Ithaca art school reveals 'Bare Naked' sequel to fund-raising calendar

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Sep 05, 2003 by Dickinson, Casey J

ITHACA - Two years after Ithaca's artloving ladies led the way, a group of the area's men are getting naked for Ithaca's Community School of Music and Art (CSMA). The school's 2004 calendar, "Bare Naked Gentlemen: A Revealing Look at the Art-Loving Men of Ithaca," goes on sale Friday evening, September 5 at the CSMA. The school's last nude calendar, "Picture Perfect," featured 20 local women from January 2002 through April 2003. The last calendar sale grossed $27,000 for the school, says Thomas Scharff, executive director of CSMA. A lighting designer, Scharff appears in a calendar photo that shows off his professional skills.

"We've been able to identify a sufficient number of men willing to take off their clothes and help us raise money, says Scharff.

CSMA uses the funds to support its art and music programs.

The "Bare Naked Gentlemen" calendar features monthly models for 2004 as well as a cover photo of The Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band. Each of the artistic photos features "tasteful" poses that separate the work from calendars commonly designed for display only in fraternity houses or garages. The Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band has its instruments strategically placed for the cover shot.

Photographer Jon Reis created the model photos for the calendar. Reis has worked in Ithaca for three decades, opening his own studio in 1982. Before going into business for himself, Reis worked as a news photographer and as a staff photographer for Cornell's Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art.

Reis is keeping his work under wraps until 5:45 p.m. on Sept. 5, when he and several of the models will unveil the calendar during a reception at CSMA. The $15 calendars will be on sale and fully clothed models will be available for autographs, says Scharff. Special-edition prints and calendars are also available for donations ranging up to $250, he adds. The CSMA reception coincides with "Gallery Night" in Ithaca where I I downtown art galleries remain open late.

Though the identity of the models are under wraps, CSMA has given a few background hints. One model has performed with Huey Lewis, another received a Pulitzer Prize nomination, one has a tattoo, and another helped Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis win the New Hampshire primary in 1988. In a talented town such as Ithaca, this only narrows slightly the list of suspects.

"They're all actively involved in supporting the arts," says Scharff.

Earlier in the year, the CSMA board compiled a list of possible models for the sequel calendar. Many of the possible candidates declined, says Scharff, but the school found the requisite number of men willing to drop clothing in order to raise money.

The school's unusual fundraising effort was inspired by a British calendar launched in 1999 by the District Women's Institute of Rylstone, England. The institute exchanged the traditional landscapes featured on their annual calendar with artful photos of several older members posing in the nude. The redesigned calendar subsequently sold 88,000 copies in Britain and raised $560,000 for leukemia research. The disease took the life of the husband of an institute member the previous year.

Founded in 1960, the Community School of Music and Arts provides instruction in music, art, dance, language, theater, and dance.