Dancing Freely

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For my interview I met with a young lady named Logan Mitchell who is studying in a pre-professional program in dance. She currently attends the program at Broadway Dance Center, on the West Side. She has danced for most of her life and is truly passionate about it, her passion can be seen throughout the interview. She was excited and eager to answer my questions, it is apparent she loves what she does.

What is your name and where are you from?

Logan Mitchell, and I am from Long Island New York… Syosset

How are you involved with the arts of NYC?

I am a student at Broadway Dance Center in a pre-professional program for dance. I am learning from some of the best dancers and choreographers in New York, many of them work full time on Broadway or in productions and dance on the side.

When did you decide that you wanted to be involved in arts of NYC?

When I was in High school I decided that I wanted to become a dance teacher. I want to be a public school dance teacher in New York City because I want to inspire students. I want to inspire students to feel dance, I want them to move not because of a technicality but because they feel that way.

What draws you to teaching rather than, say, performing?

When I went to LaGuardia High school for Arts I was passionate about dance but there were some bad teachers. So bad that they almost turned me off of dance all together, and I don’t want to ever have another person turned off of dance on account of a bad teacher. I want to be the teacher that inspires a student to love dance like I do, unlike some of the teachers I had.

Bad teachers?

Well one teacher, Mrs. P, was infamous for playing favorites. Right away when you walked in she decided whether or not she liked you and if she didn’t like you she basically tried to make your life hell. She made me cry on multiple occasions and completely turned me off of Ballet, even today, a few years later, I am still hesitant to do Ballet because of her.

That’s terrible! What did she do to make you cry?

She said things that she knew would bother me on purpose like how stupid I am, how I need to lose weight, she was just… too much. Way too much. She would never be helpful or guiding, she is basically the opposite of what I want to be in a teacher. She would criticize your technique, not explain what you did wrong and make fun of you in front of the class. It was just terrible.

Sorry to hear that, how has your experience in the Pre Professional Program been thus far?

Oh it’s been amazing! Absolutely amazing! I get to meet people who are actually passionate about what they do. Back in middle school and even into high school I was surrounded by people who felt they were forced to be there. Whether by their parents, relatives or even themselves they would not be there by passion. I finally feel like I am surrounded by people like me, people who love dance. I also think it is so awesome that I am surrounded by professionals that truly care about you and make you “feel” the dance, rather than just the technicalities, which is the most important part!

What do you mean by “feel”?

I mean expressing yourself, how you are, in dance. It is nearly impossible to put in words but it’s just, putting yourself on display. The true you.

Do you plan on following the arts further? Where to possibly?

Like I said before my end game goal is to be a teacher at a public high school in New York City, but before then I would want to go to either CUNY Hunter College or SUNY Brockport because they offered me a scholarship to be on their dance team. They both have very good dance teaching programs, something that is rare.

If you want to become a teacher why did you not go straight to Hunter or Brockport?

Well I saw that as something I could always do, but I saw this opportunity as a once in the lifetime chance to be around people as passionate about dance and truly learn everything there is to dance from people who actually know what they are talking about.  And I appreciate every moment in this school, I am truly lucky and so grateful to be in such an amazing environment.

What has been your best experience in the dance school so far?

Well this one class stands out in my mind, it is my seminar class. It is contemporary music and it is a class like none I have ever taken.

How so?

Well there are three teachers, the best teachers I have ever had. The three classes I took with them were amazing and I really love each individual teaching style. The teachers are Joanna Numata, Derek Mitchell, and Brice Mousset. In the class with Joanna, she focuses on the technical aspects, she corrects the little things that you would normally miss. She is so nice and guiding in the way she tells me how to dance that I really appreciate it. The other class with Derek is so fun and he is really passionate to the point where I love spending time with him. He has an amazing sense of humor and lights up the whole classroom when he walks into a room. Finally, my favorite class ever is with Brice. She has freedom of movement and emotional connection. She truly wants people and helps us to feel the music and flow with it. When I become a teacher I want to incorporate aspects of all the teachers, Joanna’s technique and helpful tips, Derek’s sense of humor, and Brice’s expression of emotion.

If you could become involved with anything in NYC having to do with the arts where would you go?

I would first become a famous dancer on Broadway before I went on to become a teacher. I would want to work with the best known choreographers and dancers in the field before becoming a teacher. I want experience that I could relay to the students and learn things from the best of the best before I try to inspire my future students.INterview

Interview

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The Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art was established in 1945 by Jacques Marchais to foster an interest in Tibetan and Himalayan art. Centered on one of the highest points of the Eastern Seaboard the entire museum was designed to reflect a small Tibetan mountain monastery, with extensive terraced gardens and grounds, and a fish and lotus pond. The museum has also been lauded for having one of the most extensive collections of Himalayan artifacts in the United States.

            Managing the museum’s day-to-day operations is Meg Ventrudo, director of the museum since July of 2004. She started working in museums and historic houses while she was in Loyola University getting her degree in American History. Prior to working at the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art she was the Assistant Director at the Museum of American Finance. Since working here she has been a part of the institute of not-for-profit management at Columbia University and received a SI Economic Development Corporation “20 under 40” award in 2010.

So, what exactly made you decide you wanted to work in a museum? And has the reality of the job changed your view of the arts field in any way?

I’ve always loved museums as a child. My grandmother always took me to museums so I felt that it would be very interesting to eventually work in one. I think that when you visit museums as a child or as a tourist you see them as tourist attractions or you go to learn something or to see something you would never see somewhere else and I think that all museums, whether they’re large or small, contain really fantastic treasures. But I think since working in a museum for as long as I have been now, and this is something that I think came from 9/11, is that museums serve as places of support in the community and that when there are bad things or upheavals people do look to the museums to have some sense of continuity and stability and also as a base in their community.

That’s a very interesting perspective on museums.

Well, shortly after 9/11 the Museum of American Finance brought together a group of professionals that worked in the financial industry and basically created a forum for them to discuss how Wall Street responds to terror and to war and how Wall Street reacted and why the continuity of the financial system was so important to people’s everyday continuity. And when I came to work here in 2004 after 9/11 I found that people come to the Tibetan museum to look for peace or meditation. This is a place where people come when they experience some kind of loss, such as a death in their family, and they come here to step back and have that retreat function. So the role of a museum in the community is really much more important than just the preserving of artifacts.

So, what exactly does the Tibetan museum do as an outreach to the community in reference to the artifacts and the culture?

Well, Tibetan culture is really threatened in its homeland and there are exile communities throughout the world for Tibetan monks and the museum is really a repository for Tibetan art, artifacts, and culture. In addition, the pieces are not just beautifully crafted, they are also significant to world history not just to Tibetan Buddhism. One of our two-part plan that the museum has been implementing for the past couple of years, is the presentation of the objects in the collection. We have objects not just from Tibet but also China, Nepal, Mongolia but all of the objects have relationships to Tibetan Buddhism. Another one of our goals, something we’ve been working on is outreach to the Tibetan and Himalayan communities in New York City and there’s about 30,000 Tibetan, Nepali and Bhutanese people in the New York, New Jersey area so to involve the community and preservation of their history and we’ve been doing that through social media and meetings with people in the Tibetan community.

Is there any event or moment that stand out to you in your 9 years here?

We had a monk visit us who had been a political prisoner of the Chinese for 30 years and he was able to forgive his Chinese captors. He presence was completely radiant when he was here and he was talking about forgiveness and I feel like if I ever have a bad day, like if I’m driving, and you know, somebody cuts me off and just stupid things that should never annoy you, I just think back on meeting him and saying “If he can let this go, if he can let his life go [laughs], you don’t have it so bad”. And in 2010 a group of us from the museum had the opportunity to meet the Dalai Lama in person and that was really, a real fantastic experience. It was in New York City but we were able to meet the Dalai Lama and that was a really moving experience because he’s so, he’s just a remarkable person and a remarkable presence and has the skill to say what he really means but also put his audience at ease when they’re around him which anybody gets really nervous when they meet the Dalai Lama and we had given everybody instructions on what they should wear and how they should say hello [laughs] and I said “Nobody shakes hands with the Dalai Lama” and of course there’s a picture of me in the newspaper shaking hands with the Dalai Lama. So I think those were two really fantastic experiences that I’ve had since I’ve been here.

And financial-wise, given the recession, what’s your take on the challenges facing museums nowadays and are you optimistic about the future of museums?

I’m not optimistic but, I’m not totally pessimistic. Funding is very cyclical for museums in general and this museum is trying to put in a lot of initiatives to stabilize and expand our fundraising because one of the things museums always need is operating money; you need money to pay your staff, you need money to pay Con Edison [laughs] you need money to pay Verizon. When people give a donation to a museum they want to give you a donation so that a class of school kids can come in for free. They don’t want to give you a donation to pay your gas bill and it’s kind of hard to say that’s what we need and sometimes with grants they say that only 10 percent can go to operating costs. Well, 10 percent doesn’t really do much. It’s the people that work here that make the place run and they need to get paid. I also think that relationships between donors and museums is changing too, people who were giving the museum $100 a year, started giving the museum $50 a year. At the same time, where schools used to have money to come to museums for external programs, that’s really changed since the recession because the schools don’t really have the funds and then sometimes, if there are schools from low-income neighborhoods the parents don’t have the funds to send their kids to the museum. I don’t think we break the bank on school tours here but if you have two or three kids and if you have to pay for this school trip or that school trip I’m sure it adds up for families so its probably a different story.

And to wrap up, do you have any advice for those who want to enter into the arts administration field?

When I started in this field twenty years ago, you get in as a programmatic person so you get in implementing programs, or designing exhibitions, or giving tours or doing research and then after a certain point you become a museum director or a museum assistant director and the business side is the skills you don’t have. You have plenty of research skills because you come out of a liberal arts education but when it comes down to it well, how do you budget? How do you plan? Those are a lot of skills that you have a lot of on-the-job learning for and its very hard for people in the program side. When program people become directors or fundraisers, as program people we know the stuff so we can communicate our love for it to a donor but to write it in a grant and to do a budget, that is something that you don’t always know. And I think that now there are more educational programs for people who are interested in arts management or the museum that twenty years ago didn’t exist. In addition, getting an internship or doing some volunteer work at a museum, you can be kind of hands on and see what you like or what you don’t like in the field and that’s great.

Art Interview

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Sandra Strucken grew up in Chinatown. Even though she moved to Brooklyn later on, she continued going to school in Manhattan. She graduated from Hamilton College ’08 with a dual major in Comparative Literature and Studio Arts. She currently works at Penguin Publishing as junior designer and art assistant. In her spare time, she manages a store on etsy where she sells her various bits of art n’ crafts.

How was it like in LaGuardia?

Cool, LaGuardia was interesting. We had three hours of studio art classes every day and each year we focused on a different type of art in our core classes. So it was a very good introduction into art and the art scene in New York City. I wanted to go to a good school but I didn’t get into the top three. So I figured, LaGuardia is a good school and you have to take a test to get in so I’m gonna try for it. And since it’s also like an art-based school, it’s a win-win.

What made you get into art?

Growing up, we weren’t rich but we weren’t really poor. Everything we had, we had to make and that kind of built that hands on habit. It just grew on me and I liked making things. I also liked watching Barney and he always had that Barney bag. That was fun, and we always had stuff around that we could use. I think it sprung from having to be resourceful; we weren’t able to buy new clothing all the time so we mix and matched stuff, made our own clothes, things like that. I mean I never made my own, my mom did. But it became what I did.

So why did you major in comparative literature?

When I was applying for college, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I thought that art wasn’t going to be a good field to go into. I didn’t know about any of the career options with art, so I chose a liberal arts college. But I also majored in studio arts.

I’m sort of using it now because the publishing industry mixes my two interests: books and art. I graduated from college in the middle of the recession so work was hard to find. I found a job at a bank and I worked there for a year, always thinking that I was going to find something else and quit. At the time, I was looking for a lot of art assistant jobs at like galleries and museums. But those never worked out so I decided that I wanted to go back to school. I applied and I got into a school. But then I decided I wanted to make money instead of going to school so I looked into publishing.

Just randomly publishing?

I think I saw a job posting for an editorial assistant. I have a background in comparative literature, so I thought I could do something with books and stuff. I looked into the publishing industry and interned at two publishing companies to get my foot in the doors so that I could learn about the industry, meet some people and hopefully build some connections so that I could get a job. Eventually I found a posting on the Penguin website for an art assistant job. I applied and got it.

How was an art assistant job like?

It’s the same job I have now only I got promoted. I work with the cover art department so we have a bunch of designers and art directors and we have meetings with editors every week to talk about new books that are coming out. They tell us about the books and about what they want to feature on the cover. After that meeting we start designing book covers. It’s a really good experience because everyone I work with went to art school and most of them are really well known graphic designers in the art world. It’s a little bit intimidating because they’re so good but it’s cool.

What is your perspective on your work?

It’s challenging because we have to come up with designs solutions for stories. When you look at a book cover you want to be enticed and you want to grab that book and find out more about it. So our job is pretty important to help the author sell their stories. I work for the department that publishes dragons and vampires fantasy books and romance novels. And it’s fun; we get other books sometimes but the majority of the time we’re looking at pictures of half naked men holding women, with tattoos and vampire teeth and wings. They’re called mass-market books.

How are you creative on a daily basis?

I have to figure out how to convey concepts in art. I go online a lot. I look at a lot of blogs and I look at other designers’ works. You get inspired that way. Lot of people think that if you look at other people’s work you might start to copy it and you’ll lose your originality but I think it’s important to look at that stuff cause then it kind of motivates you to be good and it gives you ideas to build upon. It’s not really copying, I don’t think. There are some design conventions that other artists or other designers are using that you might want to use in your work.

How is it like being a graphic designer?

Well I studied painting. I focused on painting in college so I did not know what graphic design really was when I graduated even though I should have known. But it’s really different cause it’s everywhere; it’s not just book covers. Like packaging for red bull, that’s graphic design. Or the commercials for the mac and iPods; everything is design.

How do you think your focus on painting transitioned into graphic design?

I don’t think it transitioned into it. I think having a painting background means that I have an eye for things that look good. It helps to have an art background cause you need to be able to make art to be a designer or to see proportions and balance. Like balancing stuff on a page, I don’t know. It’s different, painting is different because with painting, I just painted scenes and things but with the things I do now, I have to focus on typography and I really like that because you see it everywhere, everyday. Like graffiti, that’s typography.

How did you get into graphic design from painting?

I got lucky cause I am constantly learning from the job. We get to interact with artists cause a lot of times we freelance stuff out so my basic function is to put type onto art. Sometimes if we have enough time to work on a project I can also make the art. But often, we don’t have enough time to paint a scene with a dragon flying into a spaceship or something that like. So we call artists and ask them to do these drawings.

How do you feel about art?

It’s a way for me to express myself. I also have an etsy shop that I don’t really do anything with anymore. But I plan on making posters and putting that on etsy. I can add graphic designs, but I don’t even really know what that means. You should google it.

What does it mean to you?

I don’t know, designing type? I think design is a career, is a field. There are so many options; it’s so many things. You can be like an artist: a graphic designer who displays stuff at galleries or a graphic designer in the commercial world building brands and things like that. Designing logos, designing websites, that’s considered graphic design.

Where do you get your creativity or inspiration from for etsy products?

Things that interest me, things that I don’t get to do at work cause at work, it’s fulfilling someone else’s desires. I like to make things that look nice. I sell earrings and I paint scenes on them. There really isn’t a good explanation. Sometimes you can’t explain it, it’s just how you feel. I don’t know why I want to draw a house or a cute little kitty cat. It’s just fun and I don’t feel like my things are heavily concept driven. Like, I don’t creative art to say something or have a social thing behind it.

So you just do it for fun?

Yeah, do it for fun. Do it as an expression of myself. It’s like a hobby.

Glory…Glorified!

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Art Interview:

Background info Info:

Glory Loflin is a senior at Cooper Union in the School of Art located in New York City.  She has no official majors or minors in mind but loves art in itself.  She is a very talented artist and I know she will make it one day.  Glory is passionate about what she does and has been in love with art for a very long time.  She was kind enough to answer all of the following questions.  Here’s what she had to say:

Q: Tell me a little about yourself: how old you are, what school you go to, family, surroundings, etc.?

A: Hi, My name Is Glory Loflin and I’m 22. I am a senior enrolled in the art program at Cooper Union, a fine arts, architecture, and engineering school located in the East Village. I grew up in Greenville, South Carolina with my mom and older brother in a suburban neighborhood. Honestly it was a pretty boring place to grow up. My family is really passionate about nature and being outdoors so we were always hiking and swimming when I was growing up. I loved being outside as a kid and I think my surroundings throughout the years have really impacted my current art — which focuses on natural beauty and landscaping. Right now I live in the East Village, which is obviously a big change from South Carolina- but I love it. I think my art is really developing here.

Q: Tell me how you got your start in the arts?

A: I don’t really remember a particular instance where I thought, “Now I’m an artist.” I know I was always coloring, drawing, and taking photographs as a kid. Like I said before, a ton of family vacations were spent near lakes and mountains and I remember trying to find the right colors and shading to capture everything I was seeing. Looking back, the paintings really were terrible! But I’m fortunate that my parents never told me that –ha-ha. As I got older, I took some local art classes and had art programs in school, so my interests were a little more structured and my creative interests had an outlet to begin to develop.

Q: Where do you find inspiration?

A: I feel like I don’t really “find” inspiration; it just kind of hits me. Sometimes I can go weeks without finding anything I’m passionate about, which is really frustrating when I face pressure at school to always sketch and paint. But lately I’ve been really fortunate. I’ve been really interested in the parks located throughout the city and have had a lot of inspiration to sketch how Washington Square Park and Tompkins Square Park affect the neighborhoods around them and how it impacts the community. I always looked at parks as a one-way service, providing a recreational outlet for its community members. But now I’m looking at all the ways the villagers impact the parks, from the anonymous flower gardens to the travelling pianos and street art. It’s been fascinating.

Q: Are there any artists or works that have influenced you strongly?

A: My mom is an artist – though not with fine art. She plays the trumpet. I’ve always just been intrigued with the creative spin she puts on all her pieces and how music can transform her and the people around her.

Q: A lot of times, there are financial worries when you go to an arts college. How did your family and friends react to your decision?

A: It was a hot topic. My mom supported me, but most of my other family members were pretty confused. They don’t think it’s stable. Though it did help that Cooper Union offers full scholarships and, as a resident assistant, I don’t have to pay for housing either. In the end, I think you just have to do what you love. You’re only cheating yourself if you don’t.

Q: What made you realize you wanted to do this?

A: Hmm. I don’t know. Maybe that I’m not good at anything else? Ha-ha

Q: What’s your dream job?

A: I’d love to keep making art and maybe manage a gallery in NY where I can display my work and the work of some other amazing artists I’ve met over the last few years. Then everyone who wants to can appreciate my art.

Q: What piece are you most proud of?

A: As part of my Cooper Union application, we had to draw a self-portrait of ourselves without drawing ourselves. So basically, I found a bunch of items that represent me and shaded them in various lights. It was really tricky deciding what items I wanted to showcase and how I wanted to arrange them, but most importantly – deciding what those pieces said about me. I ended up sequencing my childhood and the themes that let me to where I am – so I used sunglasses, a soccer ball, and a textbook which I sort of blended together.

Q: What is your most challenging aspect of being an arts student?

A: I’m always really excited to see my friends’ work but I try not to let their styles interfere with mine – I want to be influenced but not overwhelmed. It’s important for me to stay true to my own style, and while that can never be 100% original, I sometimes find myself picking up other people’s styles and I don’t like that.

Q: Are there any areas in the arts that you dislike? If so, why?

A: I don’t like the pretentiousness of it sometimes—anyone can and should appreciate art. And you shouldn’t have to be “told” what to like. Even if you stare at the Mona Lisa and nothing about it excites you, that’s cool. Don’t pretend to like it because you feel you should. Similarly, if you like the subway art outside of Union Square more- then good for you. Everyone can appreciate whatever they like.

Q: Do you have a back up plan if this doesn’t work out?

A: Nope! Hopefully I’m not 35 years old and working as a waitress and still waiting for my big break.

Q: How do you define art?

A: Art, for me, is anything that evokes an emotional response to the viewer. If the piece causes you to feel something, anything – it’s art. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be on a canvas or a sculpture. I heard one of my friends in the engineering school talk about some advanced calculus theorem they were studying and he thought it was art – the elegance and sophistication of it. I think that’s pretty awesome.

Q: What advice would you give to an up incoming artist?

A: Don’t be discouraged about the quality of your art. It will develop, in time. Just have fun with it.

Q: Are happy with where you are today? Why?

A: I’m happy because I’m at one of the most challenging art schools in the best city in the world. My classmates are amazingly supporting and just fun. Their creativity astounds me, and my art is really growing here.

 

 

Arts Interview

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Interview with Anthony McCormick

On Monday, October 21, I had the pleasure of interviewing Pastor Anthony McCormick of The Journey Church, a Contemporary Christian Church based in New York City. He is the Pastor of the Worship Arts and has been leading worship for about 16 years, including his recent years at The Journey. The Worship Arts team that he leads has many different teams, for example, the writing team, production team, and design team. He studied the arts in college and explores various types of art forms, including music, theater, and visual. Pastor Anthony plays both the piano and the guitar, and places emphasis on infusing the arts with worship because religion and art are connected in various different ways.

What is your role at The Journey Church?

My official title is the Worship Arts Pastor, so what that means is that I give leadership to all the artists; all the technical people that help make our services, the technical creative aspects of our services, happen. Uhm, and I also give pastoral leadership to that too, so if they have needs that are outside of the realm of creativity then I give them, you know, Pastoral care counseling and those sorts of things.

What drew you towards Worship Arts?

Well I’ve been at The Journey going four years, uh and my dad was a Pastor growing up, so he was like a Senior Pastor, so I was always exposed to the, uh, Christian aspect of ministry. Uhm, but I was really, I was drawn to the arts just because I just felt like, you know, I love singing, I loved the creative side of things, even as a kid. So, I also loved ministry, I loved helping people and love working with people, and so it was a perfect combination at the same time.

Was art always your passion?

Not always. I always liked to sing, uhm music, that sort of thing, not that I was always any good at it. But I liked sports too, you know, just like any other kid. I was really into sports, really into baseball. Baseball was a passion of mine too as a kid.

Is there a certain aspect of the Worship Arts that you find most appealing, or do you just like everything?

Well, I can’t play favorites. I mean, just because I’m a creative person and I lead creative people that doesn’t mean that I’m good at all the creative, you know, elements or anything that’s creative. But I can definitely appreciate any kind of creativity. You know, I’m not a painter, but I can appreciate a great painting. I’m not an actor by no means, but I can really appreciate somebody who is. Uh, it can be somebody who sings or a writer. I’m not a great writer, but I can really appreciate somebody that’s written a great piece. So, I like just anything that’s creative that allows people to express the way that they feel. Maybe it’s a political point of view or maybe it’s a spiritual point of view, but any way that people express creatively, the way that they feel passionately about something I can really appreciate.

Why did you choose to become a Pastor?

Well, I think to be a Pastor and to do it long term, I mean there’s down sides to being a Pastor, there’s up sides to being a Pastor, so I think that you definitely have to have a sense of calling. I think that in just about any field I think people that stick with it for the long term are people that feel like that it was they were born to do. And for me, I feel that way. I feel like this is what I was born to do; I feel like this is what God called me to do with my life. Then I feel that the Litmus test for that is, if you can see yourself doing anything else, then you should go try it and do something else. But, you know, I can’t envision myself doing anything else other than ministry, being a Pastor. Uh, and then being able to be involved with creative people is just like extra, you know, it’s a bonus that I’m able to do that because it’s something I’m passionate about. But, definitely what has kept be and what made me decide to be a Pastor is that deep sense of calling.

How do you instill art into your Church teachings?

I mean, we are all creative at some level. Some people, they inaccurately label creativity as the arts. You can be creative and not have any of those outward expressions of art. So I think that a lot of the things that we do, whether that’s the sermon or it be somebody running a computer to help put something on a screen, that’s art. I think everything that we do we really infuse our message with creativity. We infuse our message with the arts so that people who are and aren’t artistic can really appreciate that. And I think that I enhances the message that you have, it makes it more understandable, I mean our culture, we are an entertainment culture, so we understand things when we see it on the screen, we understand things when we hear it in a song, when we see it put creatively even though we are not creative ourselves. We can understand the message more clearly when it’s put that way. And so, everything that we do has some element of creativity, some element of the arts inside of it. So anything you see our Church do it usually starts with the idea and we come up with a creative way to portray that idea.

Art Interview

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The Art of Stand-Up Comedy With MoDi

            Very few people have the courage to follow their passion.  The majority of people go through life with wishful thinking and “if only” being the closest they come to living out their dream.  Moderchai Rosenfeld, famously known by his stage name MoDi, ditched his investment banking job on Wall Street to pursue stand-up comedy, and has not looked back since.  When taking the elevator up to his apartment on the Lower East Side, I was understandably nervous to interview a Top 10 NYC comedian according to many news outlets, including the Hollywood Reporter.  I can honestly say I am not the same person who went into his apartment.  I learned a lot about pursuing your passion, connecting with people, the amazing energy of New York City, and the beautiful healing process that stand-up comedy brings to so many people around the world.  I learned that stand-up comedy is more than a job.

 

MG: Can you tell me a little bit about your childhood and upbringing?

 

MoDI: I was born in Israel, came here when I was seven years old.  We lived in the Five Towns – which I’m sure you’re familiar with.  I graduated Hewlett high school, I went to Boston University, and I moved to Manhattan and live here.

 

MG: You were on Wall Street before stand up comedy. Did you enjoy that?

 

MoDI: When I finished college my first job was in finance, international banking, I liked it very much; it was a lot of fun.  I used to imitate the secretaries all the time.  My friend said, “You should do it on stage.” He brought me to an open mike, he set the whole the thing up.  The guy who owned the club said I was great and should keep at it, that’s where I caught the bug.  I was doing banking and comedy at the same time for a while and then left banking, and now I do full-time comedy.

 

MG: So what made you go to full-time comedy?

 

MoDi: I was doing well enough, making a living, and I knew I had to go either all the way or no way.  You have to go completely into it or not, you can’t do it half and half.

 

MG: Do you have any comedians that are influences on you?

 

MoDi:  Mostly old-school comedians, like Alan King. I was very fortunate to catch the tail end of the Catskills.  I got to see some amazing comedians up there that no one ever heard of.  Old school Catskill comedians that were just great.  Helped me get from a comedian to a performer.

 

MG: You spend a lot of time in mostly New York and Los Angeles; can you describe the different vibes between each place?

 

MoDi: New York is amazing.  The energy in New York is so much more amazing.  The only way you can appreciate New York is if you leave and come back.  I lived three years in LA and when I came back I was just so appreciative.  New York has amazing comedy clubs, and they’re always packed, so you can always go up and try new material.

 

MG: You spoke about trying new material, how hard is it to come up with new stuff, how do you stay creative?

 

MoDI: Coming up with a new bit is like giving birth.  There’s a premise and you go with it. I’m not one of those comedians that sit in front of a computer and type it all out.  I need to be in front of an audience and feel it out with them.  You know, try different names, different scenarios.  There’s a beginning there’s an end, and in the middle there are tags.  You want to get as much fat trimmed out of the tags before it’s a complete bit.

 

MG: So when you’re up there on stage, do you view yourself as an artist?

 

MoDi: Yeah I’m a performer, artist.  It’s a craft; it’s definitely a craft.  Stand up comedy is a craft.  Art you think something physical like a sculpture or a painting, but this is a craft – an artistic performance as I see it.

 

MG: A lot of people view a stand-up comedian as having the hardest job in the world because they must practice public speaking and making people laugh.  Individually those are extremely tough and you must combine both of those.

 

MoDi: Right.  I look at a guy drilling a hole in the street at five in the morning and that’s hardest job to me.  For me it’s a very natural thing to go up and speak in front of people.  I don’t know maybe it’s my DNA, or my astrological sign they tell me, is very prone to that, but I don’t see it being the most difficult job.

 

MG: What’s your favorite bit that you’ve done or moment on stage – what was your favorite on stage experience you’ve had?

 

MoDI: The bigger the audience the better.  I did a show in Anaheim for 10,000 people, which was a lot of fun.  The Montreal Comedy Festival is always great, a very known festival.  They have big gala shows I’ve been on with 4,000 people.  It’s much easier to perform for a big audience than a small audience – for me.

 

MG: How far do you see stand up going, is it something you want to do for the rest of your life, or an avenue to a different type of comedy?

 

MoDI: Well I can’t imagine stopping doing stand up, I’m hoping it leads to bigger and better things and it is.  It’s moving along, every year it grows with more jobs and more fun events, different types of venues and audiences so it’s always constantly growing.  As for stand up itself, the art and form of stand up is always there.

 

MG: What’s the ultimate goal?

 

MoDi: Ultimate Goal?  Hosting the Oscars, what do I know?  To be able to reach as much of a critical mass as possible.  Because comedy is a calling, it’s more than just a job.  You can really help people.  I get emails that are absolutely mind-boggling “We haven’t laughed in a year and a half.” “We just lost our son , and it was so good to laugh.”  “Our son had cancer and I saw him laughing for the first time.” Just beautiful things like that and when people reach out to you – it’s more than a job.

 

 

Arts Interview

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Interview With Soré Agbaje

            Soré Agbaje is many things: a student, a performer, an artist, and most importantly, a poet. We were in high school together, and I knew her primarily through our school’s literary magazine, in which she was published numerous times. In senior year, she took first prize in the poetry slam the magazine sponsored. Reading her poems and seeing her perform, I had a sense that she was going to go on to become an even more accomplished poet than she already was. When I met with her, I was eager to hear about what she’d been up to since graduation, and to learn more about the mind behind the artist.

When would you say you first started really writing, as a poet?

Well, first, I was always a writer. My mom pushed me into writing when I was younger, so I guess it was always part of the culture of my house. There was a contest that I entered when I was, maybe, in third grade. I actually got my brother to write the poem; I was too lazy. I was always one of those kids that really didn’t care about anything, but when my brother wrote the poem, I looked at it and I said, “I think I can do the same thing. I want to be just like my brother. I want to be better.” So I wrote my own poem, and it ended up being good. But I only realized that I had a talent for writing and that other people also enjoyed it when I came into a new school. The English teacher gave us a free write, and you know, I wanted to impress everyone. I wanted them to know, “I’m smart too. It’s not just you guys.” So I wrote a poem, and when I read it, everyone was in awe. That’s when I was like, “Wow, people actually care about this. I can actually get people to feel things through my writing.” That’s when I started writing, but high school is when I became an artist, because now I was doing it for myself. I wasn’t doing it for other people. I was writing for myself, I was blogging about my writing, and I was doing spoken word competitions.

 

Was there anything in high school in particular that made you grow more as a writer?

In particular, I think a lot of different things, a lot of life experiences. When you’re in high school, things are difficult. You’re always hearing about bullying and things like that. But what really, really helped my writing was the Lit Mag [Literary Magazine] at our school, and people like KK [Mr. Kilkelly], the moderator, and people like Mr. Sweeney [another English teacher]. We had Lit Mag meetings every Wednesday, and we would just sit down and write. It was the first time that I was in a place where I wasn’t the only writer. There were other writers and we could all just share our writing. Another thing that really helped me was my blog, mellifluousflow.tumblr.com. I would post things every day, and if I didn’t post, people would be like, “Oh, do you not have your blog anymore?” It felt like, “Oh, now I have to be regular with this.” Then, when I started doing contests, that’s what really got me to be serious about my writing.

What would you say your writing process is like? How long on average does it take you to write a poem?

When I first started, I just had so many things inside of me that I needed to get out. I could be looking at you and I’d be thinking of a poem, or I’d be in a classroom and I’d just be writing. Sometimes I just had so many words inside, I’d talk to you and you’d be like, “Whoa! That sounds very poetic.” That was when I first started; I would put a pen down to a paper and words would just flow out. But now it’s different. Now, I wait for inspiration. I try and write more political pieces now, because where I work, we do workshops, and one of our mentors mentioned to us that poetry is political. Poetry is a way to give a voice to people who don’t have a voice. You can’t be a poet and think, “Oh, well I’m just going to write about flowers!” That’s okay, but it’s not enough. You can’t just have a gift and not do anything with it.

My writing process is really about that. I try and write about things that matter. Before, I just wrote everything. Now, I think about how I feel, and I go back and edit. I used to never edit my stuff, but now I do and I just try and get all my feelings out, you know? I also do research, because when you’re writing about issues, you can’t not know what you’re writing about.

You mentioned that you’re a spoken word artist as well. I’ve seen some examples of spoken word, but what would you say is the difference between just simple poetry and spoken word? Is there a significant difference?

See, if you ask different poets, they’ll say, “No, it’s the same thing, there’s no difference. Poetry and spoken word are the same”, but I completely disagree. I only started doing spoken word two years ago, but I’ve always been a poet, and I know from writing poetry that they’re way different. Spoken word is more free, and when I discovered spoken word, I was like, “Wow, this is so me. How come I haven’t been doing this before?” Poetry is also freeing, but there’s something about spoken word that’s different. It’s very “me”; it’s like my own vernacular. I can have my own language with spoken word. I can get all my feelings out, like, “Hey, listen to me. This is what I want you to hear.” But with poetry, it’s like, “Read it. Understand. Go back to it and read it again.” But with spoken word, not everyone’s supposed to get it. If you don’t get it, that’s your problem, so you have to listen up. It’s more powerful than poetry, I think.

 

What experiences have you had with spoken word? What kind of things have you done?

Recently…thank God, I’ve been given a lot of opportunities and I’m really grateful, because a couple months ago I wouldn’t have imagined doing the things I’m doing now. Two days ago, I performed at the Lincoln Center. It was a competition to be New York City’s poet laureate, and it was amazing. I didn’t think I was going to get in when I sent in my application. We had to give in an artist résumé, so I put everything that I’ve ever done in my entire life in that résumé. I sent in my best works of poetry, but the thing is, they wanted it to be pieces that are civically engaging, so I wrote about politics. We performed at Lincoln Center, and now me and the other contestants, the people that made it to the finals, are poet ambassadors. So it’s really nice. I also joined this organization called Urban Word NYC, and I’m on the digital media team, so we do a lot of recordings. I promote things that we do, like the workshops we facilitate, and I manage the social networking accounts. Because of Urban Word, I perform on the train now. I don’t ask for money, but I’ve never had the guts to do that. We also do street performances, among many other things. I have a YouTube channel, so I record professional videos of my poems. It’s just a lot of different things that I am trying to do.

Do you have any advice that you would give to young poets that aspire to be like you?

Well, I’m still at the stage where I don’t feel like anyone should aspire to be like me. There’s still so much that I have to do. I have great mentors and I know so many people that I aspire to be like, and I feel like I’m not there yet. But I’d say, don’t listen to anyone when they tell you that you can’t do something, and don’t listen to yourself! A lot of times people will tell you “You can’t do this” but that’s not even the issue. The only reason we listen to things like that is because we believe that we can’t do it ourselves. That’s something that I struggle with. I was always a confident writer, but when I got into a place where there were so many great writers, I started to doubt myself. What I would say is, if you’re afraid of something, that’s more reason why you should go after it. I was afraid of doing street performances, I was afraid of doing the poet laureate competition; I was afraid of so many things that I’ve done. But I’ve made a decision with myself that the more I fear it, the more I’m supposed to do it. We humans, we’re self-destructive—we’ll wish for something and want it so badly, but when it’s in our hands, it’s like, “Oh, I can’t do this.” Don’t be lazy, either. If you have a dream, go after it. People might say “You’re not going to be successful”, but as long as you’re passionate about something, and you’re willing to work hard, you’re going to be successful at it.

Photo on 10-19-13 at 1.07 PM #2

(Note: I wasn’t able to get a copy of the New York Times since I don’t live near a place that sells it, and there wasn’t one near where we met, either.)

 

Hi I’m Jake, and I am a Vidiot (videogame idiot)

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It is amazing to me how much of the current world has become virtual. I never thought I could have an argument with someone over whether or not my human girlfriend is hotter or less hot than his virtual one.

Emily-Ratajkowski depositphotos_6588780-Cartoon-girl

 

I bring this up because the article I read on the New York Times Art Section was devoted entirely to 4 new video games. It has become so ingrained in our American culture that rather than movie critics there are now video game critics. Video games, that were originally created as a mindless activity to pass the time (Snake) have no become so artful and mastered that the critics don’t discuss how fun it is to play, but talk about how truly comparable the graphics or story line are to real life. The first game discussed is the new NBA (national basketball association) game called NBA 2K14. The article actually tries to downgrade it because the story mode in which you can play through the career of a real life player doesn’t have better options than the year before (NBA 2K13). I feel that getting fulfillment in living vicariously through a virtual character via a video game is a big problem in this new generation. In the next two games (“Infinity Blade” and “Rain”) they discuss how realistic the game is and how the new idea in gaming is more to show how un-animated they can make a game, rather than the actually content of the game. Frankly, gamers and the people creating these games wanting it to be real life shows just how antisocial the younger generations are getting.

I made my title for this post off of a joke me and my dad say to my little brother in which we talk about his video game addiction as if it is a AA (alcoholics anonymous) meeting. My brother doesn’t hang out with many friends and yet insists he has plenty because of the people he speaks to through his Xbox or PC headset. The nuances of conversation, facial expressions and hand gestures, are becoming lost and, at least on the personal level of my brother, is leading to poor social skills in school and the work place.

bush-confused-frown-aa

 

It was refreshing, however, to see the review of the last game (Pokemon X and Y). They discussed how this game, started in the 90s, stays to the concept of just fun interactions with monsters, Pokemon, and this unrealistic virtual world. To me, that is what the extent of video games should be. It shouldn’t be a replacement for life, but an addition to it.

I don’t mean to seem like I hate video games because I don’t. I play video games on rainy days or to relax during this week of midterms, but it’s to escape from life in a mindless activity. When I play NBA 2K13, I don’t play 15 straight hours, trying to finish story mode. Instead, I play a 30 minute game without trying to live out the life of a fake character. I really don’t see any benefits to critiquing video games for anything more than explaining the activities the game offers because it is just that, a game.

I also want to say that I’m not advertising playing sports or outside activity instead. Regardless of the activity I just personally believe it is beneficial to interact with people in person and go out and see what the world has to offer, rather than try and find a game that gets close to offering something realistic.

My question to you all is this: Why do people find the need to ingulf themselves in a virtual world that tries to be real?  Do you think it is okay to make video games more than just a past time and make it basically your life?

http://global.factiva.com.remote.baruch.cuny.edu/ga/default.aspx?imt=2&ao=14&aod=1811683

 

Background Checks for Art

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In a recent business move by The Art Compliance Company, its founder, Mr. Marion Maneker is trying to change how we trade art. Citing a huge increase in art purchasing, Mr. Maneker believes that it is more important than ever to perform a vetting process to ensure that the $10 million painting that your about to purchase is really what you think it is. Mr. Maneker goes on to explain that his service aims to simplify this process for both buyers and sellers by performing the background check for them. This process will track down each specific pieces trail until the root, without the need to hire expensive lawyers or private investigators.

Art_ArtThief

Mr. Maneker is not the only one with this concept. Christopher A. Marinello, operator of Art Recovery International plans on offering a similar service as well. Marinello previously worked at the Art Loss Register, where he helped clients track down missing art and check if a work has been reported stolen. I think that we will see many more services like this emerge in the coming years and months.

As noted in the article galleries around the world have been forced to shut down due to the increase in even more realistic counterfeit paintings by some of the most revered artists. One example is the travails of Knoedler & Company, a gallery that suddenly closed in November of 2011, after being sued for allegedly selling fake paintings, by several of their powerful clients.

Art has become more accessible than ever to anyone around the world with the rise of the internet. As we saw last week in Joleens post (http://eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/seminar1baruch13/2013/10/04/art-collections-a-click-away/), selling art online is becoming a reality, and not just for small pieces. With the rise will come an unfortunate increase in both stolen and counterfeit works. I believe this service will become a huge motivator to smaller collectors who have previously been hesitant to purchase because of the possible risks. Combining this new service with the improved access through the internet should provide both increased security and an important global increase in the arts.

 

Article link:

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/16/art-market-veterans-announce-new-business-ventures/?ref=design