Center for the Arts

Preview: The Song Remains the Same

By Jeffrey Levine

Although the 2007-2008 season at the Center for the Arts is quickly coming to a close, there is no need to be sad with an event-filled 2008-2009 season quickly approaching. As they say in the theatre, ‘The show must go on,’ but since we’re going to be talking about music, perhaps, ‘Play it again Sam’ would be more appropriate.

Having brought such world-class performances to Buffalo such as: Fosse, Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita and The Producers, the Center for the Arts is pleased to complement its ever-growing Broadway repertoire with the best part of Broadway; the songs.

Three Broadway Divas (Feb. 14, 2009) prove that if one of something is good, three must be quite a bit better. Audience members can expect to hear a tour de force blend of all their favorite Broadway standards.

A little more “Rhapsody In Blue” than “Oklahoma,” Michael Feinstein (Oct. 3, 2008) began playing piano by ear at the age of five. Moving on to weddings and local piano lounges, Feinstein worked as Ira Gershwin’s assistant for six years beginning in 1977 and recorded several then unpublished works. The four-time Grammy Award Nominee is regarded as one of the premiere interpreters of American popular song.

Citing influences ranging from Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand to classical/jazz soprano Eileen Farrell, Linda Eder (Nov. 14, 2008) has the very rare talent of taking classics and truly making them her own. Drawing from a diverse musical background that includes everything from an unprecedented run on Star Search to performing on Broadway, Eder captures the true nature of each song with great clarity and beauty. This fall will mark Eder’s fourth appearance at the Center for the Arts.

Although Buffalo certainly has an affinity for Beethoven, Brahms and Barber, the classic music heard at the Center for the Arts next season will be more of the rock variety.

Elvis may have left the building, but Scot Bruce and Mike Albert bring the 1950s and 1970s Elvis back to life respectively as part of Blue Suede Shoes: The Ultimate Elvis Bash (Feb. 21, 2009). Hailed by the media as well as old musicians who played with the King as impressionists of the highest caliber, the two have quite a catalogue to choose from as well as a few choice dance moves.

In the same tribute spirit, Classics Albums Live will present Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 release “Rumours.” Reproducing the entire 19-time platinum album note for note, and cut for cut, if you close your eyes you’ll think that Stevie Nicks is singing such hits as “Dreams” and “Gold Dust Woman.”

Named after Bartok, the famed Hungarian composer, Béla Fleck has always had large musical shoes to fill. Bringing together the flaming fingers of Jeff Coffin (sax), passionate pyrotechnics of Victor Wooten (bass) and the visionary stylings of Victor’s brother “Future Man” (percussion & Drumitar), Béla Fleck and the Flecktones (Dec. 10, 2008) are an eclectic mix of bluegrass, jazz and classical. Those who have seen the quartet at the Center know that this is one performance to put on the calendar well in advance.

Although the Center for the Arts will not pit Béla against Noam Pikelny in dueling banjos, they are proud to welcome the Punch Brothers (Nov. 17, 2008) to their 2008-2009 schedule. Founded by former Nickel Creek member and Béla Fleck collaborator Chris Thile, the Brothers have a straight-ahead bluegrass sound with hints of classical and folk music blended in like the harmonies of a finely tuned chord.

For those in search of even more fiddling, Natalie MacMaster’s (Mar. 11, 2009) fierce yet refined bow strokes mesmerize audiences while her rhythmic step dancing quickens quite a few pulses. The niece of famed fiddler Buddy MacMaster, Natalie has forged her own reputation for subtly pushing the boundaries of Celtic music into passionate sonorities of great intensity and expression.

Self-described as “A family. A musical group of brothers and sisters, a sound, a style of music, a way of life, a volcanic explosion of talent and energy, intense emotion, and feral passion,” Leahy (Dec. 11, 2008) are one of the great family bands of all time. The Canadian octet features guitar, bass, percussion, vocals, dancing and an armory of fiddlers performing Celtic music.

No winter would be complete without milk, cookies and the The Irish Tenors (Dec. 12, 2008). With a blend of classical training and romantic singing, the Tenors are able to seamlessly sing contemporary songs alongside traditional Irish melodies without missing a beat.

Ticket on sale dates for these and even more 2008-09 events will be announced soon. To keep up with the latest events, patrons are encouraged to join the Center’s email list at www.ubcfa.org.

Backstage Broadway

By Jeffrey Levine

The lights go on, the curtain comes up and the actors take the stage. But how was it all created?

The hallmark of any good production is the audiences’ lack of recognition that they have just seen a show. Rendering the audience unaware of all the mechanisms that went into staging the illusion, the production team simultaneously exists as both craftsmen and conjurers. It is the people behind the scenes, on the scaffolding, and up in the booth that are forced to solve technical problems while creating magic.

Far away from the glitz and glimmer of Broadway, however, are the realities of tech work. Starting before the actors take the stage and working after they are finished, it is the production team that is responsible for setting up all of the sound, lighting, and scenery that will be used in the show. But before the tech runs can even begin, all of the equipment has to be unloaded from the tractortrailers, about three to six trucks worth.

“On the first day, a crew of about 60 stage hands will unload the majority of the equipment,” said Bryan Sidorowicz, Director of Production for the Center for the Arts. “After load-in, the next few days up until ‘show day’ are very repetitive. Some tech [runs] last two days, others ten, but each day there’s a morning crew call to do technical notes, scenery fixes, lighting fixes, and sound fixes. Then there’s the afternoon and evening rehearsals. Sometimes it’s rehearsing scenes over and over again. Sometimes it’s doing run-throughs of the entire show. And sometimes it’s jumping from cue to cue to work out programming.”

Although hard work and long days are not unusual in the Broadway business, on or off the stage, what is incredible about the shows being put on at Backstage Broadway University of Buffalo is that they often have student volunteers working on the productions. Learning firsthand what it means to be in the business, UB students are able to supplement their academic classes by working side by side with their professional counterparts. “I think students from every discipline come to college with a pre-conceived idea of what they will be doing ‘in their field.’Working at the Center for the Arts provides the real world experience they don’t get in class,” Sidorowicz explained.

“I think it’s vital to show students who desire to work in this field what it really means to be in Technical Theater. I think it really opens an undergrad’s eyes, both positively and sometimes negatively, to what the business is all about. Working these techs also exposes students to current technologies in lighting, sound and automation that aren’t taught at UB. Techs, by their nature, expose the students to real problems that need real solutions. Solutions that then go on the road all over the country.”

Gaining real world experience, the knowledge UB students receive from their work at the Center for the Arts translates into new creative aspirations, and in some cases, a new gig.

“I was on tour with The Full Monty after Fosse, for about six months. Fosse was kind of a test run for me and the touring company, like a two-week interview,” UB alumni Rebecca Wolf said. “I am in Graduate School in Maryland right now getting an MFA in Lighting Design and I still keep in touch with some of the people I met on Fosse today. The facilities at UB are amazing and allow a really unique experience for undergrads there to interact with touring technicians, designers and performers. It’s quite rare, I’m discovering lately, and I hope the students there know how much they actually have at their fingertips.”

Working with local theatres such as Studio Arena and Shea’s in addition to Broadway, the techs who set up shop in the CFA seem to get as much out of the runs as their young protégés do.

“Everyone loves it. Everyone has been the “novice” at some point in their careers,” Sidorowicz said. “It’s amazing to see how much they embrace the students and work with them in every way they can. I can’t think of a better way to expose students to this field.”

Making Music the Militello Way

By Jeffrey Levine

Still able to name all of the big Buffalo jazz clubs of his youth like they were members of his family, saxophonist and Buffalo native Bobby Militello hasn’t missed a beat over the four decades of his career.

A recent conversation with Bobby recalled names of Buffalo mainstays like Gabriel’s Gate, Mulligans and Statler, interspersed with jazz icons like Maynard Ferguson and Dave Brubeck, along with remembrances of European tours, old LPs, and notes still left to blow. With a series of sideman stints that reads like a veritable “who’s who” in the jazz world, and more side projects than there are notes in a burning jazz solo, what is perhaps more surprising than the scope of Militello’s career, however, is the impetus that started it all for young Bobby.

“I actually started playing clarinet because I saw the Benny Goodman Story and just wanted to be him,” Militello explained. “I switched in grammar school [to saxophone] and just kind of fell in love with it.”

Casually adding that, “my clarinet chops suck now,” Militello has maintained his sense of humor in an industry that has a tendency to wear people out as they criss-cross the country touring and spending entire nights trying to perfect their craft. Militello still feels the same drive despite - or perhaps because of - all his many accomplishments in the field.

“I’ve lived the life of ten people, but I take it in stride and try not to let things affect me,” Militello said. “If you keep your career in perspective you realize that you never make it. A player’s ego is a very strong thing but it only belongs on the stage. When you’re done, you’re a regular person like anyone else. You just always try to be better than you were yesterday. As far as I’m concerned, I’ll never reach perfection. I’ll just be on that road all the time, trying to do it better every day.”

For Militello, that road has taken him a long way from the strip shows and university rehearsal halls of Buffalo to a ten-year stint in Los Angeles, tours all over the world and back to his hometown once again. A self-proclaimed ‘road rat,’Militello still uses Buffalo as his base of operations while maintaining an active touring schedule. Jokingly stating that “When you’re on the road, you get paid to travel,” Militello finished his thought with more passion than humor: “You play for free.” Gigging might be how Bobby pays the bills, but music is Militello’s life and it’s what drives him night after night.

Looking to legendary pianist and long-time collaborator Dave Brubeck for inspiration, the chances of Bobby melting down his alto sax into a set of golf clubs looks about as slim as Bill Clinton picking up his horn and touring the country.

“Music is my voice and my soul,” Militello said. “It expresses what I am the best. I will never hang that up, and couldn’t conceive of doing that.”

The Pipes, the Pipes are Calling: Celtic Music

By Jeffrey Levine

Comprised of areas from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, the Isle of Man, Cornwall, and even parts of Northern Spain such as Galicia and Asturias, Celtic culture made its way westward across the Atlantic with the countless number of immigrants arriving in North America during the last two centuries. Showing up everywhere from a festive scene on the lower decks of the Titanic to the boys of Boston basketball, there is a diverse and rich heritage to Celtic music extending far beyond the limits of “Riverdance” and Bono.

Creating a synergy between steps and sound, it is difficult to separate Celtic music from dance when the two are aligned not only in the social imagination but also in their performance. Even though some songs, such as harp tunes and slow airs were played on their own, the large majority of melodies were meant to be played, and to be played fast, alongside solo or groups of dancers.

Despite the large variety of dance tunes, they can be separated into general groups by their pulse or arrangement of strong and weak beats. Reels are felt in four, similar to lightning-fast versions of songs such as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” and “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” while jigs are bouncier and are usually in 6/8 time, felt as 1 2 3, 4 5 6. Hornpipes, traditionally and stereotypically known as a ‘sailor’s dance,’ are often felt in two, a slightly slower variation of a reel, but can sometimes be felt in three like a quick waltz.

Organized around different themes, such as pub songs or dance tunes, musicians gather together for seisiúns or sessions where they give new life to these old songs. While the fiddle (violin) and tin whistle are the most traditional of the instruments played at the seisiún, newer instruments, such as the accordion and its smaller cousin the concertina, banjo, mandolin, guitar, harmonica and a large frame drum, known as a bodhrán, have all been added to the lineup over the years. Far from ruining the tradition, however, the addition of these new instruments is in keeping with the spirit of the seisiún, stressing a vibrant performance over tepid perfection.

“What I value most in a seisiún is the camaraderie,” Bill Raffle, the host of WBFO’s Celtic Kaleidoscope and an accomplished Celtic musician and dancer, explained. “It’s not about who can play the best or the fastest. It’s about people getting together and socializing through music. I would rather be in a group where people try to help each other than one filled with egos.”

Once passed down orally, this sense of brotherhood and apprenticeship are essential for the continuation of Celtic music because, as Raffle explained, “The best way to learn the music is by listening, not by reading sheet music.” Even though the tunes have now been written down, the weekly seisiúns at Neitzsche’s, Glen Park Tavern and Ulrich’s Tavern are still the best way to get together, sit in for a song or two and participate in this centuries old tradition.

Ceol agus gaol. Music and friendship.

The Way I See It

The Center for the Arts…

I began my work here a little more than a year ago, hired as the Center’s Director of Development. 

This afternoon, I took a walk down to the Commons on the North Campus, to grab a coffee (and a pastry if you must know).  As I stood and waited patiently in line, I practiced reciting my order – in my head of course.  “Medium, skinny, decaf latte” Sounds simple enough I thought, but of course, I stumbled on it when it came to be my turn to order.   As strange as it sounds, I don’t think they know what the word “medium” means… venti, tall, grandiose… I just don’t get it… 

To be quite honest, there were so many options, that I realized whatever your taste, and capacity for coffee, you really could get whatever kind of coffee drink imaginable - in small, medium or large.

Back to my work at the Center for the Arts… I soon got to thinking… “This is a bit like what we have to offer at the Center”.    The Center offers such an eclectic repertoire on each of our three stages:  Screening Room (small), Drama Theatre (medium), and Mainstage Theatre (large).    There truly is something for everyone.  Everyday I am amazed at the caliber of artists that come through this building.  I am very proud of the work that I do to raise money for the professional and enrichment programs that we offer to our community.  I am excited to share all that we do here to friends, colleagues and at times even strangers.  It’s a wonderful message to spread, so give me a hand and send a friend to www.ubcfa.org. 

Thanks!

Carrie Veltri
Director of Development

Broadway Bound

By Jeffrey Levine

The backstage of any Broadway show is always hectic: stage managers directing performers, crew members moving sets and swapping props, quick costume changes, last minute adjustments and, of course, the unexpected. But despite this frantic atmosphere is an underlying sense of order; a carefully planned system is in place so that the audience only sees the smooth, final product.

Long before the actual stage production arrives however, the planning process of what to book at any performing arts center is just as crucial. In 2002 the Center for the Arts began talking about bringing a Broadway show to UB, and just one year later expanded their already eclectic schedule with the presentation of the dance revue Fosse.

Outfitted with a hall capable of handling the large-scale demands of a Broadway show, plus an excellent production department and a nationally recognized theatre and dance program, the Center was an ideal fit to host Broadway production companies for a “technical run” before kicking off a national tour. In addition to the opportunity to present various world-class musicals to the Western New York public, a technical run would allow UB students to gain invaluable experience by working alongside theatrical professionals. This is what ultimately clinched the decision to bring the New York City stage to the UB campus.

“The producers of Fosse loved our space and were open to the idea of the Center incorporating as many students as possible into the stagehand work crews for those two weeks,” Robert Falgiano, Assistant Director of the Center for the Arts, said. “That way, UB theatre and dance students would get a first-hand experience working on a Broadway show, in addition to the training they receive each year on academic musical productions. We scheduled a few lecture/discussion activities with the director of the show, and people involved in casting. The student response was really positive, and the Fosse folks enjoyed it too.”

Spurred on by their near sell-out performances of Fosse as well as the students’ feedback, the Center brought Broadway back with Rent in 2004 and Miss Saigon in 2005, and another two-week tech run and performances of Jesus Christ Superstar in 2006. Although the Center will be stepping up its Broadway quota for the 2007-2008 season with both The Producers and Evita, they do not feel they are in competition with Shea’s.

“Shea’s will always be the primary Broadway presenter in Buffalo,” Falgiano explained. “In my discussions and negotiations with the Broadway agents we’ve discovered that the great popularity of Broadway, especially in Buffalo, means that there is enough appetite for a few additional professional attractions. We think that this adds to the overall interest and audience for Broadway, and helps us round out the programming available to UB students and the community.”

With many UB graduates going on to technical and performance jobs with theatrical producers, the partnership between Buffalo and Broadway is getting stronger each year. Another student-centered technical run is tentatively scheduled for fall of the 2008-2009 season. Amidst everything going on at UB, Broadway shows are just one more facet to an already diverse program. “I think Buffalo is amazing in its support of the arts,” Falgiano explained. “It’s one of the great things about living here.”

Jazz, Straight Ahead

by Jeffrey Levine

Born in the swamps of Louisiana and the smoky nightclubs of Chicago, jazz has traveled all around the world, moving from club to club establishing fans and inspiring would-be performers. Speaking a language that transcends geographic barriers, what has been hailed as the only uniquely American art form has found many new homes over the years, but none perhaps as cozy as the city along the Pacific coast in Central California known as Monterey.

 

Founded in 1958, the Monterey Jazz Festival has grown to become the longest running jazz festival in the world. Hosting legends in that first year such as Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Dave Brubeck, Max Roach, and the Billie Holiday in her first and only appearance at the festival, Monterey has become much more than a who’s who of jazz, serving as a yearly reminder and reminiscence of what the true essence of jazz is. Combining Dixie and bebop, jazz and classical, old and young, Monterey gathers the world’s best players every September for a celebration of what the greats like Duke Ellington, Count Basie, John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, and Miles Davis have already accomplished while listening to the sounds and soul that newcomers like Joshua Redman, Bobby McFerrin, and Charlie Hunter are literally blowing, singing and strumming into the future.

A little of that California warmth will come to Buffalo when the Monterey Jazz Festival arrives at the Center for the Arts on Tuesday, March 11 as part of their 50^th anniversary tour. Carrying on in the tradition of the past half-decade, the five-piece combo will bring together old cats and young hipsters who have all had strong ties to the festival. 2007 Artist-in-Residence Terence Blanchard (trumpet) and Monterey mainstay James Moody (sax) will be the men out front while Derrick Hodge (bass) and Kendrick Scott (drums) set the time over Benny Green’s (piano) chords. As an added bonus, Nnenna Freelon will take the stage to sing some soulful standards, tinting old favorites in a surprisingly vibrant shade.

Later on in the month, the Center for the Arts will welcome back Buffalo’s own Bobby Militello as he takes the stage on Tuesday, March 25 as part of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Having worked with everyone from Charlie Parker to Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic, Brubeck is not only a legendary composer and pianist, but also a jazz pioneer, helping to develop the subtle harmonies and timbral palette that would later become the hallmarks of “cool jazz.” In addition to Militello’s sax – and perhaps flute - Brubeck will also be enlisting the services of longtime collaborators Randy Jones (drums) and Michael Moore (bass) to help him explore the many tonal colorings and odd time signatures that his music demands.

For more information on these and other upcoming events, visit the Center for the Arts’ website at www.ubcfa.org.

Krowning a New King

by Jeffrey Levine

A little Joe Zawinul, a little Count Basie, and a whole lot of style on his own, Joe Krown originally came to Buffalo with the aspiration of becoming an electrical engineer, or at least his parents hoped.

“My parents wanted me to have something to fall back on,” Krown reminisced. “I started as an electrical engineer and realized that I just couldn’t do it anymore. It had to be music and nothing else. I took the hard road and made my decision but I knew that I would never be happy until I did.”

Switching to music after four semesters at the University at Buffalo, Krown’s change would be a temporary one, dropping out after only one more semester to try his hands at making a living as a piano and Hammond B-3 player.  After leaving Buffalo with a group of musicians he met while at UB, Krown lived in several different cities before deciding to move to New Orleans in 1992, where he still resides today.

Like his new home, Joe’s music is an eclectic and complex mix of tradition; different flavors and influences, and just the right amount of spice. Blending jazz, zydeco, ragtime, swing, and, of course, the blues, Joe is a musical chameleon, equally comfortable soloing over some traditional melodies as he is leading a funk band. Describing himself as a ‘roots player,’ Krown resists the urge to label himself under just one genre.

“I’m a student of music,” Krown explained. “I can’t just listen to one guy. I have to go back to who they listened to and who that person listened to. I want to know where it came from.”

Although Krown has slowly been emerging as a soloist and front man in his own right, his first major gig was with the hard playing, no nonsense guitar of Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown in New Orleans. Fostering a 13-year friendship with Gatemouth, Krown became a member of his regular lineup, joining the Gate’s Express as they opened for Eric Clapton in 1995 and earned Offbeat Magazine’s best band in blues award in 2004. Krown continued to play with Gatemouth - even enlisting him for a side project - up until Brown’s tragic passing in 2005.

While still playing with Gatemouth and his band, Krown began to strike out on his own, producing eight albums in a nine-year period. He landed a solo gig at the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans - a place that once hosted such legends as Professor Longhair and James Booker.  Krown’s first release, Just the Piano…Just the Blues (1998), was an outpouring of original piano music. Contrasting sharply from the lone piano, Krown’s next three albums were with his Organ Combo. Starting with what Krown described as ‘old school organ,’ Down and Dirty (1999) was quickly followed with an all-star blend of blues and Bayou in Buckle Up (2000) and the groove inspired Funkyard (2002). Trading his B-3 back for the ivories, Krown’s New Orleans Piano Rolls brought together traditional tunes and rags while the self-titled Sansone, Krown & Fohl (2004) was a stripped down, Delta-blues exploration.

Even after living through the nightmare of Hurricane Katrina, Krown has no plans to move his wife and daughter out of the city. Facing each day as a new struggle, it is the creativity and spirit of the New Orleans’ people that Krown attributes to the city’s slow rejuvenation. It is perhaps for this reason that Krown’s latest album is the most meaningful for both the artist and his listeners.

“Old Friends is a semblance of where my heart is,” Krown said before a short silence. “It was the first record after the storm and I didn’t want an album that would only focus on all of the injustice and horror and politics. Some people may not know how close we were to losing it all, but I wanted something that would remind us what we love about the city.”

For more information, please visit www.joekrown.com.

University Arts Center Planned in 1950s

The Center for the Arts has a history much older than the thirteen year old building.  Sandra Fazekas, Associate Director of the Center for the Arts, recently compiled an historic timeline of the activities leading up to the foundation of what you now know as the Center for the Arts at the University at Buffalo.

A Fine Arts Center Endowment fund was established in 1955 through a generous donation from Seymour H. Knox to “build the Fine Arts Center.”  Part of the funding was used in 1957 to construct the former Frank Burkett Baird Music Building on the South Campus.  This building was renamed Allen Hall in 1982, and a new Baird Hall became the home of the Music Department on the North Campus.

In 1970, the construction plan for the North Campus included a “Performing Arts and Cultural Center” on the current site of the Center for the Arts.  The stagnant US economy of the 1970s and the fall of the New York Stock Exchange halted funding for major New York State construction projects, including those on State University of New York campuses.

Discussions regarding the construction of a Fine Arts Center began again in 1973.  The estimated cost of a 92,600 square foot building was $28 million.  The design appropriation for the project passed the State legislature in 1973, but the project was again delayed.

After a request for a suitable home for a donated art collection, the project was resurrected in the early 1980s.  UB President Robert Ketter made a case to State Assemblyman John Sheffer II that an arts facility would “be a key factor in improving relationships between the University and the Western New York community.”

Finally in 1988, President Steven Sample and Provost William Greiner completed the plan for the Arts Center and persuaded SUNY to release funding.  The Seymour H. Knox Foundation repeated Mr. Knox’s initial gesture by pledging $1 million to endow programming in the new Fine Arts Center.  Knox’s grandson, Seymour H. Knox IV continues the family’s legacy by serving on the current Center’s Advisory Council.

 

Ground broke in 1989, and academic departments occupied their offices in 1993.  The name of the facility was officially changed in 1994 from Fine Arts Center to Center for the Arts to include all of the arts as represented by the function and mission of the facility.

Special thanks to Marchand “Shonnie” Finnegan, Sandra Fazekas, and Carrie Veltri for their contributions to this article.

About UB Art Galleries

The University at Buffalo (UB) is fortunate to own and manage two art spaces: UB Anderson Gallery and UB Art Gallery, Center for the Arts (CFA). Founded in 1994, the UB Art Gallery is centrally located on UB’s North Campus, across from the CFA box offices. A nationally recognized showcase for innovative contemporary art, UB Art Gallery’s three exhibition spaces contain an impressive 5,000 square feet. UB Art Gallery presents solo and thematic exhibitions that reflect current visual arts issues and practices, and hosts an educational program of lectures, workshops, and publications that provides access to visiting artists. UB Art Gallery’s “Lightwell Projects” invite artists to Buffalo to directly respond to the Lightwell’s striking architecture. Featuring 740 square feet of exhibition space, the Lightwell boasts thirty-five foot walls topped by skylights. By commissioning site-specific works, UB Art Gallery furthers its commitment to contemporary art by offering emerging and mid-career artists an occasion to work on an unprecedented scale and challenge their practice to move in unexpected directions.

This inspiration and challenge is reflected in the career of native Buffalonian and New-York City gallerist Martha Jackson (1907–1969), whose son, David K. Anderson, generously gifted the Anderson Gallery to UB in 2000. His gift comprises more than 1,200 art works and his mother’s extensive archives. Located within walking distance of UB’s South Campus, UB Anderson Gallery plays an important role as a museum in the local and larger art communities. It represents a significant link to American art history through Jackson herself, a passionate collector and champion of Abstract Expressionists and twentieth-century American artists, at a time when art collecting was uncommon. Artists who have since become household names were given their first shows by Jackson, who was committed to sharing contemporary art with the public. Importantly, Jackson purchased and exhibited Willem De Kooning’s entire second Woman series. She was also instrumental in bringing women artists Barbara Hepworth, Grace Hartigan, and Louise Nevelson to the fore when it was difficult for women to find art-world representation. Jackson mounted the first group show of environmental art (Environments, Situations, Spaces, 1961) and the first optical art exhibition (Vibrations Eleven, 1965) in the United States. For these accomplishments, Arts magazine lauded Jackson: “The exhibitions included many future Pop artists…and even future minimalists… In fact, the seeds of almost every moment of the sixties were contained in these two exhibitions.”

David K. Anderson shared his mother’s commitment to art and artists through his work at Martha Jackson Gallery and his own David Anderson Gallery, devoted to works on paper and print editions. When David and wife Becky returned to Buffalo, they purchased and renovated the former Public School 83, adding a stunning two-story glass atrium. In October 1991, Anderson Gallery opened there with more than 8,250 square feet of exhibition space. In 1992, the Landmark Society of the Niagara Frontier awarded Anderson “for exemplary adaptive restoration of a historic building.” Itself a work of art, it is appropriate that the building now serves as UB’s museum, with spacious classrooms. Renovations are underway to create a prints-anddrawings study room, and a unique archive and research study center.

UB Anderson Gallery
One Martha Jackson Place
Buffalo, NY 14214
Off Englewood Avenue, near Kenmore Avenue. Hours: Wednesday–Saturday: 11AM–5PM; Sunday 1–5PM. Please call 716.829.3754 for current information. Parking is free in the gallery lot.

UB Art Gallery
UB Center for the Arts,
Coventry Loop, Buffalo, NY 14260.
Enter by Coventry Entrance, off Rte. 263/Millersport Hwy. Hours: Tuesday – Saturday: 11AM – 5PM; Thursday 11AM – 7PM. Please call 716.645.6912 for current information. Parking is free on weekends and weekdays after 3PM. All other times, please see the receptionist for a parking pass. Both galleries closed for major holidays.