Mark Maynard | grants

Amanda Sari Perez on winning this month’s A2Awesome grant, and the geodesic dome she’s built with the money

By Mark | June 4, 2012

Today, the trustees of A2Awesome handed over $1,000 to Amanda Sari Perez for the creation of an enormous geodesic dome, which she hopes will serve as a platform on which others in the community can express their creativity. Following is my interview with her. MARK: To start out, could you tell us a bit about […]

Posted in Ann Arbor, Art and Culture, Awesome Foundation | Also tagged A2Awesome, A2MechShop, Alice Liberson, All Hands Active, Amanda Sari Perez, brain implants, Buckminster Fuller, Burning Man, creativity, Dick Soble, DIY, Dome Sweet Dome, Figment, geodesic dome, hacking, Heather MacKenzie, inh Song, interview, Lakes of Fire, Lisa Dengiz, Maker Faire, Maker Works, making stuff, micro-philanthropy, Paul Saginaw, public art, Syncytium | 5 Comments

Emilia Javanica on the Red Blob Massacre, and what it’s like to shoot one’s first independent film

By Mark | March 20, 2012

A few months ago, I announced here on the site that an aspiring filmmaker in Ann Arbor, by the name of Emilia Javanica, was looking for actors to cast in a comedic horror film that she was making called the Red Blob Massacre. Well, the film has just completed production, and I took the opportunity […]

Posted in Ann Arbor, Art and Culture, Uncategorized | Also tagged animation, art films, art school, art students, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, b-movies, Basket Case, books on filmmaking, Brad Smith, Bride of the Monster, Carrie, Cat People, Cavern Club, Chuck Sipperley, Dale Newton, David Lynch, DIY, Emilia Javanica, Eraserhead, fear of death, film ideas, George Kuchard, Harry Shannon, horror movies, independent film, John Gaspard, John Waters, Little Otik, Michael McCarty, Nosferatu, performance art, puppet Mark, Red Blob Massacre, Robert Rodriquez, School of Art & Design, silent film, Simon Alexander-Adams, Sins of the Fleshapoids, Smuckers-Wagstaff Grant, Stand By Me, Steve Wild, Swamp Women, The Blob, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, University of Michigan, Why We Write Horror | 9 Comments

So, what’s up with tenure?

By Mark | April 30, 2009

A few days ago, we started debating an opinion piece that ran in the New York Times on higher education reform. The author of that piece, as you may recall, among other things, suggested that the institution of tenure be dissolved. As you can imagine, several readers of this site, many of whom work at […]

Posted in Michigan, Observations, Other, Science | Also tagged academic freedom, Assistant Professor, bold initiatives, research, scientists, tenure, University of Michigan | 90 Comments

Shadow Grants

By Mark | April 13, 2009

As I think I must have mentioned here at some point, the next Shadow Art Fair is scheduled to take place Saturday, July 18 at the Corner Brewery. As usual, it’s scheduled to run from noon to midnight. And, as usual, you’re all encouraged to apply as vendors, or enter our poster design competition. The […]