Jim Dodson, Behind the Scenes with Mary Dalton, India Arie, and The Sharing Project

Today on the show we'll explore the art of the magazine, celebrate LGBT movie-making, explore the spiritual side of music-making, and wrap up with a better understanding of what it truly means to share. Best-selling author, educator, and O. Henry Magazine editor Jim Dodson is here with the August issue preview and more great local essays than you can shake a stick at. Then film scholar Mary Dalton takes us Behind the Scenes at Out at the Movies Series, Winston-Salem and the Triad's LGBT Film Series. Their celebrating their tenth anniversary and Mary's saved you an aisle seat. Four-time Grammy Award-winner India Arie gives us a glimpse into the spiritual side of her songwriting and performance practice, and artist, filmmaker, and Wake Forest University educator Joel Tauber just wrapped up an entire sabbatical tackling the sometimes thorny issue of sharing, and he can't wait to share what he's discovered along the way with you. 

Jim Dodson

James Dodson is Editor of the award-winning PineStraw Magazine in Southern Pines, the arts and culture magazine of the Carolina Sandhills. He also serves as Founding Editor of O. Henry Magazine, the arts and culture sister publication in Greensboro (N.C.), his hometown, and Salt Magazine in Wilmington. Jim invited a dozen of North Carolina's finest writers to each contribute one short piece dealing with the subject of Summer to his August issues. After reviewing the depth and variety of what he received, even Jim Dodson, the best-selling author, Order of the Longleaf Pine recipient, and Founding Editor was impressed. Chances are you will be too. The August issues of PineStraw, Salt and O. Henry Magazines hit stands this week. All twelve Summer Shorts pieces are true gems, and Jim dropped by to talk about them.

Jim's recent book is American Triumvirate: How Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and Byron Nelson Created the Modern Age of Golf, now on its third printing by Knopf, and he has a new book on the way! 

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Wake Forest University Professor of Communication, Film Studies, and Women's and Gender Studies Mary Dalton is all set to take us Behind the Scenes.

Mary's the author of Teacher TV: Sixty Years of Teachers on Television and The Hollywood Curriculum: Teachers in the Movies. Click here to check out Mary's movie blog.

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India.Arie

Back in 2001 singer songwriter India.Arie's debut album “acoustic soul” hit the airwaves and quickly went multi-platinum. We're sampling from the first song on that album right now. It's called Video and it deals with acceptance, and a young African American woman learning to love herself for who she is inside. She sings: “I'm not the average girl from your video, and I ain't built like a supermodel, but, I learned to love myself unconditionally, because I am a queen.”

14 years ago, hearing those words for the first time on the radio in my car ended up in a rare driveway moment for me. Determined to buy the album, I [David Ford] ripped open the glove compartment, rooted around for a pencil and quickly jotted down the name of the song and artist.

Fast forward to 2014 and India.Arie's music continues to speak powerfully to the interconnectedness of us all. In addition to being a multiple Grammy award winner, India is an NAACP Image Award honoree, and she's performed for presidents, and at Nobel Peace prize ceremonies. India Arie also stands with her peers as an activist for global health and human dignity. Next Friday, August 8^th, India Arie will be taking part in A Global Meditation for Peace Toronto. The event takes place in Westin Harbour Castle beginning at 11:30am, and culminates on September 21^st. She'll be joined by Deepak Chopra and Gabrielle Bernstein with hopes of initiating a global narrative for peace and healing.

In 2012, India Arie performed a sold out concert, on the NC A&T State University campus in Greensboro. Prior to her arrival in the Triad for that performance, she spoke with me by phone from her home in Atlanta, Georgia.

India.Arie spoke with David Ford by phone from her home in Atlanta, Georgia. Her concert on the NC A&T State University campus in Greensboro on April 25, 2012 was a standing room only event. And in keeping with India's generous spirit, the opening acts for her show were performed by a group of talented A&T student dancers, singers, and actors. She continues to stretch herself personally and artistically and her musical growth can be heard in her release “Open Door”. It's a collaboration with Israeli singer/songwriter Idan Raichel. Her 2013 release is SongVersation, on the Motown label, and you'll find links to more information at wfdd.org and click on TAW. Next Friday, August 8^th, India will be taking part in A Global Meditation for Peace Toronto. The event takes place in Westin Harbour Castle beginning at 11:30am, and culminates on September 21^st. She'll be joined by Deepak Chopra and Gabrielle Bernstein with hopes of initiating a global narrative for peace and healing. Along the way, they'll also be breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest group meditation in history. 

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Joel Tauber

Joel Tauber is an assistant professor of art at Wake Forest University, where he is developing their video art program.  His work has been shown in solo art exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad, and his films have screened at major festivals in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and elsewhere. Joel believes that art can change the world. His new work explores the seemingly simple and yet sometimes thorny notion of sharing, with the hopes of raising awareness and sparking conversations about its value and meaning in our Capitalist society.

The Sharing Project begins with Joel teaching his young son Zeke to share. He films Zeke at daycare learning with his classmates to share communal toys. But the more Joel observes and investigates sharing, even with the help of experts from every applicable field imaginable, the more questions he has. In the process The Sharing Project forces each of us to re-think our own preconceptions about sharing. Eventually Joel and his son Zeke share an adventure to search out answers in Happyville, a forgotten early 20th century Socialist Jewish commune in South Carolina. Joel says the Socialist Jewish commune Happyville was founded in 1905 but was abandoned just three years later.

David Ford spoke with artist, filmmaker, and Wake Forest University assistant professor of art, Joel Tauber. This weekend is the official launch of his new work The Sharing Project. The Sharing Project will eventually become a multi-channel sculptural video installation (slated to premiere in Spring 2015) as well as a feature film that'll premiere soon afterwards.    

Meanwhile, Joel continues filming in Happyville. He's recently discovered more dilapidated buildings there as well as an ancient horse carriage that was completely falling apart. He's currently wrapping up his film work ahead of his shows at the Adamski Gallery showing in Berlin this spring and at Susanne Vielmetter LA Projects in June and July 2015.