Dennis Spielman

The real and imaginative adventures of Dennis Spielman

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Deluxe Winter Market

Deluxe Winter Market

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On November 22, 2017

In Real

Returning for its tenth year, the Deluxe Winter Market is an annual marketplace featuring handmade gifts and wares from mostly Oklahoma-based makers and artists. Deluxe Winter Market is a one-day only event, Saturday, November 25, 2017, from 11 am to 5 pm, held inside Leadership Square in downtown Oklahoma City. My wife and I go every year, usually getting several gifts for friends and family there.

The event will feature gifts for everyone on your list, all handmade by local and national artists and makers in what has become an Oklahoma City holiday shopping tradition. The Market stands out from the other holiday shopping experiences in OKC because of the opportunity to connect with makers, as well as find unique items, such as a photo studio offering authentic ambrotype and tintype photos. No resellers are allowed, and all items are handcrafted or artist-made.

In my video, I interviewed Co-Founder and Director, Sara Cowan; and vendor, Blake Behrens. I was supposed to have a third person, which I was going to interview today, however, they got sick and I didn’t have time to reschedule another interview. With tomorrow being Thanksgiving, I went ahead and finished the video for release today.

If you’re supporting Small Business Saturday, I wrote this local deals guide on the subject.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Factory Obscura's Shift Opening - photo by Dennis Spielman

Factory Obscura​’s SHIFT

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On November 16, 2017

In Real

Factory Obscura’s SHIFT is a fully-immersive, experiential art installation that challenges the participant to physically explore the full-sensory environment at Current Studio in Oklahoma City. Factory Obscura is a collective of artists and community builders who formed earlier this year to produce large-scale installations that require new forms of audience engagement, with Shift being their first project.

In this video for Uncovering Oklahoma, Tiffany McKnight, Tammy Greenman, Laura Massenat, and Thomas Thompson discuss Factory Obscura, their favorite aspects, and what people can except (spoiler: expect awesomeness).

This is the follow-up interview from my personal tour last week. One thing I want to note is that this video does include behind the scenes footage of the artists building the installation, which is something I haven’t shown before.

Wizards on Western

Wizards on Western 2017

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On November 15, 2017

In Real

Wizards on Western is a non-profit, volunteer ran community festival celebrating Harry Potter and the adventures of reading in Oklahoma City. Previously known as the Harry Potter Festival, Wizards on Western is a free, family-friendly event with wizard related activities and games, along with food trucks and vendors.

Wizards on Western

Wizards on Western

I went to this once a year event on Sunday, November 12, 2017, which was held along the streets of Western Avenue from 39th Street to 44th Street. Last year, festival organizers only planned for about 5,000 people turning up and got over 20,000. They received feedback for improvement and greatly improved things for this year. The second year of this festival not only promised to be fun for all ages but also looked to make a meaningful difference in the community. They had more than 16 non-profits that participated this year and hosted their magical activities. Many of these booths had ‘make-and-take’ craft stations.

Wizards on Western

Wizards on Western

Wizards on Western

In my vlog, I talked with Aaron and Maddie about what they thought of the festival. I captured a ton of footage, which I’ve included some of it throughout the video. I plan to make a video next year for Uncovering Oklahoma that will feature interviews with event organizers.

Wizards on Western was a magical festival worth visiting for Harry Potter fans.

Wizards on Western

Wizards on Western

OKC Outlets, Factory Obscura, and Hieroglyphics

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On November 10, 2017

In Real

Last night was a bus with so much good stuff happening in Oklahoma City. The first thing I went to was a Media Event for OKC Outlets to celebrate their new look. OKC Outlets is Oklahoma’s only outlet shopping experience. The event was part of their relaunch with an unveiling celebration with property representatives, civic leaders, and honored veterans. Since their relaunch was just two days before Veterans Day, they made a donation to the YMCA’s Military Welcome Center at the airport.

Next on my list was the Abstract Passages Opening Celebration, which is a new underpass mural by Kris Kanaly. However, I tried to make my way to the event, but due to traffic and getting light bulbs, I knew I was going to miss the artist talk and I ended up going straight to Factory Obscura’s Shift opening. There, I was first in line!

I filmed this video of my experience of Factory Obscura last night, which sums up how amazing it is. Later today I’m going back to do interviews for Uncovering Oklahoma.

Then after Factory Obscura, I went to Ginna Dowling’s Hieroglyphics 2017: The Spirit of our People art opening at Oklahoma Contemporary’s Showroom, which is really cool to see at night. Ginna Dowling’s hieroglyphs are contemporary versions of ancient symbols. Using the simplest of methods — tearing construction paper by hand — she constructs visual symbols for important aspects of her own life, as well as the lives of people around her. These forms are translated into vinyl, which she develops into site-specific installations. In addition to creating her own forms, Ginna works with members of the community to add onto her installations. She finds that the simplicity of the process allows everyone to explore their own creativity. Ginna will be conducting workshops while her pieces are installed at the Showroom, the results of which will eventually become part of this exhibition. In addition, visitors can drop in during Showroom hours to create their own “hieroglyphics.”

When I was done for the night, I stopped at Target for some night cold medicine. While I’m here, I want to make a quick public service announcement: sometimes people aren’t talkative this time of the year because their voice hurts. They aren’t being rude. They may just don’t want to talk. Anyway, I’m feeling better this morning.

Beck's Garage

Beck’s Garage

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On October 23, 2017

In Real

American Express partnered with me to share the story behind Beck’s Garage in Oklahoma City’s Western Avenue District, where the customer is always the priority and American Express is always welcomed. In my video with Mr. Beck, he talks about his road to success and the challenges he faces as a small business owner.

There was also a 30-second version made as well:

I’m excited to finally release my branded content video as I was approached back in August for the project. I’ve enjoyed seeing this morning what the other bloggers have done, which I’ve found searching YouTube via #AmexAmbassador. I hope this video leads to more similar gigs as this was a cool project.

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