The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center has raised $79 million of its $110 million goal. Two million dollars of that money has been earmarked for art. So the center has called on Tamara Harkavy to coordinate the process and created a selection committee of local art experts, including board members Melody Sawyer Richardson and Barbara Gould; Contemporary Arts Center Director Charles Desmarais; artists Pat Renick and Tarrance Corbin, Director of the Arts Consortium Toylynn O'Neal and Assistant Curator of American Art for the Dayton Art Institute Tuliza Fleming.

        In November, a request for proposals will be put out to regional and national artists soliciting nine original works — two for outdoors and seven for the interior of the building — that interpret the themes: courage, cooperation and perseverance. The committee will select the winners in early 2003. For more information, contact Ernest Britton at 412-6900.

        Sept. 11: In commemoration of the events of Sept. 11, The Enquirer would like to share with readers the work of local artists done in response to that fateful day. If over the past year you have created a piece specifically with the tragedy in mind, send your slides to me at: 312 Elm St., Cincinnati 45202. Mark the envelope “9-11 art,” and include a self-addressed, stamped envelope if you would like the slides returned. The deadline for submissions is Aug. 26. All media will be considered.

        They call her Mother Art: Pat Renick was honored at a dinner at the home of Melody Sawyer Richardson last month as the International Sculpture Center has chosen her as its educator of the year for 2003. At the same time, our very own DAAP will honor Ms. Renick, who teaches there. Ms. Renick is an exquisite sculptor able to work in small and large formats. Her enormous stegosaurus made from an army helicopter stands in the corner of her loft apartment, while a smaller abstract geometric piece graces the center of Brighton Square.

        Wide-open spaces: Architect Denny Dellinger is busy at work at the area's newest art space. Metal Blast, at 208 Mohawk St., already has had one show featuring image installations by Mauricio Luzuriaga. Mr. Dellinger will move forward with more shows as the space develops.

        The 45,000-square foot, two-story structure was built in 1860 and sits on an acre of hillside. It was once the Jackson Brewery but had fallen into a state of disrepair.

        “I hope and intend to renovate the top floor for loft apartments and the first floor for art studios,” Mr. Dellinger says. “There are two levels of basements that are stone-vaulted rooms, and I hope to put a nightclub and/or microbrewery in there. I'm trying to get Mike Cromer from the Barrell House to move in.”

        Mr. Dellinger, a Kettering native, moved to Cincinnati in 1969 to study architecture at the University of Cincinnati. He's worked on historical projects and been involved in development work.

        As of right now the space is still raw. “There's a lot of clean up work to do,” he says. “But we're trying to get some other things going on a limited basis.”

        This is good news for those of us who frequent SSNOVA. Metal Blast is just down the street at Elm Street. To contact Mr. Dellinger, call 793-9055.

        Elvis sighting: The Miami University Art Museum, 801 S. Patterson Ave. in Oxford, will present Thirty Years of Rock 'N' Roll: Photographs by Larry Hulst Aug. 25-Oct. 13. Seventy-five images from 2,800 concerts spanning three decades include images of the Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Jimi Hendrix, Iggy Pop and Stevie Ray Vaughn. There also will be a display of historic guitars from the collection of Fretware guitars in Franklin and a selection of Elvis memorabilia from an unnamed private collection. For more information, call (513) 529-2232.

        Mistake on the lake: If you haven't been up to Cleveland lately, master sculptor Louise Bourgeois' mammoth bronze spider sculptures at Play House Square's Star Plaza are a good reason for a long drive. Spiders is a project by Cleveland Public Art in partnership with the Cleveland Theatre District and presented by the Contessa Gallery. Hmmmm. Public art, interdisciplinary cooperation, public and private enterprise — what a concept!

        While you're in Cleveland, stop by the Cleveland Art Museum for Raphael and His Age: Drawings from the Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille (Aug. 25-Nov. 3). The Cleveland museum is the only U.S. venue for the free show which features 57 drawings — 25 by Raphael, plus works by Botticelli, Jacopo da Pontormo, Filippino Lippi and Fra Bartolommeo.

        Street painting: StreetScapes, a street painting festival scheduled Sept. 27-29, is offering a workshop on the 16th-century technique from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 31 at the Clifton Recreation Center. Artists and artist teams who attend will be selected to participate in the festival, which will take place on the first block of Telford Street in Clifton. The temporary work will be copies of masters found in great museums across the world. To register or for more information, call 961-5681.

        New venue: Aussie Robert J. Morris of Madisonville has opened Dicere Gallery at 5827 Bramble Ave. with a show featuring Stephen Geddes, Dick Hataway, C. Pic Michel, Sheri Pic, Fred Tarr, Dana Tindall, Karen Prophet Tindall, Thomas Hieronymus Towhy, Ellen Zahorec and Maintraum.

        Mr. Morris says his gallery's raison d'etre is to “exhibit high quality work of emerging and midcareer artists” working in unique media and styles. For more information, contact him at 561-9582.

        Award: Miami University's Center for Interactive Media Studies has won a 2002 Apex Award of Excellence for the Taft Museum of Art Online, a senior design project created by Miami students last fall. The site, www.taftmuseum.org, allows patrons to view museum collections, access educational materials, chat with other members and shop on line.

        Road trip: Head South. The Speed Art Museum (2035 S. Third St., Louisville) has extended its Other Bodies show until Sept. 1. Also on display, through Dec. 29, is a retrospective of Cincinnati native Ed Hamilton.

        Other Bodies brings together contemporary works of art from the museum's permanent collection, local private collections and regional artists in a survey focused on how artists approach the body in their work. There are a lot of big names here: Kiki Smith, Helen Chadwick and Petah Coyne to name a few.

        The Ed Hamilton show includes work from the late 1970s to the present. Best known for his monuments, which not only represent the heroic struggle against slavery, but celebrate African-American pride, Mr. Hamilton moved on to symbolic form in the '70s and '80s. Utilizing assemblage techniques, he focused the attention of his viewer on issues of injustice, exclusion and historical amnesia. These are two excellent shows you will want to see. For more information, call (502) 634-2700.

        Calls for artists: Summerfair Inc. is accepting applications for the 2002 Aid to Individual Artists award program. Four artists will be selected to receive $3,000 each. Applicants must live within a 40-mile radius of the city and submit color slides of their work with an explanation on how they intend to use the money. Summerfair also hosts a triennial exhibition of past winners. For more information or an application, call 531-0050.

        • The Liturgical Art Guild of Columbus is seeking entries for Contemporary Works of Faith '03, its 18th biennial international juried exhibition, to be March 4-April 4. The exhibition showcases original work consisting of two- and three-dimensional pieces with religious or spiritual themes, liturgical or ceremonial objects and adornments for religious spaces, including furniture and installations. There will be $3,000 in prizes and several purchase awards. Slide deadline is Oct. 30. Fo more information, e-mail wrkfth03@aol.com.

        • The Cincinnati Art Club will hold its 34th annual regional and 7th national juried art competition Nov. 4-24. The competition is open to artists 18 years and older and carries a $1,500 first prize. For more information, contact Wynne Bittlinger at (859) 331-1573.

        • Charles Brown is looking for artists to participate in the 11th annual Mount Adams Street Affair Sept. 29 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on St. Gregory Street. Space is limited to 60 booths and the deadline for applications — available at Mount Adams Bank and Visionary Art in Action, 945 Hatch St. — is Aug. 15. For more information, call 421-4455.

        People: Curator Sue Spaid has resigned from the Contemporary Arts Center. There are no immediate plans to fill her position. She isworking on a show for the Art Academy of Cincinnati, Proposed and Delivered, that includes 10 student artists and two collaborative groups. Ms. Spaid says the artists are mostly kids from the alternative scene and the ideas they came up with are stellar. Joey Versoza's idea is to open the door between the academy and the art museum, which has remained closed for 30 years.

        Kendall Bruns will build “The Great Wall of Sugar” and would like those inclined to send 1-pound bags of sugar with their contact information on the outside to the academy (1125 St. Gregory, Mount Adams) before Aug. 22, when the show opens.

        • Speaking of the art academy, the wonderful Jeanne H. Schmidt will retire this month.

        • The Contemporary Arts Center named Liz Emslander visitor services director, Edwina Brandon director of development and Susan Jackson public relations director.

        • Ursula LaSorella is showing her work at the Rookwood Bistro in Mount Adams.

        • Charles Behlow and Sophia Paparodis have a show at York Street Cafe in Newport through Sept. 2.

        • Jeffrey Cortland Jones, Sara Mulhauser and Paige Williams are at the KZF Gallery, 655 Eden Park Drive, through October.

        • At DAAP Galleries Downtown (314 W. Fourth St.) chairs made by professor Tony Kawanari's industrial design students incorporate humor, craftsmanship, compactness, asymmetry and simplicity into their 75 pounds.

        • The new Foundation Gallery (200 W. Fourth St.) has a show with painters B.B. Hall, Peyton Morris Petty and Jackie Spang.

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