art’s stone age
Rotunda to feature images
of an abstract vocabulary
by Jessica Rager
Fay Grajower is not inspired.
To her, inspiration refers to
an object that is taken from one's
surroundings and painted rec
ognizably on a page.
Instead, Grajower finds cre
ativity in words and phrases
interpreted into a “vocabulary”
of abstract images, she said.
This month, the Rotunda
Gallery, located in the Nebraska
Union, features the work of
Grajower, an abstract impres
sionist from Boston.
Her exhibit, titled “stones
and scrolls,” features paintings
that combine rich texture and
color. She layers a variety of
media on wood, canvas and
vinyl to represent the layers of
inherited memory, which
shapes lives and, ultimately,
reveals personal histories, she
said.
The pieces displayed in the
gallery, open through Oct. 5, rep
resent Grajower’s most current
work, beginning in 1992.
She chose the pieces and the
title for her display after noticing
a uniting feature among all the
paintings - they all had sugges
tions of stone, she said.
Some of the images were
painted on recycled window
shades, which represented
scrolls. For Grajower, an interest
ing tension was created between
the hard surface of the stone on
the flimsy shade. Grajower said
this correlation had strong his
torical meaning as well because
she is Jewish.
Jean Cahan, director of the
Norman and Bernice Harris
Center for Judaic Studies at UNL,
wrote an introduction to a cata
logue of Grajower’s work on dis
play in the Rotunda Gallery.
In it, she wrote, “Scrolls, of
course, embody the Torah and
the vast learning and religiosity
based upon it... Torah of scrolls
is inextricably linked to the first
Torah inscribed in stone.”
University in Omaha in October
of 1998, where Grajower was
presenting a paper on the
images of Jerusalem through
postcards.
Their conversation led to
Grajower’s sending pictures of
her work to Cahan, who, in turn,
Cahan, also a fan of abstract
impressionism, is responsible
for bringing the collection to
UNL.
Grajower and Cahan met on
a coffee break at the Klutzrick
Conference at Creighton
scheduled a show.
Cahan said she wants stu
dents to get “beauty and creativ
ity sometimes mixed with deep
Jewish spirituality” from the
paintings.
Grajower hopes students
keep an open mind when they
go see her work. She would
advise them not to look for any
thing specific.
“Look, absorb, be open to
yourself and receiving whatever
the painting is telling you,” she
said. “It’s not one thing, not right
or wrong. It’s different for each
person. Whatever you see, what
ever you feel, that’s right.”
Grajower has practiced art of
some form her entire life, she
said, although she didn’t study
art formally until after college.
“I always had pieces on show
in elementary school and at
camp," she said. “But I didn’t
think I could take it seriously. In
a family with strong Jewish
beliefs, it wouldn’t have been
appropriate," she said.
Mie got ner Dacneior s degree
in English at New York University
and attended Harvard
University in the Arabic studies
program. In 1979, however, she
changed her mind and enrolled
in Boston’s School of the
Museum of Fine Arts to begin
her career as a serious artist.
Grajower completed her
artistic education by receiving
her master’s degree from New
York University.
She encourages college-age
artists to stay with art and stay
true to themselves. “Get good at
what you do,” she said.
Grajower also does graphic
design, sculpture and commis
sion pieces, like The Holocaust
Memorial Sculpture in Boca
Raton, Florida. Her next project
will most likely deal with the
concept of myths and memory,
she said.
Reggae trio incorporates
cultural beliefs into music
BY EMILY PYEATT
In “Writing the Australian Crawl,” William
Stafford wrote, “Ideas spring from motion, and the
mind is always in motion.”
The reggae music scene in Lincoln has defi
nitely been in motion the past few months. From
shows like Culture and Dred I Dread, Lincoln’s
doses of reggae are getting heavier.
Tonight, roots reggae harmonic trio The
Meditations will play at Knickerbockers, 9010 St.
The Meditations, along with the Mighty
Diamonds, are the only remaining roots reggae
trio that still consist of all the original members,
said Carter Van Pelt, producer of400 Years Radio at
KZUM89.3FM.
Formed in 1974, Ansel Cridland, Danny Clarke
and Winston Watson have produced their own
unique reggae harmony sound that springs from
harsh realities and themes of love. Like other reg
gae bands, they have incorporated their
Rastafarian beliefs and African culture for vibrant
ly charged songs.
The most popular and enduring song, "Woman
Like a Shadow,” served as a breakthrough for the
band.
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' i
In 1978, The Meditations began working with
the famous producer Lee “Scratch” Perry at the
Black Art Studio.
Please see MEDITATIONS on 10
Urge show crashes in to town
BY ANDREW SHAW
While on the tour bus, the
Urge likes to deliver bone-crack
ing tackles via Playstation. When
they are on stage, the hysteria is
more tangible.
The Urge makes a stop in
Lincoln tonight at the Royal
Grove, 340 W. Cornhusker
Highway.
Bill Reiter, the band’s saxo
phone player, said it has been a
long time since the Urge played
Lincoln, but they crash into
Lincoln and Omaha’s small ven
ues more often than Madonna
changes her image.
1 he current tour is in support
of their latest album and first
release on Virgin Records, “Too
Much Stereo.” The band on the
album and the maelstrom on
stage are two different sounds.
“Our songs come across dif
ferently live,” Reiter said.
On silicon, the tunes are well
shaped, smoothed-out pieces of
music, but when they are played
through stacks of amps, the raw
and primitive force feeds a differ
ent electricity into your veins.
“To me, recording is pretty
boring,” Reiter said. “Performing
is the coolest thing I could ever
think about doing.”
The original Urge sound
comes from the unconventional
combination of Reiter’s saxo
phone and Matt Kwiatkowski’s
trombone talents.
Including horns in this hard
rock band creates a wall of sound
different from guitar-flooded
bands. The songs take on a funk
feel, which is sometimes even
jazzy but is always driven along
by a rock base.
l he adrenaline rush supplied
by the Urge has been well
received in the past by Nebraska
fans.
Matt Dregalla, a junior busi
ness major, has seen the Urge
seven times since 1998.
He has noticed the Urge’s
popularity growth in the last few
months with its radio play
increasing, but he agrees with
Reiter that the band isn’t
“famous.”
Reiter said he’s recognized
sometimes, but said he is never
mobbed.
Dregalla thinks the Urge’s lack
of extreme commercial fame
makes the concerts better. “They
put more heart into it because
they aren’t making tons of
money,” he said.
Tonight’s show will be the
Urge’s second appearance in
Nebraska in 2000, a low number
because of the recording sessions
for “Too Much Stereo.”
Tickets are $15 at the door.
So, take a friend, wear your
jumping shoes and prepare your
self for the barrage of the Urge.
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