Archive for: Cary NC

Statement On War Painting Wins Cary Fine Arts League Prize

Categories: Don Mertz
Comments (0)

“Embrace Freedom,” 36×36, mixed media on canvas

Don Mertz’ “Embrace Freedom” places second in the 2012 juried show.

December 5, 2012 (Cary, NC) — “Embrace Freedom,” a 36”x36” mixed media on canvas painting by Cary-based fine artist Don Mertz, received second prize in the Fine Arts League of Cary’s 2012 Members Show, a juried exhibition.

Don Mertz moved to Cary from New York City 12 years ago and, subsequently, joined the Fine Arts League of Cary (FALC). Since then, his abstract paintings have been included in many solo- and group exhibitions throughout the Triangle region and sold to numerous art collectors. He has also donated to, and sold paintings in, the Works of Heart charitable fundraising auction for the Triangle AIDS Alliance.

A former U.S. Marine, Mertz explains that “Embrace Freedom” is a “semi-statement on the chaos, loss, and excitement of war.” Subtly embedded in the roughly textured, scraped, marked, and chaotic surface of the painting are: a simple military gravesite cross; the Marine’s motto “Semper Fi;” “HooRah” the military version of “hooray;” a two-bar chevron, the rank insignia of a corporal; the outline of four blue stars; four veiled red stripes; and the words “Embrace Freedom.”

Mertz said he included the corporal’s chevron as a reminder that “our wars are fought and won by the ‘grunt’ — the enlisted man — and the non-commissioned officer. So many of the dead and wounded, our loss of national treasure, come from their ranks.”

Although it was not Mertz’s original intent, he admits that the more prominent four blue stars may be seen as a statement concerning the “higher visibility of military generals, especially in light of recent events,” he said. “The fact that they are scattered around the painting might also reflect the not-so-positive point of view of the wartime contributions of some our senior commanders in Thomas Ricks’ just released book, The Generals.”

Jennifer Dasal, associate curator of contemporary art at the North Carolina Museum of Art since November 2008, served as the judge for show.

The 2012 FALC Members Show will be on exhibit at the Page-Walker Arts and History Center at 119 Ambassador Loop, Cary, NC, until January 2, 2013.

The 200-member, non-profit FALC provides continuing education for its members through regularly scheduled programs. It also offers members opportunities to exhibit their visual art while contributing to the cultural environment of the community and increasing public awareness of visual art. For more information, go to www.fineartsleagueofcary.org.

For more information on Don Mertz, visit his website at www.mertzart.com.

About Don Mertz:

Don Mertz is an abstract artist who has lived in Cary for 12 years. A former truck driver, Marine, and IBM branch manager, he attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and The Art Students League in New York City where he lived for 25 years. He is a member of the Visual Arts Exchange of Raleigh, the Fine Arts League of Cary and the Durham Art Guild.  He is represented by ArtSource Fine Art Gallery in North Hills, Raleigh, NC, and by Joe Rowand Art Fine Art Services in Chapel Hill, NC. For more information visit www.mertzart.com or find him on Facebook.

Cary Artist To Judge Myrtle Beach Art Show

Categories: Don Mertz
Comments (0)

Don Mertz

Don Mertz will select prize winners for the Waccamaw Arts & Crafts Guild.

October 11, 2012 (Cary, NC) — Fine artist Don Mertz of Cary, NC, has been asked to serve as the judge for the Waccamaw Arts and Crafts Guild’s 2012 Members Show in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, November 7 and 8.

A member of the Visual Arts Exchange of Raleigh, the Fine Arts League of Cary, and the Durham Art Guild, Mertz, an abstract painter, has participated in numerous group art shows himself.

“I am very honored to have been asked to judge this annual show,” he noted. “ One of the jurors from a previous year commented to me on the high level of professionalism she saw in the members ‘ work  in the show she judged.  It is a real privilege to be able to do this, and I know it will be a challenge to make the final selections.”

The Waccamaw Arts & Crafts Guild is a non-profit, state-chartered organization founded in 1969. Membership is open to professional, non-professional, and student artists and crafts persons, as well as associate members interested in the arts.

According to show director Jackie Stacharowski, there are usually 100 entries in the Members Show. The show will be hung in the Springmaid Beach Resort Convention Center on November 7. Mertz will then award prizes in four categories: Professional, Non-Professional, New Artist, and Student.

He will also discuss his decisions at the show’s opening reception, which will be held from 5:30-7:30 Thursday evening.

For more information on Don Mertz, visit his website at www.mertzart.com

For more information on the Waccamaw Arts and Crafts Guild, visit www.wacg.org.

About Don Mertz:

Don Mertz is an abstract artist who has lived in Cary for 12 years.  A former truck driver, Marine, and IBM branch manager, he attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and The Art Students League in New York City, where he lived for 25 years. He is a member of the Visual Arts Exchange of Raleigh, the Fine Arts League of Cary and the Durham Art Guild.  He is represented by ArtSource Fine Art Gallery in North Hills, Raleigh, NC, and by Joe Rowand Art Fine Art Services in Chapel Hill, NC. For more information visit www.mertzart.com.

Triangle Modernist Houses Announces the 4th Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series

Categories: Triangle Modernist Houses
Comments (0)

Season tickets are on sale now.

August 16, 2012 (Cary, NC) — Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH), the award-winning non-profit organization that documents, preserves, and promotes Modernist residential architecture, announces the 4th year of the Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series October through February at the Galaxy Cinema in Cary. Season tickets are on sale now.

The first film, to be screened on Thursday, October 11, is “Coast Modern: Modern Architecture of the Pacific States.” Canadian filmmakers Mike Bernard and Gavin Froome travelled the Pacific coast from Vancouver to Los Angeles to showcase the pioneers of West Coast Modernist architecture, visiting some of the finest examples of modernist architecture, while also interviewing the people who designed, photographed, and lectured about these houses.  The filmmakers also interview some of the most respected names in architecture, including Dion Neutra, Douglas Coupland, and legendary photographer Julius Shulman.

On Thursday, November 8, the series will screen “Modern Tide: Midcentury Architecture on Long Island.” Director Jake Gorst highlights some of the region’s best midcentury buildings “as a way to bring awareness and appreciation for such architectural achievement. Interviews are conducted with architects, historians, and clients, and archival material plus current-day high-definition cinematography highlight Long Island’s often underappreciated modernist architectural treasures,” wrote Karen Cilento for The Huffington Post. Designs by such luminaries as Albert Frey, Wallace Harrison, Frank Lloyd Wright, Marcel Breuer, Philip Johnson, Charles Gwathmey, Barbara and Julian Neski are included in the film.
“Fallingwater:  Frank Lloyd Wright’s Masterwork with Reflections of Edgar Kaufmann Jr.” is the next film, to be screened on Thursday, December 6. Pittsburgh-based filmmaker Kenneth Love studies the landmark house that many consider the greatest creation by America’s greatest architect. It features rare home movies as well as an extensive interview with Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., who discusses why his family built the house and the events that led to Wright’s commission. His personal observations and anecdotes provide insight as he describes the special features of the house – which is showcased in all four seasons.

On Thursday, January 10, the series will present “The Pruitt-Igoe Myth: An Urban History.” Pruitt–Igoe was a large urban housing project in St. Louis, Missouri, designed by Minoru Yamasaki, who also designed the World Trade Center towers and the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport main terminal. Living conditions in Pruitt–Igoe began to decline soon after its completion in 1956. By the late 1960s, the complex had become internationally infamous for its poverty, crime, and segregation. Its 33 buildings were torn down in the mid-1970s, and the project has become an icon ofurban renewal failure. This documentary, directed by Chad Freidrichs, explores the history of low income housing and features interviews with several former residents of Pruitt-Igoe, who convey their hopefulness when they first moved in, as well as affection for the buildings that for many of them persists to this day.

“Eames: The Architect and the Painter” will conclude the 2012-2012 series on Thursday, February 7. Considered two of America’s most important designers, Charles and Ray Eames are perhaps best remembered for their mid-century plywood and fiberglass furniture. The husband and wife team also created an amazing variety of other products, including splints for wounded soldier, photography, interiors, graphics, games, and toys. Directed by Jason Cohn, produced by Bill Jersey, and narrated by James Franco, Eames: The Architect and the Painter is dedicated to these creative geniuses and their work. The New York Times has called it, “Lively, gratifying…appropriately busy and abundant: full of objects, information, stories and people, organized with hectic elegance.”

All films begin at 7:30 p.m.  Trailers for each film can be viewed at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies.

Season tickets are $29 per person and are also available at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies. Individual admission is $9 per person at the door. TMH “Mod Squad” members are admitted free. All proceeds benefit Triangle Modernist Houses’ ongoing documentation, preservation, and promotion programs. For more information on TMH, visit www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

The Galaxy Cinema is located at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC 27511. (919-463-9959). Concessions (cash only) include fresh popcorn popped in olive oil and a variety of sodas, beer, and wine.

About Triangle Modernist Houses

Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) is an award-winning, 501C3 nonprofit established in 2007 to archive, preserve, and promote Modernist residential architecture from the 1950s to new construction. The TMH website, now the largest educational and historical archive for Modernist residential design in America, continues to catalog, preserve, and advocate for North Carolina modernism. TMH also hosts popular Modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle’s most exciting residential architecture, past and present. These tours raise awareness and help preserve these “livable works of art” for future generations. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

The Umstead Art Gallery Presents New Works by Jason Craighead

Categories: Jason Craighead
Comments (0)

 

"Who Thought of the Heart" by Jason Craighead

“Who Thought Of The Heart” exhibition to feature nine paintings.

March 8, 2012 (Cary, NC) – The Umstead Art Gallery at The Umstead Hotel & Spa in Cary, NC, will present “Who Thought Of The Heart,” an exhibition of nine paintings by Raleigh, NC-based artist Jason Craighead, beginning with an opening reception on Thursday, March 15, from 6-8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

A recognized leader in the North Carolina art scene, Craighead’s original pieces will be showcased in The Umstead Art Gallery through May 31st.

Craighead’s work is frequently compared to the expressionistic, gestural painters of the mid-20th century.

“My current work is an on-going evolution of ‘languaging’ self-discovery and personal truth,” the artist said. “My process is intuitive, emotionally driven mark-making – sensing, feeling, responding to the life that appears, disappears and reappears in the creation of a work. The poetry of passion, the belief in the heart…”

The nine works in the show include six mixed media on canvas and three mixed media on paper. Sizes range from 22-inch by 30-inch to 60-inch by 62-inch.

A Florida native, Craighead studied art at the Gulf Coast Community College and Florida State University. An active member of the Raleigh art scene, Craighead is a member of the City of Raleigh Arts Commission and chairman of its Art, Education and Collections Committee.

Jason Craighead is represented in Raleigh by FlandersGallery; in Pinehurst, NC, by Broadhurst Gallery; and in Atlanta, Georgia, by Thomas Deans Fine Art. For more information on the artist visit www.jasoncraighead.com.

The Umstead Art Gallery/Umstead Hotel & Spa is located off Harrison Avenue at 5 SAS Campus Drive, Cary, NC 27513 (919-447-4000). For more information visit www.theumstead.com.

About Jason Craighead

Jason Craighead is a recognized leader in the southern art scene and maintains his studio in Raleigh, NC. His work has been included in many solo and group exhibitions throughout the Southeastern United States. He has received numerous awards and served as a juror for various art shows. He has been selected as Signature Artist for charitable art auctions, and his work has been featured in a number of publications, including Artists & Art Galleries of the Southeast. He has also been an active participant in the Raleigh arts community for many years and is a member of the City of Raleigh Arts Commission. He is represented in Raleigh by Flanders Gallery, in Pinehurst, NC, by Broadhurst Gallery, and in Atlanta, Georgia, by Thomas Deans Fine Art. For more information: www.jasoncraighead.com.

About The Umstead’s Art Collection:

The Umstead Hotel’s private collection was carefully curated, and features the works of renowned local and national artists, including famed glass artist Dale Chihuly. A dedicated art gallery, which changes seasonally, allows The Umstead to rotate new artists’ work into the hotel to complement the permanent collection. For more information: http://www.theumstead.com/art/ourCollection-en.html.

TMH Architecture Movie Series Ends with Philip Johnson Film

Categories: Triangle Modernist Houses
Comments (0)

A look at the life and legacy of a great American architect.

March 6, 2012 (Cary, NC) – Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) will conclude the 2011-2012 Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series with “Philip Johnson: Diary of an Eccentric Architect” on Thursday, March 15, at 7:30 p.m. in the Galaxy Cinema in Cary.

One of the best-known and most influential American architects of the 20th century, Philip Johnson, FAIA (1906-2005) founded the Department of Architecture and Design at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in 1930. It was there that he and friends Alfred H. Barr, Jr. and Henry-Russell Hitchcock assembled the landmark exhibition “The International Style: Architecture Since 1922″ in 1932. The show introduced the American public to the modern architecture that Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, and others were designing in Europe.

In 1978 Johnson was awarded the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal, the highest honor the AIA confers, as well as the first-ever Pritzker Architecture Prize to honor an architect of international stature.

A few of Johnson’s most famous projects include Minneapolis’s IDS Tower, the Crystal Cathedral megachurch in Southern California, the AT&T Building in Manhattan, and his own Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, where he died in his sleep in 2005. (The Glass House is now open to the public.)

Directed by Barbara Wolf, the film “depicts Johnson at work, the importance of the architectural act, and the buildings’ interaction with their environment,” according to Design Intelligence (di.net/videos).

Lee Hansley Gallery is sponsoring this special screening of “Philip Johnson: Diary of an Eccentric Architect.” Sponsors for the entire TMH Architecture Movie Series include Nowell’s Contemporary Furniture, Dail Dixon FAIA, Studio B Architecture/BuildSense, Modern Home Auction, Cherry Modern, Kontek, and Alphin Design+Build.

Tickets to the film are $9. The Galaxy Cinema is located at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC 27511 (919-463-9989).

Hosted by Triangle Modernist Houses, the annual Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series features hard-to-find films about Modernist architects and architecture. Films are shown one Thursday of each month from October through March. All proceeds from ticket sales support Triangle Modernist Houses’ mission of documenting, preserving and promoting Modernist residential design from the 1950s to today. For more information on the award-winning non-profit organization, visit www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

About Triangle Modernist Houses:

Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) is a 501C3 nonprofit established in 2007 to preserve and promote Modernist architecture. The award-winning website, now the largest educational and historical archive for Modernist residential design in America, continues to catalog, preserve, and advocate for North Carolina Modernism. TMH also hosts popular Modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle’s most exciting residential architecture, past and present. These tours raise awareness and help preserve these “livable works of art” for future generations. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com. TMH also has an active community on Facebook.

The TMH/Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series Presents “God’s Architects”

Categories: Triangle Modernist Houses
Comments (0)

A documentary celebrating five men who create their own architectural worlds.

February 8, 2011 (Cary, NC) — Triangle Modernist Houses continues the 2011-2012 Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series this month with a special screening of “God’s Architects,” a moving documentary that studies and celebrates five solitary designer/builders from Arkansas, California, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The film will be shown Thursday, February 16, at 7:30 p.m. in Cary’s Galaxy Cinema.

Created by young filmmaker Zach Godshall, the documentary details how and why these five men, who operate without funding or blueprints and completely unknown to each other, dedicate their lives to create architectural worlds drawn from nothing more than their imagination.

“I think I was initially attracted to these guys because they are working without blueprints, without funding and really going off what they felt was intuition or inspiration,” Godshall says, “and to me that was an inspiring situation to be in.”  The young filmmaker says he learned a lot while working with these self-taught builders. “These guys really do bare their hearts in this movie. They’re very genuine, and I think it comes across, and people feel that.”

Rusty Long Architect is sponsoring this special screening of “God’s Architects.” Sponsors for the entire TMH Architecture Movie Series include Nowell’s Contemporary Furniture, Dail Dixon FAIA, Studio B Architecture/BuildSense, Modern Home Auction, Cherry Modern, Kontek, and Alphin Design+Build.

Tickets to the film are $9. The Galaxy Cinema is located at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC  27511 (919-463-9989).

Hosted by Triangle Modernist Houses, the Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series features hard-to-find films about Modernist architects and architecture. Films are shown one Thursday of each month from October through March. For a complete list of upcoming films, to buy advance tickets, and to see a trailer of upcoming films, go to www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies.

All proceeds from ticket sales support Triangle Modernist Houses’ mission of documenting, preserving and promoting Modernist residential design from the 1950s to today. For more information on the award-winning organization, visit www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

The TMH/Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series Presents “How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster?”

Categories: architecture, entertainment, Film
Comments (0)

A documentary on the celebrated British architect Norman Foster.

Millau Viaduct by Norman Foster, FAIA

January 3, 2011 (Cary, NC) — Triangle Modernist Houses continues the 2011-2012 Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series this month with a special screening of “How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster?” a documentary on the life and works of one of the world’s premier architects, Norman Foster, principal of Foster + Partners in London, England. The film will be shown Thursday, January 19, at 7:30 p.m, in Cary’s Galaxy Cinema.

The new film traces Foster’s rise to the top of his profession and his unending quest to improve the quality of life through design. It presents Foster’s origins and how his dreams and influences inspired the design of emblematic projects, such as the largest building in the world, Beijing Airport, the Reichstag, the Hearst Building in New York, and his world-famous bridges, including the Millennium Bridge in London and the breathtaking Millau Viaduct, the tallest bridge in the world, in Millau, France.

Foster became the 21st Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate in 1999 and was awarded the Praemium Imperiale Award for Architecture in 2002. He has been awarded the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal for Architecture (1994), the Royal Gold Medal for Architecture (1983), and the Gold Medal of the French Academy of Architecture (1991). In 1990 he was granted a Knighthood in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, and in 1999 was honored with a Life Peerage, becoming Lord Foster of Thames Bank.

In a review of the documentary, The Guardian in London explained: “The title is taken from a question put to him by his hero, American architect Buckminster Fuller, referring to the Sainsbury Centre next to UEA, a quirky question designed to get him and us thinking about the concept of mass in architecture. By accident or design, this movie makes his buildings look airily light: expressions of pure thought and design.”

Blueplate PR is sponsoring this special screening of “How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster?” Sponsors for the entire TMH Architecture Movie Series include Nowell’s Contemporary Furniture, Dail Dixon FAIA, Studio B Architecture/BuildSense, Modern Home Auction, Cherry Modern, Kontek, and Alphin Design+Build.

Tickets to the film are $9. The Galaxy Cinema is located at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC 27511 (919-463-9989).

The Bombay Beijing restaurant near the Galaxy is offering a special deal for movie-goers: Have dinner in the restaurant before the movie and receive one free admission for each $15 spent.

Hosted by Triangle Modernist Houses, the Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series features hard-to-find films about Modernist architects and architecture. Films are shown one Thursday of each month from October through March. For a complete list of upcoming films, to buy advance tickets, and to see a trailer of upcoming films, go to www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies.

All proceeds from ticket sales support Triangle Modernist Houses’ mission of documenting, preserving and promoting Modernist residential design from the 1950s to today. For more information on the award-wining organization, visit www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

About Triangle Modernist Houses:

Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) is a 501C3 nonprofit established in 2007 to restoring and growing Modernist architecture in the Triangle. The award-winning website, now the largest educational and historical archive for Modernist residential design in America, continues to catalog, preserve, and advocate for North Carolina Modernism.  TMH also hosts popular Modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle’s most exciting residential architecture, past and present. These tours raise awareness and help preserve these “livable works of art” for future generations. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com. TMH also has an active community on Facebook.

Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series Presents Louis Sullivan Documentary

Categories: architecture, entertainment, events, Film, leisure activity, mid-century architecture, modern architecture, non-profit
Comments (0)

Examining the life, career, and influence of the American architect/artist. 

November 30, 2011 (Cary, NC) — Triangle Modernist Houses continues the 2011-2012 Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series this month with a special screening of “Louis Sullivan: The Struggle for American Architecture” on Thursday, December 15 at 7:30 p.m, in Cary’s Galaxy Cinema.

Directed by Mark Richard Smith, the film focuses on the life and career of Louis Sullivan as an artist and what he tried to do for American architecture. Much of the footage is comprised of moving shots that trace building details and ornamentation not readily seen by the casual eye.

“Louis Sullivan: The Struggle for American Architecture marks the first time that the life and career of Louis Sullivan have been brought to the screen,” the film’s website states. “Aside from several films that presented certain parts of Sullivan’s career such as his skyscrapers and banks, there has never been an in-depth exploration of him as an artist and what he tried so hard to do for American architecture.

The film presents Sullivan as an artist who never felt completely comfortable in the romanticism of the nineteenth-century or the unsentimental, mechanized world of the 20th century. It also looks at how Louis Sullivan exerted a tremendous influence on the development of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Tickets to the film are $9 at the door. Galaxy Cinema is located in the Village Square Shopping Center at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC 27511. Phone: 919-463-9959.

Hanbury Preservation Consulting in Raleigh is sponsoring this special screening of “Louis Sullivan: The Struggle For American Architecture.” Sponsors for the entire series are Nowell’s Contemporary Furniture, Kontek, Alphin Design Build, Cherry Modern, Modern Home Auction, Studio B Architecture, and Dail Dixon FAIA.

Hosted by Triangle Modernist Houses, the Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series features exciting and hard-to-find films about Modernist architects and architecture. Films are shown one Thursday of each month from October through March 2012. For a complete list of the upcoming films, to buy advance tickets, and to see a trailer of upcoming film, go to www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies.

About Triangle Modernist Houses:

Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) is a 501C3 nonprofit established in 2007 to restoring and growing Modernist architecture in the Triangle. The award-winning website, now the largest educational and historical archive for Modernist residential design in America, continues to catalog, preserve, and advocate for North Carolina Modernism.  TMH also hosts popular Modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle’s most exciting residential architecture, past and present. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com. TMH also has an active community on Facebook.

The 2011-2012 Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series Opens with “Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect”

Categories: architecture, entertainment, events, Film, leisure activity, modern architecture, non-profit
Comments (0)

October 6, 2011 (Cary, NC) – The 2011-2012 season of the Nowell’s Architecture Movie Series opens at the Galaxy Cinema in Cary on Thursday, October 20, at 7:30 p.m., with the documentary “Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect.” The series is hosted by Triangle Modernist Houses, an award-winning local nonprofit for the documentation, preservation, and promotion of residential Modernist design.

Rem Koolhaas, 67, is a Dutch architect, architectural theorist, and Professor in Practice at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. He won the Pritzker Prize in 2000 and Time magazine named him one of “The World’s Most Influential People” in 2008.

According to the film’s synopsis, “Rarely has an architect caused as much sensation outside of the architecture community as Rem Koolhaas.” Directed by Markus Heidingsfelder and Min Tesch, the documentary is “an engaging portrait of a visionary man [and] a visually inventive, thought-provoking portrait of the architect.”

Koolhaas himself has called it “the only film about me that I have liked.”

Other sponsors for this special screening include Kontek, Alphin Design-Build, Cherry Modern Interior Design, Dail Dixon FAIA, Studio B Architecture, ModernHomeAuction.com, and Eidolon Design. Tickets are $9 at the door. To reserve discount advance season tickets, go to www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/register.htm.

Special associated offer: Bombay Beijing, an Indo-Chinese restaurant across the street from the Galaxy Cinema, offers film-goers a free ticket for every $15 spent in the restaurant that night before the movie.

The Galaxy Cinema is located at 770 Cary Towne Boulevard, Cary, NC 27513; 919-463-9989. For more information and directions: www.mygalaxycinema.com.

“Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect” is the first of six architecture films in this year’s series.  They run on certain Thursdays monthly from October through March. To see the entire line-up, go to www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/movies.

About Triangle Modernist Houses:

Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH) is a 501C3 nonprofit organization established in 2007 and dedicated to documenting, preserving and promoting modernist residential architecture. The award-winning website is now the largest educational and historical archive for modernist residential design in America. TMH also hosts popular modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle’s most exciting residential architecture, past and present. These tours and a host of other TMH-sponsored events raise awareness and help preserve these “livable works of art” for future generations. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com. TMH also has an active community on Facebook.

Local Bookstores and Shops Support Cary Author’s New Book, Mission

Categories: blogs, books, business, charity, entertainment, fundraising, kids' issues, news, non-profit, people
Comments (0)

“Staying Crazy To Keep From Going Insane” now available in retail locations.

September 30, 2011 (Cary, NC) – “Staying Crazy To Keep From Going Insane,” the new humor book by Cary, NC, author and blogger Cris Cohen, was officially released this month, and four Triangle area retail establishments have already signed on to stock it.

The book is now available at All Booked Up bookstore (www.allbookedupsalemst.com) and DownTown Knits (http://downtownknitsapex.blogspot.com) in Apex, and Chambers Arts gallery and studio in Cary (http://chambersart.com), and Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill (www.flyleafbooks.com).

“It is really nice of these stores to support a local writer,” said Cohen, “especially one who doesn’t write about the current hot topic of the undead, such as a zombies, vampires, and members of Congress.”

“Staying Crazy To Keep From Going Insane” is a collection of humor columns Cohen, 40, wrote for several newspapers in California and new ones he’s written since he moved to Cary in 2008. He published the book through his own small press, Tyrannosaurus Max Press.

Janice Monaco, the owner of All Booked Up in Apex, explained why she’s enthusiastic about carrying Cohen’s new book:

“I took a chance a few years ago with opening my store. So with that came a local awareness for my community and what I could do to help other ‘little guys’ like me.  Now that I’ve beaten the odds, I want to support local authors and artists in my store. The big chain stores don’t have someone like me, who believes in the author and his or her work. And my space for local authors’ work is showcased prominently. I pushed through the tough times and made it. Now it’s time for me to help others with the same goals. And Cris? He’s taken a chance and has something to say. He’s funny, smart, and his great voice shines through his work.”

About the subject matter of the columns, Cohen says: “Other people have great stories about big things that have happened to them. But for me, it’s like the label on a sweetener packet that just really catches my attention.”

As funny as the content is, the book has a serious purpose. Cohen will donate proceeds from sales to the Miracle League of the Triangle, a local baseball league for kids with special needs, including his own young son, Max.

In the middle of the book, a section of what appears to be advertisements suddenly appears. Cohen, who self-published the book, explains:

“These are not really ads, but sponsorships, acknowledgments of thanks to the business and individuals who gave one to help this book come to fruition. After all, this book was not underwritten by a large publishing house, or a small publishing house, or even a house where people occasionally use the world ‘publishing’ in conversation. Were it not for the help of the nice people on those pages I’m not sure it would have made it to print.”

The Kindle version of “Staying Crazy To Keep From Going Insane” is available on Amazon.com.

For more information on Cohen’s new book and to read an excerpt, visit www.stayingcrazy.com.

About Cris Cohen:

Cris Cohen is the author of the humor blog “Nothing In Particular,” the book “Staying Crazy To Keep From Going Insane,” and the humor columnist for the CaryCitizen.com.  Born in Buffalo, NY, he grew up in a suburb of Los Angeles, eventually graduating from the University of Southern California. After a stint in rock radio in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, Cris started writing his humor column for a collection of California newspapers. He eventually gravitated toward the tech world and Silicon Valley, working for companies such as Netscape and Cisco Systems. Cris, his wife Michele, and their young son Max, moved to Cary, North Carolina, in 2008. Cris’ blog is available at http://criscohen.typepad.com. For more information on his book, visit www.stayingcrazy.com.

 

Next Page »