In the modern era, people have always longed for a simpler time, proverbial ‘good old days’, and a time when life was easy and not all rushed. These were the days when a religious scribe would be sitting at his desk sharpens his quill, pushes his small, sharp penknife through the tip to create a delicate but sturdy point and he thinks. The page is that of an 11th century manuscript that is part of a greater collection that may have taken upwards of five years to complete. This time period is the time of the lost art of illuminated manuscripts. This very skilled art has been in the dark since the dawn of the printing press in the more than 500 years ago.
The lost art is once again being bought back into the light with the dawn of the Walters’ Art Museum in Baltimore new traveling exhibit: The Saint John’s Bible: A Modern Vision through Medieval Methods. The works in the exhibit are 10 years in the making. In 1998, Benedictine monastery the Saint John’s Abbey in Wales in the United Kingdom and Saint John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota commissioned Donald Jackson a master calligrapher at the University to create the first manuscript to be commissioned by a monastery in over 500 years.
Nancy Zinn, the Walters’ Associate Director of Collections and Exhibitions said that the exhibition is a good match for the Walters’, “since it will feature 44 pages from the two volumes of the manuscript, the Books of Wisdom and the Books of Prophets, these manuscripts will be set alongside 49 manuscripts and rare books from the Walters’ permanent collection depicturing a variety of religious traditions.”
Public relations coordinator, Amy Mannarinom, said “that this exhibit was put together rather quickly in a time of 2 years due to an opening in the exhibition area… and due in part that the museum has a large amount of Biblical Rabbinical and Islamic text and manuscripts to enhance the exhibit.”
The flow of the exhibit was set up using an almost chronological basis. The first gallery presents Jackson’s 3-feet wide by-2 feet tall, classic interpretation of text from the book of Solomon, done with long, deep calligraphy strokes. Although the Saint John’s bible is an undertaking based in Christianity, the museum uses manuscripts from its private collection to show other faith’s text as influence. The Museum has a 15th century Islamic Koran from Central Asia, placed directly next to the Song’s of Solomon. The reason is clear since the Koran is most often written in highly skilled and refined calligraphic Arabic script. Though written in English the older Koran’s in the collection serve as inspiration to the modern illuminated Bibles.
The Saint John’s Bible is done with the aforementioned elaborate calligraphic writings, but is also decorated with the use of pictures, designs, and in some cases gold. The museum juxtaposes the Bible once again with text from the various faiths including the Hindu poem Mahabharata, a poem about the inner struggles of faith and one loyalty to God. The Walters’ does a good job showing the similarities in other religions by placing the Hindu place, next to a St. John’s Bible depiction of the prophet Job’s time of tribulations from the book of Job.
Since the manuscript is a work of modern art, Jackson uses many modern references in the ancient Christian Text. The most awe-inspiring work: the Suffering Servant the use of slavery and prison are used as to illustrate the book of Isaiah. The caption of the print explains that “the heavy black bars surrounding the boy were inspired by the ‘Door of No Return’ at Elmina Castle in Ghana where thousands departed for a life of slavery in America…[and] the images of chain-link fences allude to present-day prisons, refugee camps, and other places of bondage.”
The final leg of the tour is in a room most likely designed for children, where there are multimedia presentations on the methods of making illuminated text, and also the opportunity to make an illuminated, with makers, papyrus paper, and other adornments. While on a dreary Wednesday afternoon the exhibit and museum were very empty, staff said it has been popular among the public especially children.
Nancy Zinn, the Walters’ Associate Director of Collections and Exhibitions said via
e-mail that the exhibit was when “Abigail Quandt, curator of manuscripts, saw leaves from the Bible on display at the Phoenix Art Museum. She immediately recognized both the consummate artistry of the manuscript, and the rich and interesting connections it has with the history of illuminated manuscripts. Upon further investigation, we discovered that although The Saint John’s Bible has already been exhibited widely, no exhibition had focused on the historical background of the project. We decided that the Walters has precisely the kind of collection to make such an investigation possible.”
While the state of Maryland and the city of Baltimore provide funding to keep the museum open free to the public, Amy Mannarino of the Museum’s public relations department explains that funding for “The Saint John’s Bible: A Modern Vision through Medieval Methods” is being sponsored by the Women’s Committee of the Walters Art Museum with lead support from Edgar and Betty Sweren. Contributing supporters include Michael P. Cataneo, Carole Barney and Cynthia Alderdice. Additional support is provided by Mary Catherine Bunting and Mary Mangione in memory of Nick Mangione. The exhibition is organized by the Walters Art Museum in association with the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library, Saint John’s Abbey and University. The exhibit is at the Walters’ until May 24th and the cost is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors, $4 for Students and free for people under the age of 17.
Just last year “bible” of music Rolling Stone magazine named Baltimore "Best Scene" in its April 2008 "Best of Rock" issue. The Baltimore “scene” is a microcosm of artist and groups of all different genres, mediums and experiences all with the common goal of keeping the thriving Baltimore Art Scene thriving. One group that is the pulse of the Baltimore “scene” is Wham City. Wham City is an artist collective with varied members whose members work in various mediums from cartoons to acting to a local underground comedy talk show. Wham City puts on various events throughout the year and city from plays, concerts, art installations, and various lecture series. The lecture series range from heady topics such as about how a person can make a worm harvest to lighter subjects about the world of adult cartoons. Both of the above subjects and many others can be found at the Baltimore collectives biweekly lecture series. The lecture series are organized by Wham City member Connor Kizer, who says the whole point of the lecture like Wham City itself is to “give the city a new voice and spin on issues that are important to us.” With the “us” being the followers of Wham City in the Baltimore Scene.
At Wham City’s performance space the Zodiac (1726 N. Charles, Baltimore) the Wham City Lecture Series was at it again. The small venue was almost to capacity with 30-40 people in attendance. After a round of small talk, Kizer informed everyone to grab and beer or drink and get ready for the lectures. The First speaker of the evening was Cheryl Carmona who discussed a surprisingly interesting subject: Worms as Pets. Carmona said this was an important issue because in the future people will not have soil. He reasoning for not having soil was later clarified by saying soil that is healthy because of pollution. In her speech Carmona gave the steps to making habits for the worms. The advantages given were a cheap soil that is nutrient rich for growing food and it gives an honest look at how much people waste. The point is to take all of the biodegradable trash a person produces and put it into the Worm heap. The worms in turn thrive off of the waste and break it down, leaving with the nutrient rich soil. Carmona also gave advice to some audience members about the right PH and acid balance and offered tips on how to keep the soil moist longer and the like.
The next speaker or better yet presenter was the true highlight of the evening. Dina Kelberman, who is also a founding member of Wham City, presented on Rule 34 of the internet: If it can be thought there is a site for it or soon will be. More specifically Kelberman presented slides with your favorite childhood cartoon characters in some quite compromising positions. Since it was more of a slide show, Kelberman presented some of her favorite drawings that she has amassed in her collection from everything from The Simpsons to Little Mermaid and surprisingly humorous Finding Nemo’s of example of Rule 34. After Kelberman had shared her favorite slides she took request. Audience members shouted out everything from Fraggle Rock to Beauty and the Beast, from G.I. Joe to anything else you may have watched during your childhood.
Connor Kizer ended the evening by thanking everyone for being in attendance and gave notice about the topics for the next series which will be March 25th at zodiac and the topics will be Housing Segregation in Baltimore by Lola Pierson and complaints by Julia Kudravets.
At Wham City’s performance space the Zodiac (1726 N. Charles, Baltimore) the Wham City Lecture Series was at it again. The small venue was almost to capacity with 30-40 people in attendance. After a round of small talk, Kizer informed everyone to grab and beer or drink and get ready for the lectures. The First speaker of the evening was Cheryl Carmona who discussed a surprisingly interesting subject: Worms as Pets. Carmona said this was an important issue because in the future people will not have soil. He reasoning for not having soil was later clarified by saying soil that is healthy because of pollution. In her speech Carmona gave the steps to making habits for the worms. The advantages given were a cheap soil that is nutrient rich for growing food and it gives an honest look at how much people waste. The point is to take all of the biodegradable trash a person produces and put it into the Worm heap. The worms in turn thrive off of the waste and break it down, leaving with the nutrient rich soil. Carmona also gave advice to some audience members about the right PH and acid balance and offered tips on how to keep the soil moist longer and the like.
The next speaker or better yet presenter was the true highlight of the evening. Dina Kelberman, who is also a founding member of Wham City, presented on Rule 34 of the internet: If it can be thought there is a site for it or soon will be. More specifically Kelberman presented slides with your favorite childhood cartoon characters in some quite compromising positions. Since it was more of a slide show, Kelberman presented some of her favorite drawings that she has amassed in her collection from everything from The Simpsons to Little Mermaid and surprisingly humorous Finding Nemo’s of example of Rule 34. After Kelberman had shared her favorite slides she took request. Audience members shouted out everything from Fraggle Rock to Beauty and the Beast, from G.I. Joe to anything else you may have watched during your childhood.
Connor Kizer ended the evening by thanking everyone for being in attendance and gave notice about the topics for the next series which will be March 25th at zodiac and the topics will be Housing Segregation in Baltimore by Lola Pierson and complaints by Julia Kudravets.
Last night a friend and I had the pleasure of eating a restaurant I have been wanting to try for a long time: The Brewer's Art (1106 N. Charles Street Baltimore, MD 21201).
Located in a restored brownstone mansion in the historic Mount Vernon section of Baltimore. The fact that The Brewer's Art has such a wonderful location is a plus and the beautiful dinning areas just add to the wonderful experience.
The Brewer's Art is known for being a brew house and its high gravity (high alcohol) beers. While my date opted for something light I went full throttle with the famous house beer
Resarection. With its full body and hops this is a beer that you sip as oppose to just pounding like Bud Light. Since we opted to sit in the bar area we could order off of the bar menu and the regular menu. I my date friend had the:
Shrimp and Grits - Marvesta Shrimp,Tasso Ham, Lobster-Tabasco Butter $11
While I had the:
Potato Crusted Cod Horseradish Potato Mousseline, Sweet and Sour Braised Cabbage, Proletary Mustard Sauce $23
On both dishes the presentation was nicely done, added with service and the overall ambiance I would most definitely recommended The Brewer's Art.
Located in a restored brownstone mansion in the historic Mount Vernon section of Baltimore. The fact that The Brewer's Art has such a wonderful location is a plus and the beautiful dinning areas just add to the wonderful experience.
The Brewer's Art is known for being a brew house and its high gravity (high alcohol) beers. While my date opted for something light I went full throttle with the famous house beer
Resarection. With its full body and hops this is a beer that you sip as oppose to just pounding like Bud Light. Since we opted to sit in the bar area we could order off of the bar menu and the regular menu. I my date friend had the:
Shrimp and Grits - Marvesta Shrimp,Tasso Ham, Lobster-Tabasco Butter $11
While I had the:
Potato Crusted Cod Horseradish Potato Mousseline, Sweet and Sour Braised Cabbage, Proletary Mustard Sauce $23
On both dishes the presentation was nicely done, added with service and the overall ambiance I would most definitely recommended The Brewer's Art.
On Thursday afternoon a diverse crowd gathered in the Morgan State University bookstore for a reading of "Midnight" a new novel by renown urban story teller, activist, recording artist and author Sista Souljah.
Seana Jefferson a senior Psychology major from Montgomery County, Md was one of the many Morgan students in attendance. Jefferson said that she was present because of her affinity to Souljah's previous work "The Coldest Winter Ever," but admitted that "'Midnight' is the favorite between' The Coldest Winter Ever' because it gives a background to 'The Coldest Winter'".
And adds that she felt that there was not much advertisement on campus.
The audience was a mix of current students facility and community members. Also in the audience were a College tour group from the Bronx, NY. Fred from New York said that the group "just stumbled on the [event]" and thought that Morgan was "mean"
As the time approached and pasted 4:00 the audience started to fill up with late commers or early birds since Sista Souljah had yet to arrive. While waiting the audience exchanged small talk about which of of Sista Souljah books they preferred, what is her delay, and the fact that the books should be made into a feature film, mixed in with topics not related to the book signing.
Once she arrived Sista Souljah greeted the group warmly and was received by a round of applause. After giving a few ground rules dealing with no photography or video recording until after the reading was over since she said:"we are hear for a good time of bonding." Sista Souljah explained her tardiness on the fact that she had never been to the New Student Center.
Sista Souljah explained her motivation for writing the new novel Midnight. Since the only background was the secondary information from The Coldest Winter Ever. She stated that Midnight the title charcter was a case study as to why black males are the way that they are.
She then goes into a reading of a chapter from Midnight. Listening to her voice though it is prose her delivery seems that of a seasoned poet in the Hip-hop griot tradition with much force, power, and emotion of someone from the Public Enemy era.
After the reading the floor was open to a disscussion. With positive feedback that people have lost fact what it is to be a man. Which Sista Souljah gives as her reasoning for doing a prequal of the Midnight.
When asked if she saw the book as a movie Sista Souljah replied that: "[she] saw the book a movie when writing the nove " because of the many charcters and voices and people were seen and would be a great film.Sista Souljah in conclusion said that her main purpose when writing or any project is to have a mirror put to the reader and have them take an honest look at themselves and the hope that the future artist will have "more feelings rather than raw stimulation."
On the above note Sista Souljah ended with the argument that the college generation has to make up a set of rules to live by and do better for their races and community. And leaves with the final parting shot of it being "up to the college students to change the dialogue" to better society.
Seana Jefferson a senior Psychology major from Montgomery County, Md was one of the many Morgan students in attendance. Jefferson said that she was present because of her affinity to Souljah's previous work "The Coldest Winter Ever," but admitted that "'Midnight' is the favorite between' The Coldest Winter Ever' because it gives a background to 'The Coldest Winter'".
And adds that she felt that there was not much advertisement on campus.
The audience was a mix of current students facility and community members. Also in the audience were a College tour group from the Bronx, NY. Fred from New York said that the group "just stumbled on the [event]" and thought that Morgan was "mean"
As the time approached and pasted 4:00 the audience started to fill up with late commers or early birds since Sista Souljah had yet to arrive. While waiting the audience exchanged small talk about which of of Sista Souljah books they preferred, what is her delay, and the fact that the books should be made into a feature film, mixed in with topics not related to the book signing.
Once she arrived Sista Souljah greeted the group warmly and was received by a round of applause. After giving a few ground rules dealing with no photography or video recording until after the reading was over since she said:"we are hear for a good time of bonding." Sista Souljah explained her tardiness on the fact that she had never been to the New Student Center.
Sista Souljah explained her motivation for writing the new novel Midnight. Since the only background was the secondary information from The Coldest Winter Ever. She stated that Midnight the title charcter was a case study as to why black males are the way that they are.
She then goes into a reading of a chapter from Midnight. Listening to her voice though it is prose her delivery seems that of a seasoned poet in the Hip-hop griot tradition with much force, power, and emotion of someone from the Public Enemy era.
After the reading the floor was open to a disscussion. With positive feedback that people have lost fact what it is to be a man. Which Sista Souljah gives as her reasoning for doing a prequal of the Midnight.
When asked if she saw the book as a movie Sista Souljah replied that: "[she] saw the book a movie when writing the nove " because of the many charcters and voices and people were seen and would be a great film.Sista Souljah in conclusion said that her main purpose when writing or any project is to have a mirror put to the reader and have them take an honest look at themselves and the hope that the future artist will have "more feelings rather than raw stimulation."
On the above note Sista Souljah ended with the argument that the college generation has to make up a set of rules to live by and do better for their races and community. And leaves with the final parting shot of it being "up to the college students to change the dialogue" to better society.
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