Friday, January 23, 2009

Postcard image for BREAKDOWN, and a great studio visit





My next performance will be on Friday, January 30, 2009 at 8pm at the William and Nancy Oliver Gallery as a part of BREAKDOWN: A Mental Incursion.

I'll be premiering a character I've been developing the past few months, Valerie Hartman. She'll be giving a brief intro to The System, and explaining why you should attend the infomercial on February 17 at 8pm.

In other news, I had a really great studio visit with Diana Al Hadid yesterday, and was pleased to have a mini-epiphany about the arc of the narrative for my upcoming piece, "Complete With Illustrated Manual," which features the above mentioned Valerie Hartman. To read more about Diana Al Hadid, you can find a lot through Google, or check out her recent article in the January 2009 issue of Art News, where she was listed as an "Artist to Watch." (sadly, Art News hasn't put this article online)

Friday, January 16, 2009

BREAKDOWN: A Mental Incursion

My next performance will be on Friday, January 30, 2009 at 8pm at the William and Nancy Oliver Gallery as a part of BREAKDOWN: A Mental Incursion.

I'll be premiering a character I've been developing the past few months, Valerie Hartman. She'll be giving a brief intro to The System, and why you should attend the infomercial on February 17 at 8pm.



BREAKDOWN is:
Private acts and thoughts expressed in public spaces.
"Madness" and "vulgar" emotion; i.e., unrestrained grief.
Anthropomorphism.
A celebration of unseen/ignored elements of humanity.
A confrontation of human (un)consciousness.
Social awkwardness.
Insidious laughter.

LIVE PERFORMANCE:
Friday, January 30, 2009 at 8pm.

Confirmed guest artists include:
Natasha Marin (Butoh) + Aaron Roth (flute)
Anastacia Tolbert (indigo madness)
Ellen Mueller (Valerie Hartman/Time travel with The System)
Ashaki M. Jackson (Cannibalistic poetry/Altar-making)
Becky Flanders - (Ana Suromai - Female Genital Revelation)
Khadijah Queen (Fearful Beloved) + Zak Hemsteger (drums)
More TBA...

BREAKDOWN is organized by Khadijah Queen.
Multidisciplinary artist and writer Khadijah Queen is a graduate fellow in studio art at University of South Florida. Her first book of poetry, Conduit, was published in 2008 by Akashic Books. She has performed and exhibited nationally, and curates an annual multi-genre performance series, "Courting Risk," in NYC.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

2010 Art Inter/National Exhibition

 
I'll be showing two pieces from the Calendar Series, "1 of 31" and "15 of 31," at the 9th Annual Art Inter/National Exhibition at Box Heart Gallery in Pittsburgh, PA.  This juried group exhibition features 20 artists from all across the US as well as Japan, Norway, Austria, and Korea.  If you know anyone in Pittsburgh, please spread the word!

The exhibition runs January 5 - 30, 2010.
The reception is Saturday, January 9th, 5 - 8pm.
Box Heart Gallery
4523 Liberty Ave
Pittsburgh PA 15224

Friday, January 9, 2009

Trying My Hand at Blogging Locally



Recently, as I was searching for ways to publicize my upcoming performance, and I came across a publication for women, skirt!, which has a local Tampa edition. I noticed they were looking for people to blog for them, so I sent an email, filled out a little application form, and voila! I am now a registered blogger for skirt! Tampa.

I plan to write about my perspective as an artist who has moved to the Tampa area from Minnesota. I'll be focused on what Tampa has to offer to people new to the area, especially artists/creatives.

Feel free to check it out: http://tampabay.skirt.com/blog/10528
So far I only have a single post, but I plan to write at least twice a week for them.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Open Auditions for Spring Workshops

OPEN AUDITIONS:
Ellen Mueller is seeking physical and improvisational performers of all types for two free collaborative workshops exploring the concepts of success and evaluation.


About the Workshops and Ellen Mueller:
These two free workshops will be led by Ellen Mueller at the University of South Florida Marshall Student Center, February 28 & March 1, Noon – 4:00pm, and April 4 & 5, Noon - 4:00pm. The approach for these workshops is based on techniques gleaned from yoga, the Brave New Institute – an improvisation training center in Minneapolis, MN, the Theatre of the Emerging American Moment – a theatre company dedicated to dissecting and celebrating the experience of living in America today, and Viewpoints – a technique for building ensembles and creating movement. Specifically, we will explore our collective response to the concepts of success and evaluation. Our goal is to gather and develop images, ideas, questions, situations, and characters through the practice of movement and improvisational exercises. Participants can expect to learn about the Eight Secrets of BNW Creativity, as well as an approach to collaborative creation. The material collected will be used as research for new performance works, and may lead to future collaborations with workshop participants.

Ellen Mueller was raised in Fargo, ND and currently lives and works in Tampa, FL. She received a BA in Theatre and Art, and a BS in Design Technology from Bemidji State University. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Studio Art with emphasis on performance at University of South Florida. For more information about recent projects, please visit EllenMueller.com


Audition Details:
Tuesday, January 6, 2009, 7pm – 9pm

University of South Florida
Fine Arts/FAH Room 280
4202 E. Fowler Avenue
Tampa, FL 33620


Instructions:
Wear clothing appropriate for movement. Please bring a headshot, or a snapshot that clearly displays your face. No prepared material is necessary. The audition will consist of movement and improvisation exercises, and may be conducted individually or in groups as the schedule allows. If you have any special talents, musical skills, etc, please be prepared to share them. You will be asked to indicate which of the two workshop dates you are available for, or if you are available for both. To reserve an audition slot, please email Ellen at emmuelle@mail.usf.edu with your availability between 7-9pm on January 6, 2009. If you are interested in the project, but are unavailable on this audition date/time, please feel free to contact Ellen to make alternative arrangements.