May
29,
2008
IN BRIEF: TOURISM, FILM AND THE ARTS NEWS
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Arts
Council salutes 97 Maryland artists
Clarence
Bishop, deputy secretary for Maryland’s
Department of Business and Economic Development, will be
a featured speaker at the Maryland State Arts Council’s
Individual Artists Awards ceremony and reception, June
14. (Pictured: Gesel Mason, 2008 award recipient for
solo dance)
WYPR radio host Tom Hall is emcee for the
event, which will be held at the Brown Center on the Baltimore
campus of the Maryland Institute, College of Art. Call
410-767-6555 for tickets, information.
The Arts Council selected 97 artists out
of 627 applicants – representing nine artistic categories – for
the 2008 awards. The named artists receive cash awards
in the amount of $6,000, $3,000 or $1,000. Continue...
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1812
Commission enjoys Star-Spangled May
Maryland’s War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission, established under
executive order by Gov. Martin O’Malley in 2007, has enjoyed a
productive May.
On
May 8, the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
became a unit of the National Park Service. Sen. Ben
Cardin and Rep. John Sarbanes led the effort to showcase
the trail.
The
Star-Spangled Banner Trail spotlights important events
from the War of 1812, including the battle at Fort McHenry,
which inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that
became our National Anthem.
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| Then,
on May 15, the House of Representatives approved Rep. C.A.
Dutch Ruppersberger’s bill that authorizes the U.S.
Treasury to mint commemorative coins celebrating the War
of 1812 bicentennial. Proceeds from coin sales will support
the Maryland commission’s bicentennial activities. |
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Talbot
showcases culinary, arts and cultural tourism
Nearly
nine years ago, the Talbot County Office of Tourism opened
for business. The area’s hospitality industry wanted
the county to create its own tourism department, instead
of managing tourism matters through the local Chamber of
Commerce, says Deborah L. Dodson, director of the Talbot
County Office of Tourism.
Dodson
was Chamber of Commerce vice president, at that time, responsible
for managing county tourism. She applied for the leadership
position at the newly formed tourism office and with “a
desk, fax and myself,” she says, opened the office.
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The
Talbot County office had an initial budget of $70,000. “Partnering
with the (Maryland) Office of Tourism was great,” Dodson
says, “in helping us to get rolling.” Continue...
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IN
THE NEWS:
Canal Place Authority gets new leadership
Gov. Martin O’Malley appointed a new
leadership team at
the Canal Place Preservation & Development Authority in Western
Maryland last week, as reported in the Cumberland Times News.
The newspaper also published a story about the “bridge
of stability” that Andy Vick and Renee Bone bring.
Economic conditions shape tourism marketing
“For the first time in years, the Maryland Office of Tourism turned
its marketing focus from a national level to the Baltimore,
Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., regions,” reports PR
Week in its
May 19 issue.
Temporary Welcome Center opens in Hagerstown
About 200,000 visitors are expected to stop by the newly
opened Welcome Center at Hagerstown’s Prime Outlets
mall in the coming year, said Margot Amelia, executive
director of the Maryland
Office of Tourism, in a (Hagerstown)
Herald-Mail article, May 16.
Renovated
Hampton Mansion on “close to home” list
USA Today recently highlighted destinations that do not require
much travel time, “Close
to home: 51 summer destinations.” The
Maryland entry was Hampton National Historic Site, just north
of Baltimore.
State
honors Western Maryland tourism leader
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Hannah
Lee Byron (l), assistant secretary for Tourism, Film & the
Arts, and John R. Griffin (c), Department of Natural Resources
secretary, present a DNR certificate of appreciation to
Thomas B. Riford, Hagerstown-Washington County Convention
and Visitors Bureau president and CEO, at Greenbrier State
Park in Western Maryland earlier this month. Riford received
the award for his efforts in promoting Maryland’s
state parks and tourism in Western Maryland.
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UPCOMING
EVENTS:
Roadside
bargains spotlight “America’s first interstate”
Pick up a bargain or two at the fifth annual Historic
National Road Yard Sale,
May 28-June 1. The event stretches from Maryland’s Washington
County into
West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. See what you can
find, or “grab your antiques, collectables, clothing, furniture, glassware,
fresh produce or toys … and take advantage of all the passersby,” says
Adele Air, director of the Maryland National Road Association. Historic National
Road is one of Maryland’s 19
scenic byways.
Allegany Arts Council moving to renovated building
Grand opening of Allegany County’s new arts center, 9
North Centre for the Arts, June 5, 2 p.m., in Cumberland. Information, 240-580-0399. Location
includes commercial space and luxury rental apartments.
Arts building opens at Southern Maryland sculpture park
A weekend celebration, May 30-June 1, marks the opening of a new arts building
at Annmarie
Garden, a 30-acre public sculpture park in Solomons. Two inaugural
exhibitions - Re.action and Olga Hirshhorn Recollects - open May
31. The park is a Smithsonian Institution affiliate.
Lecture addresses role of Baltimore women in Civil War
Historical Society of Baltimore County hosts presentation by Villa Julie
College’s
Dr. Claudia Floyd, Baltimore's Confederate Women: Perpetuating a Culture
of War, June 8 at 1:30. Old Almshouse at 9811 Van Buren Lane, Cockeysville.
Information,
410-666-1878.
Documentary festival presents six world premieres
SILVERDOCS, an international film festival for documentaries, runs June 16-23
at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural
Center in Silver Spring. Now in its
sixth year, the festival will screen 108 films representing 63 countries.
It also features a concurrent International Documentary Conference. Filmmaker
Spike Lee will be honored at the festival’s Guggenheim Symposium.
Arts Council show spotlights masters performing with apprentices
A jazz saxophonist, Bulgarian folk singer and South Indian dancer are among
the featured performers in Maryland Masters: Down the Street and Around
the World, A Global Showcase of Traditional Performance, June 19, at Baltimore’s
Creative Alliance at the Patterson. Maryland
Traditions hosts the show. Information,
Cliff Murphy, 410-767-6450.
