Pecha Kucha in C-U
When my friend Amy first told my about a new kind of event that was being organized in Champaign-Urbana, it took me a while to understand the concept.
"A what?"
"Pecha Kucha," she explained, "it's a sort of show where designers present slides on their work. You should find out more about it, maybe you could present."
Which is how I ended up meeting Christina Tapp and Madelin Woods, the organizers of Pecha Kucha in C-U. A rapid-fire format for creative presentation, Pecha Kucha invites participants to present a series of twenty images in only six minutes and forty seconds (twenty seconds for each slide). The barrage of slides, together with the necessarily succinct explanation, keeps the audience's interest and makes it challenging yet fun for the presenter. Christina first discovered it while in Europe with friends. They heard about a Pecha Kucha Night in a neighboring town after a long day, but weren't sure about it.
"Only I wanted to go," says Christina, who went anyway. "It was an amazing event, and I knew I wanted to get involved." So Christina and Madelin set to work getting a contract from the Pecha Kucha Night non-profit organization, which supports such events in 230 cities worldwide. "Champaign-Urbana was first city this small to be allowed to put on an event," says Madelin.
Getting its start in Japan in 2003, Pecha Kucha (commonly pronounced in a variety of ways) was originally created by two employees of an architectural firm as a way to allow young designers to meet each other and showcase their work. Since then however, it has branched out to a variety of different kinds of presentation, something that Pecha Kucha Night C-U is actively pursuing.
Madelin and Christina are interested in people knowing that this isn't just a venue for artists to show their work, but also a way for community members to show their creativity in a variety of ways. Madelin said of one such event she went to in another city, a woman who had just moved to Indiana "...gave a presentation about how the end of her driveway was in a different timezone than her house. It was great!"
The upcoming event showcases a variety of local people and visitors from around the country, including a quilt artist, an illustrator, a confectionary artist, and everything from a mathematica artist to a presentation about a wedding in a taco bell.
The terms of the contract require four events per year, so Christina and Madelin are planning on putting on three more events and will be looking for community members to volunteer to present. "You don't have to be an artist," says Christina. "It can be about anything." The event is intended to provide a laid-back atmosphere for presenters that makes it easy for them to be themselves.
The Canopy Club is hosting the first Pecha Kucha night on Friday, September 11 at 8 p.m., doors at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 in advance or $7 at the door.
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@Jason: You’re right about that. I get groceries at Schnucks (they carry what I buy, which I can’t say of any other single grocery store in town), and if they have a beer I’m in the market for it’s usually a quarter or two cheaper per 6-…
Best Neighborhood Bar (& Grill) : Urbana - My ‘hood- the ‘Boom! http://www.boomerangbarandgrill.com Go on a Wing Wednesday or Fish Friday, or see a band play some night. Local blue-collar Urbana terroir galore. My only beer snobbish gripe is lack of a pale hopped ale, but you…
The one thing that’s bothered me for a while about the Friar is that, for most commonly purchased adult beverages, you can actually walk down the strip mall to Schnucks and get them cheaper. It makes no sense, but there it is. I suspect it’s because Schnucks…
Maybe I complained enough in person. One time I even explained to the (wholly uninterested) clerk how to navigate the Illinois Statutes web page, and Savoy’s Municipal Code database I wouldn’t know because I only go there when I want to pay 30% more for anything, which is never.
@Rob: You seem to have the weirdest experiences. I’m in Friar Tuck every other week (don’t tell my mom that I’m a lush). They never fail to ask for my birth date but never my age, they never card afterwards, and they often allow me to use…
This column affords me a long-awaited opportunity. I’ve wanted to write my own column called Fuck You Friar Tuck Liquors. but I always thought it’d be too pithy. Here, I can say Fuck You Friar Tuck Liquors and not feel bothered to stretch it out to 750…
Ha! Exactly. You, sir, are welcome at the bar in My House.
Why wait ‘til 3 pm?
I’m excited to go tonight- should be very fun!
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High-profile whining. AKA Lobbying.
it’s quite choice. looking forward to seeing how it and its patronage grow and develop over the course of the year. could be a neat little ecosystem.
“It was at this point, before he started his business, that working with city employees should’ve raised red flags…” But they didn’t because: 1) The City Clerk’s office originally mis-interpreted the rules, or are indeed re-interpreting them. 2) Champaign’s brick-n-mortar merchants hadn’t yet started whining about The Crave Truck.
Super cool! Excellent track, Excellent band.
Looking forward to trying this place!
I’m in the middle (or the beginning or end, depending on how you look at it) of re-reading Slaughterhouse Five. What a great companion column.
Get yours early. The Rave’s CD will be available at Exile and at The C-U Flea on Saturday. C-U Flea details here: http://www.smilepolitely.com/news/sp_radio_podcast_c-u_flea_arrives/
I don’t know about Gerard and a random police sargeant. My (mild) outrage is based on this: “...he worked closely with Champaign City Clerk Marilyn Banks to make sure he was licensed properly as a transient food peddler, filling out the necessary paperwork and paying a $225…
Local Yocal pretty much nails it here. I suspect there will be merchants who oppose food trucks because they arguably don’t pay their fair share to locate their trucks in high traffic (high rent) areas. The food trucks take away business from rent payers, park in city…
Oh nice! I’d totally vote for Matt Campbell!
“Smile Politely sports writer announces candidacy for city government.”
I also got to visit Big Grove Tavern during the soft open and definitely enjoyed the pork belly the most of all the dishes I sampled. The cheesy grits and the vinegary pickled vegetables were a perfect compliment to the rich pork belly.
The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
represent, Matt.
Yeah, I’d agree that Transporter Room 3 is the worst house venue I’ve ever seen.
Food trucks are the start-up, small businesses of the future for those unable to afford real estate. No surprise, that merchants who pay rent, utilities, and maintenance on a property would despise the traveling competition. Or developers who build more empty retail spaces would want to close…
Not so much far-right Tea Party as a balanced, moderate viewpoint between letting businesses succeed and protecting society with reasonable regulations. In spite of what the city reps are saying, the interpretation of policy on this issue certainly has changed. Letting a business start up under one…
I think it’s neat that SP has turned rightward, now espousing a Tea Party-style frustration with government regulations & taxes.
This makes me so sad. (Happy to live in Urbana, though!) Crave Truck has been a GREAT addition to the food choices in C-U, and it’d be a travesty to chase them away. This town should be supporting small businesses. I’m glad to hear that they’ll still…
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The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!