tourism

Culture House in Buenos Aires

Holly Simon — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 15:04:18 -0500

Another quick note from South America: I found a culture house in Buenos Aires, care of Lonely Planet and confirmed by a hip, young porteña (local woman) walking her dog. It´s called El Catedral. If you were every lucky enough to go to The Night Gallery in Calgary, then you´d love this place. It’s located in a warehouse just outside of the centre of Buenos Aires. It’s cavernous filled with art and eclectic furniture with gigantic chandeliers with red lights, vegetarian food, and a big dance floor. We drank the local beer, Quilmes, and watched stylish, young couples do a sensuous tango lesson. It was mesmerizing… Check out the photos on this website. I hope the link works! read more »

Chillin´ in Chile

Holly Simon — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 14:42:48 -0500

Writing on location from Curico, Chile. It´s a small city two hours south of the capital, Santiago. Curico is not unlike the Okanagan, surrounded by vineyards and orchards. (The wine is cheap and delicious… and so is the fruit.) It´s spring here: the sun is shining and I´ve slathered sunscreen all over my fair skin. I´m staying with a visual artist whom I met several years ago when studying art in Spain. She has regular exhibitions and teaches art and yoga by day (not at the same time). I´m here on vacation but our work at Calgary Arts Development never escapes me. There´s nothing like a trip to South America to offer some perspective on development in general… read more »

Calgary music meets Toronto!

Erica Mattson — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 23:57:34 -0500

Major music happenings have occupied my thoughts lately. Richard Branson strode into town awhile back on a crazy horse-drawn carriage to kick up a big fuss about the Virgin Festival coming to Calgary this June (right around the time of Sled Island and followed by the Calgary Folk Music Festival). Michael Green, Blake Brooker and the rest of the team at One Yellow Rabbit Performance Theatre announced January's sizzling High Performance Rodeo line-up - there are some fantastic music events including a new arrangement of Tubular Bells, presented in collaboration with Alberta Ballet and Honens.`And of course, the 2008 JUNO Awards are coming to Calgary this April! read more »

Re-Inventing TV

Holly Simon — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 02:10:13 -0400

Over and above back-to-back arts events for 11 weeks straight... I find myself in a particularly exciting week book ended by me in a bumble bee suit at the Grave Gala and a flight to Buenos Aires. In between, I had a flash adventure in Regina, Saskatchewan, for the 22nd Gemini Awards. (I hardly even watch television. When I do watch, I watch The Hour or Corner Gas.) I had a line on good seats through a friend and I couldn't say no...

I've seen the Gemini Awards now and again but this was obviously different. If you know George Stroumboulopoulos and The Hour, you'll not be surprised that he and some of his team re-invented the Gemini awards this year.* As soon as the show went live on the air at 5 o'clock, the energy in the room spiked. George was his usual attentive, humorous and provocative self. Somehow, a show about television, became about relevancy and response to the Canadian condition. The humour became a little more real. (I hope you saw the "Saskatchewan IS flat" skit - not the correct title - written by Paul Bates, I think.) This was the first Gemini Awards that was open to the public (which hopefully foreshadows the open and transparent future of Canada). The day ended with a party in the (haunted) Hotel Saskatchewan lobby with a crowd of young and smart Canadian television makers. Besides feeling a little star-struck, I'm reminded of the constructive threat our generation provides to the status quo.

I'm excited for the Juno Awards in Calgary, April 2008!! Let's break the Calgary music scene wide open to the world. Music lives here!

P.S. Many thanks to George and his friends for the hospitality.

*My knowledge of the whole Gemini's production is limited.

Ad-Hoc Art Tour of Eastern Canada

Holly Simon — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 12:49:25 -0400

I usually make a yearly trip to my childhood home of Summerside, PEI, taking in as much arts and culture as I can manage between beach trips and card games. This trip, ending last week, reminded me again of what a small art town Canada is... read more »

The romance continues...

Erica Mattson — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 12:00:01 -0400

We were thrilled to see yet another article about Calgary's arts scene pop up in the Sunday edition of the New York Times this week. Read it online: "Calgary Exchanges its Cowboy Duds for a Tuxedo."

This article appeared in the travel section and notes our "diverse entertainment options and an expanding museum scene" as draws for visitors and artists alike: "Some of the biggest creative names in Canada are choosing to introduce their new works in Calgary." Like previous articles in the NY Times, this one is sure to spark the curiousity of visitors from all over the world. read more »