegas). By inviting artists from Virginia City to contribute the “head” of a piece and artists from Las Vegas to contribute the “toes,” it creates an exhibit that can be shown first at St. Mary’s Art Center in Virginia City and then at Core Contemporary in Las Vegas.

The cadavre exquis or exquisite corpse was a drawing technique devised by the Surrealists in which a group of artists work on the same drawing, each unaware of what the others have drawn. In the same drawing there will be different styles, different ideas and mixed images.

Elko, Las Vegas, Reno

Emily Anderson (Ghost Light Productions), Suzanne Hackett-Morgan (Goldwell Open Air Museum) and Stephanie Gibson (Nevada Humanities)

Project Abstract: An original play, “Albert Szukalski’s America”

This play will be about artist Albert Szukalski, the famous Belgian sculptor who created the ghostly “Last Supper” sculpture. This work was the genesis piece for the Goldwell Open Air Museum in Rhyolite, Nevada. The play’s objective is to impart what Szukalski loved about Nevada and how he involved townspeople from Beatty in the sculpture’s creation. His passion was also the catalyst in developing the Museum’s current residency program which hosts artists, both nationally and internationally.

Las Vegas, Incline Village, Gerlach

Chase McCurdy (Chase McCurdy Studio), Mary Kenny (Sierra Nevada College) and Tina Walters (Gerlach)

Project Abstract: A pop-up exhibition series, “Three Nevadans”

This exhibition will be presented throughout Nevada at various locals, starting with Las Vegas, Incline Village, and Gerlach. Works will be produced by the project participants to expose their work to new audiences and environments. The exhibition will travel over the course of a year with the hopes of including more locations throughout the state.

Reno, Elko Las Vegas, Eureka, City of North Las Vegas

Jennifer Kleven (Neon Museum), Joelle Mackay (Eureka Restoration Enterprise), Brad McMullen (Western Folklife Center), Charlice Kirksey (City of North Las Vegas), Garrett Barmore (W.M. Keck Earth Science and Mineral Engineering Museum) and Susanne Reese (Elko Community Partners)

Project abstract: Representing the state’s artists through an exhibition

This project takes the form of a travelling multi-community exhibition, representing artists and regions represented by the partnership.

Las Vegas, Sparks, Winnemucca

Bobbie Ann Howell (Nevada Humanities), Candace Garlock (Truckee Meadows Community College) and Cindy Whitaker (Cinderella Photography)

Project abstract: Travelling multi-community postcard project and exhibition

Many of us are all too familiar with the challenge of connecting to communities across the state. Distance is a pivotal factor identified in this project. As a means to bridge the communications and exposure of thoughts, this project seeks to develop postcards that connect individuals and groups with the final works creating an exhibition to be displayed at various locals across the state.

The Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, was founded in 1967 as the state agency charged with ensuring that state and national funds support cultural activity and encourage participation in the arts throughout Nevada. The agency’s programs and services are designed to support creative expression, animate communities, diversify local economies and provide lifelong learning in the arts for all Nevadans. The Nevada Arts Council is funded by the State of Nevada, the National Endowment for the Arts, and other public and private sources.

For information, Community Arts Development, Nevada Arts Council, contact Michelle Patrick, at 702-486-3732 or mpatrick@nevadaculture.org or Grace Davis 775-687-7119 or agdavis@nevadaculture.org.