what’s shakin’

With the warmer weather and more daylight hours comes increased construction activity at the Landmark Theatre renovation project. When we last checked in March 24, we saw a large pile of foam waiting to be installed as sub-flooring for the dressing rooms. On our latest visit, May 13, that floor—and the floor for the enlarged stage—had since been covered with bent steel before concrete gets poured on it. According to Aaron Walter, project manager, it took four days to get the bent steel floor laid.

A 90-ton crane has been gumming up Clinton Street traffic while it’s being used to set beams and girders for the 80-foot-high stage ceiling. When it’s time to to place the support beam for that ceiling, workers at Clark Rigging, 945 Spencer St., will spend a day assembling the 200-ton crane needed to that task.

Enough progress has been made inside the 362 S. Salina St. theater that May 13 and 14 saw two high school proms in the cleaned-out lobby, Christian Brothers Academy and Manlius Pebble Hill. Prepping usable bathrooms was a priority for Walter’s crew.

Progress edition: The Landmark renovation project is starting to take shape, as evidenced by these photos taken on May 13 (clockwise from left): Some incredible finds had been hidden in storage in the theater’s catacombs, including plaster casts that were used to replicate the plaster work around a new doorway in the lobby; while the bathrooms became a priority as prom season loomed, workers finalized the impressive tile work (the too-modern mirrors will be replaced); beams, girders and a reinforced steel floor (shown before concrete covers it) will support the expanded stage and its 80-foot ceiling; and a crew preps the former Clark’s Ale House spot for dramatic windows that will overlook West Jefferson Street.

See all the Landmark renovation photos shot thus far at syracusenewtimes.com

12 in 2012

The Everson Museum of Art. ArtRage Gallery. Community Folk Art Center. Erie Canal Museum. Light Work. Punto de Contacto/Point of Contact.

The Redhouse. Stone Quarry Hill Art Park. SUArt Galleries. Urban Video Project. The Warehouse Gallery. The city of Syracuse. What do these 12 places have in common? They are in Syracuse. They are cultural and artistic centers.

Most importantly, they are soon to be home to TONY 2012.

So who is TONY 2012? The better question is what is TONY 2012. TONY 2012, a.k.a. The Other New York 2012, is a communitywide and community-run biennial art exhibit coming in the fall of 2012. “The title of the show refers to the fact that we are specifically targeting artists in upstate New York,” said Debora Ryan, the Everson’s senior curator. “We’re trying to reach as many artists as possible and really encourage them to participate.”

In past years, artists from the area have shown their work in the Everson Museum’s biennial celebration. Last year, the biennial consisted of a series of smaller and more focused shows. “For 2012, we have a new format to expand out into the community,” noted Ryan. “It was an idea that I’ve been wanting to do for a few years now. I contacted the not-for-profit, noncommercial venues around Syracuse, and everyone was very eager and very excited about the idea of doing a collaborative exhibition.”

The venues involved in TONY 2012 each represent a slightly different aspect of the

Syracuse art community: They exhibit different types of art; they attract different people; they have different spaces. “That’s actually the fun part of the show. We all have different missions and different audiences,” said Ryan. “There are crossover artists who have never shown here at the Everson, but have shown at different venues. We’re hoping to have that input to make the show really exciting.”

Everson Museum of Art senior curator Debora Ryan, photographed with museum director Steven Kern: “We’re trying to reach as many artists as possible and really encourage them to participate.”

And this is where any artists reading these words come in. TONY 2012 is currently accepting applications from Central New York artists who wish to participate in the biennial exhibit. “The exhibition is open to all media,” said Ryan. Interested artists should visit the Everson Museum’s website for the online application—the submission process this year is online only—to propose either a new artistic idea or already existing work. There is no submission fee.

Any artists who want to find out more information about the submission process for TONY 2012 are invited to attend a forum on Thursday, June 2, from 9 a.m. to noon, where assistance in online submissions will be available.

Throughout the summer and fall, curators will coordinate studio visits with artists of interest, and the exhibiting artists and program will be determined in December. The final selection of pieces will be determined by the types of work submitted. “Some pieces will be site specific or large scale,” said Ryan. “So one artist might be chosen for one venue, or there might be numerous artists showing as a group.”

TONY 2012 aims to not only showcase a variety of artistic talent, but connect the different exhibits—literally. “Most of the venues are close to the Everson Museum. We’d like to connect them by encouraging artists to do the walking tour, and a ‘crawl day’ to offer a bus to visitors who couldn’t take that walk,” explained Ryan. “We’d also like to have freight containers that we could place in the city between venues. We’ve spoken to the city about the possibility of that, and we’re very excited about it, even it they’re up for a few weeks. This is a new thing for Syracuse. Hopefully we’ll have some artists who might not have applied in the past come out for this one.”

For more information about TONY 2012, visit the Everson Museum’s website at www. everson.org.

—Lorna Oppedisano