Literary summits, grants-information sessions and councilors on tour

A major element of the Arts Council’s five-year strategic plan – Imagine Maryland – which was unveiled last spring is the continued involvement of the Arts Council with communities across the state.

 

Arts Council taps into growing literary community

On Aug. 22, the Arts Council convened a Literary Arts Summit in Western Maryland, in partnership with the Frostburg Center for Creative Writing at Frostburg State University. Earlier literary summits were held at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, July 18, and in partnership with the CityLit Project in Baltimore, June 13.

"The state’s literary arts community has grown significantly," says Christine Stewart, a program director for the Arts Council. "New organizations have emerged, networking among writers has increased, new writers have been coming to Maryland, and reading series have expanded. By convening literary arts summits across the state, the Arts Council is tapping into this new energy and promoting a collaborative spirit among writers," she adds.

For more information about literary summits, call or e-mail Christine Stewart, 410-767-6476.

 

Council offers free sessions for grants information

Prospective applicants for Arts Council grants were invited to attend two information sessions presented by the Council. The first, Sept. 16, was held at the Chesapeake Arts Center in Brooklyn Park, Anne Arundel County. A second was scheduled for Oct. 7 at the Bowie branch of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System. The Arts Council also hosted two information sessions by teleconference in September. Call or
e-mail Doreen Harmon for more information, 410-767-6555.

Councilors tour Walters exhibit

Members of the Maryland State Arts Council visited the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore’s Mount Vernon district, Sept. 23. The councilors toured a new exhibit, Shrunken Treasures: Miniaturization in Books and Art. Ben Tilghman, curator of the show, conducted the private tour. Tilghman is a Zanvyl Krieger Curatorial Fellow, Department of Manuscripts and Rare Books.

The exhibition runs to Nov. 8. It features more than 30 small-scale manuscripts and rare books – including religious texts, almanacs and books of poetry – from the Walters’ collection.

 

Council meets at Olney Theatre Center

The Arts Council held its first regular meeting of FY2010 at the Olney Theatre Centre, Sept. 25.

Open year round, Olney is a professional regional theater, located on 14 acres in the “Baltimore-Washington-Frederick triangle.” The theater held its first performance in July 1938: Ladislaus Bus-Fekete's The Lady Has a Heart, starring cinema actress Elissa Landi.