Pecha what? Pecha Kucha, a clever way to share images and a story to people. Whether the person is a designer, a writer, a painter, a historian, a sculptor, they can use Pecha Kucha. The concept is this — 20 images shown for 20 seconds each. This way, no one gets bored, there’s no lag time, and it keeps things interesting all while allowing the viewer to have enough time to take in the 20 images presented. I like when things have to keep moving and keep my interest.
Pecha Kucha Night was created in 2003 in Japan, as a way for young designers to show their work in a quick, concise, fun way, and do a little networking. When translated, it literally means chit-chat. The style became an instant success and now Pech Kucha is used all over the globe.
Sounds kind of like a fun doesn’t it? Now imagine being able to see Island Artists’ work in this fashion. Well, you’ll have a chance tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Harbor View Hotel, when Martha’s Vineyard will have its first of many, Pecha Kucha Nights. The Martha’s Vineyard Museum is spearheading these events, and the kick off will be part of the Art*Island Festival.
For this first Pecha Kucha, there will be six Islanders, maybe more, you never know who could show up, showing 20 images of their work with a small 20 second blurb on each. Kara Taylor, Rob Meyers, David Welch, Nancy Cole, Jeanne Campbell, and Richard Skidmore will be presenting, in addition to the Martha’s Vineyard Museum which will be featuring a Pecha Kucha focused on the works of art in its collection.
All of the presenters will have art as the underlying theme of their collection to help celebrate the art and artists of Martha’s Vineyard, which is what Art*Island is all about.
Here’s the scoop on a couple of the presenters. Photographer David Welch will be showing a collection “Material World” which feature a number of humorous photographs. Through these images, David will be sharing how he has grown as a photographer. It promises to be funny and light hearted, and the photos he’s featuring will make you laugh and think about materialism as well.
Island painter and photographer, Kara Taylor will be a series of self portraits titled “The Incomplete Story.” Kara’s work always brings you to a different place. I can imagine that her narrative for each painting is going to be both enlightening and thought provoking. Perhaps with this collection, we will be witness to personal changes Kara has experienced in her life as a woman and as an artist?
How did Pecha Kucha make its way to the Island? Well, Anna Carrigan and Bonnie Stacy, curators at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum attended a Pecha Kucha night at the New England Museum Association last Fall. Both really enjoyed the show and it made for a really fun, social night. With all the great artists and creative people on the Vineyard, why not host Pecha Kucha nights here?
The Martha’s Vineyard Museum will be hosting three other Pecha Kucha nights at the Harbor View later in the Winter, on February 1st, March 8th, and April 19th. These are all Friday nights, so I see an evening being made out of attending these events. Dinner and Pecha Kucha, a little fun and culture on a cold winter night. I like it!
These events will not have a specific topic, so people will be able to be as creative as they want with their 20 images. It’s also a really great way to tell a funny or interesting story. The topics can be anything, even Jello. If you click on the Jello image, you can learn about the history of this iconic dessert through Pecha Kucha.
Now that you know a little more about Pecha Kucha, perhaps we’ll see you tonight at the Harbor View to celebrate and enjoy a number of Interesting Islanders and their work and stories. I think it’s going to be an interesting event.
The Arts*Island Festival has lots of great events, celebrating the art and culture of Martha’s Vineyard. There are so many great, interesting happenings during this festival – my next On Point will feature another not-to-miss event.
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