Sponsored by: Michael Shortell: Paper New England

"Ted", 24"H x 18"W x 5"D, painted wood

"Crossover", 44" x 28", Giclee print

ELIPTOIDS 
A Quiet Collaboration of Shapes + Shadows
Rick Eddinger + Whitey Jenkins

Whitey Jenkins has been an exhibit curator and a designer specializing in thematic environmental enhancements for the past 35 years.

Rick Eddinger is a retired vocational school arts teacher but still works as a carpenter and has vested interest in his family's nursery business.

Their first collaboration happened in the late 70's when Whitey asked Rick to assist him in creating his large scale, multi-media sculptures, thematically and humorously interpreting the schlock and kitsch tastes of middle-America.

From 1994 to 2001 they teamed up to produce approx 150 painted wood, wall-hung sculptures.  These incorporated surfaces that were stamped with words and reflected their impressions of everyday occurrences with no facet of life eliminated from the examination.

During the past 10 years, two predominant sculptural shapes have appeared. First is what they call "eliptoids" and most recently the shape of a 'cross'. Noted historical heroes like John Glenn, Martin Luther King to Joe DiMaggio show up as inspiration for some pieces. Topics from  pollution to political unrest are thematic topics that have been explored in carved wood finished with a variety of colors and textural finishes.

MOSES PENDLETON
Moses Pendleton Photographs   
and takes long walks in the country

MOSES PENDLETON (Artistic Director) has been one of America’s most innovative and widely performed choreographers and directors for over 40 years. Co-founder of the ground-breaking Pilobolus Dance Theater in 1971, he formed his own company, MOMIX, in 1980. Mr. Pendleton has also worked extensively in film, TV, and opera and as a choreographer for ballet companies and special events.

Mr. Pendleton was born and raised on a dairy farm in Northern Vermont. His earliest experiences as a showman came from exhibiting his family’s dairy cows at the Caledonian County Fair. He received his BA in English Literature from Dartmouth College in 1971 and immediately began touring with Pilobolus. The group shot to fame in the1970’s, performing on Broadway under the sponsorship of Pierre Cardin, touring internationally, and appearing in PBS’s Dance in America and Great Performances series.

By late 1970’s, Mr. Pendleton began to work on independent projects, performing in and serving as principal choreographer for the Paris Opera’s Integrale Erik Satie in 1979 and choreographing the Closing Ceremonies of the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. In 1981 he created MOMIX, which rapidly established an international reputation for highly inventive and often illusionistic choreography. 

Mr. Pendleton has also been active as a performer and choreographer for other companies. He staged Picabia’s Dadaist  ballet Relache for the Joffrey Ballet and Tutuguri, based on the writings of Artaud, for the Berlin Deutsch Opera. He created the role of the Fool for Yuri Lyubimov’s production of Mussorgsky’s Khovanschina at La Scala and choreographed Rameau’s Platee for the U.S. Spoleto Festival in 1987. He contributed choreography to Lina Wertmuller’s production of Carmen at the Munich State Opera in 1993.

His film and television work includes the feature film FX2 with Cynthia Quinn, Moses Pendleton Presents Moses Pendleton for ABC ARTS cable (winner of a Cine Golden Eagle award), and Pictures at an Exhibition with Charles Dutoit and the Montreal Symphony, which received an International Emmy for Best Performing Arts Special in 1991. Mr. Pendleton has made music videos with Prince, Julian Lennon, and Cathy Dennis, among others.

Mr. Pendleton, avid photographer with works presented in Rome, Milan, Florence, and Aspen, has had his sunflower images featured in numerous books and articles on gardening. In May 2010, Mr. Pendleton received an honorary doctorate of fine arts (HDFA) and delivered the keynote commencement address to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.  Most recently, Mr. Pendleton choreographed the Doves of Peace, featuring Diana Vishneva, for the Opening Ceremonies of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.