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James Baumgartner

James produces and engineers Political Roundtable, The Weekly Catch and other special programming on The Public’s Radio. He also produces Artscape, the weekly arts & culture segment heard every Thursday. His favorite part of the job is talking with artists, musicians and other creators about their process and what inspires them.

James learned the basics of audio editing while studying music at Missouri State University. He went on to get a Master of Fine Arts in Electronic Art at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he created electronic music, video art and internet-based media art. While at RPI, James went on the air for the first time, hosting an electronic music show on Rensselaer's station, WRPI, but his love of radio came from staying up late so he could hear punk rock on KKFI, the community radio station in Kansas City, Missouri.

jbaumgartner@ripr.org
Posted inArts And Culture, Artscape

Artist Bob Dilworth, known for his vibrant, joyful paintings, is honored at 25th Pell Awards

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The recently-retired URI professor was honored this week with the Rhode Island Pell Award for excellence in the arts. Artscape producer James Baumgartner visited Dilworth in his studio in Providence for this profile. Bob Dilworth has been drawing and painting since he was a child growing up in Lawrenceville, Virginia in the 1950s and 60s. The art teacher at a local HBCU encouraged Dilworth to apply to the Rhode Island School of Design, and after studying painting there, he went on to teach a few different places, before coming back to Rhode Island in the early 90s.

After teaching at URI for nearly 30 years, Dilworth retired in early 2020. But he hasn’t slowed down. I met with him in his garage studio in a quiet corner of Providence where he paints for 10-14 hours a day. Dilworth had several paintings in progress on canvasses 6-8 feet tall. Most of his paintings are portraits, more or less life-sized, and he describes the subjects as his community: his friends in Rhode Island, and people from his hometown.

Posted inEconomy, Environment, The Weekly Catch

What’s in, what’s out of Rhode Island House budget, Newport debates fate of Easton’s Beach, and more

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The debate over this year’s budget is underway in the Rhode Island House. With federal COVID-19 relief money running out, lawmakers have some tough decisions to make. Our own Ian Donnis and the Boston Globe’s Dan McGowan join us to discuss the likely winners and losers in this year’s budget. Also, Easton’s Beach – the only public beach in Newport – is disappearing. After extensive damage from three severe storms this winter, local leaders and residents are debating how to preserve the beach, or whether to save it at all. And a new exhibit at the Newport Historical Society centers the stories of the city’s Black residents from the 17th-19th centuries. That and more on this episode of The Weekly Catch.

Posted inEnvironment, Politics, The Weekly Catch

Rising seas and severe storms are eroding our coastline. How are local leaders and communities responding?

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New England beaches and coastlines are changing. With climate change bringing higher sea levels and more intense storms, some beaches are being pushed back by many feet – and others disappearing completely. Our new series, Washout: Our vanishing beaches, launched this week and takes a deeper look into the issue. We hear about some of the ways Rhode Island’s local and state leaders are responding, and meet a photographer who’s been documenting the region’s changing coastline for 50 years. Plus, later in the program, a studio session from Providence musician J. Mamana, who explores grief and hope on his new album, “For Every Set of Eyes.” That and more on this week’s show.

Posted inArts And Culture, Artscape, Local

Studio Session: J. Mamana looks inward with hope and grief on ‘For Every Set of Eyes’

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Providence musician J. Mamana has a new album coming out this summer called “For Every Set of Eyes.” It draws on influences that range from Neil Young to Mahler and Schumann. Mamana lost two of his closest friends in recent years, and through making the album, he found a way to process his grief.

Posted inArts And Culture, Local

RI Coalition for the Arts ask for ARPA funds to help rebuild from the pandemic

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Although attendance is coming back, donations have been flat or decreased, expenses have gone up due to inflation…and some venues have closed. Some states have used federal COVID relief money from the American Rescue Plan (ARPA) to help shore up their arts nonprofits. Now the Rhode Island Coalition for the Arts has proposed something similar […]

Posted inHealth, Housing, The Weekly Catch

Supreme Court to decide how cities can respond to homelessness, Brown faculty call for reform, and more

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Last week, police shut down two homeless encampments in Providence. We hear about a U.S. Supreme Court case that could change how cities across the country work with homeless communities. Also, a few professors who visited the pro-Palestine encampment at Brown University received letters threatening faculty discipline. Some are calling for institutional reform to protect academic freedom. And we hear from Marty Sinnott, CEO of a child advocacy nonprofit, who for years has been sounding the alarm on Rhode Island’s overloaded child welfare system. Plus, we take you on a journey through some of the rare books, art and history at the Providence Athenaeum. That and more on this week’s show.

Posted inEnvironment, Health, Local, The Weekly Catch

Federal investigation of DCYF, local hunters group advocates banning captive hunting, and more

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Bradley Hospital is in the news this week. The U.S. Justice Department alleging the state’s child welfare agency is violating the civil rights of children with behavioral and developmental disabilities by keeping them hospitalized long after their treatments have ended. We’ll talk to a reporter who’s been following the story for years. Also, we’ll find out more about proposed legislation to ban hunting captive wild animals in Rhode Island.
And a company in Pawtucket called Gif-o-Graf has a fun way for students to create stop-motion animation

Posted inArts And Culture, Artscape

In Pawtucket, Gif-O-Graf helps students explore creativity with animation

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A Pawtucket-based company has built a device that makes it easy for anyone to make stop-motion animations. This modern update on the glue-stick and construction paper art project brings students’ ideas to life and unlocks their creativity.

Posted inEnvironment, Local

Local hunters group advocating for banning captive hunting in Rhode Island

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Transcript: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.  James Baumgartner: Mike, thanks so much for your time. Mike Woods: Thank you. Happy to be here and talking about this important issue. Baumgartner: First of all, what’s this all about? Do we really need to ban hunting of wild animals in Rhode Island? Is […]

Posted inHealth, Housing, The Weekly Catch

An app for addiction treatment, Narragansett’s affordable housing problem, and more

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Rhode Island has one of the nation’s highest rates of overdose deaths involving cocaine, a problem the state is trying to address with a new smartphone app. But is it reaching those most in need? Also, the town of Narragansett has one of the lowest percentages of affordable housing in the state. We hear about some steps taken earlier this week by the town council intended to address the housing shortfall. And RISD is celebrating its second Black Biennial. We’ll hear from the co-curator who is seeking to break down the walls between the institution and the surrounding community. Plus: the week in politics, and a few things to do this week.

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