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From the Wire | Coffee, Cookies, and Crafts 6
Posted on 4/05/12 by DPJ Staff » No Comments
Some news items don’t need translation. That’s why DPJ launched the From the Wire series, so we could serve the destinations here by posting information and announcements – in their own words.
“COFFEE, COOKIES & CRAFTS 6” AT BRAGG’S PIE FACTORY, SATURDAY, APRIL 7 FEATURES SPRINGTIME CRAFTS AND LOCAL SPRING FASHIONS.
We are happy to announce the sixth “Coffee, Cookies & Crafts” independent craft event to be held at Bragg’s Pie Factory in Downtown Phoenix on Saturday, April 7 from noon to 5:00 pm. The afternoon will offer a variety of activities including local vendors selling handmade goods, crafting demos, a craft supply swap, and spring fashions from local designers. Attendees will get to enjoy a pop-up lounge with free coffee from Jobot Coffee Shop and sweets from local bakeries.
Local fashion designers will participate in live fashion shows and demos throughout the day. Come see the latest local fashions for spring.
Everyone’s invited to participate in a free community craft table! We provide the supplies and attendees provide the craftiness. This time we’ll have spring-themed crafts available.
Visit our Spring Board young crafter’s section where young crafters (under 18) can set-up shop and sell their handmade goods alongside the regular vendors. Spring Board was created to encourage entrepreneurship (and crafting, of course!) at an early age. Please come support these young entrepreneurs!
The free craft supply swap is open to everyone. Attendees are invited to bring old craft supplies and swap with others. Tables will be provided for the craft swap. Crafting demos will be scheduled throughout the day.
Local vendors will include A Blissful Life, Amazed Handmade Jewelry, annieWHERE, Chain Theory, Clean Getaway Soap Co., Crafty Modern, Dea Della Morte & Black Wing Apothecary, Elysian Art, Gothcupcake, Hazel & Violet Ink, Jjac’s Mixed Media, Leah May Style, Lila-Jo, Madalyn Nault Accessories, Mermade Jewelry, Moderncat Studio, Moos N More, Patty Lewis Glass Artist, Puppet Pie, Sebastien Millon, Space Boy Robot, Space Cadet, Sticker Club Girl, Strawberry Hedgehog, Urban Adornments and more.
The popular Phoenix food truck, Pizza People, will be there all day to satisfy hungry attendees with fresh homemade pizza, including vegan and gluten free options.
“Coffee, Cookies & Crafts” at Bragg’s Pie Factory is presented by Moderncat Studio, lucky15creative, and Sticker Club Girl and is being sponsored by MADE Art Boutique, Kooky Krafts Shop, Blueberry Deluxe Boutique, Practical Art, Halo Piercing, Strawberry Hedgehog and Jobot Coffee Shop.
Bragg’s Pie Factory is located at 1301 W Grand Avenue in downtown Phoenix. Free parking is available in the parking lot at Grand and McKinley. For more information, please email coffeecookiesandcrafts@gmail.com or find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/CoffeeCookiesCrafts or visit www.coffeecookiescrafts.wordpress.com.
Bike Chic | Vincent Porter
Posted on 4/03/12 by Cortney Kaminski » No Comments
Bike Chic is a new DPJ series by Fashion intern, Cortney Kaminski. Each week she will be scouting locals who not only ride their bikes but look dapper doing it.
Who: Vincent Porter
Age: 21
Occupation: Student at W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University
His Neighborhood: Tempe
Where spotted: Central Avenue and Van Buren Street, Downtown
What do you enjoy about Downtown? It has a city feel without the feel of a rat race.
Where do you like to explore? I like to go to the Crescent Ballroom pretty often, and of course I go to class on the Downtown campus.
What is your biggest reason for riding your bike around rather than a car? Gas. Gas is way too expensive.
How do you balance looking nice with riding a bike? I don’t really force anything, I just kinda put things on and go.
What he’s wearing:
• Ezekiel shirt
• Levi jeans
• Keds shoes
• Ray-Ban sunglasses
His biking essential:
• Headphones and iPod
• 1985 Peugeot bicycle
Fashion Roundup | April Sales
Posted on 3/30/12 by Cortney Kaminski » No Comments
April Showers have not seemed to have put a damper on the awesome deals this month. Take a look at the shops below for a few deals that will certainly spice up your wardrobe.
(6th Street and Roosevelt)
– Traci Nelson and Jasmine Jarrett, Owners of Butter Toast Boutique
- 6th Street Clothing Swap on April 22; see Facebook for more details
(7th Avenue south of Camelback Road)
– Jessica Carroll, Owner of Blueberry Deluxe
- 50% off any non-handmade item with a coupon from their newsletter
- 10% off entire purchase on First Friday with a coupon from their newsletter
(7th Avenue and Indian School Road)
– Annamarie Sanchez and Sarah Bingham, Owners of Antique Sugar
- Open until 9 p.m. of Third Thursday; 20% off storewide
- Easter Egg Hunt of April 7; eggs will contain gift cards, discounts and candy
(Central Avenue south of Roosevelt Street)
– Misty Guerriero, Owner of Vintage by Misty
- All jackets and vests are 20% off
- 20% off for any ASU student with a valid i.d.
Gear Up for Valley Bike Month
Posted on 3/30/12 by Erin Bartynski » No Comments
Click to enlarge Bike Month poster.
It’s time to celebrate spring with Valley Metro’s Valley Bike Month. Events will take place in greater downtown Phoenix and all across the valley area.
Like a handlebar flowing with streamers, April is filled with festive bicycling activities varying from family fun rides and used bike drives to safety seminars.
Highlights include:
• Pedal Craft PHX: April 20, Downtown
• Bike to Work and School Day: April 18, Valley-wide
• The Valley Metro Great Bike Chase and Game: April 22, Downtown
• Valley Bike Month Contest: All month long, Valley-wide
Click here for the full calendar of events.
To participate in the Valley Bike Month Contest, first enter online, then be sure to ride your bike to work, for fun, or attend a biking event during Bike Month. Prizes include a Novara Corsa bike, bike tune-ups, hotel stays, or gift certificates for food and entertainment.
Bike Valet
Adding to the Valley Bike Month activities, Valley Metro is partnering with the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Urban Commons Summit, and several local bike clubs to provide free valet bicycle parking for every D-backs game during Bike Month.
All April long, cyclists can bring their bikes to the designated area at the Urban Commons Summit, just across from Chase Field on Fourth Street. A volunteer will attach a claim check to the bike, and give the matching number to the rider. All the biker has to do is hold on to their valet ticket, enjoy the game, then return within an hour after it’s over to pick up their bike. The service is free of charge (however, the volunteers will gladly accept tips).
“Cycling has seen a surge in popularity recently, especially in central Phoenix. We are modeling our program after the successful partnership between the San Francisco Giants and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition” said Suzanne Day, Valley Bike Month coordinator.
The Urban Commons Summit is donating use of the Summit at Copper Square (pictured left) space to help support the effort. Other local organizations participating to help staff the bike valet include the Arizona Bicycle Club, the Coalition of Arizona Bicyclists, the Tempe Bike Action Group, and more.
The partnership offers a temporary solution to the lack of bike parking downtown, and encourages more people to use something other than their cars to get to Chase Field. Downtowners can ride on over, and those who live a little further out have an incentive to bike to their nearest light rail station to get to the game. Positively impacting local air quality, decreasing pollution, and boosting the urban bike scene — win, win, and win!
Valley Metro Great Bike Chase & Game
On April 22, the Diamondbacks play the Braves at Chase Field. That’s fun in and of itself, but for this special Bike Month event, join hundreds of other bicyclists for a group ride from Margaret T. Hance Park to to Chase Field with a few stops and festivities along the way.
Starting at 10:30 a.m., there will be individual and group bike rides, a bike expo and safety rodeo, and kids’ activities. Participants will get discounted D-backs tickets and free valet bike parking (see above), with the game starting at 1:10 p.m. Get registered for the Great Bike Chase here.
Whether you’ve participated in Bike Month before or you’re new to pedal-pushing, there’s a way for everyone to celebrate getting around on two wheels, including families, those looking to learn more about bike culture, and people who ride their bikes every single day.
Follow Valley Metro on Twitter or like them on Facebook for up-to-the-minute updates and reminders about Bike Month!
Metro Arts Institute Nurtures Young Artists
Posted on 3/30/12 by J. Seth Anderson » No Comments
Art is a process of self-discovery, and that path, when followed by a population of artists, can play an important role in creating the character of a city.
The identity of Phoenix is made stronger by our arts community, from the small business owners who occupy gallery space, to the evolution and success of First Fridays. The city benefits from the inspiration and new ideas discovered through a creative process, but “if you don’t provide for your artists, they leave.”
So says Matt Baker, founder of Metropolitan Arts Institute.
Believing arts education is one way to provide for young artists, Baker in 1998 founded Metro Arts as a tuition-free, college preparatory visual and performing arts school for grades 7-12. The charter school is modeled after California art schools like Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences in Santa Monica and Idyllwild Arts Academy in Idyllwild-Pine Cove.
“Phoenix is an adolescent city. We need more people to found organizations that get others thinking about our identity and who we are,” said Baker, the current Head of School. “One advantage to living in an adolescent city is anyone can do that. After grad school I wasn’t planning on staying in Phoenix, but the opportunity to start this school came up, and I’m still here.”
“If you don’t provide for your artists, they leave.”
– Matt Baker, Metropolitan Arts Institute
In public high schools, art and music programs always seem to be on the chopping block, while a heavy emphasis is placed on athletic programs. For students serious about sports, traditional high schools provide fields, weight rooms, pools, and dedicated coaches.
Talented athletes have more opportunities to be seen by scouts or receive scholarships than do talented artists who may not even have a chance to take an art elective until their junior year of high school. By then, too much time has passed to create a well-rounded portfolio.
“Students come to Metro Arts in 7th and 8th grade, explore different art forms, then come into their freshmen year prepared. Like playing a sport, it’s best to start young,” said Baker.
280 students are enrolled this year with 60-100 on a waiting list. Prospective students must be in good academic standing with at least a C average, have passed the AIMS test, and had no serious disciplinary action on their student record.
“Being an artist doesn’t mean you get to be lazy. It means you are creative. You have to produce,” said Baker. At Metro Arts, students have the guidance, encouragement, and opportunity to do just that.
Part of the vision of Metro Arts is to create a pre-professional environment that exposes students to the realities of life in the art world. Two big art shows are held each school year in which students compete to get in by submitting their best work, which is juried, just as in the professional world. Students have other opportunities to show their work at the Phoenix Art Museum, the ASU Art Museum and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.
An Artist Grows in Phoenix
Last year as a freshmen, Bela Elvin painted a self-portrait; won second place at the Arizona Student Film Festival for a public service announcement she collaborated on about healthy eating titled “A Series of Unhealthy Events;” starred in a play; and wrote her own for the 5 Minute Play Festival titled “Dr. Khatte Tells his Tail,” a one act play about an intellectually suppressed cat.
Self portrait by Bela Elvin.
Now a sophomore, she is gaining valuable hands-on experience and building an impressive portfolio while also completing the required high school academic courses in biology, geometry and humanities.
Bela’s mother, Katie Elvin, a poet and artist herself, was renting a room at 11 East Ashland, a former art gallery in Phoenix, when Bela was born.
“She came into the world surrounded by art. When she was a little girl I knew I wanted her to attend an art school,” said Elvin. “Artists think differently and may not flourish in a traditional school. I wanted to help her build skill sets to do the things she wants to do in the future.”
Bela speaks about her school and education with the maturity of a sophomore in college, not a sophomore in high school. Her passion for her work and excitement about the training she receives at Metro Arts brightens the room like houselights in a theater.
“If you just want to breeze through classes and do the bare minimum required to pass, you can do that just like you can anywhere. But if you want to make the most of your arts education, you can. The teachers have experience and vast knowledge of what they do. The academic teachers are just as passionate about their subjects as the arts teachers.” She says her math teacher considers the subject an art form. “I was terrible at math until I took his algebra class.”
All the arts teachers are also working artists from the Phoenix arts community. The Assistant Head of School, Lisa Starry, is the Artistic Director of Scorpius Dance Theater. Bela’s Mixed Media teacher is Sue Chenoweth, a painter whose most recent solo exhibition, “Spyhopping” opened at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art in 2010. Chenoweth’s work has also been shown in New York and other galleries in Phoenix. Bela says she is excited to study under such an accomplished artist this year.
After she graduates from Metro Arts Bela plans to attend McGill University in Montreal, Canada to pursue a degree in psychology and theater, but for now she is focused on making the most of her sophomore year. She wrote another play that has been accepted into the 5 Minute Play Festival and she has kept busy by working on that production.
Her favorite memory of the last school year was when Alan Arkin visited Metro Arts and spoke to the student body.
“He told us that when someone asks us what we do, not to say, ‘I’m an actress’ but instead to say ‘I’m a person who acts.’ He told us to put ourselves being a human before our work. I liked his message because he was teaching us not to define ourselves simply by our work because that doesn’t say who we are as people, ” said Bela.
Perhaps our city can be defined by people like her.
