Category: Arts and Sciences Minister

Post Pennsic A&S Report

My report to the Kingdom is due on September first and I need your help!

  • Did you teach any classes at Pennsic?
  • Did you complete any projects for or at Pennsic?
  • Did you participate in the Pennsic A&S Display?
  • Did you participate in any competitions at Pennsic?
  • Did you participate in any demos at Pennsic?
  • Did you personally or as part of a group perform someplace at Pennsic, either in the Performing Arts tent or anywhere else?
  • Were any scrolls you worked on (for Barony or Kingdom) given out at Pennsic?
  • Did any guild in which you participate (Brewers? Scribal? Food?) have any activity at Pennsic?
  • Did you provide any artwork or writing for the Pennsic Independent?
  • Did you see any of your Debatable Lands neighbors do something so awesome (Can’t spell “AweSome” without A and S!) for or at Pennsic that you thought, “That wonderful person deserves an award”?

Well this is your chance to make sure that that information about your awesome self and your awesome neighbors makes it into this report!

Send any and all awesome A&S information to your humble A&S Minister at ansminister(at)debatablelands.org, please if you can before the end of next week (September 1st). Please! Your friends and I are counting on you.

Iris Festival Arts+Sciences

In addition to the many classes at Iris Festival this year, space will be set aside in the main pavilion again this year for an Arts and Sciences display. Please bring examples of your work in any art or craft. All are welcome. Projects related to East Asia or Japan are encouraged, of course. If you will be wearing your project that day, photographs and short write-ups would still be a great way to let people know about your work. If you have research to present, please bring copies for people to read.

This site is covered but outdoors, so make sure to protect your project from errant breezes and possible stray raindrops. There is also a site restriction of “No glass bottles.”

I had some lovely discussions with last year’s entrants, and they provided great content for my report to the kingdom. There will be no competition and no judging. If you have any questions you’d like to ask a more experienced craftsperson, we can probably find somebody to help out.

Æthelmearc A&S Faire

The Æthelmearc Arts & Sciences Faire 2023 is in a few weeks, and it’s not that far away in the Shire of Nithgaard. This is always a wonderful event, and a good way to display your work and get direct feedback from others. You can even enter virtually if you are still nervous about attending in-person events.

The Queen’s Prize Tourney is limited to entrants not already in the Order of the Laurel, but to enter your work you must be sponsored by peer of the Laurel, or by a Fleur d’Aethelmearc (or foreign equivalent).

If you would like to enter the Tourney, but have not yet lined up a sponsor and don’t know who to ask, please let me know and we’ll get you matched up with a sponsor. You have until April 20th to register for virtual participation, and until April 27th to register for in-person.

Call For Letters: A+S Minister

Greetings Debatable Lands, from your Arts and Sciences Minister.

My term comes to an end this February. I am fully willing to commit to a second 2-year term, but I am required by courtesy and policy to request letters. If you are interested in being the next Minister of Arts and Sciences, please send a letter of intent to myself and the office of the Seneschal by January 31st, 2023.

This office is the best office in the Barony. There is all kinds of leeway to try new things in your pursuit of supporting arts, crafts, and research in the Barony. It’s still difficult to feel connected with the SCA at this point, so anything you have the energy to do to bring others together will certainly be appreciated. I have some things I’m still itching to implement, but new ideas are always welcome.

It has been my pleasure to serve you for the last year and ten months. I hope to continue and to up my game with more service for the next two years. However, more choice is always a good thing! Please submit your letters if you would like your chance sooner rather than later.

Kingdom A&S Champs This Weekend

Their Royal Highnesses, Arnthor Inn Sterki and Ceirech Na Hinnsi, are pleased to let it be known to all that they are looking forward to choose their Arts & Sciences Champions at the Kingdom Arts & Sciences Championship to be hosted by the the Barony of Rhydderich Hael this Saturday, October 22nd.

It’s too late to set up a virtual entry, but you can register an in-person entry if you show up first thing at the event.

The event is from 9am to 5pm, and it’s just a four-point-mumble hour drive up to Sanborn, NY if you want to day-trip it. More information:

https://aethelmearc.org/event/kingdom-as-champs/

Even if you aren’t entering, this is a great event to see what others in the Kingdom are working on, and some of the best arts and research the SCA has to offer.

Arts and Sciences at Barony Social

The Baron and Baroness really hope to see you all at this Saturday’s picnic, and I as the Arts and Sciences minister hope that you will bring your crafting projects with you to work on and show off. There will not be any official classes or display, but while we socialize we’d like to see what you’re working on and ask you questions about your particular craft. This is not the best venue for noisy or messy work, but anything portable and interesting is fair game, and it’s all interesting to us.

I know that we have some knitters, narrow weavers, and braiders coming out. I can’t imagine the calligraphers, illuminators, and painters will leave their supplies behind at home. Personally, I will be bringing some sharpening stones and similar implements to help others with putting a useful edge on their tools and weapons. The site has plenty of room for stuff and people, so please bring whatever you feel like working on.

See you Saturday!

Additional A+S at Iris Festival

In addition to the two activities listed in the previous Iris Festival Arts and Sciences post, here are two Arts and Sciences activities being run at this weekend’s Japanese Iris Festival event (June 4, 2022 – 121 Brady’s Run Rd, Beaver Falls, PA 15010).

The first (third?) is the Kingdom Equestrian Championship A&S Competition. This competition is required for anyone competing for the Kingdom Equestrian Championship. Only those participating in the championship will be judged towards that competition, though items can be cross-entered in the Iron Comet A&S Competition and Festival A&S Display.

The second (fourth?) is origami instruction from Lady Maire ni Cathal ui Conchobar. This is intended as a children’s activity, but Lady Maire will not be checking the IDs of participants, so all are welcome. If you or your companions want to try out some origami paper folding, please stop by the A&S pavilion.

The Festival A&S Display and Iron Comet A&S Competition are both still planned for this event. Performance entries for the Iron Comet competition are scheduled to be presented from 1pm-2pm in the A&S Pavilion.

Locals Receive A&S Recognition at War Practice

From the court report of Æthelmearc War Practice XXXI:

  • The Honorable Lady Shirin al-Sussiyya elevated into the Order of the Laurel
  • Lady Aurelia Argentia Prima inducted into the Order of the Fleur

Scrolls went out from the following local scribes:

  • Youth Champion scroll for Hjotr Sigvardison, calligraphy by The Honorable Lady Nichola Beese
  • Fleur promissory scroll for Baroness Elena de la Palma by The Honorable Lady Rachel Daliceaux
  • Award of Arms scroll for Natalia Nighteskias with illumination by Katrina Beese and calligraphy by Mistress Graidhne ni Ruaidh
  • Millrind scroll for Lady Aaliz de Gant by The Honorable Lady Gesa von Wellenstein
  • Laurel scroll for The Honorable Lady Shirin al-Sussiyya by Lady Rose O’Tierrany
  • Pelican writ to Sir Michael of Northwood by Master Kieran MacRae
  • Laurel writ to The Honorable Lady Ottilige Rappoltsweiler by The Honorable Lady Aurelia Argentia Prima

My apologies if I missed anybody. Please let me know and I will add items to this list for the permanent record.

Iris Festival Arts and Sciences

There are two Arts and Sciences activities being run at next month’s Japanese Iris Festival event (June 4, 2022 – 121 Brady’s Run Rd, Beaver Falls, PA 15010).

The first is the Iron Comet A&S Competition. The competition has no theme, and accepts all types of projects. The competition is mandatory for anyone in the Iron Comet Challenge, but it is open to everyone. Anyone can win, but only those participating in the martial competitions will receive tournament points.

The second is the Festival A&S Display. The display is also open to any type of project, but projects displaying arts of Eastern Asia are encouraged. There are no points awarded, no judging, and no winner. Please bring all your most interesting, most useful, most attractive, and most intense projects to show. Research and instruction are not required, but we would love to see any supporting documentation if you have it, and enjoy having you answer questions about your work if you’re not busy elsewhere. You can display as many items as you wish, but if you need a lot of room please consider bringing your own tables and possibly your own shelter.

Both activities will be under shelter, but this event is primarily outdoors so please be prepared to protect your entries from stray raindrops and errant breezes. By site policy, no glass bottles are allowed.

You do not need to register your entries or display items ahead of time, but if you want to send email to let event staff know what you are bringing or if you have any questions, please contact “ansminister (at) debatablelands.org”.

Missive from the Ice Dragon A&S Pentathlon Coordinator

The folks who are planning on entering special instruction categories need to contact me by midnight tonight [February 15th]:

Several categories have special preparation needs, especially this year Entrants are required to contact the Pent Coordinator before registering

These categories are:
 – Beverages
 – Culinary Arts
 – Curiosa
 – Performance Arts

They have until the regular registration deadline of March 1st to upload their documentation, etc. – today is only pre-registration to indicate intent of entering.

Everybody’s documentation and photos, etc in all categories except written word and the written part of Applied Research needs to be uploaded by March 1st.

You cannot keep finetuning your documentation and turn the final version in at the event. The judges will start looking at stuff on March 2.

Mistress Cori