Cajun cook‑off slated

The second annual Great Cajun Cook‑Off is now accepting applications from amateur and professional cooks, and restaurants looking to prove that their original gumbo and/or jambalaya recipes are the “best in the West.”

The event, sponsored by the Phoenix Chapter of the Louisiana State University Alumni Association, has been scheduled for noon to 4 p.m. on Nov. 4 at the Lath House Pavilion at Heritage Square in downtown Phoenix.

All event proceeds benefit the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity and their efforts to rebuild New Orleans, as well as the Joel Monte West Club Scholarship.

The Great Cajun Cook‑Off is a contest to determine the best recipes in two categories: gumbo and jambalaya. There is an amateur cook division and professional cook/restaurant division. Contestants are required to bring their creations to the event already prepared and ready to serve. Winners will be judged by popularity, and awards presented.

In 2006, approximately 150 people attended the event helping to raise more than $5,000. Out of 10 featured gumbo cooks, Roger and Carol Gibson’s Chicken and Sausage Gumbo was crowned the winner. Gordon LeBlanc Jr. and Stephanie Trahan were named second and third place winners.

This year organizers hope to draw 10 to 20 cooks and at least 300 Valley residents who love all things Cajun–food, fun and music.

Changes from last year’s contest include the addition of the jambalaya category and the addition of the professional cook/restaurant division.

To register as a competing cook or restaurant contact Bryan Fox atbfox@harvey‑daco.com  or call (602) 595‑4091, or visit greatcajuncookoff.com. and download the online application and rules. Applications are due before Oct. 19.

More information and announcements on ticket sales to follow.

New season at BRIO FAC

A solo exhibit featuring the abstract paintings of Matt Mays, who studied at the Art Students League in New York City will be on display Sept. 8‑28 at BRIO Fine Arts Center in Scottsdale.

Called “An Infinite Series of Accidental Events,” the show starts the 2007‑08 exhibit season at BRIO.

BRIO Fine Arts Center is an art space which offers classes and events in the fine arts. It was founded in 2003 as a student/artist exhibition and instructional center established to support local and regional visual and performing artists.

The continuing mission is to present work by emerging area artists, as well as regional and  national artists. BRIO seeks to sponsor educational forums and  dialogues which address the relationship between art and society.

The public is welcome to meet the artist at a reception from 6‑9 p.m. Sept. 8.

The BRIO Fine Arts Center is   located at 8340 E. Raintree Drive, C‑6 in the Scottsdale Air Park. Hours are Mon.–Fri. 9 a.m.‑5 p.m. and Sat. 9 a.m.‑ noon.

For information call (480) 941‑8310 or visit briofinearts.com.

Admission is free.

 

Edgerton photo display at SMoCA The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art will unveil 50 oversized photographic prints by Dr. Harold E. Edgerton beginning Sept. 15 through Jan. 6, 2008. Edgerton was a pioneer of advancing photographical techniques that revolutionized the way artists use film and his  photographs are icons of modern technology that have retained their   integrity for decades.  He developed a method of producing enough light in controlled flashes of short duration to effectively stop motion on photographic film. This process proved to be the foundation for the development of electronic speed flash used in modern cameras.  The exhibition is an overview of his life’s work, from his famous drops of milk frozen in perfect crown points to the hidden patterns of movement revealed through multiple exposures. His images have captured a bullet in flight through an apple, athletes in motion; the flutter of a hummingbird's wings and the detonation of atomic bombs at a hundred millionth of a second. For nearly sixty years Edgerton used photography to stop time. Admission is $7 for adults, $5 for students, free for SMoCA members and children younger than 15. Hours are: closed Mon. and Tue.; noon‑5 p.m. Wed.; free 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Thurs.; 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Fri. and Sat; and noon–5 p.m. Sun. SMoCA is located at 7374 E. 2nd St. in Scottsdale. For information call (480) 994‑2787

SMoCA to unveil animation exhibit

The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art  presents a fall exhibition, beginning Sept. 15 through Jan. 20, 2008, to reveal the enduring fascination with animation.

Given new digital tools and computer technology, contemporary artists are taking the turn‑of‑the 20th‑century art of animation into new territory. This exhibition recalls the museum building’s original life as a movie theater, as Gallery Four again becomes a screening room.

Organized by senior curator  Marilu Knode, the exhibition presents video animations by three artists with wide‑ranging international perspectives.

Christine Rebet is a French artist who studied in Venice and London and now lives in New York; Hiraki Sawa is a Japanese artist who studied and now lives in London; and Shahzia Sikander is a Pakistani artist who undertook graduate studies in the United States and now lives in New York. 

 Rebet studied painting, stage design and choreography; Sawa, sculpture; and Sikander, traditional miniature painting.

SMoCA is located at 7374 E. 2nd St. in Scottsdale.