#SHINE Mural Festival 2016

[longlistshort]

Multicolored Lady by Dasic Fernandez was created for the 2016 edition of SHINE Mural Festival in St. Pete, Florida.

Also check out his Instagram for more recent work.

[itscoldoutsidefilmsthings]

A 3rd year film festival retrospective.

Scumdance (Reno’s premiere underground film festival) has just completed its third year.  As such, this would probably be a good time for a little retrospective and as the festival’s sole proprietor/curator I would be glad to let a little light shine into the inner workings of what it takes to start a film festival, what it takes to keep it running, why I do this in the first place, and the lessons learned along the way.

How did we get here?  In late 2016 I was having conversations with friends, co-workers, bandmates and fellow film nerds about how there was real lack of local film festivals geared towards horror, exploitation, underground, B-movie, etc. types of films.  At the time our band’s practice space was in a warehouse on the edge of town where a loose artist’s community of sorts had taken shape.  Pottery studios, sculpture gardens, graffiti murals, custom hot-rod builders, welding shops, theaters, antique dealers and so much more was all happening in this row of warehouses. One particular spot became hugely inspirational. Next door to our practice space was an event location (for lack of a better term) called the Black Rock Drive-In.  A novelties collector had taken several old cars cut them down, installed benches within and parked them in front of a movie screen like an old-time drive-in movie theater, complete with a western setting sun mural painted on the warehouse’s interior. Combine this with his collection of Airstream trailers, mid-century furniture and appliances, and WWII memorabilia and you had the makings of a great film set.  

Standing outside that warehouse on a chilly evening, post band practice, and musing with our bass player Perry Disgrace, the thought was born… “We should totally put on a mondo-bizzaro film day with crazy movies and bands and just throw a party.” In the true DIY spirit of punk rock, the idea was born and efforts were put in place to manifest this reality.  When mentioning the idea to co-worker and fellow film nerd Gilbert Leiker, he responded “You should call it Scumdance and have the skanking guy from the Circle Jerks albums carrying a camera.”  Boom. Done. Within 20 minutes I had the logo and artwork in place.  I have a habit of taking ideas and running with them, even if they are not my own.  As Pablo Picasso is reported to have said “good artists borrow, great artists steal”… most likely he “borrowed” this from T.S. Eliot.  

As for the details of what it takes to put on a film festival, it’s honestly not all that hard. All you need is a laptop, a projector, a screen, a sound system of some sort, some chairs, a venue, a Film Freeway account and a website.  Having submitted a good number of my short films to a variety of film festivals and having received all manner of rejection (more on that later), the drive to experience critical evaluation of films from the other side was also a strong motivator in bringing this festival about. I already had a website devoted to my filmmaking endeavors. Adding a page listing the event details and linking it to a Film Freeway account was straight forward.  Acquiring the necessary hardware and physical assets was just a matter of pooling resources and gathering items that I already had. The matter of finding a venue has at times proved challenging. The aforementioned Black Rock Drive-In closed. Our favorite dive-bar, in which we hosted the event’s first year, has closed.  Finding the right venue that has a bar, allows outside food to be brought in, while having the right mix of size, space, seating and availability hasn’t been easy; but we have been fortunate enough to work with some fantastic bar owners who have been very accommodating.

The festival itself, wouldn’t be what it is without the amazing filmmakers who have submitted some truly incredible films and the ever enthusiastic judges. The panel of judges was built from a pool of friends some of whom I’ve worked with on previous film projects, some just having shown an overwhelming interest in film and some asked to join the panel after having submitted to previous year’s festivals. It is this last group with whom I am most excited to work.

So why would anyone do this? It’s a question I ask myself every year. Does it pay off when you consider: The countless hours spent watching, rating, and reviewing the films; scheduling a date, finding and coordinating with the venue ,updating FF and the website, attending local meetings to be included in Reno’s Arttown, writing press releases to be distributed on horror sites, selecting the films,  sending out acceptance and rejection letters, scheduling a run of show, setting up all the equipment, running the festival,  bringing food and snacks?   By the time I finish up the event I find myself exhausted.  It wouldn’t seem that sitting in dark room watching movies all day would be that taxing, but mentally, and emotionally it takes a toll… hoping nothing goes wrong technically, hoping that everyone (or at least most attendees) find something enjoyable in the films, hoping that the venue owner and bar staff are not completely annoyed with the films and are making a decent amount of tips, and hoping that there is enough attendance to make it all worthwhile.  While it might be “easy” to put on a festival, putting on a quality festival takes effort. That’s effort I’m willing to put in.  I want to make it the kind of thing I would be delighted to attend.

Of the benefits that come from running a festival, the number one has to be the relationships established.  This is the reason we make films in the first place. It’s all about human connection.  As I was saying above it has become our practice to ask previous year’s submitters to become next year’s judges.  George Sukara, a producer from a film submitted in the first year (HELL! The musical), has become an instrumental part of the festival. His critical insights in judging and undying support have been phenomenal.  It was great to have him at the festival, hosting one of the Q&A sessions, and bringing with him a crew of folks from San Francisco.  One of the other connections made that first year was a gentleman by the name of Michael Joy who brought us a film (Red Christmas) with Dee Wallace of Kujo fame. I’ve been working with Michael on spreading the word about Scumdance through his connections with Artsploitation Films and Horrornews.net.  The second year brought us some great filmmakers from Canada and Indiana, in Grace Mathisen and Adam Laughlin respectively.  Their films were superb, and it was great to have them there in person. They too have gone on to become valued Scumdance judges.  This last year, brought us filmmakers from Toronto, Houston, and Los Angeles.   The Audience favorite, Llamageddon (it’s exactly as it sounds) was written and directed by a young woman who was going by the name “Howie Dewin.”  Her astonishment at winning overrode even her astonishment at being entered in the festival at all (apparently someone on her production team entered the film without telling her as a fun prank).   Even after having a breakfast coffee and a decently long discussion with her, I never did find out her real name. We’ll be stoked to have her as part of the judging staff next year, that is if she responds to her “howiedewin” email.

One of the other great benefits of running a festival (or being a judge) is the experience gained by viewing so may films, of all quality levels.  You learn all the things not to do when making a film.  You see time and again, the overused tropes, the stock and often pointless dialogue, the desire to shock without attention to narrative, and films that are far, far longer than they need to be.   After all this one quickly gains an appreciation for audible dialogue, well thought out story lines, character development, motivated camera movement, inspired score/soundtrack, and tightly edited scenes.

Another wonderful discovery has been the insight into cultures and communities throughout the world that one would not have accessed otherwise.  It has been amazing to see films submitted from the US, Canada, The Netherlands, India, the UK, Austria, Iran, Italy, Mexico, and even Belgium.  In particular the films we receive from Iran have been nothing short of mind blowing. There is something so special about those films.  They tend to be intensely creative, original, inspiring, and chock full of touching humanity in a way that almost makes me reluctant to place them amidst our other less wholesome faire. Also of note, are the LGBT films we receive.  This year we had a film dedicated to trans-persons from Nepal, that was a rare insight into portions of the world not ordinarily seen.

As previously promised, I think it’s worth mentioning the feedback process.  One common thing that I noticed from festivals I was submitting to, was a lack of quality feedback.  For way too many festivals, it doesn’t seem they could even be bothered to change the judging status on Film Freeway… or if they did, it wouldn’t be changed until well after the event date.   For other festivals, they would change the status and send out the standard generic rejection emails. While they were intended to soften to the blow of rejection, they would do little to inform or provide one with any sense as to what could have been improved on the film…. no information on what exactly about the film caused it to fall short of the mark.   It was with this experience in mind that I personally made the decision to include judge’s commentary in both the acceptance and rejection letters. I feel it’s the least we can do to provide the filmmaker with meaningful feedback.

This decision has mostly been met with appreciation, but in some cases the feedback was viewed as “arrogant, presumptuous, and dismissive.”  I can certainly understand how after spending the enormous amount of time, energy and effort that it takes to make a film how one would be incredibly protective of the work.  One exchange with an initially upset but later apologetic filmmaker, gave me clear cause to stop and think about my intentions and motivations. Was I intentionally levelling overly harsh criticism against those who submitted to my film festival, as a way of feeling superior for the failings of my own films? It’s certainly something I need to be cognizant of going forward.  In the future, I hope to continue providing the judges commentary, but will most likely do so after an explicit opt-in scenario.

In regard to my own films, I’ve come to realize with much more clarity than ever that my films were being rejected for completely valid reasons.  I’ve seen what it takes to make a good film and the number one rule is to be entertaining.   In the age of short attention spans and a bajillion choices, it’s difficult (but more important) than ever to gain and hold someone’s attention.

So what’s next for Scumdance?  One exciting possibility discussed with the San Francisco crew is the idea of taking Scumdance on the road.  Perhaps we select the best films from the past 3 years and do a screening in SF or LA.   At some point it would be nice to get Scumdance into a proper movie theater as well, a but the lack of any historical or art house theater in Reno limits our options.  Another exciting possibility is the idea of bringing in a real host… someone with real entertainment value... someone like the subject of this year’s winning documentary, the Phantom Troublemaker.

Of course, I couldn’t do this without the love and support of my wonderful wife Amelia. In all it’s been a great experience that has promoted growth in me as a filmmaker and as a person. It’s been the impetus to build meaningful relationships that I otherwise would not have done and has given me cause to provide much needed exposure to small films.  This is something I want to keep doing, while growing the festival in organic and manageable ways.

Viva Le Scumdance!

Travis Calvert

[nehetisingsforhekate]

My Winter Solstice, Hekate and Helios

(Lots of UPG in this one folks. I make no bones about the fact that while my practice is definitely influenced by what we know of ancient Greece and Caria and Thrace, I am not a reconstructionist, and I remain inspired by my neo-Wiccan roots.)

In the Hymn to Demeter, we read that it was only Hekate who heard Kore’s abduction, and Helios who saw. The two of them are responsible for reuniting Demeter with the newly-crowned Goddess of the Underworld, Persephone. Some scholars have speculated that this is a reflection of some sort of lunar quality to Hekate, making Her a suitable pairing with Helios’ role as the Sun. Most likely this is because Helios is often conflated with Apollon, and Hekate with both Artemis and Selene. The Sun and the Moon know the fate of the Kore, and inform the Mother.

And that bond carries through over the ages. We see Kirke, the Witch-Goddess who sometimes is a granddaughter of Hekate, is commonly a descendant of Helios. Medea is also a child of Helios, as well as a priestess of Hekate. There are even versions wherein Helios and Hekate are married! And Helios is another of the major gods of the PGM, alongside Hekate, Selene, Artemis, and Hermes. And in the Argonautika, Medea swears by Helios and Hekate.

In the PGM, Helios is ton megiston theon, ‘the Greatest God,’ and Hekate is megiste, ‘the greatest.’ Helios is associated with to ieron pyr, ‘the sacred fire,’ a quality that characterizes the Chaldean Hekate.

It is Sophocles’ who has given us my favorite verse invoking the two, however, in a fragment from The Root Cutters, which dates to the 5th century BCE:

O Lord Helios and Sacred Fire The Spear of Hekate of the Crossroads Which She bears as She travels Olympus And dwells in the triple ways of the holy land She who is crowned with oak-leaves And the coils of wild serpents.

Today, for many Pagans, Winter Solstice is a time to honor the Sun (or the Son!) But the Greeks didn’t really see it that way. The association of this particular astronomical event with the Sun comes, in part with the Romans, and the God Sol from the cult of Mithras. Like many Roman deities, Sol, usually called Sol Invictus (The Invincible Sun), was conflated with a Greek God, in this case,  Helios. The festival of Sol Invictus was celebrated on the Winter Solstice.

While the Greeks had festivals in the winter, particularly for Poseidon, Zeus and Hera, the Winter Solstice didn’t figure much. Their calendar was largely based on the lunar cycle, so solar events like the solstices weren’t featured.

Even so, personally, I take the winter solstice as an opportunity to honor Helios, and to recognize that many ways in which He interacts with Hekate. Rather than looking at the neo-Pagan Wheel of the Year as part of a mythological cycle, I, in my personal praxis, have taken the Sabbats to be described by keywords and themes. For that, I look at the Winter Solstice as having the keyword, ‘Promise’ and a theme of warmth and coming sunlight.

For me, the Promise of the Winter Solstice is one of the year ahead, that life will return, and that warmth will come into our lives anew. In my personal life, that Promise is deeply entwined with my relationship with Hekate and Helios. Hekate, as Soteira and Zoophoros, is the Anima Mundi manifesting Life in the world, and further enlivened by the attention of Helios. I celebrate this perspective of life, and the Gods which contribute.

A rite to celebrate Hekate and Helios at the Winter Solstice:

Prepare for the rite by showering and dressing in clean clothes. I like to braid and bind my hair up (those rare times it is long enough to do so!), and then before starting the ritual proper unbind it and then ritually anoint myself. Decorate the altar with a glass bowl of water, candles, yellow, red, and orange items. Suitable offerings are spicy foods, yellow foods, sweets, and rich wines or spirits. Traditional Greek offerings would be things like barley, garlic, olive oil, and wine.

Establish sacred space according to your tradition.

Invocation: Khaire Hekate! Soteira! Kleidoukhos! Radiant-haired Goddess unto whom I have sworn my oaths! To you I lift my voice, Bright Goddess of the Heaven, Earth, and Sea! To you I offer my service, Bestower of Virtue! To you I make this rite, Glorious All-Giver! Zoogonos, you are! Anima Mundi, you are! Geneteira, you are! Hekate, Hekate, Hekate! Hear my voice, and bless this sacred rite! Khaire Helios! Megiston theon! All-Seeing! Bright Father who witnesses all things! To you I lift my voice, Golden Faced Titan of the Heavenly Hosts! To you I offer this service, You who Gladdens Mortals! To you I make this rite, Lord of the Seasons! Father of Ages, you are! Guide of Prosperous Deeds, you are! Sword of Hekate, you are! Helios! Helios! Helios! Hear my voice, and bless this sacred rite!

Then ask the Gods to bless those in attendance and the offerings being given today. I usually ad lib this to make it seem less rehearsed.

We gather on the longest night, when darkness lays close on the land, and the Moon hangs small in the sky. Cold seeps into our homes, and into our bones. But your promise, Hekate and Helios, stands true. Your light warms us from within, and so we brighten our homes in your honor. For your promises shine within our hearts, and we offer our thanks for this blessing.

May the gifts which we pour forth upon the altar be a token of our gratitude, and may this small rite be blessed by you today!

Each attendant then pours a libation of water or wine into the bowl while offering their own thanks, either silently or aloud, and the others take a moment for meditation and prayer.

Any food offerings are then served on a plate to the Gods. The remainder is given to the attendees for feasting.

Thus do we honor the Gods for all the gifts they have and will give. We pray that it has been received well, and ask now that you speak clearly to your devotees.

A moment of prayer, spent meditating upon the candlelight.

Each person takes a candle and pours the melted wax into the bowl in turn, and taking a moment to allow the wax to cool, take the wax carefully in hand to read for divination.

Discuss the divinations as needed.

Great Gods, Hekate and Helios, you have attended our rite, and our thanks have been offered and we have been blessed by your presence.

Thanks to you, O Gods who saw the fate of the Kore, You who spoke the truth to Demeter in Her time of need.

Close out the ritual according to your tradition.

 Sources:

Theoi.com http://www.patheos.com/blogs/keepingherkeys/2017/12/hekate-and-the-month-of-december/ https://hekatecovenant.com/resources/about-hekate/hekate-helios-hekate-liminal-rites/

Bremmer, Jan. Gods of Ancient Greece: Identities and Transformations, Edinburgh, 2010. Currie, Bruno. Homer’s Allusive Art, Oxford, 2016. Faraone, Christopher A. and Dirk Obbink. Magika Hiera: Ancient Greek Magic and Religion, Oxford, 1997. Fox, Hugh. The Mytholoical Foundations of the Epic Genre: the Solar Voyage as the Hero’s Journey, E. Mellen, 1989. Pachoumi, Eleni. The Concepts of the Divine in the Greek Magical Papyri.

Images:

Huber, Josef Karl. “Helios in his Sun Chariot,” mural in Heidelberg, photo taken 2013 by Radoslaw Droschdschewski. Via wikicommons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Heidelberg_Hauptbahnhof_-_Sgraffito.JPG

[frgtwn]

#Repost @hannah_judah ・・・ My latest article for @streetartunitedstates ✨ Swiss-Italian artists Christian Rebecchi & Pablo Togni AKA @nevercrew have created a new mural in Grenoble (situated in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France). The mural was impeccably timed seeing that life is soon to grind to a halt once again in many parts of the world. This new work is titled ‘Collapse’ and forms part of the Space Junk curated @grenoblestreetartfest 2020. This is Nevercrew’s second offering for the festival and ‘Collapse’ is directly connected with the duo’s 2016 creation, ‘Ordering Machine’. ‘Collapse’ brings forward the dichotomy between needs and exploitation; belonging and appropriation, and the mural shines a megawatt light on the distorted perception that humankind has of nature. The artists say the mural focuses on, “..the idea of human systems that are far from a balance with nature and consequently far from a balance with humans themselves; of systems that are made from humans but not for humans, and the demonstration of this, beyond the evident social imbalances, in the fact that humankind is incoherently destroying the same environment of which is part and that allows it to exist. A faulty perception of the relationship with nature, an influenced vision of truth that anesthetizes empathy despite the evidences. The human position in an overall global system where it seems impossible to be aware of the state of emergency, while continuously suffering its direct consequences.” The pair continue to impress the street art world and Grenoble residents alike with the scale and precision of their gigantic murals, and of course the equally powerful messages at the root of them. Christian and Pablo’s working relationship spanning 20 years is testament to their dedication: it’s no wonder that Nevercrew are such a titans of the urban art world. 📸 Photos by the the artists ✨ Thanks as ever to my dear friend and editor Sami 🙏🏻 https://www.instagram.com/p/CHuM-7HnnL6/?igshid=vm8qubsha7da

[wmua-amherst]

SHOW REVIEW: Kelsey Lu is a breath of fresh air at Fabric Arts

By Ariya Sonethavy

You might’ve heard Kelsey Lu’s haunting vocals on Blood Orange’s new mixtape, Angel’s Pulse, or you might’ve heard of her opening for Florence + The Machine. Regardless, her debut record Blood, which came out in April, shines a light on her individuality and captivating artistry. On September 28, she headlined the Fabric Arts Festival, a festival in Fall River, MA that celebrated art, music, and community, specifically engaging with both traditional and new artistic forms. From September 25-28, the city held its first installment of the festival ever, to which Kelsey Lu performed on the final night, along with Lula Pena, Mal Devisa, and Downtown Boys. Fabric Arts’ website says that the festival “proposes to engage the city through a unique and multidisciplinary experience, with an arts circuit stretching over a central area of the city with music concerts, site-specific projects and murals.” The festival will announce their second installment, coming 2020, very soon.

To put it simply, a performance by Kelsey Lu in a small, intimate theater feels like something heavenly where you’re floating in a space-time continuum, in which the only thing that resonates physically is the sonic landscape she creates with her voice, her cello, and her guitar. You feel like the only person in the entire venue. The fluidity in her music transcends genres, dabbling in classical, R&B, and indie while creating a whole new world in itself. Beginning with “Dreams”, a song off of Lu’s 2016 EP Church, the atmosphere is immediately created with the songs samples of birds and the forest, while Lu plucks her cello hauntingly. The layered sound creates a buildup of something ethereal, leading into her stellar vocals. What makes this even more beautiful is her stage presence, her silver dress shining in the light. Her performance unfurls something shapeless and overflowing, a kind of energy that blooms within the audience and all around. 

The intimacy is truly encapsulated in the fact that Lu is the only one on stage, and it’s either the cello and her guitar as her weapons of choice. Even “Due West”, one of her more pop tracks that have been remixed by Skrillex, loses its layers and is stripped down with just the cello and Lu’s evocative vocals. Every movement she makes and every word she sings is intricate and with intent. Before her final song, “Liar”, Lu speaks to the audience about how the song is about home and the continuous search for a home. She emphasizes the difficulty of navigating what home is to her as a black woman in America, and reminds us that we are lucky to be able to have such spaces as the one we were in for Fabric Arts festival, that we must think outside of our contained towns, and that she is grateful to have spent such an intimate night with us. “Liar” is a moving, eight-minute-long testament to allowing yourself to not lose hope in the face of adversity, and that the “most important is that we can't lose focus on what is the key ingredient to everything: LOVE,” as she says in a 2016 interview in NYLON. Kelsey Lu reminds us of the spirit we need to keep inside of us and the beauty of simply persisting.

Photo by Jessica Spinola, courtesy of Fabric Arts Festival.

[bluelucy]

Last September I painted a Red Bull cooler for the 2016 Shine Mural Festival's Creative Block exhibit. It was bright yellow, called Highlighter and done in my free form doodle style. After the exhibit, the cooler was placed at Jannus Live. Months later, I was contacted by interior designers Studio M, who were working on a new restaurant project called Badfins on Clearwater Beach, FL. They mentioned co-owner Eric had seen my work at Jannus Live and wanted me to create new works similar throughout the restaurant. A year later, Badfins opens. This has been an awesome project that has allowed me to do what I do. I love the fact that the connections made were through Shine and what it strives to do for our culture and community. Congrats and thanks to Badfins and Studio M, and looking forward to 2017 Shine, which happens October 5-14 this year! #ChadMize x #bebad x #shineonstpete (at Badfins Food + Brew)

[scenefromthesidewalk]

May 4, 2017

“EL INDIO”

by ArtKungFu

Eater.com along with many food truck fans were concerned when Houston Food Park closed for much of 2016, but sighed with relief when they discovered it was just undergoing a major overhaul for the Superbowl. It doesn’t hurt its popularity that this venue is right at one of the major hubs for Houston’s HUE Mural Festival, begun in 2015. Located in the heavily Mexican American Second Ward, Texas native Angel Quesada who says he has been influenced by Mexican artists like Rufino Tamayo and Adolfo Best-Maugard, painted this striking mural at the corner of the food truck park on St Emanuel and Leeland Streets. With 25 years experience making art, Quesada’s fascination with the power of color and metaphor both shine through in “El Indio,” a work he also refers to as Guardian of the 2nd Barrio.  @artkungfu  

[theconservativebrief]

Taking a ferry to Ikea, gallery hopping for the free wine, settling into to an orb of apathy as you stare into the abyss on your subway ride home — these are all authentic New York experiences, and all far from what I’m doing right now. Right now, I’m partaking in an authentic New York Airbnb Experience, which is something entirely different.

Experiences is Airbnb’s most significant effort to become an end-to-end travel seller. The platform displays a slick grid of options like classes, walking tours, and hikes all led by locals. Not only is the company showing you where to stay, now they are showing you what to do.

This, along with Homes and Restaurants (which is born from a partnership with reservation-making app Resy), all fall under Airbnb’s “Trips” umbrella, a product which launched in 2016. Experiences in New York City range from photoshoots in iconic parks to graffiti walking tours to a session with a vintage personal shopper. You know, things New Yorkers do.

Airbnb’s company motto once was “Live Like a Local,” so booking a class called “Create Your Own Pottery” seemed a bit strange

This expansion of offerings is not to fill a hole in the market, but an opportunity for Airbnb to provide a more centralized platform for tours, something that hasn’t been done yet. It also could be a way for the company to diversify revenue as they face more and more regulatory headaches with thousands of listings being pulled from the site.

Today, I am throwing pots with Ernesto. I picked this Experience because unlike the aforementioned options, it was something I wouldn’t be embarrassed to do. Joining me are two other locals along with two tourists, and although the class was lovely, it doesn’t feel like a natural extension of the Airbnb brand I frequently patronize.

Airbnb’s company motto once was “Live Like a Local,” so booking a class called “Create Your Own Pottery” seemed a bit strange, even though it was just a few blocks from my home.

According to Airbnb’s own reports, the company’s step into services has been largely successful. CEO Brian Chesky said in January Airbnb Experiences is growing much faster than Airbnb Homes did and receives 1.5 million bookings on an annualized basis and about 1,200 host applications per week. In February, the company released a report saying bookings increased 2,500 percent over the last year and they plan to offer Experiences in 1,000 cities by the end of the year.

A craft brew Airbnb Experience in Vancouver. Airbnb

But others sources paint a different picture: that the company’s biggest project launched since its genesis is floundering. A Wall Street Journal article highlighted a host who listed a night sky photography class on the platform but promptly quit after averaging only one customer a month. According to a pymnts.com article, Airbnb has lost more than $100 million pursuing the project. My own Experience host said Airbnb gives many free passes away to his class, perhaps another sign the service isn’t in demand.

But the company is still charging forward. In January Airbnb sank another $5 million in the program, seeking to add 200 more US cities to the roster. The company predicts it will make $200 million in Experiences revenue in 2018, despite the fact that it only made $10 million in 2017. Just this month, the company announced that a second Los Angeles office will serve as the Experiences hub.

This shift into the world of guided tours doesn’t quite align with the goal of most Airbnb users: to have sincere brushes with local culture. It’s a goal that Airbnb has been good at cultivating. So what encouraged the travel industry’s shining star to produce something not so innovative?

It wasn’t because of demand. Tours are already popular, and there’s no shortage of providers. They also aren’t that cheesy anymore, as travelers are demanding authentic-feeling experiences. Booking.com found 62 percent of people want to experience new cultures, 51 percent want to taste local delicacies, and one-third of travelers embrace meeting new people.

Many of the tours listed on TripAdvisor include “small group” in the title, emphasizing the opportunity for more peer-to-peer interaction. According to a recent survey by TripAdvisor, cultural and themed tour bookings (think a graffiti golf cart tour in Miami or a haunted pub tour in Seattle) in the United States jumped 32 percent for domestic travelers and 62 percent for global travelers from 2017 to 2018. Food tours have also shown tremendous growth, with the amount of booked tours in the US growing 59 percent.

So although the traditional, sterile tour may not jive with Airbnb’s motto, this new kind of tour could.

The company predicts it will make $200 million in Experiences revenue in 2018, despite the fact that it only made $10 million in 2017

Travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt says people are also increasingly looking for niche tours that align with their existing interests but still allow them to experience another culture — a cooking class, an architecture tour, a historical neighborhood walk. And they’re spending money to do it; Harteveldt says that 60 percent or more of the average person’s travel budget is spent on tours, activities, and restaurants.

But the preference for the one-size-fits all double-decker tour has somewhat faded. “It’s formulaic and only focuses on the obvious,” he says. “It can be convenient and helpful, but what Airbnb can do is allow travelers to go further into the detail of interests that they are already passionate about.”

He adds that the inclusion of classes on the platform makes Experiences a competitor to not only tour sites, but event and class sites like Eventbrite or Meetup. When you browse Atlanta’s Experiences, you see mural walking tours alongside a fitness class called The Ultimate Twerkout and a beekeeping class called The Mystique of Bees: Beekeeping 101. My Experience host Ernest said that 60 percent of those who take his class are not tourists.

According to Daniel Guttentag, a hospitality and tourism professor at Charleston College, the tour market is also quite fragmented. There is TripAdvisor’s Viator, Fat Tire Tours, and Peek, along with other local guides who don’t use aggregating platforms. Guttentag says this lack of consolidation may have motivated Airbnb to step into the space and provide a more encompassing platform where experienced and novice guides could exist together.

Aside from capitalizing on already popular travel practices, Airbnb was perhaps fueled by its recent run-in with regulatory issues. In most cities, short-term rentals have always been illegal, but because so few people were doing them, there was no push for renters to report their listings to the government. Now, lawmakers are proposing bills that would force renters to register their listing in order for the government can monitor if they are following the rules.

Paris, Airbnb’s biggest market, is aggressively reining in renters, requiring listings on Airbnb to register with the government, and holding Airbnb, not the landlords, fiscally responsible for the renters who don’t. In May, Barcelona forced the site to delete over 2,500 listings that weren’t operating with city-approved licenses. Regulations in San Francisco cut the city’s listings by almost half, and a similar policy in New York could have the same effect.

“It’s a hedge against future regulations that might restrict growth in the lodging element” —Daniel Guttentag

Despite regulations in major tourism cities, Guttentag disagrees with “any notion that Airbnb will be regulated out of existence,” but each side will have to adjust. Now, policy makers will have to adapt to the “new reality that these services have created in communities.” Meanwhile Airbnb is expanding. “It’s a hedge against future regulations that might restrict growth in the lodging element,” Guttentag says.

Not everyone can afford to rent out their apartment or house, but the barrier to entry for hosting an experience is much lower. And while a user is less likely to book a stay where they already live, if they’re looking for a local class or say, a session with a personal shopper, Airbnb might just be the place they find it. With Experiences, Airbnb expands both the pool of potential hosts and the pool of potential users, without any of the regulatory headache.

The addition of services that duck regulatory issues is a common tactic of disruptive innovations. Uber’s offshoot app UberEATS was a way for the company to diversify income in the face of being partially or fully banned in a handful of regions including parts of Oregon, London, and the countries of Italy and Denmark. For Airbnb hosts whose home listing was taken down, Experiences could offer another revenue stream.

As Airbnb expands its hospitality services, the industry they disrupted is feeling pressure to adapt as well. According to a report by Skift, more than 50 percent of luxury consumers in the US are more interested in connecting with local people and culture than they were just three years ago. And 60 percent of luxury travelers said they want travel experiences that their friends may not have thought of. Even those using luxury amenities want personal, local experiences.

To satiate those needs, luxury hotels are offering more services that emphasize personalization. Last month, Hilton announced a partnership with Foursquare to create a new feature on it’s existing app which will show you recommendations from local Hilton employees along with the vault of reviews that Foursquare already owns. The Marriott invested in PlacePass, an activity booking service which provides “behind-the-scenes” tours and classes with local crafters and artists.

Casa Bonay, a four-star hotel in Barcelona, is hosting a slew of events including film festivals, album listening parties, and rooftop viewings to make the locals come to them. They also built a coffee shop, co-working space, lounge, and restaurant where both Barcelona natives and guests are welcome.

A Matcha tea ceremony Experience in Vancouver. Airbnb

It’s not only hotels. The New York Times recently partnered with Urban Adventures to offer a series of tours based on the Times’s popular 36 Hours series. The tours webpage says it invites travelers to “interact with locals, get hands-on experience, and enjoy exclusive access to places with a local guide.”

Travel review site TripAdvisor just announced plans to roll out a new social feature where users can scroll through a feed of travel content created by publications, influencers, and friends. The app looks like a hybrid of Twitter and Facebook, but only features travel content.

Users can curate the content on their feed by typing a city name into the app, which will result in the app filtering out any posts that are not about that city. The app also allows users to save places, and transfers those places to an easily accessible map that you can also share with friends. For anyone who has ever been asked for recommendations from a trip they took two years ago, this is an extremely appealing feature.

But despite the evolution of their competitors, Airbnb does retain customer trust, which is crucial in such a fragmented market. Right now, there is no activity or tours platform that people swear by. If Airbnb is able to funnel its loyal community of both hosts and users into supplementary revenue streams that aren’t as heavily regulated, then this investment will certainly have been worth it.

As I’m struggling to throw anything identifiable on this wheel, the man to the right of me has no trouble at all making the perfect ashtray. I ask if he’s ever done this before and he says “no,” then volleys the question back, as if he can’t already tell by my pile of sludge that this is new to me, too.

He and the woman to my left were both visiting from Costa Rica and Los Angeles, respectively. The other two were a local couple, in from the city to celebrate a birthday. Our wheels line the walls and face inward toward a large table in the middle of the room piled high with bowls and cups and vases.

Ernesto hops from wheel to wheel, breaking the focused silence with “what do you do,” and “how long will you be here,” sort of small talk. It doesn’t take long for him to tell us he is also a Home host, and says with new regulations looming, the option to be an Experience host was especially enticing. He talks about how the government regulations are bad for cities and how travelers won’t have affordable accommodation options, all while he’s helping us shape something that kind of looks like a pot.

He’s everything Airbnb wants a host to be: a young artist who is passionate about government regulations that would affect him and, of course, the company. This isn’t an authentic New York experience, but it is the experience Airbnb wants you to have.

Original Source -> Can guided tours save Airbnb?

via The Conservative Brief

[reclaimthestreetssydney]

What does Keep Newtown Weird & Safe actually do?

It creates a moment where people don’t feel alone in their weirdness: After the first KNWS event in 2016, a friend remarked that the best thing about it was their kid looking around and seeing everyone out wearing whatever the fuck they wanted and realising they weren’t the only one. This kinda cuts to the core of what this event is about. 

It strengthens community networks and builds resilience: 
Actually getting out and making some new friends and sharing an experience solidifies our networks, meaningfully connecting more people to those who can help them out in times of need. This also helps the community become more resilient to stuff that affects us as a group: queer bashings, mural destructions, hostile elected officials, and collective mourning events like the Orlando shootings.
 It reinforces the reputation of the area: Big, loud, visible displays of who we are tag the area not just physically, but in the media and on the internet as a safe, diverse neighbourhood. That reputation reduces abuse on the street by clearly signifying that shit will not be tolerated. It also shines a bright beacon for people from other suburbs to run to. Newtown is both a new home for them and a home base for us. It Reclaims The Streets:
 For a brief time, it challenges the dominance of cars in our public space and returns Kings Street to pedestrians. It temporarily reduces noise and pollution, increases safety and encourages feelings of entitlement to the road and self-regulated public space.
 It builds our capacity to run RTS:
 For people who haven’t organised a protest before, haven’t marshalled before, or haven’t built a mobile sound system before, it’s a nice easy introduction to what we do. We’re always looking for more people to get involved in all aspects of organising and to try out new ideas. It allows local performers to have their art heard/seen: With lockouts and festival shutdowns over the last few years, there are fewer opportunities for local performers and producers to have their music heard. Our inclusive DIY ethos allows anyone who can strap a speaker to some wheels to blast tunes all afternoon. It’s a fun, free afternoon: It’s something to do where no one is trying to sell you anything. There’s no fences no corporate or government sponsorship. There’ll be djs and possibly bands and a bunch of odd stuff. It’s kid and dog friendly. It disrupts the everyday business as usual. 

 But most importantly Keeping Newtown Weird and Safe reminds us that we are a community and we are capable of pushing back. The next Keep Newtown Weird & Safe parade meets outside The Hub at 2pm on Sunday 22nd of April. Join the 2018 event: https://www.facebook.com/events/216595299089728/

[publicartprints]

_ In a couples of weeks one of my favorite Mural Festivals starts "Shine on St.Pete" 👉for more info and this years artist line-up go to: @shineonstpete 👈 .Video of artist @nosego from 2016 🎥 by @publicartprints . . . . . #muralfestival2017 #shineonstpete #artist #october #mural #art #streetart #Tampa #event #igers #igers_stpete #Florida #artenthusist #artnews #artdestination #travel #urbanart #muralist #graffitti #festival #international #artcollectors #artlovers #Artinfo

[entmtbiz]

Lights On! It's Time to Shine for Super-sized Vivid Sydney

Image gallery of Vivid Sydney available here Broadcast quality footage available here

SYDNEY, May 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Vivid Sydney will bathe Sydney in breathtaking colour and a dizzying array of special effects as the world's largest festival of light, music, and ideas switches on for 23 nights from 6pm tonight, 26 May 2017.

To view the full multimedia release, please go to: http://ift.tt/2qVlnah

  Vivid Sydney 2017, Lighting the Sails: Audio Creatures image credit Destination NSW

  Vivid Sydney 2017, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Organic Vibrations credit Destination NSW

  Vivid Sydney 2017, Taronga Zoo, Port Jackson Shark credit Destination NSW

  Vivid Sydney 2017, Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, The Sunflowers, credit Destination NSW

Featuring seven light precincts and more than 90 large scale light installations and projections, Vivid Sydney will run bigger, bolder, and brighter until 17 June.

NSW Minister for Tourism and Major Events Adam Marshall said, "It's all systems go as the city becomes a massive, creative canvas from tonight, with art and technology coming together to present awe-inspiring creations conjured by some of the world's leading creative minds and technology innovators."

"Visitors to Vivid Sydney come for the lights and stay for the sights of this great State. In 2016, Vivid Sydney welcomed a record-breaking 2.31 million attendees. In 2017, we're hoping to surpass last year's massive AUS$110 million injection into our State's visitor economy," he said.

More than 180 local and international artists have created the light installations and projections for Vivid Sydney, including The Rocks, Campbell's Cove, Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Taronga Zoo, Martin Place, Darling Harbour and festival debutante, Barangaroo (South).

Projections will illuminate iconic buildings and landmarks throughout the city including the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia as well as the organic backdrops of enormous trees and natural rockscapes in the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney.

The ultimate canvas, the Sails of the Sydney Opera House will feature Audio Creatures, an indescribable world of colour and light, featuring imaginary sea creatures lurking deep in the harbour and shimmering plant life.

Special effects and animations are found at every turn, from the ground below visitors' feet at Barangaroo (South), to Darling Harbour's Magicians of the Mist, a 50 metre high water fountain featuring 40 metre high projections, lasers, fireworks, flame and a dramatic soundtrack.

North of the harbour, a steampunk waterworld themed adventure awaits in Chatswood, while giant illuminated lanterns of endangered animals are sparking conversations about conservation at Taronga Zoo. 

Destination NSW Chief Executive Officer and Executive Producer of Vivid Sydney Sandra Chipchase said, "Over the next 23 days, visitors can take their pick of hundreds of events, including more than 284 Vivid Ideas discussions and creative forums in 59 venues, that will explore our creative future, or more than 390 Vivid Music performances in more than 40 venues, featuring a range of genres from indie folk and electronic music to musical theatre and jazz."

Festival highlights include:

Light

Lighting the Sails: Audio Creatures: The Sails of the World-Heritage listed Sydney Opera House will be brought to life by Audio Creatures: a series of imaginary creatures curated and designed by visionary director Ash Bolland. Audio Creatures will feature morphing and mesmeric marine creatures and plant life, cut with sleek futuristic technology across the iconic Sails. Audio Creatures will be set to a bespoke soundtrack by Brazilian electronic producer Amon Tobin.

Organic Vibrations: Australian contemporary artist Julia Gorman and French collective Danny Rose will create a new artwork projected onto the heritage-listed façade of the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA).  The installation will use projection-mapping techniques to bring to life images originally made by Gorman in watercolour, oils, and marker pen depicting sinuous lines and colours inspired by the natural world. (The Rocks)

Magicians of the Mist: Fantastical fountains, flame jets, lasers, music, fireworks and walls of water show the power of creativity and innovation in this spectacular projection. (Darling Harbour)

Trapdoor: Discover what optical illusions are in store if you dare to step onto this fantastical floor mural that tells otherworldly stories of Barangaroo. (Barangaroo South)

Electric Forest: The forest comes to life as never before, from wild hanging fruits to schools of fish, when you enter this strange world of illuminated plants, illusions and a psycho-acoustic soundtrack. (The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney)

Lights for the Wild: Shine a light on the plight of endangered animals with your interactive wristband and gaze in amazement at the beauty of these majestic, giant illuminated lanterns - you can even step into the mouth of PJ the Port Jackson Shark! (Taronga Zoo)

Steampunk Waterworld: Peer into an incredible submerged steampunk water world of lights, sounds and special effects at the Reflection Pool in The Concourse. (Chatswood)

Music

Curve Ball: Creatives, artists and musicians join forces to deliver this immersive, large scale, live music audio and visual spectacular combining quality dance music and stunning visuals. (3-10pm Sunday 11 June, Carriageworks).

Hidden Sydney - The Glittering Mile: The roller coaster ride into the story of Kings Cross and the colourful cast of characters from its gritty, glittery past. (25 May-18 June, The World Bar, Kings Cross).

Nick Murphy (formerly known as Chet Faker) Presents Missing Link: The charismatic hit-maker returns, premieres new material and resurrecting old favourites in an ambitious in-the-round performance. (1-3 June, Sydney Opera House).

Dappled Cities: One of the most beloved indie bands to emerge from Sydney over the past two decades presents new album IIIII (pronounced five), complete with immersive lighting spectacle in this one-off concert. (4 June, City Recital Hall)

Ideas

Game-Changer Talks Series: Hear from the creative forces shaping our world and lives, including Buzzfeed founder, CEO and media visionary Jonah Peretti. (28 May, City Recital Hall); influential Academy Award-winning director Oliver Stone (28 May, City Recital Hall) and iconic American artist Shepard Fairey (17 June, Sydney Town Hall). Fairey, the artist behind the Barack Obama HOPE campaign, will also create a public mural in the heart of Sydney's CBD during the festival, while an exhibition of his music-themed works is on display at Darling Quarter.

The Sunrise Conference: Delve deep into the future of technology, business and innovative start-up ecosystems at this enlightening forum.(31 May)

Semi Permanent: Hear about our innovation future straight from the source in a series of interactive, immersive experiences with world leading innovators from Getty Images, Nike, Uber, Google and more. (25-27 May)

Clipped Music Video Festival: Learn from artists and filmmakers at this creative hub as they collaborate and debate and celebrate the art form of music videos. (3 June)

Good Design Festival: Join design luminaries, experience the best in all things design and celebrate the winners of the 2017 Good Design Awards and exhibition. (8-11 June)

Rhodes: Creative: Explore tomorrow's technologies today with hands on activities including 3D printing and robotics. (28 May-16 June)

The Vivid Ideas Exchange: You name it, there's probably a session about it, debating and dissecting everything from fashion to placemaking, storytelling, ageism, marketing, health, innovation, big data and mixed reality. Events at the Vivid Ideas Exchange run every day from 10am to 5pm on Level 6, Museum Contemporary Art Australia throughout Vivid Sydney.

About Vivid Sydney Vivid Sydney is the world's largest festival of light, music and ideas, which for 23 nights - from Friday 26 May until Saturday 17 June -- transforms the Harbour City with its colourful creative canvas. Now in its ninth year, Vivid Sydney is owned, managed and produced by Destination NSW, the NSW Government's tourism and major events agency. Vivid Sydney features large-scale light installations and projections (Vivid Light); music performances and collaborations (Vivid Music including Vivid LIVE at the Sydney Opera House); and creative ideas, discussion and debate (Vivid Ideas), all celebrating Sydney as the creative hub of the Asia-Pacific. For more information visit www.vividsydney.com 

MEDIA ENQUIRIES:

Footage and photographs can be downloaded from the Vivid Sydney Media Centre: http://ift.tt/2m0RgZH or reach us at vivid.media@dnsw.com.au

Video-http://ift.tt/2qVsBLK Photo-http://ift.tt/2qVBx3B   Photo-http://ift.tt/2qVloel Photo-http://ift.tt/2qVkkHs Photo-http://ift.tt/2qVvBrk

  SOURCE Destination NSW

Read this news on PR Newswire Asia website: Lights On! It's Time to Shine for Super-sized Vivid Sydney

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On the Road, created by Caratoes for the 2016 edition of SHINE Mural Festival in St. Pete, Florida.

For more recent work by the artist, also check out her Instagram.

[dusudaunord]

Things to do in Montréal from May 5 to11

With spring comes new delights in Montréal: step back 50 years in exhibitions about Expo 67, conduct an orchestra of fountains downtown, marvel at a Cirque du Soleil show, new theatre and illuminating visual art, listen to live music of all kinds, and explore the city.

Springtime scenes

It’s time to play in the heart of downtown: hop on a colourful, music-making swing at the 21 Swings installation and conduct your own virtual orchestra connected to a system of high-powered water jets in Maëstro – both outside Place des Arts in the Quartier des Spectacles, part of this year’s Digital Spring art-meets-tech creations. Walk through the Botanical Garden‘s blooming grounds and tropical greenhouse and take a tour with avian experts during Bird Fest at the Biodôme at the Montréal Space for Life. Also fun for kids: solving forensic mysteries at the Montréal Science Centre’s CSI: The Experience in the Old Port. Walk up Saint-Laurent to see bright building-sized murals or take a walk off the beaten path to discover welcoming and wonderful quirky spots in Montréal. Find out more about free things to do this Spring in Montréal and the city’s secret corners in this spring’s Grande Tournée events.

Une publication partagée par Spade & Palacio Tours (@spadeandpalacio) le 20 Sept. 2016 à 8h56 PDT

Food and fashion 

See the city sights and eat well in the process on Montréal’s best food tours. Explore the menus of new Montréal restaurants, relax with a cup of tea at Montréal’s tea houses, try a signature cocktail at one of Montréal’s hidden bars or indulge your sweet tooth at the city’s best candy shops. Whether you’re a committed vegan or simply love a high-quality animal-free meal, read our ultimate guide to vegan eating in Montréal. As the weather warms to al fresco dining temperatures, keep an eye out for Montréal’s food trucks and street food. In fashion, check out the Phi Centre’s Luxury Rubbish art-meets-boutique, and pick up something new and stylish at Puces Pop, a designer craft fair full of Montréal-made art, housewares, clothing, accessories and more, at L’Église Saint-Denis (5075 Rivard) in Mile End, May 5-7.

Expo 67 and beyond

Montréal celebrates the 50th anniversary of Expo 67 with entertaining and history-rich exhibitions: see colourful outfits and products created by Québec designers at the McCord Museum’s Fashioning Expo 67; photographs tell the tale in The Sixties in Montréal: Archives de Montréal at City Hall; marvel (and maybe laugh a little) at the technological innovations of EXPO 67: A World of Dreams at the Stewart Museum and Écho 67 at the nearby Buckminster Fuller designed Biosphère; baby boomer youth culture is a blast in Explosion 67 – Youth and Their World at the Centre d’histoire de Montréal, and it’s all about  ’60s artistic expression in the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts’s Révolution: “You say you want a revolution” and the Musée d’art contemporain’s In Search of Expo 67. Photography exhibition Aime comme Montréal celebrates the city’s diversity in an installation at Place des arts. Old Montréal landmark Notre-Dame Basilica, one the city’s most stunning churches and historical landmarks, lights up with beautiful high-tech spectacle Aura, while the surrounding streets are illuminated by the historic tableaux projections of mobile-app project Cité Memoire.

Une publication partagée par #CINQCENTQUATORZE ® (@jfsavaria) le 28 Avril 2017 à 18h04 PDT

On stage

Incredible acrobats, dancers, parkour experts and motor bike athletes awe in the millennial-era story of Cirque du Soleil’s VOLTA, under the big top in the Old Port of Montréal. A visual and musical spectacle, Russian performance artist Slava Polunin’s Slava’s Snowshow wows at Theâtre St-Denis May 2-14. Inspired by painter Frida Kahlo, Jean Piché and Yan Muckle’s opera Yo soy la desintegración comes to life at Cinquième Salle, May 5-7. In theatre: at Centaur Theatre see Clybourne Park, a neighbourhood drama tracing racial tensions in Chicago, and hilarious and heartwarming Bed & Breakfast; The Segal Centre presents hit musical Million Dollar Quartet, inspired by the true rock ‘n’ roll story of Sam Phillips gathering Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley for an historic recording session; and Aboriginal Spring of Art THREE presents Productions Ondinnok’s dance/theatre performance El buen vestir-Tlakentli May 10–12 at Monument-National. As part of Montréal’s winter-spring dance program: Danse Danse presents Flemish choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s Rain at Place des Arts May 4-6; Agora de la Danse presents free outdoor show 15 X LA NUIT every night at 9 p.m. in Place des Festivals; and Mykalle Bielinski’s immersive multimedia opera Gloria wows at La Chapelle May 2-6.

Une publication partagée par Therese Nguyen (@miss.t.nguyen) le 3 Mai 2017 à 15h50 PDT

Art and film

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts special exhibition CHAGALL: COLOUR AND MUSIC brings vivid colour into your springtime with 340 pieces by the Russian-French artist with musical accompaniment. Over at the Musée d’art contemporain see work by foremost Mexican artist Teresa Margolles and Québec artist Emanuel Licha’s Now Have a Look at This Machine documentary installation, while Galerie de l’UQAM presents Mexican artist Gilberto Esparza’s biotechnical art exhibition Plantas autofotosintéticas. The eclectic and multidisciplinary Festival Accès Asie coincides with Canada’s Asian Heritage Month – this week featuring a recital by Japanese pianist Kimihiro Yasaka on May 6, exhibition Smile of Afghanistan by Iranian photographer Hamed Tabein at the Gesù, the Afghanistan & Culture Shock talk on May 7, and flamenco and Persian Music performance Kimia on May 11. British artist Ed Atkins poses questions on human bodies, digital creation and reality in video exhibition Modern Piano Music at DHC-ART. Never Apart‘s Spring Exhibition features Two-Spirit Sur-Thrivance and the Art of Interrupting Narratives. Pointe-à-Callière archaeology and history museum presents the fascinating Amazonia: The Shaman and the Mind of the Forest. Travel through virtual worlds in films by Felix & Paul Studios at the Phi Centre‘s Virtual Reality Garden and see short films for free in the Not Sure on Talent showcase. Get immersed in new space-exploration double feature KYMA – Power of Waves and Edge of Darkness at the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium, or in electroacoustic A/V performance Électro-Acrylique and the high-tech 360° visuals of Orbits at the Satosphere surround-sound dome May 4-13.

Live music

On Friday night, American country duo Florida Georgia Line whoops it up at the Bell Centre, alt-rock royalty Redd Kross plays Bar Le Ritz P.D.B., Around the World in 80 Raves provides hours of dancing at New City Gas and Kilter and JNTHN STEIN let us dance or happily chill at Newspeak. Saturday brings international entertainment icon Engelbert Humperdinck and his hits to Place des Arts, while the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal presents Organ and Space: Gaze up to the Heavens featuring celestial symphonies by Dvořák and Holst and reflections by astronaut David Saint-Jacques at the Maison symphonique. Also on Saturday night: British shoegaze luminaries Slowdive play L’Olympia, Montréal indie-rockers We Are Munroe kick up a good, loud time at Théâtre Fairmount, and Dutch production duo Bassjackers take over the dance floor at New City Gas. And on Sunday: pop singer-songwriter Jojo with opener Craig Stickland at Théâtre Corona.

Tuesday night comes alive with punk-garage rockers The Black Lips and Surfbort at Le National. Discover the world’s finest young pianists at the Concours musical international de Montréal, in gala concerts May 9-10 at Place des Arts. Beloved weirdo singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mac DeMarco plays May 10-11 at Metropolis. Also on Wednesday: metalcore band I Prevail and Starset at Théâtre Corona, hip hop artist Ab-Soul with British rapper Little Simz and Nick Grant at Théâtre Fairmount, and Bare Noize and Lo Key at Newspeak. Thursday shines with legendary French electronic composer and producer Jean-Michel Jarre at the Bell Centre, The M Machine at Théâtre Fairmount, Hessle Audio Showcase with Heatwave, Ben UFO, Pearson Sound and Pangea at Newspeak, rockers Hollerado and PS I Love You at La Sala Rossa, and the Afro-Caribbean jazz-pop sounds of Prince Ali-X and his Ambassadors at Rialto Hall.

Up next:La Grande Tournée: Experience Montréal like a local

The post Things to do in Montréal from May 5 to11 appeared first on Tourisme Montréal Blog.

http://ift.tt/2pJw5Pd

[longlistshort]

El Templo- Find the Light by Jade Rivera is part of the 2016 SHINE Mural Festival in St. Pete, Florida.

From the St. Pete Arts Alliance website about the work-

Perched on the boy’s neck is a huge monarch butterfly almost as big as the ibis, its gold, black and orange wings spread wide, flitting against the boy’s cheek. The boy looks serenely up and away, as if unaware of the bird and the butterfly. The ibis and butterfly reflect the Florida reality surrounding the boy – the ibis is an iconic Florida bird found along the coastline or wandering through the streets. The candle represents light from the soul.

It’s a startling image for passing drivers and pedestrians – peaceful, but unsettling, with the oversized butterfly touching the boy’s face and the bird’s beak digging in his chest.

For more work by Jade Rivera, also check out his Instagram.

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Moon Beam Dream 2 by Carlos Culbertson, aka Zulu Painter, part of the 2016 SHINE Mural Festival.

For the latest work by Zulu Painter, you can also check out his Instagram. For more on the SHINE Mural Festival, including other artist participants, head here.

[longlistshort]

Brightmares was created by Alex Pardee (@alexpardee) for the 2016 SHINE Mural Festival in St. Pete, Florida.

From the St. Pete Arts Alliance website about the work-

The mural is called Brightmare, 46 feet wide and 19 feet tall. An emaciated, purple, naked figure is bowed down under a huge, sagging rainbow-colored ball where her head should be. She’s bony and hunched over, with purple skin and long grey skeletal hands, pendulous breasts and a swollen belly. The figure is on tiptoe, knees bent, one hand on the muddy floor for balance.

The sagging striped ball covers her head and neck and droops toward her belly – a red dot like a bullseye in the center of the ball, is ringed with pink, blue, green, yellow and orange. It’s like a rainbow balloon that’s leaking air, and jammed onto the figure’s head. Colors drip from the ball, and purple splashes from her body, as if the entire mural is melting in the heat.

The figure is stooped in front of a gaping black hole painted on the wall, like the opening of a cave. At her feet, bulbous blobs of white, tan and brown are spurting mud and water into the air.

On the lower left corner, the muddy blobs touch a green metal door in the side of the building. The outline of the cave crosses vertical pipes and electrical connections bolted to the wall. Two dark metal exhaust ducts frame the figure’s heavy rainbow head.

The background of the mural is the same stark industrial tan of the rest of the building, a massive structure that takes up almost an entire block.

Alex Pardee is a multi-media designer and illustrator who’s brought his unique aesthetic to music, film, animation, clothing and comics. When he painted this for the 2016 SHINE Festival, it was the largest mural he’d ever attempted. Ricky Watts, another artist on our tour, flew in from San Francisco to help with the mural’s completion. The mural is painted in aerosol, but the gaping black hole is brush painted.

To your right, in the alley facing this mural, a small window with heavy metal bars reflects the mural’s rainbow colors.