Green Valley Inc is a non-profit organization based in Kamiyama, Tokushima, Japan.

Founded:
2004 (its previous incarnation, the Kamiyama International Exchange Association was founded in 1992)

Mission:
Our mission is to solve regional problems with arts and culture, and to build a self-sustaining and economically independent community.

Vision:
We want to take the strength and wisdom of the local people and people who come together here from all over Japan and the world, and turn our little corner of Shikoku into an exciting, creative place, a place we call “Global Kamiyama”. We hope that our work here will impact Japanese society, changing how people work and live in Japan’s rural areas.

‘The other day I came across another such idea, one I hadn’t heard before. It’s called The Peter Principle, was first described by Dr Laurence Peter in 1969, and states that in a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence. Basically, the principle states that people get rewarded for things they can do well by being promoted to the point at which they’re doing something they can’t do well. At that point the promotion stops, and there they stay.’:

http://imomus.livejournal.com/503455.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Principle

Benesse Art Site Naoshima, managed by Benesse Corporation and Naoshima Fukutake Museums Foundation, is a collective term for the art activities that extend throughout the entire Seto Inland area, with Naoshima Island as its centre. Their aim is to become a guidepost to understanding what it means to ‘live well’ (benesse). Currently, Benesse House, Art House Project and Chichu Art Museum are open to the public.

Envisioned by the late Komal Kothari, one of India’s leading folklorists and oral historians, the Arna-Jharna Museum can be described as a process of interactive learning experiences linked to traditional knowledge systems.

http://www.arnajharna.org/English/default.aspx

Mischief La-Bas

Welcome to the world of Mischief La-Bas, a performance company specialising in interactive comedy, walkabout characters, corporate event entertainment and outdoor theatre. For over 15 years, they have devoted themselves to ‘gently warping the underlay of the fabric of society’.

The Hurty Gurty Man

Occasionally over the years, Ian Smith has inflicted his singing on the public in a variety of guises, from ersatz pop singer to faux crooner. In this instance however, he wishes to return to street level, whether you like it or not. Subverting the jolly image of the Organ Grinder by croaking out inappropriate chansons of doom and despair, he will ignore his plague-ridden minkey and vehemently refuse your money. Musicians Andy Frizell and La Chunky agreed to prepare his organ.

http://www.mischieflabas.co.uk/

Scott Walker version of Angels of Ashes:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Walker_(singer)

Really beautiful song that I’d never heard until Ian’s lovely rendition during the Merchant City Festival. I’d be interested in learning more about the song and will look into this further. In the meantime though I found interesting parallels between Lorraine Lamond’s stained glass work and Chagall – see video and link below.

http://lorrainelamond.wordpress.com

Had the pleasure of filming Lorraine Lamond a few weeks ago, on the completion of her latest stained glass commission for St Alphonsus Church, Calton, Glasgow. We filmed on five levels of scaffolding as far as we could go, luckily we didn’t have an aversion to heights. Mark Campbell (http://whitehouseglasgow.blogspot.com/) was instrumental in arranging this opportunity as well as assisting in the interview. I’ve edited about 15 minutes of film of Lorraine explaining the background to this commission, which spans approx 23 years, going back to the first section – The Beatitudes ‘Rose Window’ from 1996.

The opportunity to view Lorraine’s work close up was a real treat which I made the most of, taking as many close up photographs as possible (approx 300). This work, which is truly stunning in my opinion, will be unveiled to the public in November. We’re also working on a collaboration with Glasgow Museums – St Mungo Museum of Religious Life & Art for 2010 to increase awareness of Lorraine’s work.

JF

‘Open Glasgow’
Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art is please to announce the new, open submission initiative for 2010 called ‘Open Glasgow’. ‘Open Glasgow’ is funded by the Scottish Arts Council, and aims to discover ambitious and imaginative artists’ projects, conceived specifically for the city during Festival time.

This fund is only available to artists currently based in or have been educated in Scotland.

For Full details please download the full ‘Open Glasgow’ Guideline and Application form.

http://www.glasgowinternational.org/