Creative Conversations: Rural & Unincorporated San Diego County

 by Patricia Frischer, Photos by Kira Corrillo Corser

TACA: right to left - Kira Carrillo Corser, Carol Zaleski, Karen Tapane, Nancy Heins-Glaser, Debra Muzikar, and Deanne Salleh.

Creative Conversations: Rural & Unincorporated San Diego County was held on Feb 24, 2026 at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido – Conference Center. It was presented by San Diego ARTMatters (Bob Lehman and Felicia Shaw)  and co-hosting  with North County’s newly formed TACA: The Arts and Culture Alliance of Rural North County San Diego.

If you have never been to an event like this, you have missed a great opportunity for networking with your fellow colleagues. The format after the usual thanks you and introductions was to rotate attendee to different tables after certain time limits. The question posed were the usual asks for needs, barriers and opportunities. Sharing information, getting to know each other, and generating new connections was the real focus.

We were lucky to have a wonderful poet Kara Cordero do a call and respond work so we could all shout out that “Art is not a luxury.” Art is essential and we who were gathered know this down to the very pit of our stomachs, event with a lovely breakfast and lunch served by CCA Escondido. 

Christine Jones newly appointed County of San Diego Manager of Art, Film, and Creative Industries.  

Many VIPs were in attendance including Christine Jones, and a selection of members of the County Arts Commission (not in an official capacity) including Sharlene o"Keefe  from Poway, Jim Gilliam from Oceanside who are also members of the NCAN board. 

What follows is just a sample of a very few of the more interesting, news that was gathered just from a few tables.

The Ramona Art Center is trying to get more Latino involvement as so much of their community is connected. This relatively small community was able to generate 20k in grants  this year. Fallbrook and Julien were all represented and contributed.

Vets Arts is no longer in Fallbrook but has moved to a new facility in Vista where they don’t have a foundry but do have a glass and ceramics lab where last year 700 vets were involved in their programs.  

Local history institutes like Encinitas History Society (EHS) are not just about the past. But  how the community comes together now and in the future. EHS has identified over 900 works of art on view to the public in this one city.

The Front Porch in Carlsbad was told about lesson plans from teaching artist especially about local artists, but not just for students but for seniors. The overriding view was that these and all projects need to be flexible and designed with an open mind to the differences and needs of different cultures, ages, and ethnicities. Senior don’t want to be treated like 3^rd graders.

Rural areas can seem foreign to city dwellers. Many of these communities see themselves as pass through cities. You couple that with the truth that many artists have chosen rural areas because they are isolated. The term Back County Artist was used a number of times. But the mood in the room was that they want to be seen. So, the question remains how do they put out a “Welcome mat”. In fact, what does that welcome mat look like.

There was talk of coming together for joint grants for events that united whole areas together. Studio tours, art walks, concerts, festivals, poetry slam but brought together with fresh food markets, restaurant  and hotel promotions/suggestions. The need for a county wide Public Relations Agency just for the arts.

Ending this conversation was a call for all events in April during Arts, Culture and Creativity month in California. the theme this year is Joy, Action and Power. Please list all visual arts events on SDVAN and all others on NCAN.

ART Matters: Art Work is Real Work

by Patricia Frischer

In San Diego we are still trying to make sure that everyone knows that the arts are essential. Changing the San Diego Regional Arts and Culture Coalitions long-winded name to San Diego ART Matters (SDAM) is a re-branding exercise which strongly makes this point. 

On April 5, some of the great and good in the arts community gathered to celebrate April Arts and Culture Month with the theme Art Work is Real Work. 

Hosted by SDAM, this was also a chance for them to launch their new streamlined strategic plan: Funding and Resources, Creative Workforce, Arts Education, and Coalition Building. Felicia Shaw, the CEO, gave us a brief history demonstrating how activating the arts community can make a political difference. 

Felicia Shaw (Image: Ken Jacque Photography)

Ms. Shaw has managed to build the board to 20 and increased paid staff to a total of 4.   It is a grant from the Prebys Foundation that provided the resources for this growth. They now have offices at UCSD Park and Market building  which also has 4 floors including a Guggenheim concert hall, Media Arts theater, and meeting rooms galore.  The stunning central staircase was utilized  on the day for an electric dance performance.

San Diego Dance Theater (Image: Ken Jacque Photography)

The keynote speaker for this event was Julie Baker, the passionate CEO of the non-profits California Arts Advocate (C4) and Californians for the Arts (C3). We were thrilled to learn that 5 out of the 12 board members are from San Diego. Even better, she told us that involvement once a month in the arts can increase life expectancy by 10 years! One of her current pushes is to get the Arts as Prescription program researched by Dr. Tasha Golden brought to San Diego. 

The bad news is that  although the arts create 8% of the GNP, we rank even behind Florida in our per capita allocation at only $.67. The California Arts Council budget is down below it highest level now and is only $26 million annually. The City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture does better than that distributing $28 million annually.  

We were lucky to get updates from Jim Gilliam, Chair, San Diego County Arts and Culture Commission and from Jonathon Glus, ED of the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture. 

The County Commission which celebrates its first year of existence is announcing its strategic plan on April 25 at the Soap Factory on Commercial Street at 9 am.  Here is a hint: Knowledge, Visibility, Engagement, Communication, Capacity. 

The Arts and Culture plan for the City of San Diego will be asking for public input this summer and hopefully will earn approval from the City council late in 2024 or early 2025. 

The one city and two county strategic plans need lots more work to get them populated with firm ideas and action items. But like Julie Baker said, "We have lots of words, lots of paper."  What we need is $1 per capita spent on the arts. We need spaces for our arts organization and we need affordable housing for artists. We need real financial investment in the arts. We do have an enthusiastic team of art professionals giving their all to make this happen. 

Powerful 3 Js: Jim Gilliam, Julie Baker and Jonathon Glus

 

Not a Nicety, a Necessity: The Arts & Economic Prosperity Report AEP6

 by Patricia Frischer

The Arts andEconomic Prosperity report for 2022 is now published by Americans for the Arts.

The nature of this report is based on statistics and that means numbers. This is mainly because numbers are what governments understand. The stories that go with the numbers are actually art itself, the possible subjects of novels, plays, painting and poems, for example. The government is not “they”, it is people, and people can be affected by stories. So, we need the stories that go with the numbers just as badly as we need the numbers. The presentation by Randy Cohen (Americans for the Arts) of  the AEP6 report tried to supply some of those stories. 

Nationwide, in 2022 the nonprofit arts and culture industry generated $151.7 billion of economic activity. That is $73.3 billion (up from $63.8 billion in AEP5 in 2015) in spending by arts and cultural organizations and an additional $78.4b billion (way, way down from $102.5 billion in AEP5) in event-related expenditures by their audiences.  Over all, the monies contributed to the economy fell from the $166.3 billion recorded in 2015. This is the story of the pandemic and its effect on the arts economy.

The good news is that personal creation in the arts grew by 37% with many people wanting to learn something new at home during COVID. Randy took up knitting! If that continues, art center workshops like those planned in the new Pacific View Art Center in Encinitas could grow in the next few years.

In San Diego County, 7 municipalities and 2 cultural districts (City of San Diego and Balboa Park Cultural District, Oceanside and Oceanside Cultural District, Escondido, Carlsbad, Encinitas, National City, and Coronado) coordinated efforts, representing over 60% of the county's population. This is the first time so many cities joined in the study and that group plans to stay together and hopefully expand.  

AEP6 reveals that San Diego County’s nonprofit arts and culture sector is a $1.3 billion industry (up from $1.1 billion in 2015)—one that supports 19,771 jobs (way down from 35,914 in 2015) and generates $320.7 million (less than half of the $894.4 million in 2015) in local, state, and federal government revenue. We notice lots of vacancies and calls for applicants in San Diego and know that there will be a huge call for art teachers coming up with the passage of CA Prop 28.

The arts contribute socially, culturally, educationally but this aesthetic approach has to be combined with a more pragmatic one. The arts are one of those fields that are local, not imported from abroad. This means the money stays local. And tourists that come to an event averaged a whopping $213 per visit. 

      

Most (86%) would feel a sense of loss if the arts were to disappear. But there were 5 times more job loses in the non-profit arts community than other non-profits. The pandemic money has now stopped, so it is more important than ever to make sure the arts are considered a national asset, and funded accordingly.

Another heartening statistic was that BIPOC communities had similar percentages to non-BIPOC for attendee spending, which means that a great job is being done to start to support that community.  

The study started 30 years ago and this year, 224,000 people interviewed by a total of 373 state/local partners nationwide. Some of these were as small as 4000 in the community.  There were 16,399 non-profits arts organizations (not Broadway or Hollywood) who contributed data. Of course, we know that the non-profit orgs are often the start of a job that feeds that for profit work force. We are lucky in San Diego to have a two-way street with young talent starting here and older talent retiring here. That is one of the reasons why theater is so great and so well respected in our county.

Dr. Genna Styles-Lyas  (top left) hosted the panel during the report presentation with lessons learned by her team charged with this project. So much of what she communicated is applicable in a much wider context. All arts organizations are different, one size does not fit all.  Building relationship is the more important than just data gathering and no project is perfect. You can build out the tools but if you leave out strategies that could be repeated you are making more work for the team. Technical challenges will always be there especially with 25 languages and unconscious bias in the process that has to be acknowledged. The process of securing inclusivity constantly needs refining.  Finally, the 297 representations who gathered the info made this report possible. The community will always be the basis for success and the community helped to gather the info, but then the local art partners learned about that community. It is a two-way street and one that needs time. AEP6 gave that time.

A number of celebrities were on hand to voice support for the arts. 

Josh Groban

Rita Moreno

Fran Drescher

The last thing that was presented was a call for action by Randy Cohen who will be making a presentation in San Diego in the new year. 

Randy Cohen

Advocate for the arts to your local, state and national government. Tell no story without a number, no number without a story. Investing in the arts is an economic advantage for the entire community. The arts help with issues of violence and mental health.

Attend the arts and even try something new. Remember that the arts build empathy and help you learn about other cultures. The arts can reduce feelings of isolation and improve your general quality of life.

Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 Launch Event 

Congressional Briefing of Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6) 

AI GENERATED ART Panel at OMA

 
by Patricia Frischer

To get any a sense of the panel discussion on Artificial Intelligence Generated Art at the Oceanside Museum of Art sponsored by the OMA Artist Alliance, you need to know a bit about the background of each of the speakers. They were chosen to be a wide selection of viewpoints. This panel was suggested by the independent curator Vallo Riberto who consistently presents compelling and intelligent events.

Moderator Greg Klamt is a digital artist. He considers himself a multi-media storyteller.

Panelists:

Memo Akten specializes in creative applications of Artificial Intelligence/Deep Learning with Meaningful Human Control as a

Computational Art and Design Assistant Professor at UCSD,

Stephen Burns is recognized as an Adobe expert with unapparelled skills who specializes in digital creativity.

Kaz Maslanka is a mathematical visual poetry pioneer. He represents the perfect combination of art and science.

Larry Vogel is a sculptor and painter but is using his own extensive body of photographs in collaboration with AI to create new works. He is also co-chair of the OMA Artist Alliance.

 

Moderator Greg Klamt  “If there isn’t a person involved, how can it be art?”

 

Klamt introduced a number of questions but his main thrust was to try to spend the night deciding if AI is creative or destructive. He recognized that AI is changing a lot of the fields of creativity and that there is a tension between traditional digital artists and apps like Dall-E 2 which takes text and turns it into images.  Is it just about the prompts, or does it take more to make good art?  The apps can certainly make beautiful images. And it is easy to use, so many more people can produce visual material. Is AI in art just another progression from other technological inventions like photography?  Or is it a type of fraud as it does not have its own cognition, conscience or creativity? Is it stealing images off the internet?

 

So this discussion in the end sets out to clarify misinformation and encourage people to explore AI.

 

Memo Akten:  AI is “…opening up a new battlefield for concepts.” 

“There is going to be a massive shift in skills.” 

A selection of (camera friendly) work in 4 minutes with voice-over (as of 2020) from Memo Akten on Vimeo.

Akten challenges the way we talk about AI art. These new text-based interface apps that give greater access to all are just a small part of a field that has been around for 80 years. He thinks of himself as a New Media Artist using machine learning, which is not yet like the human brain.  He thinks AI does exhibit creativity but is not conscious yet. There’s a human idea combined with a process that produces an AI image. AI art without the human factor could be art but it might just be bad art. In the art and design industry, AI will take the place of junior and assistant level positions. Relationships may shift as AI democratizes art. When AI used internet images, he feels conflicted, “I don’t think it’s theft, but I don’t think it’s not theft.” But clearly is it unethical to use someone’s creation without paying for it. We don’t appear to have the language we need to talk about AI yet, just like we can’t tell the difference between an AI image by a 6-year-old or a master artist. But with time we will be able to differentiate. And the “transition period is going to be painful.”  “A lot of people will be positively affected. A lot of people will be negatively affected.”

 

Stephen Burns: “AI is a source for inspiration.”

 

Burns is experimenting with NMKD—stable diffusion GUI which has fewer constraints than say Dall-E 2 and is open-based so people can adapt it to their own style.  He starts with his own works but questions if it remains his own. When he puts his twist on AI creations he bases it on his own experiences plus, like all art, it is inspired by other artists and cultures.  Even the “…AI is a source for inspiration.” And if more people can make art because of the ease of entry, that means a lot more happy, excited people who are expressing their vision. His advice to his students is still learn the skills, as people who know their craft will succeed.  Don’t be lazy and rely on AI. Doing something more quickly does not make it better.

 

Kaz Maslanka: “Twenty years from now we won’t even be having this conversation.”  (no one will be trying to separate AI from other art)

 

Maslanka explained that machine learning uses statistical analysis. His own use of mathematical equations is what inspires his visual poetry. Not too many people know about mathematical poetry but every kind of art has its own set of criteria. Think about the complex tasks that machines are using to make art. Defining what is art and what isn’t is an age-old fascinating question. Now the legal system is getting involved. But it seems clear, if you post something on the Internet, anyone who can see it can use it, if only for inspiration.

Larry Vogel  “AI is here to stay and it’s not going away.” 

 

Vogel has no trouble being a prompter, even has the shirt to prove it. “I’m a Prompter—AI.”  He uses AI as a collaborative partner and gives AI full credit alongside his own signature. He even has AI create it own signature chop. He finds the whole process seductive.  But the difficulty of making art, the short efficient or large laborious time spent to make it doesn’t determine if it’s art.  Charles Darwin saie “We have to adapt or die.” Our journey along with our bias depends on our training. Is that fair? Perhaps not, but it leads us ever onward.  AI art will continue to be unique because it is not just a copy of someone else’s art.  “We cannot copyright our style.” 

 

The final question from the audience was: Do AI & humanity need to be separated?

 

Stephen Burns clearly said yes, you have to separate AI from humanity.

 

Larry Vogel said separating AI from humanity is impossible.

 

The last word went to the moderator Greg Klamt “There is an acceptance that it’s here and we have to deal with it.”  Be creative and not destructive. Embracing the new is what keeps us young.

 

Greg Klamt,  MemoAtken, Stephen Burns, Kaz Maslanka, Larry Vogel

Article assist from Claire Slattery and Sidney Wildesmith.

Video, presented by OMA Artist Alliance

 

 

Collectors during the Pandemic

by Patricia Frischer

In a set of interviews by Artsy: 19 Collectors on the Art They Bought in 2020 you can get a good cross section from around the world of how art collectors are reacting to the pandemic.

It was heartening to see that this group of collectors is either still collecting, collecting more, or collecting a bit less but investing directly to help artists.

Collectors are doing more virtual studio tours. They are looking outside of their geographical area. They are attending more art fairs as they can see them all instead of having to pick and choose which to attend physically.  They want personal connections.

Staying at home means they have time to look at, re-hang and access their own collections. This is therapeutic for them. They are researching more and filling gaps in their collections.  They are looking at how the artists are reacting to the pandemic…smaller and more introspective works are appreciated. 

As they are continuing to support large institutions, some are particularly supporting programs that support acquisitions by artist in order to help the artist survive. Inclusivity and diversity are terms that are used often when thinking about what donations to make. They are lending works for shows with those types of themes more and more. Some with big hearts and large properties are even opening studio space for artist or programs impacted by the pandemic.  

Eco-Visionaries EFA Artist Salon Jan 2020

by Patricia Frischer

January 11, Sat from 2 - 4 pm . Eco-Visionaries Artist Salon
California Center for Creative Renewal, 1905 Crest Drive, Encinitas, CA 92024

Our thanks to Ellen Speert, moderator par excellence and host as well as Paul Henry. Both prepared their fabulous CCCR garden for this Artist Salon.

The presentation by the charming Ashley Mazanec was inspiring and interactive. We sang, we even moved!  Check out her EcoArts Foundation and the program where she teaches eco-art at Del Sur Elementary. Here are some more of the organizations she recommends: Parachute Arts, the Artists and Climate Change blog based in New York City and the Climate Science Alliance affiliated artist program based here in San Diego. Ashley was particularly good at naming eco-artists including those interviewed in her Let’s Talk About the Weather podcast: Diane Burko (glacier and climate photo and paint); Zack Rago from chasing coral; eco-artist professors Andrea Polli, Beverly Naidus, and San Diego-based Ruth Wallen; The arctic cycle climate change theater, Israeli artists Doron Gazit and Noam Bedein, comedian Peterson Toscano, and place-based environmental artist David Buckley Borden.

Ellen, William Lesley, Alessandra Colfi and Becky Cohen are hoping to start a branch of Extinction Rebellion  in San Diego and will be visiting the branch in Los Angeles to check it out. Hopefully they will report back on their progress.

We all had a chance to introduce ourselves and talk about our art and our passions. Then our open discussion covered topics related to how can you use your art to advance solutions for environmental concerns.

• Our own personal pain can affect the society as a whole.  That could be a starting place for healing.
  
  
• Another starting place is a sense of place. Broken pieces can be brought together for a new life. Recycling, upcycling are important but more authentic when personal stories are included.
  
  
• Look for appropriateness in your materials, sharing resources and creating balance. The art we make should be made responsibly with eye to the environment and even personal safety.
  
  
• Interactive art is essential element. How you get the public to respond to the work beyond empathy all the way to action.
  
  
• We should integrate art in everything we do: for example for gift giving, using handmade cloth instead of wrapping paper that can used again and again.
  
  
• There is a place for both open aggression and gentle persuasion but a bunch of humor is always a good way to lighten the mood and open the mind to positive suggestions.
  
  
• If you can combine your grants application with other benefit agency grants in collaboration, you could have better luck in succeeding. So look for environmental grants and add art components.

Our next meeting March 14: Portia La Touche Moderator, The Good, Bad and Ugly of art criticism. Please send idea for other Artist Salons to Angela Jackson

You can see a report about the current Endangered: Exploring California's Changing Ecosystems at California Center for the Arts Museum Escondido by Patricia Frischer

End of Year NCAN Arts and Economic Summit Take Aways

By Patricia Frischer

I spent a good part of this year arranging for a North County Arts Network Arts and Economic Summit. It was held in October while I was away in London. So it has taken me some time to review all the presentations, watch the videos and digest the information. I think this is a fitting time to summarize what I learned even though I was a long distance away. These following three take aways, I think, touch the heart of this event.

·       Arts and Culture is Not Just Food for the Soul. It is Food for the Table

·       Arts and Culture is Small Investment for a Large Return

·       Arts and Culture is no longer a charity: It is an economic industry generating approx. $1.1 billion in revenues for San Diego County.

These three succinct statements can be the cornerstone of convincing the community at large, particularly the business section, that supporting the arts is a vital part of the health of the our society, economically and luckily for us all, emotionally as well as many of us know.  

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Industry
Recognize that if you want a creative workforce, you need to support arts education.
Help create a cultural community to attract the best talent.
Support the arts with sponsorships, grants and discounts 

Indulge in the arts by attending art events and encouraging your work force to do the same.

Civic Organization
Make sure you have a staff arts employee
Campaign for % for the arts programs
Facilitate connection between the business community and the arts community

Support the arts with funding which encourage collaborations

Arts Organization and Artist
Stop thinking of yourselves as victims and looking for hand outs.  
Realize you are part of the economic fabric of the community.
Join together to promote the arts and for advocacy issues. You are always stronger together than apart.
Vote and campaign for government candidate that support the arts

As an artist, I am especially concerned with making sure that art products contribute well to certain criteria set out by Americans for the Arts. By thinking about these sets of issues of Aesthetic Perspecitve, you have a better chance of getting grants and creating work that will be seen and appreciated. Here are the Attributes for Excellence in Art for Change.

Communal meaning -  The creative work facilitates collective meaning that transcends individual perspective and experience.

Commitment -  Creative processes and products embody conviction to the cause espoused through the work.

Disruption - Art challenges what is by exposing what has been hidden, posing new ways of being, and modeling new forms of action

Cultural integrity - The creative work demonstrates integrity and ethical use of material with specific cultural origins and context.

Emotional experience -  Arts for Change facilitates a productive movement between “heart space”—the emotional experience that art evokes— and the “head space” of civic or social issues.

Sensory Experience - Vivid sensations deepen the experience of the creative work and heighten the power of its messages and the potential for change.

Risk taking - Creative work assumes risk by subverting dominant norms, values, narratives, standards, or aesthetics.

Openness - The creative work deepens impact by remaining open, fluid, transparent, subject to influence, and able to hold contradiction

Coherence - Strong ideas expressed with clarity advance both artistic and social purposes.

Resourcefulness - Imaginative use of available resources drives artistic innovation and demonstrates responsible social and environmental practice

Stickiness - The creative work achieves sustained resonance, impact, or value.

Finally, we don’t create art to hid it under the bed or in the closet. We are no where unless we have a audience and so to our dear public:

Give generously to non-profit arts organizations,  like San Diego Visual Arts Network,  which promotes the visual arts region wide.
Attend receptions, drink copiously and BUY MORE ART

I matter

by Patricia Frischer

I am a busy person. I don’t like to waste time or effort. I am also a person worried about funding cuts for the arts. So I gamely signed petitions, wrote emails, and even made the occasional call to help those trying to save the status quo for the NEA, CAC, SD Commission for Arts and Culture and the City of Chula Vista City when asked. But I was truly surprised when I learned that these efforts really helped. What I did not know is that there is a formula that converts every contact into a ratio. So each email might, for example, represents 10,000 voters in the state. That makes a big difference to me. I like knowing that my time and effort is not wasted and that these seemingly small acts are relevant and can result in changes.

The City of San Diego passed the 2018 budget. It reduced the cuts to San Diego’s arts and culture funding from 31% to 3.5%. While less than ideal, this much smaller budget cut is great news for keeping most programs intact and minimizing job loss. This news comes from Rise Up for the Arts.

PLUS: the Chula Vista City Council voted unanimously to support a budget compromise that keeps the city's Cultural Arts program, and other important city programs, intact. The council’s action averts the potential layoff of 10 – 15 city employees, and other cutbacks, that would have eliminated the positions of the Cultural Arts Program Manager, the Marketing and Communications Manager, an Economic Development Specialist, two Code Enforcement officers and more. Thanks to Patricia Aguilar, Chula Vista Councilperson for this great update.

PLUS, PLUS: Grants totaling $15,032,837 have been awarded to various nonprofit organizations statewide this year by the California Arts Council. A total of 1,076 grantees will receive state grant funding for their work spanning the Arts Council's 15 unique program categories, benefiting California's students, veterans, arts educators, at-risk youth, formerly incarcerated individuals, underserved populations, and communities at large.

PLUS, PLUS, PLUS: it appears that the NEA and Public Broadcasting will not now be cut if the congress holds strong on these matters.  

At the American for the Arts Conference held in San Francisco this month, there were many wonderful sessions and they are all available via their YouTube page. I liked the presentation during Art and Politics in the Trump era by Sofia Klatzker,  Executive Director of Arts for LA in charge of art advocacy in Los Angeles.  I found her to do list for local action very concrete. She advocates for each community to declare an arts day, arts week and then arts month. Get out and do candidate surveys and post them online and then hold candidate forums in association with the league of women’s voters. Work to make non-profit art sites into polling places and add a performance or exhibition on the day. Do briefings about what is occurring and build local coalitions to mobilize when needed. And most importantly activate the youth. She has an 8 month training session that culminates with an advocacy project of their choice. And there is a program where volunteers actually walk young voters to the polls with slogans like “I matter”.

Finally, we are seeing many artist that are being activist i.e. artivist. Don’t Shut Up curated by Linda Litteral produced by FIG  (founder Anna Stump) is at City Gallery AH314, San Diego City College  (1508 C Street, SD 92101)  with an opening reception on July 8 from 5 to 8 pm and a panel discussion July 13 from 6 to 8 pm, and an artist talk on July 20 on 5 to 8 pm. Female-led art and activism  focused on raising women’s voices on an assortment of issues is featured. This exhibition includes an activist quilt featuring 40 blocks from all over the United States including San Diego. The opening reception will also feature a political postcard writing station by Lori Lipsman and spoken word performance by poet Stacy Dyson. This event runs until July 26.