WEBVTT 00:00.500 --> 00:01.500 (driving music) 00:03.292 --> 00:04.475 - [Narrator] This special presentation 00:04.499 --> 00:07.232 was produced in high definition by WEDU, 00:07.499 --> 00:09.632 Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota. 00:11.042 --> 00:13.643 - [Gabe] Major funding for WEDU Arts Plus 00:13.667 --> 00:16.185 is provided through The Greater Cincinnati Foundation 00:16.209 --> 00:18.975 by an arts-loving donor who encourages others 00:18.999 --> 00:21.266 to support your PBS station WEDU. 00:22.999 --> 00:25.332 In this edition of WEDU Arts Plus, 00:26.250 --> 00:29.050 a fiery local blues musician makes waves. 00:29.918 --> 00:30.810 - [Selwyn] This is our passion, 00:30.834 --> 00:32.226 this is our love, this is our joy, 00:32.250 --> 00:33.852 and whenever we get on the stage, 00:33.876 --> 00:35.975 that's what we wanna share with everybody. 00:35.999 --> 00:38.810 - [Gabe] A bronze sculptor takes command of her work. 00:38.834 --> 00:41.768 - [Heidi] With my method, when you open a mold, 00:41.792 --> 00:43.392 it's always a curiosity. 00:44.083 --> 00:46.518 - [Gabe] A watercolor exhibit turns 50. 00:46.542 --> 00:48.975 - [Lena] You have rather traditional subjects, 00:48.999 --> 00:52.599 landscapes, water, and seascapes, floral still lives, 00:55.083 --> 00:57.018 but then you also have things that are abstracted 00:57.042 --> 00:58.175 based on pattern. 00:58.209 --> 01:00.477 - [Gabe] And the perfection of confection. 01:00.501 --> 01:01.975 - [Michelle] Part of the research that I've done 01:01.999 --> 01:04.059 in food is really trying to make sure 01:04.083 --> 01:07.016 that my team really understand why you make 01:07.501 --> 01:08.976 the ingredient choice that you make, 01:09.000 --> 01:11.933 and how that interacts with the human body. 01:12.626 --> 01:15.626 - It's all coming up next on WEDU Arts Plus. 01:20.792 --> 01:21.792 (bluesy music) 01:32.417 --> 01:35.750 Hello, I'm Gabe Ortiz and this is WEDU Arts Plus. 01:37.376 --> 01:39.568 Selwyn Birchwood has been drawn to the blues 01:39.592 --> 01:42.125 since childhood, learning to play guitar 01:42.209 --> 01:43.643 by listening to the greats. 01:43.667 --> 01:47.143 The music he writes now shows his reverence for the genre, 01:47.167 --> 01:49.500 but has its own distinctive sound. 01:50.250 --> 01:52.935 His first album, Don't Call No Ambulance, 01:52.959 --> 01:55.768 earned him a Blues Award for Best Debut Album. 01:55.792 --> 01:57.477 We recently sat down with Selwyn, 01:57.501 --> 02:01.034 who is touring with his new album, Pick Your Poison. 02:03.417 --> 02:04.684 (blues guitar riff) 02:08.999 --> 02:10.643 - I get a feeling off of blues music 02:10.667 --> 02:14.018 that I really don't feel that I get from any other 02:14.042 --> 02:15.042 style of music. 02:19.375 --> 02:22.842 People tell their story, sometimes say their prayer 02:23.542 --> 02:24.542 in their song. 02:27.292 --> 02:29.685 Such an emotional music and so relatable 02:29.709 --> 02:31.810 that I think that's what really has drawn me to it, 02:31.834 --> 02:35.034 and I think that's why people enjoy it so much. 02:37.751 --> 02:38.751 (blues guitar) 02:48.999 --> 02:51.332 ♪ You took up all my money, babe ♪ 02:52.999 --> 02:54.866 ♪ And you do my woman, too ♪ 02:55.876 --> 02:58.351 - I started playing music when I was about 12 years old. 02:58.375 --> 03:00.310 I learned just listening to records and stuff, 03:00.334 --> 03:02.101 so I had a lot of teachers, I guess. 03:02.125 --> 03:04.992 Muddy Waters and BB King, John Lee Hooker, 03:05.209 --> 03:08.602 and all those people that I just fell in love with music 03:08.626 --> 03:11.293 and wanted to keep it going ever since. 03:13.042 --> 03:15.975 Wanna hear what this lap steel sounds like? 03:16.125 --> 03:17.325 - [Audience] Yeah! 03:17.959 --> 03:18.959 - Too bad. 03:18.999 --> 03:20.266 (audience laughter) 03:24.292 --> 03:25.359 This is the one. 03:27.375 --> 03:28.842 (sliding guitar music) 03:29.999 --> 03:32.999 I actually got into playing lap steel guitar 03:33.375 --> 03:35.477 through a mentor of mine named Sunny Rhodes. 03:35.501 --> 03:39.101 When I was 19 years old, he picked me up in his band. 03:39.334 --> 03:41.801 I went over to meet him and I played 03:41.876 --> 03:43.101 about a half a song for him. 03:43.125 --> 03:44.768 You know, he just looked at his bass player 03:44.792 --> 03:48.259 and smiled and said, "Son, do you have a passport?" 03:48.334 --> 03:49.601 And I said, "Yeah." 03:53.626 --> 03:55.477 ♪ He might trot over and to my surprise ♪ 03:55.501 --> 03:58.310 ♪ He grinned from ear to ear with that alligator smile ♪ 03:58.334 --> 04:00.059 ♪ And said I'll spare your life, boy ♪ 04:00.083 --> 04:01.226 ♪ Let's see what you got ♪ 04:01.250 --> 04:02.435 ♪ There's only one thing there ♪ 04:02.459 --> 04:03.685 ♪ Go get me one of that pot ♪ 04:03.709 --> 04:07.242 - Well, I always wanted to kind of find my own voice 04:08.250 --> 04:11.101 and my own sound and, no matter what I was learning, 04:11.125 --> 04:14.725 I always tried to figure out a way to make it my own. 04:14.834 --> 04:16.602 And it came that way with writing. 04:16.626 --> 04:20.159 In high school, actually, I would do a lot of poetry 04:21.584 --> 04:24.251 and what would eventually become songs. 04:24.501 --> 04:27.518 And I used to do it just sort of as a relaxation, 04:27.542 --> 04:31.009 meditation, and sometimes even get frustrations out 04:31.626 --> 04:34.810 sort of thing and it was just good outlet for me. 04:34.834 --> 04:38.034 So eventually it turned into more song writing. 04:39.792 --> 04:42.477 I don't have a specific process every time. 04:42.501 --> 04:43.226 It's always different. 04:43.250 --> 04:46.393 Sometimes I'll find a sound when I'm playing guitar 04:46.417 --> 04:48.976 or a chord that I think might make a good song 04:49.000 --> 04:51.393 or I'll hear someone telling a story 04:51.417 --> 04:53.727 and I'll think that a word sounds cool 04:53.751 --> 04:54.643 and I'll try to work around that 04:54.667 --> 04:58.400 or a saying that someone has and it's always different. 04:59.250 --> 05:02.117 So I just try to always keep my ears open. 05:02.709 --> 05:03.709 You know what? 05:04.626 --> 05:05.759 (audience cheers) 05:05.999 --> 05:06.935 You know what? 05:06.959 --> 05:07.975 - [Audience] What? 05:07.999 --> 05:11.332 ♪ I don't like no whisky, I just like the taste ♪ 05:12.792 --> 05:16.059 ♪ I don't like no reefer, rolls them every day ♪ 05:17.667 --> 05:20.667 ♪ I don't like a game, I just like to play ♪ 05:23.876 --> 05:27.476 ♪ I don't care for strangers, but I dig the strange ♪ 05:28.876 --> 05:31.676 ♪ And I don't know what else to tell ya ♪ 05:36.709 --> 05:38.976 ♪ They're just guilty pleasures ♪ 05:41.626 --> 05:43.893 ♪ They're just guilty pleasures ♪ 05:45.959 --> 05:46.976 Touring is pretty much life. 05:47.000 --> 05:49.685 We spend the winter time, for the most part, 05:49.709 --> 05:52.442 around Florida, just kinda dodging snow. 05:53.375 --> 05:54.508 ♪ All by myself ♪ 05:56.083 --> 05:57.310 ♪ Talkin' to myself ♪ 05:57.334 --> 06:00.810 ♪ They're the only ones that know the shape of bein' ♪ 06:00.834 --> 06:03.434 I did two tours in the snow and I said 06:03.501 --> 06:05.568 that I would never do it again. 06:09.292 --> 06:11.559 ♪ It's ringin' in my head again ♪ 06:12.042 --> 06:13.709 ♪ Are we crazy, ya know ♪ 06:15.125 --> 06:18.725 My touring band is the same band that's on my record. 06:19.000 --> 06:20.727 - We're like brothers, you know. 06:20.751 --> 06:21.975 We joke with each other. 06:21.999 --> 06:22.975 We all got thick skin. 06:22.999 --> 06:26.599 So we, we're rough but we're gentle at the same time. 06:27.542 --> 06:29.942 We love to have fun, love to laugh. 06:30.083 --> 06:32.310 Saxophonist Reggie Oliver, he's a graduate 06:32.334 --> 06:36.401 of Berkeley College of Music, so he brings a jazz influence. 06:36.626 --> 06:39.093 Our bass player, Donald Huff Wright, 06:39.167 --> 06:41.834 has been touring in the blues scene for 06:41.999 --> 06:43.466 I think over 20 years. 06:43.792 --> 06:47.392 And myself, I come from an R&B and church background, 06:48.375 --> 06:51.108 so I've toured with a lot of funk bands. 06:54.000 --> 06:55.810 - My first record with Alligator 06:55.834 --> 06:59.310 that we released in 2014 was called Don't Call No Ambulance, 06:59.334 --> 07:01.768 and we actually ended up winning the Blues Music Award 07:01.792 --> 07:04.259 for Best New Artist Album that year. 07:05.584 --> 07:08.185 It was amazing, you know, it feels like you're 10 feet tall. 07:08.209 --> 07:11.685 You get up on the stage and they're playing your song 07:11.709 --> 07:13.435 while you're walking up to the stage, 07:13.459 --> 07:16.726 and it was really just sort of a surreal moment. 07:20.999 --> 07:23.226 When I'm on stage, that's the happiest 07:23.250 --> 07:25.050 you'll see me, pretty much. 07:25.459 --> 07:26.975 I don't do this because I'm trying 07:26.999 --> 07:30.399 to make a million dollars and get a hit somewhere. 07:30.999 --> 07:34.666 We get out and travel and go through all the hardships 07:34.792 --> 07:36.310 associated with this sometimes 07:36.334 --> 07:37.727 because this is what we want to do, 07:37.751 --> 07:39.894 this is our passion, this is our love, this is our joy, 07:39.918 --> 07:42.143 and whenever we get on the stage, 07:42.167 --> 07:45.034 that's what we wanna share with everybody. 07:47.584 --> 07:50.717 Well, you always hope for a positive reaction. 07:51.083 --> 07:52.643 It's sort of give and take, you know, 07:52.667 --> 07:54.435 we put the energy off of the stage 07:54.459 --> 07:56.393 and they give it right back and it's sort of 07:56.417 --> 08:00.350 a cool thing when it can be a shared experience like that. 08:01.999 --> 08:04.351 My mom and my sister used to always get on 08:04.375 --> 08:05.560 and yell at me all the time 08:05.584 --> 08:06.810 'cause I'd always be barefoot. 08:06.834 --> 08:09.643 People ask me if I can feel the vibrations 08:09.667 --> 08:12.867 of the music and be more attached to the energy 08:13.751 --> 08:16.018 of the music and that type of stuff, 08:16.042 --> 08:17.226 and I wish that was the answer. 08:17.250 --> 08:19.560 I kind of wanna go with that instead of just 08:19.584 --> 08:21.451 I don't like shoes. (laughs) 08:22.999 --> 08:24.399 But that's the truth. 08:24.792 --> 08:27.852 I'm just trying to write the best music that I can, 08:27.876 --> 08:29.059 perform it the best way I can, 08:29.083 --> 08:32.683 and get it out as far and wide to everybody as I can. 08:32.999 --> 08:34.018 And I feel like if I do that 08:34.042 --> 08:36.909 that everything else will fall into place. 08:43.876 --> 08:46.743 - To hear more, go to selwynbirchwood.com. 08:49.950 --> 08:52.483 Heidi Hoy's expressive bronze sculptures 08:52.542 --> 08:56.142 render women with incredible strength and femininity. 08:56.418 --> 08:58.475 Hoy's work in a male-dominated field 08:58.499 --> 09:01.966 distinguishes itself not just in her final product, 09:02.167 --> 09:04.967 but in her command of the process itself. 09:10.126 --> 09:12.394 - We are at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts 09:12.418 --> 09:14.768 and we're gonna do a bronze pour today. 09:14.792 --> 09:17.475 We're the only community arts center facility 09:17.499 --> 09:21.299 that has a bronze-pouring facility in a five-state area. 09:23.167 --> 09:24.227 When we start up that furnace, 09:24.251 --> 09:27.184 we're gonna heat the metal to 2100 degrees. 09:31.418 --> 09:32.418 (folksy music) 09:42.499 --> 09:43.499 Flame on. 09:45.499 --> 09:46.566 (whirring sound) 09:51.499 --> 09:52.499 (folksy music) 10:01.042 --> 10:04.442 I don't think I'd be an artist if I had not landed 10:04.875 --> 10:07.475 at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts. 10:09.625 --> 10:11.726 I became a student there in 1988, 10:11.750 --> 10:15.350 and I started teaching there about three years later. 10:15.917 --> 10:17.984 So I've been there a long time. 10:21.583 --> 10:24.516 The artist community there is so supportive 10:25.499 --> 10:28.032 and when I was first getting started, 10:28.167 --> 10:29.935 I was able to start selling work, 10:29.959 --> 10:33.102 start getting encouragement right out of the gate 10:33.126 --> 10:36.059 from accomplished people that collected art 10:36.750 --> 10:39.483 and I had the resources accessible to me 10:40.542 --> 10:42.075 through the art center. 10:42.834 --> 10:45.901 - [Roxanne] Heidi Hoy is one of the mainstays 10:46.334 --> 10:46.935 in our program. 10:46.959 --> 10:50.060 She works in a discipline where there aren't a lot of women. 10:50.084 --> 10:53.084 Because it's largely a male-dominated field, 10:53.499 --> 10:57.366 and she brings this wonderful feminine perspective to it, 10:58.001 --> 10:59.801 her work is just so unique. 11:00.499 --> 11:02.766 She has a way of portraying women 11:04.499 --> 11:07.699 with such incredible strength and determination 11:10.792 --> 11:13.525 and yet, her sculptures have a very soft 11:14.292 --> 11:15.959 and lovely feminine side. 11:18.334 --> 11:19.768 (bright, cheery music) 11:19.792 --> 11:23.792 - To become a bronze caster, it's just putting in the time. 11:26.251 --> 11:27.227 There's so many phases to it, 11:27.251 --> 11:30.384 and each phase is difficult and time consuming 11:30.500 --> 11:32.167 and needs to be mastered. 11:33.875 --> 11:37.608 I feel very lucky that I've had the time to explore it. 11:46.750 --> 11:49.018 We're gonna bring the crucible out and seat it 11:49.042 --> 11:51.842 in the pouring shank and pour the bronze. 11:54.542 --> 11:55.809 - [Man] Good to go. 11:56.875 --> 11:57.942 (cranking sound) 11:58.500 --> 12:00.143 - [Heidi] I don't know why I went into this profession. 12:00.167 --> 12:03.834 It's hot and it's sweaty and it's dangerous and heavy. 12:05.499 --> 12:06.268 - [Woman] You're out. 12:06.292 --> 12:08.018 - [Heidi] But there's something about the physical-ness 12:08.042 --> 12:09.435 of it that really appeals to me. 12:09.459 --> 12:12.926 I like to work hard and I like to lift heavy things 12:13.042 --> 12:15.309 and I like to create beauty, too. 12:15.542 --> 12:18.142 So it's all there for me in sculpture. 12:19.251 --> 12:20.384 - [Man] I got it. 12:20.418 --> 12:20.810 - Okay. 12:20.834 --> 12:22.185 It's gotten hard enough within one minute 12:22.209 --> 12:25.876 to hold its form, but we wanna wait about five minutes 12:26.126 --> 12:29.643 to break it open, 'cause right now the metal's brittle. 12:29.667 --> 12:32.310 You can see it's starting to cool and darken. 12:32.334 --> 12:35.401 Once that gets darker, then we'll pull it out 12:35.667 --> 12:37.400 of the pit and open it up. 12:38.126 --> 12:41.793 I love bronze, because it is malleable and soft enough 12:42.959 --> 12:46.159 to manipulate and hard enough and strong enough 12:47.001 --> 12:49.801 to last forever and still feel momentary. 12:53.167 --> 12:55.268 All right, so we'll crack it outside. 12:55.292 --> 12:59.025 We use a really old-fashioned method of pouring bronze. 12:59.334 --> 13:02.934 The commercial foundries have a much different method 13:04.459 --> 13:05.476 that's more predictable. 13:05.500 --> 13:07.967 You know you're gonna get the piece. 13:08.126 --> 13:09.459 Now I get out my ax. 13:11.499 --> 13:14.032 With my method, when you open a mold, 13:14.499 --> 13:17.566 it's always a curiosity to see what you have. 13:17.792 --> 13:19.125 You don't even know. 13:21.459 --> 13:23.768 I feel very nervous, always nervous, 13:23.792 --> 13:27.392 because you don't know what has happened in the pour. 13:28.625 --> 13:30.227 Oh, it still weighs a ton. 13:30.251 --> 13:33.651 Okay, so here's his head, his neck, his shoulders. 13:34.376 --> 13:38.443 He's holding his guitar here and his legs are kinda crossed. 13:39.499 --> 13:41.899 The bronze went in through the cup, 13:43.001 --> 13:45.268 and it went down the large spews. 13:45.500 --> 13:47.559 This is called spewing and gating. 13:47.583 --> 13:50.893 I call 'em veins and arteries, so this would be the artery, 13:50.917 --> 13:51.643 these are the veins. 13:51.667 --> 13:53.518 Bronze only flows about a palm spread, 13:53.542 --> 13:57.475 so I have to feed fresh bronze to every part of the piece. 13:58.418 --> 13:59.475 I'm very happy with this pour, 13:59.499 --> 14:01.476 but right here, where it didn't pour, 14:01.500 --> 14:03.643 you can see those edges are rounded? 14:03.667 --> 14:04.810 That's called cold shot. 14:04.834 --> 14:08.060 It means the metal got a little cool in that spot 14:08.084 --> 14:09.102 and just didn't flow. 14:09.126 --> 14:10.893 That's an easy area for me to fix 14:10.917 --> 14:12.935 and I'll just go in there and weld that. 14:12.959 --> 14:15.768 I'm gonna cut off all these spews and gates 14:15.792 --> 14:17.392 and chase the metal down 14:17.709 --> 14:19.709 and then I'll patina the piece 14:19.792 --> 14:22.143 and kind of tortoiseshell the surface 14:22.167 --> 14:23.900 to give it more dimension. 14:27.376 --> 14:29.768 So when I'm finished working the bronze, 14:29.792 --> 14:31.792 it's raw bronze, so it's shiny 14:32.499 --> 14:33.601 and I can't keep them that way. 14:33.625 --> 14:35.893 Because they would tarnish over time anyway. 14:35.917 --> 14:39.917 Your fingerprints, the acids from your hands would etch it. 14:40.001 --> 14:42.268 To finish a piece and present it, 14:42.499 --> 14:45.768 I have to patina it and then wax it or lacquer it 14:45.792 --> 14:48.992 to give it color and warmth and depth and body. 14:52.126 --> 14:54.193 Patina is an art form in itself 14:54.499 --> 14:56.227 and I wish I knew more about them. 14:56.251 --> 14:59.718 I've experimented with patinas, with ammonia vapors 15:00.376 --> 15:03.109 and salts, and they can get very exotic, 15:03.292 --> 15:05.475 but they're very hard to control. 15:05.499 --> 15:08.475 So the patinas that I use are classic patinas. 15:08.499 --> 15:11.601 I make them out of nitric acid and through nails. 15:11.625 --> 15:15.092 In nitric acid, you see this big cloud of red stuff 15:16.292 --> 15:18.825 fuming out and it boils and heats up. 15:18.917 --> 15:22.184 Then you douse it with water and 24 hours later, 15:22.499 --> 15:23.699 you have a patina. 15:24.750 --> 15:25.750 (gentle music) 15:33.499 --> 15:36.268 As I evolved as an artist, I realized that what 15:36.292 --> 15:39.825 I wanted to do was sculpt what moved me emotionally. 15:41.209 --> 15:43.742 So I started sculpting women, really, 15:45.542 --> 15:47.935 about the emotions that women experience. 15:47.959 --> 15:51.559 And I wanted them to be uplifting and somewhat noble. 15:53.001 --> 15:54.475 Bronze is called the noble metal, 15:54.499 --> 15:56.352 and I think there's a reason for that. 15:56.376 --> 15:59.776 There's just something, to me, that's very sensual 16:00.542 --> 16:02.342 and beautiful about bronze. 16:03.418 --> 16:06.551 I don't know, there's just something about it. 16:07.750 --> 16:10.750 - Find out more by visiting heidihoyart.com. 16:13.492 --> 16:15.560 The Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts 16:15.584 --> 16:18.602 in Racine, Wisconsin, celebrates the 50th anniversary 16:18.626 --> 16:22.393 of its longest-running exhibition, Watercolor Wisconsin. 16:22.417 --> 16:25.217 Here's a look at this diverse collection. 16:30.083 --> 16:32.750 - There was a great deal of respect for 16:32.959 --> 16:36.959 what people could produce with their minds and their hands. 16:38.667 --> 16:41.600 We're currently in the exhibition galleries 16:41.834 --> 16:44.101 at the Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts 16:44.125 --> 16:45.018 in Racine, Wisconsin, 16:45.042 --> 16:48.575 which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. 16:50.709 --> 16:52.477 The Wustum's were a very interesting family. 16:52.501 --> 16:55.185 They were involved in a variety of businesses 16:55.209 --> 16:56.976 in the Dakotas, where they met, 16:57.000 --> 17:00.733 moved back to the Racine community to run this property 17:00.999 --> 17:02.866 as a functioning dairy farm. 17:04.876 --> 17:08.101 Now, Charles was also involved in a meat-packing business 17:08.125 --> 17:10.226 in Chicago, and he would frequently travel 17:10.250 --> 17:12.643 from Racine to Chicago on business, 17:12.667 --> 17:15.800 and when he was traveling, Mrs. Wustum, Jenny, 17:16.709 --> 17:18.975 would run the farm in his absence. 17:18.999 --> 17:22.066 And she was really quite a take-charge woman. 17:22.792 --> 17:26.192 This couple who was not known to be art collectors 17:26.626 --> 17:29.693 ends up leaving their estate to the community 17:30.125 --> 17:31.975 to be turned into an art museum. 17:31.999 --> 17:34.399 Well, that museum opened up in 1941 17:35.334 --> 17:38.134 and was one of the few places to view art 17:38.167 --> 17:41.767 and to study art between the Art Institute of Chicago 17:42.209 --> 17:44.809 and the Layton Galleries in Milwaukee. 17:45.459 --> 17:48.143 And it became an outpost for creative people 17:48.167 --> 17:51.967 throughout northern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin. 17:51.999 --> 17:55.599 We now operate two campuses that are two miles apart, 17:58.459 --> 18:02.459 and we try to offer different experiences at both campuses. 18:02.918 --> 18:05.975 At RAM, in Racine's downtown, we offer exhibitions 18:05.999 --> 18:09.799 for artists with national and international reputations. 18:10.209 --> 18:12.435 At the Wustum campus, we operate that 18:12.459 --> 18:14.526 as our visual education center. 18:15.375 --> 18:18.375 The fact that it was a home sort of projects 18:18.626 --> 18:21.693 a homey nature, a sense of comfort to people, 18:22.292 --> 18:25.959 that I think made it very easy for blue collar workers 18:26.876 --> 18:29.543 in this community to embrace visual art 18:29.999 --> 18:32.066 and feel at home looking at it. 18:33.209 --> 18:36.560 One of the things that's a big part of the museum's history 18:36.584 --> 18:39.317 is the Watercolor Wisconsin competition. 18:40.417 --> 18:41.894 The people at the museum at the time 18:41.918 --> 18:44.518 believed that there was a great deal of wonderful work 18:44.542 --> 18:46.101 being done in the watercolor medium, 18:46.125 --> 18:47.975 and that was something that was very specific 18:47.999 --> 18:51.999 to Wisconsin as a place, which I think is still true today. 18:53.918 --> 18:55.785 That show opened up in 1966, 18:55.959 --> 18:58.768 and we have run that as an annual competition 18:58.792 --> 18:59.925 every year since. 19:00.417 --> 19:03.550 So in the same year that Wustum is turning 75, 19:03.999 --> 19:07.399 the Watercolor Wisconsin exhibition is turning 50. 19:09.792 --> 19:13.592 It can be anything that employs water to move the paint. 19:14.417 --> 19:17.617 So it can be watercolor, acrylic, wash, or ink. 19:17.792 --> 19:20.518 It can be wet and dry together, but it has to be 19:20.542 --> 19:23.875 some kind of involvement of a water-based medium. 19:25.417 --> 19:27.768 - There are 98 works by 71 artists, 19:27.792 --> 19:30.185 and they are from across the state of Wisconsin. 19:30.209 --> 19:34.276 The jurors who pick the work do not know who the artists are 19:34.959 --> 19:36.435 or where they are from in the state. 19:36.459 --> 19:38.393 So this is really based on the quality of the work 19:38.417 --> 19:42.417 and on the jurors seeing something that they connect with. 19:43.626 --> 19:46.159 You have rather traditional subjects, 19:46.375 --> 19:47.976 some things that people would think of 19:48.000 --> 19:49.143 when they think of watercolor: 19:49.167 --> 19:51.300 landscapes, water and seascapes, 19:52.999 --> 19:54.266 floral still lives. 19:55.209 --> 19:58.518 But then you also have things that are abstracted 19:58.542 --> 19:59.675 based on pattern, 20:00.375 --> 20:02.477 things that are figurative or narrative 20:02.501 --> 20:04.434 so that they'll tell a story. 20:04.667 --> 20:06.935 And then they have things where the emphasis 20:06.959 --> 20:08.759 is more on the composition. 20:10.459 --> 20:13.792 - I use just the simplest of all aqueous mediums. 20:16.918 --> 20:20.251 I use pen and ink and watered down acrylic paint. 20:21.709 --> 20:25.376 The work has a tendency to be more like a sketch book. 20:25.501 --> 20:27.434 It has a sketch book quality. 20:27.959 --> 20:30.559 And this series of paintings is called 20:30.584 --> 20:32.117 Memorial Drive Journal. 20:32.751 --> 20:35.951 This painting has to do with white plastic bags 20:36.501 --> 20:39.518 that, in the mile and a half or two mile journey 20:39.542 --> 20:41.975 that I take down Memorial Drive every day, 20:41.999 --> 20:45.666 there are a lot of people carrying white plastic bags. 20:46.083 --> 20:47.975 I've done a lot of paintings on canvas, 20:47.999 --> 20:50.666 but I really do like painting on paper. 20:51.292 --> 20:54.759 There's a certain brightness and transparency to it 20:54.999 --> 20:56.266 that I really like. 20:58.042 --> 21:01.518 - [Lena] There is an immediacy in using water-based media 21:01.542 --> 21:04.675 that doesn't happen with using oil and canvas. 21:06.709 --> 21:08.975 - [Bruce] We do purchase a few paintings 21:08.999 --> 21:12.332 from each year's Watercolor Wisconsin competition 21:13.209 --> 21:15.676 so we have a very substantial record 21:15.999 --> 21:19.132 that we're growing at RAM of Wisconsin artists 21:21.999 --> 21:25.332 working in watercolor and aqueous media on paper. 21:26.042 --> 21:27.310 - [Lena] The works that are represented 21:27.334 --> 21:29.768 in this exhibition are really wonderful examples 21:29.792 --> 21:31.975 of the dynamic nature of Watercolor Wisconsin 21:31.999 --> 21:35.666 and a wonderful reflection of this state's willingness 21:36.999 --> 21:38.199 to pursue a media. 21:42.999 --> 21:46.732 - Learn more about the Wustum Art Museum at ramart.org. 21:49.709 --> 21:53.268 You can satisfy your sweet tooth with a visit to Mmelo 21:53.292 --> 21:56.310 in the art district of downtown Columbus, Ohio. 21:56.334 --> 21:59.534 In this segment, owner Michelle Allen shows off 21:59.834 --> 22:03.901 her tasty confections, including her signature marshmallows. 22:06.792 --> 22:07.792 (lilting music) 22:15.959 --> 22:19.092 - We are in my new cafe, my confectionary cafe 22:20.875 --> 22:23.475 Mmelo Boutique Confections, M-M-E-L-O, 22:24.251 --> 22:26.984 which funnily enough came out of a sound 22:27.084 --> 22:28.475 that my husband would hear, 22:28.499 --> 22:30.977 because I started kind of doing this in Spain. 22:31.001 --> 22:33.018 And my husband, people would try my food 22:33.042 --> 22:34.310 and people would go "mmmmmm" 22:34.334 --> 22:37.267 and it just kind of grew out of that sound. 22:37.334 --> 22:39.601 So that's where Mmelo comes from. 22:40.834 --> 22:44.143 You know, marshmallows have really fallen from grace. 22:44.167 --> 22:45.559 They were a confection for kings 22:45.583 --> 22:48.475 and the reason for that is you can do so many things 22:48.499 --> 22:51.475 with the flavor and the texture and the, you know, 22:51.499 --> 22:54.352 you raise it a few degrees and you get like this 22:54.376 --> 22:56.559 Swedish marshmallow, which is a bit rubbery, 22:56.583 --> 22:57.685 and that's how they like it. 22:57.709 --> 23:00.060 Or you add a bit of egg white to it 23:00.084 --> 23:02.475 and it's like, it's almost like a foam, 23:02.499 --> 23:04.018 the French call it a guimauve. 23:04.042 --> 23:06.851 So that's one of the reasons why I'm kind of pushing 23:06.875 --> 23:08.742 the virtues of marshmallows. 23:15.334 --> 23:17.334 Okay, we are on the clock now. 23:17.418 --> 23:19.268 I grew up just off of Livingston Avenue, 23:19.292 --> 23:22.475 and the southeast side, and went to Ohio State, 23:22.499 --> 23:25.768 and was just chomping at the bit to get out of town. 23:25.792 --> 23:28.768 I travel all over the world and a lot of that travel 23:28.792 --> 23:32.392 actually ended up informing the recipes I design now. 23:36.499 --> 23:37.899 In September of 2015, 23:40.499 --> 23:42.810 I quickly came back to the United States, 23:42.834 --> 23:45.501 incorporated Mmelo, contacted a contact 23:47.418 --> 23:49.475 that I had over at Easton Autoship. 23:49.499 --> 23:53.232 They gave me this creme de la creme spot on the Strand. 23:53.499 --> 23:55.185 I had Louis Vuitton across the street 23:55.209 --> 23:58.676 and Apple on one side or Michael Kors on the other. 23:58.834 --> 24:01.475 It was mad, that would never in a million years 24:01.499 --> 24:02.632 happen in Europe. 24:03.499 --> 24:04.893 I was there for eight weeks. 24:04.917 --> 24:08.476 Based on the strength of that, I got corporate clients, 24:08.500 --> 24:11.433 I got, I found the funding for my business. 24:12.042 --> 24:15.442 I would never have gotten this far in Spain, ever. 24:18.709 --> 24:21.642 Part of the research that I've done in food 24:23.499 --> 24:26.143 is really trying to make sure I and my team 24:26.167 --> 24:29.700 really understand why you make the ingredient choice 24:30.499 --> 24:32.966 that you make and how that basically 24:34.376 --> 24:35.851 interacts with the human body. 24:35.875 --> 24:39.542 That in addition to the commitment to using, designing 24:40.499 --> 24:44.143 all the recipes around real food, whole food ingredients. 24:44.167 --> 24:46.167 Not using uber-refined flours, 24:47.167 --> 24:49.167 not using uber-refined sugars, 24:49.499 --> 24:52.432 not using artificial flavors or sweeteners, 24:52.500 --> 24:55.300 or all the sort of stuff that we now know 24:55.500 --> 24:57.367 we shouldn't really consume. 24:58.583 --> 25:00.475 You know, people ask me all the time, 25:00.499 --> 25:02.499 can you do a sugar-free treat? 25:04.001 --> 25:05.518 And my response to that is, I would love to, 25:05.542 --> 25:07.851 but there isn't a natural way to do that. 25:07.875 --> 25:11.342 We can do low glycemic, but we can't do sugar-free. 25:13.084 --> 25:15.810 I'm not trying to say that Mmelo is health food, 25:15.834 --> 25:17.893 but it is food, it is not junk. 25:17.917 --> 25:20.517 It is not made with junky ingredients. 25:21.709 --> 25:22.726 There's thought behind the way 25:22.750 --> 25:25.083 that it was built and constructed. 25:25.542 --> 25:26.851 And a lot of people here in Columbus 25:26.875 --> 25:28.893 have done some amazing work in terms of 25:28.917 --> 25:31.984 creating the food landscape here in Columbus. 25:32.959 --> 25:35.726 It's so impressive and I'm so proud of my hometown. 25:35.750 --> 25:39.143 And I really hope that Mmelo can contribute to that 25:39.167 --> 25:40.834 in a really positive way. 25:42.376 --> 25:45.776 - For more delectable confections, visit mmelo.co. 25:47.000 --> 25:50.800 And that wraps it up for this edition of WEDU Arts Plus. 25:51.167 --> 25:54.567 For more arts and culture, visit wedu.org/artsplus 25:54.959 --> 25:58.159 where you'll find feature videos, local events, 25:58.959 --> 26:00.602 and arts and culture partners. 26:00.626 --> 26:02.759 Until next time, I'm Gabe Ortiz. 26:03.375 --> 26:04.708 Thanks for watching. 26:05.667 --> 26:06.734 (rhythmic music) 26:28.751 --> 26:30.884 Major funding for WEDU Arts Plus 26:31.501 --> 26:34.018 is provided through the Greater Cincinnati Foundation 26:34.042 --> 26:36.935 by an arts-loving donor who encourages others 26:36.959 --> 26:39.226 to support your PBS station WEDU.