The Herald-Palladium from Benton Harbor, Michigan • D1

Krasl Art Center presents Entertainment THURSDAY, April 6, 2006 Features Editor, SUE LORENZ, 429-2400, Ext. 210 SECTION Calendar. 2D Comics. 3D Features. 4D INSIDE he arts scene in Benton Harbor is about to get a big shot in the arm.

coming in the form of an International Artists Exchange Program that would see artists from other countries coming to the city to create their art. A delegation from Tbilisi, the capital of the Republic of Georgia, has already visited Benton Harbor to see the Water Street Glassworks, where two artists from Tbilisi will work during May. A third artist will work at the Lakeside ceramic studio. The International Artists Exchange Program here is being spearheaded by John Wilson, founder of the Lakeside Group, whose Lakeside Center for the Arts in south Berrien County had a similar program several years ago. It was Wilson who first told famed sculptor Richard Hunt about the Benton Harbor arts effort which resulted in Hunt establishing a satellite studio here.

Wilson recently moved to the Twin Cities and is now working to help the Benton Harbor Arts District. Funds are needed to establish the International Artists Exchange Program and the Lakeside Center for the Arts and the New Territory Arts Association are the main sponsors for a fund-raising event called the Artists Model Ball. Benton Harbor merchants also are supporting the event to be held May 5 at the Citadel in the Arts District. The evening will include artists with their models, a silent auction, music and food. Tickets are $50 per person in advance and will be $60 at the door.

Tickets are available at area merchants, New Territory Arts Association members and Lakeside Studios. Filmmaker Aaron Wells of Wellington, formerly of Benton Harbor, has again received honors for his work. He recently brought home three Gold ADDY awards and Artists heading to BH Arts Notes San Dee Wallace By SAN DEE WALLACE H-P Staff Writer Three new exhibits open today at the Krasl Art Center. The featured artists are all women, but where their similarity ends. The exhibits all focus on very different media.

One artist makes prints from wood engravings. Another bases her creations on found items from nature. And the third starts with comic strips that when finished take on the appearance of frescoes or icons. The exhibits are Jaidinger: The Narrative in the Dar Davis Gallery, Watkins: Movement and in Gallery II and AaronTaylor: The Root of the in Gallery III and the Lobby Gallery. An opening reception with music and light refreshments for all three exhibits will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Friday. Admission is free, and the public is invited. Jaidinger and Aaron-Taylor will both attend the reception. They also will discuss their work at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the Krasl galleries.

Registration is requested. Jaidinger is an artist in Chicago, according to Susan Wilczak, curator at the Krasl. The works to be shown at the Krasl are from a private collection. Jaidinger was studying painting and drawing at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago when she was first exposed to wood engraving. preferred the end result, the nature of the wood itself and the act of cutting into the Wilczak said.

engraving) allows the artist to be more Wilczak said. need large printing presses. lot of people who see her work want her to comment on it, but she wants the viewer to make their own Many of her engravings are inspired by poems by Emily Dickinson. from the poems by Dickinson will be next to a lot of the engravings, adding some language into the Wilczak said. Every work will have a label of some sort.

Jaidinger has exhibited throughout the United States and in other countries. Her work is owned by such museums as the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., Illinois State Museum at Springfield, Portland (Ore.) Art Museum, State Foundation on Culture and the Arts in Honolulu and the Ukraine Independent Museum of Contemporary Art at Lvov. Aaron-Taylor is from Pleasant Ridge, near Detroit. Her artwork is described as abstract sculptural images which she creates from organic materials such as bark, roots or seed pods from trees. She uses items she finds walking on the beach, in the forest or in her neighborhood.

looks for uniquely twisted (items) that may Wilczak said. Aaron-Taylor embellishes, or transforms, the items by carving, adding bits of glass or beads. Some have encaustic painting in which color from wax is transferred to an item by a heat process. Her intent is to create symbols of growth and human change. result is an image with a strong, emotional Wilczak said.

is looking at the connections between the body and the sprit, and re-connecting Some will be mounted on the walls, while others will be on pedestals. Aaron-Taylor chairs the crafts section at the Detroit College for Creative Studies. Watkins is from Annapolis, Md. Her creations are mixed media starting with comics which she layers, stencils with a decorative floral motif and then sands. In her statement, she says, technique OSEPH Photos John Madill H-P staff ARTIST GAIL WATKINS made these tablets from sanded-down comics.

Watkins is one of three female artists each with very different types of artwork whose work will be on exhibit at the Krasl Art Center today through May 8. 3 very different works WOOD ENGRAVING titled Future! Thou Secreted by Judith Jaidinger, was inspired by an Emily poem. If you go WHAT: Three exhibits Jaidinger: The Narrative Watkins: Movement and and Aaron-Taylor: The Root of the WHEN: Today through May 14. Hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Monday through Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday WHERE: Krasl Art Center, 707 Lake St. Joseph.

HOW MUCH: Free, donations accepted; call 983-0271. comes to the Lake College Mendel Center in Benton Township at 7 p.m. Sunday. Performed by the Carl Rosa Opera Company, this historic recreation of the 19th-century production draws on historical documents unearthed from the first presentation by the Savoy opera in 1885 that was directed by W.S. Gilbert.

The costumes, props, and choreography have been reproduced. is the tale of two young lovers, Nanki-Poo and Yum-Yum, whose romance remains unfulfilled due to many obstacles. The action begins with Nanki-Poo, the son of Emperor (the Mikado), fleeing an arranged marriage. Nanki-Poo arrives in the town of Titipu disguised as a minstrel in order to pry Yum-Yum away from her guardian. The drama is compounded when the Mikado and the forsaken bride arrive in the town.

The performance is sponsored by the Park Inn. Tickets cost $42 and are avail- able at the box office, by calling 927-1221 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Friday, through Ticketmaster at (269) 373-7000; or on-line at lmcmain- stage.org. The box office also will be open one hour before the show.

Discounts are available for senior citizens, students and groups of 20 or more. Major credit cards are accepted. The Mendel Center is located on the campus of Lake Michigan College at 2755 Napier one mile east of Interstate 94 (exit 30) in Benton Township. Contributed photo THE CARL ROSA OPERA COMPANY will present an opera about unfulfilled romance, on Sunday at the Mendel Center. ENTON WP to Mendel Center Please see KRASL page 5D Request for best Day gifts the best Day gift you ever gave your mom? Was there a special event you planned that meant a lot to her? Day is May 14, and The Herald-Palladium wants letters from readers telling us about the most memorable gift you gave Mom or the most meaningful event you planned for her on Day.

This probably be something bought in a store was it something you made or an event you planned that made day extra special? We also want to know why this gift or event was so meaningful to you and your mom and how she reacted to it. We also would like to hear from moms who received special gifts or had special events planned for them. Send your entries by noon Friday, April 14, to Focus Department, The Herald-Palladium P.O. Box 128, St. Joseph, MI 49085, send a fax to 269429-4398 or e-mail aldpalladium.com.

Be sure to include your address and a daytime phone number. A drawing of the entries will be held, and three winners will receive two tickets each to Phantom of the at Miller Auditorium in Kalamazoo at 7:30 p.m. April 19. Please see ARTS NOTES, page 5D.