WAM Was a Blast!

We don't like to taunt our readers with parties they may have missed, except when they're a recurring event.  Such is the case with this past week's WAM celebration held at the Stillwater by Nomad Magazine.  The brainchild of NOMAD Magazine Editor Erica Eichelkraut (below, in blue), WAM (Writers, Artists and Musicians) brought together those three components and a lot of people who were happy to celebrate the different art forms and artists involved.  And all free of charge.

There was spoken word (and comedy), great music by Free Henry!, artists works, and food specials.  Note to public: they also pour a pretty generous drink at Stillwater, which may or may not appeal to you, but it relaxed us when we were painting our square on the community canvas (see below).

Interactive Art: The community canvas is a paint-by-number exercise of a different kind.  A photo is cut into squares, with each square numbered, then participants choose a square and paint it in on the corresponding numbered square on a large canvas. The result is a slightly skewed but recognizable object, in this case Buffalo City Hall, that bears the mark of all the different styles of the people who painted it. It will be displayed at the next WAM event. Fun!

Music: Free Henry! rocked the house. Though they were the "headliner" act (and rightly so - they were so much fun to listen to and really got the crowd moving), other musical groups are invited to sign up as they enter WAM, and organizers shift them into an order that makes sense for performance.

We finally got to catch David Cloyd, an artist signed with Engine Company Records and a transplant to Buffalo just a few years ago. Cloyd married Buffalo girl Jaime Herbeck, and with a new baby on the way this September, the couple, who previously lived in New York City finds life in Buffalo to be serene and profitable.  Cloyd says he found himself struggling so hard to survive in NYC that his dreams were nearly out of reach.  Here in Buffalo, he's steeped in music all day long, between producing/performing and teaching, and he has time to devote to his craft.  It doesn't hurt that he has that label deal in NYC either.

Art: Up on the 2nd level of Stillwater, artists' work was displayed, and we particularly liked the mixed-media work of Joyce Hill (above).

WAM will take place the last Wednesday of each month, and the next will be on August 26th.  We'll let you know in time to make the scene because if you weren't one of the bodies who packed the house this time, you'll want to be there next time.