Catalyzing Newport » What’s New

Newport 2061: Anchor and Beacon by Jake Dunagan, PhD

June 13, 2016

Catalyzing Newport’s visiting Catalyst Jake Dunagan, PhD created the following scenario to aid in the design of the pop-up installation taking place at the former Coffey’s Citgo gas station, 48 Touro St., Newport. The installation will launch to the public on Saturday, June 18th from 6-8 p.m. It will also be open to the public on Sunday, June 19th from 2-6 p.m. and on Monday, June 20th from 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. Other open gallery hours will be announced and/or made by appointment. 2061 was chosen for many reasons: 1) Impact: Two generations out is enough time that it is not too far out for audiences to connect with issues; 2) Present: 2016 is an important election year with lots of disruptions, and 2061 is a play on this year; 3) Historical: In 1961, President Kennedy, sworn into office, visits Newport. Jake will utilize this experiential future to facilitate, inspire and spark productive conversations with the community about Newport’s possible preferred futures.

Future Worlds Created at FabNewport will be on display

June 7, 2016

Providence-based poet Kate Schapira and artist Adeline Mitchell co-lead a workshop at FabNewport on Sunday, June 5th that combined reflective writing and terrarium making. Interwoven throughout the workshop were short expository writing exercises that asked the group to free style and reflect on what we want to honor and memorialize in the present for future generations. Prompts included asking participants what we may mourn the loss of in the future (due to life cycle, neglect, extinction, overuse, etc.) and how we keep things alive. Participants then went on a scavenger hunt to incorporate found or discarded items (in many cases trash/ litter) into their terrarium worlds that also included ants, seedlings, plants and other cherished objects. At the end of the workshop, the group convened to share out about their creations. This workshop will be repeated with students and teachers at Rogers High School later in the week, and it has already inspired one of its participants to start a new creative writing group focused solely on future scenarios! The terraria created during the workshops will be on display at the installation of the future Mayor’s Office, 2061 at the former Coffey’s gas station, 48 Touro St., Newport, RI. The public launch of the installation is Saturday, June 18th from 6-8pm. The installation will also be viewable to the public on Sunday, June 19th from 2-6pm. Come by to contribute your ideas to the future city of Newport!

Microfutures: writing and terrarium making workshop

June 3, 2016

MICROFUTURES: WRITING AND TERRARIUM MAKING
FREE COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS FOR ADULTS & KIDS
SUNDAY, JUNE 5, 2 – 4:30 P.M.
FabNewport, 1 York St., Newport, RI
RSVP: SueEllen Kroll at sue@rihumanities.org

Rhode Island poet Kate Schapira and artist Adeline Mitchell will lead a workshop in terrarium-making and reflective writing to construct a futurist vision of what Newport, Rhode Island– and the world– will look like in the year 2061. The intentional construction of constrained ecologies will serve as a chance for our community to collectively study and practice how we construct, nurture, shape or incubate the future in the present. “Artifacts” created in the workshop will be on display in a public pop-up installation in Newport, RI, June 16-23 and returned to participants after the exhibition closes. In the exhibition space, the terrariums will act as a biological library of forms chosen to preserve in this possible future, and the writing will serve as description, context, future relic and user’s guide.

Visiting Catalyst Jake Dunagan

May 23, 2016

Catalyzing Newport welcomes futurist Jake Dunagan to Newport for a visiting catalyst residency from June 16 – 21. Jake is managing director and global foresight lead for verynice.co and research affiliate at the Institute for the Future, a California-based think tank that helps organizations plan for the long-term future. Jake specializes in social invention and the redesign of systems in light of current tools and knowledge. In his work, Dunagan has focused on a wide range of topics including strategic foresight, governance design, comprehensive cognitive design, intellectual property, Internet law and politics, mobility and the future of learning and work.

In the News: First Light Funeral

April 20, 2016

Farewell, old friend by Sean Flynn, originally published in The Newport Daily News, April 14, 2016

Bidding Farewell to the Griswold House Beech Tree

April 14, 2016

Newport-based researcher and scholar Nancy Austin, PhD will give a eulogy for the Fernleaf Beech tree at the event tonight. See images from her research process here!

Art After Dark: Primavera & First Light Funeral

April 4, 2016

Join us for Art After Dark: Primavera & First Light Funeral at the Newport Art Museum on April 14th from 5:00pm – 9:00pm. In the spirit of Catalyzing Newport’s “Culture of Yes” Catalyst residency with the Knight Foundation, steering committee members, The Newport Arboretum, Salve Regina University, NAM, and National Grid collaborate on the First Light Funeral, a farewell to the beloved 180-year-old Fernleaf Beech tree in true New Orleans style!

OP-ED: Let’s market R.I.’s heritage & history

December 2, 2015

A collaborative effort of the Catalyzing Newport Steering Committee, this op-ed was originally published in The Providence Journal on November 2, 2015.

Visiting Catalyst Paul Light

November 20, 2015

This week visiting catalyst Paul Light, NYU Wagner’s Paulette Goddard Professor of Public Service and founding principal investigator of the Global Center for Public Service, meets with the Catalyzing Newport steering committee to explore how the humanities sector innovates.

Catalyst Charge: Request for Proposals

August 20, 2015

Tom Scheinfeldt’s June residency with Catalyzing Newport and the local action team has resulted in the following Request for Proposals. Read more below to learn more about the RFP and submit your application by October 31.