The O-town Scene - Oneonta, NY
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/65251
About the Show TWO DANCERS in Photographs and Poems is a col- laborative project that explores the intersection of three ancient arts: kinetic, visual and verbal. The dancers and artists are pleased to contribute to the community celebration of dance this May. The installation at the Community Arts Network of Oneonta at 11 Ford Ave. is the eighth gallery exhibit for these works, most recently shown at the National Museum of Dance in Saratoga Springs. A book of the poems and photographs was published in 2004 (Woodland Arts Editions). CHARLES BREMER explores the remarkable beauty and inner grace of two young dancers seen at quiet mo- ments of personal practice. These classic black-and-white portraits favor less the posed athleticism of current dance photography than the poise and presence of the dancer. Affectionate and expressive, the portraits are juxtaposed with candid photographs taken at rehearsal and back- stage, capturing the small dramas of dancers preparing and waiting. His works in a variety of media have been exhibited widely in the U.S. and internationally. His artis- tic practice includes photography and drawing, installa- tions of outdoor sound sculpture, memorial plazas and architectural projects. He lives and works in Otego. ROBERT BENSEN's poems discover the dancer at the center of their resolve. Essayist Sven Birkerts wrote that the poems "create a space for breathless attention and then set a world into motion. Their lines move with musical precision—they flex, pause, gather, contract and leap, always at last regaining a deep original still- ness." His poems have been published in the U.S., U.K., West Indies, Asia and in African-American and Native American journals. His five collections, published in col- laboration with artists, include Two Dancers (with Charles Bremer, Woodland Arts) and the forthcoming Orenoque, Wetumka (with Phil Young, Bright Hill Press). His poetry has earned a poetry fellowship from the National Endow- ment for the Arts and the 1996 Robert Penn Warren Award. He directs the writing programs at Hartwick College. Elisabeth (Baldanza) Cavanaugh (age 16 in the photo- graphs) is college minister and office manager at BASIC College Ministries in Rochester. She is a graduate of Mercyhurst College with a degree in family and consum- er science. She has often performed as an actor, singer and dancer, and holds national titles for lyrical ballet from Dance Olympus Dance America. She studied at the Decker School of Ballet and at Oneonta Dance Center, and taught dance at ODC as well. Anna Lucia Bensen (age 11 in the photographs) studies ballet at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She studied ballet at the Decker School of Ballet in Oneonta, with the American Academy of Ballet at Purchase College and with Paul Sanasardo, Slawomir Wozniak, Violette Verdy, Olga Dvorovenko, Andrew Pap, and Brian Loftus. 8 O-Town Scene May 10, 2012 — Robert Bensen TWO DANCERS in Photographs and Poems by Charles Bremer/Robert Bensen is on display through May 20 at Wilber Mansion • 11 Ford Ave. Oneonta • 432- 2070