A distinctive Omaha art show features embedded LED light engineering that constantly changes artworks’ perceptions and moods.
A colorfully painted macaw by Dana Newman, for example, appears to change from friendly to menacing and back to friendly as its feathers switch from red to green to blue. And a storm photo by Mike Beck includes flashes that seem to show lightning from inside a dark cloud.
They are among 43 pieces in the appropriately titled “Out of Darkness” exhibit through March 31 at the Jewish Community Center, 333 S. 132nd St.
Dennis Holt of Manchester, New Hampshire, who retired as a lighting engineer for the Sylvania Corp., invented frames with tiny computers that vary the color, brightness, saturation and duration of the light.
When his wife, Jeanie, suggested the idea, he said, he wasn’t sure it would make much of a difference. “But seeing the impact on a picture really hooked me.”
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Jeanie’s sister is Juli-Ann Gasper, who is retired as a professor of finance at Creighton University. She is a fabric artist whose “Out of Darkness” poem became the theme of the exhibit.
Not all of the show includes embedded lighting. Jeanie Holt displays rust-dyed muslin pieces, and some of Gasper’s fabric art includes flat stones and humanoid images of petroglyphs from New Mexico.
The exhibit is free and open to the public, and visitors can chat with the artists at a reception from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday.
A “Behind the Frame” session at 7 p.m. Tuesday will explore the computer technology of the lighting and framing. It also can be seen online by searching “dennisholt” at instructables.com.
Holt, by the way, was impressed by a visit to the new Center for Advanced and Emerging Technologies at Metropolitan Community College.
“It is absolutely amazing, a tremendous asset to the area,” he said. “It’s going to be a catalyst for business and engineering.”
Omaha ranks high for best cities to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day
As Omaha stages its St. Patrick’s Day parade in the Old Market at 10 a.m. Saturday, a full week ahead of time, we make a lot of cities green with envy at our St. Paddy’s ranking — 16th out of 200 U.S. cities.
WalletHub, in its 2018 ranking of “Best Cities for St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations,” puts Chicago first and Boston second, followed by Philadelphia, Buffalo and New York City.
By category, Omaha ranked only 77th in Irish pubs and restaurants per capita, but 34th in access to bars and 24th in lowest prices for three-star hotels. Our highest spot was seventh nationally in percentage of Irish population.
About 33 million Americans claim Irish ancestry — seven times the population of Ireland. Irish ancestry in the U.S. is second to German.
Ex-mayor of Omaha sister city coming to town
Timmy Conway, former mayor of Omaha’s sister city of Naas, Ireland, arrives in town Saturday for a week of activities leading to the cultural holiday.
Naas (rhymes with lace) is a city of 20,000 about 40 minutes southwest of Dublin. Timmy — not Tim or Timothy — twice has served as grand marshal of Omaha’s Irish parade.
A poet and author, his latest book is his autobiography, “Timmy.” He will sign books at the Bookworm, 2501 S. 90th St., at 6 p.m. Friday, March 16,and will attend an Irish-American public officials luncheon next Saturday at the Field Club.
Former Husker returns home to Omaha, makes an impact
Titus Adams, a defensive tackle who started for the Huskers in 2003 and 2004 and spent five years in the NFL, is happy to have moved back to Omaha with his family.
And March 24, the former Creighton Prep star plays a role that connects to his childhood. He is the first graduate of Sacred Heart Elementary School to serve as an honorary chair of The Gathering, a fundraiser for urban-mission schools.
The 12th annual event is for CUES, Christian Urban Education Services, which oversees Sacred Heart, All Saints and Holy Name schools. All serve a majority of students living at or below the poverty line.
Titus, 35, and wife Maranda, whom he met while in college at Nebraska, moved to Omaha last summer from Houston with sons Titus, now 7, Traeson, 5, and Tucker, 3, and daughter Marlee, who turns 2 in April.
The couple are quickly becoming involved in the community. And the senior Titus wants to let young people know what’s really cool: “It’s cooler to get good grades, cooler to smile rather than frown.”
He will soon reopen the Cooler Snoball Shop at 2323 N. 24th St. Maranda works in real estate.
Tickets to The Gathering ($125, or $60 for age 35 and under) at the La Visa Embassy Suites, are available at cuesschools.org.
The keynote speaker is Les “Pee Wee” Harrison, a former Harlem Globetrotter. Honored posthumously at the event will be his parents, L.G. and Shirley Harrison, who sent 10 of their 11 children to Sacred Heart, where L.G. was the longtime physical education teacher.
DeWulf was key to ‘Blood for Freedom’ effort during Korean War
Monica DeWulf, who died in Omaha last Saturday at 98, was a nurse long ago on what some called “the blood train.”
During the Korean War, it was actually the “Blood for Freedom” car, a collaboration between the Union Pacific Railroad and the American Red Cross. Monica and three other nurses traveled in the rail car, which stopped at small towns so people could donate blood.
The original plan was to travel Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming and Kansas. A later report said the 1951-53 effort had turned over 30,000 pints of blood to the armed forces and had traveled in 11 Western states.
Mary Jo Schulte of Omaha said her aunt, who was born in Cedar Rapids, Nebraska, and never married, was beloved by many nieces and nephews. She spent much of her career work with Bloodmobiles and retired in 1985.
Sadie Bankston memorial set
A memorial service for Sadie Bankston, who helped hundreds of families of homicide victims, will be held at noon March 17 at Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church, 5501 N. 50th St.
Two years after her son was shot and killed in 1989, Sadie founded the nonprofit PULSE, People Uniting, Lending Support and Encouragement. She died last week at 73.
The family held a private service, but friend Pat Wright, whose daughter was slain in 1995, said next week’s service is for the public.
“Sadie helped me, and I always helped her,” Pat said. “When she talked, you knew what she said was OK because she went through the same thing.”