Boys of Summer

I ran into this group of young men on a Saturday walk in the Fondren neighborhood of Jackson. Each and every one of the guys could do flips and back handsprings. It was a beautiful sight to see!

Meeting these young men reminded me of my own childhood and the ways my brothers and I filled our long summer Saturdays. I was a mud pie gal, myself. My brothers, on the other hand, had machetes and would carve trails through the dense cane thickets near our rural home. It makes me think a bit about the way we "play" here in Mississippi. What are some of the folk traditions in our state that serve as ways to play? Would we consider games like "Red Rover" a folk tradition? Surely mud pies fall into the folk! What about clover necklaces and catching lightening bugs? Do you have any to add?

One Night Only!

Creative Economy Summit

The MAC has been in partnership with the Mississippi Development Authority for quite some time on a very big project: an all encompassing study of the creative economy in Mississippi. Such a study is quite an undertaking and it took lots of brain power and research to explore the vast creative jobs and industries based here in the Magnolia State. Last week, we unveiled the study and its revealing results to a knock-out crowd at the Jackson Convention Center. We heard about the importance of creative jobs in the information age from Governor Barbour and our hopes for new, creative industries were increased by the words of Mary Peavey. MAC directory Malcolm White mapped out the creative nooks and crannies of our landscape and helped us all to better understand the true creative goldmine that is Mississippi.

The attendees were engaged, excited and diverse: The Creative Economy Summit was not a place for a free boxed lunch and a day away from the computer. It was truly a moment of enlightenment, of hope and inspiration. Attendees experienced an intense "speed dating" session of varied creative economy topics, in-depth break-out sessions and an all encompassing panel discussion on best practices for growing the creative economy in your community.

At the end of the day, everyone in attendance was asking for more. The presenters, the attendees, the staff and the artists... everyone wanted more of the enrichment that only a creative economy can bring: One that nourishes the soul and pads the pocket book.

Go here to listen to Governor Barbour talk about the "creative assets" of our state.

Go here to download the full Creative Economy study.

In the meantime, a few facts:

• In Mississippi the relative concentration of people employed in all creative enterprises was 32 percent higher than Alabama, 15 percent higher than Kentucky, 14 percent higher than South Dakota and 54 percent higher than west Virginia.



• 60,704 people are employed in Mississippi's creative economy, including both employees of creative companies (ie: Viking Range) and employees of other companies who work in creative occupations (ie: graphic designers).



• Mississippi's creative enterprises (ie: McCarty Pottery) are responsible for the employment of 40,284 people in just under 3,000 establishments with almost one in three of these people 9,580-- working in a creative occupation.

Arts Service at its Best

Congratulations to MAC staffers Lee Powell and Shirley Smith on their dedicated service to the arts. In July 2011, Lee marked 10 years at the MAC and Shirley marked 25 years at the MAC. The day-to-day operations of this agency rely on the experience and expertise of these two bright women and we are very proud to call them our own. Congratulations, Lee and Shirley, and thank you for all you do for the arts in Mississippi.

Malcolm presents Lee with her award certificate from Governor Barbour.
Malcolm and Shirley stop for a smile in the MAC conference room. Thanks for 25 years, Shirley!

Folk Arts Apprenticeship Site Visit

I decided to take the heat to another level this morning during a site visit to the blacksmith shop at the Mississippi Agricultural & Forrestry Museum. Master blacksmith Bill Pevey and his apprentice Butch Hand were wrapping up a few final lessons to complete the year-long MAC Folk Arts Apprenticeship program. The coal fire was blazing upon my arrival, and Butch was forging steel as Bill was laying out several of the tools that the two crafted during the apprenticeship. To see the full collection of their work from the apprenticeship, make sure to visit us here at the MAC offices on Thursday, August 4 from 2-4 p.m. for the Folk Arts Apprenticeship Gallery Reception. We'll have metal arts and quilts on display in the gallery. We'll also experience a peformance by the Irish dance apprenticeship, featuring master artist Catherine Sherer Bishop and apprentice Tavia Ethredge.

Butch and Bill at their stations in the blacksmith shop.

The nucleus: coal.

Butch heats the steel until it is hot enough to be shaped.

Butch begins the lengthening process by hammering the hot steel.

Bill steps in to supervise.

A few of the finished products from the Folk Arts Apprenticeship program include: hammers, knives, forks, spoons and various blacksmithing tools.

Mississippi Cultural Crossroads

The 2011 Summer Interns from Mississippi Cultural Crossroads in Port Gibson visited the MAC offices on July 11 during a field trip to Jackson. The students came to learn more about the arts in state government, and to see the work of fellow Port Gibson resident, quilter Tammy McGrew. Pictured from Left to Right: Mississippi Cultural Crossroads Director Tara Wren, Brianna S. Wren, Jarrius Brandon, Jarvis Sims, Dabreona Monroe, Wally Curry and Tamara Bell. We wish these students the best of luck and a bright future in the arts as they enter the upcoming fall semester!

Grassroots Blues Festival

The 9th Annual Grassroots Blues Festival in Duck Hill got started around noon this past Saturday, July 9. I traveled north on Highway 55 and took the Duck Hill exit, immediately sighing a breath of releif to be cruising up and down rural Highway 404through the lush, green hills of Montgomery County. Upon arrival, I met the most friendly folks. The people working the gates were happy to see me and knew I was coming to see all the good things taking place in their small community of 750 folks. The MAC's own Larry Morrisey was backing up bluesman Louis Arzo "Gearshifter" Youngblood on drums, where they wrapped the set with a soulful "Happy Birthday" for festival organizer Al White. Al is the director of Action Communication and Education Reform, an arts and social activism organization he spearheaded in the early 1990s. (Learn more about Al and his organization by downloading my Mississippi Arts Hour interview on podcast.)

Excellent music continued throughout the day, including a set from duo Alphonso Sanders and Bill "Howlin' Madd" Perry, both artists on the MAC's Artist Roster. I was especially excited to see that Bill's daughter has joined the band and was jiving on keys.





The unexpected favorite for me, however, was a group out of Baton Rouge: Leroy Conish and Band featuring Nicole Jackson. This group offered a smooth, soul blues sound and Nickee was on fire: This lady was built to perform. No two ways about it!



Last, but certainly not least, there was good food everywhere. Lots of the festival-goers brought their own grills, but vendors were there providing foodways for folks like me who left the grill at home. I bought a gallon zip-lock bag of freshly made pork skins and MAC PR director, Susan Dobbs, opted for the fried catfish plate.

In my opinion, the only way to beat the heat in Mississippi in July, is to lather on the blues and soak up the fried food!