>> announcer: production of broad & high is funded in part by the greater columbus arts council, supporting arts, advancing and connecting the community to cultural events, artists & classes at columbusmakesart.com. >> this time on "broad & high."
experience the unconventional architecture of the wexner center through the work of sarah oppenheimer. >> largely the work has evolved in trying to think about how spaces are interconnected and how exchange within interior space operates.
>> and meet a local musician who's bringing the sounds of coal country to columbus. this and more, right now, on "broad & high." !!music@!!!music@! >> welcome back to "broad & high", i'm your host kate quickel.
when the wexner center opened in 1989, it broke all conventional standards of building and museum design. sarah oppenheimer considered the building's unique and sometimes disorienting architectural features for her latest work. we're taught not to touch the
artwork when we visit museums. but not this time. take a look. >> most of the work involved in trying to think about how spaces are interconnected, and how exchange within interior space operates. and this project was
particularly interesting because of the way circulation operates in the building. and the residency allowed me a period of time to consider that problem in great depth in relation to this specific location. >> sarah oppenheimer was
actually a resident for two years, and we usually pick a different artist every year, but this particular circumstance led to two years because it was such a long on going intensive project. there were actually a couple different campus calibrations
which we always love to take advantage of that when we can for these resident projects. her longest term was with department of engineering, mechanical engineering. they had two different professors and a graduate student who all worked with
sarah, and they actually helped her design the pivoting mechanism that is within the piece that actually helps it move. their input was really instrumental. >> my work my generally has a lot of elements that are not
visible to the viewer. so, when you walk into an expedition space, the viewer often imagines begins and ends with what they experience, or with that they see. and in the case of this project, and most of my projects to date, that possible comprehension of,
let's say the total object or the total construction is actually not available to you as a visitor. so the building re-enforcement that had to happen here is actually buried within the floor, or within the wall. in fact some of the building re-
enforcement happens in the basement and has very little to do with the visible foot print of the project. >> she did do quite a bit of manipulation to this gallery, which i am not sure people will necessarily notice right away. >> one thing people who are
familiar with our space may know is that we chopped down this wall. we call it the ramp wall, which divides the ramp from the gallery space. typically this is a high wall, so it allowed you to see the piece as you are walking up the
ramp. which is something that i can't recall us doing for quite some time. so you begin your experience with the work before you even get into the gallery. in addition to that, this wall that we have built in the
middle, that is actually a 45 degree angle to the ramp wall that she is calling out. and then we build out the west wall as well. there is actually quite a bit of dead space back there that allows us to make this more regular space.
this is normally a wedge shape, this allows it to be rectangular, which lets her place off the grid idea. >> a lot of the material selections that are in this work and previous works are taken from standard architectural elements.
so you will notice in this piece that there is a really extended glass box, but because of its thinness we don't experience it as box like. and in the cavity between the double panes is a kind of vacuum space. i was very excited about
thinking about a mechanical detail that would activate that space between the two glazed panes without actually building some kind of capturing frame element around them. the other thing that i was very excited about materially is that possibility of having a kind of
beam system that used -- rather than a obvious signifier of some kind of structural strength, something that in fact indicates likeness or impossibly of that structural strength, and i think glass is really exciting as a material in doing that, because we generally associate with it
frigidly or with a kind of lightness and in this case it has just an extraordinary mass and heaviness to it. there is something that is really fascinating to me about how people seem to want to touch it and then they step back and they watch other people engaging
in touching it. and then there seem to be relationships that start up between people that are not actually together, that there is a kind of shared condition because of the scale of them and because of the height you cant really fully control it as a
singular body. it makes me think of when you walk though a revolving door and you lose that sense of your own body because of the way the door makes you move, and i think there is a really beautiful tension that is created. >> s-337473 by sarah oppenheimer
is on view at the wex through april 16th. and you can see more examples of her work online at sarahoppenheimer.com columbus musician lou poster fronts the local rock band drift mouth. and i love this, on their facebook page, they describe
their music as and i quote-- "antiquated and twisted appalachian murder ballads and backwater tragedies, dragged through a sluice of runoff from the slurry pond and rolled in coal dust." lou comes from coal-country, and he recently shared with us how
his appalachian roots have influenced his songwriting. >> i am from fairmont, west virginia. if you say west virginia, the first thing people think of is what "deliverance," you know what i mean? it's not like that.
it's just not. well, i would consider myself appalachian and i know there are two different pronunciations of that term, but i grew up saying appalachian. i am just writing what is in my head, and what is in my head is the stuff that i have listen to
my whole my life. the basis of that is country and bluegrass music. my father's side of the family came over from italy and immediately went to work in the mines. my great grandfather ended up actually having his own coal
mine called sam poster coal, he had worked for the company for a while and someone put away enough money to buy the mineral right to his property. he and his boys, his four sons worked that mine for years, and my grandfather went into the mines, and was part of the
number nine explosions both in 54 and 68. my father three years after the last number nine disaster when into the mines in 71 and he worked 37 years for the company. there is a certain kind of mind set that you are instilled with, there is a lot of self
responsibly, i guess. there is a lot of self care. basically it is almost like pioneering kind of a thing. there are very few people in that area. i live in a city now that out numbers that state that i left in population.
it took a couple of years to kind of adjust to that, just the overwhelming number of people and the scale of everything. it is just those kinds of things that self reliance that i am only a generation or two removed from that -- coming here sort of made me stand out like a sore
thumb in a way. ya know, i am covered in grease because i worked on my car, i am fixing anything and everything for my friends. it came down to way i play music. i put out my own record, i had my own record label.
i ran my own bar, i bought two music venues and ran them, so that my friends would have a place to play their music, and to create a space for what i saw as the art of this area, which is influenced by people from where i am from. you meet these people who are
also kind of misfits in their rural towns and we have kind of kind found each other here. ya know? yeah, we might be a little quicker to act, we might whiskey a little bit more than the next guy, we might be a little louder than everyone else, but ya know,
it doesn't mean that we are not good people, we were just raised differently. that is one of things i try to do with my music is to tell the story of where i am from to make it a little less mysterious and shine a light on the fact that we are all just kind of doing
the same thing here. we all fall in love, we all know people who are addicted to something, we all know people who are lost in their jobs or careers or their own minds or whatever. and so, we try to tell those stories.
i have lived here now a year longer then i lived in west so i have just reached this tipping point where ya know, i still say that i am from west virginia when people ask me. but this has become a home for me. you gotta know the shape i am
in !!music@! you hang on arm of a lesser man !!music@! it's too late to say im sorry !!music@! truth be told-- !!music@! >> follow drift mouth on facebook to learn where they're playing around town. and you can sample more of their
music on their bandcamp site. >> for this part of town. >> there's a woodshop in rochester, new york that is also a ministry. it originally opened in the late 1960s to offset the civil unrest in the city as a result of the race riots.
and 50 years later, it is still changing young lives. the teens in this woodshop are building not just furniture, but also character. >> it's fun looking for stuff like this. this is something that i did with my dad when i was little.
>> it is not rare to find james smith cruising down the streets of rochester searching for tossed out or soon to be forgotten house hold items. >> i'm looking for hard wood furniture, things that can be repaired that doesn't have too much damage or water rot in it,
mold. i can see down here, see a lot of this is veneer. you see the veneer on here? >> but for james, saving and rebuilding the tossed out and forgotten, .mere curbside throw-aways, is about much more than furniture.
>> they get so much of your never gonna be anything, you're never gonna amount to anything, and no one takes that extra effort to say you can do that. you can be that. >> james is referring to these kids and the many who came before them here at a place
called saint michael's woodshop. >> i never thought that this is something that would really take on because i'm a girl and when i tell people they're like, a woodshop? a girl? and i'm like, yeah. >> make no mistakes, woodworking
in this era is a gender-neutral job. and young woodworkers like saamaiyaa muhammad are quick to point that out. >> i've made nativity sets, like that with little angels and hearts and stuff like bird houses, jewelry boxes, little
chest cases that you can put stuff in, board games. >> you could call this woodshop a quiet force in the community with a strong team of volunteers who keep the operation running. this after-school and summer work program is for high school students.
michael's james, the executive director of st. michael's woodshop says there is a stipulation, teens who apply or get referred must be in need of a little sanding, as opposed to those who are already polished. >> we don't want you to be a perfect student because we want
to mold you, we want to help you build character, so we try not to take perfect students. we want fork of the road, where we can kind of, build and work with you. i was a troubled teen, i've been on the streets. i've been in prison.
i've done all of the things that these kids will avoid, hopefully. this is why i feel like i'm in the position to help them avoid those tracks. >> when i first came here i wasn't a bad kid. but i never took anything
seriously. he basically pulled me aside one time and he just set everything straight. saying that playing around all the time won't get me too far. i took that to heart, and basically bettered my ways from that.
>> operating for nearly 50 years, st. michael's woodshop is still fulfilling the mission of its founder -- the late sister patricia flynn of the sisters of mercy. flynn saw the program as a way to offset the civil unrest in the city after the race riots of
the 1960s. it was a way to bring together at risk teens and help them learn a skill, gain work experience and develop a mutual care for others. >> you see the woodshop and you see all the woodworking, but the main focus of this ministry is
the life and character skills. >> we learned about how to budget our money. like if my mom needed something, like ten dollars, i would give it to her, because i know how it is. i did a paper about how it's hard, and you gotta pay bills.
>> we're learning slowly how to be adults, how to be mature about things. and how to understand how the world works. it's not only us coming in and he's putting a project in front of us and saying "here, now go do it."
it's not like school. it's teaching us how to be young adults. and it's teaching us how to have respect for people. >> there's a shared sentiment among james, the young woodworkers, and the faithful volunteers.
st. michael's woodshop is a family. rebuilding dreams and redirecting young lives. >> there's so much violence. there's drugs. there's peer pressure. there's bullying. there's all of these elements
they have to deal with, they don't know when it's coming or where it's coming from. here, they know that they're safe. >> we're building, we're becoming great. and the more kids we can get in, the better things will be.
>> learn more about st.michael's woodshop by visiting their website or follow them on facebook. our next segment introduces you to a ballet couple in kansas city, who actually have passed through columbus earlier in their careers to dance with
ballet matt, but now, they teach young dancers the riggers and discipline of the art form. >> these kids, some of them come two hours before class even starts, and not because their moms are like, "oh, i need to go somewhere else. i got to drop you off early."
but, because they want to be here. they are dedicated. >> now, we are going to do it together. so, nigel has to keep up. >> and three, quicker legs. and close, four. i just think juan and stephanie
attract people who really want to come here and work. it's not neccesarily a social outlet for them. i mean, they can do social outlet elsewhere. >> slow. allow the machine to help you to feel the muscles.
>> what they won't find anywhere nearby at least, is an array of pilates and gyrotonic machines pretty as sculptures, designed to help dancers and regular folks alike, rehab injuries and gain better body control. the couple had all ready been using some in a small business
based out of their home. until about five years ago, they decided to up the ante and open a school of their own. stephanie remembers the first time they spotted this somewhat unexpected location. >> we drove into downtown oakland park.
there was one parking spot and it was right outside this building, and a big sign that said for sale. lll and we peaked in the window, and at that point, we didn't realize how big the space was or what it could potentially turn into.
>> one of the things i have always said is that i could never teach for recreational purpose. so, if we were going to get involved in a ballet school, i wanted the ballet school to be professional. so, this is no favor.
this is not about finances. it is about art, and the kids are good. they have to say where they are. we have parents that have been with us since we started school, and they see this progress in their kids, and they are fasinated by it.
how serious the kids are taking what they do, even though that they are very young. how -- what we teach them here in the classroom, they are able to take it into everyday activities. >> we've had many years teaching experience, and over those
years, we've kind of developed this process that we feel really works for the kids. it's a real tough love situation. they know we love them and care about them and want them to be their best, but we expect them to work at 100 percent all the
with the exeption of if they are injured or sick or having a bad day. one of the benefits of being a dancer and having had so many ailments, pains and aches as i can relate to almost everything someone says. you know, a child comes to me
and says, "my tendon is really sore." i know exactly how they are feeling and i sometimes can help them to feel better. >> now offering six levels of instruction in a complex that is larger than it looks from outside, it's hard to believe
the kscb started with only three students enrolled. >> when they opened up, we came here and followed them over and haven't looked back. >> julie horton's oldest son riley was one of that orginal trio. he's now studying and working
with the houston ballet. at 15, her younger son conner aspires to do much the same. >> this is maybe where we spend more of our waking hours than we do at our house. we are very grateful. i don't think every ballet school feels like family, but
this really does. >> it's a family where language isn't much of a barrier. like many columbian kids, one grew up admist great poverty. he credits incoballet, the school he attended in cauca with literally changing his life. so now each summer, students
from south america arrive in johnson county to spend several weeks taking classes and training on the kind of equipment they might not other5wise have access to. >> he was in their shoes and look where he is now and look at our studio and look at his
career and it gives them inspiration that maybe they can do that too. >> it's the best part of the summer when the columbians come and they have no idea what i'm saying and i have no idea what they are saying, but you know that's the great thing about
dance is that you don't neccesarrily have to talk. >> aye, aye, aye. traffic problems here. it transforms this studio into something different. which is what, i think is so special about it for our home kids.
um -- you know, this studio becomes an international dance studio. it's an amazing experience. it really is. !!music@! >> every year, more and more kids from columbia have been able to participate.
but monica guerrero has been involved all along. she's known juan for decades. now, her duties include both training the schools instructors and fine tuning it's curriculum. >> every time i come, i learn something. and i always learn something
from him. he thinks that i'm giving something to the school but i think the other way. >> lets do plie as we close. so don't close. first plie. >> when he's working, those boys and girls will have great
opportunities in their bodies. but they don't have the opportunities economically. >> that's totally true with him. if it was up to juan, everyone would go free. so he -- yeah, that really would be his goal.
>> in fact, 30 percent of the kansas school of classical ballet students attend on scholarship. juan calls it giving back. that also describes "let's move," a new project recently undertaken with kvc hospitals. it brings basic dance training
to troubled youths at a residential treatment facility in kck. >> you know, they're excited for something new and it's a place for them to get away from the chaos that they're in. to walk in there and be able to not think about anything else
for a little while but how to move my body and what's going on. >> when you're there, you see these kids smiling. you see these kids playing, being creative. feeling comfortable in their own skin.
to be able, as a person to provide that, it is a privilege. >> community support has nurtured this program specifically and the school's quest for excellence in general. but it's hard to picture so much growth in such a short time if it weren't for the creative
couple at it's core. >> as much as i'm saying that we've been for 20 years together, i actually think, if we were an average couple, we've been together for 40, right? because we live together; we work together. everything has been together.
but she's an incredible partner. i think that she's one of the best teachers i know. she's a very smart lady; she married right. >> that's our show! you can find all of our stories at wosu.org and be sure to check us out on facebook, twitter and instagram.
we're taking you out today with more sounds from drift mouth. thanks for watching. we'll see you next week on broad & high. >> production of broad & high is funded in part by the greater columbus arts council, supporting arts, advancing and
connecting the community to cultural events, artists & classes at columbusmakesart.com.