Art in Expected Places: Los Tito's, Logan Heights

By Patricia Frischer

So you have a 1/2 hour to kill while you are waiting for your car to be repaired from a fender bender. You see a Starbucks, a Yogurtland, a Louisiana Fried Chicken, a Panda Express, but instead you walk into Los Tito's Mexican Food at 2850 National Avenue, #108  Logan Heights 92113. Tel: 619.233. 8226. Mexicans incorporate art into every aspect of their lives so it is not surprising to see a display in this little strip mall fast food emporium. But the quality of the work was a joy to behold and an enhancement to every bite of food. 

 

Art of Science Learning Proof of Impact..The Facts, just the facts

By Patricia Frischer

We have been waiting for several years for the final reports from the Innovation Incubation project from the Art of Science Learning. As you may remember this was a three city project with the hub in San Diego, but funded on the East Coast by Harvey Seifter through the NFS. . The project put together artists and scientist but gave both a crash course in collaboration with added thinking skills. The idea at the end of the project was to do a test to see if this learning actually affected the number and quality of the innovation outcomes. The report is now published. It confirms what many of us know, but these vital recording of the facts and figures are so important for future funding and to convince a wider audience of the worth of the arts in science learning. As you can read below and in the full report four major areas were tracked. Students gained creative thinking skills. Adults improved their collaborative capacity. Student had a better results in their STEM learning and there was a knock positive affect on their problem solving in everyday life.

Here is the article intro written by Harvey Seifter
Arts-Based Learning Leads to Improvements in Creative Thinking Skills, Collaborative Behaviors and Innovation Outcomes

 

In 2012, with the support of the National Science Foundation, we set out to test the hypothesis that integrating the arts into STEM-related innovation training results in enhanced creative thinking skills, more robust collaborative processes and stronger innovation outcomes. 

Today, we are pleased to publish Audience Viewpoints Consulting's independent report of our four year effort. Its findings provide clear evidence of a strong causal relationship between arts-based learning and improved creativity skills and innovation outcomes in adolescents, and between arts-based learning and increased collaborative behavior in adults.

The full report, as well as an executive summary, can be downloaded from our website at:

www.artofsciencelearning.org/phase2-research-findings

KEY FINDINGS

Arts-Based Learning Improved Creative Thinking Skills in Adolescents
High school groups using arts-based learning showed statistically significant increases in a wide range of creative and critical thinking skills.

Arts-Based Learning Increased Collaborative Behaviors in Adults
STEM professionals using arts-based learning showed significant increases in sharing leadership, empathic listening, trust, respect and emotionally intelligent behavior. Control groups only showed an increase in emotionally intelligent behavior, and in that behavior the arts-based groups outperformed the control groups by a statistically significant margin.

Arts-Based Learning Led to Stronger STEM Innovation Outcomes in Adolescents
Expert panelists rated the STEM innovations created by the high school teams using arts-based learning significantly higher in terms of insight, clarity, problem solving and impact than those of the high school control teams.

Arts-Based Learning Helped Adolescents Apply STEM Learning to Their Everyday Lives
High school students experiencing arts-based learning reported a significantly greater rate of transferring their innovation learning to subsequent academic work, home life and extracurricular activities than did the control group.

We are grateful to Americans for the Arts, American Association for the Advancement of Science and Association of Science-Technology Centers, our national partners, for their advice and support over the years; and to Balboa Park Cultural Partnership and EcoTarium, who hosted our research.

We are especially grateful to the National Science Foundation’s Advancing Informal STEM Learning program, which made this research possible with its generous support.

North County Arts Network presents Creative Collaboration: Who Do You Want To Do It With?

by Patricia Frischer

Thursday Aug 18 at 5:00 PM

ArtBeat on Main Street (330 Main St, Vista, CA 92084) and Avo Playhouse (303 Main St. Vista, CA 92084) 

This speed dating event was such a great fun and although there were only about 25 present I was still only able to talk to a handful of people. I could have gone on for hours as it was so interesting and rewarding to have one on one conversations with so many diverse and fascinating people.

The three questions we discussed were what makes for a successful collaboration, what are the challenges of a collaboration and what are some of the best practices in this area. After our brainstorming we hear from three experts, Jim Gilliam who spoke about civic collaborations as Art Administrator for the City of Encinitas, Monica Martin of Artsy Girl Studio who spoke of her personal experience with peer collaborations and Carolyn Grant from the Museum of Making Music with wisdom about inter-organizational collaborations.

So here are some of my speed notes from this successful event organized by Carolyn Grant, Maggie Chiaro and Brigid Parsons. from the communication committee NCAN. 

Successful Collaborations are: win win for all participants, have the ability to add value with leveraged follow ups, expand audience participation and engage a large number of people, blur the boundaries between media and mediums, create new experiences, expand relationships, open opportunities for volunteers who participate from a deep connection, take advantage of the best of people.  

Collaborative Challenges are: checking the ego at the door, discovering the strength and weakness and being able to take advantage of the first and avoid the second, being spontaneous and open to new ways of doing things, avoiding formality, discovering Art Moms who let people shine. 

Best Practices in Collaboration are: When there is audience participate and not just audience observation, when you can grow a mailing list form 35 to 17,500 though the use of an events calendar by adding general event to the arts events, when you use a memorandum of understanding to make sure everyone is on the same page, when you do something with a greater impact by collaborating with an organization that connects you to youth who are vulnerable and give them new life skills, when the arts make a project more fun and more rewarding, when you can use social media (facebook, Instagram) for a give away that builds your brand and contact and new technology like Gooten to drop ship your expanded line of customized products.

Because we only had 5 minutes and we were discussing Collaborations as the main topic, I could not possibly track who said what. But below are some of the people I met and who I want to thank for their insight and experience.

Wendy Taylor, San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum in Escondido

Carolyn Thom, Content Subject Resource Teacher, Visual and Performing Arts, Vista Unified School District

Joe McNalley, Artistic Director, Hutchins Consort 

Jennifer Nelson, Jennifer Nelson Law, CA Lawyers for the Arts

Daniel Kays, Avo Playhouse, Managing Director and Producer, Moonlight Presents,City of Vista’s Cultural Arts Department

Sarah Sprinks, American Tattoo

One final note, the next NCAN meeting will be a day trip to Fallbrook on Oct 22 starting at 10 am. Make sure and sign up to join to get on their mailing list and also choose a committee so you can participate more fully. 

The NCAN Visual Arts committee is meeting on Sunday Aug 28 at 2 pm in Cardiff by the Sea and is working on the very special Looking Glass Project. Contact patricia@sdvisualarts.net to find out more and RSVP 

Sidney Wildesmith at L Street Gallery

 by Patricia Frischer
July 26 to Oct 4, 2016

Sidney Wildesmith: Wonderlust and TRANSDIMENSIONAL which begins July 26 and runs to Oct 4. There is an opening reception on Sat. Aug 13, 6-8 pm This is a retrospective of Widesmith, who was an Artist in Residence in 7 National Parks.  This is also a tribute to the National Parks 100th anniversary. At the opening and for night only TRANSDIMENSIONAL is the premiere of artwork exceeding 3-dimensionals. L Street Gallery at the Omni (628 L Street, SD 92101) More info: Sidney 760-436-8776

Sometimes you just want to see or own a landscape picture that is beautiful, calming, contemplative and reassuring. Sidney Wildesmith is your man. He absolute love of the country is apparent and the subtle touch he brings to each of these works assures that they will be long treasured. They are beautifully presented a L Street Gallery which Kay Colvin has managed to keep alive, even with the changes all around her in downtown SD. 

And Sidney offers us another treat in this show for those who might be more scientific minded. In the one night only display, we put on 3-d glasses and were treated to an array of shapes and colors that danced in front of our eyes. I only wish that a whole classroom of students had been there to see these fun creations. Wildesmith is an excellent teacher and I would not be surprised if Transdimensional art became a workshop in the future. No illustrations here, until our computers can catch up!

 

Sidney Wildesmith

Rare Specimens: The Matts at CM Curatorial and basileIE

by Patricia Frischer
 August 13 to Oct 1, 2015

Matt Stallings “Strange Calculus” and  Matt Forderer “Sweet Emotions” 
Plus the first in an ongoing series of dynamic outdoor light sculptures by architect/artist Adrian Sierra Garcia. Video above courtesy of Kaarin Vaughn

CM Curatorial and basileIE is a joint space in Barrio Logan near Chicano Park. Chris Martino is curating both rooms that are connected and both have huge garage doors that open to the street.  The first show was of his own work and the work of Paul Basile (basileIE) and the second show is the two Matts...Stallings and Forderer. All the work has an aesthetic that seems to tie it together but is still in the process of being defined. There is a large degree of pop culture, lots of graphic design skill (Chris himself is a graphic designer), bags of humor and this is overlayed with a political agenda and more than a touch or surrealism.

We enjoyed both of these shows and will be looking forward to seeing a range of other artists, including some women and hopefully some members of the Chicano art muralist movement. After all, you are in their hood.  



 Matt Stallings “Strange Calculus”

It's the real thing

Brad and Anjoli as superman and woman and also Adam and Eve!

Hulk Hogan and The Original Hulk

 Matt Forderer “Sweet Emotions” 

Watch for a collage of this image on the outside of the building. Like flyers for who knows what?

Art Walk Artist and Craftsman Participatory Project

By Patricia Frischer
Aug 13 and 14

ArtWalk @ Liberty Station is Sat./Sun, August 13 & 14, 10am-6pm. Please visit the SDVAN sponsored participation booth and have fun at the Nature Paper Project produced by Artist & Craftsman Supply (2645 Historic Decatur Road, SD 92106) More info: Sean Christensen 6196151090

Twice a year at the Mission Federal Art Walk in Little Italy in the spring and at the ArtWalk in Liberty Station, SDVAN sponsored a participation booth. This is were you can do a quick project, maybe get your hands dirty and almost always walk away with your own creation. This year Artist and Craftsman Supply had a great project with special photo sensitive paper. 

There were over 200 booths on this sunny day with a cool breeze and mobs of people to enjoy the art and the new Public Market place where we ate lunch at the Mess Hall. Liberty station is becoming a real community center and it was great to see it packed to capacity. And there is masses of more room for lots of development and growth. 

Here you see Deanne Sabeck arrange objects on top of the paper in the dark shadow of a box. Sabeck is normally a glass artist but is a great lover of animals. 

The arrangement is pulled into the sun for about a minutes where the blue paper turns lighter

But the real magic happens with the paper is submerged in a water bath. The places that were covered start to appear white and the background turns blue.

Here is Deanne's final resort. A minute composition and a keepsake for the day of art.

25th Annual Athenaeum Juried Exhibition

by Patricia Frischer 
July 30 to Sept 3

The Athenaeum along with the Cannon Gallery in La Costa are known for their juried shows of high quality. At The Athenaeum the jurors this year were:Mary L. Beebe, Director, Stuart Collection, UCSD, Hugh Davies, Ph.D., The David C. Copley Director & CEO, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego and Mark Quint, Owner, Quint Gallery

The work  is on view in the Athenaeum’s Clayes Gallery and Rotunda Gallery.

I was a little surprised that with such a prestigious group of judges that more well known artists did not enter the show for the 25th anniversary. For that to happen, I supposed the jurors would have had to promote the show amongst the artist they knew. Then, if those artist did not get in it would be very degrading. And many artists do not want to pay a fee to be rejected. But this was a good chance for many under-rated artists to be seen by a stellar panel. Such are the trials of the juried show concept. That is not to say that the work was not of high quality. We loved seeing a red dot on the ceramic fantasy of Irene de Watteville which got an honorable mention. And Madeline Sherry is coming into her own with two fine very large painting that show a tour de force of skill. 

Irene de Watteville

Madeline Sherry perfectly displayed between the windows of this lovely room.

Madeline Sherry

Cliff McReynold gives us a vision from sea to sky

You have got to love Dan Adams and his little duck and cat...but look close, there is a gun in his hand. The dark side of Adams?

Luscious gentle colors by Kaori Fukyyama

Beautifully rendered  shadows in this acrylic painting by Brad Maxey

First Prize went to Becky Robbins for her oil on board and encaustic

Lowe and MacConnel: The Museum of Metropolitan Art at Quint Projects, plus Quint Summer Show

By Patricia Frischer
Aug 13 to Sept 24

Quint Projects is pleased to announce a collaborative installation by San Diego artists Jean Lowe and Kim MacConnel: The Museum of Metropolitan Art The installation will include wall paintings appropriated from Old Master and Impressionist artworks and a “museum” café serving cake and coffee. (5171 B Santa Fe Street, SD 92117,) Sat Aug 13 from 10 am to 1 pm or by appointment . More info: Nina Howard  858-454-3409

Jean Lowe and Kim MacConnel are two of the top local artist in San Diego. They have a raft of international exhibitions and work in major collections. So it is an enormous gift to the city of San Diego for us to see this show of works that are directly painted on the walls of the Quint Project space. Yes, directly painted on the walls! When you walk in the room you see faux shadows but a close look easily reveals that there is no canvas, no frame. Just paint and genius. This means the works on not for sale and you need to rush over by Sept 24 (by appointment only) to see this stunning show.

The pictures are deliberate copies of some of the masterpieces from the NY Met. They were chosen by the couple and each painted their own copies. With Lowe's work we see landscapes which we expect but also some figurative works, Some of MacConnel's work looks like naive versions of the originals. So in essence, you have a subject by an artist, painted by another artist not necessarily in their own style, but sometimes resulting in the style of a third artists. And the entire show will be painted out so there is an ephemeral quality to the whole concept that is delightful. 

It is not really possible in all instances to know which artist painted which work, but you are given a guide to see the title and artist of the original work. The show took about three weeks, 5 hours a day to create and was a complete collaboration by this husband and wife. See it, or you may not get a chance to remember it.

You may also like to read:

Jean Lowe and Kim MacConnel get meta with 'The Museum of Metropolitan Art' City Beat by Seth Combs

Docent tours of the exhibition include:

Saturday, August 27th at 11am
Sally Yard, PhD
Professor of Art History at University of San Diego

Saturday, September 10th at 11am
Derrick Cartwright, PhD
Director of University Galleries and Associate Professor at University of San Diego

Saturday, September 24th at 11am
Hugh Davies, PhD
David C. Copley Director at Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego and Adjunct Faculty, Visual Arts Department, University of California, San Diego

Jean Lowe speaking with Deanne Sabeck

Kim MacConnel with best friend

After seeing this show, we scurried over to the Quint mother ship in La Jolla to see the summer show. There is talk of this space closing, but if they could continue the collaboration with Atomic Bazaar, I would love to see them remain as a furniture shop which display top end art in a home context. The gallery was turned into little scenios, like stage sets waiting for the actors to arrive. The outstanding quality of the art on display made this delicious and not the usual decorative slick art you see in most furniture shops. Bravo to Mark Quint for continuing to offer something new and to Joseph Bellow's for loaning photographs to the show as well. 

Gisela Colon was the opening act with two fabulous orange chairs against a pink wall, it was a feat of bravado to hold the stage with her sculpture that glows and changes as you walk around it. 

Mara de Luca's painting is off set by this fiberglass lamp so perfectly

Gary Lange's  painting is the period to this wonderful purple chair.'s explanation point

Kim MacConnel brackets a study with stereo equipment. You can also hear the pictures

Photo courtesy of Joseph Bellows Gallery