Continuing: C.X.Silver Gallery presents TIBETAN THANGKA PAINTING of CHUNTUI LAMA. Thangkas are paintings on cloth scrolls mounted on brocade banners, also available unmounted. Open daily 9 am to 9 pm by appointment and walk-in, (802) 257-7898 ext. 2 or (802) 579-9088; contact Adam Silver. Chuntui’s works can be viewed online at www.cxsilvergallery.com > artists. Exhibition continues as is through February 26 and continues with a smaller selection from March through June.

CLASSES:

CHINESE LANGUAGE, ART & CULTURE CLASSES for all ages in West Brattleboro through May: Ages 4-7 meet Wednesdays 3-4 pm. Ages 8-12 meet Thursdays beginning in late March, 4:30-5:30 pm. Teens and Adults: Beginner level meets on Wednesdays 5-6 pm; Intermediate on Mondays 7-8:30 pm; . Call if interested in starting a Chinese class for preschoolers (ages 2-4) with their caregivers. For further information,(802) 257-7898, ext. 1 or (802) 579-9088 or visit the programs pages of www.asianculturalcentervt.org or email to: acc.vt@verizon.net.

T’AI CHI CLASSES FOR HEALTH for teens and adults in West Brattleboro, year round, Tuesday afternoons 4:00-5:00pm and Saturday mornings 9:15-10:15am. Enrollment accepted throughout the year for short- or long-term, all levels from beginners up. Classes in T’ai Chi can be combined with Chinese calligraphy and classes in T’ai Chi sword can be arranged with the instructor. Directions to T’ai Chi classes: For further information, visit http://www.asianculturalcentervt.org/html/pgtai.htm, acc.vt@verizon.net or (802) 257-7898 ext. 1 or (802) 579-9088.

CHINESE AND ART SUMMER CAMP: Three one-week half-day sessions in West Brattleboro, Vermont, on Chinese language, art and culture for elementary school age (afternoons 1-4 pm) and preschoolers (mornings 9-11 am). July 28 to August 15. For information, contact Asian Cultural Center of Vermont at (802) 257-7898, ext. 1 or visit the programs page of www.asianculturalcentervt.org and click on 'a summer day camp alternative.'

EVENTS:

Tuesday early evening, May 13, 6 pm: at the C.X. Silver Gallery: Asian Cultural Center of Vermont presents BESHKEMPIR (1998, 77 minutes) which traces the life of a young teen boy in the Kyrgyz countryside. Shown by permission of Open Society Institute, there is no admission fee; donations welcomed to help with Cultural Center programming and event expenses. The film opens with an adoption ceremony of the boy as a baby by the village elder women. Then, we see him as a young teen with his peers, with his step parents, and then during the funeral of his beloved grandmother. Parental guidance is suggested with two scenes not appropriate for younger children of sexualized activity and some swearing. Gulnara Abikeyeva describes “Beshkempir” in context of Kyrgyz cinema as a “rebirth banner” of the national cinema of independent Kyrgyzstan. She continues, “The film precisely, subtly, conveys the national sense of rhythm, village, lifestyle and character portrayal in a way that gives an impression that there was no Soviet cinema in Kyrgyzia before the release of this film.” This is seen in a lack of Soviet presence in the film, “no trucks, uniforms or broken cars.” The film opens and closes with a besik, a cot in Kyrgyz language, the same word used for both the babe and the corpse, “the first and last cradle for a person.” Before she dies, Beshkempir’s grandmother asks that Beshkempir be appointed as her executor. According to custom, any debts due to the deceased are annulled by the executor, and then the men of the village take the body to the burial. The film is mostly in black and white with occasional bursts of color: the opening view of the Kyrgyz rug and the women elders, a vision of a girl walking in beautiful surroundings, Grandmother’s kerchief where money is secretly hidden, and at the end, her remaining possessions after she has died – the things she kept with her constantly during her life – mostly her spinning implements. The film moves through a series of visual transitions, each transition featuring an image, an activity, that echoes another image or activity in the previous scene. One instance of these transitions is a scene of Grandmother preparing cow dung fuel disks for drying, followed by a brick maker making bricks and the boys slathering on mud.

Stone Church Arts presents Shakuhachi Master Elizabeth Reian Bennett performing a concert on the Japanese bamboo flute at Immanuel Episcopal Church, 20 Church Street, Bellows Falls, Friday evening, May 16, 7:30 pm. Tickets are $15 adults, $12 for students and children under 12 at Brattleboro Tix. Elizabeth Reian Bennett is the first woman to be certified a Grand Master of the shakuhachi and one of only a hanadful of western players trained in traditional Japanese music. She has studied and performed with Living National Treasure Aoki Reibo, recognized as Japan's foremost shakuhachi instrumentalist, for 25 years. Reian Bennett has performed frequently in Japan and worldwide; her Tokyo appearances include Tokyo National Theater and NHK, Japanese National TV. Her repertory encompasses the ancient wandering monk solos, classical Japanese chamber music, east-west contemporary compositions and works of her own improvisation. She is active in the Boston area.
Underwriting by The Framery and The Queen's Maids. For more information on Reian Bennett visit www.cdbaby.com/cd/erbennett.

Saturday early evening, May 17, 5 pm: at the C.X. Silver Gallery: Asian Cultural Center of Vermont presents THE WHITE MOUNTAINS (Difficult Crossing) (1964, 62 minutes in Black & white) In White Mountains ,Mukash is chased by officials, meets a blind woman and helps her daughter to freedom beyond the river crossing, he, having to choose a tragic solution. This film has no warnings and has a plotline for ages 10 and up. Gulnara Abikeyeva explains that this is the “first film where the Kyrgyz people have acknowledged themselves” Also called, “Difficult Crossing,” this film offers a reflection on the aftermath of the genocide of the Kyrgyz people during 1916 when the Kyrgyz were often forced to move into deserts and mountains. The stoic character of the blind woman faces the devastation with dignity. In the final scene, a line of white, saddled, riderless, horses moves toward the horizon on the opposite bank of the river. Traditionally, white horses were ridden by the elite, the heroes, prophets and rulers. Shown by permission of Open Society Institute, there is no admission fee; donations welcomed to help with Cultural Center programming and event expenses.

Sunday, May 18, 11-3 pm atop Memorial Park at the Kiwanis Shelter, CHILDREN'S DAY OF CHINA & JAPAN. For all ages. Music, games, craft activities, calligraphy, poetry. Community art project: help create a enormous koinobori (decorated cloth windsock, fish-shaped like a carp for good luck) Free event with donations appreciated to offset the cost of space rental. Potluck refreshments: bring a dish or snack to share. This event combines the Japanese festival of May 5 with the Chinese festival of June 1.

The C.X. Silver Gallery presents: TUAREG SILVERWORK of AHMED IBRAH LANDI. May 24 - June 1 for 10 days only. Reception for the artist, Sunday May 25, 2-5 pm. Ahmed Ibrah Landi is a renowned jewelry designer living in Bamako, Mali in West Africa. Ahmed was born in Niger, the only son of a nomadic Tuareg family. The Sahara was Ahmed's childhood playground, and is now where he derives inspiration for his creations in silver. All Ahmed's pieces are crafted by hand from pure silver and accented with semi-precious stones, including black onyx , garnet, and agate. He works the silver by hand in a traditional, time-honored manner, without the use of moulds. As an artist, he draws on Tuareg symbolism to make his innovative designs. His jewelry pieces are sensual, yet bold, inspired by the mystical and untamed wind and sands of the Sahara. Ahmed has displayed and retailed his work throughout Europe and West Africa. His first exhibit in the U.S. was at the C.X. Silver Gallery in October 2007. He is soon to collaborate with the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. Please note that Ahmed comes from Niger not from Nigeria.
Gallery open daily during the exhibition, 9 am to 9 pm by appointment or chance.
Dates are tentative. Travel arrangements have been delayed until the end of May. Contact Adam Silver for more information, (802) 257-7898, ext. 2 or (802) 579-9088.

Come march with the Asian Cultural Center of VT in the STROLLING OF THE HEIFERS PARADE, Saturday morning, June 7, 2008, 8:45-11:30 am. Assemble at the corner of Flat and Elm Streets at 8:45 a.m. Look for the 30-foot dragon and banner for the Asian Cultural Center of VT. People are needed to help carry the 30-foot dragon and the carp windsocks. We also have, on loan, a collection of Asian farming hats to wear during the parade. Traditionally, the Asian dragon symbolizes abundance of the land and the mysterious harmony of Nature itself. The windsocks were created at the recent Brattleboro festival for Children’s Day of Japan and China. In the Heifers Parade, Asian Cultural Center of Vermont celebrates the greening of Asia and the Brattleboro area and the common preservation of forests.

Sunday, June 8, 1-4 pm: at the C.X. Silver Gallery: Asian Cultural Center of Vermont presents DUAN WU FESTIVAL OF CHINA. The Dragon Boat Festival commemorates Poet-Patriot Qu Yuan (pronounced ‘chwee yu-ann’) who lived 2300 years in China. It is also the traditional occasion of an early observance of epidemic prevention education.

THE VERMONT SAMURAI / KAIJU FILM FESTIVAL, coming the weekend after Labor Day, Sept. 5-6-7. Looking for sponsors and donors to underwrite the costs of the festival to bring down the cost for moviegoers. For further information contact Adam Silver, acc.vt@verizon.net, (802) 257-7898 ext. 1 or (802) 579-9088.

THE VERMONT MONGOLIAN FILM FESTIVAL, coming Saturday and Sunday November 1 and 2, 2008! Contact Adam Silver for more information, (802) 257-7898 ext. 1 or (802) 579-9088 or acc.vt@verizon.net.