[Announcer] Funding for The Art Show is made possible by: The L&L Nippert Charitable Foundation, Montgomery County, The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. Foundation, The Virginia W. Kettering Foundation, The Sutphin Family Foundation.

Additional funding provided by.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.

This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

In this edition of the Art Show: celebrating Dayton's aviation heritage, (bright music) meet a balalaika virtuoso, and the art of aerobatic flying.

It's all ahead on this edition of the Art Show.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) Hi, I'm Rodney Veal and welcome to the Art Show, where each week we provide access to local, regional and national artists and arts organizations.

On December 17, 1903, the Wright brothers of Dayton, Ohio made history with the world's first successful flights of a powered, heavier-than-air flying machine, and the world hasn't been the same since.

Today, the Dayton region is a premier destination for aviation heritage tourism, with sites across an eight-county area that showcase the past, present, and future of flight.

recently, a mural series was commissioned to highlight the historic importance of an unassuming group of buildings on Dayton's West Side.

Let's take a look.

(gentle music) It's interesting that so many people who live in Dayton do not realize they have a national park in their own backyard.

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park was created almost experimentally.

It is unlike any other national park.

This park is about inspiration.

It's about grit, it's about resiliency, it's about failing and getting up and going forward.

The story here is astounding.

The phrase that is used quite frequently is that the Wright Brothers taught the world to fly.

The story of the Wright Brothers is just a fascinating one and inspires minds of all ages.

In 2004, Congress designated the National Aviation Heritage Area because there were already significant assets in this region that tell our nationally significant story.

So, the Heritage Area sets the table for 17 designated aviation heritage partners to cooperate and collaborate on projects and programs.

I love talking about the Wright Factory mural project.

We were anticipating the West Dayton Metro Library opening, and as a good partner, we wanted to make sure the Wright Factory buildings were in the best condition possible for that opening.

[Kendell] The Wright Company Factory is an amazing site, though to look at it, you wouldn't think so.

Even when it was built in 1910, the newspapers at the time talked about how it was a fairly lackluster building.

The Wright Company Factory buildings are critical for our aviation heritage because they are the first purpose-built structures for the manufacturing of aircraft.

It signals the change from hobby to industry.

One thing that intrigued me when they brought up placing these murals at the Wright Factory or the Wright Company, you gotta realize, this was the very first airplane factory in the world!

In the world!

And, it's right here in Dayton, Ohio.

That's just a mind blower.

Our vision for the Wright Company Factory murals was to emulate the WPA style that emerged in the 1930's under President Roosevelt through his Works Progress Administration.

At that time, artists were commissioned to do National Park Service posters as a work-relief program.

So, we harkened back to that style with our project.

We felt that Mark Riedy would be an ideal person for this project because Mark has just an incredible portfolio.

We had also worked on the Cincinnati Reds Stadium, and Mark had handled two vintage-style murals that showed the 1975 Reds and then the 1869 Reds, along with it a sculpture that's out front of the stadium that also has that WPA or that Art Deco feel to it.

So, we felt that it really tied in quite well with what we were trying to achieve here with the Wright Factory.

Those are nice projects because there's a sense of permanence.

In my business, we don't get involved in too many things that last.

In the advertising business, things are pretty transient but that's something that's gonna be there for a while.

We always kid that our museum is like the frozen food section, where you can see my Red Baron Pizza design and I did the portrait of the Red Baron.

You can go buy a bag of Quikrete and see all the Quikrete bags, I did all those illustrations.

In the 90's, I illustrated all of the Nerf toy's packaging.

So, every kid in our neighborhood was modeling for a Nerf toy.

(gentle music) The process of a illustrative designer, first thing, is we collect information, collect pictorial images, we're dealing with visual storytelling.

So, first part is just, show me what was going on the early 1900's with them, what exists?

Either old black-and-white photographs or just stories, things that kind of get me in the mode of just what life was like then.

I'm looking for interesting visuals that I can do something with as a designer.

After the research portion, I just start sketching, and then from there I take those sketches and scan them and the computer is where most of the magic happens as far as color and building that final image.

[Mackensie] The murals were a series of six and those are the six sites of the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historic Park.

The reaction to the murals was extremely positive.

Our partners at that site and across the region saw the value both in the artwork and the beautification of the factory buildings.

I think the murals brought some life to this location, to the factory site.

Prior to them being up, this was just kind of an abandoned site that probably people would overlook.

I think it was a wise thing to install them here and kind of get a spark going.

But then, of course, the fire here cut that short.

-(fire raging) -(sirens wailing) In the early morning hours of Sunday, March 26th, the Wright Company Factory caught on fire.

It is my understanding that the Dayton Fire Department responded within minutes.

It was known at the time they arrived that this was the Wright Company Factory buildings.

I believe that if it had been a different structure, it would have been allowed to burn.

I will tell you, I literally broke into tears when I heard...

Even now, I'm gonna break into tears.

When I heard that on March 26th the factory was on fire.

It's a near catastrophic fire.

There's been a lot of damage out there.

We're still waiting for reports to tell us just how extensive is it?

How much of a loss is there at the factory?

And, until we get more information, we're just gonna have to be patient.

I would say that the fire, it's just a huge tragedy.

If there is a silver lining in it all, is the national attention that it has brought to the property, to have national journalists covering it.

I think it helps remind our local community that what we have in our backyard shouldn't be taken for granted and it is actually really, really special.

I know it's painful to reclaim a burned building but I hope that we are able to do that and time will tell if it's able to be done or not.

(somber music) If you'd like to learn more about this, or any other story on today's show, visit us online at cetconnect.org or thinktv.org.

Cleveland balalaika virtuoso Oleg Kruglyakov and his music partner Terry Boyarsky make up Russian Duo, a group born out of love for traditional Russian music.

audiences are taken on a journey across the span of Russian culture, from pulsating dance music to lyrical romances.

Because of his work to preserve Russian folk music traditions, Oleg was awarded a 2023 Ohio Heritage Fellowship.

Here's his story.

(bright piano music) (bright balalaika music) My upbringing is very typical for the Soviet time.

I grew up in Siberia.

I started my professional music education in arts college.

I didn't want to go to music school.

It was my mother's idea, and I couldn't resist it.

Our family was quite musical.

They liked to sing together and every time they were getting together, having some holiday party or such an event, they would start singing.

And little by little I was involved in this process.

The instrument I play is called balalaika.

And modern balalaika looks like triangular mandolin.

It comes from same family of Asian lutes, constructed very similarly.

Balalaika became popular, I believe since 17th century, and it was exactly the century when any kind of folk music and particularly instrumental music was forbidden to play.

The main part of our education in musical college and in a conservatory was a pedagogy.

So, we were prepared as music teachers.

I was basically qualified for that by finishing my education.

This is how I became music teacher.

How Russian Duo was started is a different story.

When I won Green Card lottery, I've got opportunity to stay in the United States, and I found Terry's webpage, so I wrote her nice email and attached samples of my performance, and this is how we met.

Russian Duo, it is balalaika virtuoso from Siberia, American pianist, singer, singer, and we are performing music from Russian folk tradition.

There's a huge repertoire written originally for balalaika-piano duo.

[Oleg] The mission of Russian Duo is collaboration between two different cultures, which is difficult and exciting at the same time.

When we go into the schools, we have workshops, concerts, and residencies.

For example, our concert is a living, breathing example of collaboration because we are modeling for the students how we collaborate and how hard it is to collaborate.

And then we set up a storyline where the students are asked to collaborate with us, either in singing or in body percussion, or in playing percussion instruments or counting beats.

And in order for the story to progress, the students have to succeed in listening to each other and listening to us.

Every activity becomes teamwork, and the only way to succeed is by working together.

Oleg is a fantastic musician.

He takes his music seriously.

He, to this very day, is one of the few serious balalaika virtuosos in the world, but he also is very down to earth, very matter of fact, and he has a very dry sense of humor, which is fantastic.

So, when he's presenting, he has a wonderful stage presence and he just draws the audience in.

When we're doing school outreach programs, when you're talking with kindergartners or elementary school kids, explains things at a very basic level, but at a level where really has impact, and the children will understand the origin of the balalaika, some of the origins of the Russian folk music, and he puts together a superb educational program.

ORMACO stands for Ohio Regional Music Arts and Cultural Outreach.

So, the mission is to make music, arts and culture accessible for all.

And then we focus on programming for underserved, disadvantaged, and rural populations.

When we're working with rural populations or underserved populations, they have no exposure to different types of music, and the balalaika is not an everyday instrument.

They're absolutely fascinated.

And then they can come up afterwards and talk with him and look at the instrument, and ask questions.

So, it does have impact.

Ohio Heritage Fellowship Award means a lot to me.

It means that I didn't spend my time for nothing playing balalaika in US, and I got some appreciation.

I felt proud for sure, and I was excited.

I think the most fun I ever have in my life is performing with Oleg because he gives 500%, he risks everything.

It's like going down a slalom ski slope.

So, it's so risky, but so exciting, and so nourishing and so fun.

I don't know how to describe it.

It is, we have lots of fun.

It just pulls on all my skills and all my attention to try to make music in this way.

I think by learning other culture, you getting broader picture about how world is working, because every culture has its own point of view.

Like different people, you have pair of eyes, I have pair of eyes, Terry has pair of eyes, and it's our vision.

But if we combine all three, we will get broader picture and more detailed.

I think same is going on with learning other cultures.

You making your work broader and more detailed.

I think when you step into someone else's culture, especially through music and dance, that you are learning empathy.

You're stepping into that person's world with your energy and your understanding, and hopefully eventually wisdom.

(bright music) Did you miss an episode of the art show?

No problem!

You can watch it on demand at cetconnect.org and thinktv.org.

You'll find all the previous episodes, as well as current episodes, and links to the artists we feature.

For out last story, we'll take a look up to explore the art of aerobatic flying.

Let's travel to Red Stewart Airfield in Waynesville, Ohio, where artists come in the form of pilots and their canvas is the sky.

(bright music) (airplane engine rumbling) One of the great things about flying, when you're up there, climbing, descending, loops, rolls, it's fun.

You can just do what you think you want to do.

And like other mediums, it has certain things that it does well and it has certain limitations.

You know, managing the airplane's energy to do what you want it to do is a fun challenge, and every day is a little bit different.

(airplane engine rumbling) My name's Emerson Stewart, and I'm a flight instructor at the Red Stewart Airfield.

I grew up right here.

I think I went for my first airplane ride when I was four days old, and started flying a glider when I was 13, soloed it when I was 14, soloed an airplane and got my glider rating when I was 16, and I've been flying ever since.

My Grandpa Red was the fellow that started the airport, back in 1946.

It was a pretty simple little place for a while.

The thing that makes the airport unique is that we're still doing the same thing we've always done, with the same equipment we've always done it with.

We started off with little light airplanes in the '40s, and we're still using the same sorts of little light airplanes.

Part of what makes the place special is the people who work here are excited to make the place go and want to be here helping to make the place continue.

(rain tapping) Red Stewart Airfield is awesome.

It's uncomplicated.

It's in the middle of a cornfield and years ago, they decided to put a little grass strip of runway in there.

You show up, you make sure the airplane's ready to go, you jump in, turn the key, and you're flying in next to no time.

Guess the obvious thing is it's a grass strip.

It's very low tech.

It's old-fashioned airplanes.

Most of the airplanes out here don't even have an electrical system.

You've got to hand-start them.

It's just pure flying.

My name's Brett Hunter.

I run a little flight department over in Springboro, Ohio, and on the side, I do some aerobatics, including airshows.

Everyone shares one thing in common, their enthusiasm and passion for flight, and when they arrive here, all of the formalities disappear.

You don't have a battle of egos or anything like that weighing the atmosphere down.

It's fantastic.

Hello, I'm Robert Tico LaCerda.

And I started flying aerobatics back around 1990 or so.

First time I'd been in a small airplane, and it was also the first time I did aerobatics.

We did loops and rolls, and loved it from the very get-go.

(bright music) (airplane engine rumbling) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) Saturday evening of Labor Day weekend, we have an annual airshow.

It's good to get people out, give them a little entertainment, and show them what little airplanes can do.

It's a unique airshow, in that it's a very up-close and personal airshow.

Accessibility for the performers, to the fans and vice versa, I think is unmatched.

Well, you want to start with something that grabs their attention, something loud and maybe dramatic.

-(energetic music) -(airplane humming) You want to finish with something that grabs their attention, that they remember you with.

-(energetic music) -(airplane humming) Somewhere in the middle, try not to repeat anything.

[Emerson] Part of the fun with planning it is you figure out what your airplane does well, what it looks nice doing, and you figure out how those pieces can fit together.

Then during the season, yeah, you'll work on the sequence, and if you're going to add anything new, create something new, you want to practice that individual part way up high, find out where the problems are, where the gotchas are, start bringing it down low where the altitude makes a big difference.

-(energetic music) -(airplane humming) [Emerson] So, transitioning into, say a dive.

I'm not thinking of it as, you know, "Oh, we're diving now.

It's exciting."

I'm thinking of it more, "Okay, I have altitude, and I'm going to trade it, and I'm going to turn it into airspeed."

At the bottom of that dive, you pull back and so now you're converting it back to altitude.

[Brett] Positive Gs can feel like an elephant sitting on you.

To just lift your arm is an effort, and negative Gs feels like all the blood's rushing to your head, so you actually want to try to relax.

When you're getting started for the year, you're coming off a cold couple of winters, you know, you need to get G tolerance, and you need to make sure that you're in tune with the airplane.

What this particular aircraft does very well is a knife-edge pass, which is basically you're tilting the airplane up on its side and going along the ground in a knife-edge.

Well, airplanes are convenient and make it nice to go point A to B, straight line and a little faster than your car, but it's a lot more fun to go see what an airplane can really do, see what you can do.

Upside-down, I don't know, it's just, you can't do that in a car and get away with it more than once, right?

It's a bit of a, like a rollercoaster, but you get to design it, and it's smooth (laughs).

They're going to do it.

Opposing tuck rolls.

Oh, boy, here we go.

Watch.

Light the whip.

It's fun, showing off for the crowd.

We're careful about the way we do things, but yeah, if it makes people smile and entertains them, absolutely, yes, it's satisfying.

I would describe aerobatic flying as being an art.

I mean, it's a lot of science, right?

But it doesn't feel like that at the time.

It feels like I'm up here drawing shapes in the sky.

(airplanes humming) It's an affliction, if not an addiction, the airplane thing, for sure.

I wish it were as reasonably priced as gardening, but, yeah, it gets in your blood and you can't get it out.

It's a constant itch.

(airplane humming) I like to do aerobatics.

Aerobatics are fun.

They're thrilling.

But I like to just go fly around.

Sometimes, I'll just go fly around low and see the sights.

I don't know, I'll go out by the lake and it's kind of fun.

Sometimes, you can find an eagle or something.

(airplane engine rumbling) (airplane engine rumbling) If you need more art goodness in your life, the podcast "Rodney Veal's Inspired By" is available now.

You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Learn more and find show notes at thinktv.org or cetconnect.org/inspiredby.

And that wraps it up for this edition of the Art Show.

Until next time, I'm Rodney Veal.

Thanks for watching.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) [Announcer] Funding for The Art Show is made possible by: The L&L Nippert Charitable Foundation, Montgomery County, The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. Foundation, The Virginia W. Kettering Foundation, The Sutphin Family Foundation.

Additional funding provided by.

And viewers like you.

This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Closed captioning in part has been made possible through a grant from The Bahmann Foundation.

Thank you.