Art is all around us and you can find it in the most unexpected of places. There's the art of Damascus steel, the art of emerging from the darkness of a subway into the light of day, the art of theme and variation, knife blades, trumpet playing, and, guess what? We'll cover all those and more for you today on the show. First up, Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art curator Cora Fischer and New York-based artist Neil Goldberg open our eyes to all kinds of intimate artistic opportunities in Neil's multi-media Anthology. Did you know the Triad is home to one of the finest trumpet players in the country? Yep, her name is Anita Cirba, and I'm not just blowing hot air—she's here with trumpet and the Carnival of Venice in hand to show you. I'll give you a hint how she does it: hours and hours of tireless practice, loads of dedication, and just not taking “no” for an answer. That's the same recipe for beautiful Damascus steel knife-blade- making, and we'll chat with a devoted blacksmith whose journey from auto repair to the art of the blade is pretty inspiring stuff. John Hege feels like a fire god—and as well he should.
 
SECCA and Neil Goldberg: An Anthology
Sometimes it just takes a heightened awareness to recognize art or artistic moments that are going on all around us, often times in places you might not expect. When we're open to artistic possibilities, the way the wind from a passing train sets someone's hair in motion, or the look of breath on a mirror become moments to savor. Artist Neil Goldberg has been appreciating those moments and creating his own for years. Neil's video, photo and mixed media work has been exhibited at venues throughout Europe and across the country including The Museum of Modern Art's permanent collection in New York. In 2013 his video, Surfacing appeared simultaneously on multiple digital signs in Times Square in New York City. In it dozens of people are filmed as they emerge from the NY subway system. You can see Surfacing and much more at the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art's Neil Goldberg: Anthology in Winston-Salem. The exhibit explores three aspects of Neil's art, focusing on the fleeting, overlooked and personal aspects of daily experience using video, photography and objects of the last 15 years.
 
Anthology debuts Ten-and-a-Half Years of To-Dos (2014), a five-channel audio-visual installation in which five shirtless young men in the film sit in an enormous tree reading 10 and a half years of Neil's To-Do lists. Neil walked me through the exhibition along with SECCA Curator of Contemporary Art Cora Fischer. Neil Goldberg: Anthology will remain on display at SECCA through October 5th. This SECCA exhibit, like just about all SECCA exhibits, is free and open to the public.
 
 
Trumpeter Anita Cirba
The Salem Band formed back in 1771 performs outdoors in the beautiful, shaded confines of Salem Square practically year round. They're led by Music Director, and Winston-Salem Symphony Bass Clarinetist, Eileen Young. Last week Eileen and the band were joined by outstanding guest soloist Winston-Salem and Greensboro Symphony principal trumpeter Anita Cirba. Anita performed Leroy Anderson's “Trumpeter's Lullaby” and also on the program the challenging variations on the folk tune Carnival of Venice. The performance like most Salem Band concerts took place in Salem Square. The outdoor concerts are free and open to the public.
 
John Hege and North Carolina Knifemakers Guild
 
They were our ancestor's first tools, one of the oldest forms of art, among the first family heirlooms, and essential for early man's survival: knives. On September 13th & 14th, some of the finest old world craftsmen from the U.S. and Canada will gather with their handmade knives at the Southeastern Custom Knife Show, held in the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem. Incredible examples of blacksmithing skill acquired over decades of intensive training will be on display and for sale at the Benton Convention Center in downtown Winston-Salem. After years as a successful auto mechanic, North Carolina Knifemakers Guild and American Bladesmiths Society member, John Hege caught the Damascus steel blade bug, left the auto world and never looked back. He got the bug courtesy of NC Knife Guild member and Show Founder, Tommy McNabb.

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