The renowned GROUPMOTION WORKSHOP invites you to join in the celebration of dance and music in community!

Led by Manfred Fischbeck and Brigitta Herrmann, Group Motion workshops combine structures of improvisation, movement meditations, and contact dance.
Discover and experience the language of dance.



Workshops are Monday, August 3. at 7:30 – 9:30 pm,
two sessions on Tuesday, August 4. at 8:30 – 11:00 am and 7:30 – 9:30 pm,
two sessions on Wednesday, August 5. at 8:30 – 11:00 am and 7:30 – 9:30 pm,
morning session on Thursday, August 6. at 8:30 – 11:00 am.

Workshop Fee: $20 per session/ $15 student rate.
For more information on the Arcosanti retreat, call Group Motion at 215 387-9895 or
Manfred Fishbeck at 267 738-0191, or e-mail ccarson@groupmotion.org.

[image] Group Motion in 2008 in the Colly Soleri Amphitheater.

After a valiant effort to fight a particularly virulent form of cancer, Jim Hornberger passed away this morning.

Father, husband, son, brother, friend, foundry manager and Arcosanti resident, he will be missed.

[photo] Jim Hornberger and wife Carri Krueger with their three sons, Jasper, Cyrus and Zeb.

Congratulations to the June 21. 2009 Workshop upon their graduation day, which took place last Friday, July 24. 2009:
[from left]
Keegan Carmichael, Lee Davis-Mayberry, Eliot Clerke, Anna Tran and Felly Tesei Limpangui.
Also graduated:
Vittorio Leone and Tanner White.

This continues our report from July 17. 2009 about construction of a new section of the heat duct tunnel.

The concrete has set and the construction staff is in the process of removing the formwork on this first section of a retaining wall.

The first step in this new section of the heat duct tunnel has been accomplished.

As work progresses, we will continue to report about it.

We continue our report from 7/20/2009.
The annual ITALIAN NIGHT dinner celebrates the Italian culture and heritage of founder Paolo Soleri. This popular event is highlighted by a family-style Italian meal served outdoors under the dramatic Arcosanti Vaults.
Massive amounts of pasta were prepared and placed in two wheel barrows.

With great fanfare the pasta was wheeled into the Vaults.

Among the setting of Italian cypress and olive trees, Paolo Soleri, who recently turned 90, serves pasta from festive wheelbarrows in honor of the culture of construction at Arcosanti.

Staff, Volunteers and workshop participants served the delicious dinner to a crowd of over 200 visitors.

The Menu was antipasto, pasta al pomodoro, chilled, herbed salmon salad, rosemary and thyme tofu, green beans with slivered almonds, green salad and fruit and for dessert Italian ice with biscotti.

After dinner guests and crew moved into the Colly Soleri amphitheater for a medley of 'Desert Songs: The Call of the Wild from Alexandria to Arizona'.

Robin Farnsley, soprano, Gregorio Gonzalez, baritone, and pianist Victoria Kirsch performed, featuring pieces by both contemporary and classic composers, including Verdi, Kálmán, Herbert, Granados, Puccini, Torroba, Kern, Obradors, and Romberg.

Throughout the performance, ominous clouds were moving in and thunder rumbled.
Here is a great photo by YoungSoo Kim, catching the lightning during the performance.
The first drop of rain fell about 10 minutes after the event ended.

The annual ITALIAN NIGHT is popular and always very well visited.
A lot of preparation has to happen to get everything ready for many visitors, this year over 200 people are expected.
Staff, volunteers and workshop participants are divided into teams and here Tomiaki Tamura goes through all of the individual team tasks.

In the Colly Soleri amphitheater, chairs had to be placed and washed.

Silverware was wrapped into napkins. The famous "pasta wheel barrows" were decorated.
Massive amounts of food were prepared.

Tables and chairs were placed and decorated in the Vaults.
Here Tomiaki has everyone together for last instructions on how the dinner will be moved from the Cafe to a staging area next to the Vaults and then in sequence moved to serving stations in the Vaults and served.

This report continues on 7/22/09.

This continues the report from 7/15/09.
The formwork has been completed for a footing for the next section of the heat duct tunnel.
Construction staff, volunteers and workshop participants are mixing concrete for their first pour in this location.

Here we see the initial process of mixing the concrete and using a wheel barrow to transport the liquid material to a chute to be delivered down to the tunnel entrance.

The concrete flowing down the chute was gathered at the bottom into a wheelbarrow to be poured into the formwork.

The liquid material was evenly spread into the form and distributed using rakes and trowels.
Three yards of concrete were mixed in nine batches.

This report continues next week.

The heat duct tunnel was constructed with a slight slope upwards, to facilitate airflow, heat rising naturally, towards an exit chimney right next to the Vaults. The present entrance is at the lowest level of the S.O.D. Soleri Office Unit.
The crew is beginning to carry out buckets of material to clear the area immediately outside of the tunnel. View is from south to north.

Here we see into the same area, view is down from north to south. Construction staff, volunteers and workshop participants are working right at the entrance of the tunnel.

A lot of hard work is needed to clear the area at the tunnel and on the hill side. Access is impossible for any kind of earth moving equipment, so all of the work was done by dedicated hands and backs.

The path to the pool was diverted, one of the olive trees had to be moved and here, right in the middle of activities, is Paolo Soleri, sitting in a chair, directing traffic.

[from left] This partial model explains the plan a little bit. We see the east wall of the S.O.D. Unit with the big window and the tunnel leading down toward the side of the pool.
Here the crew is working on forms for the first footing, right outside of the tunnel entrance.
Report continues on 7/17/09 with the first pour.

The overall design of the East Crescent Complex includes a heat-duct tunnel that will be connected to the anticipated green-house energy apron.
"Typifying the concept of integration and frugality, the crescent and theater complex will be heated by warm air collected within and rising from a sloping greenhouse which will also be used for food production and organic waste recycling".

This section explains the concept of air collected in the sloping greenhouse, rising via a tunnel to a distribution system under the lowest floors of the individual units.
Once the whole system is in place, the airflow will be controlled at the top of a chimney at the end of the heat duct tunnel.

Most of the tunnel is in place, constructed at the back of each of the ten units in the East Crescent.
Utility lines, from the lowest part of each of the individual units, come together in the tunnel.

Report continues on 7/15/09.

All of the garlic was transported to the East Crescent and suspended for drying in the heat-duct tunnel.

Agriculture volunteer Erin O’Rourke coordinated the effort.
The garlic has dried and is now braided.
Erin O'Rourke with alumna Anna Greenberg and a crew member of Flam Chen.

Fresh garlic braids are now for sale in the gallery and bakery.

At the beginning of June workshop participants, volunteers and staff joined efforts in the gardens for the annual garlic harvest.

Some of the Arcosanti kids, on summer vacation, got right into the action.

This report continues on 7/10/09.

The photos here were taken exactly one month ago by Gen Yamamura.

We are back to the report of Paolo's 90th Birthday celebration, by special request for an image of the beautiful birthday cake. This photo was sent in by alumna Ellen Ryan, thank you!

The small, more complete, image of the cake, as seen on the home page, was taken by graphic interns Frédérick Michaud and Laurence Chave, and can be seen on their web-site at vibrons.

There were no photos or mention in the earlier reports of the night pour on Friday night, June 19. 2009.
Here is another great shot by James Horecka.

Also on the night of June 19. 2009, the stage in the Ceramics Apse was the main location for spontaneous performances by visiting alumni.

More photos can be seen on Alfonso Elia's web-site.

A late welcome to the June 21. 2009 workshop participants, already at the end of their second week:

[back from left]:
Jean-Paul Whittall, Jay Carscadden [2 weeks], Eliot Clerke, Tanner White [workstudy and internship in planning], Vittorio Leone [workstudy], Keegan Carmichael, Craig Dietz, and Craig Capano [2 weeks].

[middle from left]:
Felly Tesei Limpangui [internship in planning], Charles Russel, Lee Davis-Mayberry and Jovan Tanasijevic.

[front from left]:
Anna Tran [internship in archives] and Jacqueline Ashby [seminar week].

Due to the long report about Paolo’s birthday party, we are a bit behind with usual news.
The May 17. 2009 workshop participants graduated on June 19. 2009:

[from upper left] Workshop coordinator Matteo Di Michele hands graduation certificates to Maria Cabrera and Matthew Blunderfield. Riccardo Campanella and Erica Bazzini remain for an internship in planning & graphics.

[From left] Induja Lakshmi continues with an internship in planning. Rocio Montefiori participated in the Soleri archives during and for a few weeks after the workshop.
Also graduated, not in photos, is Kwun Sau Chiu, who continues as a volunteer in the maintenance department, and Robert Graddy, who continues in construction.