Shinpei Takeda & James E. Watts and Oceanside Unfiltered

by Patricia Frischer

Shinpei Takeda, James E. Watts, Zach Cordner

Oceanside Museum of Art

Shinpei Takeda: Limit of Your Safe Space until Sept 11
James E. Watts until July 17

Oceanside Unfiltered until May 29

 

Shinpei Takeda: Limit of Your Safe Space
Until Sept 11

Those familiar with Shinpei Takeda’s woven works know that he gives us a wonderful all encompassing experience of space, both airy and solid at the same time. Often there has been a underlaying message about the state of the world giving additional meaning to the works. The large art that greets you at the entrance to this exhibition with it grand scale and barbed wire interior speaks to those past works.

But in this show in which he explores both virtual and augmented reality, he reaches out to the community to ask, “How do you define your own safe space?”  Many of us consider our homes a safe space after more than 2 years of a global pandemic. We see Ukrainians in the daily news struggling for a sense of safety. But there are people who are not just affected by temporary crisis, but deal with displacement and combat long term.   He choose five people around the world who became collaborators in this process of defining safety and to do that he had to create a safe space for them to communicate.

For this project, communication took the active form of 2d and 3d object design. To show off the results, there is one virtual reality scene created where you don goggles.  There are also five more augmented realities that you access with your smart phone. And to make your feel comfortable and safe there are woven chair hammocks instead of benches for easy viewing. (Hint: to get out of the chair hammock, just back up until you are standing!). There is also a video presentation of the workshops he arranged.   

This exhibition is supposed to open conversations about what it means to feel safe from discrimination, criticism, harassment, and any other emotional or physical harm in society and in emerging virtual spaces. You need time to do this so allow plenty when you visit. 

Shinpei Takeda

Shinpei Takeda - detail

Shinpei Takeda - virtual reality

Shinpei Takeda - augmented reality

Shinpei Takeda

Shinpei Takeda - detail

View from front of gallery to the rear of gallery. Photo: Shinpei Takeda

James E. Watts

until July 17

The James Watts Institute for Artistic Behavior is the private domain/library/playhouse of an artist inspired by literature.  He attaches pieces of printed metal scrap  which have their own stories to wooden bases. So there are layers and layers of meaning in this almost life sized gathering of a variety of characters. There are jokes and unexpected juxtapositions plus hand carved stone additions that seems to add a bit of gravitas.  Beth Smith has included some of our favorite works in this mini-retrospective. The charming set of Perfect Day Quilts and flower vases are also available in the gift shop. 

 

James Watts - Flowers

James Watts - flowers

James Watts - Perfect Day Quilt

James Watts - detail

James Watts - Frankenstein

James Watts - Quosimoda, Esmealda, and Goat

James Watts - Don Quixote, Sancho Panza and horses

Oceanside Unfiltered 
until May 29

Zach Cordner has put together a great cross section of images of the underbelly of Oceanside which are fascinating and not as frightening as you might have expected.  Two of his own works are included but are not the usual celebrity images of his you might see in Rolling Stone magazine. The Jordan Verdin wall of homeless people is especially beautiful….yes, beautiful and you can see it at the sample video at the top of the page. A video in the exhibition by 2thabrain with its tattoos and jacked up muscle cars is worth the 9 plus minutes that it runs.  

Other local photographers include Dominic Cooley, Sergio Garcia, Robby Gogatz, Trevor J, Charlie Neuman, Jens Ochlich, Brookes Reeder, Cameron Reeder, JT Rhoades, Edna Navarrete, Adam Ruzzamenti, David Stoddard and Andres Ximenez.

Zach Cordner

Zach Cordner

A new shelf for the Museum Store

Allan Marrow

Allan Marrow - After the Fire, limited edition linocuts

The next exhibition at OMA is A Kind of Heaven from May 21 to August 21^st.

Kinetics Art that Moves You at ARTS

by Patricia Frischer

Dylan Allen – this student who is only 10 years old wants this work to denote the transfer of ideas from one person to another.

This STEAM inspired Art Show by (ARTS) A Reason To Survive shows 25 local artists curated by Yvette Roman including ARTS students, teaching artists at ARTS and artists in our own San Diego community. The beautiful high ceilings at this space make it a joy to view. We selected a just a handful of works to showcase, but watch this space for more exciting exhibitions including the Spring Community ARTS Open House Exhibition on Sat May 14^th from 10 am to 1:30 pm.

Autumn Sno – You can touch these works gently to watch the 3 Wednesday Adsams dance in a 3d performance

Patty Rangel – This analog hologram shows without 3d glasses. It uses a Helium-Neon laser,

Retro Millenial – The image of the heart is the code that runs the beating heart of the robot,

Kelsey Kenny – A glass crown to celebrate the resilience of all matter in an ever-turning cycle.

Kazmier Maslanka – This mathematical poet uses equations to compare and contrast concepts of interest to us all. In this piece Emptiness is to Form what Form is to Emptiness. The ideas of emptiness are seen in both the Mayan creation story and the Heart Sutra of Zen Buddhism which are used to enhance the image.

Kazmier Maslanka

Christian Garcia-Olivo – Originally made to honor the Black Lives Matter movement, but frustration and anger morphed this work to become “Untitled Black Skin” The companion piece is where the white napkin has been ripped to reveal the true colors.( and below)

Christian Garcia-Olivo

Maxx Moses with the students of Sweetwater High School. No the pedals do not rotate the bicycle wheels to create the color explosions in the kaleidoscope but it is just as effective when manipulated by hand.

 

Video were chosen for works that actually shift since Kinetic in general denotes a moving object: Christopher Schaie, Kelsey Kenny, Retro Millenial, Maxx Moses, Rob Tobin. (First: Christopher Schaie – Golden Coils mimics a lot of the fundamental shapes in nature (flowers, leaves, shells, octopus) and gently undulates. Last: Rob Tobin – the title tells it all. The Jimi Hendrex Experience Experience: Delight in da’Light

List of other artist included: Chad Berwald, Kaitlyn C Killion, Collaboration: Ale Ruiz Tostado and Luis Bello, SPNCR FLDS, FURVO, Scott Gengelbach, Christopher Lloyd Tucker, Jose Lopez, Melodiadeamore, Jolene Moore, Mariano F. Muñoz, Sheena Rae Dowling, Verenice, Rios, Shirish Villaseñor and Heather Ybarra

ARTS A Reason to Survive

200 E 12th Street, National City, CA 91950
(619)297-2787  hello@areasontosurvive.org

Patti’s Spirit Lives On

 by Lonnie Burstein Hewitt. Photos by Lonnie & Maurice Hewitt.

 

A still from the 10-minute video loop at the entry to the Patti’s Spirit Lives! exhibition at ICA Central in Balboa Park. Patti’s daughter Molli, who created the video loop, remembers her mom heading straight for the Y-site, saying: “Why not? We should always ask Y.”

 

Patti’s Spirit Lives! —a special exhibition celebrating the life and art of Patti Cooprider (1940-2021)—was recently on view through what would have been her 82^nd birthday weekend, April 27-May 1, 2022. Patti’s artworks may have left the walls of ICA Central, but her spirit remains in the hearts of all those who knew her. Here are some of the images you could have seen at ICA.

 Another Patti pose.

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Patti with her husband of 62 years, “Coop” Cooprider.

     

An assemblage of some of the thousands of hand-painted cards Patti sent to friends during her lifetime, sharing a wall with several of her son Kyle’s artworks (see below). Friends sent in their cards to be part of the exhibition.

 

Ten of Patti’s colorful paintings.

 There was a Patti’s Spirit Lives! Donor Preview on the evening of April 27, but none of the art was for sale. “What we were selling was Patti’s dream,” Cooprider said, quoting something he had heard his wife say many times: “My dream is that every child in the world experience the creation and love of art.”

Through ICA, a charitable fund has been established in Patti’s honor to provide free arts experiences to underserved young San Diegans with ArtReach, A Reason To Survive, Art Bus Xpress and other ICA partners. Many donations have already been made to Patti’s Spirit Lives KidsArtEdFund, and you can add your own by contacting Gaela Fernandez Florin, ICA’s Director of Advancement at gaela@icasandiego.org. It’s a lovely way to ensure that Patti’s spirit lives on.

 

The Great Wall of Patti’s Spirit Lives!

Lonnie Burstein Hewitt is an award-winning author/lyricist/playwright who has been writing about arts and lifestyles in San Diego County for over a dozen years. You can reach her at hew2@sbcglobal.net.