Here is the next Discover Janesville column. Find it in Janesville Messenger this Sunday, February 24.
Did you know that there is an abundance of creativity in Janesville? It may seem hard to notice sometimes as we live our everyday lives, driving from a hair appointment (those who have hair) to a restaurant for dinner, or go see a band play at a bar, or send our child to school. Yet the creative spirit is alive and well in Janesville, and it comes in all shapes and sizes.
We have individuals who show their creativity by taking stunning photographs, and we have others who express themselves with delicious food. Those who will reach great heights and those who already have. As consumers, we enjoy all of it, yet as residents, we frequently overlook its presence all around us. May be it is the tourism phenomenon, in reverse: visiting new place, we may go to more places in a few days than locals will visit in a lifetime. When it comes to art, we seem to frequently value most that which comes from elsewhere. As if traveling a long distance makes something more worth our while. It only makes it a more rare commodity but not necessarily better than productions, musicians or art we can enjoy right here in Janesville and Rock County.
It is that spirit that United Arts Alliance, a local non-profit organization, supported by art-minded individuals, businesses and organizations throughout the county, aims to bring together to celebrate our community. For those who may not know, the organization was launched originally to convert Marshall school into Janesville Performing Arts Center and currently works to achieve the following goals:
1. To recognize and promote Rock county arts and artists with events throughout the year, such as Arts Hall of Fame, ArtsFest and Janesville Area Creativity awards.
2. To give those interested in arts of all sorts in Rock county, opportunity to network during our monthly meetings.
3. To help those looking to further their education in arts – be they young adults or not so young – finance their education through the UAA Scholarship fund.
Those who went to the 3rd annual JAC Awards at JPAC on Saturday night, were exposed to a wide range of creativity, where artistic accomplishments were celebrated at a light-hearted ceremony featuring performances by nominees, who included singers, dancers, treats from culinary artists, films and more.
The awards are broken into two categories: judged and people's choice, and since the whole event is a fundraiser, proceeds go to UAA Scholarship fund. In fact, we were able to raise over $5,000, which will be a huge help to the organization as it looks to continue to provide scholarships and to look for more opportunities to promote arts in Rock County.
Every year some of the awards change. For example in the beginning there was a one-minute film award, but now UAA simply honors an outstanding local film produced in the prior year. Other categories don’t survive due to shortage of nominees. And that is where your help is so needed. As you go to local productions, check out local bands, or if your child has an amazing arts or music educator, nominate them for 2014 JAC awards!
You can find the complete list of categories at
www.RockCountyArts.com. You can also decide to check out the organization for yourself, and get involved with helping to organize the 4th annual JAC awards, which will take place at Janesville Performing Arts Center on February 8th. I guarantee you that you will leave the event feeling better about where you live.
