What’s not to love about setting a ballet to the Pixies’ Where is my mind?

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The allure of Bridgeport drives many a businessman to investigate the opportunities. From the big shot developers like Donald Trump and Steve Wynn to the local entrepreneurs, the untapped downtown remains an enticing citadel in a sea of suburban Fairfield County. But all that glitters is not gold, and Bridgeport’s hard economic realities and entrenched bureaucracy have stymied more than helped development.

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Come celebrate preservation with the
Norwalk Preservation Trust
Saturday, May 17,  4 - 6 PM
at theLockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum
The Norwalk Preservation Trust will be presenting the 2nd annualValle Weber Fay Preservation Awards to honor the citizens who preserved the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion as well as other Norwalk preservationists.

Wine and refreshments will be served.
Guided tours of the Mansion’s magnificent first floor will be available.

A donation to support the work of the Norwalk Preservation Trust is requested — $50 per person or $75 per couple for nonmembers; $40 per person or $65 per couple for members. You may join the NPT at the event. Member discounts apply for Lockwood Mathews Mansion Members. Donations and memberships  are tax deductible.

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This is part of an ongoing series of guest posts about issues in Norwalk. yourCT.com is a non-partisan site dedicated to airing all sides of a issue. That can’t happen without valuable contributions from our readers. 

Tourism, School Programs Need The Rogers-Rich Merritt House 

by Ralph S. Bloom

The recent articles about defunding the Rogers-Rich-Merritt House project for Mill Hill Park prompts the following questions.

The house, due to its size and not the era in which it was built, is planned to occupy the last approved building site in Mill Hill Park - what will take its place?

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With summer around the corner, the hint of a great line up of concerts beckons. April has been officially declared Jazz Appreciation Month and the Norwalk Symphony lands a grant to expand its audience. First from the Hour:

“We should appreciate one of America’s home treasures — jazz came from America,” said Mayor Richard A. Moccia, before three local musicians took over. “Jazz is an original American art form that affirms the noblest aspirations of our national character.”

Moccia later read a proclamation declaring April Jazz Appreciation Month in Norwalk.

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Like puzzles? Like art? A four minute breakdown of what Da Vinci looked like.

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Okay, So I <3 monorails. Big reminder was at the Fairfield Theater Company screening of Fahrenheit 451 last night. So much to love about that movie, and also the reminder that the book by Ray Bradbury is this year’s Big Read. Norwalk is kicking off the big read on April 5th, at NCC. But back to the monorail. Las Vegas has one, Austin has one.

And because everything old is new again, here’s a look at how the evil empire back in the day figured planned for this beautiful monorail.
From modern mechanix: yesterday’s tomorrow today:

Swift, Overhead Trams to Be “Equipped with Floats to Cross Water Like Boats AMPHIBIAN trains that can whiz above desert sands on an overhead rail, or plunge into the water to ford a river, are contemplated by the Soviet Government in an amazing plan to tap mineral wealth in Turkestan. They are to travel three projected monorail lines of unprecedented design, totaling 332 miles in length and crossing deserts and rivers.

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Inspiring short film about Paul Rand (1914-1996) on design.

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NEW ARTWORK IN THE GALLERY!Featuring:Susan McCaslinJourneys: A Closer Look? Artwork will be on display March 11th - 28th, 2008?Public Opening Reception ?Saturday March 15th, from 6 - 9 PM?(Wine and cheese will be served)For Darien artist Susan McCaslin, the current exhibit at The Flow of Art Gallery in Norwalk offers a chance to examine how each journey one takes, in art and in life, encourages a “closer look.” The works on display illustrate, though collages, monotypes and oil pastels, how important symbols and iconography can be on these varied excursions. Journeys: A Closer Look is open now through March 28. A public opening reception for the artist will be held on Saturday, March 15th from 6pm to 9pm. Hope to see you there!The Story Behind Susan McCaslin:“I became interested in the language of symbols and iconography in a 10th grade Medieval history class,” McCaslin explains.  “I was intrigued by the hidden meanings and their interpretation by people in different parts of society.”That interest was heightened in the early 1970s, when she lived in Southern California and was exposed to the visual motifs of the vibrant Mexican and Native American cultures.  The result was a series of dolls that owed their heritage to Native American dolls and kachinas, as well as using wood as a painting media and including carving and attached found objects to the painting.Arriving in Connecticut in the early 1908s, her fascination with iconography exhibited itself in both colorful, outsider-type works that expressed contemporary women’s issues—feminism, mothering and womanhood, as well as the frailties and frustrations of being a “new” woman in an “old” world.At the same time, her award-winning work as a graphic designer led her to include new elements in her work—photographs, printed pieces, letters and type elements.  The results range from small and intimate collages, to monotypes that enable the artist to let the idea “find its own path”, to oil pastels that employ deep and vibrant colors to invite a closer look.“I am learning to follow and trust my instincts,” McCaslin notes, “and am learning to recognize that the most important moment in each piece comes just before the solution.”Please join us for this Exhibit?March 11th - March 28th ??For more information contact:Lindsey Ward: lward@flow-of-art.comMike Spizzirri: mike@flow-of-art.comChristien Ducker: christien@flow-of-art.comThe Flow of Art Gallery    16 River Street,    Norwalk, CT 06850     203-838-0500(River & Wall Street)

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Mauricio Higuera, Kelly Bigelow Becerra, and Alexsandr Razin will give an ‘ARTISTS TALK’ this SATURDAY, MARCH 15 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the gallery. Free admission. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served. Talk starts at 7pm. Seating is limited. (Standing is fine too!)

22 Haviland Street Gallery / 22 Haviland Street / South Norwalk, CT. 06854 / 203.852.6727

“HUNTING and GATHERING: Survival Stories for a Long Year” (Feb 29-March 30, 2008)
Gallery Hours: Fridays 6-9pm, Sat/Sun 1-5pm or by appointment during the week: 203.852.6727

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