• Article

    126 ideas advance in first Knight Cities Challenge

    Published January 12, 2015 by

    How do you choose 126 good ideas for cities from the more than 7,000 proposals submitted to the first Knight Cities Challenge? It wasn’t easy.  But, as of today, we’ve asked 126 happy finalists to submit final applications in three weeks with more details about their ideas. It’s an exciting time for them but also for us at Knight Foundation. It is a privilege to meet so many people who are passionate about their communities and who are working to make them better. Soon, we’ll have plans and budgets and bios that we and our reviewers will pore over to make the even tougher decision about which applicants become Knight Cities Challenge winners. Each of the 26 Knight communities had at least one applicant named as a finalist, and Detroit had the largest number of applicants: 1,365! Detroit also had the largest number of finalists: 25.
  • Article

    Emily Myerscough: Reflections from the Swamp

    Published January 12, 2015 by

    By Emily Myerscough, AIRIE resident The most enduring characteristic of the Everglades seems to be their resistance to being characterized, a theme that came up again and again during the course of my December AIRIE residency, photographing and conducting research in Everglades National Park. As a native Floridian, I'd driven...
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    Extraordinary poetry events and BALLET’S CHILD at the 11th Annual Palm Beach Poetry Festival January 19-24

    Published January 12, 2015 by

    By Susan R. Williamson, Director, 11th Annual Palm Beach Poetry Festival The 11th Annual Palm Beach Poetry Festival returns January 19-24. Tickets are on sale for evening readings and performances, interviews, afternoon talks, and a special dance-poetry event, Ballet’s Child, along with the Beloved and Influential Poems Panel moderated by...
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    Let’s get the 2015 art party started

    Published January 9, 2015 by

    Charley Friedman's 'Looking at the Sun' at Gallery Diet. Tonight will be as good night as any to kickstart the new year with art, and two of our more interesting galleries will help out. Gallery Diet starts off 2015 with a solo exhibit from Charley Friedman,...
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    Cultural groups large and small receive funding in Charlotte

    Published January 9, 2015 by

    This week, Knight Foundation is celebrating the arts in Charlotte. I’m excited to join Dennis Scholl, Knight’s vice president for arts, in recognizing those organizations – large and small – receiving a combined $1 million in Knight funding as they continue to make Charlotte such a great place to live, work and play. With Patricia McBride’s recent Kennedy Center Honors, the spotlight has been on Charlotte Ballet. What a thrill to see her beauty and talent recognized as well as her protégés in Charlotte Ballet when they performed on the national stage. During the broadcast of that awards show where Tom Hanks, Lily Tomlin, Al Green and Sting also were honored, I was reminded of how the old Ed Sullivan TV show once showcased all the arts – from Patricia McBride, the lovely classical ballerina, to the Beatles.
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    Many stories, few words in Charlotte film festival

    Published January 9, 2015 by

    In November, the first 100 Words Film Festival launched in Charlotte where all entries cut to the essence of storytelling with just 100 spoken words. Below, founder Scott Galloway writes about the event. The inaugural 100 Words Film Festival was a tremendous success!  We generated lots of exciting media attention, shattered our 500-ticket goal by selling out the 730-seat McGlohon Theater and premiered more than 30 outstanding films by professional and student filmmakers. We are extremely thankful to our filmmakers. We received film submissions from all over the world.  This was remarkable given that films had to be created and submitted at a time when the festival didn’t even exist. Further, every film entered had to be made solely for this festival due to its 100 spoken words criterion. It was a big ask of filmmakers, but a great benefit for festivalgoers who attended an event where every film was a premiere.
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    Shine a Light to illuminate the North End

    Published January 8, 2015 by

    The Charles H. Wright Museum won a Knight Arts Challenge grant for a video installation project to illuminate Detroit's streets with the faces of city elders. Here Jerrard Wheeler provides an update. By Jerrard Wheeler, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History The Wright Museum will be shining a...
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    First Look at the Ordway Concert Hall

    Published January 8, 2015 by

    By Stephen Sokolouski, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra The orchestra rehearses Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4. After years of planning and construction, we held our first rehearsal on the new Ordway Concert Hall’s stage this morning. It’s the beginning of a crucial weeks-long process of acoustical tuning,...
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    Victor Spinski retrospective at The Clay Studio

    Published January 8, 2015 by

    Victor Spinski was, by all accounts, a distinctive individual whose personality carried through to each of his many nuanced artworks. The Clay Studio, a Knight Arts grantee, is currently exhibiting a retrospective of the late ceramic artist’s career that originated at West Chester University’s Knauer Gallery before making its way...