Blog Archives

Ion Codrescu and his Haiga at HNA 2015

7/27/2015

HNA 2015 offers you the chance to see a grand exhibit of Ion Codrescu's haiga, in the unique circular balcony space of the Mandeville Gallery, on the middle level of Union's beautiful Nott Memorial.

Learn more about the Exhibit and the Thursday Artist Talk and Reception, on the Conference's Ion Codrescu Exhibition Page.

update (Sept. 1, 2015): See a slideshow tour of the actual exhibit,
http://www.haikunorthamerica.com/blog/strolling-the-codrescu-haiga-exhibit
.

Image: Ion Codrescu, Time in the Dark...(Jim Kacian), ink on paper, 16 1/2 x 11 3/4 inches. Image photography courtesy of Frank Rapant. All images courtesy of the artist; images copyright of the artist.

above: Mandeville Gallery, middle tier.
left: a detail from the gallery showing pieces from the Ion Codrescu Exhibit.

0 Comments

come early for foliage & art

7/21/2015

0 Comments

Great autumn foliage and great art await you, if you come early for the HNA 2015 pre-conference Foliage & Art Excursion to the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, in Berkshire County, Massachusetts: On Wednesday, October 14, 2015, our bus will leave The Desmond at 9:30 a.m. and travel 50 miles along beautiful Route 2 to Williamstown, where we will spend three hours at The Clark. The link above will take you to The Clark's informative and handsome website, which has sections on its Exhibits, Collections, Campus, Architecture, Dining, and more. October is "between" its major seasons, but the permanent collection will not disappoint, and the new and old architecture are both impressive, as is the three-tiered reflecting pool, and the 140 acres of woods, trails, meadows and lawns. (Picnic tables and benches, too) The $50 fee for the Excursion includes the tour bus and entry to the Clark.

Yankee Magazine placed Williamstown in the 4th spot on its list of 25 best towns for foliage in New England. We should be there at or close to the foliage peak period; of course, near-peak or just-past-peak are spectacular, too. Click this link for a Google Image page of autumn in and around Williamstown: http://tinyurl.com/WilliamstownFoliage.

The Clark website tells us there are "three exceptional dining choices" available. I'm hoping weather will make "Stone Hill Café, offering glorious mountain views and al fresco dining on the terrace of the Lunder Center at Stone Hill" a viable choice.

If my words haven't done so yet, perhaps this collage will convince you to come early for a day outing with artistic friends and a blend of natural and artist-made beauty.

0 Comments

HNA 2015 special events

7/14/2015

0 Comments

The full conference schedule of presentations, papers, panels, workshops, and readings will soon be available. Until then, we hope this annotated list of "special" and elective events on each of the Conference days will provide a good taste of what you can expect at HNA 2015. There will be individual weblog postings here featuring the special events and key people, but links have been provided below to materials to inform and tease prospective Conference attendees.

Wednesday October 14:

Leaf & Art Viewing Excursion to the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA: Our tour bus(es) will leave The Desmond for this pre-conference event at 9:30 a.m. and drive 50 miles along beautiful Route 2 (with opportunities for photo-taking) to Williamstown, MA, where we will spend three hours at The Clark. Known for the quality of its art and its beautiful pastoral setting, the Clark describes itself as "one of only a handful of institutions globally with a dual mission as an art museum and a distinguished center for research and higher education, dedicated to advancing and extending the public understanding of art." It is "Surrounded by 140 acres of expansive lawns, meadows, and walking trails", with views of Williamstown and the Green Mountains of Vermont. In an article describing the quietly stunning new wing designed for the Clark by Pritzker Prize–winning Japanese architect, Tadao Ando’s, Architectural Digest says "Long a destination for in-the-know art lovers searching for a mix of natural and artist-made beauty, the Clark is now more enticing than ever." The Tour fee includes entrance to the Art Institute. The fee, including museum ticket: $50, payable with registration.

The HNA 2015 Conference begins at 6:30 pm with a Reception at The Desmond's Koi Pond . You want to be there!

Thursday October 15:

Keynote address, "Teaching Haiku in American Higher Education," by Dr. Randy Brooks, the Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences and Professor of English at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois.
Panel Discussion with Aubrey Cox, Tom Painting, Geoff VanKirk (United Nations International School), and Rich Schnell (emeritus faculty of SUNY Plattsburgh), moderated by Michael Dylan Welch.
An afternoon reception presenting Ion Codrescu's haiga exhibit in Mandeville Gallery of the Nott Memorial. You will find a biography and Gallery of Ion's work at Simply Haiku. See our July 26 posting for more information.
An evening presentation by Red Pine. Under his own name, Bill Porter has published several books describing his travels in China in search of what remains of the Taoist/Buddhist hermit tradition; he is even better known, as Red Pine, for his translations of Chinese poetry and of the major Buddhist texts. Kyoto Journal has an enjoyable introduction to his work, "Dancing with Words: Red Pine's Path into the Heart of Buddhism."

Friday October 16:

When class lets out on Friday afternoon, you will be on your own for socializing and dining in Downtown Schenectady, with its many and varied cafes, restaurants, taverns and such. (information on dining choices will be available at the Conference and Desmond) You may, for example, want to visit the nearby Stockade Historic District, a half mile from the Union Campus, which has several restaurants, and what the National Park Service calls "the highest concentration of period homes in the country" (over 40 of the homes are more than 200 years old) along its 15 blocks, plus the lovely Riverside Park hugging the Mohawk River. See David Giacalone's description, photos and preview of his Stockade neighborhood in October in the Schenectady Stockade and October along the Mohawk at Riverside Park, and thousands of other Stockade images at his website "suns along the Mohawk."

There will also be a choice of Conference-related activities for entertainment and inspiration, including:

The Peking Opera on Campus at the Dance Pavillion
A Candlelight Walking Tour of the Stockade Historic District, sponsored by the Schenectady Heritage Foundation and the Schenectady County Historical Society. A tour guide will lead the hour-long adventure, with tales of ancestors, apparitions, intrigue and more, garnered from 300 years of history and neighborhood lore. The tours start at the County Historical Society, 32 Washington Avenue, and return there for refreshments among the Society's museum exhibits. The $10 fee is payable the evening of the Tour. (David Giacalone will join the tour from his Washington Avenue home, and treat it as a Halloween Ginko.) You can get a taste of the Candlelight Walking Tour at the Historical Society's website, in the posting "Exploring the Haunted Past of Schenectady's Stockade".
Renku for Fun led by John Stevenson, at historic Arthur's Market and Coffee House in the Stockade. Renku, Fun, John. Enough said.

Saturday October 17:

Japanese Drumming at Union College. The Union College Zakuro-Daiko Japanese Drumming Ensemble will perform under the direction of Union's resident ethnomusicologist Jennifer Milioto Matsue. The ensemble was established in 2007 with the goal of bringing Japanese music and culture to life on campus. The group performs a type of Japanese ensemble drumming that is popular in Japan and throughout the world. Click for a YouTube video of the Ensemble's "A Celebration of Winter" (4:46), and for a Gallery of Zakuro-Daiko photos.
Evening: A reception and Conference Banquet at The Desmond

Sunday October 18:

"Reflections" until the Conference closing at noon
"Tanka Sunday"

0 Comments

Mark Your Calendars

7/10/2015

2 Comments

We'll remind you again about each of these, but here are important dates to keep in mind relating to HNA 2015:

August 15  deadline for sending five haiku for the Conference Anthology. Click for  Anthology Information and Instructions.

September 4   deadline for HNA 2015 registration before 20% increase in fees.

September 29   deadline for rooms at discount rate in The Desmond. See our  Conference Accommodations Page.

Don't Be a Procrastinating Poet. Please Register Now to help us better plan for HNA 2015!
http://www.haikunorthamerica.com/hna-conference-rates-and-registration.html

2 Comments

HAIKU NORTH AMERICA

Ion Codrescu and his Haiga at HNA 2015

come early for foliage & art

HNA 2015 special events

Mark Your Calendars

Archives