By Nanette Light
Rick Fry is frequently asked what the Norman Arts Council does.
Tired of repeating himself, Fry, director of the council, dedicated an evening to answering this question through words, song and dance.
The Norman Arts Council, the face and voice of the arts and art education in Norman, hosted the Norman Arts Explosion, showcasing the organizations sponsored by the council, as part of its fall benefit Thursday evening at the Sooner Theatre.
"It's an opportunity to bring together groups of artists and show what we do as artists," said Fry, who is also a painter.
Since the arts draws people together from the city and outside its limits, it is an integral part of a city's economic footprint, said Larry Walker, Norman Arts Council board member.
For example, the council reported that evening that last year's Norman Music Festival, which highlights local musicians and national artists, brought $2.5 million into the city in one day.
But more importantly, Walker said art is a quality of life issue.
"The more we learn about the arts, the more we learn about ourselves," he said.
The Firehouse Art Center of Norman, which offers art classes and exhibits, reiterated the importance of art education when it took the stage, repeating through its presentation "art is smart."
To convey the importance of studying art, the executive director Douglas Shaw Elder and firehouse board member Dr. Rick Chew displayed an image on screen depicting a collage of elements, such as a man in 18th century clothing, doves in the shape of a heart, an ear of corn, or as one audience member pinned it, "a man stranded on a desert island with a pickle under his foot."
The duo received a montage of eclectic responses:
"I think this is a painting that captures the very moment Napoleon Bonaparte invented football and brought peace to the world," said one man in the audience, who credited his Napoleon identification to the man's tight-fitting white pants that he thought resembled football pants.
"Well, I didn't see Napoleon," said another man. "I saw the lead guitarist of Oasis. And he likes to party, so he's listening to the Cure because the Cure's a sweet band."
While this interactive demonstration rallied creative responses from the audience, Elder, who is also a sculptor and raved about the work of photographer Fernando Jorca Lopez during dinner, said it touched briefly on why "art is smart," as he repeated several times while eating and during the presentation, because it teaches children to slow down and see the world in more detail.
The evening also included presentations by the OU School of Dance, the Songwriters Association of Norman, Jazz in June, Performing Arts Center, Norman Public Library, Sooner Theatre, Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, KGOU and Cimarron Opera Co.
A dinner, catered by the Pink Elephant Cafe, preceded the performances.
Fry, who pinned attendance at around 100, said he wants to pack the house next year, as he surveyed a dwindling audience by the end of the night.
To do that, he said he'll need more funds and awareness, admitting that he made some mistakes in marketing the event before its debut.
Fry said the council will make assessments and changes for the next arts explosion, which is scheduled for an encore in the spring and will then be an annual occurrence.
With small businesses repeatedly hit for donations, Fry said he wants to draw in the "commonite" of Norman and convey the value of not only attending but investing in the arts.
"It's all here. It's just waiting to be seen," said Stephanie Royse, marketing director for the Sooner Theatre.
Nanette Light 366-3533 pop@normantranscript.com
