SOUND PROOF Vermont Music Photo Exhibit Opens Today with Free Concert: Funkwagon, Lendway, Champagne Dynasty, Dirty Blondes
On Saturday October 15th 2011 The Magic Hat Artifactory, the world headquarters of the Magic Hat Brewing Company and Performing Arts Center, will be hosting the Sound Proof Showcase. The Sound Proof Showcase marks the grand opening of Big Heavy World’s Matthew Thorsen Sound Proof photography exhibit, presented by Seven Days.The Vermont brewer, staying true to their music and art roots will be hosting the exhibit at the Artifactory for the entire month of October.
The Sound Proof Showcase is a free event and will feature live music, a BBQ, brewer-led tours, and an outdoor beer garden featuring limited edition cask beer. The Sound Proof photography exhibit will be available for viewing all day on the tour ramp in the Artifactory and will feature iPods and cell phone-based audio of Matthew speaking about each image, with music from the bands in each photo.
Bands scheduled to perform include: FunkWagon (funkwagon.com), Lendway (lendwaymusic.com), Dirty Blondes (myspace.com/dirtyblondesvt), and Champagne Dynasty (champagnedynasty.com). Proceeds from the BBQ will support Big Heavy World, the volunteer-staffed nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Vermont-made music. The Magic Hat Artifactory is located at 5 Bartlett Bay Road in South Burlington, just off of VT Route 7. The event is 12pm to 5pm, all-ages, and FREE. For more information about the launch event, contact Dani Gleason, (802) 658-2739 x2049, dgleason@nabreweries.com.
The event is sponsored in part by Advance Music, Halogen Media, and Shearer Chevrolet.
About the Photography Exhibit:
Matthew Thorsen was the go-to photographer for bands in the Burlington area during the 1990s - he took hundreds of portrait, newspaper and magazine photos chronicling music of the era. Big Heavy World has been collecting Thorsen's images since it began in 1996 and with immense support from Seven Days, Creative Habitat, and other generous supporters we're proud to begin touring an exhibit of the images throughout Vermont.
Matt’s work is integral to the historic record of Vermont’s musical heritage. The photographs in this exhibit were taken in the mid- to late-1990’s at a time when Matt worked with film. He has since moved to the digital format and these chemical prints have become a priceless — and artful – reminder of a receding era.
The core exhibit is comprised of 115 black and white photographs with corresponding descriptive audio. The interpretive audio features Thorsen describing the subject and context of images, in most cases followed with a song by the band or musician of the photo. Audio is accessed via cell phone, fee-free, provided by Guide By Cell and supported in part by a 2010 Champlain Quadricentennial Legacy Grant from the Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership with support also from the Vermont Arts Council and National Endowment for the Arts. Access the audio by dialing (802) 881-0980 and enter the code found on each photo label. For the introduction audio, use code 29.
The exhibit launches this weekend with a selection of photographs in the Miller Expo Building at the Champlain Valley Fair in Essex - the photos will hang there from Saturday August 27 through Monday September 5. Throuout the month of September a preview of the exhibit will also hang in the Vermont History Center in Barre. A September 16 reception is planned with live music and a talk by Thorsen, 4-6pm at the History Center. September 9 & 10 a selection of images from the exhibit will hang at Freeman French Freeman on Maple Street in Burlington, a stop at the South End Art Hop. Throughout October the entire exhibit will hang at the Magic Hat Artifactory in South Burlington, with a concert and BBQ on Saturday October 15 to celebrate its official launch. In November it will travel to Maglianero in Burlington, the new bike commuter cafe in the basement of Jager Di Paola Kemp, and in February and March of 2012 select images will hang in the Governor's Gallery at the Governor's office in Montpelier.
'Sound Proof' is presented by Seven Days, with generous support from Creative Habitat. The exhibit is also made possible by Guide by Cell, The Vermont Arts Council, The National Endowent for the Arts, a 2010 Champlain Quadricentennial Legacy Grant from the Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership, and 105.9FM The Radiator.
