Tag Archives: arts

Somerville Skillshare

19 Wednesday Mar 2014

Posted by in Community, Learnin', Skillshare

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Intro to Salsa at Somerville Skillshare 2014

It’s not everyday that one gets the privilege of attending the first of something. Especially an explosively popular and successful first.

Dancing salsa at skillshare

After six or more years participating in and teaching (on occasion) at the punky, funky, and deliciously grass-roots Boston Skillshare, I pretty much became an acolyte of this unique form of community-based learning. If you’ve met me in person, chances are you’ve heard me proselytize about skillshare’s virtues. Chances are even better that I actually dragged you to one.

I’ll just go ahead and state it: skillshare changed my life.

Don't just make art sign

Sketching out my skills

Putting marker to banner

When I caught wind of Somerville’s inaugural attempt at bringing community-based instruction to the DIY-hungry masses, you know I signed up right away. And by “right away,” I mean if a tornado had touched down at that moment, flinging me and my laptop to the sky, I’d have been no less likely to jab the “register” button.

I sure do love me some:

  • Don’t Make Art, Just Make Something!
  • Investing and Stock Market Principles
  • Intro to Digital DJ’ing

I mean, how can anyone resist:

  • Brew Like a Barista (missed it! too full)
  • Felted Orbs (missed it! too full)
  • Intro to Parkour
  • Link Stitch Bookbinding (missed it! at parkour)

See what I’m saying?

make something folk

thanks to everyone tweet

You’re going to come next year, right?

Skillshare door prize

Door prizes rock

(Also, I kind of “won the skillshare.” Thank you, Skillshare organizers!)

Dispatches from Ladies Rock Camp Boston – April 2013

29 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Boston Moments, Community, Learnin'

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Some stories are so good, a person trips over herself trying to tell them. How to begin?

Hilken and Nora kick off Lady's Rock Camp

With my mother and her newly acquired electric keyboard? How she surprised me with an affirmative to my inquiry, asked slightly in jest: hey, Ma, want to do Ladies Rock Camp with me this spring?

With the brief essays we wrote for our applications, mining our memories for favorite musicians and artistic influences (me: Stevie Wonder; mom: Yanni.)

Sly Juice on the keys during dress rehearsal

With my learned love of alternate learning opportunities? Like libraries. Like volunteering. Like skillshare.

With forty-plus women, in support of girls, signed up for a three-day rock and roll bootcamp? With Girls Rock Campaign Boston, bursting on the scene in 2010, educating girls ages eight to seventeen in the ways of music and self-empowerment.

Lady's Rock Camp opening circle

The story, on paper or on screen, holds more than I can give words to. More nerve. More verve. More vulnerabilities. More inspiration. More risk-taking. More generosity. More skill. More dancing. More surprises. More support.

Disco ball

Song writing workshop

Guitars

Dance party - first night

Dance party with DJ Sit N Spin

Band coaches

Screen printing band t-shirts

Maids of Mayhem in band practice

First time on stage

Phoebe on vocals, Tonya on guitar

Getting prepared for band photo shoot

So I’m not going to attempt to tell this tale linear. Here are some impressions. Here are some photos. Here is a challenge for you to sign yourself up (or your daughter, your sister, your mother, your friend), and find out. Tell your own story.

Maids of Mayhem on stage at T.T. the Bears Cambridge

However this thing begins, you can be sure it ends with gratitude.

Oh. And a video. Rocking out to Maids of Mayhem!

LRC Maids of Mayhem 4-2013 from Phoebe Sinclair on Vimeo.

Whole Hearted Examples of Local Love and Lore

04 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by in Bloggin Noggin, Community

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Twitter-screen-shotRecently, I joined Twitter.

It was a deeply-considered decision. After all, an important aspect of whole hearted connectedness, to which I prescribe, is thoughtful engagement with that which you already own. The web platforms where I spend my time and finite energy daily are myriad and, over the years, Twitter had seemed to me a shallow offering. A hummingbird’s game -flitting here and there for sweets, rarely making the kind of contact that leaves an impression. Then, suddenly, I discovered the website’s potential usefulness at work. So I held my nose, and I jumped.

I’ve been merrily sharing, watching the number of my so-named followers creep up. However, it’s strange to put things out there and rarely hear back. Part of me feels, why bother if only ten people have access to the tidbits of news, events, ideas that excite me? But then clicking that “tweet” button is easy. So I do it anyway and chalk it up to “learning” the “culture” of Twitter for the sake of professional and personal growth. For now.

Here are two items I recently “tweeted” that I feel could use a bit more air before they disappear into the drawer forever.

1.) An intern at Boston’s popular and accomplished Food Project blogs about his world-widening experience on the T.

2.) Creating art for the New York Subway with illustrator Sophie Blackall:

http://blip.tv/etsy/handmade-portraits-sophie-blackall-5930123

What Is It: Cradle Bench

17 Friday Aug 2012

Posted by in What Is It

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I appreciate clever guerilla art, whether it’s yarn bombing, handmade additions to street signs, or a bench that, on second glance, is no ordinary bench.

Lauren models how to use the bench

My lovely friend Lauren models proper bench-sitting

This What Is It might be better categorized as a Friday Favorite, because it’s cheating a bit. (Shh!) The internet, turns out, has lots to say about the mysterious cradle bench bolted into place very near the normal benches on Jamaica Pond.

cradle bench

Wake Up The Earth 2012

30 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by in Boston Moments, Home

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I love my Canon Rebel EOS automatic film camera, but it tends to make me tardy.  What with having to use up all the exposures before I can get a roll developed, and having to schlep all the way to CVS (which doesn’t do that great a job), and then with the sometimes coming out funky and off-color -like what happened with my shots from Wake Up the Earth, a parade and festival organized by Spontaneous Celebrations.

If you can forgive the blue tint . . .

Legalize chickens

This year’s Wake Up the Earth was my first time at the festival full day. I even brought my mom.

My companions

Hi, Mom!

It’s the most amazing festival: color and passion and humor and generosity and music and heartfelt dancing and ginger beer. I invited my mother because, as far as I can see, Wake Up the Earth is a big bite of what makes JP, JP.

Float

Chorus

Young dancers

99%

And who doesn’t love that?

Yarn bombed