At Heights Arts we are taking some deep breaths this month after an incredibly busy and rewarding November, December, and January. Since October we have had the Phoenix Coffee Pumpkin Party; the Holiday Store; Tommy’s New Year’s Day Pancake Breakfast; poetry workshops with Lou Suarez and Mary Weems; Sounds and Senses, a poetry and music extravaganza; Heights Frights, a chamber music concert; and started classes for children and adults at the library. Then, when most sane people would take a break, we opened two shows simultaneously on January 13, when Lee Road was paved with art from the gallery at 2173 to the library at 2340.

Mostly I am looking back at the past few months and feeling gratitude because, believe me, with a staff of 3 part-time people all of our activities would be impossible without Heights Arts Board of Trustees; the Gallery, Heights Writes, and Chamber Music committees; and 100+ volunteers who share our vision.

So first let me thank our staff, Greta De Meyer and Elisa Meadows ! (applause, applause) Underpaid, overworked, but having fun and believing in what they are doing and doing it very well. Staff is tiny in numbers but huge in ability and heart.

And thank you to our paid docents, who staff the galleries at times that volunteers are unavailable: Susan Prendergast, Erica Anderson, Robin Latkovich, and Mike Corbin.

Special gratitude goes to departing founding Board members Sharon Grossman and Susan Miller, who are rotating off the board. And to founding member Steve Presser, who quietly slipped away to make Big Fun bigger mid-year.

The pancake breakfast wouldn’t have been nearly as colorful and fun without the Flower Clown, who has been donating his balloon art talents to the event for 7 years !

And finally cheers, applause, flowers and candy to 70+ volunteers who worked anywhere from 3 to 30 hours at the Holiday Store for a total of 350 hours. At the new minimum wage, the value of that is more than $2500 and to us it is priceless. Who are these wonderful people ???? Todd Anderson, Debbie Apple Presser, Pam Argentieri, Kris Barnes, Hillary Bober, David Brichford, Gail Broughton, Gayle Burdick, Ann Caywood Brown, Catherine Butler, Janet Century, Eileen Coan, Rosey Coburn, Wendy Collin Sorin, Greg Donley, E.B. Donley, Gene Epstein, Jeff Erdie, Betsy Fallon, Mary Kay Ferguson, Mark Finkenbine, Susan Gallagher, Joann Giordano, Jane Godfrey, Zack Gorell, Marge Grevatt, Sharon Grossman, John Gulyas, Chris Henry, Nadelane Joseph, Don Killeen, Margaret Kimura, Jan Kious, Anne Kmieck, Jean Kubota Cassill, Shelli Lurie, Nancy Markham, Tobi Mattes, Marilyn Meadows, Shannon Morris, Helene Morse, Lynn O’Brien, Colleen Olson, Dwight Olson, John Panza, Robin Pease Kerr, Quandle Qadir, Bob Raack, Pam Raack, Sondra Radcliffe, Jeanne Regan, Susan Roberts, Michael Romanik, Debra Rosen, George Rosenberg, Ruth Rosenberg, Pat Schneider, Beth Sersig, Susan Skove, Steve Sorin, Susan Squires, Jane Takac Panza, Anne Taylor, Vivian Vail, Vicki Victoria, Roger Warner, Shelley Wilcox, Jane Wood, Marty Young, and Paula Zinsmeister.

Gratefully,
Peggy Spaeth, Director

pictured: Ron the Flower Clown photographed by Herb Ascherman as seen in the '2006's Most Odd & Interesting People of Cleveland' at Western Reserve Historical Society.

Great Sextets SOLD OUT You may have missed out on Great Sextets, which is sold out, but tickets are now being offered for the next intimate chamber music concert, For Mothers and Others, Sunday, May 13, a matinee.

For reservations, call 216.371.3344.
Bring your mother, or another’s mother, or any other.

NEO Latino will be featured on WVIZ's Applause with artist and curator Salvador Gonzalez and Heights Arts Gallery Manager Elisa Meadows on the following dates:

Thursday, February 1, 7:30 pm
Saturday, February 3, 6:30 pm
Sunday, February 4, 1 pm

Or come see the show for yourself at Heights Arts Gallery, 2173 Lee Road:
Sundays 1 to 5
Wednesday thru Saturday noon to 9 p.m.
Through February 24

Tri-C Print Club: Multiples/ Works on Paper

Opening Reception Thursday, February 1, 6-8pm
through February 28

Loganberry Books Annex Gallery
13015 Larchmere Boulevard, Shaker Heights
216.795.9800 or harriett@logan.com

The Tri-C Print Club includes experienced artists who have been creating prints for many years as well as students who have recently discovered this exciting and challenging medium. These original prints have all been hand pulled by the artists. Come meet the artists at the opening reception and see what they've created! Artists include: Ron Walsh, Barbara Stanford, Roberta Salo, Jodi Waskinski, Melanie Batelann, Mary Bouk, Jennie Dillingham, Suzanne Dillingham, Rose Gaier, Susan Gibbs, Barbara Eisenberg, Maria Kaiser, Abbey Hallenstein, Joyce Logan, Lilianne Gershenovich, William Johnson, Jeff Quinn, Lynn Koerner, Rozalind Sigel, Nijole Palubinskas, Ruther Stone and Morris Schlechter.

in 90 minutes Art and Music Night II

The History of Western Art (with music) in 90 Minutes!
an overview of Western art through the ages with slides, live choral and keyboard music, and commentary by Anne Wilson, director of music at Forest Hill Church and docent-in-training at the Cleveland Museum of Art

Friday, February 2 at 7:30 PM (Groundhog Day!)
Forest Hill Church
3031 Monticello at Lee, Cleveland Heights

Free
216-321-2660 (church office) or acwping@adelphia.net

Luna Negra Dance Theater
Saturday, February 3 at 8 p.m.
Ohio Theater, Playhouse Square

Presented by DanceCleveland

Special Heights Arts discount (tickets at $11-$32) if you call before Tuesday midnight:
440-914-0744 or skeyes@dancecleveland.org

Formed in 1999 by Cuban born Eduardo Vilaro, this ensemble is dedicated to performing contemporary dance created by Latino choreographers.

Handel FIREWORKS
Conducted by Music Director Jeannette Sorrell, the program features virtuoso brass and timpani, period-instrument string and wind performers from across the nation and the acclaimed Apollo’s Singers. Vocal soloists are sopranos Kiera Duffy and Sandra Simon, mezzo-soprano Margaret Bragle, and tenor Scott Mello.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
2747 Fairmount Boulevard, Cleveland Heights
(216) 320-0012 or (800) 314-2535.

Friday, February 2, and Saturday, February 3, 8:00pm:
Free pre-concert lectures by Matthew Bassett begin one hour before the performances
Tickets: $40, $30 and $20, with discounts for seniors and students in some sections.

Family Concert
Saturday, February 3, 3:00pm:
$5.00

more information and other concert venues

A Poetry Workshop with Katie Daley Tuesday, February 13, 7 p.m.
Heights Arts at the Library
2340 Lee Road

Registration $10 by Feb. 9
216.371.3344 or heightsarts@heightsarts.org

Transforming Abstractions into Heart-Pounding, Glass-Breaking, Feelable Things

Using an unusual writing exercise, we will bring mind-numbing abstractions like freedom, frustration, war and love to their knees and get them to crawl across the page till they bleed with real life and raise the hair on the backs of your readers’ necks. After we have the raw materials on the page, we’ll work on chiseling and distilling them down to poems, then play with them in a workshop format for fine-tuning.

This workshop is for all kinds of writers—beginners and pros, poets and novelists and writers who don’t even know yet that they’re writers. Bring pencils or pens, paper, and a willingness to write down whatever wild thing comes through you.

One of a series of poetry workshops and events presented by Heights Writes

Rene Culler will be conducting glassblowing classes in both fundamentals and advanced techniques beginning on February 10th. Glass and tools are supplied.
216-851-5149 or rene@reneculler.com for details.

The course for beginners includes instruction on the safe handling of the material, and a solid foundation in skill building. Students can expect to make paper weights, cups, and bowls.

Advanced lessons are geared for the abilities of the students, as skills are polished and exciting Italian/Murano -style techniques are introduced.

Culler, of CH, has her MFA and BFA in Glass and teaches internationally. Her blown and cast work is in the collection of the Corning Museum of Glass and the Smithsonian. She will return to teach at the Glass Furnace in Istanbul, Turkey in July.

Vote here

Many of our favorite PARTY in the Heights performers are in the running....Susan Weber, Rob Williams, Norm Tishler, Jackie Warren, The Prayer Warriors, Robert Ocasio's Latin Jazz Project. Your vote counts !

pictured: Susan Weber

Become a member of Heights Arts with a tax-deductible contribution