Come out to the Salt Institute tomorrow evening for a (partial) Film Screening by Boston based production company, Planted Seeds and Danielle Connor. The plug:

The film follows Boston drag-based theater troupe All The Kings Men - their work, lives, and experiences making queer art and comedy. It also features gender hero Kate Bornstein, in all of her post-modern glory.

Ultimately we want this film to spark conversation. So come on down and help us get that started!

Date: TOMORROW Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Location: Salt Institute for Documentary Studies, 561 Congress St., Portland, ME

Event sponsored by MENSK

Wassailing with Port Sports tonights

MENSK will be out Wassailing with Port Sports at Binga's Stadium tonight to try and raise a little money. Be there between 7 and 10 to hang out, eat food, fraternize, and contribute to many great non-profits in and around Portland.

This is our largest charity event of the year. Part fundraiser, part food drive, part volunteer drive, all party!

Wassailng was the only time when Peasants were allowed to beg for food and money from the Lords without it being considered a bad thing.

Here at PortSports we band together to beg the over 750 members and their friends and family to try to make a difference in peoples lives with one party.

There will be Music, Dancing, Drinks, and Prizes all evening.

MEVLA Artist's Checkbook

Hey gang. Check out this event Thursday December 3rd from our friends at MEVLA:

Maine VLA and the Center for Law and Innovation present “The Artist's Checkbook” -- A financial primer for Maine’s creative economy.

This December 3, 2009 Event will feature two parts.

Part 1 : An Educational Seminar

Maine VLA will present a panel of professionals who will each make a 15-20 minute presentation, followed by Q & A. Some presenters will bring visual aids. The focus of the discussions will be financial issues that artists confront on a regular basis:

Presentations:

“Taxes and Artists: Like Oil and Water Paint? Framing the Hobby Loss Rules and Business Expenses for Artists.”

Presenter: Peter Dufour, Macdonald Page & Co., LLC.

“Copyright Taxation: Everything You Should Know About it But Were Too Busy Doing Fun Things to Ask.”

Presenter: Christopher McLoon, Verrill Dana, LLP.

“Everything Has its Place: What to do With Your Income and How to Sustain (and Even Prosper!) in Any Economy.”

Presenter: Shannara Gillman, Institute of Financial Literacy

Part 2 : A Social Networking Opportunity

Guests are then invited to move into the atrium of the Wishcamper Center for “tea & cookies”. Light fare will be provided.

When: December 3, 2009 at 5:30pm

Where: The Wishcamper center at 34 Bedford Street, portland

Cost: $10 for the general public

$5 for collaborator members

Free for VLA members

Please Pre-Register at www.maineVLA.org

All tickets on day of event are $13

Collaborating Organizations:

Space Gallery, Five Rivers Arts Alliance, The Salt Institute, PACA, Institute of Financial Literacy, Portland Symphony Orchestra, Portland Stage, PROPEL, City of Portland, Portland Music Foundation, MENSK, Maine Arts Commission, Center for Law and Innovation at the University of Maine School of Law, Maine College of Art, and the newly formed Maine Film Co-op.

Maine Food + Wine Ambassadors Wine Flight 5k

MENSK will be at the Maine Food and Wine Ambassadors Wine Flight 5k tomorrow morning between 9 and Noon.

From their Site:

A fun "non-competitive" 5k event that combines the celebration of fitness and health with spectacular shoreline views, good company, and the best food Portland has to offer.

The Wine Flight 5k is a tribute to France's Marathon du Medoc, combining the fun of a 5k run/walk with the joy of food and wine. At each "Aid Station" you can sample delicacies from local Portland purveyors: cheese, olives, fruits, veggies, and chocolates. Upon crossing the finish line, you can eat more and drink too: your award is your entry to a wine-tasting celebration. Indulge - you've earned it.

It's a great way to be active and social. There is no time clock for this event - it's is all about the experience and atmosphere. Walk as easy as you'd like between stations. Make your pit stops longer than your splits. Chat along the way. Meet fellow runners and toast to the good life. The Wine Flight is packed with festive atmosphere.

MENSK sponsors Maine Food and Wine Ambassadors and this event. Hope to see you there.

truckShow: Dressed Up

First Friday Art Truck Show I was Dressed UP! Friday September 4th we had an art truck. We had costumes. Some people put these on and were photographed. This is the proof. Check them out at MENSK's new FLickr Page.

Have the fun till next month!

Pointilli.sm

MENSK is proud to announce our partnership with Pointilli.sm a new marco/ micro community blog from our friend Max Cohen, currently chilling out in Iceland. Max teamed up with MENSK to register with the Country of San Marino to register the uper-cool .sm domain name. In order to accomplish such a feat, you have to be a registered company or organization. Max being neither, did the next best thing, and got MENSK to sponsor his project. That's about as much as our control or involvement extends, the rest is up to Max and his talented group of writers (mostly Mainers) to keep on keepin' on and make their project thrive. We wish them the best of luck.

Pointilli.sm

The Phoenix also Rises

MENSK got a nice spot in this week's edition of The Phoenix

Sometimes the biggest stumbling block for our fantastic ideas is a small, seemingly insignificant hurdle — a missing piece of paperwork, a logistical snafu, one degree of separation too many. These tiny troubles can "crush all the forward momentum you have," says Andrew Lyman, who was recently appointed executive director of MENSK, an art-activity umbrella organization in Portland. "The most important thing that I felt this organization could do . . . was to identify what those stopping points were and to do everything we could to fill those gaps."

read the Article

Thanks Dierdre Fulton