Ethos by Randy Elrod - How To Create Culture

Monet to Dalí ...

Last night we visited the extraordinary exhibition at the Frist. My personal favorites were The Poplars At Saint Remy by Vincent Van Gogh, Construction Site At Amsterdam
by George Hendrick Breitner and The Fall Of The Angels by Auguste Rodin and Elixir by Angelo Filomeno (could not find a picture-you have to see it to believe it-silk and embroidery with heavy symbolism) There were many other works that thrilled me as well. It may be my favorite exhibition ever at the Frist.

Two quotes:

"Monet, van Gogh, Rodin and Picasso: All four of these artists served as agents of change. They also placed great demands on the viewer: Monet with his distinct brushstrokes; van Gogh with his powerfully expressive use of color; Rodin with his incredible realism and the play of light across a three-dimensional surface; and Picasso with his shattering of form and many previously held notions about art."
"As the art capital of the world, Paris provided unparalleled conditions for the formation and exchange of creative ideas and drew artists from across Europe like a magnet."

I see a similar phenomenon occurring  slowly but surely in the Nashville area. May it continue and may we be a part of it.

Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art in Nashville at the Frist Center For Visual Arts February 15–June 1, 2008

Nashville: A Call To Creative Convergence...

Here is an article I have written with intent to publish and also to present as an expanded talk. I would value your edits and comments...HERE.
----------------------
When asked about prior knowledge of Nashville, Irish guests visiting O’More College of Design answered, “Tennessee Ernie Ford, Jack Daniels and country music.”

We who call Music City home know there is much more to this great area. Nashville is known as “The Athens Of The South” because of its myriad institutions of higher education. In the late 1800’s our city was known as one of the most refined and cultured cities in America.

Today we are a metro area that claims more musicians per capita than anywhere on earth. The Schermerhorn is one of the finest Symphony Halls in the world. We have a Film Festival, Screenwriter’s Conference and the Nashville Children’s Theatre was ranked by TIME magazine as one of the top five children's theatres in the country.

Within her environs she contains world famous Music Row, music powerhouses BMI and ASCAP and over 180 recording studios. The Nashville area is also home to more than 80 record labels, 130 music publishers, 40 national producers of ad jingles, 27 entertainment publications, 5,000 working union musicians, the Contemporary Christian Music Industry and major book publishing companies, including Ingram Industries-one of America’s largest privately held businesses.

The new downtown library is one of the finest in the world and its building project involved an extraordinary amount of community input. The most visible benefit of this involvement is the Public Art Program, which brought in local graphic artists, authors, photographers, painters, sculptors, and metalworkers to enrich the building.

Total employment impact of the music industry is more than 54,000 jobs and economic impact totals $6.38 billion.  Billion. Seattle, Austin, Memphis and the state of Georgia combined totals only $3.14 billion.

This “green” multi-billion dollar arts business also brings the advantage of a clean industry. Brains-not buildings and factories-house the power of the creative class, producing beauty rather than toxic waste.

The August 2007 issue of Fast Company magazine recognizes Nashville as a city on the verge of joining Miami, Florida; Barcelona, Spain; and Dakar, Senegal as one of four Cultural Centers shaping the world's future. A convergence city possesses opportunity (a culture that nurtures creative action and game-changing enterprise), innovation (investing in physical, cultural, and intellectual infrastructure that will sustain growth) and energy (that ethereal thing that happens when creative people collect in one place).

The convergence of the creative class into our area can be attributed to several factors. Affordable housing, low cost of living, low crime rates, a temperate climate and distinct change of seasons lure artists from New York and Los Angeles. Carol Colletta, president of CEO's for Cities, says "In a world where we can now work anywhere, we're tending to concentrate in fewer and fewer places. Smart people are choosing to live near smart people."

Like the powerful Medici family of Florence, Italy - Nashville has the ability to patronize the arts as do few cities in the world. We must rethink our buying patterns and look within to our own creatives for art purchases and commissions.

The hope is that when global citizens are asked in the future what Nashville means to them, they will not answer as Edmund Blackadder memorably lamented, “To us the Renaissance was just something that happened to other people”. Sadly, it was probably the citizens of Florence to whom he was referring. For nowhere else were the ingredients that enabled the Renaissance to flourish--a politically-active citizenry, a vigorous humanist movement and abundant wealth--better blended.

Nashville has these ingredients and must seek to enhance them to hold her head high as a global cultural center. A city that chooses not to sit on her creative class as a Renaissance passes her by.

Just Because The Weather Is Uncivil Doesn't Mean That We Have To Be...

Tennessee Voices By Ramon Presson

While we cannot do anything about the endless supply of 100-degree days without a drop of rain, and while we stand by helplessly as the city and Nashville Sounds potentially sabotage the future of baseball in this town, there is hope.

Though in Spring Hill we feel powerless in school-hour traffic that moves slower than health-care reform, there a few things we CAN do to improve life in Middle Tennessee. I offer my humble suggestions...

Read more HERE.

How Does Nashville Rate in Arts Funding?...

"For years, artists and arts activists have bemoaned Atlanta's bottom-of-the-barrel arts budget. Proof of the city's underfunded cultural scene became more pronounced earlier this year, when a national Americans for the Arts study showed the wide disparity between what Atlanta contributes to its arts and culture organizations and what other, similarly sized cities and counties do. Only Anchorage, Alaska, and Orange County, N.Y., give less." So now a proposal to quadruple the city's arts funding.

Read more HERE.

In St. Louis - Arts Activity Up, Giving Down
"Over the past five years, the economic impact of the arts has grown by 25 percent. Nationally that figure is 24 percent. It also says over the past five years, employment in the arts have grown 26 percent, with 9,000 direct jobs." But "according to the Giving USA Foundation, over the past decade, the portion of corporate donations dedicated to the arts has dropped by more than half."

Fred Thompson To Announce Bid For President Labor Day...

Very reliable sources tell me that Fred Thompson will announce his bid for the Presidency on Labor Day at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.

THOMPSON, Fred Dalton, a Senator from Tennessee; born in Sheffield, Ala., on August 19, 1942;  attended the public schools in Lawrenceburg, Tenn.; graduated from Memphis State University 1964; received J.D. degree from Vanderbilt University 1967; admitted to the Tennessee bar in 1967 and commenced the practice of law; assistant U.S. attorney 1969-1972; minority counsel, Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (“Watergate Committee”) 1973-1974; special counsel to Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander 1980; special counsel, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations 1980-1981; special counsel, Senate Intelligence Committee 1982; member, Tennessee Appellate Court Nominating Commission 1985-1987;  actor;  elected as a Republican to the United States Senate in the November 8, 1994, special election to fill the unexpired portion of the term ending January  3, 1997, left vacant by the resignation of Albert Gore, Jr.; took the oath of office on December 2,  1994; reelected in 1996 for the term ending January 3, 2003; not a candidate for reelection in 2002;  chair, Committee on Governmental Affairs (One Hundred Fifth and One Hundred Sixth Congresses; One Hundred Seventh Congress [January 20, 2001-June 6, 2001]); resumed acting career.

A Delightful Evening In Historic Downtown Franklin...

...began with dinner at Palazzolo's Italian Restaurant located at 5th and Main. Executive Chef Christopher A. Mallon (formerly of Magnolia's) greeted us at our table and graciously agreed to prepare Ciopinno for my daughter Lauren and me even though it was not on the menu. Ciopinno is a spicy seafood stew made popular in San Francisco featuring shrimp, clams, and mussels in a white wine tomato broth with julienne fennel and onion. Yum! It was delicious. My wife Chris had Aglio Arostate y Olio-fresh basil, grape tomatos, and roasted garlic over angel hair finished with whole butter and parmesan. A perfect summer offering.

For a ten dollar corkage fee we brought a bottle of La Playa Cabernet Sauvignon discovered this past Tuesday at the weekly wine tasting at Sandy's Downtown Grille on 4th and Main. We enjoyed that evening with a couple who are very dear to us and tasted this scrumptious Chilean wine that is both affordable and satisfying.

The service, ambience and, of course, the food at Palazzolo's (and Sandy's) was tremendous and highly recommended.

We then wandered down Main Street and passed a building filled with people which we soon realized was the  "invitation only" soft opening of the Red Pony Restaurant. Before we knew it, we were whisked in and being introduced to owners Jason and Fran (Jason was formerly on the chef's staff at F. Scott's in Nashville) and given a grand tour of the very vibey and stunningly decorated restaurant. Upstairs is a beautiful bar, "speakeasy" is what we were told, and also a soon to be 400 square foot deck for outdoor dining. What fun...and what anticipation. For a sneak peek at their "fresh" menu, check out their website by clicking their name. RED PONY RESTAURANT
408 MAIN STREET
Franklin, TN 37064
(615) 595-PONY(7669)
INFO@REDPONYRESTAURANT.COM

We then ventured out to Main Street once more and spied the Franklin PediCab rolling by, so we promptly hailed the driver and soon the three of us were being transported through Franklin in grand style!

The driver Chris, who incidentally owns the very wonderful "Garden Path" store and garden in Franklin, Garden Path 117 3rd Ave N (615) 595-8811, willingly dropped us off at the newly relocated Cocoa Tree at 121 3rd Street. We ordered up chocolate fondue with bananas, pineapple, strawberries and pound cake complemented with delicious coffee.

As were leaving, regular chocolatiers and patrons of The Cocoa Tree, Brock and Auny Gill, rolled up on their motorcycle and visited with us for a while.

What a great evening.

 

 

Nice Evening In Nashville...The Frist and Margot Cafe...

An evening viewing the magnificent visuals of the Egypt collection at the Frist...and if that weren't enough...they have the Pulitzer Prize photograph display as well. If you live in close proximity to Nashville, this showing is well worth your time. Nashville should be proud of the Frist and its vision.

A highlight of The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt is a life-sized replica of the burial chamber of the New Kingdom pharaoh Thutmose III, who ruled Egypt in the 15th century BC(1479-1425 BC). The original chamber is part of the pharaoh's tomb complex, in the Valley of the Kings, in Egypt.

The chamber measures approximately 15.2 x 8.8 x 3 meters (50 x 29 x 10 feet) and its walls are fully covered with the first-known complete copy of the Amduat, an illustrated funerary text intended as a guidebook to the afterlife, primarily for pharaohs. "Amduat" means "what is in the netherworld," and it was believed that by describing the afterlife it would aid the king, for to possess knowledge of something was to have power over it.

It is really magnificent...walking through the tomb.  A surreal experience for me as I am reading "Book of the Dead" about a murder in an Egyptian Tomb in a museum.

We also experienced dinner at the Margot Cafe and Bar. Wow! Another Nashville treasure. It was our first time there and will certainly not be our last.

A quaint and aristic decor makes for a pleasing experience when you walk through the door. Patti was our server and she was superb. Since I am not well versed on French, Italian or Spanish wines, she recommended a delicious wine for our meal. A Chateau du Trignon Gigondas. It was earthy, aromatic and chock full of taste and a delicious finish.

The starter featured what we soon found out to be one of the few staples on the menu (the menu changes each night-featuring a steak, game and two fish dishes) and also the local favorite. Its was Handcut Potato Chips with Aioli. Wow! Don't miss this when you go. We also had Marinated Olives with Fennel and Orange. It was amazing what the orange taste brought to the olives. Wonderful!

Then, first course was another stellar dish, Grilled Flatbread with Smoky Eggplant and Tomatoes. Again a delicious taste and treat.

Second Course for me was Pan Roasted Snapper (which was obviously flown in fresh) in a Saffron Tomato Broth with Artichokes, Fennel and Bacon. It was also superb.

My wife, Chris, (celebrating our 27th anniversary- a very special night) had the Grilled Tri Tip (a delicious Kobe steak) with Crispy Potatoes, Grilled Vidalia Onions, Spinach and Aioli. Also superb.

Our third course was complimented for me by a Graham's 20 yr. Tawny Port and outstanding decaf cofee delivered to the table in a coffee press (nice touch) for Chris. It was a Chocolate Orange Torte with Candied almonds and Meringue. Yum.

Rating (1-5 with 5 as best)

Ambience-5   

Food Quality -5

Service - 5+

Value - 5

Overall - 5 (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)                                                                                                                            

WKRN Channel 2 Blog Party...

Great time tonight at the party sponsored by WKRN Channel 2's Nashville Is Talking blog. We gathered at Wolfy's Bar in downtown Nashville with quite a variety of people including Nemesis Boy pictured with Mark and yours truly. (Warning: Nemesis Boy content may be objectionable to some)

Nashville is Talking is an innovative blog and blog aggregator that has been written about by major news agencies around the world. Mike Sechrist the GM at WKRN told me this evening he was inspired to start this innovative approach to news by Terry Heaton author of POMO blog and post modern media consultant whose company/blog has recently been purchased and is leaving our fair city for the state of Dallas, oh yeah, Texas.

Mike announced tonight that his newstation would begin paying local bloggers for approved video stories they submit and running those stories on its Website and in its newscasts.

Mark and I met (pictured left to right from Mark): Chris Wage, Kerry Woo, and Cristina.

We met Dan Phillips who lives less than one mile from me.

Also, Rex Hammock pictured with Mark and Mike Sechrist.

And last but certainly not least-me with BusyMom (Elizabeth) introduced to me as the most "famous" blogger of the night-and I might add that introduction did not come from Elizabeth who is most pleasant and fun- but from a fellow admirer.

Also met Kate O'Neill (not pictured), a songwriter, so Mark and I talked songwriting with her for a few minutes. And Lucinda (pictured below from her blog-her picture at the party did not turn out) who writes a weekly column for the Nashville Scene.

Fun night. Interesting people. Good food and drink. Nashville is definitely talking more than I knew.